Warning: Major spoilers ahead for Season 2 of Good Omens.
It’s been a couple of weeks since Amazon Prime released Season 2 of Good Omens. The six-part second installment, written by Neil Gaiman and John Finnemore, gave us plenty of insightful and heartwarming moments before ultimately breaking our hearts.
In the process, Good Omens also activated a fandom full of overthinkers. Even now, fans are still pointing out small details and coming up with new theories on what the Metatron is up to or what that ending means for newly minted Supreme Archangel Aziraphale and his not-so-platonic demon ex-bestie Crowley.
The Good Omens fan theories range from downright silly copium to extensive propositions defended like a dissertation. Of course, the fun of it all isn’t in seeing who is right — it’s in the creativity and collective engagement, in being connected to the show and its global fan base.
And with a good few years ahead before a potential Season 3, there’s plenty of time to dive into different theories — letting us be in denial, delulu, or a secret third thing: correct.
The 7th Episode Theory
The cliffhanger season finale — and the sheer devastation of Crowley and Aziraphale’s separation — led many to hope for an Episode 7 of Good Omens Season 2.
Of course, the 7th Episode Theory feels more like a desperate plea than a theory, but it is fun to engage with. After all, Gaiman’s The Sandman released a bonus episode two weeks after the first season debuted on Netflix.
Sadly, the theory has been debunked by Gaiman himself. Plus, it makes sense to have six episodes each on all three planned seasons and have 6-6-6 baked into the show.
It hasn’t stopped fans from wishing for an extra episode, though. It also doesn’t help that this is the same Gaiman who wrote, “Writers are liars, my dear, surely you know that by now?”
The Miracle Latte Theory
The finale of Good Omens Season 2 spent a lot of time showing us the Metatron ordering an oat milk latte with almond syrup from Nina’s café, named Give Me Coffee or Give Me Death.
We know from an earlier episode that poison makes angels and demons a little kooky, with Crowley acting very drunk and high after drinking laudanum. We know that the Metatron orders a latte with “a dash of almond” but gives one that has “a hefty jigger of almond.” And we also know that cyanide, a deadly poison, tastes like almonds.
Sharp-eared fans have also pointed out that a very faint sound effect associated with miracles can be heard just as the Metatron urges Aziraphale to drink the latte.
Taken all together, this can mean that the Metatron is manipulating Aziraphale with the miracle latte — just enough that he doesn’t quite act like himself.
In the ensuing argument between Aziraphale and Crowley, Aziraphale lumps Crowley in with Hell (“You’re the bad guys,” he says) and is willing to leave his bookshop (“Nothing lasts forever!”). He ultimately chooses to walk away from Crowley and up to Heaven, and his actions feel like the opposite of everything we know about him.
The Miracle Latte Theory is intriguing because the show emphasized the coffee so much in the script and even the opening credits — which means, it can’t just be a throwaway detail.
But then again, critics of the theory suggest that the focus on the coffee may just be because of the symbolism of it. Earlier in the season, we see Crowley tempting Aziraphale with food, which introduces him to the joy of life on Earth; in the end, the Metatron tempts him with coffee and makes him go to Heaven.
Another interpretation could be that the Metatron is mirroring Crowley’s temptation of Eve — resulting in Aziraphale leaving his own personal Garden of Eden.
As for the miracle sound, fans have theorized that it was so faint precisely because the “miracle” isn’t literal — it’s psychological abuse making Aziraphale behave in ways he wouldn’t normally do.
The strongest argument against the Miracle Latte Theory comes from a storytelling perspective: Good characters are allowed to make bad choices all on their own, and Aziraphale’s struggle with Heaven’s manipulation is a more meaningful journey than simple brainwashing.
Of course, it’s entirely possible for Aziraphale’s trauma and the Miracle Latte to coexist, since the Metatron could easily trigger Aziraphale with his words while tweaking his brain just a little bit with the coffee.
The Demon Maggie Theory
Is Maggie a demon? There are several details that suggest that she may not be all that she seems.
Firstly, Good Omens made a big deal of demons not being able to spell very well — Shax hilariously tries to spell “toast” sans the A and with an E. In Episode 1, Maggie leaves a note to Aziraphale in which she misspelled “urgency.”
There’s also the fact that the demons were on the street when Maggie left her shop for the ball. She doesn’t even flinch, and they don’t attack her. We never see her eat or drink.
When Crowley began escorting guests out of the bookshop, it was Maggie that insisted she stay with Aziraphale. She was the one who inadvertently (or purposefully?) let the demons in.
Plus, she was the one who got the milk that went into the coffee that the Metatron gave Aziraphale. She’s also the one who convinced Nina to talk to Crowley and encourage him to confess his feelings — and we all know how that went.
However, this theory can be debunked simply by the fact that Maggie was able to enter the bookshop with no issue. And maybe Maggie is simply dyslexic and awkward.
Of course, it could also be that, like Crowley, she had already been invited in before the events of Season 2.
The Book of Life Theory
The Book of Life Theory is laid out in a monstrous 16,000-word Google Doc that made its rounds in the fandom last week.
The author’s hypothesis comes a bit after the 4,000-word mark, and it’s that the “Metatron has access to the Book of Life and he was editing it the whole time.”
According to the author, this theory explains why so many odd things happened during Season 2, and why, for them, some of the writing felt a little like a cliché — as if it was roughly put in by a not-so-good writer (in this case, the Metatron). Some odd things detailed in the theory include:
- No narration from God, even though She was so prominent in Season 1: The Metatron might not have killed Her, but Her absence may be a clue that the Metatron is the one in control.
- Crowley being pulled down to Hell and presumably punished after getting Aziraphale to give Elspeth his money: Crowley’s likely gotten away with much worse (or better?) in the past, and so the author posits that he did actually bring wee Morag up from the dead — a good deed that would more likely have alerted Hell given the magnitude of the miracle — but the Metatron wanted Aziraphale to forget about it.
- Maggie was acting a bit like a Wattpad character at times, but she does set into motion two key developments in the story: She lets the demons in, and pushes Crowley out of his comfort zone and gets him to confess his feelings for Aziraphale, just as the Metatron manipulates Aziraphale towards Heaven.
At times, Nina and Crowley explicitly point out how odd the events of Season 2 are, and the author explains that it’s them sensing that something is not quite right within the show’s universe.
The theory has been divisive in the fandom, mostly because it is based on the author finding the writing poor — and therefore thinking it was poorly done on purpose. But there is something to be said about its points on Maggie and more crucially, I think, on wee Morag.
On the matter of God’s absence, Gaiman has explained that it’s because the story didn’t need Her narration.
The Body Swap Theory
Last but not least is the Body Swap Theory.
Fans of the novel, which Season 1 of Good Omens was based on, would know that the body swap trick revealed in the season finale was not in the book. One of the reasons for the change might be to introduce the concept, which would be useful in future seasons.
Some fans have pointed out that Aziraphale and Crowley might have used the same trick again, this time in the finale of Season 2. Part of the evidence is in the facial expression on Aziraphale a split second after the kiss, and how his hands stay by his sides (instead of clasped, like he tends to) in the final scenes. His odd smile at the end of the credits roll has been likened to the smile Crowley (disguised as Aziraphale) had during his supposed execution in Season 1.
As for Crowley, who is allegedly Aziraphale in disguise, fans have pointed out how odd it was that he had driven away from the bookshop slowly, instead of his usual breakneck driving speed.
The show has also consistently shown Aziraphale on the left and Crowley on the right. But in the end credits roll, they are shown on opposite sides of the screen.
And finally, particular eagle-eyed fans have highlighted how there seems to be a solid 15 minutes of time not shown on-screen, based on the time of the clock in the background — plenty of the time for our favorite couple to plot.
As with the other theories, there are some strong counterpoints to this one as well. Crowley could simply be reluctant to leave Aziraphale and the bookshop behind; Aziraphale might be too rattled to behave like his usual self; and Gaiman has also described the clock’s timing as “a continuity error.”
What’s your favorite theory?