Doc Jensen Conquers Time and Space
It’s Wednesday, it’s LOST day, which means it is Doc Jensen day over at ew.com. This week, the good Doc saved us all and cleared up what I consider to be a dangerous theory concerning LOST. It all started (I think) with Kristin Veitch’s wacky hypothesis that ‘Flashes Before Your Eyes’ had revealed that all flashbacks were time travel. I kinda cringed when I read this, but deep in my mind I knew it would never take flight.
I’m a rationalist when it comes to LOST theorizing, a bit of an agnostic as well. In flashes, it was clear to me that Desmond traveled through time, and that it was caused by the turning of the failsafe key. I’m still not sure how head injuries factor into this, but I’m sure that those mischievous imps that forge LOST put them in there to torture us with doubt. The point is, there was nothing to suggest that this unique event that occurred to Desmond was making a broad statement regarding the numerous other flashbacks that take place on the show. I knew there would be a period of time where Kristin’s idea would infect the reactionary portion of the LOST audience that lives for the amorphous, constantly shifting theory. But i didn’t expect it to stick. Then this happened:
You little devils. We were taking these flashbacks at face value, and now, this mind-blowing realization that the Losties could be time-traveling. What the—?! That was awesome! Is this sort of a climax of season three?
C.C.: This is the first of a couple of turning points.
D.L.: Yeah. We had mentioned earlier that we were going to drop a couple of bombs in the middle of season three. And this is sort of—
C.C.: Bomb one.
D.L.: I’d say this is kind of a grenade. The real bombs have yet to come.
C.C.: Right now we are softening up the earth for the big bombs that are going to fall. The B-52 is on its way.
This was a scary moment. I was sure that when CC and DL answered this question they had no idea they were validating Kristin’s earlier notion that all flashbacks were time travel (or at least had the potential to be.) Not that millions of fans going down the wrong track is a major catastrophe, but I’m a little O.C.D about this sort of thing, okay? I kinda chuckle when people can’t seem to accept the obvious, but at the same time it sorta makes me want to wash my hands over and over again, know what I mean?
Now, back to the hero of the hour. Doc Jensen. Thankfully, Doc (the other Doc) was on top of things and got clarification from the brains that seep LOST’s tasty nector. When he asked Lindelof about this specifically, here is the reply he got:
It would be a faulty leap in logic to assume that because Desmond’s flashbacks were a form of time travel, then ALL flashbacks on Lost have been a form of time travel. ”I don’t really see anything in the show to support that,” says Lindelof.
So there you go folks, Logic wins, Desmond’s time trip was in-fact a unique phenomenon brought on by the turning of the failsafe key. But don’t worry. There is much much more to disclose. This was the tip of the iceberg.
For more of Lindelof’s rules for viewing ‘Flashes’, and some great hints on this weeks episode….
Woo hoo first comment! well i have to agree with you there DocArtz that would of been just plain silly to suddenly say all the other flashbacks were time travelling aswell! lol! im glad the powers tht be have officially disclaimed this one cos if this theory went unawnsered who knows how many possibililities fans would of been spinning from it!.
Common sense wins out for once on Lost!
Comment by 24luke — February 21, 2007 @ 8:38 am
Of course, erroneous theories are part of the fun. But this had the makings of another purgatory… and who needs that!
Comment by docarzt — February 21, 2007 @ 8:45 am
dudes,
surly des was NOT time traveling!! cmon people, get real, his life FLASHED B4 HIS EYES, get it? thats why charlie was busking etc, it was his subconcious!!!
then he woke up and the flashes continued.
Comment by r — February 21, 2007 @ 9:07 am
THANK YOU!!!! I love Kristen and trust her judgements usually, but this was a bit much. And it confused the hell out of me as that was not what I got from the episode. Thanks for clearing that up. I do have to say though, that perhaps because what was saw was so open to interpretation, TPTB should try and be a little more forthcoming. This is twice now in the same season they have done 2 brilliant scenes only to have them misinterpreted (Jae’s suicide).
Comment by downthehatch — February 21, 2007 @ 9:21 am
R - please … READ the article. in Damon’s own words… he did time travel… the event did not take place ‘in his head’ …
Comment by docarzt — February 21, 2007 @ 9:32 am
ok doc, ill read it but i think its a bit too far fetched. like why locke didnt go back too, he was just outside of that little hatch. the only thing it does explain to me is why he wasnt blown up! but then again neither were the others in there…… ill see…….
Comment by r — February 21, 2007 @ 9:48 am
Yes… Locke and Eko are loose ends to that story. Maybe they did travel though and didn’t realize it like Desmond, so they didn’t have the same residual effects.
Comment by docarzt — February 21, 2007 @ 10:29 am
So should we expect Charlie to get hit on the head in a later episode and then remember meeting Desmond in London? Maybe it will happen right before he dies… It still doesnt explain the old lady who knew his name though. Maybe she was put into his head by the smoke monsters psychic ability. And for that matter, maybe the smoke monster is the magnetic anomoly that the swan station was regulating. A sentient magnetic force so powerfull that it can suck our your thoughts and put in new ones.
Comment by Charlie Lesoine — February 21, 2007 @ 10:43 am
I meant to say that the smoke monster could actually be the discharge of magnetic anomoly from the swan and underneath the island is a great black smokey magnetic throbbing thinking mass which is building steam because there is now no way of discharging it…
Comment by Charlie Lesoine — February 21, 2007 @ 10:45 am
Well, didn’t he say “a form of time travel”? what does that really mean? Couldn’t that just mean that he did have a flashback and relived it in his head. Aren’t super-realistic memories (or dreams of memories) “a form of time travel”?
Comment by AnotherOther — February 21, 2007 @ 11:40 am
If Smokey is a discharge of super psychological magnetic phenomena, then could there possibly two Smokeys now? I think we’re missing the boat a little with Des. His physical self is not time traveling but his present conscious mind (the one we watch) is. Ms. Hawking could also be looping this way. We could very well see her on the island, which would indicate that she has been recruited to ensure Desmond’s path. Obviously his not marrying Penny was the beginning of his journey to the island. I’m wondering what the hell he did that was so bad that he’s obsessed w/ regaining his honor while passing on that hottie english Pen?
Comment by cap10tripps — February 21, 2007 @ 12:06 pm
I think when he said “I have to get my honor back” it was about being a coward because he didn’t marry Pen and also, he probably did something cowardly when he was in the Royal Scotts that caused him to spend time in military prison and be dishonorably discharged afterward.
Comment by Charlie Lesoine — February 21, 2007 @ 12:21 pm
(sorry to repost this, but this is probably the better forum…)
A few thoughts on the implications of the episode to some of the unanswered questions.
What if the others also mastered time travelling? That can explain how they got all that info on Jack, why Libby was on the mental institution with Hurley, maybe even how they knew Juliet’s ex-husband was going to cross the street and then run a bus over him. What if Aaron the psychic was actually Claire’s son and had to insist that she takes the plane so that he can be born in the island? That would make Aaron an other as well…
Also my new theory on the numbers is that Dharma is using time travel to change the variables on the Valenzetti equation and thus trying to stop humanity from self-destructing.
If there is a black-hole-type force underneath the swan hatch, it could be used for both time-travelling and teleporting. Maybe that explains how a small plane leaves Nigeria and ends up crashing half a world away.
Comment by Rog — February 21, 2007 @ 1:07 pm
If you’re wondering about the head injuries and time travel, I suggest you read Mark Twain’s “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court”. It’s been a while since I’ve read it, but going by the previous literary references by LOST writers, I’m betting they borrowed heavily from it. Hopefully though, they don’t borrow from Yankee’s ambiguous ending, which would be the safe way out for LOST. This show deserves some concrete conclusions by its end. Critics didn’t like Yankee’s ending back then, and critics and fans now won’t take kindly to an open ending from LOST.
Comment by Galen — February 21, 2007 @ 1:34 pm
When he says, “I have to get my honor back,” he is referring to something pre Penny, as this is the reason he leaves her. It was also pre military, because leaving Penny was pre military. Joining the military was a probable attempt at regaining honor. He says something interesting to Claire after his boat washes back on shore. Referring to Aaron’s father leaving he says, “maybe he knew what was best for Aaron.” This statement seems that it will come into play somehow. Maybe he knows that Aaron’s father leaving has a lot to do with her being on the plane, or maybe his dishonoring had something to do with a similar situation.
Comment by cap10tripps — February 21, 2007 @ 1:38 pm
I’ve just thought of something pertaining to Desmond’s intitial meeting with Jack. It really seems (looking back) as if this was another “loop” for Des. He says things like, “lift it up” (a reference to the hatch), and “fix her” (her being Jack’s eventual wife). It seems as if Des is orchestrating something. Perhaps he knows that Jack’s marriage will lead him to a downward spiral that will eventually land him on the island. Maybe the purpose was to fix Ben (”then a spinal surgeon fell out of the sky”). The writers may have given us major clues to this when Danny says, “Shephard wasn’t even on the list.” Des is also seen as the pilot in Locke’s vision (when he saves Ecko from the polar bear) which could be trying to tell us that Des is the pilot of this ship (as in he’s controlling the direction of things). Just some thoughts to ponder…
Comment by cap10tripps — February 21, 2007 @ 1:59 pm
“His physical self is not time traveling but his present conscious mind (the one we watch) is.”
I personally think you are right on the money. I’ve presented that same thing on another forum. But I think you’ll find it hard to get most people to wrap their heads around that.
Comment by Rain — February 21, 2007 @ 2:18 pm
If you think about it, it’s probably the only way time travel could be possible (by controlling your present consciousness on a past or future plane of existence). Some scientists theorize that if we could find a vessel that travels faster that the speed of light that we could somehow travel so fast that we go in reverse. Which one seems more plausible?
Comment by cap10tripps — February 21, 2007 @ 2:49 pm
I’m also pretty rational when it comes to a story about an Island that has all these illogical things happening, but just because they call Desmond’s time travel a flashback in no way implies that it is a flashback. Why are people supposed to think that all flashbacks are time travel just because time travel on Lost took the form of a flashback? Sorry, come again? Where’s the logic in that? And just because this show is 50% flashback makes it highly unlikely that Desmond’s flashback has any connection with any other flashback. There’s absolutely no connection, at all….
Wait…. Can I start again?
Comment by Logic — February 21, 2007 @ 10:36 pm
“So there you go folks, Logic wins, Desmond’s time trip was in-fact a unique phenomenon brought on by the turning of the failsafe key.”
The above quote doesn’t jive with what was actually said.
“It would be a faulty leap in logic to assume that because Desmond’s flashbacks were a form of time travel, then ALL flashbacks on Lost have been a form of time travel.”
ALL ALL ALL ALL ALL
Comment by Turkey Sandwich — February 22, 2007 @ 1:26 am
you left out a part of what damon and carlton said, and it’s pretty key:
it opened up the show in a way that, um, you understand that the flashback devices might not just be the sort of simple thing that we’ve been presenting you before, that these bad decisions that people made in their lives are potentially reversible in some way, shape, or form
that seems to imply that it’s still possible?
Comment by mike — February 22, 2007 @ 11:28 am
to clarify, damon and carlton said that in the same kristen webshow doc jansen references
Comment by mike — February 22, 2007 @ 11:29 am