Wednesday, August 22, 2007

"Doctor Desmond, Time Lord"

Continued conversation with blogger friends about the suspected Course Correctors of the time element alluded to on LOST, brought another thought to my mind the other day. What if poor Desmond has been chosen to be brought into the CC's ranks as a permanent additional or supplemental member?! We "know" (as much as you can know anything on the show) that he is being manipulated, or at least bumped around, by Mrs. Hawking and whomever else is in her ranks of time watchers. We also suspect Brother Campbell, but don't know who else could be involved yet. Do these time lords ever die? If so, perhaps they need to replenish their ranks by steering other hapless humans into the fold, to keep the time-watch going, so as to protect the universe. Maybe that's how Mrs. Hawking and Brother Campbell got their jobs. Or maybe the mean old time lords just sweep away any humans handy to use as pawns in their course correcting duties.

Consider Desmond's existence. We have been shown a number of events that have happened in Dez's life, all of which didn't turn out the way he intended. His first wedding didn't happen, life as a monk didn't work out, his life planned with Penny wasn't realized, and something happened to him in his military stint that earned him a dishonorable discharge. Somewhere in his life he attempted to study medicine, but he apparently did not reach the goal in that vocation either. Then he tried to prove his mettle and worth by winning a sailing race that planted him on the Island. And later, his trip away from the island brought him right back around to being in the Swan station again, assuring that he would be there for the big Failsafe moment to save the world. What if for Desmond's entire life he has been shuffled by the Time Watchers or Course Correctors so that when the time came, he could be assimilated into the order of the watchers to be at the right place in the right time when needed? It's a creepy thought.

I must say though, Desmond would make a great Doctor Who! In Desmond's parallel-time-twisting-flashback-trip he had the quintessential Dr. Who look: the rumpled suit with a big loose tie/scarf, the dishevelled hair, and the accent. Even in the Swan station with the Losties, he acts at ease at the controls as if he knows what's going on like the Doctor in his spaceship. All he needs now is his own TARDIS! But we don't know what Mrs. Hawking and company use for their travel, they might use something a little more elegant.

If being some sort of a time lord is Desmond's fate, I hope that he can come to terms with it. He wants to live a real life of his own, but he may not get to now with Mrs.'H' butting in. If he is merely being used as an instrument for their use in cleaning up this big Island mess with the Dharma Initiative, the Island Originals, and Hanso Henchmen, he might be able to go back to Penny after all the dirty deeds are done and the world is once again on course. If not, then he may have to come to terms with being trapped in a time lord job indefinitely. At this point though, we don't know that for sure any more than we know anything else.

24 comments:

Vincent Madison said...

Desmond as Doctor Who...hmmm...

I like that. You know he does make a great Doctor Who.

Capcom said...

I'm sure that Henry Ian Cusick will have a lot of great job offers to choose from after his successful role on LOST is finished. But he would fit very nicely into the quirky and compelling Doctor Who role I think!

Ange said...

Wow, what a great post! I loved how you put all of Desmond's life non achievements right out there.

I wonder, If Des is being groomed to be a timekeeper, does he already know it.

Desmond only seems to have future flashes of Charlie and his death. And, he's not always been forthcoming with that information. What if he sees more than we are being shown, and he knows his role in all that's about to happen?

Capcom said...

Thanks Ange! And that's a good question. TPTB make Des looked pretty confused now since the failsafe kickstarted his visions, but I wonder if they will make him realize and come to terms with his new responsibilities of foresight?

memphish said...

I'm betting the whack on the head by Charlie is going to end Des's visions mainly because it's just too hard for TPTB to keep that story up in the air with all the other balls.

I guess you could argue that Desmond was Charlie's Mrs. Hawking, course correcting him along, mostly unwittingly, until it was really time for him to die.

I still like that idea that's been around this summer that every time Desmond saved Charlie something in the past had to change to accomodate that. I'm guessing all this stuff about time and the butterfly effects of these changes are going to be some of the things that we never get all the answers too because from a story-telling viewpoint, it's too detailed and mostly boring. Maybe Darlton could write an Epilogue when it's all over like JK Rowling.

What about the idea of Alpert being Ben's Mrs. Hawking? Is the never aging Alpert Ben's Course Corrector or even the Island's Course Corrector what with him providing the information necessary to do away with Anthony Cooper? If I were Mrs. Hawking I'd be a little ticked that he got to stay in his 30s while I was stuck in my 60s. :)

memphish said...

Forgot to add, what if Ben has been added to the ranks of Course Correctors which is why he "can't" let anyone leave the Island?

Capcom said...

Oh wow Memphish, those are some good ideas! It sure looks as if Dez was Charlie's Mrs.H. And it's entirely plausible to the story that Dez could have caused some problems with stopping his death, just like she said would happen. I really like that idea.

And good point about Alpert, you come up with the good ones! It does seem like he's been doing some steering concerning Ben's actions. If Ben has become a CC too, and he takes his orders from Jacob, maybe Jacob is the King of all CCs? Maybe he started the whole time lord thing after he landed in the crack between the worlds and he's been recruiting the rest of the CCs! Ugh, brain-pain!

We could really use an epilogue from TPTB after all is said and done, good idea! If nothing else, it would be nice if they either inserted an interview segment on the last season's DVD, or better yet release a book, about all the things they were thinking and intending between the lines, etc., in the show. That would be more interesting than The Bad Twin. :-)

memphish said...

Maybe Damon could right that pamphlet about it like he said at Comic Con. ;)

Capcom said...

From his and your lips to God's ears Memphish! :-) But I hope that pamphlet is about 400 pages long!

TheOtherLisa said...

Hmmmm..... I really like most of Memphish's ideas on this one, so won't rehash. Especially appealing, however, perhaps the concept of pairs and assignments- maybe the CC's are specific to a person, situation, etc rather than a general job description. For example, Des to Charlie- Des's flahses/job over, Des loses abilities. But Richard to Ben, the Hawkings to Des- job still unfinished- everyone's stuck.

I do think though, we see a different level of awareness in the people we're speculating about - Des is confused and not sure what to do. Mrs. Hawkings has the answers of who, what where... maybe even why. So, when considering the CC's --- is it on the job experience/learning? a hierarchy? something that just comes natural?

Anyway... excellent question....just a quick thanks to Capcom for the blog fun over the past 2 weeks- I'm back to work next week, so I won't get to check in as frequently. If I don't get back for a while, know that I really have enjoyed your perspectives and ideas!

Capcom said...

Good angle Lisa, I bet that it's total OJT on the fly, and the trainee gets his/her answers on a need-to-know basis. Des doesn't seem to grasp what Mrs.H is saying to him (heh, neither do I!), but once he gets more experience he might start to get the hang of things and to understand why he can and can't do the things that she has told him about.

Come back to the blogs when you can Lisa! Your comments are great.

TheOtherLisa said...
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TheOtherLisa said...
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TheOtherLisa said...

Deletes=me again, editing...sorry

ange- I peeked at your blog- we have the same line of work...how on earth do you find time!!!! ;-) I do hope to be back- I really enjoy these smaller group chats! Just didn't want to disappear without thanking the hostess!

Anyway... OJT.... yes, but also remember Des is in the potential role of both being a CC'er (to Charlie) and in the process of GETTING CC'd by Mrs.Hawkings (and potentially her son, the head monk). Do you have to go through CC'ion to learn to help someone CC??? Is Mrs. Hawkings training him? Is it the prerequisite experience to helping Charlie? Or, if he is a potential CC'er... is either his own CC'ion or assistance with Charlie's CC'ion an "interview'?

Yeesh!

Capcom said...

Wow, good questions, and I don't know what to think yet. It would be great if Charlie came back as some kind of "something", not an angel or anything cheesy, but.....?

memphish said...

That makes me think of all those theories about Shannon and Boone coming back as Nikki and Paolo. If Charlie turns out to be anyone's CC, I'd guess it would be Aaron's. Maybe he'll communicate through the ring. :)

TheOtherLisa said...

That makes me think of all those theories about Shannon and Boone coming back as Nikki and Paolo.

WHAT? WHAT? WHAT?
I JUST HAD A SERIOUS BRAIN CRAMP! I never heard this one. Ouch, ouch, ouch! Too much....

memphish said...

Don't worry Lisa, it was totally debunked. It was one of David at TLC Podcasts pet theories.

Capcom said...

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww, Memphish! Charlie as Aaron's guardian angel!! I would love that. :-)

I never heard that B/S-N/P theory either.

memphish said...

I don't want to misrepresent David's theory. It was something like because Desmond time traveled, Nikki and Paolo were on the plane instead of Shannon or Boone more than that the spirits of Shannon and Boone now inhabited Nikki and Paolo or something like that. But the Expose flashback clearly showed all four of them on the beach when the plane crashed, so no N/P replacing S/B theory of any sort would be true.

Unknown said...

I'm sure Ms. Hawking and BC (who may not actually be a CC, just someone who was manipulated by Hawking) aren't the only ones out there.

In fact, I do think there was someone else operating behind the scenes to make sure that ALL of the Losties we've come to know and love ended up on Flight 815. In other words, all the coincidences we've seen on the show were prearranged by someone with knowledge of the future.

Now it's entirely possible that that person is a time-traveling Desmond himself, who goes back in time and arranges everything Back to the Future style.

But I'm sure Ms. Hawking isn't the only one out there.

Added note: I wonder if Charlotte Malkin's near-death experience turned her into a CC? She did seem to have some sort of precognitive knowledge of Eko and Yemi. :)

Capcom said...

I am starting to warm up to the idea (even more so) that the Losties were manipulated into being ont he plane. It might not turn out to be so, but it's a compelling thought. And what a thought that a future Dez could have been the one to guide the Losties there! Wow.

Interesting point about Charlotte as well.

Paula Abdul Alhazred said...

Capcom,

I am very much on board with your theories here. I absolutely think Des has been manipulated by a group of people including Ms. Hawking, Brother Campbell, and Libby. I strongly suspect these people, course correctors or whatever you wanna call them, are the other group of people heading to the island. I'm guessing they've been observing a particular cycle of events, and are trying to manipulate a certain outcome each time. Jacob, Ben and their people are working for a different outcome.

Think about it: Ms. Hawking insists Des must turn the key to save mankind. However, Des turning the key is also what made the island visible. So, if this other group of people were searching for the island, they would depend upon Des committing this action. Jacob, meanwhile, is trying to ensure that no one, especially not these people, find the island. So I think it would make sense if they were the so-called "other Others," or "bad guys" according to Ben. Libby could very well have been a spy to make sure events went according to plan (not, of course, knowing Michael would kill her). But I just don't think it's a coincidence that these people entered Desmond's life and pulled his strings when they did, especially not after the introduction of Ms. Hawking.

And as Jay pointed out, it would make sense if Charlotte and even Richard Malkin were involved with these people. Either that, or this mysterious couple in Los Angeles are part of this strange group. I think they wanted Aaron for a reason, and it's no accident that Desmond's visions showed Claire and Aaron in particular being rescued.

However, time traveling puppet masters aside, I don't think every single character was manipulated into being on the flight. I suspect the show will leave us wondering if a force greater than humanity (fate? God? the writers?) brought these people together for a reason.

Capcom said...

PAA, I am so on the bandwagon of Libby being formerly with these new guys, almost to the point where I might be disappointed if she wasn't! :-)

I've also been wondering if, like you said, not all of the 815ers were supposed to be on the flight to the island. Maybe the ones that we know and love were, and everyone else who happened to be on the flight were just unfortunate collateral damage so to speak. Sounds like something heartless that Ben or Mittelos would pull for their purposes.