The Derry Chronicles May Have Solved a Longstanding It Enigma
The clown's impact on the children of the Derry series shapes them throughout their adult lives, transforming them into the exact individuals who keep the town's pattern of animosity alive. It finds easy targets on children from broken homes — children who often grow up to replicate the same patterns as their parents. But, the Hanlon household stands apart as one of the few households that remains intact, which could clarify why Mike, even after electing to remain in the town, persists as the sole member who never fully falls under Pennywise's sway.
The Hanlon Family's Distinctive Resistance
In episode 4 of the series, Leroy Hanlon at last grows more aware of the paranormal entities surrounding the neighborhood, particularly when the entity begins tormenting his son, Will, during their angling excursion. The Hanlon family consists of a small number of grown-ups who are aware that something is amiss with the municipality, especially Leroy, who was shown to be receptive to psychic abilities when he was able to detect Dick Hallorann's employment of it in episode 3. Later, Leroy spots one of Pennywise's signature inflated orbs outside his residence. This gift, coupled with his failure to feel fear, along with the base of his household, may be why he's capable of perceiving Pennywise's hauntings. But what if that shining is generational, and a key factor Mike Hanlon is among the few individuals in the town who resisted succumbing to the town's malevolence?
Will is part of the group of kids at his educational institution being tormented by Pennywise. All his school friends come from broken homes, with parents who don't believe they're being haunted. The cause Will is being haunted is because of the cruelty of the town, combined with his potential sensitivity to psychic abilities, which renders him vulnerable. The Hanlons are ultimately outsiders in Derry during 1962, which lends itself towards the household sensing something is off about the locality from the onset. They also have a good foundation that remains unbroken, in contrast to the folks who come from the area, with bonds that have decayed internally.
Backstory Connections
Drawing from the original book, we understand the young Will Hanlon will end up at the Black Spot, where Hallorann will rescue him from a blaze that the town bigots of Derry will cause. In the 2017 movie, we see that he has a son named Mike and that Will ultimately dies in a configration, with his father surviving his own child and adopting his grandchild. The official story in the film is that Mike's parents were on drugs, but given our current view of him in Welcome to Derry, that's difficult to accept. Perhaps the timid youth, once he became an adult, turned to alcohol to rid himself of the torments, or perhaps the corrupt environment got to him initially, with the KKK ultimately completing the task it started years ago. Be it via the fear of the entity or via the malice of the community, seeded by Pennywise, It in the end gets the final victory on him.
The Father's Evolution
These occurrences would explain how the elder Hanlon transforms so drastically from what we witness in the first film and Welcome to Derry. In his later years, Leroy seems resentful and much stricter with his discipline. Because he survived his own son, it's comprehensible to observe such a profound shift. Nonetheless, his words carry more weight now that we know he's witnessed the clown's activities and the effects they wrought upon his son. In the opening scene of It, we observe the boy hesitate to use a bolt gun on a animal at Leroy's farm. Leroy reprimands him for delaying and offers an metaphor that leads to a kill-or-be-killed scenario.
“There are two places you can be in this existence. You can be out here like we are, or you can be in there,” Leroy says as he gestures to the sheep. “You waste time hemming and hawing, and someone is going to make that choice. Except you will be unaware it until you feel that projectile between your eyes.”
Looking back, this could be a piece of foreshadowing, something he wishes he had told his own son. Maybe he wishes he had done something in his past, but for certain factors, he couldn't resist the repellent attraction of Derry.
