Sam Esmail and Courtney Looney, the creators of Mr Robot, are getting ready to release another puzzle piece in the Mr. Robot universe, a book titled Red Wheelbarrow. The fictional journal follows Elliot (played by Rami Malek) during his time in jail. The writers joined fans at New York Comic Con last weekend to discuss the new book and how it compliments the show.
“Obviously it’s linked to the show, but not necessarily one requires the other,” Esmail explained. “There will be stuff in there that will matter. Will you need to read it in order to understand everything? The simple answer would be yes, but understanding everything will never probably happen.” After a rowdy laugh from the crowd, Esmail continued.
“If that's your goal, to have an answer to every question, then you should read the book and see the VR film and play the mobile game. This is a universe. We do it to tell a standalone story that will have its own clues and its own answers you won't find anywhere else,” Esmail said.
Parts of Red Wheelbarrow will sync with the beginning of Mr. Robot Season 2, but much of it takes place in the time between seasons, right after Elliot gets arrested and we find him amid a delusion that he’s actually at home living with his mother.
“The timeline, this happens before Season 2 and then there’s a little bit of overlap. So we had to be careful with the details. It goes into the little bit of the beginning of Season 2,” Looney said.
There are also a few details in Red Wheelbarrow that happen concurrently with the second season, moments that you don’t know are happening when you watch the show, Looney added. Particularly, with Hot Carla’s story arc. If you remember from last season, Hot Carla is ‘the prettiest girl on the block’ in prison who burns Elliot’s journal.
“We get a backstory and their relationship. If you read the book and rewatch Season 2, it's interesting to see how close they are and informs all those small exchanges between the two of them,” Esmail said.
The same goes for Leon, who not only plays a major part in the book but will be instrumental in Season 3 as well. Red Wheelbarrow won’t be as deceptive as the series, Looney explains, so there’s more insight into Elliot’s relationship with each character.
“You're really in his head, not just what he’s choosing to tell you,” she says. “This is him opening up completely and it even begins by telling you that he’s not going to be telling the whole truth in the show, but here he’s putting it all out as if he could talk to us and if were were friends with him again.”
Esmail playfully described the book as the dark ramblings of an insane person and told fans it’s another piece to the whole jigsaw that is Elliot.
“It’s fucked up… Here it's like unfiltered, here it is a vomit of his thoughts. It was tough in that regard because it was unrelenting, we couldn't cut away like we did in the show.”
Hopefully, a few puzzle pieces from Red Wheelbarrow can help answer some questions from Season 2 finale. The post-credits scene cliffhanger could make more sense if we know more about Leon’s relationship with the Dark Army. Since Elliot was keeping secrets in the series, the book may reveal that he may actually know where Tyrell has been hiding all season. Elliot also may know more about Stage 2 than he let on.
Mr. Robot : Red Wheelbarrow releases Nov. 1.
