Film Theory: Bill Cipher is Still ALIVE… and I Found Him! (Gravity Falls)

The Film Theorists
3 Mar 202422:19

Summary

TLDRMatPat from The Game Theorists dives deep into the beloved animated series Gravity Falls, exploring the intricate world created by Alex Hirsch. He presents a compelling theory that Hirsch himself is possessed by the show's iconic villain, Bill Cipher, and is fighting against Bill's influence through his subsequent creative projects. MatPat meticulously dissects clues from the show, books, and Hirsch's career, drawing parallels between the Zodiac symbols and Hirsch's various works. While admittedly fictional, the theory celebrates Hirsch's genius in crafting a show that ignited the theorizing community and left a lasting impact on fans worldwide.

Takeaways

  • 📺 Gravity Falls is celebrated as a pioneering animated series that engaged its fanbase with mysteries, codes, and theorizing, making it a favorite among viewers.
  • 📝 The creator of Gravity Falls, Alex Hirsch, is praised for his ahead-of-time integration of complex storytelling and interactive elements within the show.
  • 📈 The script emphasizes the impact of Gravity Falls on fan engagement and theorizing, underscoring its unique place in animated series history.
  • 💬 A CRAZY THEORY suggests that Alex Hirsch, the creator, could be possessed by Bill Cipher, the show's antagonist, blending reality with fiction.
  • 🔍 The Blacklight Edition of Journal Three unveils new lore and mysteries, adding depth to the Gravity Falls universe and sparking new theories.
  • 🚨 The theory elaborates on how Bill Cipher's influence extends beyond the show, potentially affecting the real world and its creator, Alex Hirsch.
  • 📚 The real-world activities, like the Cipher Hunt and special editions of Journal Three, extend the Gravity Falls experience beyond the screen.
  • 💁‍♂️ Connections between Gravity Falls lore and other works by Alex Hirsch suggest a larger, interconnected universe and ongoing battle against Bill Cipher.
  • 📲 The sponsor segment with Rocket Money is seamlessly integrated into the narrative, highlighting the practical aspects of managing subscriptions.
  • 🌐 The script concludes with a reflection on the impact of Gravity Falls and theorizing as a form of engagement, thanking Alex Hirsch for his contributions.

Q & A

  • What is the significance of the blacklight edition of Journal Three in the context of this theory?

    -The blacklight edition of Journal Three, an exclusive piece of Gravity Falls merchandise, contains additional lore and hidden messages written by Bill Cipher himself, implying that he may have possessed the show's creator, Alex Hirsch, in the real world.

  • What evidence suggests that Alex Hirsch may be possessed by Bill Cipher?

    -The main pieces of evidence include: Bill's message directly written behind Alex's picture in the Journal Three foreword, the intro sequence during Weirdmageddon referring to Alex as 'Created by Bill Cipher,' the official Penguin Random House blurb for Alex's 'Book of Bill' denying rumors of demonic possession, and Alex's past Reddit AMA being taken over by Bill.

  • Why would Bill Cipher want to escape the two-dimensional world of Gravity Falls and enter the real world?

    -In the show, Bill expresses his desire to escape the 'flat minds in a flat world with flat dreams' of the second dimension. As a being who seeks to take on a physical three-dimensional form, Bill would likely want to enter the real, three-dimensional world inhabited by the show's creators.

  • What is the significance of the Bill Cipher Zodiac in the context of this theory?

    -The theory suggests that the symbols of the Bill Cipher Zodiac, which was built up as a prophecy to defeat Bill but never fully paid off in the show, may represent the various projects that Alex Hirsch has worked on throughout his career. Completing these projects could be a metaphorical way for Hirsch to 'banish' Bill Cipher.

  • How does the theory connect the symbols of the Bill Cipher Zodiac to Alex Hirsch's career projects?

    -The theory draws parallels between the symbols and Hirsch's involvement in shows like Gravity Falls, Inside Job, The Owl House, and others, suggesting that each symbol represents a different project Hirsch has worked on or will work on in the future.

  • What is the underlying message or theme behind this theory?

    -The theory presents a meta-narrative where Alex Hirsch, a creator known for embedding mysteries and theories within his work, has potentially seeded the idea of him battling Bill Cipher through his various projects, as a nod to the theorist community he helped inspire.

  • How does the theory explain the lack of payoff for the Bill Cipher Zodiac in the show's finale?

    -The theory suggests that the Zodiac's lack of payoff in the show was intentional, as Hirsch may have planned for its fulfillment to happen through his real-life career projects, metaphorically 'banishing' Bill Cipher once all the projects represented by the symbols are completed.

  • What is the significance of the Cipher Hunt ARG in relation to this theory?

    -The Cipher Hunt ARG, which led fans to a real-life Bill Cipher statue and a copy of Journal Three with a blacklight, is seen as further evidence of Hirsch's willingness to blur the lines between fiction and reality, setting the stage for the meta-narrative proposed by this theory.

  • How does the theory address the seemingly absurd idea of a fictional character possessing a real person?

    -The theory acknowledges the absurdity of the idea but suggests that Alex Hirsch, as a dedicated theorist himself, would be the type of creator to intentionally seed such an esoteric and far-fetched meta-narrative into his works as a nod to the theorist community.

  • What is the overall tone and purpose of this theory?

    -While the theory presents an outlandish and fictional idea, the overall tone is one of appreciation and respect for Alex Hirsch's contributions to inspiring the theorist community. The theory serves as a creative way to analyze Hirsch's body of work and pay tribute to his impact on the genre of theorizing.

Outlines

00:00

🎬 A Fond Farewell to Gravity Falls

The opening paragraph captures the presenter's final exploration into the world of Gravity Falls, reflecting on its unique elements and fan-driven theories. It highlights the series' impact, from its cryptic messages and engaging mysteries to its creator, Alex Hirsch's, significant contributions and personal interactions with the fanbase. The paragraph sets the stage for a deep dive into the series, teasing an intriguing theory about the real-world implications of the show's content and creator.

05:02

🔍 Unveiling Gravity Falls' Deepest Secrets

This segment delves into the intricate details revealed by the blacklight edition of Journal Three, emphasizing Gravity Falls' influence on human history and civilization through the actions of Bill Cipher. It introduces a compelling theory that Alex Hirsch, the show's creator, is metaphorically possessed by Bill Cipher, drawing parallels between the character's in-show actions and Hirsch's real-world activities. The narrative suggests that Hirsch's creative output might be a battleground for Bill's influence, engaging the audience with a mix of canon facts and speculative interpretation.

10:03

🌌 Bill Cipher's Quest for Three-Dimensionality

The third paragraph discusses Bill Cipher's dissatisfaction with his two-dimensional existence and his desire to invade the three-dimensional world, using Alex Hirsch as a conduit. It also introduces a sponsorship segment in a playful tone, connecting it back to the ongoing narrative of deciphering the mysteries of Gravity Falls. The theory suggests that the real-world activities and projects of Alex Hirsch are part of an elaborate scheme to combat Bill Cipher's influence, weaving a meta-narrative that extends beyond the confines of the show.

15:05

🌀 Crossing Dimensions: Bill Cipher's Influence

This section outlines how Bill Cipher's presence extends across various media franchises, suggesting his ability to traverse dimensions, including our own. It explores the idea that a real-world Bill Cipher statue signifies a deeper connection between Hirsch and Cipher, hinting at ongoing battles and mysteries to be solved. The paragraph weaves together elements from the show, ARGs, and other projects to craft a narrative of interdimensional influence and potential real-world implications.

20:07

🔮 Alex Hirsch's Career: A Battle Against Bill

The final paragraph ties together the overarching theory: Alex Hirsch's career and projects symbolically represent a fight against Bill Cipher, paralleled by the Bill Cipher Zodiac. It suggests that Hirsch's work across various shows and projects serves as a metaphorical battleground against Bill, potentially culminating in the character's ultimate defeat. The summary concludes with a heartfelt appreciation for Hirsch's influence on the theorizing community and a playful readiness to join the fight against Bill.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Gravity Falls

Gravity Falls is the name of the Disney animated series that is the focus of the video. It follows the adventures of twins Dipper and Mabel Pines as they spend the summer in the mysterious town of Gravity Falls, Oregon. The show is known for its intricate mysteries, codes, and lore, which encouraged fans to theorize and unravel its secrets. As the creator's favorite series, it pioneered the trend of shows designed to inspire fan theories and discussions.

💡Bill Cipher

Bill Cipher is the main antagonist of Gravity Falls, a powerful interdimensional demon with godlike powers who aims to take over the three-dimensional world. He possesses a triangular form with a single eye and is depicted as a malevolent and manipulative entity. The video suggests that Bill Cipher may have possessed the show's creator, Alex Hirsch, in the real world, and that Hirsch's subsequent projects are part of his efforts to banish Bill Cipher.

💡Theorizing

Theorizing refers to the act of analyzing and speculating about the hidden meanings, symbols, and mysteries within a work of fiction. The video highlights how Gravity Falls was one of the pioneering shows that actively encouraged fan theorizing by embedding codes, clues, and mysteries within its episodes. The show's creator, Alex Hirsch, is described as a 'theorist through and through,' who intentionally built the show with hidden secrets for viewers to decode and theorize about.

💡Blacklight Edition of Journal Three

Journal Three is a central artifact in the Gravity Falls universe, containing information about the paranormal phenomena in the town. The 'Blacklight Edition of Journal Three' is a special, limited-edition version of the real-world Journal Three merchandise that included additional content and secrets only visible under a blacklight. The video suggests that this edition contains clues hinting at Bill Cipher's possession of Alex Hirsch in the real world.

💡Zodiac

In Gravity Falls, the Zodiac is a mysterious symbol featuring ten different icons, each representing a character from the show. It is set up as a prophecy for the ultimate way to defeat Bill Cipher, with the characters needing to unite and fulfill the symbols. The video theorizes that these symbols may correspond to different projects Alex Hirsch has worked on throughout his career, and that completing the 'Zodiac' through these projects will help banish Bill Cipher.

💡Alternate Reality Game (ARG)

An Alternate Reality Game (ARG) is an interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, incorporating various media and puzzles for players to solve. The video mentions the 'Cipher Hunt,' an ARG set up by Alex Hirsch after the end of Gravity Falls to keep fan interest alive. This ARG involved cryptograms, real-world locations, and even a hidden statue of Bill Cipher, further fueling the theory of Bill Cipher's existence in the real world.

💡Possession

Possession refers to the act of a supernatural entity, such as a demon, taking control of a person's body or mind. The video suggests that Bill Cipher, the interdimensional demon from Gravity Falls, may have possessed the show's creator, Alex Hirsch, in the real world. This possession is evidenced by various clues and references within Hirsch's works, as well as a Reddit AMA that was supposedly conducted by Bill Cipher while Hirsch was asleep.

💡Easter Eggs

Easter Eggs are hidden messages, references, or clues intentionally embedded within a work of fiction or media. The video highlights how Gravity Falls was filled with numerous Easter Eggs, such as coded messages, backwards whispers, and hidden symbols, all designed to encourage fan theorizing and exploration of the show's mysteries. These Easter Eggs are seen as potential clues to the larger theory of Bill Cipher's possession of the show's creator.

💡Multiverse

A multiverse is a theoretical concept in which multiple universes or realities exist in parallel. The video suggests that Bill Cipher, being an interdimensional being, has the ability to traverse different universes or realities, including potentially our own. This concept is used to explain how Bill Cipher could have crossed over from the fictional world of Gravity Falls into the real world, where he may have possessed the show's creator.

💡Meta-Narrative

A meta-narrative, or meta-fiction, is a story that self-consciously addresses its own fictional nature or the process of its creation. The video presents a meta-narrative theory where the real-world creator of Gravity Falls, Alex Hirsch, is actively battling against the show's fictional antagonist, Bill Cipher, through the various projects he has worked on. This meta-narrative blurs the line between fiction and reality, creating a layer of self-awareness within Hirsch's body of work.

Highlights

Alex Hirsch, creator of Gravity Falls, is possessed by Bill Cipher in the real world, just like what happened to characters like Dipper, Ford, and Stan in the series.

The blacklight edition of Journal Three contains notes written by Bill Cipher, suggesting that he can puppeteer Ford's body while he's asleep, implying that he might be doing the same with Alex Hirsch.

In the show's intro during Weirdmageddon, the 'Created by Alex Hirsch' title card is replaced with 'Created by Bill Cipher'.

The official description for Alex Hirsch's upcoming book 'Book of Bill' states 'Despite the rumors, he was not possessed by a demon while writing this book', suggesting a meta-narrative.

In 2015, during a scheduled Reddit AMA, Bill Cipher took over and confirmed he was using Alex Hirsch's body while he slept.

The Bill Cipher Zodiac symbols in Gravity Falls correspond to various projects Alex Hirsch has worked on over the years, implying that Hirsch is using his career to banish Bill Cipher.

The six-fingered handprint represents Gravity Falls itself, while the shooting star represents Kid Cosmic, the question mark represents Inside Job, and the pentagram represents The Owl House.

The glasses symbol aligns with Mitchells vs. the Machines, the tree symbol with Amphibia, and the cracked heart with Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack.

The oyster symbol could represent Fish Hooks, and the ice cubes might represent the Super Mario Brothers movie Hirsch was initially attached to.

The llama symbol is speculated to represent Hirsch's final project, which would complete the Zodiac and banish Bill Cipher.

Gravity Falls pioneered the trend of building shows with hidden secrets, lore, and mysteries for fans to decode and theorize about.

Alex Hirsch is praised for inspiring the community of Theorists and allowing fans to unravel mysteries within his work.

The theory acknowledges the fictional nature of Alex Hirsch battling an interdimensional demon through his cartoons but recognizes his penchant for seeding such ideas into his works.

The host expresses gratitude towards Alex Hirsch for his contributions to the Theorist community and for inspiring a beautiful community.

The host offers to help Alex Hirsch defeat Bill Cipher if needed, further emphasizing the meta-narrative and the playful engagement with the fictional premise.

Transcripts

00:00

He broke childhoods just a little, by solving each and every riddle, but as his tenure reaches

00:08

end, brains will break and minds will bend, as we answer one last query, with a final

00:14

CRAZY THEORY.

00:16

*Maniacal laughter*

00:24

Hello Internet, welcome to Film Theory, the show that knows that when there's no cops

00:29

around, anything's legal.

00:30

Today, after six long years, we're finally jumping back into the wild world of Gravity

00:35

Falls.

00:36

In case you don't know, Gravity Falls was a Disney series all about the twins Dipper

00:39

and Mabel Pines, who are set to spend the summer with their great uncle Stan at the

00:42

town of Gravity Falls, Oregon.

00:44

However, things are strange in this neighborhood.

00:47

There are cryptids in the woods, codes to crack, mysteries to unravel.

00:50

By the end of the series, Dipper, Mabel, and all of their friends are facing off against

00:53

the malevolent Bill Cipher, a universe-hopping demon from the second dimension who possesses

00:58

god-like powers and wants to take over the three-dimensional world.

01:02

Every element of this show was awesome, it is without question my single favorite animated

01:07

series of all time, and honestly, it was the pioneer in getting a fanbase to start theorizing

01:12

about your show.

01:13

I mean, there are many kids' cartoons out there that have every episode start with whispered

01:16

backwards text or end with a coded message buried in the credits.

01:19

The show's creator, Alex Hirsch, was just way ahead of his time on that one.

01:23

And not only is he a talented creator, he's also just a really awesome guy.

01:27

He actually came out to our final charity livestream a few years ago to help us raise

01:30

money for childhood cancer research at St. Jude.

01:33

Little did he suspect that I was going to be putting him through his paces.

01:35

Is Bill Cipher still alive?

01:37

I mean, fictional characters exist in a liminal space between alive and dead, conjured up

01:43

by our attention and our imagination.

01:45

Well played, Alex.

01:46

Well played.

01:47

By the way, Alex, if you do wind up watching this at some point, just know that I really

01:51

appreciated you being there.

01:52

I was locked into the show that day so I didn't get a chance to actually thank you in person

01:56

after the segment.

01:57

I am so sorry for that.

01:58

And honestly, it's one of my biggest regrets from the past decade of content creation.

02:02

Thank you for being so generous with your time and for all you were willing to do that

02:06

day.

02:07

Also, my friend Ryder was there.

02:08

He has a channel, FootofaFerret.

02:09

He covers your work a lot.

02:10

He's another huge fan that didn't get to say hi because he was busy helping me behind

02:13

the scenes with all the music stuff for the show.

02:15

Ryder, this is your chance.

02:16

Say hi to Alex.

02:17

Uh, hello, Alex Hirsch.

02:18

Uh, goodbye.

02:19

He was also the voice of our Bill Cipher in the cold open, by the way.

02:23

Anyway, enough making amends for the sins of the past.

02:25

Back to Gravity Falls.

02:26

Why am I talking about it now, eight years after the show ended?

02:30

Well, outside of it being just important to the history of the channel, fear rising in

02:33

general, and just being a personal fave of mine, the real reason, if I'm being honest,

02:37

is that it's Ollie's current favorite show right now.

02:39

He adores it, which is awesome because it means I get to watch it all over again.

02:42

Each night, he gets a half hour of TV time, and I kid you not, we have watched this scene

02:46

like a hundred times.

02:48

Ollie's life goal is to now build mech suits out of garbage.

02:51

Over on Style Theory, I briefly mentioned that Ollie wanted to go as a haunted convenience

02:54

store for this past Halloween.

02:55

It was from Gravity Falls, season one, episode five, The Inconveniencing.

02:58

And let me tell you, rewatching Gravity Falls with Ollie has really reignited my love for

03:03

the series.

03:04

I always wanted to be able to come back to it in some way, but never could find the right angle

03:07

to attack it with.

03:08

I mean, this is a show that was built by theorists, for theorists.

03:12

All the scraps and clues have been picked clean.

03:14

It didn't really feel like there was a lot of new ground that I could cover.

03:16

At least, that's what I thought, until I discovered the blacklight edition of Journal

03:21

Three.

03:22

In case you don't know, within the story of Gravity Falls, Journal Three is a collection

03:25

of all the weird, paranormal, supernatural things that are living in and around the town

03:29

of Gravity Falls.

03:30

It is a massive part of the show's main plot.

03:33

However, as we learn midway through the show, a great deal of the content inside the journal

03:37

is written in invisible ink, which can only be read via blacklight.

03:40

Now, after Gravity Falls ended, Disney released a real-world version of Journal Three, with

03:44

a ton of extra information about the show and its lore.

03:47

But fans were disappointed that none of the blacklight details were actually included

03:50

in that final release.

03:52

Enough so that a year later, Disney released another version of it with those secrets printed

03:56

inside.

03:57

Only 10,000 copies of this book were ever made, so this was a super exclusive piece

04:02

of merchandise that only the most passionate Gravity Falls fans were able to get their

04:05

six-fingered hands on.

04:06

Sadly, I was not one of them.

04:07

But thankfully, this fandom is full of generous individuals that just want to share their

04:11

knowledge.

04:12

And thanks to Tumblr user ForDarkIsTheSuede, we can all take a look at what exactly is

04:16

inside of this thing.

04:17

And boy, let me tell you, did this thing add a lot to the lore of Gravity Falls.

04:22

Not only that, but I believe that it also cracks open a brand new mystery that's just

04:26

aching to be solved.

04:27

You see, my friends, the blacklight edition of Journal Three sent me down a rabbit hole

04:30

that led me to only one conclusion.

04:33

Alex Hirsch, creator of Gravity Falls, he is Bill Cipher.

04:36

Or rather, he's possessed by Bill Cipher in the real world, just like what we saw happen

04:40

with characters like Dipper, Ford, and Stan in the series.

04:43

And not only is he possessed, Alex is aware of that possession, and is actively fighting

04:48

against Bill's influence in a way that you would never expect.

04:51

Theorists, shake my hand, it's time to make a deal.

04:54

So let's just get on the same page about what's actually in the blacklight edition of Journal

04:58

Three.

04:59

There's a ton of lore about a lot of different corners of this universe.

05:02

For instance, we learn a lot more about Gnome Society, including a code that reveals Shmebulok's

05:07

true deep thoughts.

05:08

There are secret messages hidden in cow spots, there's a whole page comparing the Gravity

05:11

Falls characters to tarot cards, seems like a short that Lee should look into at some

05:15

point.

05:16

I mean, I could go on and on about this thing.

05:17

There are literally hundreds of pages of new information.

05:20

But for a bit of a deep, relevant example here, on the page titled A Bit of History,

05:24

the blacklight reveals that Bill Cipher has had a hand in shaping human civilization throughout

05:28

all of time.

05:29

He tricked the ancient Egyptians into building a portal to a nightmare realm that led a jackal-headed

05:33

man onto Earth, thus giving us Anubis.

05:35

Afterwards, he had the Egyptians build the pyramids as a tribute to him.

05:38

Much later on, Bill helped George Washington defeat the British during the American Revolution,

05:43

but also gave him such bad nightmares in the process that he ground his teeth to dust in

05:47

his sleep.

05:48

That's why Washington had to get him replaced with wooden teeth.

05:50

You know the Eye of Providence on the dollar, Bill?

05:52

That pyramid with the eyeball?

05:54

Washington apparently put it on the dollar in an attempt to appease Bill.

05:57

Dollar Bill. Get it?

05:58

We even learn that Bill helped Stanley Kubrick fake the moon landing, in the hopes that NASA

06:02

would help Bill build a portal, implying that humans have never actually been to the moon

06:06

in the Gravity Falls universe.

06:07

Pretty crazy, right?

06:08

But one of the biggest additions from the blacklight sections, and the thing that started

06:11

me down this rabbit hole in the first place, is actually in the book's blank pages.

06:14

See, though the majority of the secret invisible notes in the book are written by Ford, there

06:18

are a handful of contributions from other characters.

06:20

Soos, Mabel, Dipper.

06:22

But most disturbingly of all, there's also notes written by old isosceles himself, Bill

06:27

Cipher.

06:28

And they're all over these blank pages.

06:29

On them, he gives a sort of pitch to the reader to help Bill out, telling them to say the

06:33

words Bill Cipher three times so that he can enter your mind.

06:37

Basically, it's Bill making a Beetlejuice reference.

06:39

However, more interestingly, Bill subtly explains exactly how he's writing in this book.

06:44

He says, quote, six fingers just conked out, and that means Captain Bill is steering the

06:48

ship.

06:49

And later again, Sixer's about to wake up, which means that Bill is able to puppeteer

06:52

Ford's body while he's asleep.

06:54

So what if he were actually able to do that with Alex Hirsch out here in the real world?

06:59

Now, obviously, that would be a weird logical leap for me to make.

07:01

Like, why would I assume that Bill's possessing the creator of the series?

07:04

Well, despite the whole book being in-universe with Gravity Falls, there is one place where

07:09

Alex Hirsch winds up writing as himself, the book's foreword, where he explains what exactly

07:13

the book is.

07:14

That there are only 10,000 copies, that it's the most show-accurate version of Journal

07:17

3, and explicitly telling readers about the Black Light Secrets.

07:20

But the thing that really stuck out to me, if you lift up this picture of Hirsch on the

07:23

page and shine a black light onto it, you get a little message from Bill himself.

07:27

In fact, if you compare this to handwriting from Bill elsewhere in the book, it is exactly

07:31

the same.

07:32

Bill definitely wrote this, and he lets us know that Bill was here.

07:35

And while you could assume that this is just him telling us that he's here in the journal

07:39

writing notes, notice the placement of Bill's message.

07:41

Bill's note isn't on the journal pages, like it will be throughout the rest of the

07:45

journal.

07:46

It is on the paper of Alex's note, the one he wrote the foreword on.

07:49

What this proves is that Bill is alive and kicking and messing with Alex's stuff after

07:53

Alex has written it.

07:54

And the placement behind Alex's picture certainly seems like it's implying that he's here,

07:59

as in here inside of Alex Hirsch's head.

08:02

And the more I looked into it, the more I could tell that all of this was intentional.

08:05

The finale of the show is broken up into a huge multi-part story arc called Weirdmageddon,

08:10

where Bill takes over the town.

08:12

For all of these episodes, the show's usual intro sequence is replaced with a new one,

08:15

starring Bill and all his monster friends. And wouldn't you know it,

08:18

but in all of these intros, the title card that's supposed to read Created by Alex Hirsch

08:21

is actually replaced with Created by Bill Cipher.

08:24

We can also take a look at another Gravity Falls novel, the upcoming Book of Bill.

08:28

Now I am really excited about this release.

08:31

I was actually pretty sad that it wasn't coming out in time for me to cover on the

08:34

channel, but hey, that gives Lee some to talk about when he takes over.

08:37

Regardless, what's the deal with this book?

08:39

Well, officially, Alex Hirsch is credited as the author.

08:42

And that makes sense, right?

08:43

He's the one who wrote it.

08:44

But the whole gimmick of the book is that it's written in the voice, and from the point

08:46

of view of Bill Cipher himself.

08:49

Now you might think that this is just a simple case of writing and character.

08:51

But if you go to the Book of Bill's official page on its publisher, Penguin Random House's

08:56

website, you'll find some clues suggesting that there might be something more here.

09:00

The official author blurb describing Alex Hirsch reads as follows, quote,

09:03

Despite the rumors, he was not possessed by a demon while writing this book.

09:06

We repeat, not demonically possessed.

09:09

Seems like something sus that they're really trying to drive home there.

09:12

I don't know about you, but to me, the author doth protest too much, methinks.

09:16

But perhaps the biggest clue of all of this is the fact that we've actually seen Alex

09:20

Hirsch possessed by Bill already.

09:22

All the way back in 2015, while Gravity Falls was still on the air, Hirsch was scheduled

09:26

to do a Reddit Ask Me Anything.

09:28

And yet, when he was asked about it on Twitter, Hirsch denied that he was doing anything.

09:32

He made it very clear that he was meant to be asleep at the scheduled time.

09:35

So when the time for the AMA rolled around, an AMA did happen, but it was with Bill Cipher.

09:40

And at the end of the AMA, Bill outright confirms that he's taking control of Hirsch to do the

09:44

AMA in the first place.

09:45

He's using Hirsch's body to clickety-clack away at the keyboard while Hirsch slept, just

09:49

like he did with Ford writing notes in the Blacklight Journal 3.

09:52

Quote from the end of the AMA,

09:53

Well, looks like the kid's REM cycle is about to end, so I should make like a pine tree

09:57

and burn to the ground.

09:59

And if you think that Bill wouldn't want to materialize in our world, well, you'd be wrong.

10:03

Bill's entire schtick is that he's tired of being two-dimensional.

10:05

He says as much in Weirdmageddon Part 3.

10:08

You think those chains are tight?

10:10

Imagine living in the second dimension.

10:12

Flat minds in a flat world with flat dreams.

10:15

And the first thing he does in Weirdmageddon once he escapes his two-dimensional prison

10:18

is take a three-dimensional physical form.

10:20

Basically, showing off just how many different surfaces he can have.

10:23

Oh, it's happening!

10:24

It's finally, finally happening!

10:26

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

10:29

Physical form?

10:30

Don't mind if I do!

10:32

What do you think Bill would do if he ever realized that Gravity Falls was, in fact,

10:35

a two-dimensional world?

10:36

A cartoon created by real people who live in a three-dimensional space.

10:40

He'd probably want to get to that world and take that one over.

10:43

Which is exactly what we see him doing through Alex.

10:46

But before we dive further into the Bill Cipher conspiracy,

10:49

I want to take a minute to thank the sponsor of today's video, Rocket Money.

10:52

True story, friends.

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10:57

And with all those different subscriptions floating around,

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things tend to get lost in the shuffle.

11:01

For instance, last month I discovered that I'd been paying for two subscriptions to Max

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on the same email.

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One was for an ancient subscription that I've had since the streamer started,

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and the other was through Amazon Prime.

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And you know how I found out about these double charges?

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12:00

That's rocketmoney.com slash f-i-l-m-t-h-e-o-r-i-s-t-s,

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or, you know, just save yourself the hassle and click the link in the top line of the description

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because it is so much easier.

12:10

One last thank you to Rocket Money for sponsoring today's episode.

12:13

Now let's get back to unraveling the mystery of Bill Cipher.

12:15

Lee, take it away.

12:16

Back in 2016, when Weirdmageddon first aired,

12:19

after the end credits, people noticed a picture of a real-life Bill Cipher statue flash on screen,

12:24

followed by some random numbers.

12:26

Now, you theorists probably recognize this as a series of codes encrypted with ciphers,

12:31

and at the time, Gravity Falls fans recognized it too.

12:34

And thus began the Gravity Falls ARG known as the Cipher Hunt.

12:38

Basically, this was a giant scavenger hunt set up by Hirsch

12:41

to help keep interest in Gravity Falls alive and give fans a big send-off

12:45

before Disney decided to continue the series through comics and books.

12:48

It was very long and very in-depth, with cryptograms and hidden codes,

12:53

encouraging people to go to real-world locations in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Japan, and Russia,

12:58

and even featuring real phone calls with Grunkle Stan.

13:01

Hello, it's Grunkle Stan, and I have a riddle for you.

13:06

What has two legs during the day, four legs during the night,

13:11

and, uh, it's red and white, and I, I, I don't know, I'm no good at these riddles.

13:17

By the end of it, hunters were led to that real-life statue of Bill Cipher hidden in the woods,

13:21

with messages from Grunkle Stan encouraging them to shake Bill's hand.

13:25

Shaking hands, of course, is Bill's primary way of making binding agreements

13:29

and entering the minds of his marks.

13:31

But here's the cool thing.

13:32

Buried beside the Bill Cipher statue was a box containing several prizes, so to speak.

13:37

Some were just fun, you know, like plastic coins and gems,

13:40

a signed sketch, and a sash that read,

13:42

Mayor of Gravity Falls, that sort of thing.

13:44

But two of the most interesting ones?

13:46

There was a copy of Journal 3 and a blacklight.

13:49

Doesn't that sound familiar?

13:50

Yeah, though this wasn't one of the super-exclusive 10,000 copies made,

13:54

this was using the same idea.

13:56

Inside this copy of Journal 3 was a sketch by Hirsch himself of Grunkle Stan,

14:00

Soos, and Old Man McGucket.

14:02

But, when the blacklight was shined on the page,

14:04

it revealed another sketch of Bill himself,

14:07

telling the reader to stay paranoid.

14:08

A secret drawing of Bill, hidden in a special copy of Journal 3,

14:13

buried under a statue of Bill himself.

14:15

That's very similar to what we see with the special blacklight version of Journal 3

14:19

that started us down this rabbit hole to begin with.

14:22

But here's why all of this matters.

14:23

I want you to go back and watch Weirdmageddon again.

14:25

When Stan shakes Bill's hand, Bill turns into a statue

14:28

as his astral form exits the Bill Cipher body to enter Stan's body.

14:32

And that statue is in the exact same position that we see in the show after he shakes his hand.

14:37

Now, the clear implication here is that this is supposed to be the same statue from the very end of the show.

14:41

But what if it's another statue?

14:43

One made after Bill escaped?

14:45

One made after he's made another deal to go into someone else's head?

14:49

A deal made with Alex Hirsch.

14:51

First of all, we know that Bill probably escaped at the end of Weirdmageddon.

14:54

When the gang finally does defeat Bill, this happens.

14:56

And you're on! Here we have you on! And you're on!

14:58

The gang has broken the oath!

14:59

You're on with-

15:00

Clearly, this audio is backwards.

15:01

If you reverse it, it says this.

15:02

A-X-O-L-O-T-L!

15:04

My time has come to burn!

15:06

I invoke the ancient power that I may return!

15:09

He's making a deal with the all-powerful axolotl to be able to come back in some other dimension.

15:13

And we know that he's likely popping around other universes now,

15:16

since he's visible in other franchises like Rick and Morty,

15:18

Big City Greens,

15:19

The Owl House,

15:20

DuckTales,

15:21

even The Simpsons.

15:22

Buy crypto, suckers!

15:24

And that's canon, by the way.

15:25

As confirmed by Alex Hirsch himself, via our livestream.

15:28

Is Bill Cipher now officially connected into the Simpsons canon,

15:31

because he appeared in one of the Simpsons intros recently, yes?

15:33

Yeah, I can confirm that.

15:35

Bill Cipher is Simpsons canon.

15:36

WHAAAA-

15:37

So, what's to stop him from hopping on over to our universe at this point?

15:40

And if there's a Bill Cipher statue here now in our world,

15:43

then that likely means that someone else must have shaken Bill's hand to have him end up here.

15:47

Someone who isn't a fictional character in our universe.

15:49

Someone real.

15:50

Someone like Alex Hirsch.

15:52

So all of this really makes for a fun meta-storyline for the Gravity Falls fandom.

15:55

Bill Cipher was always a character who could pop between universes,

15:58

and so it's fun to imagine that our universe might be one that he jumps into.

16:02

But why should we care about this?

16:04

So what if Bill is taking control of dear old Alex Hirsch's head?

16:07

Well, for one, it means that you should really be careful the next time you shake Alex's hand at a meet-and-greet.

16:11

But more importantly, it shows that the battle against Bill, it ain't done.

16:14

In fact, I think the battle's been ongoing without any of us even realizing it.

16:18

The reason we haven't all been doomed by a new pyramid-shaped overlord taking over our sad reality,

16:23

just like Dipper, Ford, and Stan,

16:24

Alex Hirsch ain't letting Bill win without a fight.

16:28

In fact, he's doing his best to banish Bill forever.

16:30

And not using a memory gun.

16:32

No, he's using his own career.

16:34

But to understand how, we first have to talk about what was probably the single biggest mystery of this entire show,

16:39

the Bill Cipher Zodiac.

16:41

Watching the series, this thing was everywhere.

16:43

It is teased in literally every episode.

16:45

By the end of the series, they've set this thing up as a prophecy explaining the one true way to banish Bill Cipher once and for all.

16:51

It is by fulfilling the symbols all around this Zodiac.

16:54

Each symbol aligns with a certain character, ten in total.

16:57

And they have to team up to defeat Bill once and for all during Weirdmageddon.

17:00

And yet in the end, this Zodiac, it doesn't pay off.

17:03

After all the build-up and the teases, this Zodiac doesn't actually work because Ford and Stan refuse to hold hands.

17:09

Stanley, get over here! You're the only one left!

17:11

Between me and him, I'm not always the bad twin.

17:14

Between him and me.

17:15

Grammar, Stanley.

17:16

Oh, Grammar Stanley, you!

17:18

So basically, Alex Hirsch creates this huge thing, sets up this massive Chekhov's gun, and it never gets used.

17:23

I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the way that this show ends,

17:26

but it always felt odd to me that this Zodiac just wound up being a massive misdirect.

17:30

Now though, now I think I finally understand.

17:32

While I was putting together this episode, I began to realize more and more that these symbols looked familiar.

17:36

Not because they were in Gravity Falls, but because they correspond with other projects that Alex Hirsch has worked on over the years.

17:42

The six-fingered handprint, that's obviously referencing Gravity Falls itself.

17:45

But the shooting star, for instance?

17:47

Well, that lines up perfectly with Kid Cosmic, a show about a kid who gets superpowers from cosmic stones of power crash-landing near his house.

17:53

Hirsch worked as a writer on two of the stories for that series.

17:55

The question mark?

17:56

Well, that could point to a few of Hirsch's projects, but the one that it most perfectly slots in with is the conspiracy comedy show Inside Job,

18:02

which Hirsch co-produced, wrote for, and acted in.

18:05

Then, of course, you have The Pentagram, which seems fitting for Hirsch's work on The Owl House,

18:08

a story all about witches and demons.

18:11

He not only worked as a creative consultant for that series, but he also voiced Hootie and King, the self-proclaimed King of Demons.

18:16

Speaking of his work as a creative consultant, the glasses?

18:19

They look a lot like the signature eyewear worn by the Mitchell family in Netflix's Mitchells vs. the Machines,

18:24

a film where Hirsch was a story consultant and voiced the character of Dirk.

18:27

What about Dipper's iconic tree symbol?

18:29

Well, I believe that this lines up with yet another Disney series, Amphibia, which is set in a marshland covered in trees.

18:35

The characters live in a giant tree.

18:36

The wood aesthetic is even carried through in almost every episode with the title cards.

18:40

Hirsch was given a special thanks in the episode The Hardest Thing,

18:42

and also voiced a couple of roles in the episode Wax Museum,

18:45

which, go figure, happens to be an episode paying homage to Gravity Falls.

18:49

Hands off the merchandise!

18:51

The old mistaken for a grotesque lifeless being.

18:54

Works every time!

18:55

And what about the heart symbol with the crack and stitches in it?

18:57

Well, this lines up fairly well with Hirsch's first ever writing and storytelling gig,

19:01

working on the show Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack.

19:04

Here, he co-wrote and storyboarded the episode Gone Wishin',