This year, I decided to dress as an e-boy for October 31. I’m talking black and gray striped shirt with a ripped short sleeve over it, grey ripped skinny jeans with an O-ring closure, a beanie, rings, necklace, and of course platform boots. 

Why am I telling you this? Well, this is what I dreamed of wearing all those years ago when I first discovered the emo trinity of Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco, and My Chemical Romance (MCR) on Pandora radio and decided to take the advice to “darken [my] clothes and strike a violent pose” to heart (I say all those years but let’s be real, I never grew out of my emo phase). 

These bands got me through some tumultuous times, and the stories and memories that I have of listening to these bands I will cherish forever. As much as I love Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco, it’s easy for me to say that MCR is my favorite out of the three. Who wouldn’t enjoy screaming along to songs such as “I Don’t Love You,” “I’m Not Okay (I Promise),” and, of course, “The Black Parade?” MCR was a really formative band for me, igniting my internal drive to start a band, travel across the world, hang out with friends, and just have the time of my life. Any playlist that I’ve ever made has at least one MCR song on it, which is a testament to the range that this band has.

“The future is bulletproof! The aftermath is secondary”

Imagine my surprise when, during my boring Thursday shift at the Bookstore, I scrolled across a My Chemical Romance meme on my Instagram feed. “Huh,” I thought, “I haven’t seen one of these in a while.” 

I grew tired of scrolling there and decided to open Twitter. Alas, could it be? The first moments story detailed that something was going on with MCR’s social media. Not wanting to get my hopes up too much, I opened the moment. “It’s Official: My Chemical Romance Is Reuniting.” “And if your heart stops beating, I’ll be here wondering did you get what you deserve?” When I tell you that my heart skipped a beat, and not just from the eight espresso shots that I had to get me through the shift… you know it’s real. 

Suddenly, it’s like I was 12 years old again, I-pod shuffle in hand, terrible eyeliner and too much mascara, singing along to songs that I felt just got me. I have to admit I freaked out a little (read: a lot). 

I texted my friends and my sister that it was a bit too much of a coincidence that today, the day that MCR decided to reconvene, I was fulfilling my emo dreams by dressing how I wanted to back when I had first accepted emo into my life.

“You’re in time for the show”

Now, onto the specifics. According to the MCR Twitter page, on December 20th in Los Angeles, the band will reunite for one show. This show, which went on sale on Halloween and sold out by the next day, is every former (or not former at all, in my case) emo’s dream. The band’s Twitter has since then posted about how much support they have received over the past few days, and that they will “see [us] soon.”

Since this is their first performance since 2012, it is not surprising that it sold out so quickly. Even though I know there is no way for me to go to this show, it still feels good to know that a band that I have loved since being a young teen feels comfortable enough to play together again, even when each member has moved on in some way. 

With lead singer Gerard Way’s “The Umbrella Academy” comic book series becoming a Netflix original, guitarist Frank Iero’s solo career and various bands over the years, guitarist Ray Toro’s solo career, and Mikey Way’s band Electric Century and various other collaborations, each member seems to have moved on in a positive way from their not-so humble beginnings in My Chemical Romance. 

Anyway, I am super stoked for the future of this band, and I look forward to whatever the next chapter of My Chemical Romance is. BRB, I’ll be practicing how to do eyeliner with shaky hands and buying whatever I can get with said shaky hands on at Hot Topic while I wait for December 20.