Frequently asked 'Danger Days...' Questions Answered!
Now that My Chemical Romance's Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys is out, I'm finding more and more questions about it leading people to this site. I figured it would be beneficial to address some of the ones that are asked most frequently in one place for the benefit of all! I hope this helps!
ORIGINAL POST: November 24, 2010 @ 11:57 P.M.
UPDATED: March 18, 2011 @ 9:47 P.M.
____
The Killjoys
Fun Ghoul
-Corresponding MCR member: Guitarist, Frank Iero
-Raygun: Green with horror-style stickers attached to it
-Symbol: A smiling face with one eye crossed out and a jagged mouth
-Physical Description: Wears a yellow shirt with black-striped accents over which he wears a military vest. In the video for "SING," Fun Ghoul bears a scar on the right side of his face at his mouth.
-Mask: Purple and green Frankenstein mask
-Additional Information: ...
Jet Star
-Corresponding MCR member: Guitarist, Ray Toro
-Raygun: Blue with red and white details and the text "BECAUSE I SAID SO"
-Symbol: Star with a face and a lightening bolt rising from its left side
-Physical Description: Wears an eyepatch on his right side. His jacket displays an American flag on its back.
-Mask: Black astronaut-style helmet
-Additional Information: The original name for Jet Star was "Raygun Jones."
Kobra Kid
-Corresponding MCR member: Bassist, Mikey Way
-Raygun: Red with white details and a decal that says "deluxe" (his raygun was originally named "Demon-shark Deluxe").
-Symbol: the face of a hissing cobra
-Physical Description: Wears a red jacket over a yellow-and-black zebra-print shirt
-Mask: Yellow helmet with blue and red eye-like details that displays the message “GOOD LUCK” on its visor
-Additional Information: In addition to his raygun, Kobra Kid can also be seen using a power glove in the video for “Na Na Na…." Mikey describes Kobra Kid as a "misunderstood" character with a "short temper" who "knows Kung-Fu."
Party Poison
-Corresponding MCR member: Vocalist, Gerard Way
-Raygun: yellow with pink details and "Give Me Money" written in Japanese on its side.
-Symbol: pill with an "X" beneath it
-Physical Description: Wears a blue jacket with red details, a "dead pegasus" logo on the front and his Killjoy symbol on the back
-Mask: yellow domino mask with blue circular details and clown-style eyes or a decorated "mousekat" helmet.
-Additional Information: Party Poison was among the Danger Days... characters active on Twitter preceding the album's release.
The Killjoys' names, which Mikey Way told NME are "themed after designer drugs," started as the names of their rayguns, but later turned into character names. The band has said that their Killjoy personas are not characters they are playing, but how they picture themselves in the future.
Are the Killjoys Dead?
Currently, as a result of the “SING” video, the Killjoys are presumed dead. However, a picture from Gerard Way of “Party Poison” in what appears to be an unzipped body bag (left) captioned “Killjoys never die” has many fans questioning how dead they truly are.
UPDATE: April 10, 2011
Dr. Death Defying tweeted: that "there are four acceptable levels of dead after posting an ode to Party Poison, whom he called "dearly departed."
More information will follow if the four levels of dead are explained further.
Dr. Death Defying
Played by Steve Righ? of Mindless Self Indulgence, Dr. Death Defying is the smooth-talking narrator who filters in-and-out of Danger Days…. He is a D.J. for 109 F.M., WKIL, a pirate radio station that operates in the Zones. He is recognized by his “Slaughtermatic Sounds” jacket, which also says “Jackals” and “Philly,” his aviator sunglasses and the bandanna he wears tied around his head.
Dr. Death Defying uses an electric wheelchair because of an apparent injury to his left leg, to which an electric brace is strapped.
In an hour-long video “listening party” hosted by the D.J., the character implied that he is a veteran, possibly of the Helium Wars, which have been alluded to vaguely.
Show Pony and the Girl
Show Pony, the character who can be recognized by his "NOISE" half-shirt, blue-and-white polka-dot tights & helmet and rollerskates is the companion of Dr. Death Defying, the narrator of Danger Days... (played by Steve from Mindless Self Indulgence). Show Pony is played by performer Ricky "Rebel" (Twitter | Reverbnation). Rebel opened for My Chemical Romance as Show Pony at the band's Hollywood album release show.
The actress who plays the Killjoy girl in the videos, whose character name has thus far only been "the Girl," goes by Grace Jeanette. She, too, is an actress and a musical performer. The Girl's role in the Danger Days world appears to be a significant one; as, she was kidnapped by Better Living Industries for a stull-unknown reason.
The Zones and Battery City
The Killjoys world centers around Battery City and its surrounding concentric Zones. The map to the left shows how the Zones are laid out in relation to the city. Utopian Battery City is central, corporate, clean and the center of manufacturing. It is where Battery Towers is located. Battery City, California is the setting for My Chemical Romance's "SING" video, to give you a better perception of what it looks like. The setting for the "Na Na Na..." video is in the Zones, which are a more lawless, desert terrain in which the Killjoys live, run and fully embrace their freedom. The Zones are dirty, wild and dangerous-- the opposite of Battery City.
Geographic landmarks include:
Route Guano, which is the road on which Gerard has said, "the shit happens." It is where Jet Star and Kobra Kid are "ghosted" by an exterminator in the Danger Days... track "Jet-Star and The Kobra Kid/Traffic Report." "The Getaway Mile," which may be a specific location, is mentioned in the song "Bulletproof Heart." There is also a place which Dr. Death Defying on Twitter called "Wolfblood Beach."
Better Living Industries
Better Living Industries (Also known as BLI, BL/ind, or BL industries) is the corporation that controls Battery City. The corporation strives to bring about structure in a post-apocalyptic world. It is known for producing emotion-eliminating medications as well as every other manufactured product one can acquire in 2019.
BLI crosses over from the Killjoys world and into real life. The made-up corporation has its own web site with products that you can actually purchase, a mission statement and a "Zone Report" in both Japanese and English. Also, MCR takes it a step further by having changed the name under which their music is published to "Better Living Industries Music," which you can see in the liner notes of Danger Days.... BLI also overtakes the edited version of Danger Days..., whiting out the internal album art, taking away the lyrics and putting its smiling face logo (above right) all over it. The Danger Days: California 2019 Edition box set is packaged in a BLI box and the 3-song The Mad Gear & Missile Kid E.P. that comes with it is printed on a disc made to look like a BLI brand CD-R.
Check out some BL/ind commercials and "Fact News" reports.
Dead Pegasus
Dead Pegasus is a 2019 oil company.
Korse, Draculoids and S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W
Korse is an exterminator for BL/ind's SCARECROW Unit. In the videos, he is played by comic writer Grant Morrison. The "SING" video has raised speculation among fans that Korse could possibly a robot of some sort; as, he is seemingly "activated" in his chamber by the push of a button. Some also speculate, based on Gerard Way's character sketches and his indicating that Korse suffers from "Zone sickness," that he may stay in the chamber shown in the "SING" video for medical reasons. Grant Morrison revealed to MTV that Korse is "intimately connected with the Killjoys and their secret history," which has yet to be revealed.
The SCARECROW Unit of BL/ind is a sort of police force. Korse leads it, and The Draculoids are the other exterminators that appear to be of lower ranking than Korse. They're a "clean-up crew" for the Zones, getting rid of the things and people who do not comply with the monochromatic standards of Better Living Industries.
The Mad Gear And Missile Kid
The Mad Gear and Missile Kid is My Chemical Romance's alter-ego band for Danger Days... Mad Gear is what MCR imagined the Killjoys would listen to in 2019.
Fans who ordered the California 2019 Box Set received a bonus E.P. of the three tracks MCR recorded as The Mad Gear And Missile Kid:
1. F.T.W.W.W. (acronym for "fuck this whole wide world")
2. "Mastas Of Ravenkroft"
3. "Black Dragon Fighting Society"
The genesis of TMG&MK came with the writing of "Black Dragon Fighting Society," which was originally recorded for the pre-Danger Days album the band "scrapped." "F.T.W.W.W." and "Mastas of Ravenkroft" followed as songs created specifically for TMG&MK.
Gerard Way told Alternative Press that the MCR is interested in creating a full album as The Mad Gear and Missile Kid and that they would like to play shows as the alter-ego band on off-days of tours in the future.
EVENTS in the Zones
2012: The Great Fires
2017: The Pig Bomb
?: Helium Wars
If there's something about which you are confused that you would like added to this post, let me know! Consider this a perpetual draft that will update as often as you, Reader, need it to. Also, please don't hesitate to submit corrections! I have compiled the information in this post using knowledge I've gained from interviews of the band by several sources.
Suggested Reading to Expand your Killjoys Knowledge:
The Twitter development of the Zones presented in a linear fashion.
A full interview transcript series posted by Coup De Main Magazine.
XoXo
c.
ORIGINAL POST: November 24, 2010 @ 11:57 P.M.
UPDATED: March 18, 2011 @ 9:47 P.M.
____
The Killjoys
Fun Ghoul
-Corresponding MCR member: Guitarist, Frank Iero
-Raygun: Green with horror-style stickers attached to it
-Symbol: A smiling face with one eye crossed out and a jagged mouth
-Physical Description: Wears a yellow shirt with black-striped accents over which he wears a military vest. In the video for "SING," Fun Ghoul bears a scar on the right side of his face at his mouth.
-Mask: Purple and green Frankenstein mask
-Additional Information: ...
Jet Star
-Corresponding MCR member: Guitarist, Ray Toro
-Raygun: Blue with red and white details and the text "BECAUSE I SAID SO"
-Symbol: Star with a face and a lightening bolt rising from its left side
-Physical Description: Wears an eyepatch on his right side. His jacket displays an American flag on its back.
-Mask: Black astronaut-style helmet
-Additional Information: The original name for Jet Star was "Raygun Jones."
Kobra Kid
-Corresponding MCR member: Bassist, Mikey Way
-Raygun: Red with white details and a decal that says "deluxe" (his raygun was originally named "Demon-shark Deluxe").
-Symbol: the face of a hissing cobra
-Physical Description: Wears a red jacket over a yellow-and-black zebra-print shirt
-Mask: Yellow helmet with blue and red eye-like details that displays the message “GOOD LUCK” on its visor
-Additional Information: In addition to his raygun, Kobra Kid can also be seen using a power glove in the video for “Na Na Na…." Mikey describes Kobra Kid as a "misunderstood" character with a "short temper" who "knows Kung-Fu."
Party Poison
-Corresponding MCR member: Vocalist, Gerard Way
-Raygun: yellow with pink details and "Give Me Money" written in Japanese on its side.
-Symbol: pill with an "X" beneath it
-Physical Description: Wears a blue jacket with red details, a "dead pegasus" logo on the front and his Killjoy symbol on the back
-Mask: yellow domino mask with blue circular details and clown-style eyes or a decorated "mousekat" helmet.
-Additional Information: Party Poison was among the Danger Days... characters active on Twitter preceding the album's release.
The Killjoys' names, which Mikey Way told NME are "themed after designer drugs," started as the names of their rayguns, but later turned into character names. The band has said that their Killjoy personas are not characters they are playing, but how they picture themselves in the future.
Currently, as a result of the “SING” video, the Killjoys are presumed dead. However, a picture from Gerard Way of “Party Poison” in what appears to be an unzipped body bag (left) captioned “Killjoys never die” has many fans questioning how dead they truly are.
UPDATE: April 10, 2011
Dr. Death Defying tweeted: that "there are four acceptable levels of dead after posting an ode to Party Poison, whom he called "dearly departed."
More information will follow if the four levels of dead are explained further.
Played by Steve Righ? of Mindless Self Indulgence, Dr. Death Defying is the smooth-talking narrator who filters in-and-out of Danger Days…. He is a D.J. for 109 F.M., WKIL, a pirate radio station that operates in the Zones. He is recognized by his “Slaughtermatic Sounds” jacket, which also says “Jackals” and “Philly,” his aviator sunglasses and the bandanna he wears tied around his head.
Dr. Death Defying uses an electric wheelchair because of an apparent injury to his left leg, to which an electric brace is strapped.
In an hour-long video “listening party” hosted by the D.J., the character implied that he is a veteran, possibly of the Helium Wars, which have been alluded to vaguely.
Show Pony and the Girl
Show Pony, the character who can be recognized by his "NOISE" half-shirt, blue-and-white polka-dot tights & helmet and rollerskates is the companion of Dr. Death Defying, the narrator of Danger Days... (played by Steve from Mindless Self Indulgence). Show Pony is played by performer Ricky "Rebel" (Twitter | Reverbnation). Rebel opened for My Chemical Romance as Show Pony at the band's Hollywood album release show.
The actress who plays the Killjoy girl in the videos, whose character name has thus far only been "the Girl," goes by Grace Jeanette. She, too, is an actress and a musical performer. The Girl's role in the Danger Days world appears to be a significant one; as, she was kidnapped by Better Living Industries for a stull-unknown reason.
The Killjoys world centers around Battery City and its surrounding concentric Zones. The map to the left shows how the Zones are laid out in relation to the city. Utopian Battery City is central, corporate, clean and the center of manufacturing. It is where Battery Towers is located. Battery City, California is the setting for My Chemical Romance's "SING" video, to give you a better perception of what it looks like. The setting for the "Na Na Na..." video is in the Zones, which are a more lawless, desert terrain in which the Killjoys live, run and fully embrace their freedom. The Zones are dirty, wild and dangerous-- the opposite of Battery City.
Geographic landmarks include:
Route Guano, which is the road on which Gerard has said, "the shit happens." It is where Jet Star and Kobra Kid are "ghosted" by an exterminator in the Danger Days... track "Jet-Star and The Kobra Kid/Traffic Report." "The Getaway Mile," which may be a specific location, is mentioned in the song "Bulletproof Heart." There is also a place which Dr. Death Defying on Twitter called "Wolfblood Beach."
Better Living Industries
Better Living Industries (Also known as BLI, BL/ind, or BL industries) is the corporation that controls Battery City. The corporation strives to bring about structure in a post-apocalyptic world. It is known for producing emotion-eliminating medications as well as every other manufactured product one can acquire in 2019.
BLI crosses over from the Killjoys world and into real life. The made-up corporation has its own web site with products that you can actually purchase, a mission statement and a "Zone Report" in both Japanese and English. Also, MCR takes it a step further by having changed the name under which their music is published to "Better Living Industries Music," which you can see in the liner notes of Danger Days.... BLI also overtakes the edited version of Danger Days..., whiting out the internal album art, taking away the lyrics and putting its smiling face logo (above right) all over it. The Danger Days: California 2019 Edition box set is packaged in a BLI box and the 3-song The Mad Gear & Missile Kid E.P. that comes with it is printed on a disc made to look like a BLI brand CD-R.Check out some BL/ind commercials and "Fact News" reports.
Dead Pegasus
Dead Pegasus is a 2019 oil company.
Korse is an exterminator for BL/ind's SCARECROW Unit. In the videos, he is played by comic writer Grant Morrison. The "SING" video has raised speculation among fans that Korse could possibly a robot of some sort; as, he is seemingly "activated" in his chamber by the push of a button. Some also speculate, based on Gerard Way's character sketches and his indicating that Korse suffers from "Zone sickness," that he may stay in the chamber shown in the "SING" video for medical reasons. Grant Morrison revealed to MTV that Korse is "intimately connected with the Killjoys and their secret history," which has yet to be revealed.
The SCARECROW Unit of BL/ind is a sort of police force. Korse leads it, and The Draculoids are the other exterminators that appear to be of lower ranking than Korse. They're a "clean-up crew" for the Zones, getting rid of the things and people who do not comply with the monochromatic standards of Better Living Industries.
The Mad Gear and Missile Kid is My Chemical Romance's alter-ego band for Danger Days... Mad Gear is what MCR imagined the Killjoys would listen to in 2019.
Fans who ordered the California 2019 Box Set received a bonus E.P. of the three tracks MCR recorded as The Mad Gear And Missile Kid:
1. F.T.W.W.W. (acronym for "fuck this whole wide world")
2. "Mastas Of Ravenkroft"
3. "Black Dragon Fighting Society"
The genesis of TMG&MK came with the writing of "Black Dragon Fighting Society," which was originally recorded for the pre-Danger Days album the band "scrapped." "F.T.W.W.W." and "Mastas of Ravenkroft" followed as songs created specifically for TMG&MK.
Gerard Way told Alternative Press that the MCR is interested in creating a full album as The Mad Gear and Missile Kid and that they would like to play shows as the alter-ego band on off-days of tours in the future.
EVENTS in the Zones
2012: The Great Fires
2017: The Pig Bomb
?: Helium Wars
If there's something about which you are confused that you would like added to this post, let me know! Consider this a perpetual draft that will update as often as you, Reader, need it to. Also, please don't hesitate to submit corrections! I have compiled the information in this post using knowledge I've gained from interviews of the band by several sources.
Suggested Reading to Expand your Killjoys Knowledge:
The Twitter development of the Zones presented in a linear fashion.
A full interview transcript series posted by Coup De Main Magazine.
XoXo
c.
Comments
The robot thing is just a common fan theory, of course. Do you have a link to the interview in which Gerard said he was ill? I don't believe I've seen that one. :]
-Cassie
http://s3.amazonaws.com/data.tumblr.com/tumblr_lc5am66AX71qbivkso1_1280.png?AWSAccessKeyId=0RYTHV9YYQ4W5Q3HQMG2&Expires=1290814738&Signature=0M9jMfS2RbEBIF4FGVHhgECNC%2FU%3D
I've just seen them posted all over the place without much additional information. I know MTV posted the Draculoid and Dr. Death Defying sketches.
-Cassie
http://fuckyeahthefabulouskilljoys.tumblr.com/tagged/Concept_drawing
Thanks. That's always the issue with Tumblr. People post images or .gifs of video interviews or quotes, but they never seem to dare credit the original source so you have to go on a wild internet chase to figure it out. Ha-ha!
It's just like, "Share the knowledge, PLEASE?" Ha!
-Cassie
I just tested it again. It doesn't work, but I'm going to get a link that does. :]
-Cassie
Thanks for letting me know!
-Cassie
Thank you!
I actually wrote this post between the hours of 1 a.m. and 2:30 a.m.-ish about a month ago. Haha!
I don't sleep.
-Cassie
Nice blog by the way! You rock! ;)
Best, Lev