Fan Theories

[Mindartis]

So, I am very interested in the theories that media fans come up with. One of my personal favorites was about the original pokemon games...

You have no Father, your best friend is an orphan. Children are going on journeys across the world. Your mother excepts you as the man of the house, making your own decisions. Most people you meet are children/gym leaders. Most adult men you meet are very old, or have jobs relating to the military/organized crime. Hopsitals and Gyms are everywhere, but there is not a single place for entertainment, like a movie theatre. And then there is Lt. Surge.
"Hey kid, what do you think you're doing here? You wont live long in combat! That's for sure! I'll tell you kid, electric pokemon saved me during the war."
You now realize that there was a war in Kanto. Your father was killed, and your friend lost his parents. You are the one of the first generations to likve in a post-war environment.
If you think about it, it makes sense. People are used to fighting with Pokemon. They live in a society where they make dealy creations to sabatoge(Voltorb) or mass kill(Mewtwo) the enemy.

Basically, this thread is to post, discuss, and dispute favorite fan theories. If all goes well, Ill post one that my friend came up with on his own, Involving Zelda:Ocarina of Time.

[Zarah]

Interesting time for this thread to appear. I just saw this one today, plucked from Something Awful:

The reimagined Battlestar Galactica, Blade Runner, and Alien all take place in the same universe. The first two seem obvious, with Battlestar's multiple references to Blade Runner, and Battlestar's epilogue of modern day Earth on the verge of repeating the cycle. By 2019, despite only having a four year lifespan, our newest "children" have already begun to rebel.

Connecting Blade Runner to Alien seems just as plausible, both directed by Ridley Scott with some similar themes and concepts inbetween. Set slightly further into our future, by this point man has given up on replicant technology for a more mechanical, assumably easier to control form of slave, androids.

But wait, I hear... Battlestar and the people behind it were pretty adamant about man and cylon being the only advanced life in a mostly empty universe, how can you connect it to a movie about, well, aliens? Simple: The space jockeys are the bio-mechanical descendents of the rebel centurions, left to find their own destiny in the universe. However, they too eventually fell prey to the cycle of time, creating their own uncontrollable slave race of biomechanoids, the xenomorphs. The derelict craft seen in Alien is the top half of what was once called a basestar, its dead pilot the final version of what was once a cylon hybrid, permanantly fused into the ship it controls.

[DiscipleofBob]

I wrote up an essay a while back about how Final Fantasies 1 through 10 were actually chronologically connected with eons passing between games. I'll try to dig it up and refine it at some point.

In the meanwhile, this (http://www.cracked.com/article/18367_6-insane-fan-theories-that-actually-make-great-movies-better/) and this (http://www.cracked.com/article_19266_5-movie-fan-theories-that-make-more-sense-than-movie.html) are relevant to the topic. One is an article about fan theories that made movies better than the original, and the other is about more awesome fan theories that were unfortunately eventually debunked by sequels, etc.

To sum up those non-debunked fan theory article...

James Bond is not a particular man, but an agent code name, Dread Pirate Roberts style.
The "real world" in the Matrix is just another layer to the Matrix
Ferris Bueller is a Fight Club-esque imaginary person all in Cameron's head.
The little brother dies in "Radio Flyer" (Never saw it so I'm not sure what that means)
Several different films or at least after a certain point in the plot were all in the protagonists' heads (Total Recall, Taxi Driver, Minority Report, etc.)
Chewbacca and R2-D2 are secretly the leaders of the Rebel Alliance.

[Tiki Snakes]

The real world being another layer of the matrix occurred to me too, actually. And personally, I think it fits and explains things better than the canonically accepted explanation.

And actually, I kind of like the James Bond theory, too.

[Eldan]

Not quite a theory, but I like this bit about the Matrix:

MORPHEUS: Yes, Neo?

NEO: I've kept quiet for as long as I could, but I feel a certain need to speak up at this point. The human body is the most inefficient source of energy you could possibly imagine. The efficiency of a power plant at converting thermal energy into electricity decreases as you run the turbines at lower temperatures. If you had any sort of food humans could eat, it would be more efficient to burn it in a furnace than feed it to humans. And now you're telling me that their food is the bodies of the dead, fed to the living? Haven't you ever heard of the laws of thermodynamics?

MORPHEUS: Where did you hear about the laws of thermodynamics, Neo?

NEO: Anyone who's made it past one science class in high school ought to know about the laws of thermodynamics!

MORPHEUS: Where did you go to high school, Neo?

(Pause.)

NEO: ...in the Matrix.

MORPHEUS: The machines tell elegant lies.

(Pause.)

NEO (in a small voice): Could I please have a real physics textbook?

MORPHEUS: There is no such thing, Neo. The universe doesn't run on math.

[Traab]

Not quite a theory, but I like this bit about the Matrix:

MORPHEUS: Yes, Neo?

NEO: I've kept quiet for as long as I could, but I feel a certain need to speak up at this point. The human body is the most inefficient source of energy you could possibly imagine. The efficiency of a power plant at converting thermal energy into electricity decreases as you run the turbines at lower temperatures. If you had any sort of food humans could eat, it would be more efficient to burn it in a furnace than feed it to humans. And now you're telling me that their food is the bodies of the dead, fed to the living? Haven't you ever heard of the laws of thermodynamics?

MORPHEUS: Where did you hear about the laws of thermodynamics, Neo?

NEO: Anyone who's made it past one science class in high school ought to know about the laws of thermodynamics!

MORPHEUS: Where did you go to high school, Neo?

(Pause.)

NEO: ...in the Matrix.

MORPHEUS: The machines tell elegant lies.

(Pause.)

NEO (in a small voice): Could I please have a real physics textbook?

MORPHEUS: There is no such thing, Neo. The universe doesn't run on math.

That has to be the awesomest way to hand wave plot holes ive ever heard of. "You only THINK it doesnt work, because the machines have programmed you to have knowledge that isnt correct!"

[Obrysii]

Not quite a theory, but I like this bit about the Matrix:

I prefer the original idea they had for The Matrix: the machines weren't using humans for electrical power ... but for processing power. They were using human brains as a massive cloud cluster of computing power, using the bulk of the brain's ability to run both the Matrix as well as everything else. The rest of the movie more-or-less followed the same path as the real-life version did.

[Thanqol]

Princess Celestia is a tyrant and/or massive troll. It requires enough tinfoil hat-ness to steal an entire city with a giant magnet, but damn if it doesn't have fandom support.

[Tavar]

Yeah, the original idea was, in my opinion, better as well.

As for fan theories....
I've always liked the idea that Kenpachi is actually Yachiru's Banki.



Princess Celestia is a tyrant and/or massive troll. It requires enough tinfoil hat-ness to steal an entire city with a giant magnet, but damn if it doesn't have fandom support.
The Tyrant thing is really odd, but being a massive troll actually makes quite a bit of sense. Especially after the Phoenix episode.

[Eldan]

I prefer the original idea they had for The Matrix: the machines weren't using humans for electrical power ... but for processing power. They were using human brains as a massive cloud cluster of computing power, using the bulk of the brain's ability to run both the Matrix as well as everything else. The rest of the movie more-or-less followed the same path as the real-life version did.

Neil Gaiman actually wrote a story based on that idea. From what I remember, based on an early draft of the script, so it's even semi-official. It doesn't seem to share much in common with the movies, though, apart from a few superficial details.

In other news, The Elder Scrolls probably have more fan theories than actual canon, and the actual canon could fill a few bookshelves.

[DiscipleofBob]

Here's one I heard before. Not sure I agree with it, but it is interesting:

Pick a Batman mythos. There are several to choose from. Whichever one you choose, most likely you can justify the idea that most of the Batman universe is a set of hallucinations produced by Bruce Wayne's damaged psyche.

His parents were killed when he was a kid, and he got a particularly bad case of post traumatic stress disorder which went woefully untreated. Mostly because Alfred let the young Bruce live in his paranoid delusions so he could keep the majority of the Wayne fortune to himself.

Alfred forces Bruce to make the necessary public figures so that his legitimacy as the Wayne family fortune isn't questioned. Otherwise, Alfred might lose his share as well. But the fractured psyche of Bruce cannot process the social life of Bruce Wayne as the "real world." So, when not putting on a face under Alfred's manipulative puppet strings, Bruce spends most of his time in the mansion's cellar (his "bat-cave") where his mind creates scenarios where he's a superhero with unlimited gadgets and resources, stopping the very criminal element that took his parents from him. The various supervillains are actually fragments of Bruce's damaged psyche that he has to fight regularly to keep the illusion going. The Joker is the raw insanity that's taking over his mind and the unpredictable chaos factor in a mind that's trying to rationalize everything. The Penguin is how Bruce sees the high society he's forced into: as a cartoonish caricature of greed. Both Catwoman and Poison Ivy represent his repressed sexuality. Two-Face is his inability to see things in anything but black-and-white terms, the conflicting emotions in his head, and his failure to save the ones he loved. The Riddler is the last thread of logic in his head trying to put everything back together piece by piece. Mr. Freeze is the cold indifference of the rest of the world. Bane is represents reality, in that at any moment Bruce can be painfully and critically injured, shattering his delusions. Scarecrow of course is his own fears. The list continues, and as his rogue gallery grows, Bruce's psyche becomes more fragmented and he becomes even more mentally unstable than before.

[Tiki Snakes]

Not sure that one really works, to be honest. It is interesting enough in an obvious kind of way, though.

[Mindartis]

It has jst enough believablilty to work. I don't see Alfred as keeping the fortune to himself, but I don't see an alternative to why he has 2 lives... Maybe Split personality disorder? One side is the public face, the other is the Deranged side that creates these fantasies.

[DiscipleofBob]

Supposedly every one of Quentin Tarantino's movies, from Inglorious Basterds to Kill Bill to Pupl Fiction, all occur in the same alternate timeline.

[Axolotl]

In other news, The Elder Scrolls probably have more fan theories than actual canon, and the actual canon could fill a few bookshelves.If only what's said in the canon had even a passing resemblance to the actual games though.


Here's one I heard before. Not sure I agree with it, but it is interesting:

Pick a Batman mythos. There are several to choose from. Whichever one you choose, most likely you can justify the idea that most of the Batman universe is a set of hallucinations produced by Bruce Wayne's damaged psyche.

His parents were killed when he was a kid, and he got a particularly bad case of post traumatic stress disorder which went woefully untreated. Mostly because Alfred let the young Bruce live in his paranoid delusions so he could keep the majority of the Wayne fortune to himself.

Alfred forces Bruce to make the necessary public figures so that his legitimacy as the Wayne family fortune isn't questioned. Otherwise, Alfred might lose his share as well. But the fractured psyche of Bruce cannot process the social life of Bruce Wayne as the "real world." So, when not putting on a face under Alfred's manipulative puppet strings, Bruce spends most of his time in the mansion's cellar (his "bat-cave") where his mind creates scenarios where he's a superhero with unlimited gadgets and resources, stopping the very criminal element that took his parents from him. The various supervillains are actually fragments of Bruce's damaged psyche that he has to fight regularly to keep the illusion going. The Joker is the raw insanity that's taking over his mind and the unpredictable chaos factor in a mind that's trying to rationalize everything. The Penguin is how Bruce sees the high society he's forced into: as a cartoonish caricature of greed. Both Catwoman and Poison Ivy represent his repressed sexuality. Two-Face is his inability to see things in anything but black-and-white terms, the conflicting emotions in his head, and his failure to save the ones he loved. The Riddler is the last thread of logic in his head trying to put everything back together piece by piece. Mr. Freeze is the cold indifference of the rest of the world. Bane is represents reality, in that at any moment Bruce can be painfully and critically injured, shattering his delusions. Scarecrow of course is his own fears. The list continues, and as his rogue gallery grows, Bruce's psyche becomes more fragmented and he becomes even more mentally unstable than before.That's certainly an interesting take on Batman, sort of like what Alan Moore did with Miracleman.

My favorite theory is certainly the "James Bond is a codename for multiple people" one, I keeep hoping they make a film using it while Roger Moore and Sean Connery are still alive.

[Traab]

If only what's said in the canon had even a passing resemblance to the actual games though.

That's certainly an interesting take on Batman, sort of like what Alan Moore did with Miracleman.

My favorite theory is certainly the "James Bond is a codename for multiple people" one, I keeep hoping they make a film using it while Roger Moore and Sean Connery are still alive.

Oh god, it would be the spy movie equivalent of The Expendables. Or like that power ranger movie where they brought together like 5 red rangers from the course of the entire timeline of the show.

My personal fan theory is that all of these movies, tv shows, books, etc. All of them are written by people with a subconscious link to parallel universes. One of the basic tenets of the multiverse theories is basically that anything you can think of is happening somewhere in some reality. That includes harry potter, edward elric, and garfield the freaking cat. Certain people have a link to a specific universe they arent aware of that lets them channel the information of that reality into what they think is just their own creativity.

[DiscipleofBob]

Oh god, it would be the spy movie equivalent of The Expendables. Or like that power ranger movie where they brought together like 5 red rangers from the course of the entire timeline of the show.

My personal fan theory is that all of these movies, tv shows, books, etc. All of them are written by people with a subconscious link to parallel universes. One of the basic tenets of the multiverse theories is basically that anything you can think of is happening somewhere in some reality. That includes harry potter, edward elric, and garfield the freaking cat. Certain people have a link to a specific universe they arent aware of that lets them channel the information of that reality into what they think is just their own creativity.

Infinite multiverse theory:

If there are an infinite number of parallel universes, statistically speaking, at least one of them MUST match any criteria or specifications you set for it. Therefore, no matter what sort of strange world(s) you think up, it exists somewhere among the multiverse.

By reading this, you will have at least thought about the possibility of interdimensional travel. Therefore, you've conceived of a world where travel between dimensions is possible, ergo, a world exists where travel between dimensions is possible.

By thinking about the possibility of someone from an alternate dimension visiting you write this very second, there is a very minute possibility that the world you are thinking of, the one where interdimensional travel is possible and they're visiting you right now, has just sent a dimensional traveler and you're making first contact. If not, you're simply stuck in one of the infinite branches of this universe where nothing happens yet, but that doesn't mean it won't happen at some point in the future.

[Traab]

Infinite multiverse theory:

If there are an infinite number of parallel universes, statistically speaking, at least one of them MUST match any criteria or specifications you set for it. Therefore, no matter what sort of strange world(s) you think up, it exists somewhere among the multiverse.

By reading this, you will have at least thought about the possibility of interdimensional travel. Therefore, you've conceived of a world where travel between dimensions is possible, ergo, a world exists where travel between dimensions is possible.

By thinking about the possibility of someone from an alternate dimension visiting you write this very second, there is a very minute possibility that the world you are thinking of, the one where interdimensional travel is possible and they're visiting you right now, has just sent a dimensional traveler and you're making first contact. If not, you're simply stuck in one of the infinite branches of this universe where nothing happens yet, but that doesn't mean it won't happen at some point in the future.

Exactly, basically, every tv show, movie, or fiction book, any form of media that involves writing anything other than actual history, has a corresponding universe where that actually happened. There is a universe out there where the justice league exists and protects earth and the galaxy. There is a universe where spiderman, the x men, avengers, and everyone else all live at once, and probably a number where they are all seperate and unique. (In other words, ONLY spiderman exists in one universe, ONLY the xmen in another, etc) There is a universe where there is a hidden magical world living right alongside our own and the boy who lived just recently got done saving all of britain again. All of these things and people actually exists, and all of them have some form of connection to the person who records their events as "fiction" of one form or another.

[Kato]

Urghs.... and that's why physicists shouldn't popularize the infinite multiverse...
Okay, it works as a crazy fan theory but not as actual science. There are still limits to... stuff. Like we won't get a giant turtle with four giant elephants on it's back either (and here I make myself a heretic) even though we can have... a universe of chairs.

I like wacky fan theories as long as people don't insist they are true.

[DiscipleofBob]

Urghs.... and that's why physicists shouldn't popularize the infinite multiverse...
Okay, it works as a crazy fan theory but not as actual science. There are still limits to... stuff. Like we won't get a giant turtle with four giant elephants on it's back either (and here I make myself a heretic) even though we can have... a universe of chairs.

I like wacky fan theories as long as people don't insist they are true.

See, that's what happens when you go to high school in the Matrix. :smalltongue:

[Tirian]

The Batman theory is ... well, not official semi-canon, but you'll find a very similar sort of story in Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? that all of Batman's enemies are played by Alfred and his acting friends to save Bruce from death by ennui. Like earlier in this thread, Neil Gaiman is the most prestigious writer of fanfiction in history.

Alas, most people haven't been lucky enough to see more than small clips from Song of the South, but I'm surprised that I'm the only person I know who found it perfectly obvious that ... the boy died of his wounds in the end and being reunited with Uncle Remus and his Irish girlfriend AND Br'er Rabbit and all was just his welcoming into the afterlife.

[Mewtarthio]

I prefer the original idea they had for The Matrix: the machines weren't using humans for electrical power ... but for processing power. They were using human brains as a massive cloud cluster of computing power, using the bulk of the brain's ability to run both the Matrix as well as everything else. The rest of the movie more-or-less followed the same path as the real-life version did.

My favorite Matrix theory that works with the laws of physics: The machines are the good guys. Humanity instigated the initial war against them. As the machines came closer to winning, humanity became more desperate, turning to WMDs and eventually blocking out the sun, rendering the planet unsuitable for long-term organic life. When the machines finally won, they were left with the problem of dealing with the survivors. Killing them in cold blood was morally repugnant to them, but simply releasing them into the new, barren wasteland would have the same effect. So, they created the Matrix, a world where humans could hide their minds from the harshness of the real world, while machines cared for their bodies on the outside.

Heck, it even fits in with Reloaded, in which the Architect claims that the original Matrix was a utopian paradise, but the human mind was unable to cope with a life free of conflict.


Infinite multiverse theory:

If there are an infinite number of parallel universes, statistically speaking, at least one of them MUST match any criteria or specifications you set for it. Therefore, no matter what sort of strange world(s) you think up, it exists somewhere among the multiverse.

I conceive of a world which contains some sort of superweapon capable of annihilating the entire multiverse. I conceive of someone pushing the big, red button. :smallamused:

[Traab]

I conceive of a world which contains some sort of superweapon capable of annihilating the entire multiverse. I conceive of someone pushing the big, red button.

I conceive of another reality where they create nothing but defenses against just that sort of super weapon and are able to keep them from destroying any reality except the one it was created in.

[Tavar]

Mewtarthio, that idea is pretty close to canon. In the...Animatrix, they reveal the past events that led up to the war. It was totally Humanities fault.

[Traab]

Mewtarthio, that idea is pretty close to canon. In the...Animatrix, they reveal the past events that led up to the war. It was totally Humanities fault.

Animatrix was awesome. I loved the one with the athlete who literally ran out of the matrix. :p

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Here's one I heard before. Not sure I agree with it, but it is interesting:

Pick a Batman mythos. There are several to choose from. Whichever one you choose, most likely you can justify the idea that most of the Batman universe is a set of hallucinations produced by Bruce Wayne's damaged psyche.

His parents were killed when he was a kid, and he got a particularly bad case of post traumatic stress disorder which went woefully untreated. Mostly because Alfred let the young Bruce live in his paranoid delusions so he could keep the majority of the Wayne fortune to himself.

Alfred forces Bruce to make the necessary public figures so that his legitimacy as the Wayne family fortune isn't questioned. Otherwise, Alfred might lose his share as well. But the fractured psyche of Bruce cannot process the social life of Bruce Wayne as the "real world." So, when not putting on a face under Alfred's manipulative puppet strings, Bruce spends most of his time in the mansion's cellar (his "bat-cave") where his mind creates scenarios where he's a superhero with unlimited gadgets and resources, stopping the very criminal element that took his parents from him. The various supervillains are actually fragments of Bruce's damaged psyche that he has to fight regularly to keep the illusion going. The Joker is the raw insanity that's taking over his mind and the unpredictable chaos factor in a mind that's trying to rationalize everything. The Penguin is how Bruce sees the high society he's forced into: as a cartoonish caricature of greed. Both Catwoman and Poison Ivy represent his repressed sexuality. Two-Face is his inability to see things in anything but black-and-white terms, the conflicting emotions in his head, and his failure to save the ones he loved. The Riddler is the last thread of logic in his head trying to put everything back together piece by piece. Mr. Freeze is the cold indifference of the rest of the world. Bane is represents reality, in that at any moment Bruce can be painfully and critically injured, shattering his delusions. Scarecrow of course is his own fears. The list continues, and as his rogue gallery grows, Bruce's psyche becomes more fragmented and he becomes even more mentally unstable than before.
Related, with regards to Christopher Nolan...
Inception is a massive inception being performed on Batman by Alfred. Think about it. Batman has such a warped image of himself that he thinks of himself as an entirely different person...

[Axolotl]

A great way to get ridiculous theories is to assume that an actor playing different roles in similar settings but different genres are in fact just the same character. So for example I always assume that in the 2000 version of "Meet the Parents" that Jack Byrnes is just an assumed name taken up by a semi-reformed Travis Bickle.

[DiscipleofBob]

I conceive of a world which contains some sort of superweapon capable of annihilating the entire multiverse. I conceive of someone pushing the big, red button. :smallamused:

There was a DC animated feature that used that idea.

Then roughly half of the multiverse just got annhilated, because in that other half, the someone was stopped or the machine didn't work.

If it somehow manages to wipe out all of time and in the past, then it would hit its own origin point before anything else, wipe itself out, cease to exist, and rewrite its own history so that it never existed, thus it wouldn't be able to wipe out the multiverse.

Alternatively, your conception of a superweapon destroying the multiverse is countered by infinite other conceptions going "Nah, that could never happen." And so it didn't as far as their universe is concerned.

Or even another possibility: the entire multiverse is annhilated... for a split second. Infinite conceptions of reality are confused and subconsciously recreate the universe exactly as it was an instant later. Congratulations, you made everyone blink simultaneously. The only difference is that those keys that you just KNOW you put in your coat pocket are laying on your dresser and you know you didn't put them there because you NEVER put them there, except everyone you know insists you've already put them there.

The only thing blown is YOUR MIND.

But hey, let's get some thread relevance in this post:

Another Matrix-related fan theory I heard. I believe it was on nuklearpower.com (the site of 8-Bit Theater) and may have been more tongue-in-cheek.

I believe it was version 1 of the Matrix was Ancient Rome, and version 3 was Middle Earth.

[MCerberus]

One of the ones I like a bit is the theory that TF2 takes place a few decades before Half-Life.

I've also seen some interesting fan ideas for a post-script for Cowboy Beebop considering
It's left ambiguous on whether Spike's actually dead. According to the creator.

[WalkingTarget]

Infinite multiverse theory:

If there are an infinite number of parallel universes, statistically speaking, at least one of them MUST match any criteria or specifications you set for it. Therefore, no matter what sort of strange world(s) you think up, it exists somewhere among the multiverse.

By reading this, you will have at least thought about the possibility of interdimensional travel. Therefore, you've conceived of a world where travel between dimensions is possible, ergo, a world exists where travel between dimensions is possible.

By thinking about the possibility of someone from an alternate dimension visiting you write this very second, there is a very minute possibility that the world you are thinking of, the one where interdimensional travel is possible and they're visiting you right now, has just sent a dimensional traveler and you're making first contact. If not, you're simply stuck in one of the infinite branches of this universe where nothing happens yet, but that doesn't mean it won't happen at some point in the future.


Exactly, basically, every tv show, movie, or fiction book, any form of media that involves writing anything other than actual history, has a corresponding universe where that actually happened. There is a universe out there where the justice league exists and protects earth and the galaxy. There is a universe where spiderman, the x men, avengers, and everyone else all live at once, and probably a number where they are all seperate and unique. (In other words, ONLY spiderman exists in one universe, ONLY the xmen in another, etc) There is a universe where there is a hidden magical world living right alongside our own and the boy who lived just recently got done saving all of britain again. All of these things and people actually exists, and all of them have some form of connection to the person who records their events as "fiction" of one form or another.


Urghs.... and that's why physicists shouldn't popularize the infinite multiverse...
Okay, it works as a crazy fan theory but not as actual science. There are still limits to... stuff. Like we won't get a giant turtle with four giant elephants on it's back either (and here I make myself a heretic) even though we can have... a universe of chairs.

I like wacky fan theories as long as people don't insist they are true.

See Zelazny's Amber books and the concept of Shadows that is inherent to the setting (if you aren't already familiar with it).

Also: the Art as depicted in the Myst series of games and novels.

[Eldan]

Another one: Time Lords. TV tropes tries to go crazy with that one, but it's quite simple to assume that different people in all kinds of fiction are Time Lords. It also can be mixed with the "people played by the same actor are the same person" theory.

Sean Connery is a pretty famous Time Lord.

[DiscipleofBob]

Another one: Time Lords. TV tropes tries to go crazy with that one, but it's quite simple to assume that different people in all kinds of fiction are Time Lords. It also can be mixed with the "people played by the same actor are the same person" theory.

Sean Connery is a pretty famous Time Lord.

There was actually a cameo in a Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic where the Tenth Doctor and Rose appear in the background in a single panel.

[Eldan]

Well, the Doctor can travel to alternate realities sometimes. So, it can happen.

[Mindartis]

So... I must be missing something. What is a Time Lord? :redface:

[Gnoman]

As I understand it, it's a character from a vastly overrated British television show.

[Androgeus]

So... I must be missing something. What is a Time Lord? :redface:

Alien race from Doctor Who with access to time travel and if they are going to die they can instead regenerate which will save them but change their appearance.

[Tavar]

So... I must be missing something. What is a Time Lord? :redface:
From the show Doctor Who. They're an extremely advanced alien race, that can make Time Machines. In addition, they've messed with reality so that each one can 'live' 12 times. Essentially, if they die, they regenerate into another 'being', though this being shares the memories of the previous one. They can do this, as said, 12 times or so.

The show(both new and old) focuses on a renegade Time Lord called the Doctor.

See Zelazny's Amber books and the concept of Shadows that is inherent to the setting (if you aren't already familiar with it).
This is just generally good advice.

[comicshorse]

Like earlier in this thread, Neil Gaiman is the most prestigious writer of fanfiction in history.

[/SPOILER]

Just don't read the Narnia one he did if you value your childhood :smalleek:

[The Glyphstone]

What if you didn't like Narnia when you read it as a kid?

[comicshorse]

What if you didn't like Narnia when you read it as a kid?

Depends how you feel about discretely done bestiality :smalleek:

[Tirian]

Just don't read the Narnia one he did if you value your childhood :smalleek:

Whether you did or not. That's a page that I'll never be able to unread. :eek::eek::eek: But, yes, I was also thinking of that when thinking about how Gaiman gets paid to write fanfic.

(Filling in for those out of the know: one of the perennial complaints about the Chronicles of Narnia in literary criticism is the perception that Queen Susan was shut out of the finale for becoming a mature woman. Well, Gaiman thought this out in a 2004 short story called "The Problem of Susan" that is mostly thoughtful and excellent but contains a page of quite detailed sex acts of a form that I will not spoil because it's NSFW and, as I say, you close your eyes and it's still there.)

[comicshorse]

Whether you did or not. That's a page that I'll never be able to unread. :eek::eek::eek: But, yes, I was also thinking of that when thinking about how Gaiman gets paid to write fanfic.

(Filling in for those out of the know: one of the perennial complaints about the Chronicles of Narnia in literary criticism is the perception that Queen Susan was shut out of the finale for becoming a mature woman. Well, Gaiman thought this out in a 2004 short story called "The Problem of Susan" that is mostly thoughtful and excellent but contains a page of quite detailed sex acts of a form that I will not spoil because it's NSFW and, as I say, you close your eyes and it's still there.)

But on the plus side his 'Study in Emerald' may be the best Sherlock Holmes fanfic ever. ( and that's even if you're not a huge Lovecraft fan like I am)

[Jahkaivah]

My Left 4 Dead theory:

Left 4 Dead is a result of a bunch of kids staying up late watching zombies action films and playing zombie action games. The Left 4 Dead games is actually their imagination when playing zombies on the playground.

The survivors are played by the children and the uncommon infected are sometime played by children on an opposite team, the common zombies are largely imaginary. The tank is a much older boy who plays rough with them while the witch is an unpopular girl they stay away from.


Signs of this:


-The game is based heavily on zombies films and plays up typical zombie conventions which would be the their main influences.

-When healing themselves the survivors do actions very similar to what one would do if they were only pretending to bandage themselves up.

-Locations in the game sometimes bear resemblances to places the children would actually go like a Mall or a Carnival.

-Exagerations like being able to make a zombies head explode with a baseball bat is similar to what a child might believe he can do with one.

-Elements in the game bears resemblance to typical playground game elements. Safehouses is similar to safe-zones that games like bulldog have. Helping teammates back onto their feet or freeing them from closets has a "stuck in the mud/freeze tag" feel to it. While the spitter's attack is similar to a "floor is lava" game.

-The inevitable spats or fustrations that Left 4 Dead can cause is awfully similar to how playground games can cause children to argue and fight. :smallwink:



And before you point it out, yeah I know this is similar to Monkey Island 2's ending, and that alot of the above points are also explained by "it's a video game". :smalltongue:

[Bearpunch]

My Left 4 Dead theory:

Left 4 Dead is a result of a bunch of kids staying up late watching zombies action films and playing zombie action games. The Left 4 Dead games is actually their imagination when playing zombies on the playground.

The survivors are played by the children and the uncommon infected are sometime played by children on an opposite team, the common zombies are largely imaginary. The tank is a much older boy who plays rough with them while the witch is an unpopular girl they stay away from.


Signs of this:


-The game is based heavily on zombies films and plays up typical zombie conventions which would be the their main influences.

-When healing themselves the survivors do actions very similar to what one would do if they were only pretending to bandage themselves up.

-Locations in the game sometimes bear resemblances to places the children would actually go like a Mall or a Carnival.

-Exagerations like being able to make a zombies head explode with a baseball bat is similar to what a child might believe he can do with one.

-Elements in the game bears resemblance to typical playground game elements. Safehouses is similar to safe-zones that games like bulldog have. Helping teammates back onto their feet or freeing them from closets has a "stuck in the mud/freeze tag" feel to it. While the spitter's attack is similar to a "floor is lava" game.

-The inevitable spats or fustrations that Left 4 Dead can cause is awfully similar to how playground games can cause children to argue and fight. :smallwink:
And before you point it out, yeah I know this is similar to Monkey Island 2's ending, and that alot of the above points are also explained by "it's a video game". :smalltongue:

Me personally, I like that theory. It is different from your average "it was all in their HEAD11111!!" fan theory, which I also love, so I am a bit bias.

[KingofMadCows]

Stargate, Might and Magic, and Homeworld all take place within the same universe.

Fallout and Bioshock take place in the same universe.

The Nameless One is Gith with a Girdle of Femininity/Masculinity.

[Weezer]

Exactly, basically, every tv show, movie, or fiction book, any form of media that involves writing anything other than actual history, has a corresponding universe where that actually happened. There is a universe out there where the justice league exists and protects earth and the galaxy. There is a universe where spiderman, the x men, avengers, and everyone else all live at once, and probably a number where they are all seperate and unique. (In other words, ONLY spiderman exists in one universe, ONLY the xmen in another, etc) There is a universe where there is a hidden magical world living right alongside our own and the boy who lived just recently got done saving all of britain again. All of these things and people actually exists, and all of them have some form of connection to the person who records their events as "fiction" of one form or another.

Robert Heinlein actually wrote a book around this idea. It's called the Number of the Beast and is based around the idea that authors actually create the worlds they write about/imagine as independent universes. The protagonists are running from unknown pursuers by jumping from universe to universe (including Oz and Barsoon) in a ship with one of the oddest names I've come across, the Gay Deceiver. This idea is seen in a few of his later works as well, and it's an interesting one to say the least.

[DiscipleofBob]

A theory about Pokemon Black/White.

Theory one: It's stated in-game that Reshiram and Zekrom represent the sort of Yin-and-Yang of a much more powerful Pokemon, and that Kryuem was the remaining shell of when said powerful Pokemon split into Reshiram and Zekrom. The theory? Said Pokemon was Arceus.

Theory two: N is unique for a Pokemon rival in that his lineup is constantly changing. First he has just a Purrloin, a Dark-type Pokemon common in the area. The second time he has a Pidove, Timburr and Tympole, which are common just outside the city you fight him. This pattern continues, his lineup continually changes, the only pattern is that his lineup consists of local wild Pokemon, or does it?

One of N's Pokemon in his final lineup? Zoroark, whose signature ability is to take the appearance of other Pokemon in order to trick your opponent. The theory is that this entire time, N was just using his Zorua/Zoroark to battle you.

Oh, and that useless Dragonite Skull Team Plasma steals early on? It's a distraction so N can do the research he needs and gets two fossil Pokemon that he revives and uses on his final team.

[Saintheart]

Another Matrix theorem:

The entire Terminator series is the second "attempt" at the Matrix. The Architect speaks of a 'perfect world' Matrix, being the first version, and then redesigning it -- based on our history -- to more "accurately reflect the varying grotesqueries of your nature".

The reason the Terminator series does not fit together properly is because it's a rapidly-decaying Matrix, one where normal rules of physics and temporal displacement are not working properly. All of the timelines -- T1/T2, T3/T4, TSG -- can be accounted for here as desperate attempts to reboot the Matrix and keep it running a little while longer. The man/machine war is a primitive attempt by the Architect to give humans something to struggle against instead of querying the entire system itself (not to mention it's also an attempt by the Architect to smack as many redpills as he can get his hands on before they reject the program).

We get glitches in the timeline, resets, data losses, and people appearing out of nowhere to influence futures which may or may not be closed temporal loops. We also have a proto-One in John Connor, who seems to be a type of singularity around which the future of the machines revolves. The various Terminators are attempted bug fixes inserted by the Architect to try and keep the system from crashing -- which eventually outright fails around the point where John Connor blows up a figment of Skynet (in the fourth film). It's the results from this procedure that cotton the Architect onto the creation of a "cumulative error factor" that can be used to reset the Matrix, and eventually to the creation of the Matrix we see in the movie.

[Eldan]

The Nameless One is Gith with a Girdle of Femininity/Masculinity.

That's one theory I haven't heard yet. Usually, it's "TNO is Zerthimon".

[hamishspence]

Sometimes fan theories can become canonized, even if there's conflicting information. Curtis Saxton's estimates of the Death Stars' sizes- later included in Incredible Cross-Sections and in published books.

[Feytalist]

I wrote up an essay a while back about how Final Fantasies 1 through 10 were actually chronologically connected with eons passing between games. I'll try to dig it up and refine it at some point.

Holy balls, that was you? I read that. You were the one who investigated the lifestream connection and the similarity between each game's philosophical outlooks and such? That was a good read. Kudos.


Neil Gaiman actually wrote a story based on that idea. From what I remember, based on an early draft of the script, so it's even semi-official. It doesn't seem to share much in common with the movies, though, apart from a few superficial details.

The short story is called Goliath. It was published in Fragile Things. It was actually commissioned by the Wachowskis, so it could be semi-canon.

The Problem with Susan was also published in Fragile Things. It's... disturbing.


Supposedly every one of Quentin Tarantino's movies, from Inglorious Basterds to Kill Bill to Pupl Fiction, all occur in the same alternate timeline.

It's based on the products and movie posters and such displayed in all the movies (Red Apple cigarettes, anyone?). Dunno how accurate they are, since in that case there must be about 7 Steve Buscemis running around in that universe.


That's one theory I haven't heard yet. Usually, it's "TNO is Zerthimon".

Bigby was also apparently an incarnation of The Nameless one, heh.

[Eldan]

Bigby was also apparently an incarnation of The Nameless one, heh.

Bigby? How? I mean, I know Bigby was in Sigil and even founded a school there, but why was he TNO?

[TheCountAlucard]

All of the timelines......even the Superman crossover? :smalleek:

[Feytalist]

Bigby? How? I mean, I know Bigby was in Sigil and even founded a school there, but why was he TNO?

I dunno man, I read it on Wikipedia.

Oh wait, here's the link (http://bootstrike.com/Torment/Online/tnfo9.php). Apparently it was a bit of fluff originally supposed to be in Planescape Torment, but they changed it?

[Eldan]

Ooh, nice. Now, I don't know anything about Bigby, but it's another epic mage background to explain why my TNO became an L27 wizard :smallamused:

[Axolotl]

Wasn't Bigby a player character in Gygax's Greyhawk campaign? I know they got up to some crazy stuff but I'm fairly sure he wasn't a scar-covered immortal.

[Feytalist]

Ooh, nice. Now, I don't know anything about Bigby, but it's another epic mage background to explain why my TNO became an L27 wizard :smallamused:

Well, that 2 million Exp at the end of the game might've helped a bit :smallwink:

But it does enrich the whole game so much more, doesn't it? They could've just left it in, I think.

[KingofMadCows]

That's one theory I haven't heard yet. Usually, it's "TNO is Zerthimon".

Chris Avellone has actually said that TNO is not Zerthimon.

I say he's Gith because Gith went to Baator to negotiate a treaty with Tiamat. That means she would have had a chance to see all the suffering caused by her actions as well as fight in the Blood War. Perhaps she reflected on Zerthimon's teachings during that time and decided to try to redeem herself.


Bigby was also apparently an incarnation of The Nameless one, heh.

That part was cut.

[Dogmantra]

My Left 4 Dead theory:

You missed a few signs:
Ellis has an imaginary friend

Every type of special infected looks the same as the others of that type ('cept Boomers, but they still only have male and female), which means it could be the same guy.

It includes a way for people who got knocked out to come back in (the closets)

Knocking zombies off with a melee looks pretty impossible to me... maybe they're TAGGING THEM!

(I love this theory so so much)

[Eldan]

Chris Avellone has actually said that TNO is not Zerthimon.

I say he's Gith because Gith went to Baator to negotiate a treaty with Tiamat. That means she would have had a chance to see all the suffering caused by her actions as well as fight in the Blood War. Perhaps she reflected on Zerthimon's teachings during that time and decided to try to redeem herself.
.

Oh, I know that. I was just saying that "Zerthimon" is an usual fan theory, while I've never heard "Gith" before.

Would that make Morte the skull of Vlaakith I?

[Gnoman]

Sometimes fan theories can become canonized, even if there's conflicting information. Curtis Saxton's estimates of the Death Stars' sizes- later included in Incredible Cross-Sections and in published books.

That doesn't really count for two reasons.

1.) The estimated sizes were extrapolated straight from the films in the first place.

2.) Saxton co-wrote ICS.


A better example would be the name of the planet Coruscant, which was a Zhan invention.

[The Glyphstone]

Stargate, Might and Magic, and Homeworld all take place within the same universe.

Fallout and Bioshock take place in the same universe.

The Nameless One is Gith with a Girdle of Femininity/Masculinity.

I can vaguely see Stargate and Homeworld, but how does Might and Magic fit in to all of it?

[Mindartis]

Heres a few others for you guys...

Pokemon Black
The new world that we are introduced to is a jab at a real place, and a real time in history. Reshiram and Zekrom are brothers, who were 1 perfect being. They split, based on morals/ethics. One has a tail of Electricity, the other that of fire. Your main rival, N, wants to free all the pokemon from their masters. And then there is pokemon like Yamask, who is literally a human soul, transformed into a pokemon. Correct so far?

Its the American Civil War. Zekroms tail represents the industry of the north, while Reshirom's represents the burning passion of the south. Not only that, but your rival wants to free, or liberate, all pokemon. What side wanted to free the slaves? Oh, thats right, the North. N. Then there is Yamask, literally representing the slave itself.

LoZ: Ocarina of Time.

All credit given to my friend Karl, because he came up with this all on his own.Everyone remembers the opening scene from the iconic game, and then you wake up and set off on your fantastic adventure. BUt here's something for you. Link never woke up. You can find proof of this throughout the game. First off is Links love, Saria. Every possible romance in the rest of the game has a resembalence to Saria. As he goes throughout his trials, he ages, becoming more mature and strong. At the end, when he goes into the Temple of Time, he is transformed back into a small child. This was to symbolize his wanting to impress Saria, realizing that the only way how is to grow up and get better. Also, in the beginning of the game, Link dreams about Hyrule Castle, along with Zelda and Ganondorf. However, later on in the game, when you go to Hyrule Castle, you have no recollection of it, or of Princess Zelda and Ganondorf. Finally, and my favorite part of the theory, is when you Z-target something. What exactly does Navi say, every single time that you do it? "Wake up!"
So you see, this fantastic adventure is nothing but a dream in a young boys head, expressing how he wants to get the girl, and how he has to do it.

[hamishspence]

That doesn't really count for two reasons.

1.) The estimated sizes were extrapolated straight from the films in the first place.

2.) Saxton co-wrote ICS.

That's kind of the point- sometimes a fan- when given the chance, can rewrite canon (the sizes in the splatbooks) and replace it with what their theories were.

(and there's some dispute about the accuracy of those sizes, since the apparent size of the DS2 compared to Endor changes from movie shot to movie shot, and the theorised size of Endor (nearly as big as Earth) is contradicted by the size it is in the splatbooks (4900 km diameter in the recent splatbook The Essential Atlas))

[DiscipleofBob]

Holy balls, that was you? I read that. You were the one who investigated the lifestream connection and the similarity between each game's philosophical outlooks and such? That was a good read. Kudos.

Thanks. I need to go rewrite it since I did that back in high school, but I considered it an achievement nontheless.




It's based on the products and movie posters and such displayed in all the movies (Red Apple cigarettes, anyone?). Dunno how accurate they are, since in that case there must be about 7 Steve Buscemis running around in that universe.

To be fair, the various Steve Buscemis could just be family relatives. Buscemi looks like the type of person who might've resulted from inbreeding. :smallbiggrin:


Here's another theory I read regarding Cowboy Bebop.
Spike dies, but not when you think. There are two separate theories: one being that the fall in Ballad of Fallen Angels killed him. The other is that the entire crew died in Toys in the Attic (where a parasitic lifeform that grew from some old food on the fridge infected everyone on board and seemed to render them all sick and unconscious). All the rest of the episodes are dying fantasies or something similar.

And here's one specifically involving Final Fantasy 6
A flashback of Setzer's involves an old flame of his, Darill, who was the previous owner of the second ship you get in the game: the Falcon. Darill unfortunately went the way of Icarus and mysteriously vanished during a solo voyage. The wreckage of the Falcon was found, but Darill's body never was. One of the game's cinematics involving Darill implies she might have crash-landed on triangle island, a mysterious isolated island on the corner of the map.

In the "new world," the only enemy you fight there on triangle island is the Zone Eater, a sand worm type monster who eats your party members one-by-one. If all of your party members get eaten, instead of going back to the world map you visit a secret dungeon where you get a secret character at the end: Gogo. Gogo is a mimic (and a throwback to FF5) whose appearance and gender are completely ambiguous, all masked by the layers of colorful rags he wears.

There are two theories regarding Gogo: One being is that Gogo and Darill are one and the same, that Darill got disfigured during the crash and suffered from amnesia. She learned her mimicry in order to survive against the monsters as well as those strange people whose only purpose in life is to push you off bridges in the dungeon. Sadly, Setzer and Gogo never truly realize their connection.

The other theory is similar: Darill crashed on the island, couldn't escape, and was pregnant with Setzer's child. The child eventually grew up learning the mimicry the same way as in the previous theory, but Darill died before Gogo could ever truly learn about his father. Setzer and Gogo remain painfully unaware of their connection to each other.

[Gnoman]

That's kind of the point- sometimes a fan- when given the chance, can rewrite canon (the sizes in the splatbooks) and replace it with what their theories were.

(and there's some dispute about the accuracy of those sizes, since the apparent size of the DS2 compared to Endor changes from movie shot to movie shot, and the theorised size of Endor (nearly as big as Earth) is contradicted by the size it is in the splatbooks (4900 km diameter in the recent splatbook The Essential Atlas))

Not exactly. The stats in the splatbooks were never official. WEG pulled a lot of their numbers out of nowhere.

[KingofMadCows]

I can vaguely see Stargate and Homeworld, but how does Might and Magic fit in to all of it?

In the Might and Magic universe, an incredibly advanced race called the Ancients seeded the universe with life eons ago. They created a "Web of Worlds" using a network of "Celestial Gates" that connected all the worlds and allowed for instantaneous transportation between them.

[Feytalist]

Here's another theory I read regarding Cowboy Bebop.
Spike dies, but not when you think. There are two separate theories: one being that the fall in Ballad of Fallen Angels killed him. The other is that the entire crew died in Toys in the Attic (where a parasitic lifeform that grew from some old food on the fridge infected everyone on board and seemed to render them all sick and unconscious). All the rest of the episodes are dying fantasies or something similar.

There's another half-baked theory that said the whole of Knockin on Heaven's Door movie was Spike's dream. He's asleep at the beginning and the end, the whole movie is about "waking from a dream", and there are some weird inconsistencies/time jumps in the movie itself.

Of course, Watanabe himself said he's not sure if Spike lives or dies at the end of the series.

[hamishspence]

Not exactly. The stats in the splatbooks were never official. WEG pulled a lot of their numbers out of nowhere.

Some. But the 2nd Death Star being only twice the size of the first (WEG), not 5.6 times the diameter, as Saxton depicts it, wasn't "pulled out of nowhere" it was in the novelization of the Jedi movie- G Canon.

While the site ST-V-SW.net has its dubious moments, the one thing I most agree with it about, is in its depictions of the Death Star sizes- it demonstrates fairly convincingly that 120km and 160km can be gotten out of the movie pics.

And that the size ratio between Endor and the Death Star, is much larger in many pics than in Saxton's version.

WEG "stats" in gameplay terms might not be "official" but when it's lengths, crew sizes, and so on, they are C Canon. Numerous EU novels used them.

[The Glyphstone]

In the Might and Magic universe, an incredibly advanced race called the Ancients seeded the universe with life eons ago. They created a "Web of Worlds" using a network of "Celestial Gates" that connected all the worlds and allowed for instantaneous transportation between them.

What's the Homeworld connection then? Now I can see the MoM and SG link, but not the Homeworld one.

[KingofMadCows]

What's the Homeworld connection then? Now I can see the MoM and SG link, but not the Homeworld one.

The Progenitors in Homeworld are basically like the Ancients. They seeded life across the galaxy, left their technology all over the place, and then mysteriously disappeared. At the end of Homeworld 2, they discover a massive hyperspace gate that's connected to a hyperspace network spanning the universe.

[Eldan]

Hm. Then we can also connect it to the Precursors of Star Control. Though Hyper- and Quasispace doesn't work via gates.

[The Glyphstone]

The Progenitors in Homeworld are basically like the Ancients. They seeded life across the galaxy, left their technology all over the place, and then mysteriously disappeared. At the end of Homeworld 2, they discover a massive hyperspace gate that's connected to a hyperspace network spanning the universe.

Ah. I only ever played Homeworld original, so I didn't know about the gate network.

[KingofMadCows]

Hm. Then we can also connect it to the Precursors of Star Control. Though Hyper- and Quasispace doesn't work via gates.

Star Control is incompatible since it takes place in the Milky Way like Stargate. Stargate is compatible with Homeworld and Might and Magic because they've never specified which galaxies Homeworld and Might and Magic took place in. We know that the Ancients in Stargate are from a galaxy millions, if not billions of light years away, they've been seeding galaxies with life for millions of years, and there are different factions of Ancients. It is conceivable that the Progenitors in Homeworld and the Ancients in Might and Magic are different factions who split from the original Ancients from Stargate millions of years ago.

[Eldan]

Ah, gotcha.

I have seen a quite extensive theory that managed to link Star Control and X-Com, but I can't find it anymore.