|
I'm a demon and I'm here to help you!
This article is need of a clean-up. You can help out Welcome to Hell Wiki by re-organizing parts of the article, checking grammar and spelling, and doing other helpful things to correct the article. |
| Napoleon Maxwell Sowachowski | |
 Official art of Sock by Erica Wester. | |
| Biographical information | |
| Birth name | Napoleon Maxwell Sowachowski |
| Nickname(s) | Sock Homicidal twink (fandom) |
| Age | 15 - 20[1][2] |
| Gender | Male |
| Physical information | |
| Status | Demon Human (formerly) |
| Height | 5' 5" - 5' 6"[3] |
| Eye color | Green |
| Hair color | Ginger |
| Relationship information | |
| Family | Unnamed mother and father (deceased) |
| Series information | |
| Voice actor | Ann Mendenhall[4] |
| First appearance | Welcome to Hell film Welcome to Hell comic (pg. 1)[5] |
Napoleon Maxwell Sowachowski, commonly referred to as "Sock", is the main character of Erica Wester's series Welcome to Hell. After accidentally becoming responsible for the murder of his parents during a sleepwalking episode, Sock commits suicide and is thus sent to Hell. Now a demon working under Mephistopheles at Sinnergy, LLC, he is assigned earthbound duties and tasked to haunt human teenager Jonathan Combs in order to drive him insane and thus to suicide, thus securing his place in Hell.
Concept and creation
Works depicting Sock date as far back as 2007 on Wester's social media accounts.[6] She first began drawing Sock without a name. When she asked friends for suggestions she eventually decided on "Sakuryu". He has endured several name changes. Formerly he has been Sakuryu (or Saku)[7] and Kilroy Conrad.[8] She later chose to Americanize his initial name into "Sock", which became short for Sowachowski (pronounced sah-wah-chow-skee[9]). A possibly defunct explanation for how Sock comes from Sowachowski is that a childhood friend, likely Jojo, couldn't pronounce Sowachowski.[10] His middle name, Maxwell, is a reference to the song "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" from the 1969 Beatles album Abbey Road, in which a young man named Maxwell repeatedly commits murder with a silver hammer.[11] Napoleon was chosen as his first name because of a television trope recognized on the popular website TVTropes (Television Tropes & Idioms) known as "Embarrassing First Name", which constitutes a character that dislikes being known by their first name either because it is odd or causes them embarrassment for other reasons.[12][13]
Certain characteristics in Sock are reminiscent of some aspects of Wester during her time in secondary education. His outgoing demeanor reminds her of how she perceived herself, though not how she presented herself, and he shares some traits of her fashion sense.[14] Even the reference to his "spooky hole" originates from the youth fad of buying garments with or cutting holes for thumbs in the cuffs of sleeves, which she participated in.[15]
In original concepts for the Welcome to Hell short film, Sock was a prolific murderer who was caught and sentenced to prison and later the death penalty.[16]
Characterization
Outward appearance
| “ | Sock is definitely burdened by what medical professionals call "glorious kawaii", so the cuteness factor makes him look a lot younger than he is. | ” |
—Erica Wester, via welcometohellfilm |
||
An example sketch of Sock's usual outfit by Wester.
He wears a set of clothes consisting of a light blue T-shirt under a brown pullover sweater vest with yellow accents, a short light purple skirt, blue jeans ripped and rolled just under the knees, black and red striped socks that are at least a little less than knee-high, brown boots with yellow strings, a red scarf around his neck tied like a tie, and a red aviator hat (maybe made of fleece[17]) with yellow stars on the ears, a black backside and tail, and yellow goggles attached directly to the hat. Word of God is that he wears underwear briefs, probably patterned.[18]
In illustrations Sock's skirt is pleated. To simplify the animation of the short film the pleats were removed. Plaid is present in some illustrations and was briefly considered for the animation.[19]
His hair is wavy, medium length and ginger in color. His hairstyle consists of long bangs and a long cowlick, usually hidden under his hat. He has white skin with a peachy tone. In one frame of the short film and some illustrations, his teeth can appear to be sharp.[20] The self-inflicted stab wound, his "spooky hole", is located on the center of his abdomen. One fan gauges it to be in or around his liver.[21] He stands around 5' 5" or 5' 6", slightly shorter than Jonathan Combs.[3]
Wester sets his age range to ambiguously 15 to 20 years, at least a freshman in high school when he died,[2] though he may often lie about his age.[22][23]
Personality
Sock is generally a very positive person, a contrast to the apathetic Jonathan. His attitude towards death is very blasé, and he has enjoyed inflicting it since early childhood.
Gender identity and sexual orientation
| “ | I also just like the idea that Sock wears this skirt and nobody draws attention to it or gives him a hard time about it. Sock’s got deeper issues than his skirt, I suppose, haha. | ” |
—Erica Wester, via welcometohellfilm |
||
A page from Wester's Morguebook depicting Sock in alternate outfits that incorporate fishnet tights, short shorts, and skirts.
A prevalent question from newcomers to Welcome to Hell is whether the purple cloth around Sock's waist is the end of a long skirt. As Wester answers in the official production blog's FAQ page and a few published asks on the topic, it is a skirt.[24][25] Because of the skirt and his female voice actor, Ann Mendenhall, Sock's gender is sometimes confused. Wester wants it clear that he is a boy that "intentionally blurs some gender norms"[26] but also leaves his character open to interpretation. Some think of him as transgender, genderfluid, or a number of other gender identities.[27][28][29]
Regarding the reason he wears a skirt, Wester often replies along the lines of "he's just a dude who wears skirts".[28][30] In one answered ask on the Welcome to Hell production blog she goes on to explain, "I guess what I’m getting at is we can choose to identify however we want, and we don’t owe anyone an explanation; we’re just being ourselves. Sock is just being himself, I guess! What’s important to me is that people identify, sympathize, or connect with the character in some way, and if part of that means interpreting his gender identity in a specific way, then I encourage it!"[28]
Wester also puts forth a "creator's headcanon" about Sock's sexual orientation, neither a fact set in canon nor Word of God. It is something she might not address within the future narrative of Welcome to Hell, but has considered and developed thoughts on. She says he is at least bisexual and at most "he transcends sexual preference altogether and someone’s gender/sex just isn’t a concern".[31] Her reply also suggests that it is not unlikely that he has more than platonic feelings for Jonathan, a sentiment she has echoed before in her playful interest in the fandom's shipping of Sockathan.
Background
Sock's flashback to an ill-fated childhood exchange with Jojo.
Sock's parents were typical and caring. It's noted that, throughout Sock's childhood, his parents were ultimately oblivious to the true extent of their son's issues. While his father may have occasionally shown suspicion toward Sock's unusual behavior, his mother brushed it off as simply an additional component of his overall eccentric nature.[32][33] Sock had no siblings, but some extended family. He was well-liked within his community and had a few acquaintances, but no true friends.
Sock satisfied his homicidal urges through killing small animals, one of which he can be seen offering to Jojo in a flashback during the short film in a failed shot at friendship. He considered Jojo a friend during his childhood, though the feeling was not mutual.[34] It is mentioned that Sock may have had a pet dog named Silver during his lifetime, toward whom he was affectionate and would never intentionally try to hurt, yet Silver still behaved uneasily and apprehensively around him due to an innate sense that something was off about his owner.[35][36]
He lived somewhat close to the graveyard in which he attempted to bury his parents.[37]
Abilities and skills
Sock has displayed two abilities in the animated short film: self-levitation and intangibility, both being characteristics of demons.[38] Under specific circumstances he can possess Jonathan,[39] but it is unknown if this applies to only his charge. It is assumed that he possesses the abilities of any typical earthbound demon, though these have not been fully revealed in or outside canon.
Possessions
His most notable possession is his knife, possibly a simple kitchen knife. He used it during his lifetime to kill small animals, and later presumably his parents and himself. In the short film and comic he refers to it as "old friend". Wester says since he had no true friends the knife was his "trustiest companion".[40][41]
Appearances
As early as 2007, initial versions of Sock, Jonathan, and Mephistopheles appeared in online media published to Wester's social media accounts. Formal manifestations of their story began with the dropped 2010 to 2011 Welcome to Hell webcomic and later Wester's 2013 Kansas City Art Institute (KCAI) graduation film, also titled Welcome to Hell. The short film is considered the authoritative version of events, i.e. "most canon".
Webcomic (2010-2011)
- Main article: Welcome to Hell (webcomic)
Sock and Mephistopheles in page seven of the webcomic.
Sock's first debut in Welcome to Hell's formal media was as the main character of the Welcome to Hell webcomic, published through the social art website DeviantArt from May 26, 2010 to May 11, 2011.[42][43] Mephistopheles first appeared on page seven and Jonathan was never introduced. Sock appeared on each page.
It was left unfinished, with eleven pages and a "Daily Deviation" award for pages one and ten.
Short film (2013)
- Main article: Welcome to Hell (short film)
Sock in a flashback at the beginning of the film.
Wester's senior thesis ("graduation film") at KCAI, the Welcome to Hell short film, was crowdfunded through the Kickstarter platform beginning January 1st, 2013 and was fully funded by January 31st, 2013.[44] It details a revised version of the events presented in the Welcome to Hell webcomic and from there elaborates on Sock's first days with Jonathan Combs. Sock, voiced by Ann Mendenhall,[4] is the main character. He is tasked by Mephistopheles to drive high-school age Jonathan to suicide.[45]
W2H2 (TBD)
- Main article: W2H2
A "W2H2" storyboard by Neil Morrissey.
Sock will feature in an upcoming installment of Welcome to Hell. The installment has no set release date.[46] Wester is referring to it as "W2H2" until a title is decided upon.[47] While it will focus more on Jonathan, Sock is still a very prominent character.[48]
Trivia
- It is very possible that Mephistopheles has a Hellfile on Sock, just as he has one on Jonathan in the short film. Wester sees it as an opportunity for a "shocking reveal" about Sock if it were used in the future narrative of Welcome to Hell.[49]
- In the animated short film the specific color code for his hair is #bc6324, a medium orange.[50]
- Wester says Sock's Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is ESFP or Extraverted, Sensing, Feeling, and Perceiving.[51]
- If Welcome to Hell were to become a live action film, Wester would be interested in seeing Michael Cera play Sock, because "he’d be so unconventional and awkward about it."[52]
Posts for later development of page
- http://welcometohellfilm.tumblr.com/post/58967552849/a-robot-with-a-conscience-cons-science-welcome-to
- http://welcometohellfilm.tumblr.com/post/96550100371/why-did-you-give-sock-a-skirt
- http://welcometohellfilm.tumblr.com/post/106927450771/something-on-my-mind-lately-has-been-how-was-sock
- http://welcometohellfilm.tumblr.com/post/94786468686/is-sock-overweight-or-is-his-sweater-vest-just
- http://welcometohellfilm.tumblr.com/post/129226389446/oh-no-you-think-another-skirt-question-but-this
- http://welcometohellfilm.tumblr.com/post/79780887150/so-i-have-been-thinking-about-the-whole-jojo-thing