Nature versus Nurture, a hotly debated subject. Today we will have a no-holds-barred beatdown between the two concepts.

On one hand we have "Nature". Some people think that each individual person has a predetermined or destined "programming" for how they carry and present themselves around other people. They think that as soon as a baby is born that baby is assigned a role to act: sometimes the baby is chill, sometimes the baby is evil. But the main thing that Nature-touting people posit is that people don't have any real control over who they are deep down inside. Basically they think that the stork who delivers babies just hits the "randomization" button for the personality parameters during character creation, like some kind of freak who doesn't spend hours customizing characters only to stop playing after the first cutscene.

These people are wrong, of course. (Unless if you ask Lisa's Timeline Diagnostic Machine to find each individual's World-Line and Oscillating Value, but that's like saying who you are is nothing but you social security number and credit score)

On the other hand we have "Nurture". A number of people think that the summation of a person is tied to the environment that person was raised in. You may think that this is a bit different from Nature, but honestly? It's pretty much the same. You can't really pick and choose what lady parts/test-tube/ancient gods forehead you emerge from. When you're a kid you don't have a whole lot of opportunities to cherry-pick who you hang out with. Sure, you can choose to be one of the kids who plays on the computer during recess but the kids who pretend to be feral cats will still be in the computer room with you and make you print out pictures of different cats because they aren't allowed to be on the computer anymore because they broke a keyboard by spilling apple juice on it. You don't choose your teachers, what your parents say you're allowed to watch on TV, what you are eating for dinner, when you get to sleep. Basically, when you're a child you got no autonomy whatsoever- everything you do and are is predetermined by forces out of your control.

You can choose to break the rules, but your parents already thought of that: that's why grounding exists in the first place. Punishment and retribution only exist because deviation from what you're predetermined to do was already predetermined. To circle back a little bit: entropy is the natural state of the universe. So Nurture is predicated upon the idea that who you are is a composite of outside forces and ideals that shape you to be the person who you are, but those outside forces work both ways. You can't control them, they can't control you, by the virtue of there being no control in the first place. Just entropy.

Nurture wasn't the right answer either. Some people would like to claim that it is a combination of the two factors, but they are wrong too. Plus: when you combine Nature and Nurture together you get "Narture"- which sounds incredibly stupid. So, neither Nature or Nurture wins this fight. We do. Us and you. Because being a slave to these ideas and having them shape how we see others and ourselves would make us less than them. And hyperfocusing on the "why" of why people are the way they are is just us projecting our own prejudices and dumb-ass guesses on other people, also it makes you look really creepy.

So, is our Lincoln a product of his environment? Is he simply the end-point or answer to the equation that is the Loud family? 1 boy + 10 girls = kid who wears an orange polo? Probably not.

Is he something more than just an amalgamation of different experiences and actions? Is the very concept of our "Lincoln Loud" something that has more agency than "kid who wears orange"? Is "Lincoln Loud" more than an abstraction? Something that can exist without the context of anything else? A complete circuit of self-referential immediacy and corporealness when faced with the sea of the Real?

The answer is not "Probably not" nor is it "Probably, probably not" neither is it "Probably probably not". The answer is that why and how our Lincoln came to be is not a problem to be solved, he's the one who has to answer that. He's the one who bears responsibility for the damage he has done to himself, the people around him, and the multiverse as a whole. Our opinion of the matter doesn't really play into that- and you need to start cutting Lincoln some slack. He's only 13 to 14 years old, after all.

Now, our Lincoln has had the concept of alternate universes hammered in his brain back when he was 11. There are others like him that shared this particular glimmering of knowledge at that point on the timeline, some of them chanced upon it through different means and circumstances- or the same exact ones as him. But the interesting thing to note about Lincoln NKTN-0205 is that he doesn't really see why it's a big deal. To him the sky is blue, the earth is round, Zombie Bran tastes better before they reduced the sugar content, and alternate universes exist.

When faced with the reality that who we are at this exact moment isn't some predetermined being, when the world we grew up in isn't the "only" answer, when the dice could've been rolled luckier: some have the tendency to fall into despondency. They shrug off their responsibilities, they tell themselves "well, in another universe I know how to do a kickflip" and keep their skateboards hung up on the wall as a conversation piece, they don't bother bettering themselves because a better them already exists. It's not a bad outlook, if we are being honest with you- no reason to try to be someone you aren't. But the thing is: you are who you aren't. That imaginary perfect you is still you, might as well try to get on their level- you've got nothing better to do. A little shadow boxing doesn't hurt.

Our Lincoln looks at the kaleidoscope of the multiverse and shrugs his shoulders. If you were to tell him that he didn't care only because of his upbringing he'd shrug his shoulders again, and then probably hand you a breath mint- not because your breath stinks, but because it's a simple appeasement gesture to get you to calm down and shut up. If he feels any emotion at all towards his other selves besides indifference it's probably anger. Which is a comparatively rare emotion coming from him, so those other Lincoln's should count themselves special. He isn't upset just because most of the other Lincoln's are lazy jerks who take the world around them for granted, but because a good majority of them carry bi-fold wallets or tacky tote bags.

The current subject of our Lincoln's ire is Lincoln from CMDY-8008. This is the same Lincoln that he transmigrated into 2 to 3 years back with all brothers and no sisters. We assure you that the two of them meeting again was completely coincidental, we double checked our math with a graphing calculator. And honestly- they didn't really meet the first time around: they swapped bodies. Which has all kinds of very complicated implications that none of us are really brave enough to figure out.

So, for the rest of this entry when you read the word Lincoln we are referring to CMDY-8008.

Lincoln is the middle child of 11 siblings. All of his siblings are boys. No other genders are different from NKTN-0205, so Lincoln's parents, his friends, his haters, and everyone else is the same genders that we are accustomed to. That isn't to say that Lincoln being a boy with 10 sisters is the "canon" of the multiverse, that's like saying that ice cream is vanilla or that videogames are first person shooters. To a Linka (or a Liberty) a Lincoln (or in some incredibly stupid instances: a Link) is just the boy version of them.

Lincoln grew up at 1216 Franklin Avenue getting his shit kicked in by 10 dudes with incredibly Loud personalities, instead of being a baby about it and getting all introverted he crafted himself in such a way to side-step their idiosyncrasies. That isn't to say that he hates his brothers, quite the opposite: Lincoln and his brother's love each other and accept each other for who they are. They also Clown on each other and sometimes get into fist fights over who gets the remote, that's what family is like.

You hear the word "dysfunctional" a lot when people talk about the Loud family, this is wrong: they function quite well and fit their designs perfectly. The Loud family, much like in a lot of different families full of others like them, are more of a force of nature than anything else. The Loud siblings sort out their problems perfectly fine, not with a codified democratic process like 0205 or anything, but with the wonderful and straightforward process of Anarchy.

Basically: they all decided that it would be better to just throw rules out the window, if they "got beef" they will "hash that shit out like big boys". The process of "hashing" can sometimes be solved peacefully by "sharing a cold one" (a "cold one" here being a Krebstar Cherry Cola or a Pineapple Cool-Aide stirred with Coconut La Croy with a Gummy Bear garnish if Lexx has his portable wet bar out) or the "hashing" is through a boxing match on the rooftop of that abandoned factory that made bubblegum and fire-proof blankets (usually on Thursdays- Please contact Leif for tickets, they sell out quick).

Essentially they operate almost the same as 0205's sibling meeting council. They just don't make a big deal out of things and type up stupid little documents like the Loud Family Bill of Rights to hang up on the fridge, instead they hang up doodles like that one Loki did of him as a barbarian surrounded by super hot babies or that one Lincoln did of that horse with a dragon head (The Loud siblings decided to dub the Dragonhorse as the patron Loud Family animal and have updated the family crest accordingly).

But, we are getting ahead of ourselves. Let's introduce the Loud siblings from oldest to youngest.

Loki: is banned from the Royal Woods Country Club Golf Course for unsportsmanlike behavior, destruction of property, hitting on wait staff, hitting on Lord Tetherby's wife, and making Mayor Davis cry.

Loni: is in a lot of trouble with Jackie and Mandie right now.

Luke: is a huge advocate for LGBT rights as evidenced by his search history being filled with multiple variations of "girls kissin".

Lane: is unfortunately on the no-fly list after this year's April Fool's Day stunt involving a biplane and a crop-duster loaded with itching powder.

Lynn: is a card carrying member of the Burpin' Burger Boys Brigade and gets a free burger every birthday and for every 10 9-volt batteries collected from rival burger joints fire alarms.

Lincoln: is voted as "Most Rough And Tumble Tyke" in Rip Hardcore's Hardcore Hiking Magazine after a close-call with Hoowwooo Ruuurgh (the feral child from Siberia who was raised by wolves and bears) in the finals.

Lars: is the last of a long line, the final refrain of the sanguine symphony, the void between the living and the dead is lessening with every full moon, and the voices grow louder: they let him know winning lottery numbers- too bad he's too young to buy a ticket.

Lexx: is on the face of every billboard from Royal Woods to Great Lakes City, he has no idea since he spends all of his time on road trips fixing his hair.

Leif: is also featured in Rip Hardcore Hardcore Hiking Magazine and was voted "Most Hardcore Eater" after that livestream of him eating 100 bait worms in 30 seconds during a fishing trip got viral- he had no idea Pop-Pop was recording.

Levi: is currently embroiled in a lawsuit against pretty much every corporation and business in the world for eradicating world hunger and instituting world peace- he's waiting for the last possible second to remind everyone that he's still 6 and can't be tried as an adult.

Leon: is banned from the Royal Woods Country Club Golf Course for the same exact reasons as Loki but on a separate incident that involved a trench coat, a pair of stilts, and a voice changer.

So the Loud siblings are pretty recognizable as themselves even if you replace the veritable arsenal of numerous shower care products in the bathroom with an industrial sized barrel of 3-in-1 shampoo/body-wash/and conditioner (that is technically made for cleaning elephant cages at the zoo but repackaged for prisons and college dorms for "human" consumption). The relationships might have shuffled around, how they position themselves in front of a toilet to piss may or may not have changed, and their opinions of the boy band Boyz Will Be Boyz have for the most part done a 180. But the Loud family is still the Loud family.

Now, the relationships and dynamics of the Loud siblings are probably the biggest change between Lincoln and 0205.

Loki and Bobby are best bros to the end, but that doesn't mean they are dating. They did promise each other that if they were still single by the time they were in their late 30's they'd get married for "tax reasons". Lincoln managed to get a girlfriend at the age of 11 while Loki meandered in the DM's of various other ladies, this embroiled him to start dating. If getting girlfriends and having them break up with you was a competitive sport Loki would be on the US Olympic team. He thought college would be different, and it was. The stakes got higher and he managed to get a girlfriend, Marisa, but they broke up as soon as finals started. She wanted to "focus on her studies". This kinda made him upset, and maybe a bit depressed.

Luke was egged on by his bros to finally stop being a wet blanket and asked out his band mate Sam. This turned out to be a bad move since Sam is a lesbian, but he took it in stride. Him and Sam are still very good friends. Lincoln doesn't manage The Moon Goats so they aren't as successful as 0205's TGM, but they have a very large following in the denim-jacket wearing crowd. Luke thinks that babes will follow when they finally make it big, but it seems like Sam is the one scoring all the groupies. Luke doesn't really understand his demographic that well.

Lane and Benny are best bros to the end, and they aren't dating, technically. Ms. Coconuts and Mrs. Fearherbottom have entered a whirlwind relationship after the passing of Mr. Featherbottom by mysterious circumstances, Ms. Coconuts proved to be Mrs. Featherbottom's rock in her time of need and things kinda fell into place. Lane and Benny have no choice but to entertain the wooden duo's passionate love. They don't have a say in the matter really, none at all. His brother's are tentatively supportive of Lane and Benny's relationship, but the two boys maintain that there is no funny business going on between them.

Lincoln Loud got a girlfriend. Her name is Ronalda. She used to Clown on him on the regular, she even gave him a black eye after their first kiss. Which should have been a red flag. But Ronalda didn't raise a hand against him ever again after the moment they became friendbook official. Their 2 year long relationship ended 3 months back when things started getting pretty bad between the two of them, Lincoln isn't really the best communicator when it comes to relationships. He doesn't understand girls that well, but he's been trying to work on it.

The problem with the break up is that he didn't exactly tell Ronalda that they were broken up before she got evidence of him, in her mind, cheating on her with some girl named Rachel.

So she's a little bit upset by that.

But she did somehow convince her mom to move back into Royal Woods after Maria got a job offer as head nurse at Royal Woods Hospital. So Ronalda thinks that maybe she might have another chance with Lincoln, long-distance didn't exactly work out so maybe this might. All she really wants is a face to face, honest conversation with Lincoln, about feelings.

But you don't always get what you want.

To Lincoln Loud the best kind of plan is an escape plan.

And he has a lot of those. Lincoln has multiple secret bases scattered all around Woodland County, and even a couple of haunts secured in GLC. He keeps all of his belongings in a Rip Hardcore Deadly Dude Duffel Bag and just uses his room at home as a glorified storage container. Lincoln's solution to his little room was by making the whole wide world his room by utilizing his wits and survival skills.

Lincoln's priorities are a little bit different than others like him. He solves his problems by not being there to start them. If his brothers want to squabble like a bunch of wild dogs for a handful of table scraps- he'll gladly let them. Rita and Lynn were a bit worried at first, but he managed to convince them that nothing bad would happen when he admitted that he'd just slip away when they aren't looking and he has already spent the last month sleeping in a bomb shelter Levi made behind the middle school. Lincoln is pretty sure he won't die anyways- his TDM readout from Levi says that he's got a good 80 years left in him. He could add an extra ten by cutting out all the extra sodium in his diet- but can't seem to kick canned corned beef sandwiches.

Despite his almost paranoid planning, Ronalda has successfully tracked him down. Maybe Lincoln might learn something new today and face his problems head-on-

But probably probably not. He's got a bigger problem to solve: someone or something is watching him.

"You'll never find me, not a chance

I grew a beard and kill my food with my hands

Swim in the river, sleep on the ground

I feel so free without people around

I didn't choose this: it chose me

Life is good because I live life for free"

Lunch by Bogus Genius

You might be wondering, "Uh Mr. Meta, you already have a Lincoln in your story, you can't have two". Well, yeah, if I had two Lincoln's that'd be way too much. Heck, even one Lincoln is pushing it, if you ask me. You also might be wondering how 8008 (and maybe all the other Lincolns) might intersect with the world of our main Lincoln, this is a good thing to wonder. Also, I didn't genderbent everyone in 8008 besides Lincoln because if I remember correctly Lincoln explicitly namedrops Ronnie Anne in One Of The Boys in the genderbent universe, it would be weird to me to just genderbend Bobby to keep things cohesive to "canon". Also: Lincolns secret bases are a thing mentioned in that one episode where Clyde and Lincoln think that a zombie attack happened. It would be interesting to see a Lincoln where literally everyone is genderbent but him, but like: how would that even work. Is George Washington Georgina Washington? Is Mr. Clean Mrs. Clean? Seemed a bit too high concept for the first "other Lincoln" we meet.

What if there was a Lincoln who was an only child? Nah, I don't think Lisa's TDM multiverse scanner thing would pick that universe up because it's Canon Deviation would be too high. And his name probably wouldn't be Lincoln, judging from the fact that Rita and Lynn named their first daughter "Lori" it'd be something lame. Like "Link" or something. Naming your kid a nickname is crazy, like naming a kid "Bob" instead of "Robert". But whatever man, you can always change your name to something cool like "Bastard Sword" or "Killer". I've known a couple Loraine's, but never any Lori's. Pretty crazy show, but that's the magic of cartoons. I have heard of the name Leni before, that one Sarte play, that stood out to me when I first saw the show. Props to you if you caught the No Exit reference in the first couple chapters, forgot which one. I'm rambling now- see you later.