The Derry Chronicles May Have Solved a Longstanding It Mystery
Pennywise's impact on the young residents of the Derry series molds them throughout their adult lives, transforming them into the very adults who perpetuate the town's cycle of animosity alive. It preys most easily on kids from fractured households — children who often grow up to replicate the identical behaviors as their guardians. However, the Hanlon family distinguishes itself as a rare example of a households that remains intact, which may explain why Mike Hanlon, even after electing to remain in Derry, remains the sole member who never fully falls under Pennywise's sway.
The Hanlon Family's Distinctive Resistance
In the fourth installment of the series, Leroy at last grows more aware of the supernatural forces enveloping the community, especially when the entity begins tormenting his child, Will, during their angling excursion. The Hanlon family consists of some of the few adults who are cognizant that something is amiss with the municipality, notably the father, who was shown to be receptive to psychic abilities when he was able to detect a fellow psychic's employment of it in the third episode. Subsequently, he spots one of the clown's trademark inflated orbs outside his residence. This gift, alongside his failure to feel fear, combined with the base of his household, could be why he's capable of perceiving the entity's manifestations. But what if that shining is hereditary, and a key factor Mike is one of the only individuals in Derry who resisted succumbing to its cruelty?
The boy is a member of the group of kids at his school being tormented by Pennywise. All his school friends come from dysfunctional families, with caregivers who refuse to accept they're being targeted. The reason he is being pursued is because of the viciousness of the community, combined with his potential sensitivity to psychic abilities, which renders him vulnerable. This family are ultimately outsiders in Derry during the early sixties, which contributes towards the household feeling something is off about the locality from the beginning. They also have a good foundation that remains unbroken, unlike the residents who come from the area, with relationships that have decayed within.
Backstory Connections
Drawing from the It novel, we know the young Will will end up at the infamous nightclub, where the psychic will save him from a blaze that the local KKK members of Derry will ignite. In the recent film, we see that he has a boy named Mike and that Will ultimately dies in a configration, with his father outliving his own son and taking his grandson in. The official story in the motion picture is that the parents were on substances, but given our current view of Will in the series, that's hard to believe. Perhaps the shy youth, once he became an adult, turned to alcohol to free himself of the torments, or maybe the rotten town got to him first, with the hate group eventually completing the job it began long before. Be it via the terror of the entity or via the cruelty of the town, seeded by It, the creature in the end gets the last laugh on Will.
Leroy's Transformation
These occurrences would clarify how Leroy transforms so drastically from what we witness in It: Chapter 1 and the prequel. In his older age, Leroy appears bitter and much harsher with his discipline. Because he outlived his own offspring, it's comprehensible to observe such a drastic change. However, his statements carry more weight now that we know he's seen the clown's activities and the effects they had on his son. In the opening scene of the movie, we see Mike pause to use a stunning device on a sheep at Leroy's farm. Leroy chastises him for hesitating and offers an metaphor that leads to a survival-of-the-fittest situation.
“You have two options you can be in this existence. You can be in the open like we are, or you can be trapped inside,” he says as he gestures to the creature. “You dawdle hemming and hawing, and another is going to make that choice. Except you won't know it until you feel that projectile between your eyes.”
Looking back, this could be a bit of foreshadowing, a lesson he wishes he had told his own child. Maybe he wishes he had done something in his youth, but for some reason, he was unable to avoid the repellent attraction of the town.
