Josh Crayton is the son of Diane Crayton and Troy Walsh and younger half-brother of Jackie Fierro.[2] Josh is bi- or pansexual.[2][3][4] He is a college student and one of Night Vale's two shapeshifters.[5]
Personality[]
Josh is shy[2] and has difficulty socializing.[2][6] He often isolates in his room[2] or hangs out by himself in secluded parts of town.[4][6] While he struggles with relating to people and making friends,[2] he has a small, close circle and appears to be well liked.[2][6][7]
Some of his favorite places to hang out include the comic and video stores, the Desert Flower Bowling Alley and Arcade Fun Complex, and the sand wastes.[2] His favorite ice cream is vanilla with a hard chocolate shell and a candied tarantula center.[6] He likes flamingos, skateboarding, watching unmarked VHS tapes,[2] and retro music.[8] His favorite subject in school is screaming.[8] He has a framed photo of Lee Marvin in Cat Ballou above his desk.[2]
Josh doesn't like to shapeshift as a form of entertainment[6] but will for his friends[7] or as a means of helping others.[4][9][10] He grows horns when impatient.[11]
Josh struggles in school[6] and is described as not being a very good student.[2] He often skips class.[2][6][8]
Josh struggles with learning to drive,[2][6] due to his desire to constantly reassess his physical form.[2]
He believes in mountains, expresses public curiosity about the mysterious lights that pass over Night Vale at night, tried to enter the City Council chambers without protective gear, stole his mother's car, has contraband writing utensils, and owned a tarot deck.[2]
Physical Appearance[]
Josh is a shapeshifter capable of becoming animals, a single non-living object (natural or manmade), a collection of non-living objects (natural or manmade), or abstract ideas. He also plays around with mixing aspects of different forms to create unique physical appearances. He is described as "a boy of many forms but only one self."[2] Regardless of what form he takes, his emotional expressions are always understood by others.[2][4]
Josh doesn't always like to be bipedal, but he always likes being a cute animal. His definition of "cute" is subjective.[2] His favorite forms to take have wings.[8]
Sometimes he appears human, and when he does he often presents short, chubby-cheeked, pudgy, and wearing glasses.[2][4][12]
Josh's known forms include:
- Meadowlark [13]
- Monarch butterfly[14]
- Motorbike [14]
- Great White shark [15]
- Hummingbird [15]
- Curve-billed thrasher[2]
- Kangaroo[2]
- Victorian-era wardrobe[2]
- Fish head with ivory tusks and monarch wings[2]
- Alligator[2]
- Cloud of bats[2]
- House fire[2]
- Wolf spider[2]
- Horsefly[2]
- A desk lamp[2]
- A vase full of sunflowers[2]
- French press coffee maker[2]
- Various types of tree (oak, spruce, Reginald)[7]
- Waterfall[6][16] (with waterslide and sunbathing deck[9])
- Mochi ice cream[6]
- Primordial jungle flora[6]
- A bad idea[6]
- A hasty plan[6]
- Gearshift knob from a Nash Rambler[6]
- Rhinoceros[6]
- A warm hug from an old friend[6]
- Bookshelf filled with first edition Zadie Smiths[6]
- 1970s style avocado green galley kitchen[16]
- Chainsaw[16]
- Sled dog team[10]
- Classic diner jukebox[17]
- Carved rhinoceros horn with tentacles for legs [4]
- Kiwi[4]
- Brown bear[4]
- Cat with human limbs[8]
- Machine part from a 19th century steam engine[8]
- 30-something podcast writer[8]
- Glowing cloud[8]
- Butt (with or without wings)[8]
- A from-out-of-town festival goer in a unicorn mask[18]
- A creosote bush[18]
In the episode “The Waterfall”, he lost his shapeshifter abilities and was stuck in the form of a waterfall. He regained his powers sometime between then and the events of "The Battle For Time".
History[]
Early Life[]
Diane was 18 and Troy was 17 when Josh was born. Troy named him after his uncle, a retired Army Ranger Troy vaguely thought of as “cool.”[2] Troy became overwhelmed at the idea of having a child so young and left Diane and Josh when Josh was 1 year old.[2] Josh was raised by his mother with the help of his maternal grandparents.[2]
Josh struggled with not having a father and first began asking Diane about it when he was 6 years old.[2] At age 7 Josh began showing signs of depression, and Diane took him to the movies to cheer him up.[2] Going to the movies together then became a monthly tradition.[2] The movie theater is still a comforting place for Josh.[4][6]
Josh went behind Diane's back in order to find his father, leading him to visit King City. The Man in the Tan Jacket attempted to keep Josh there in an effort to fix the damage Troy caused.[2]
When he was in high school, he danced[11] and was in choir.[2] He was also a member of the Night Vale chapter of the Boy Scouts of America, and at age 15 he was only a few tasks away from being a Blood Pact Scout.[2] He and his boyfriend, Grant, organized the Battle of the Bands.[3]
Young Adulthood[]
Josh previously worked at Jackie's Pawn Shop, however she wasn't able to pay him as much as he needed to cover his clothing budget.[2][4] He left the pawn shop to work at Big Rico's Pizza.[4]
Josh is currently in college and has expressed interested in interning at both Night Vale Community Radio[4] and the Night Vale Fine Art Museum.[5] He declined an internship at the Night Vale Zoo.[5] He attended 'The Festival' where he met and danced with the sole survivor of a jet crash in the sand wastes after failing to calm down the out of towners who came to party there.
Relationships[]
Diane Crayton[]
Josh and Diane used to have a tense relationship and struggled to connect and communicate with each other as mother and son.[2] Josh would often be short with and avoid her, often saying things to hurt her.[2] The Faceless Old Woman tended to place Josh's private writings where Diane would find them in order to instigate fights or create tension.[2] After they returned from King City, their relationship began to improve: they talked more regularly and more openly, and Diane took a more active role in his life.[2]
Troy Walsh[]
Josh was deeply impacted by his father's abandonment and Diane's refusal to discuss it. He expressed interest in getting to know Troy, but after meeting him Josh's enthusiasm seems to have waned.[2]
Jackie Fierro[]
Jackie is Josh's older half-sister, however due to Night Vale's weird time their actual age gap is unclear.[2] Jackie sacrificed herself to the Man in the Tan Jacket in order to allow Josh to return to Night Vale[2] and later gave him a job at her pawn shop.[4] Jackie and Josh appear to have a close relationship and value their status as siblings.[4] Josh describes Jackie as the bravest person he knows.[4]
Cecil Palmer[]
Cecil is friends with Josh's mother.[2][14][13] He has described Josh as sweet[14] and has expressed love for him.[13] When Josh was struggling during the events of "The Waterfall", he was correct in assuming Cecil would be willing to tell his story over NVCR.[6] Despite its dangers, Josh also wanted to intern under Cecil.[4]
Glow Cloud's child[]
Josh and the Glow Cloud's child are good friends, having bonded over being physically different from other kids. Josh often takes the form of a glowing cloud to help him feel less alone, or Josh will take silly forms to cheer him up. Josh stated that his name is difficult to pronounce but he cares enough about him to learn it.[8]
Grant[]
Josh's previous boyfriend.[3][4] Their current status is unclear other than they organized the Battle of the Bands together.
Monty[]
Josh's late crush.[6] Their current status is unclear.
DeVon[]
Josh's friend.[2]
Hallie[]
Josh's current crush.[19] He met her whilst she was the sole survivor of a jet crash carrying many foreigners. They danced together during the festival where the incident originated. Getting to deepen their friendship, he quickly develops an infatuation for her, but as of "Horoscopes" is unsure of whether she reciprocates. They are spotted during "Date Night" mingling in Amplebees, ostensibly on a date.
Appearances and Mentions[]
Bold marks episodes where Josh speaks.
Other Mentions[]
References[]
- ↑ Episode 151 "The Waterfall"
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 2.27 2.28 2.29 2.30 2.31 2.32 2.33 2.34 2.35 2.36 2.37 2.38 2.39 2.40 2.41 2.42 2.43 2.44 2.45 2.46 2.47 2.48 2.49 Welcome to Night Vale: A Novel
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Episode 106 "Filings"
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 It Devours!
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Episode 183 "The Nephilim"
- ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 Episode 151 "The Waterfall"
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Episode 142 "UFO Sighting Report"
- ↑ 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 Live show "All Hail"
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Episode 173 "The Hundred Year Play"
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Episode 179 "First Snow"
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Episode 100 "Toast"
- ↑ Episode 4 "PTA Meeting"
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Episode 57 "The List"
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Episode 56 "Homecoming"
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Episode 130 "A Story About Us"
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Episode 158 "The Battle for Time"
- ↑ Episode 191 "The Many, Many Lives of Frank Chen"
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Episode 271 "The Festival"
- ↑ The Festival