Archive 81: Why The Vos & Visser Fires Really Happened

Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Archive 81 

The Vos and Visser fires are a central plot point in Archive 81—but why did they really happen? Archive 81 is filled with various supernatural elements, and the Vos and Visser fires are no exception. A Netflix Original, the series has been slowly gaining traction since its release on January 14, 2022 and has spent a considerable amount of time at, or near the peak of the Netflix Top 10 list.

Archive 81, the eponymous podcast turned found-footage horror series from director James Wan, follows video archivist Dan Turner (Mamoudou Athie) as he unravels the mysteries behind twenty-year-old tapes recorded by Melody Pendras (Dina Shihabi), a tenant of the Visser Apartment. As Dan restores and watches each tape, he soon discovers that the Visser Apartment—and the secret Vos Society before it—were burned to the ground by the Kaelego cult in an attempt to unite our world with the Otherworld. Dan’s journey climaxes with a successful passage into the Otherworld, where he and Melody are briefly united before they’re ripped apart once more.

Archive 81 is filled with cliffhangers and twists, but one of the greatest was the reveal that Bobbi was not only a part of the Baldung coven but also Melody’s mother. The reason that Dan’s trip to the Otherworld was successful while the first two attempts were not lies in Bobbi’s hands—or, more specifically, her blood. In Archive 81 episode 8, “What Lies Beneath,” Bobbi explains that it is the Baldung who hold the ability to successfully open the door to the Otherworld. The Baldung willingly gave their magic so that Kaelego, the half-god half-demon that the Vos Society worships, will stay forever sealed in the Otherworld. Without the blood of a Baldung to open the door the Vos Society’s first two attempts were destined to fail, causing the fires that claimed so many lives.

Archive 81’s Vos & Visser fires were the direct results of the Vos Society’s hubris. They believed that by stealing the spellbook, they would be able to open the door. However, Bobbi explained that that wasn’t the case; “They thought they had everything they needed. They were wrong.” It would explain why Samuel was so desperate to include Melody in the ritual and why he denied that they would ever hurt her—for the ritual to be successful, they needed a Baldung like Melody. Without her, the ritual failed, despite whatever stolen magic the Vos Society possessed.

Despite Dan’s predicament at the end of Archive 81, Bobbi’s spellwork did succeed at getting Dan into the Otherworld without setting a catastrophic fire. If Mark and Melody are to get Dan back from 1994, Bobbi could play an integral role in opening the door once more and helping Melody step into her abilities as a true Baldung. While the Baldung played a minor role in Archive 81 season 1, they are poised to become a major plot point if Netflix gives the green light to Archive 81 season 2 and beyond.

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