Carlos/Cecil Palmer
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Carlos/Cecil Gershwin Palmer |
| Alternative name(s): | Cecilos, Cecil/Carlos, Cecil x Carlos |
| Gender category: | M/M |
| Fandom: | Welcome to Night Vale |
| Canonical?: | Canon |
| Prevalence: | Popular |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
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Cecil and Carlos, or Cecilos, is a popular canon relationship (subplot) from the podcast Welcome to Night Vale.
Carlos told us that we are by far the most scientifically interesting community in the U.S., and he had come to study just what is going on around here. He grinned, and everything about him was perfect, and I fell in love instantly.Cecil, Episode 1: "Pilot".
After the relationship initially seemed one-sided on Cecil's part, Carlos calls Cecil and invites him to the parking lot of the Arby's, where the two share a romantic moment, after Carlos's near-death experience in Episode 25: "One Year Later".
But here, Carlos and I sat on the trunk of that car – his car – looking together at the lights up in the sky above the Arby’s… they were beautiful in the hushed twilight, shimmering in a night sky already coming alive with bits of the universe. One year later. One year since he arrived. He put his hand on my knee and said nothing. And I knew what he meant. I felt the same. I leaned my head on his shoulder.Cecil, Episode 25: "One Year Later".
In Episode 27: "First Date" (15th July 2013), they go their first date together, and have been living together as of Welcome to Night Vale's first live show, "Condos". As of Episode 100: "Toast", they are officially married.
The normativity of their relationship is highlighted throughout the podcast; the bond between the two characters is realistic in its depictions of their interactions with - and about - each other, and they deal with the same issues present in any relationship[...].[1]
Fandom
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The relationship is enormously popular in the WTNV fandom, and is by far the most prominent pairing in fanworks. As of September 2020, 4670 works for the pairing exist on Archive of Our Own.
It also seems to have been pivotal to the success of Welcome to Night Vale in general. Dawn Stobbart cites the following figures from The Great Glowing Coils of the Universe (Welcome to Night Vale Episode Scripts Volume II)[2]
The first year saw Welcome to Night Vale being downloaded approximately 150,000 times over 25 episodes; in the 12th month (2 episodes) - which includes "First Date" - this number grew to 2.5 million. [...] [3]
The pairing was also an entry in the first MLM Ship Bracket Tournament in 2023.
Fanworks
Fluff / established relationship fic plays an important role in Cecilos fanworks.
Other common tropes include explorations of disability (usually Cecil), the creation of a "mirror Carlos" to pair with Kevin of Dessert Bluffs (as "mirror Cecil") and speculations as to the otherworldliness of the characters' sex life (usually because Cecil is some kind of eldritch being).
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Fanfic
- i laugh all the way to hell by devours; first non-crossover fic for the pairing on AO3, posted 20 June 2013 and thus predating "First Date"
- a love song for schrödinger by patho (ghostsoldier); most kudoed (as of Sept 2020) on AO3
Fanart
- Goodnight by littleulvar
- I’m very into science these days. by viria
Fanvid
- E.T. by RaiToNight
Archives & Fannish Links
Tumblr
- Tags: Cecilos, Cecil x Carlos
- fuckyeahcecilos
References
- ^ Stobbart, Dawn. '"Everything About Him Was Just Perfect. And I Fell in Love Instantly": Life and Love in Welcome to Night Vale, in: Critical Approaches to Welcome to Night Vale, ed. Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock. Palgrave Pivot, 2018, pp. 24-34, p.26.
- ^ Fink, Joseph, and Jeffrey Cranor. The Great Glowing Coil of the Universe. New York: Harper Collins, 2016.
- ^ Stobbart, Dawn. '"Everything About Him Was Just Perfect. And I Fell in Love Instantly": Life and Love in Welcome to Night Vale, in: Critical Approaches to Welcome to Night Vale, ed. Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock. Palgrave Pivot, 2018, pp. 24-34, p.25.