(Above): The Gravity Falls Introduction, teased on Disney Channel on June 15th, 2012, and officially aired on June 29th, 2012.
How’d you find it?
A brother was starving for another show to watch in my spare time. I had stacked up hours on Instagram and Snapchat, cycling through what appeared to just be the same content. I wanted something that engaged my brain, something that tickled in the back of my mind. Eventually, a YouTube channel I used to watch called Game Theory came up with a small clip. The clip was from arguably the most famous person on the channel, that being MatPat. He was notorious in the content creation industry for his insane theory videos, some of them being hours long. These theories also tended to come out to be true, which made the running joke that MatPat had pressured the creators of the content he was analyzing to make the story the way he said it because of how in-depth the explanations were. The point is that he made a video that shocked everyone since we all wanted to see his opinion on a new piece of content that dropped from a show that was very popular in the 2010s called Gravity Falls. This video was different though, and intrigued me, because MatPat surprisingly told the internet that we were “on our own” when it came to this piece of content, but expressed that you’d have to watch the show in its entirety to understand what this was about.
The most interesting thing about this, from what I had seen while viewing various spoilers before watching it for myself, is that the main villain, Bill Cipher, ended up being wiped away after being trapped inside the grandfather’s (Grunkle Stan’s) memories as they were being erased by the two protagonists of the show, twins Dipper and Mabel. When this final episode dropped, the audience thought the story had come to an end. That is, until the creator of the series, Alex Hirsch, dropped an interesting book titled “The Book of Bill.” This book caused viewers who had already seen the series to comb through once again, looking for all the hints dropped by the geometrical antagonist, as well as bringing in a second generation of viewers since my generation (those born in the 2000s) had the pleasure of experiencing this show as episodes dropped.
The book was promoted as if Alex Hirsch was manipulated into making a deal with Bill Cipher, who would then possess his body and attempt to take over the world by striking a deal with the reader, saying that he would give us, the reader, information if we shook his hand (which one could do by simply turning the page to continue reading the book.
The viewing experience
Needless to say, at this point I was intrigued. However, I had to shut off the app whenever I saw anything relating to the Book of Bill, since I wanted to experience the show firsthand before reading the research that others had done on the series, and eventually read the Book of Bill for myself. After receiving Disney+ from my roommate for quite a huge discount (he only pays around 10 bucks a month, I gave him a crisp fiver so I could watch the show.)
Firstly, I must say once again, that the intro song is such a banger, and one thing I love the most is that it changes according to the arc that is taking place. For example, in the final arc of the show where our twin protagonists face Bill Cipher head-on (dubbed “Weirdmagedon” due to the entire town of Gravity Falls and its residents being forced to hold off a series of strange monsters created by Bill Cipher to attempt to leave the town and take over the rest of the world) received its intro, with the song being pitched down, static everywhere and Bill Cipher having taken over the entirety of the intro that used to consist of the character’s introductions.
Some episodes seemed to be sort of insignificant and unrelated to the greater plot of the show. However, I was sorely mistaken. It turns out that every time an episode occurs where Mabel and Dipper’s lives are in danger, it is simply another possibility in the infinite world of chances for the twins to perish. When reading The Book of Bill, I would come to find out that there is only one universe where the twins make it to the end of the show and survive the summer. This made the experience all the more chilling for me when I finished the show and realized this, Mabel and Dipper didn’t have plot armor, they made it out because they were lucky enough to be the twins that survived out of the infinite Mabels and Dippers that didn’t.
Features
I think the biggest feature that makes Gravity Falls such a unique show is the foreshadowing and storytelling. The Book of Bill gives insight into some strange events that occurred within the show, such as the ending where Bill Cipher was erased due to being trapped inside the mind of Grunkle Stan. I attached a clip before where it appears that Bill was speaking in gibberish or a foreign language.
However, thanks to the Book of Bill, you’d find out that if you play the clip backward, Bill Cipher says: “A X O L O T L! My time has come to burn! I invoke the ancient power that I may return.” This Axolotl is the Gravity Falls Universe’s version of God, a being even more powerful than Bill Cipher. The reader would also discover that Bill did not die and instead sent himself to the Axolotl God himself.
It’s a cool feature and makes the reader understand that when Bill Cipher inevitably makes his way back to the universe, all hell will break loose.
Algorithms
Multiple algorithms went into play here. The For You page on my Youtube Shorts is what informed me that this book existed, therefore reminding me of the show and how I never watched it. The Book of Bill was a Barnes and Noble exclusive. I would consider the entire store an algorithm because there are many recommendations, and in the past, I’ve found some of my favorite series by simply browsing through the sections after reading a book that was available there.
I highly recommend you give this show a watch if you want something that’s going to make you think, but keep you engaged. The show is ahead of its time and is something that you can watch as a kid and adult and thoroughly enjoy.
