Dreams reflect our experiences, memories, and what we know and learn—but also contextualize it in the inexplicable, unknown realm of our subconscious, which is perhaps the reason why we struggle a bit to remember our dreams. Given the nature and process of dreaming is not exclusive only to humans, the idea of having a shared dream space doesn’t seem too wild—something that The Edge of Sleep, the six-episode miniseries starring Youtuber Markiplier, tries to explore through a heady dose of psychological, Lovecraftian horror. In The Edge of Sleep’s ending, as key characters begin to grasp the nature of the central crisis in the form of a dream pandemic, viewers find more questions than answers. There are certain references from world myths, primeval archetypes, and symbolisms that the series integrates into the narrative to create its exclusive mythos, which is at the same time universal in nature. Deciphering as many of these as possible, I will like to share my assumptions regarding the questions raised by The Edge of Sleep series.
Spoilers Ahead
Dream People and Elephant Monster
Dave had suffered from chronic, recurrent night terrors since his childhood, and in his nightmares he was traumatized by images of death, violence, a shape of an equilateral triangle, but most importantly, a terrifying, grotesque elephant monster who haunted him in the dreams. As the dream pandemic began, Dave ventured into his dreams to find answers and confronted the elephant monster once again. However, as an opposing force to the presence of this creature, Dream People—a cult of strange attire-clad beings—were always present in Dave’s dreams as well, who advised him to seek refuge on the mystical island of Aristera.
As Dave, Matteo, Linda, and Katie travel to the island, Katie breathes her last as her fatigued mind gives in to sleep. After crash landing in the ocean and reaching the shore of the island, Dave and co. get subjected to vicious psychic torment as reality begins to get distorted at the hands of the mystical elephant monster, which really drives home the point of the creature being inspired from Lovecraftian mythos. In the end, Dave manages to overcome his mental afflictions and, along with Matteo and Linda, gets invited to the establishment of the order of mysterious Dream People. As Dave learns that there are more people like him spread across the globe who were tormented in their dreams, we learn a bit more about the Elephant Monster, as it is a metaphysical demonic avatar of evil that preys on people in their dreams and appears to each individual in different forms. It is a nightmare boogeyman of sorts, referred to as Beast; for a close comparison, we can assume the being to be something like Corinthian—the nightmare servant of Dream of the Endless in DC Comics. In Greek mythology, the dream god Phobetor appeared in various animalistic forms to the beings it tormented. At present, the Beast has killed the majority of the world’s population by haunting them in their nightmares, and only a few chosen ones who managed to escape its clutches reached the order of the Dream People and were able to survive. The ones who fell to the Beast eventually got resurrected as its undead thralls, with the dark triangle reflecting in their eyes, suggesting complete subjugation to evil.
The Dream People remain an enigmatic presence in the series, a cult of unknown origin who are assisted by hovering whales in their quest to set up a telepathic barrier against the Beast, creating a refuge for what remains of humanity in the process. The order is ancient, and with a monolithic pyramid as their base of operation, it seems they might be of cosmic origin. As The Edge of Sleep ends, it seems like an inevitable conflict between the last surviving humans and the Beast’s thralls is about to begin, and the realm of the subconscious will act as the battlefield.
The Significance of the Whale and the Triangle
World mythologies have revered whales and similar cetaceans as mystical spirits of unknown depth, from the primordial womb. In various cultures, whales are compared to the foundation of creation itself, with some equating them with the cycle of rebirth. In several Mesoamerican and Asian cultures, whales are compared to divine guardian spirits, acting as a guiding presence, and a spiritual understanding of them likens the creatures to a bridge between conscious, subconscious, and unconscious, thereby directly linking them with dreams. Interestingly enough, having the biggest brains among all the creatures of the world, whales can dream as well, and their behavioral patterns signify a certain enigmatic presence as well. In the context of the narrative, it seems a confluence of these multiple interpretations of these majestic creatures was taken, and these telepathic, cosmic whales act as the protectors of humanity in the realm of dreams. On the other hand, the triangle that is associated with the Beast seems like an unholy subversion of the Holy Trinity or similar iconographies that involve the presence of three. The equilateral triangle signifies unity, unbroken bond, and equilibrium, which in the association of the beast implies an evil union. In the Lovecraftian horror movie The Color Out of Space, an equilateral triangle invoked a presence of cosmic horror, and similar connotation seems to have been applied here as well.
Dream Chamber and Modafalyst Pills
Aside from the cosmic iconographies and symbols, two particular elements seem to play a bigger role in the upcoming season. One of which is the Dream Chamber created by Dr. Castenada, which allows the monitoring and influencing of dreams, although controlling dreams turns out to be an overstatement on the part of the doctor as the Beast kills him by controlling Dave through dreams. In The Edge of Sleep, the heavily marketed Modafalyst pills, which allow its consumers to stay awake for prolonged periods, play a unique role as well, and it almost seems that the order of Dream People had been secretly involved in its creation, knowing that the Beast will attack people in sleep through nightmares. As the series unveils new depths of horror in the upcoming season, perhaps we will get more answers regarding all these.