Perdido
11-19-04, 06:36 PM
I first thought of this some time ago, and reading some of the other threads on this topic has only reinforced my belief.
What do we really know about "Sawyer"-- the one we see every week, who has taken the name of the man responsible for the destruction of his mother and father. Not much. He's on a quest, namely, that of tracking down the con man responsible for his mother's murder and his father's suicide (who I'll refer to as Real Sawyer). He was sidetracked on his quest, that's what "CONFIDENCE MAN" was about, but at the end of the day, the quest for the Real Sawyer was our Sawyer's reason for being.
As posted by an earlier contributer, we DON'T KNOW why Sawyer was in Australia. It could perhaps be inferred that he was on the run from loansharks, but that would not explain why he was returning to the US. He is, so far, the ONLY character that's been featured in an episode (other than Sayid) whose motivations for being in Autralia and returning to the US have gone unexplained.
I think Sawyer went to Australia to find Real Sawyer. I think he found Real Sawyer, and at the end of his journey, was returning with the Real Sawyer back to the US. So who is Real Sawyer, you might ask? Who's the gentleman that our Sawyer has been tracking down, like some 2004 version of Richard Kimble on the hunt for the one-armed bandit? And where was the Real Sawyer?
The Real Sawyer was also on the plane. In a coffin.
That's right, I think Jack's dad is the Real Sawyer. Now before you all think I've gone and lost my marbles, let's look at what makes sense from a narrative prespective. Real Sawyer is our Sawyer's entire reason for being. I think he's a major part of the show, and this plotline will need resolution. Who's the ONLY CHARACTER we've seen so far that is the right age to have been the Real Sawyer? Jack's dad.
"Impossible!" I can already hear some of you saying. Jack's dad is a doctor. We know this from Jack's flashback.
Not quite. What do we really know about Jack's dad? When we first see him counsel his son, he seems like a real SOB, telling Jack that he shouldn't have stuck up for his friend. We see him in his office at home, looking like a doctor, but we never actually see him as a doctor.
Cut forward a few years. Jack's dad is a mess. He has turned into an alcoholic, and has fled to Australia. SOMETHING has happened to create a strain on the man, something that may have affected the relationship between Jack and his father. What could that be? Perhaps Jack found out about his father's true occupation-- con man extraordinaire, the best ever, one who could even maintain the charade that he was a succesful practicing physician TO HIS OWN FAMILY.
Jack flies off to Australia to find his dad. WHAT IF OUR SAWYER DID THE SAME THING? When Jack finally finds his father, his father has died, apparently of alcohol poisoning. What if Sawyer got to him first and actually killed the man by literally making him drink himself to death.
Imagine the last episode of the season. Jack and Sawyer finally find the man they've been looking for all season. Sawyer has Real Sawyer up against a cliff's edge, not realizing that Real Sawyer is now little more than an apparition (and that's another can of worms we won't even open). Then Jack stumbles onto the scene and sees Sawyer threatening someone. Imagine his shock when he realizes that it's his father.
Imagine all the plot threads coming together. The animosity Jack and Sawyer have had all season would now take on a whole new light. Perhaps Sawyer even knows that Jack is the Real Sawyer's dad, which would explain his hatred of Jack.
And what would Jack do, there on the top of the cliff, staring into the face of the man who killed his father, even though his father was responsible for the death of that other man's father?
This is all speculation, of course, but it does make for some interesting possibilities. . .
What do we really know about "Sawyer"-- the one we see every week, who has taken the name of the man responsible for the destruction of his mother and father. Not much. He's on a quest, namely, that of tracking down the con man responsible for his mother's murder and his father's suicide (who I'll refer to as Real Sawyer). He was sidetracked on his quest, that's what "CONFIDENCE MAN" was about, but at the end of the day, the quest for the Real Sawyer was our Sawyer's reason for being.
As posted by an earlier contributer, we DON'T KNOW why Sawyer was in Australia. It could perhaps be inferred that he was on the run from loansharks, but that would not explain why he was returning to the US. He is, so far, the ONLY character that's been featured in an episode (other than Sayid) whose motivations for being in Autralia and returning to the US have gone unexplained.
I think Sawyer went to Australia to find Real Sawyer. I think he found Real Sawyer, and at the end of his journey, was returning with the Real Sawyer back to the US. So who is Real Sawyer, you might ask? Who's the gentleman that our Sawyer has been tracking down, like some 2004 version of Richard Kimble on the hunt for the one-armed bandit? And where was the Real Sawyer?
The Real Sawyer was also on the plane. In a coffin.
That's right, I think Jack's dad is the Real Sawyer. Now before you all think I've gone and lost my marbles, let's look at what makes sense from a narrative prespective. Real Sawyer is our Sawyer's entire reason for being. I think he's a major part of the show, and this plotline will need resolution. Who's the ONLY CHARACTER we've seen so far that is the right age to have been the Real Sawyer? Jack's dad.
"Impossible!" I can already hear some of you saying. Jack's dad is a doctor. We know this from Jack's flashback.
Not quite. What do we really know about Jack's dad? When we first see him counsel his son, he seems like a real SOB, telling Jack that he shouldn't have stuck up for his friend. We see him in his office at home, looking like a doctor, but we never actually see him as a doctor.
Cut forward a few years. Jack's dad is a mess. He has turned into an alcoholic, and has fled to Australia. SOMETHING has happened to create a strain on the man, something that may have affected the relationship between Jack and his father. What could that be? Perhaps Jack found out about his father's true occupation-- con man extraordinaire, the best ever, one who could even maintain the charade that he was a succesful practicing physician TO HIS OWN FAMILY.
Jack flies off to Australia to find his dad. WHAT IF OUR SAWYER DID THE SAME THING? When Jack finally finds his father, his father has died, apparently of alcohol poisoning. What if Sawyer got to him first and actually killed the man by literally making him drink himself to death.
Imagine the last episode of the season. Jack and Sawyer finally find the man they've been looking for all season. Sawyer has Real Sawyer up against a cliff's edge, not realizing that Real Sawyer is now little more than an apparition (and that's another can of worms we won't even open). Then Jack stumbles onto the scene and sees Sawyer threatening someone. Imagine his shock when he realizes that it's his father.
Imagine all the plot threads coming together. The animosity Jack and Sawyer have had all season would now take on a whole new light. Perhaps Sawyer even knows that Jack is the Real Sawyer's dad, which would explain his hatred of Jack.
And what would Jack do, there on the top of the cliff, staring into the face of the man who killed his father, even though his father was responsible for the death of that other man's father?
This is all speculation, of course, but it does make for some interesting possibilities. . .