Your Voice: Desmond’s Flashes, Charlie’s Death, and Claire’s Rescue
Submitted by Herb Scribner
Okay, so, we all remember how it went down. Desmond told Charlie that this time he had to die, for if he died by going down to the Looking Glass and turning the switch, Claire would be rescued on a helicopter. Charlie dies, rescue arrives, the helicopter flies off. Oddly, no Claire. Was Desmond lying, and was he selfish enough to want to get off the island at the risk of having Charlie die? Is Desmond that big of an ass? No, and here’s why:
Desmond’s flashes, remember, are pieces to a grander puzzle. He does have longer ones (such as the one where Charlie got shot through the neck with an arrow), but for the most part they’re shorter. Take the episode "Greatest Hits." When Desmond and the 815ers are walking with Jack to where they’ll ultimately meet with Danielle, Desmond pauses for only a brief moment before telling Charlie he did not see a flash. This implies that when Desmond saw this flash of Charlie’s death, it was shorter.
How does this figure in? I believe that Desmond saw Aaron on the helicopter, and when he saw baby Aaron Desmond believed that if Aaron was on the helicopter, then Claire must be with him. Since the flashes are pieces to a puzzle, Desmond might have only seen Aaron, and maybe a shot of Claire with her hair being blown around (possibly from when Keamy attacked New Otherton), which he ultimately put together as Claire getting rescued.
Just a thought. What do you guys think about Desmond’s unfulfilled vision?
————————————
Have your theories posted on The Tail Section!
"Your Voice" is a new TTS series in which Tail Section fans submit their articles, theories or reviews to be published on The Tail Section for all their fellow fans to read. Have you spent far too much time pondering the origins of the DHARMA Initiative? Have you alienated your co-workers by rambling about Daniel Faraday’s wacky time anomaly experiment? If so, we want to hear from you. Send your own Lost theories, reviews, or general thoughts to Editor(at)TheTailSection.com. Please keep all submissions between 300 and 1,000 words. We will read through all submissions and contact you if we publish your entry. You will also receive byline credit on our site.
Lost is not that complicated. Can you picture some episode in the future where Desmond says something like, “Oh, I must have just seen Claire’s hair blown around when they were attacked, not when they were rescued. My bad, brother.”? Desmond said he saw Claire and Aaron being rescued and getting on a helicopter. Assuming he’s not an ass, like you say, and a liar, he actually did see them get off the island. So far, Claire hasn’t been seen near a helicopter.
So rather–I would say Kate returns to the island with the rest of the O6 (and Locke’s body) including Aaron, despite Claire’s warning in Kate’s vision. Aaron and Claire reunite on island and eventually leave via a helicopter.
Comment by oren — June 20, 2008 @ 7:29 am
I agree. This is an extremely convoluted explanation for something that doesn’t need such an explanation. Claire could be rescued at the end of the series, or maybe the future was changed by something. Maybe Desmond saw a helicopter and used Claire and Aaron as an example of people being rescued because he knows they are important to Charlie.
I doubt this is a question we’ll ever get a complete explanation of. Oren’s description of the episode where it is answered is pretty hilarious though. “My bad, brother.”
Comment by Eric — June 20, 2008 @ 7:52 am
“Lost is not that complicated.”
On the contrary–it’s one of the most complicated shows on TV. That’s what makes it so amazing.
Comment by Blib Blub — June 20, 2008 @ 8:37 am
I don’t think it’s that far off, but I highly doubt the theory of Desmond seeing Claire’s hair get blown around. It’s perfectly plausible that he got a flash of Aaron on the plane and assume that Claire, who has been nothing but protective of Aaron the entire series, would be on the plane as well. I’d buy that.
Comment by Alex Stone — June 20, 2008 @ 8:44 am
Just because Desmond sees something in a future flash doesn’t mean it will happen (like Charlie w/ the arrow through his neck). It means that it will happen if someone doesn’t intervene. If Claire hadn’t wandered off with Christian, presumably she would have stayed with Sawyer and been on the copter.
However, I think the writers were originally planning on her being rescued but due to her schedule and the actress’s pregnancy (if the rumour I heard is true), they had to re-write it, since she won’t have time to be full time in Season 5.
Comment by BobW — June 20, 2008 @ 9:50 am
My votes that he lied to Charlie. I know, I know, but he’s a nice guys, why would he lie? I think he just saw people getting rescued and told Charlie that Claire was on the helicopter, but didn’t actually see her. This doesn’t make him a bad guy, just playing on Charlie’s emotions to help him make the right choice. Its better for Charlie to die thinking that Claire is alive and safe.
Or maybe the future was changed, thats actually more likely.
Comment by AnotherOther — June 20, 2008 @ 11:10 am
Blib Blub–of course Lost IS complicated and that’s why we all love it. However, the show’s explanations for things are usually much more down to earth than we sometimes expect (or hope) them to be.
BobW: On the contrary, I think that when Desmond sees something in a future flash it HAS to happen. Just because Charlie didn’t die by Danielle’s arrow death trap, it didn’t mean that he would never die. As Desmond said, “No matter what I try to do, you’re gonna die, Charlie.” Similarly, maybe Claire and Aaron won’t board a helicopter, but they HAVE to get off the island as Desmond saw. So I agree that had Claire not wandered off she may have been on the helicopter. But even though she didn’t get on it, she will at some point find her way off with Aaron.
Comment by oren — June 20, 2008 @ 11:29 am
oren, you are a moron. “Lost has answers which are down to earth”, you say. WTF? when did you stop watching the show, the first season. frozen donkey wheels, time loops, constants, two bunny rabbits, desmond talking to old ladies in the past/present/future (???), dead people showing up, horses and polar bears on the island, slave ships, JACOB effing JACOB, just to name a few. so clearly there’s nothing simple or down to earth about how lost answers questions, especially since most still are unanswered
Pretty good theory herb, hair blowing a little over the top, but overall, it could be neat to see if desmond has or darker side or if he was just misreading his visions.
Comment by mike — June 21, 2008 @ 11:37 am
There is absolutely no reason to call people morons…get a grip,dude.This is a forum to post theories and thoughts…no need to call people names…
Comment by Lionel Hutz — June 21, 2008 @ 4:46 pm
Mike–sorry I offended you. But you have to realize that Lost is a TV show; as intricate a series as it is, the writers still try to develop the show so it will cater to all people and not just us nuts who think about Lost during the off-season, so as complicated as the questions and answers are, they are always delivered in a down to earth manner. I just thought the hair blowing thing was too silly for Lost.
And by the way, I am totally open to the theory that Desmond may have a darker side, especially since the producers never shot a flash of Claire and Aaron boarding a helicopter, unlike other flashes that we have seen.
Comment by oren — June 21, 2008 @ 7:08 pm
Do you guys feel like we really need an answer for why Desmond said Claire was on the helicopter? I don’t think Desmond deceived Charlie, he tried to prevent him from dying on many occasions, but came to the conclusion he couldn’t protect Charlie at every moment for the rest of his life, Charlie had to die. Desmond interpreted his vision to the best of his ability, he saw a rescue helicopter and figured they were going to rescue EVERYONE, not just Claire. Naomi even said she was there to rescue them. I’m happy with this explanation and don’t need the writers to further explore why Desmond’s vision was off. It was safe to assume that the helicopter represented help, who would have thought the helicopter was bringing in mercenaries sent on taking over the island?
Comment by blutoschmooto — June 21, 2008 @ 9:01 pm
i think it’s pretty simple. desmond never saw claire holding aaron, it was always kate. why would he assume that anyone else would be holding aaron? aaron and claire are pretty much one person in his mind.
Comment by eric — June 22, 2008 @ 4:33 am
There’s no way anything selfish is going on with Desmond, if you remember, when he went out there w Charlie he was going to swim down himself b4 he got knocked out.
Comment by brett — June 24, 2008 @ 2:11 pm
I look at it this way, none of Desmond’s “visions” have ever come true, so why is it so hard to believe this one didn’t either?
Comment by dave — July 2, 2008 @ 5:50 am
his vision of charlie drowning came true
Comment by rich — July 26, 2008 @ 7:34 am
Desmond’s vision of Charlie drowning came true because it was a self-fulfilling prophecy. I think most of us were wondering what the hell Charlie was doing baracading himself in that room, when he could have just as easily slipt out of the door and closed it; OR, put on scuba gear; OR just jumped into the moon pool with Desmond and swam out! Instead, Charlie’s love for Claire was so great, he came in with the intention of dying, and killed himself thinking that his death would not only save Desmond, but rescue Claire. He didn’t stop to think about the fact that it would still take quite a while for the entire station to flood from the small hole(and most physics I’ve read states that it wouldn’t completely flood anyway, only up to the hole).
However, Desmond had to use Charlie, because anyone else would not have been able to decode the signal jammer. So, think about this; when has Desmond EVER been able to see an “if this, than this” vision? His visions have always been about the future, what exactly will happen, yet he told Charlie that if he did not die, THAN Claire would not get rescued. If you die, THAN Claire will get rescued. This can’t be true, because he can’t see that. He had to have made this up, because he saw Penny in his visions again. He wasn’t going to risk things changing like the LAST time he saved Charlie, and instead of Penny it was Naomi. He needed Charlie to drown so his visions of Penny would come true.
Is this a darker side of Desmond? Hardly. I believe it always seems more ethical to save someone’s life whenever you can, but Desmond was playing God saving Charlie so much. He would have to save him every other day for the rest of his life. It had to end somewhere.
I believe his vision was this: Jin and Hugo tug on a cord in the sand, Charlie swimming down to the station, Charlie putting in numbers and flipping a switch, Charlie crossing himself while drowning, Desmond and others looking up from their raft and seeing Penny.
Comment by Keith — August 5, 2008 @ 9:05 am
Claire wasn’t on the helicopter because Desmond had the visions in order to save Charlie, and he didn’t. In Catch-22, we see Desmond’s vision of Charlie getting shot in the neck with the arrow. We also see them cutting Naomi from the tree, and Charlie is there, because that was what happened if Desmond saved Charlie. Or it’s possible that it was a mistake because they just used the footage from that point in the episode, but it’s not likely.
Comment by Tony — August 11, 2008 @ 1:47 am
Recall episode three of season three, where Locke is being guided by a manifestation of Boone through the airport. When Desmond appears at the top of an escalator, laughing and flirting with two stewardesses in tow, Locke points to them. Boone replies sarcastically “Forget it, he’s helping himself.” Try an remember that this guy was in jail for several years, deliberately ruined two relationships, and has been repeatedly described a “coward” by more than one persons. Also remember that during the escape from the freighter and his reunion with Penny, he never once looked confused and distraught over Claire being absent. I think he’d do anything to get back to Penny, and if that meant destroying a few lives in process, so be it.
It wouldn’t be LOST if he didn’t lie.
Comment by Ben — September 9, 2008 @ 3:11 pm