A journey through the life of Fergus McLafferty. Fergus needs a role model. He chooses a fish with four legs - an axolotl. This inbred freak of nature becomes a metaphor for Fergus' life. The Imploding Self traces Fergus's emotional turning points as he identifies more and more with is axolotl. A lonely, obsessive child turns into a lonely adult, out of touch of reality. As Fergus's mind and body decay, a psychological metamorphosis appears to become a physical reality - or has our reality become his?