Content Warning: The source text includes mentions of suicidal ideation, detailed depictions of obsessive-compulsive disorder, and references to alcohol addiction, disordered eating, and anti-LGBTQ+ bias.

Ness uses the indie kids as a way of satirizing the stereotypical protagonist of the modern YA fantasy novel and, in so doing, creating commentary about the genre itself. Some of the more incisive commentary comes toward the end of the novel, as Mikey and his friends go to prom and Satchel is busy in the school’s basement fixing fissures. Jared notes that there are no indie kids at prom, and Mikey notes that “He’s right. There’s not one. Which makes me sort of sad, really” (247). Mikey’s sorrow stems from the realization that even though there are elements of his life that are beyond his control, he still has his friends and gets to share calm, low-stakes moments with them. Mikey realizes, as his childhood is coming to its end, that these are the moments that have defined his youth—and the indie kids never get to have them. While the indie kids are the perpetual heroes of narratives for young adults, they are also, in Mikey’s estimation, robbed of the most important parts of being young.