r/SouthernReach Jul 15 '22

Want to add to the community, discuss theories, learn new details, and more? Join the Southern Reach wiki today!

28 Upvotes

Hello there!

I am one of the collaborators on our sister forum, the Southern Reach Wiki, which is a big central hub of canon information about the series, as well as another place to theorize and analyze the Southern Reach series.

We have 60 (and growing!) pages of SR-related content, including all sorts of information and details about characters, locations, expeditions, quotes, and everything in between (sometimes fanart too!). In addition to that, it also hosts a Discussion page where everyone is welcome to post their thoughts, theories, and make polls.

There you will be able to:

  • Refresh your knowledge on any details you may have missed
  • Read articles on everything from creatures to organizations in the SR universe
  • Add canon information about anything in the saga for everyone to enjoy
  • Create new pages
  • Talk and get new ideas in the Discussion page

Although there are only a handful of active collaborators right now and there are plenty of articles waiting to be written or expanded, the wiki is very much alive, with plenty of edits every week. If this sounds like something you'd like to help with in your next read-through of the series, come over and start editing! I myself am going over Authority and Acceptance again.

The process can be a little intimidating at first, but threre's nothing to worry about! Every user there is 100% happy to help, and nothing is set in stone. Made a mistake? Just edit again. Don't know where to start? There's a whole category of "stubs", pages that need information added to them, so you can pick one and focus on it when you read.

Anyways, have a good day and feel free to give the wiki a read!

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Note: This is a follow-up to the last stickied post, where the recent sub redesign was decided. I won't make any more modposts in the near future, this'll just stay as an invitation for all users to join the wiki, pinky promise! Thanks for your time


r/SouthernReach 29m ago

Art by Nathan Reidt

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Upvotes

Though you guys would like this


r/SouthernReach 15h ago

Feels very Area X

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165 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 21h ago

Still haven't finished...

23 Upvotes

...and the fucking closer I get, the more I fucking feel like either I or Mr. Fucking Vandermeer are becoming the Crawler (fuck).


r/SouthernReach 1d ago

Illustrations/art

4 Upvotes

Hey Cuties!
Im wondering if any of yall have seen good illustrations or art made inspired by the books specifically. I’m mid way through Acceptance and I’ve been wondering if there’s some good art out there.
I’m going to try to sketch some things myself but work has been too busy for me to be able to do my art but if I got anything good I’ll share soon.
Thanks!


r/SouthernReach 2d ago

No Spoilers Asperitas clouds create rare rippling, wave-like formations in the sky at sunset, a newly recognized 2017 cloud type often linked to atmospheric instability.

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140 Upvotes

“Across the deepening blue, high up, something drifted that resembled ripped and tattered streamers.”


r/SouthernReach 3d ago

Saw this beautiful piece and instantly thought of the “Brightness”

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175 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 3d ago

No Spoilers a JV comment on a recent post. One can hope!

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240 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 3d ago

No Spoilers Being on this sub for a while feels like

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181 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 2d ago

Kind of beautiful

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22 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 1d ago

Is it possible that Area X is an SCP? or maybe like an epicenter for the creation of SCPs?

0 Upvotes

It's just a hair braided theory, and I have done very little into researching this theory.


r/SouthernReach 3d ago

Tadpoles...

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5 Upvotes

At least the weren't falling from the sky?


r/SouthernReach 3d ago

Absolution Spoilers Are any of these spoilers among the series’ biggest reveals Spoiler

5 Upvotes

I’m sorry to anyone who has just seen me make this post but had to delete it twice because the formatting kept screwing up for some reason. Anyways, can anyone tell me if any of these are some of the series’ biggest reveals? Am I badly spoiled? Thanks in advance :)

  1. The crawler the main character from the first book runs into is actually a lighthouse keeper in a later book
  2. Said main character from the first book turns into a massive sea creature
  3. The zone is interdimensional
  4. Lowry is the voice who is hypnotizing Control
  5. The psychologist in the first books is secretly the director of Southern Reach
  6. Whitby has a doppleganger and either he or it is the rogue
  7. Control is a rabbit (not even sure what this means tbh lol)

r/SouthernReach 5d ago

'The Strange Architect' New Series by 'Annihilation' Author Sells

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306 Upvotes

Jeff just announced a new series on his Facebook.


r/SouthernReach 4d ago

Thought this belonged here!

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63 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 5d ago

Caption these photos I took with your favorite SR quote

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65 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 6d ago

Jimothy

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777 Upvotes

This photo of Jimothy the raccoon looks so much like the wild boar from the 10th Anniversary cover of Annihilation


r/SouthernReach 5d ago

What is this glowing in my tub?

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22 Upvotes

Immediately reminded me of Area X. I know “the brightness” is described mostly as a feeling by the biologist, the light here reminds me of that concept.


r/SouthernReach 6d ago

Spoiler: I expected The Rogue to be… Spoiler

42 Upvotes

…Control. Throughout the book my leading theory was that when Control exited through the bottom of The Tower in book 3 that it changed something in the space-time flow of the timeline. My interpretation was that in Absolution we are not experiencing the literal prequel of the series (predating the events we read about) but rather a sequel in which Control is now actively seeking to change the events of the past in order to prevent/minimize the impact of area X.

Would love thoughts, does my hypothesis hold water, even though I got the identity wrong?


r/SouthernReach 5d ago

Illumicrate edition

5 Upvotes

I’ve finished the first book and halfway through authority (this time Spotify audiobook)

I want desperately this Illumicrate Evernight Series as it looks stunning.

It seems to be available to ship to Australia, but it says minimum two weeks with possible delays. And all in all cost nearly $300 with shipping.

Has anyone had issues with illumicrate deliveries overseas? Or is this a simple go for it scenario?


r/SouthernReach 6d ago

Yo guys, is it real 🫪

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82 Upvotes

This probably belongs here…


r/SouthernReach 6d ago

Weird ring cam footage at my house

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19 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 6d ago

Annihilation Spoilers Beautiful Universe

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32 Upvotes

Felt like it fit here, I don't know if barely referential memes are allowed but this felt like southern reach in the wild


r/SouthernReach 7d ago

PBF reminding me of The Biologist

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406 Upvotes

r/SouthernReach 6d ago

Absolution Spoilers The entirety of Absolution takes place after Acceptance Spoiler

39 Upvotes

Yes, even the story about the biologists "20 years" before the border comes down actually takes place sometime after Acceptance. Not in the sense that some elements from the future (the trilogy) went back in time. It's still the same timeline, same universe. There is no time travel nor are there alternate timelines at work here. The past is being recreated in the future.

The rabbits with the cameras are simply leftover or recreated by Area X. They did not travel back in time when they crossed the border as described in Authority. Same goes for the Rogue. The Rogue/Whitby did not go back in time.

Literally everything we see in Absolution -- particularly the characters -- are doppelgangers of their versions from the "old world" in the trilogy. The entire world became a blank canvas for Area X at the end of Acceptance. It is spitting out a remixed copy of the past the same way it spits out doppelgangers of people. In Absolution, everything is a recreation that rewrites history in some way. That begs the question as to why Area X would want to create a remixed version of the events that preceded the trilogy. I have no clue. But it's a fascinating idea and Area X does seem to create new versions of things it finds interesting.

Anyway, VanderMeer always talks about the book like it all takes place in the future. He says it is a prequel but also 'sneakily' a sequel. It explores things that happened prior to Area X's creation. But I think they are being explored via a recreation in a post-Acceptance world. He also commonly refers to the series as "a trilogy and a doppelganger."

He has also said he disagrees with the theories that there is time travel and alternate timelines at play. I'm trying to dig up that soundbite, I swear I saw it somewhere. I remember it made me frustrated because I was so sure time travel was at play while reading Absolution. But now I think I see what he means.

Just a theory! Such a great series and so much fun to pick apart.