FA+
Shop
The Hoffman/Strahm thing.
13 years ago
Because someone asked me......and as Im on a kick of drawing those two little ratties lately, it would probably be prudent to explain the little universe they exist in, in my head. I never really did; I just expected people to be like 'oh, angel, of course'.
Hoffman killed Strahm. We all know that.
But dammit I still wanted to draw the two of them interacting, because they were always my two favourite SAW guys, particularly because they so blatantly despised one another from the start.
So it made sense, again, in my head, to bring Strahm back as, what else, an angel.
Well, it was that or a ghost.
But ghosts are just.....meh. Boring.
So I made him an angel. Coz angels are awesome.
And it then followed that OMG he HAS to be Hoffman's guardian angel, that would cause many lols.
So this is the thing.....he is, indeed, lumbered with the job of being Hoffman's guardian angel. And neither one of them are particularly happy about this, as you'd expect.
No point arguing it, though; 'god' doesn't make mistakes, if they're paired up then it is for a reason. So they both have to try and make the best of a bad situation.
Of course, it isn't that easy.
Strahm has the rather unenviable job of having to be constantly around someone who hates him, to have to constantly try and tailor Hoffman's life to being 'better' so he can ultimately save the guy's soul, to have to watch out for him so he doesn't end up dead, to have to try and keep the peace between them.
Strahm, as you'd expect, doesn't like to fail at anything, and he doesn't want to fail as an angel, no matter how difficult his position may be.
He is detirmined to make it work between him and Hoffman.
Hoffman, on the other hand, couldn't give a rat's ass what Strahm wants, and goes out of his way to make his job as painful and difficult as he can.
He will deliberately go out and do things that he knows will piss Strahm off, he'll deliberately antagonise him, he'll even put himself in life threatening situations just as a proverbial middle finger to Strahm.
Failing in your duty of care doesn't bode well for an angel, and Hoffman is well aware of this, which is why he wants to fuck it all up for Strahm.
Its all a big game.
Angels that do not 'bond' with their partners end up with black feathers.
Any hint of anger, negativity or hatred that an angel shows toward their partner will result in black feathers, as will failing in their duty in any way.
Angels with black feathers are ostricised by other angels, its like being a criminal; no-one wants to associate with you, and you'll get banned from a lot of places, like, y'know, all those snazzy clubs and bars up in heaven.
The more you fuck things up with your partner, the more black feathers you get.
You can get rid of them, however, by doing good things and getting it right (saving your partners life, for instance, will redeem you instantly).
But everyone knows that an angel walking about with black feathers is basically a loser and a failure, and probably not a good person to associate with.
So you don't want those.
So if I ever draw Strahm with a few black feathers, its because he's been a crap angel.
The more successful your relationship with your partner, the more you develop/evolve as an angel. You gain better abilities, higher social standing, and generally more priviledges.
So forging a loving, caring, understanding relationship with your partner is really important. You have to genuinely love them if you are ever to be successful.
Good luck there.....
Angels also have a bond with their partner in that they can feel things their partner feels (but not vice versa) albeit in a muted and weaker way. Angels will feel pain when their partner feels pain, for example. This is another way of 'building the bond' and making a connection.
As for whether others can see Strahm, yes, they can.
But he would appear to everyone except Hoffman, other angels, and children, as a normal rat. No wings, no halo.
He can choose to show his angel attributes to mortals if he wants to, but there is rarely any need.
So thats it in a nutshell.
Should explain most of their interactions in my art, and coming art.
I just thought it was a more interesting way of having them still be able to interact. More interesting for me, at least.
Hoffman killed Strahm. We all know that.
But dammit I still wanted to draw the two of them interacting, because they were always my two favourite SAW guys, particularly because they so blatantly despised one another from the start.
So it made sense, again, in my head, to bring Strahm back as, what else, an angel.
Well, it was that or a ghost.
But ghosts are just.....meh. Boring.
So I made him an angel. Coz angels are awesome.
And it then followed that OMG he HAS to be Hoffman's guardian angel, that would cause many lols.
So this is the thing.....he is, indeed, lumbered with the job of being Hoffman's guardian angel. And neither one of them are particularly happy about this, as you'd expect.
No point arguing it, though; 'god' doesn't make mistakes, if they're paired up then it is for a reason. So they both have to try and make the best of a bad situation.
Of course, it isn't that easy.
Strahm has the rather unenviable job of having to be constantly around someone who hates him, to have to constantly try and tailor Hoffman's life to being 'better' so he can ultimately save the guy's soul, to have to watch out for him so he doesn't end up dead, to have to try and keep the peace between them.
Strahm, as you'd expect, doesn't like to fail at anything, and he doesn't want to fail as an angel, no matter how difficult his position may be.
He is detirmined to make it work between him and Hoffman.
Hoffman, on the other hand, couldn't give a rat's ass what Strahm wants, and goes out of his way to make his job as painful and difficult as he can.
He will deliberately go out and do things that he knows will piss Strahm off, he'll deliberately antagonise him, he'll even put himself in life threatening situations just as a proverbial middle finger to Strahm.
Failing in your duty of care doesn't bode well for an angel, and Hoffman is well aware of this, which is why he wants to fuck it all up for Strahm.
Its all a big game.
Angels that do not 'bond' with their partners end up with black feathers.
Any hint of anger, negativity or hatred that an angel shows toward their partner will result in black feathers, as will failing in their duty in any way.
Angels with black feathers are ostricised by other angels, its like being a criminal; no-one wants to associate with you, and you'll get banned from a lot of places, like, y'know, all those snazzy clubs and bars up in heaven.
The more you fuck things up with your partner, the more black feathers you get.
You can get rid of them, however, by doing good things and getting it right (saving your partners life, for instance, will redeem you instantly).
But everyone knows that an angel walking about with black feathers is basically a loser and a failure, and probably not a good person to associate with.
So you don't want those.
So if I ever draw Strahm with a few black feathers, its because he's been a crap angel.
The more successful your relationship with your partner, the more you develop/evolve as an angel. You gain better abilities, higher social standing, and generally more priviledges.
So forging a loving, caring, understanding relationship with your partner is really important. You have to genuinely love them if you are ever to be successful.
Good luck there.....
Angels also have a bond with their partner in that they can feel things their partner feels (but not vice versa) albeit in a muted and weaker way. Angels will feel pain when their partner feels pain, for example. This is another way of 'building the bond' and making a connection.
As for whether others can see Strahm, yes, they can.
But he would appear to everyone except Hoffman, other angels, and children, as a normal rat. No wings, no halo.
He can choose to show his angel attributes to mortals if he wants to, but there is rarely any need.
So thats it in a nutshell.
Should explain most of their interactions in my art, and coming art.
I just thought it was a more interesting way of having them still be able to interact. More interesting for me, at least.
