West

> "*What! Be a what!? What the fuck, Nick!? A killer? You think you have the luxury not to be? Wake the fuck up! It's a fucking war! And in a war, you fucking exterminate the vermin on the other side! You take them out because you have no other choice! We've given you everything!*"
> ― West to Nick[source]
>
>

**West** is a character on the Hulu original series *Monsterland*. He is portrayed by Ben Rappaport.

West is the leader of the Shadow Watch who assists Nick in dealing with his Shadow.

## Season 1

### Eugene, OR

West, Finalgirl, and Dagr meet Nick on the Shadow Watch forum after he discovers a shadow in his house. They have 12 confirmed sightings in the southeast, and 10 in the Midwest, where Dagr’s cousin caught one in his garage in Milwaukee. They explain how shadows prey on the vulnerable and work invisibly for years before they show themselves. And they hate light. West goes on to explain that they’re at war with the Shadows. He then inquires about Nick’s life and how bad it has been as of late. He believes that all of Nick problems are the work of shadows. They sow darkness and trade in violence, chaos, and fear. They killed Finalgirl’s parents. First time she saw one, she thought nothing of it. She ignored it. Even after her dad got laid off, started drinking and bought a gun. She didn’t realize until their funerals. The shadow was there, too. Watching on the church wall. She suspects the shadow made him kill her mom and then himself. The Shadow Watch is a group of concerned citizens who are committed to ending the Shadows’ reign of terror. Nick then reveals that he’s recently come across a shadow in his house.

West, Finalgirl, and Dagr learn that Nick saw the shadow again. West warns Nick that by the time he starts seeing the shadows, they’ve already got their hooks in good and ready. He then asks about Nick’s mom and if anything has happened to her in the last year. He warns Nick that the pain in his life is organized by the Shadows. Their pain and doubts feed the Shadows. Dagr points out that this is why they need Senator Skip Fletcher. He said the word "shadow" nine times in his debate last week. They believe this to be a signal. Finalgirl says that Nick will need an alias if he’s to join them. They decide to call him Wolf after he reveals his gamertag is "LoneWolf." West reveals that he met Dagr when he was 12 and posting suicide threats on a gaming thread. West found his phone number and talked the belt off his neck. That was right when his dad left. That’s how Dagr knew he had a Shadow. He never seen it but blames it for ruining his life. West doesn’t have a Shadow. But his brother, James, did. He broke his leg on a ski trip with his school. The doctor gave him oxy for the pain. A year later, West found him on the toilet with a needle sticking out of his arm. West and Dagr go to bed, but Finalgirl agrees to stay up with Nick.

West, Finalgirl, and Dagr speak with Nick from his school's library. West is becoming more concerned about the Shadow and wants to plan their next attack. West tells Nick that they're family now. Nick returns home and continues the discussion. He blames all his misfortune on his Shadow. He asks West, Finalgirl, and Dagr how to kill it. West reveals that the Shadow can die if they hit it with enough light. Finalgirl wants to send a message to make the Shadows fear them. Nick suggests live-streaming it. Not long after, he has created a contraption he named "the Shadow Slayer." It blasts 32,000 lumens with a magnifier, and it’s got two settings. Nick was hoping they would kill the Shadow for him, but they explain that it’s his responsibility to kill his Shadow. Nick is reluctant to take on the responsibility, and Dagr becomes enraged. West tells Nick that the only way he can be a part of the Watch is to kill his Shadow. West and Dagr then inform Nick that they tracked down his father. He’d started a new family, with a wife and son in a beautiful home. After discovering the truth about his father, Nick agrees to kill his Shadow with assistance from West, Finalgirl, and Dagr, and does so sucessfully.