Young Writers Society

*This isn’t really a professional essay or article, but nevertheless, I thought that it was important to explain the differences between the two Creepypastas, Laughing Jack and Laughing Jill, because people in the fandom tend to make them just like each other even though they are completely different. This will be under my folder titled “Creepypasta stuff”. Also, my next story will contain both characters. Gacha Club character designs are on my wall. I hope that you are intrigued and you learn something along the way!*

Introduction

Creepypasta is internet horror that started in the 2000s (at least, that’s what I got from my research). It can be anything from an unsettling video to a (usually gory) story. The most popular Creepypasta stories have gore and the face of Creepypasta is non other than the faceless Slenderman, created by Eric Kndusen for a horror contest. While Creepypasta is mostly Slenderman, his proxies, (Proxies are Creepypasta servants, usually human), and the like, I will not be discussing Slenderman.

I will be discussing Laughing Jack and Laughing Jill, two murderous clowns.

Hold on to your cryptid horses, because this is going to get wild.

Laughing Jack

Perhaps I should start with Laughing Jack, a fairly well-known Creepypasta, but not quite as iconic as Slenderman. He doesn’t make the list of “Most famous Creepypastas” when googled and Slenderman is the only Creepypasta with a movie. But again, I’m not talking about Slenderman.

Created by Snuffbomb, real name Steve Akins, Laughing Jack is a monochromic clown who appears to mainly children as their “imaginary friend”, giving them candy and playing various games with them. Laughing Jack eventually guts the children open and stuffs them with candy. He then makes it look like the parents did it. The parents look insane, trying to explain that the child’s “imaginary friend” caused the crime, and usually get sent to prison or a psych ward. In some stories, he kills animals and adults (not just kids) and sometimes makes his victim commit an atrocious crime, but he usually murders children. Later on he traps the souls of (mostly children) in his carnival. The children become cannibals, forget who they are, and are shown in the first story ever published by Snuffbomb to have Laughing Jack (The story was called “Laughing Jack”) to eat his victims.

Laughing Jack wasn’t always like that, though. He was a colorful clown filled with joy. In early 1800s London (exact year wasn’t stated), he appeared to a seven year old boy named Isaac Lee Grossman, who was in poverty and a son of a drunkard father who beat his mother, who in turn beat Isaac out of frustration.

However, things got out of hand when Laughing Jack accidentally killed a kitten in a game of pirates with Isaac. They hid the body, but it was found by Isaac’s mother and the blame was put on Isaac (how a small child who has no experience with cutlery can dismember a cat I do not know).

Isaac was sent to a Christian boarding school and Laughing Jack, who I forgot to mention was a Jack-in-the-box clown, waited in his box for Isaac. Only Isaac could open the box.

Well, Laughing Jack waited for thirteen years and Isaac didn’t come. The origin story doesn’t focus on Isaac, but I believe that the boarding school hardened his heart and made him cease to believe in Laughing Jack.

But Laughing Jack, in the mindset of a small child, thought that Isaac had abandoned him and broke his promise.

When Isaac arrived back home, his mother was beaten by his father to death in the street, and his father was hanged for his crimes. Isaac became a drunkard, just like his father.

Isaac drank himself away when he first arrived and Laughing Jack watched with growing hatred, until one day, Isaac brutally murdered a woman in front of him and then continued on with his gruesome crimes, drinking no more. Still, Laughing Jack watched.

One day, Isaac winds open the box and frees Laughing Jack, who murders him for revenge and goes on a mission to kill anyone he wants to be “friends with”.

Laughing Jack only saw poverty. He only saw the worst of the world. Isaac was the one good thing and then he became rotten.

I believe that Isaac was the one human he truly loved. After Isaac grew up, he must have thought that all humans were wonderful until they grew up, so maybe he murders children to keep them pure, to keep them innocent, so that they never leave him. He does the same to adults, trying to twist their minds to the mentality of a child, so that they may be his forever, before killing them.

Or maybe he hates humanity as a whole and sees them as nothing more than liars and losers, who will only bring pain, and that’s why he kills them. The truth is, I don’t know. There could be many reasons why he does what he does. Creepypastas are built on fan theories and stories. Those are just my personal beliefs.

Laughing Jack often jokingly gets called “Emo Pennywise” and sometimes The Joker, but they are all terrifying in their own way. If one must call him something, then call him a Pierrot, which is a clown that dress in black and white and contrary to a colorful comedic clown, is a sad one.

He is resentful and frustrated, seeping with hate.

His female counterpart is slightly happier. Slightly.

Laughing Jill

Laughing Jill is a monochromic clown who murders parents who don’t deserve to be parents. She wields a chainsaw and can extend her claws whenever she wants. She was created by Snuffbomb and his friend, SabrinaNightmaren.

Many people believe her to be just like Laughing Jack and when writing stories about her, have Laughing Jill murder children.

Some people make fun of her, portray her as annoying, sometimes as Laughing Jack’s wife/girlfriend, sometimes as his sister, and even as Laughing Jack in drag. She is seldom mentioned in the fandom. Rather, Laughing Jill is in Laughing Jack’s shadow.

But Laughing Jill is different from Laughing Jack.

Laughing Jill‘s story begins in the Victorian era. (The year is not stated and the setting isn’t mentioned, although I read somewhere on Wattpad that Laughing Jill is from Scotland.) She is a colorful clown gift to a wealthy little girl named Mary, whose mother was an alcoholic and father an entrepreneur.

Mary was friendless, intelligent, and improper by Victorian standards. Her parents gave her a Laughing Jill in the box in hopes that she would control herself.

The opposite happened.

Laughing Jill engaged in pulling pranks. Mary tried telling her parents the truth, but they didn’t believe her. They thought that she was insane and sent her to a church.

Years passed, but Mary still believed in Laughing Jill. This was because she believed Laughing Jill to be a demon and never forgot her. At least, that’s what I read.

Finally, at sixteen, Mary returns home and completely ignores her parents, going for Laughing Jill, who was patiently waiting for her, not confined to her box.

When she’s with Laughing Jill in her room, she sees that she lost her color. Laughing Jill explains to her what happened and the two are overjoyed to see one another. That is, until Mary’s mother shoots Mary right in front of Laughing Jill.

Laughing Jill goes to the family shed and picks a chainsaw. She murders Mary’s parents with the chainsaw. She had stood behind them and asked “What’s that behind you?”. That’s her catchphrase. Laughing Jack doesn’t have one. Laughing Jill also kills the nuns.

Mary had a different sadness than Isaac. Mary was friendless and lived in a time where she had little power. The only friend she had was a magical clown.

Laughing Jill, I believe, loves children and still hangs out with the ghost of Mary. I mean, if you search up “Laughing Jill”, and look at her wiki page, it will say that she only murders abusive parents, not children. Given her origin story, it makes perfect sense as to the kind of people she targets.

The dynamic between Laughing Jack, Laughing Jill, and Mary

The most used roles between Laughing Jack and Jill is them being siblings and I have to admit, they would make great siblings.

Laughing Jill would be the younger sister that tried to bring optimism and joy into Laughing Jack’s life. She would feel compassion for him and try to heal him.

Whereas Laughing Jack would be the older brother who would view Laughing Jill as “trying too hard” and would probably think that she and Mary were spoiled and didn’t know what real pain was.

Then he would come to love them but rarely show it.

Mary and Laughing Jack would constantly get into fights with each other. Mary would be disgusted by him and he in turn, disgusted by her. He doesn’t like when humans talk back to him, after all. Laughing Jill would be the peacemaker of the group.

Laughing Jill and Mary would still stay best friends.

Isaac would either haunt his house or be in Hell. I don’t believe that he and Laughing Jack would be with each other.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Laughing Jack and Laughing Jill have their own unique personalities and traits. They deserve to be put separate from each other and live as their own monsters.

They may look similar, they may both be monochrome clowns, and their names may both start with “Laughing” but they are not the same.

Bonus: If there were to be a movie about them

If there were to be a movie about them, I like for Helena Bonham Carter and Johnny Depp to play the two clowns, Danny Elfman for the music, and Tim Burton to direct it. The movie would ooze with playful spookiness and haunting, intense moments.

But if anyone else knows actors/directors/musicians that might do a better job than the people I mentioned, let me know! I am intrigued.