Alright, Plurk, it's time to settle one of the big questions in life: Was Childs a Thing at the end of the movie?

I say that he was.

I say no, just because that's the bleakest version of the ending and I think that just fits with the movie's vibe

That is a decent point. But there's also the whole thing that Childs' breath isn't visible in the ending scene.

imo yes he was

the breath thing primarily

but i've also heard someone put forth the idea that the canteen kurt russell handed over to him, which he does not drink from himself, was filled with kerosene instead of water

as a way to test him

a human would taste it and spit it out immediately, a Thing would not understand the difference

Yes, that too. There's no way to confirm but we do know MacReady had molotov cocktails.

yeah. that one's entirely headcanon but, well, usually you take a sip first before offering to someone else, y'know

Yeah he doesn't even touch whatever it is. And it's established early on that MacReady drinks when he's trying to calm his nerves.