S01.E05: The Truth

[ottoDbusdriver]

Episode Description:

 

Ethan ventures outside of Wayward Pines and is shocked by what he discovers. Meanwhile, Theresa reports to her new realty job and meets her first client who is as confused as Theresa about the eerie town and Ben goes through orientation and learns the truth about Wayward Pines from his teacher Megan Fisher.

 

Here's the preview clip:

 

[Tara Ariano]

Ethan ventures outside of Wayward Pines and his shocked by what he discovers; Theresa shows up to her first day of work and meets with a client who seems to share her feelings for the town; and Megan Fisher teaches Ben the truth about where he's living.

[OrientalAmish]

I just finished watching this episode + I'm like "Huh? What?!" SMH

[mavigogun]

A few observations:

 

In episode 3, when Ethan was in the transportation bay, only one of the many terminals was marked "Wayward Pines"; the technology appeared mostly contemporary, aside from the circular light fixtures.   None of the vehicles seen there were from after Ethan's time.

 

In episode 4, "Doctor Jenkins" says that he is "checking on the progress of my latest species- she's a crossbreed of two different pines".

 

The former sheriff drove around with a remote for opening gates in the fence.

 

In this latest episode, we are told that it is the year 4028.   We see a quarter reputed to be from 2095, perhaps bearing an image of Crater Lake on the reverse.   We see a washing machine that may well be the most advance piece of technology revealed in town, aside from the fence and gate.   The helicopter that David Pilcher arrives in isn't from 2095- it's contemporary to Ethan's time, as are the weapons of the soldier.

 

So- what?

 

Some speculation:

 

For some reason, it is critical that folks in Wayward Pines, on the most part, think a certain way- believe and act out a fiction.   Why?   Especially when the children are excluded from that, taken into a cabal of revelation- but only after demonstrating a degree of flexibility, ability to detach from the past.   I reckon there could be quantum mechanical rules at play- reality being set only once measured;  our characters are quantum entangled parties, projections of their original selves.   Existence in the "now" requires either an intellect still developing or complacent non-questioning- otherwise, the entanglement is foiled.   In this scenario, the only artifacts available after projection are those found- such as old quarters.   In such a case, everything in Wayward Pines has either endured since whatever the calamity that struck in 2095, or is a projection from Ethan's time.
 

So, what about those other terminals in the transportation bay?   Other time-themed locations?   Perhaps- but to what end?   I don't buy the "repopulate the future" narrative.  Whatever the Doctor is, he wants something from the past- and not necessarily genetics for experiments, but something else *preserved*.
 

It may be that Wayward Pines- and the other terminal locations -are theme parks for a future intelligence, a singularity.   A sort of living history, where, like Jesus, the godlike may become human, get a glimpse of where it came from, how we thought.
 

If that last is the case, then those things outside the wall are refugees from a lost war with the machines.

Edited June 11, 2015 by mavigogun

[Neurochick]

You've got to be fucking kidding me. I don't get it.

Why all the cameras? Why not just tell people what's going on? Why the secrecy? Why kill people on their own community? Why not tell the adults?

This show is stupid. Adults can't handle it? How come the teacher can? What happened to the world?

I still vote for government experiment.

Edited June 12, 2015 by Neurochick

[Geneve138]

I don't get it....If Wayward Pines exists in the future, how did Terence Howard's sherrif interact with Ethan's wife and son before their accident when he pulled them over to cut the fuel line?

[TexasChic]

Whoa. Cool.

[SimoneS]

This show is creepy good. I can't believe that they actually came through and told us what the hell was going on. So many shows do not. Kudos to those of you who guessed the time jump. It really is the only explanation that makes sense in retrospect.

 

Because Pilcher is a scientist, I think that he cannot resist and is conducting an experiment on the remaining humans. The adults are in the control group. He does not tell them the truth so he can see how they adapt to their new environment. He pushes them to brutally murder each other if they do not adapt, but resets them if he considers them to valuable to die. The children are in the treatment group. They are told the truth to see how they respond and adapt to their new environment. This also gives him control over the community which he must love.

Edited June 12, 2015 by SimoneS

[Primetimer]

The Burkes finally figure out what's going on...possibly to the show's detriment.

Read the story

[Laurie4H]

If this is 2000 years in the future how was the scientist able to meet with the FBI agent in the first episode?

[ottoDbusdriver]

I'm starting to think that whoever is conducting the surveillance of WP are a bunch of pervs -- what with the floor level cameras at WP Academy.

 

What is the 'Pilcher Act' ?  Because that is in those Real Estate documents.  That implies that some government passed legislation to allow Pilcher to control this town and for the renters not to pay taxes while living in the houses -- who cares about paying taxes if this really is a repopulation ark ?   Which brings me back that this is all an experiment of some sort.

 

When Big Bill tells Theresa to thank her husband for killing Petey -- WTF ?  And Theresa's job is to give away houses as a real estate agent.  So much for commissions.

 

And apparently new kids at WPA are assigned at number for orientation -- Ben is 111. Carrie is 110. Reed is 109.  So what is the population of WP, because that does seem to be a lot of kids for a town this size ?

 

Ethan gets stalked and attacked by that white being and his arm is slashed by its claws until he manages to hit it with his shotgun.  Outside of WP, there are lots of trees, running streams, birds, deer -- pretty much like any normal forest.  Ethan somehow has a decent map of Idaho (where he got that, no idea) but when he finds a church on the map, it is dilapidated and long abandoned.  Which is the first sign that something is very wrong.

 

I never noticed this before, but the Emergency Exit signs in the hospital are green.  That seems odd. Never seen that before. I thought they were always red.

 

I'm not sure what Ben was looking at in the top left of that photo, because there is plainly a creature in the middle of the photo by the brightly lit clearing.  So, the creatures only appeared outside the fence 14 years previously.  And that was the confirmation of their existence -- so why was the fence built in the first place ?  How did they know to build it so high and electrify it ?  Abbies, or aberrations that are the result of a series of genetic mutations -- caused by what exactly ?  And now the Abbies are the top-level predators in the food chain on the planet, and are a devolution of Homo Sapiens.  Why would humans devolve -- unless to adapt to some major change ?  What was the harsh environment (that Mrs. Fisher spoke about) that triggered the mutation ?  Why did the drawing have long talons on it but the fingers of the Abbie by the deer just seemed to have long fingernails ?

 

Mrs. Fisher said that Abbies could kill and eat a human being in minutes -- so why was that deer dead out in the woods for days (long enough for maggots to have developed on it) ? Why didn't the Abbies strip it clean ?  And what called them off ? Can the Abbies actually communicate other than howling ?

 

Wow, that poor bastard sweeping up those leaves in front of WPA has got a long day in front of him, especially with the wind blowing the leaves around like that.

 

Mrs. Fisher gives the three noobs old corroded coins -- and Ben's is a US quarter from 2095, minted in Denver from the 'D' under "In God We Trust".   Meanwhile Ethan finds a highway sign in the middle of the woods with Boise on it, and encounters more steel and clutter -- stuff that would have more than likely corroded to dust in 2000 years. And the dates on the folders were apparently correct -- it is the year 4028.  If civilization lasted until at least 2095, since they were still minting coins, why isn't there more way cool high tech stuff from nearly 100 years beyond 2014 ?  Why was Mrs. Fisher using a slide projector ?

 

So, if Abbies are ruling the world, where is all the food coming from ?  Is there some vast underground complex where they grow all the food and build everything, in addition to vast warehouse facilities to store all knowledge/books/artwork of mankind ?

 

If David Pilcher foresaw the downfall of humanity and built this ark in WP, why the lapse in the fence on top of the cliff ?  Those Abbies should be scrambling down over that cliff and eating everyone.

 

Where did the helicopter come from ?  Because it takes a massive manufacturing infrastructure to build one of those, let alone maintain it.  Or did the helicopter also hibernate ?  And despite the fact that Mrs. Fisher says that the students will never meet David Pilcher, there he is picking up Ethan.

 

Why would Pope have had a remote control to open the fence ?  Did he not know about the Abbies ? Because that seems pretty risky.  Why did the Abbies not invade instead of just grabbing Pope's body and taking it back outside the fence ?  Obviously the Abbies are not entirely afraid of the fence if they are standing right outside the fence in case it opens ?

 

How did the Real Estate docs for Ethan already have his occupation as sheriff -- if he has only been sheriff for one or two days ?  Let alone that Theresa's was already updated with her occupation as Real Estate Agent.  Stuff like that makes me think that it's got to be VR.  Something is updated in a database and everything that points to that info is automatically updated.  Or that the housing is free as long as people remain positive and productive members of WP -- who decides that ?  Why would Ethan and Theresa have separate folders in the Real Estate documents ?

 

All this revelation still doesn't explain why a lot of them were in car accidents, because that seems like an odd way to collect people (with Peter McCall being the exception so far) -- and why they didn't heal their injuries BEFORE being put in cryostasis ?  They were still all collected against their will -- it's not like they volunteered for this.  Something still doesn't add up.  Like how are these kids the first generation of WP ?  What have they been doing for the last two thousand years ?  And who has been care-taking WP before people were defrosted ?  Is everyone in WP from before the year 2014 ?  Because that means that Pilcher knew at least 15 years before Ethan was frozen that the aberration was coming (Beverly was taken in 1999) -- and that Pilcher/Jenkins was alive in 2014 meeting with the Secret Service agents in Seattle.  If they had no evidence of the existence of the Abbies until those photos from 14 years ago, what has been happening in WP all this time ?  What really took down civilization ?

 

With all the sketchiness going on, I wouldn't be surprised that Pilcher created the Abbies.  It also doesn't explain the propensity to kill people so blithely.  I would think that they would want as many people as possible to survive and rebuild civilization -- or at least build an army to wipe out as many Abbies as possible.  Which begs the bigger question -- why wouldn't they have built WP on a large island like Vancouver Island or Madagascar or Cuba with a physical barrier to insulate them from the population growth of the Abbies ?  And it's not like the Abbies appear to be capable of flying or sailing boats, so they would be easily kept in check -- or are they incredible swimmers too ?  Why does the tactical gear worn by that soldier from the helicopter look circa 2014 and brand new ? 

 

I'm also inclined to think that there is something worse than the Abbies outside the fence, that the Abbies are simply the guard dogs for something much worse (like Pope mentioned before he died). I'm not buying the premise entirely -- either Mrs. Fisher is lying about the Abbies, or David Pilcher is, but the one thing for sure is that it certainly looks like the year 4028 outside WP (unless of course it's all VR).   And what would be the purpose of convincing people that they had been frozen for nearly 2000 years -- a test for interplanetary space travel that may take hundreds of years, and the fence and the Abbies are control mechanisms to keep them from venturing outside of the test facility ?  Kind of like M. Night Shyamalan's 'The Village' which also had 'creatures' keeping the population in one place and no planes flying overhead.  And the whole "you were chosen" doesn't make any sense either -- not if they are taking cars of people at a time.

 

There were a couple of scenes in the preview for this episode that were not actually in the episode -- the automatic weapon being fired, the people running across main street, and the kids from WPA outside of school pounding their fists into their palms.

 

I'm thinking that 'The Truth' is definitely not the whole truth (and nothing but the truth).

 

Sidebar: Does Hope Davis have only one hairstyle ?  In 'The Newsroom', 'Allegiance', and here, she has exactly the same hairstyle.  It's weird.

[riverheightsnancy]

All good questions by everyone. There are so many questions and inaccuracies that obviously something else (in addition to whatever is potentially true ) is going on here. The time jumps with characters and some of the real oddities has caused me to change my mind about some things. So, last week I was toying with the idea that WP was a holographic image and the entire situation was projected by Ethan. Sort of Matrix like. But, with tonight's show, I am thinking that the entire thing is a fantasy. Like a computer game, just like fantasy football or baseball is. When are seeing the characters in the game act "real" because in the game they are "real" like the way the Sims are "real" in the game. This is why you could have all of these things that make no sense, even if you buy the time jump and repopulate the Earth. You know how you can just change things in a game? Add a person here or there. Shut it off and change things? So, I earned enough money in the game, I will upgrade my houses with new technology. I earn enough points in the game, I "buy" a person and add them to the environment. I know that this is a bizarre stretch, but there will need to be an explanation for why Pilcher could appear in today and the future and some of the other things noted by other posters which make no sense. I was surprised that they were not telling the teens to that their main goal was to start having babies. 

[LittleIggy]

One thing is clear: a traffic cone guy is essential for the future of society! ;-) BTW, his house was way nicer than the Burkes' dark house.

Edited June 12, 2015 by LittleIggy

[KaveDweller]

I don't get it....If Wayward Pines exists in the future, how did Terence Howard's sherrif interact with Ethan's wife and son before their accident when he pulled them over to cut the fuel line?

 

In 2014/15 Sheriff interacts with Theresa and Ben and helps to get them frozen.  At some point after that, he himself gets frozen.  In say 4025 (or any time before 4028), the Sheriff is unfrozen.  Then a few years later Theresa and Ben are unfrozen.  When we saw the Sheriff interacting with them it was actually something he did years ago, not in parallel to what we were seeing him do in Wayward Pines that episode.

 

Here's what I don't get:

How on earth did a scientist know that these "abbies" were going to develop? If he really knew back in the 1990s this was going to happen, why not do more to stop it or ensure humans will live on?  Why only have one arc of a few hundred people? If these people were all frozen back in our time, then the human race died out in 2095, who unfroze them? Why wait 2000 years to unfreeze them? Did that scientist unfreeze himself every 10 years or so and do a survey of the earth to see if it was time to start up Wayward Pines?  Is this town really the only place on earth that still has humans? The earth is a really big place maybe there were other towns that survived?

 

And I really don't get all the secrecy with the adults not knowing and killing people who talk about the past.  If the point is to keep humans alive why the hell would you execute people for no good reason?

 

But despite these questions (or maybe because of them), I really love this show.

[grandemocha]

Like how are these kids the first generation of WP ?  What have they been doing for the last two thousand years ?  And who has been care-taking WP before people were defrosted ?  Is everyone in WP from before the year 2014 ?

All of these questions are answered in the book.

 

If this is 2000 years in the future how was the scientist able to meet with the FBI agent in the first episode?

You only thought that all of those scenes were occurring at the same time. They weren't. Every time you saw Pilcher talking to Ethan's boss and then the show moved to Ethan in WP, it was taking place at different times. Same for Theresa and Ben looking for Ethan. Once Ethan woke up in WP, it was 4028. It was just a trick by the show to make you think that Pope sabotaged their car at the same time, that they were in that gas station at the same time. It all took place in the past.

And I really don't get all the secrecy with the adults not knowing and killing people who talk about the past.  If the point is to keep humans alive why the hell would you execute people for no good reason?

The books gave a more detailed explanation about the adults not knowing and I wish the show had stuck to it. They might still have Pilcher say it to Ethan in the next episode.

 

So, what about those other terminals in the transportation bay?   Other time-themed locations?   Perhaps- but to what end?

Those terminals contained different food/item storage, there are no portals. Like the teacher said, Wayward Pines really is the last civilization/town on Earth.

Edited June 12, 2015 by grandemocha

[Tabasco Cat]

Odd that the year is said to be 4028, which is exactly 2 times 2014. Yeah, "The Truth", as laid out in this episode, is anything but. Also, how dare a summer replacement show that only goes for 10 episodes take a week off?

 

I'm getting a feeling of time travel around here myself, why was there mention in the thread from last week's episode of the year 4028 and it didn't get flagged as a spoiler? Also, up top in this thread people somehow watched this episode before it aired? How is that possible? I was kind of hoping they dumped all the episodes at the start of the series, a la Aquarius, in which case I would binge watch all the rest of WP. But I checked and that doesn't seem to be the case.

 

Edit: OK someone said the year 4028 is mentioned in episode 3, I must have missed that, but if true then mentioning the year in last week's episode thread is not a spoiler at all.

Edited June 12, 2015 by Tabasco Cat

[KaveDweller]

Odd that the year is said to be 4028, which is exactly 2 times 2014. Yeah, "The Truth", as laid out in this episode, is anything but. Also, how dare a summer replacement show that only goes for 10 episodes take a week off?

 

I'm getting a feeling of time travel around here myself, why was there mention in the thread from last week's episode of the year 4028 and it didn't get flagged as a spoiler? Also, up top in this thread people somehow watched this episode before it aired? How is that possible? I was kind of hoping they dumped all the episodes at the start of the series, a la Aquarius, in which case I would binge watch all the rest of WP. But I checked and that doesn't seem to be the case.

 

Edit: OK someone said the year 4028 is mentioned in episode 3, I must have missed that, but if true then mentioning the year in last week's episode thread is not a spoiler at all.

 

I think someone said 4028 was a date on files Ethan was looking at in the police station, but I don't remember anyone saying it.  So, still not a spoiler just someone with really good eyesight/attention to detail.

 

I also thought it was weird that 4028 is exactly 2 times 2014.

Edited June 12, 2015 by KaveDweller

[CarpeDiem54]

The Abbies make about as much sense as the Walkers on The Walking Dead. But I'm in. It's creepy and delicious!

[thuganomics85]

Well, they sure did answer some questions.  Of course, that now means a lot of new ones have arisen, but I guess that is to be expected.

 

So, there is time-travel going on.  Wayward Pines is set in 4028 (damn!), and the human race has been pretty much wiped out.  Apparently, they've somehow been taking people from the past, and transporting them here.  And they are only telling the kids, because they feel like the parents and adults will never accept it, but the kids might be more willing to embrace this new world order.

 

Meanwhile, the human race has now morphed into a zombie-like creature called "Abbies", who really like raw flesh, like most zombies do.  I just hope you don't get infected by scratches, or Ethan is so screwed.  I don't think so though: it sounds like this was by evolution instead.

 

Oh, and Dr. Jenkins?  Is actually Dr. Pilcher, the brain child of this entire thing.  Should have known that Toby Jones would be the man behind the curtain!

 

So, I'm guessing all the people we saw back in 2015 (Pope and Pilcher) simply froze themselves too at some point, and that's why they got here.  Besides Pilcher, I'm wondering how the other adults who do seem to know the truth (Pope, Pam, Hope Davis), got that privilege.  Did they know Pilcher before all this?  Did he approach them for whatever reasons?  I hope they address this.

 

You know, Wayward Academy might be a creepy school, that occasionally likes to have candle-lite cult meetings, but their cafeteria food looked excellent! 

[memememe76]

I am really, really, really liking this show. I am liking how each member of the Burke family is discovering the truth. I have to say, Theresa is my absolute favourite character. I just buy everything she does. There is an Everywoman aspect to her actions, which I much enjoy.

 

I think certain adults like the teacher, the nurse, Sheriff Pope, etc. "volunteered" back in 2014 so that's why they knew the Truth. Sheriff Pope was probably a Sheriff in 2014 Wayward Pines.

[izabella]

I don't see how they've stored enough supplies to last 14 years or whatever.  Not to mention generating electricity, heat for those cozy homes, wells and pumps for water, and who has the job of septic tank cleaner because no sewers?  Oh, yeah, and garbage.  Where does their garbage go?

 

I'm not buying the story.  It sounds more like a cover story for something else, and it isn't logical.

[Latverian Diplomat]

I never noticed this before, but the Emergency Exit signs in the hospital are green.  That seems odd. Never seen that before. I thought they were always red.

 

Green is more common internationally. Red is more common in the US and Canada, but some localities prescribe green (e.g., Portland, OR). Canada is switching to green, I guess. Green is really a better choice because it's more visible to the human eye.

 

Given the many, many shows that have tried to pad the central mystery out to six seasons and a movie, (e.g., The Event, Flash Forward, Invasion, etc. it's kind of nice to have a big reveal so soon. We don't have the whole story yet, I think, which is great, but I was pleased to have a game-changing info drop.

 

Just to nitpick a little, 2000 years is way too fast for that kind of evolution. And I agree with the above arguments that it seems like just getting people to buy in would work better than the Big Brother plan. 

[Actionmage]

Sorry I'm so late posting as I had to scoop up the gooey mess and pour it back into my brainpan.  Then I watched Hannibal and a little gooshed out again.

 

I did not have 'two thousand years in the future' in the betting pool, but my dogs were as perplexed as I was.  Hope Davis? Is good-creepy.  I would be a bit unnerved at meeting her currently. Her cult of youth followers, I think, may be her downfall, as no doubt others have probably noted. High-school aged teens told that they are indeed that special and have more authority than their parents and most other adults?  Yeah, nothing could go wrong with that set-up. ::rme::

 

I have a feeling I am going to strongly dislike Toby Jones/ Dr. Pilcher. He is one of the most stock villain types: The One Sure Their Plan Will Save All, So I Can't Let Anyone Else In On My Terribly Hard Decisions. Mr. Jones is charismatic enough that I will like him until don't feel I can. Mad science will get you only so far with me.

 

I may have said this before, but: Why isn't Melissa Leo in everything?  Give her a good role and she'll deliver.  Having Pam on the chopper and her 'ain't no thang' "Looks like you need a nurse" was predictable, yet sensible too.  She seems to be pretty close to Doc Pilcher, but so does Principle High Five. 

 

I like that several things make more sense, but there are still questions, like : If everyone finds out that Humanity's survival depends on staying in town, why are the grown-ups even brought along if their minds are so poorly adaptable?  Pretending that, in essence, Death isn't just a long climb away ( if Ethan left his rope in place) doesn't seem to be a smart answer. That is like "lalalalala...I can't hear you!" 

 

As for the keeping everything quiet, why go to such extreme measures, which only will cow the easily cowed more and inflame those who are fighting the info blackout/general ick of the town. The blanket of surveillance is only going to force folks into deeper cover and emotion may tell rationality to screw off for a minute. I hope Pritchard has a nice bunker, if he doesn't live under the hospital.

 

I was glad that Teresa got something active to do, besides stare off into the distance and get angry over the past some more. She needs to figure out how to get Big Bill in trouble with Pam- like frame him maybe?- so she can gain what access to info Bill has.

 

I am excited to find out more with Ethan. Matt Dillon is holding his portion of things up just fine.  I would follow Ethan into Idaho, just hopefully, not into WP.

Edited June 12, 2015 by Actionmage

[Latverian Diplomat]

A few observations:

 

In episode 3, when Ethan was in the transportation bay, only one of the many terminals was marked "Wayward Pines"; the technology appeared mostly contemporary, aside from the circular light fixtures.   None of the vehicles seen there were from after Ethan's time.

 

...

 

In this latest episode, we are told that it is the year 4028.   We see a quarter reputed to be from 2095, perhaps bearing an image of Crater Lake on the reverse.   We see a washing machine that may well be the most advance piece of technology revealed in town, aside from the fence and gate.   The helicopter that David Pilcher arrives in isn't from 2095- it's contemporary to Ethan's time, as are the weapons of the soldier.

 

 

I'm not sure what you mean by terminals? There were a lot of lighted signs reading "coffee, flour, sugar, salt" --they are supply bins. We didn't see another sign that looked like the engraved WP sign.  The cars in that scene are weirdly well-preserved, as are Theresa's effects in that plastic bag. I suppose that they could have pumped the complex full of an inert gas for most of the time asleep. That would help with some things, but not everything, I think.

 

It seems clear that the Pilcher closed up the ziploc bag on all this in our time or shortly after. That doesn't mean they can't find artifacts like the cruddy 2094 quarter (whether we have identical quarters in 80 years seems unlikely given inflation, but OK).

[threebluestars]

The teacher told the kids exactly how they ALL got there in 4028 - they were "hibernated" into the future. So the scenes we've seen with Pilcher and Ethan's boss and all the Seattle stuff is all flashbacks to 2014. 

 

I suspect we'll hear why they aren't told this in the next episode.

 

I really liked the way they told us with the concurrent stories. Well, 'cept Theresa, still in the dark lol.

[Almost 3000]

Odd, all the kids seem to be the same age or did I miss some other younger ones around. Were a majority of the adults picked because they had the right aged kids? I noticed it before but this week with the whole First Generation information it makes you wonder.

[janie jones]

There were younger kids.  I noticed it because there were elementary-school-aged kids dodging Ben and the other girl in the hall.  Which reminds me, Ben was surprised everyone was saying hi to him, but he wasn't surprised that everyone knew his name?  It obviously isn't a huge school, but still.  And I don't believe what that girl told him about people saying hi because they're friendly, because everyone was going out of their way to say hi to him but not her.  Or maybe it was crappy writing.

 

Yeah, I agree that the teacher's story either isn't the story or isn't the whole story.  And also, either it was a mistake in the writing, or they're only thawing people out they took from the same year, because when she announced that it wasn't 2014, I expected the other kids to be like, "2014, say what?"  Actually what I expected was when she asked them about their accidents, that she would them ask them what year they thought it was.

 

Additionally, if the children are our future, why are they bothering taking single people like Beverly or Peter or the two other Secret Service agents?  Just because they need bartenders and realtors?  Maybe they don't want people who are done having babies, but if that's the case, it just seems more efficient to get existing couples who haven't yet had kids.  Or maybe they just want to keep it realistic.

 

If, as the files Teresa found imply, they planned all along to have Ethan be sheriff, why did they thaw him when they did?  Were the people in charge dissatisfied with the work of the existing sheriff?

 

And there has to be more than just Pilcher in charge, since it was a woman's voice we heard on the phone a couple episodes ago.  And he can't be making the phone calls if he's out and about in town.

 

Also, I think they didn't start gathering people up in the '90s.  Teresa's boss was clearly supposed to be from back in the day when it was acceptable to talk to female coworkers the way he was talking to Teresa.  (Or else he was just an asshole.)  But that would mean that Pilcher started planning in maybe the 1970s, let's say.  What happened in the mid-20th century that made him determine humans were evolving into naked cannibals?  So that story is total bullshit and/or Dr. Pilcher himself is from the future and he time travels or something.

 

This show is stupid. Adults can't handle it? How come the teacher can? What happened to the world?

Not even just adults, but apparently not all of the kids.  So...if the chosen kids can't tell their parents because their parents can't handle it, then are they also not supposed to tell their spouses when they eventually get married and start repopulating, if their spouses weren't given the news?  Then they can't tell their (generation 2) kids, because they might spill the beans?  At what point is everyone in on it?  Even if the chosen people are only allowed to have babies with each other, still that's like half the second generation who doesn't know what's going on.  Or are they going to slit the throats of people who don't know?  Or feed them to the morlocks?

 

If these people were all frozen back in our time, then the human race died out in 2095, who unfroze them?

Good point.  And who built the wall?  And when?  Like, Pilcher and whoever had the funds built the fence and then waited 2000 years?  Or did it get built in the 4000s?  And if meanwhile people are all evolving into manimals, who's maintaining the freezers holding these people for 2000 years.  The more I think about it, the more it confirms for me that time travel has to be involved.  Or else the story is total bullshit.

 

 

 

why wouldn't they have built WP on a large island like Vancouver Island or Madagascar or Cuba with a physical barrier to insulate them from the population growth of the Abbies ?

To avoid tsunamis?  Or the rising sea levels resulting from global warming?

 

Oh also, that guy Teresa was giving the house to, what did he say he saw?  Did he say he saw other hims?

Edited June 12, 2015 by janie jones

[jhlipton]

So my cable decides to only show about 3/4s of the data during the whole show, meaning major freezes, and garbled dialog. Yay! I was able to follow mostly but lost a lot of orientation.
 

Ethan gets stalked and attacked by that white being and his arm is slashed by its claws until he manages to hit it with his shotgun.

 
These "super-efficient" predators only scratch Ethan; they don't kill him. Why? Why let themselves be seen at all? Why let a helicopter land in their territory? 

I'm agreeing that "The Truth" is anything but!
 

I think someone said 4028 was a date on files Ethan was looking at in the police station, but I don't remember anyone saying it.  So, still not a spoiler just someone with really good eyesight/attention to detail.

It was a combination of attention to detail and extrapolation. We had worked out the major time-line of who arrived when, and the dates on the files gave us the year.

[Dowel Jones]

Apparently Pilcher and Co. decided to avoid importing any attornies into the future, based on that realty guy's behavior toward Ms. Burke. 

 

I also am confused about the lack of information to the adults in town.  So they want to start a new generation to repopulate the world?  Adults aren't capable of producing more kids?  They have to pair up the young'uns?  Although kid Burke is probably telling himself "I'm gonna get laid, I'm gonna get laid..."

 

Ethan somehow has a decent map of Idaho

 

Minor editing problem with that scene, although it wasn't important.  When Ethan holds the compass to the map, it is clearly pointing to due south, but the map is oriented, as almost all maps, with north at the top.  Just my inner surveyor student speaking up. 

 

Ecologically speaking, the devolving of humans into apex predators over time would result, presumably, in a balanced population of relatively few Abbies (I'm so glad they didn't call them Others) to a larger population of local prey.  They would have to retain some level of herd intelligence to be able to hunt high speed prey, unless they are primarily carrion feeders.  Thus, if you have in your possession a helicopter and a marksman, you should be able to eliminate much of the threat around Wayward Pines over time. 

 

Speaking of the helicopter and automobiles, why, after 2000 years, would the world be relying on internal combustion engines and petroleum fuel?

[Chaos Theory]

I thought that this episode was fun. I like creepy children cults. NO ADULTS ALLOWED!

Hope Davis is the shows MVP.

Edited June 12, 2015 by Chaos Theory

[Neurochick]

Here's what I don't get:

How on earth did a scientist know that these "abbies" were going to develop? If he really knew back in the 1990s this was going to happen, why not do more to stop it or ensure humans will live on?  Why only have one arc of a few hundred people? If these people were all frozen back in our time, then the human race died out in 2095, who unfroze them? Why wait 2000 years to unfreeze them? Did that scientist unfreeze himself every 10 years or so and do a survey of the earth to see if it was time to start up Wayward Pines?  Is this town really the only place on earth that still has humans? The earth is a really big place maybe there were other towns that survived?

And I really don't get all the secrecy with the adults not knowing and killing people who talk about the past.  If the point is to keep humans alive why the hell would you execute people for no good reason?

 

 

You and me both.  And what is this "scientist's" specialty?  How did he figure out in the 1990's that 100 years in the future some shit was going to happen to destroy the human race?  I work with scientists and...well I don't see that happening.  Unless the scientist himself created those zombie super humans and they got out and destroyed everything.  

 

BTW What destroyed the human race anyway?  A nuclear bomb or something?  

 

Maybe the quarter should have been from say 2020 or something, that might have made more sense.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Unless the scientist himself created those zombie super humans and they got out and destroyed everything.

 

That just might be true -- picture if you will, a scientist predicts this calamity will occur, gets all kinds of funding and then makes it come true so he looks like a visionary and gets handed over all this power and control.  Remember, Dr. Jenkins/David Pilcher and the new breed of trees he was tending to -- maybe trees weren't the only thing he was designing.

[riverheightsnancy]

I think that Pilcher created this DNA aberration which is why he knows that it will occur because he accidentally "infected" the world with the species. Similar to the virus in 12 Monkeys and how all the time travel seems to bring the virus from the future into the past. The whole point of the time travelers is that they are trying to stop the virus from being made by traveling into the past. Only they do not realize that their actions caused the issue. 

[dr pepper]

This reminds me of a story (title and author forgotten) about people from a deteriorating future who comb the past looking for airplane crashes. They then extract all the passengers listed as having died and bring them to their own time.

But i do agrees with the complaints others have made. If hibernation is the real answer, this was badly conceived. Time travel and/or VR make more sense.

[AConspiracy]

So Pilcher is the ultimate prepper?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivalism

He doesn't just build a bomb shelter, but segregates a whole town.

And has a way to provide it electricity/water/supplies when the whole world is gone

Plus develop a new cryogenic procedure to freeze people in the early 2000's.

Manage to keep cars/helicopters/gas/technology viable for millenea.

[Latverian Diplomat]

This reminds me of a story (title and author forgotten) about people from a deteriorating future who comb the past looking for airplane crashes. They then extract all the passengers listed as having died and bring them to their own time.

I think you're thinking of "Air Raid" by John Varley, which he later expanded into the novel Millennium which was made into the fairly terrible movie Millennium.

 

The short story is available free to read here: http://www.baenebooks.com/chapters/9781625791542/9781625791542___3.htm

 

IIRC, they actually replace the passengers and crew with the dead/dying from their own time just before the crash; the idea being that since those people are about to die anyway, abducting them won't change the timeline. The replacement bodies are there so there are human remains.

In the movie, the protagonist was a lone survivor of a plane crash as a boy, who witnessed this happened (because they messed up). They couldn't take him or harm him because he was recorded in history as a survivor.

 

It's a stretch this last bit would work even back in the '70s, but now with DNA testing, it would never work. Maybe they had some future tech that dealt with that? It's been a while. Ah, skimming the short story, they do indeed duplicate teeth and fingerprints.

Edited June 12, 2015 by Latverian Diplomat

[JenE4]

First, I need to give a shout out to everyone who contributed to figuring out that this was going to be 2000 years in the future! After being a member of two different Lost fan sites, even though everyone was great and picking up on easter eggs and making past connections, I've never seen someone actually figure out a major plot mystery like this before it was revealed, so Go, Previously.tv!

 

But, really, they WERE cyrogenically (or similar) frozen in time for 2000 years?! That part still doesn't make sense to me. The timeline and "newness" of EVERYTHING in this town also doesn't make sense to me. These are gorgeous, brand-new (or 12-years-old) houses with state-of-the-art appliances, and faucets, and every circa 2014 accoutremont you could ever hope for in a dream house. Everything looks shiny and new. So, it seems like Pilcher froze everyone 2000 years ago but Wayward Pines was only built 14 years ago? Neither way makes sense: If they built the town 2000 years ago, it obviously would have been left in disrepair, just like the forest on the outside that overtook the highway. But if he only built the town 14 years ago, then where did they get all of these brand-new looking building materials? Where's the Kohler faucet and Whirlpool washing machine factories?

 

I mean, I guess if they can suspend people in time for 2000 years then maybe there's some super-amazing storage facility that can withstand 2000 years of elements and Abbie thrashing and whatnot. But the Secret Service was in on this plan w/ Pilcher in 2014, so I presume this was some government plan from the start, and I presume they helped Pilcher set up this whole plan.  But there HAS to be more on the outside because they ARE getting supplies sent in. This town is NOT set up to be self-sustainable. We've seen no gardens nor farmland, no buffalo for burgers nor streams for trout. If this is the one hope of repopulating the world with humans, then they are going to burn through their resources fast. So, I can only assume that this is one tiny settlement of many. This is the "idylic town" settlement--where everyone is happy, happy...and if you're not, reckoning! So there has to be a "farmland settlement" and a "factory settlement" and everything you could possibly imagine to sustain society. What purpose would Pilcher have for a helicopter--or why would they have an opening to the outside--if there's no where else to go?

 

I also don't get how Ben is the "first generation" if the town has been around for 14 years. I mean, maybe they unfroze babies 14 years ago and then the next year one years olds, and so on, until now we have Ben unfrozen at age 14, year 14. (I don't know for certain that he is 14, but they did have that birthday party for him in episode 1, I think.) But, this is truly the most interesting development. I thought this family was chosen because Ethan was special--but maybe they were chosen because Ben is special. Hmm!

[Jel]

High-school aged teens told that they are indeed that special and have more authority than their parents and most other adults?  Yeah, nothing could go wrong with that set-up. ::rme::

 

That was the scariest part for me!  There must be more to the cult of kids story. Just has to be. "They focus on the children."

 

Dr. God seems quite taken with Ethan though, him making it so far and all. So impressive, no one has every made it that far.  He's always around checking up on him. Pope saying, "I don't know what they see in you" 

 

So, what you are saying, Jel, is that the main character is somehow important to the story?  I'm going way out on a limb here to say, Yes, I believe he is!  ;)

 

Why do deer live outside of the garage door, but crickets can't live inside the walls of WP?  I'm still stuck on the crickets.

 

I agree with the poster who said 2000 years is way to fast for that kind of evolution, so I do not buy that theory at all. They must have been created. 

 

Overall, I was a teensy bit disappointed by this episode.

 

ETA: Stupid cutting and pasting!

Edited June 12, 2015 by Jel

[Neurochick]

I agree with the poster who said 2000 years is way to fast for that kind of evolution, so I do not buy that theory at all. They must have been created.

 

 

I think the scientist created the Abbies, so he knew what was going to happen.  Kind of like the Cylons in Battlestar Galactica.

 

This show proves that humans will still be idiotic 2000 years in the future.  A lot of shit could have been prevented if people in town were actually TOLD what was going on.  The truth will set you free you know.

Edited June 12, 2015 by Neurochick

[BeatrixK]

Please add me to #Teamnotwholetruth.

 

Too many holes in the story.  While it does make a good story - pacing wise, no WAY does M. Night Shamalamadingdong give his 'twist' this early in the game.  (But so help me...if the way to defeating Abbies ends up being something like throwing water on them, I will personally lead the torch & pitchfork brigade in finding him!)  But 'The Truth', upon examination...doesn't make sense when you think about it.  Many previous posters have pointed out the obvious holes in the story, so I won't recap them...but yeah - it doesn't pass the smell test.

 

But I adore Matt Dillon - and he's doing so great in this.  (Still think he deserved the Oscar for Crash....but at least he got recognized.)

[shrewd.buddha]

Despite being the sheriff and a known troublemaker, no one seems to take notice when Ethan is gone for long stretches of time. That's convenient...

 

The explanations given ( or the Truth ) just seem to lead to more questions:

• Why the elaborate ruse of recreating a town from 2015?  
• Where is all the food and fresh produce coming from?
• Why not just take children from the past instead of all these adults TPTB have to manage or kill? 
• The leader guy reaches Ethan in a helicopter -- is that the most advanced transportation that ever gets developed? 
• How many people does it take behind the scenes for TPTB to create and maintain this fake town? 
• Do TPTB have a vault of movies, books, and magazines that will seem 'new' to the townspeople? 
• Why did Dr.God of WP decide that a mostly white, mid-western town was the best option? 

 

And lastly, there's no way I can buy into the suspension of disbelief that hundreds (or thousands) of people from our time could be dropped into a town with no cell phones, no television, no cars (or bikes?) and mostly - no news from the outside world - and there are no riots? 

 

This all seems as if it was lifted from a Young Adult Sci-Fi novel that was written without much thought to how things would realistically work. And while sci-fi is basically the definition of non-realistic, the good stuff allows you to buy into the premise without constantly being distracted by asking "why would people do that?".

Edited June 12, 2015 by shrewd.buddha

[grandemocha]

 

no WAY does M. Night Shamalamadingdong give his 'twist' this early in the game.  (But so help me...if the way to defeating Abbies ends up being something like throwing water on them, I will personally lead the torch & pitchfork brigade in finding him!)

M. Night Shymalan did not write this story. He did not create it so there is no "his twist". It was written by a guy named Blake Crouch. M. Night and Chad Hodge simply adapted it to television. 

 

 

Why not just take children from the past instead of all these adults TPTB have to manage or kill?

Basic logic. People would go nuts and never stop looking for hundreds of kidnapped children. You kidnap and hibernate adults..less of a big deal, people would just assume that these people left their friends, families, and started over, disappeared. Happens every day. There's always stories about adults who give up their old lives, run away across the country and start fresh. Kids are more protected.

Edited June 12, 2015 by grandemocha

[theatremouse]

I'm still stuck on, these kids seem a bit too old for "if you tell your parents they'll die" style threats. Yes, abusers use that sort of thing on kids all the time and it works, but they're not usually 15 or however old Ben's supposed to be (or at least not that old the first time they hear it). I mean, I get we're supposed to be buying there's some level of already-accomplished indoctrination from hypno-teacher and maybe that explains it away? And maybe this has all been traumatizing and terrifying enough that they are in a state where that kind of threat seems viable in this totally weird wacky place, but if I too often only believe something because they've already used the "teacher's a hypnotist" factor that of course the kids go along with anything she tells them, man that's already old.

Edited June 12, 2015 by theatremouse

[SoothingDave]

Ethan sure is a poor sheriff.  I hope no one went on a robbery spree while he was out gallivanting.  

 

Seriously. TPTB are allowing Ethan to discover things for himself.  From previous experience, they must know he's a rebel, but want him for some reason in this role.

 

I really don't get the "don't tell adults" thing, cause it makes no sense.  It's all about the climate of fear.  Why is that necessary?

 

The "First Generation" will believe they are special.  That much I see.

Edited June 12, 2015 by SoothingDave

[dr pepper]

I think you're thinking of "Air Raid" by John Varley, which he later expanded into the novel Millennium which was made into the fairly terrible movie Millennium.

 

The short story is available free to read here: http://www.baenebooks.com/chapters/9781625791542/9781625791542___3.htm

 

IIRC, they actually replace the passengers and crew with the dead/dying from their own time just before the crash; the idea being that since those people are about to die anyway, abducting them won't change the timeline. The replacement bodies are there so there are human remains.

In the movie, the protagonist was a lone survivor of a plane crash as a boy, who witnessed this happened (because they messed up). They couldn't take him or harm him because he was recorded in history as a survivor.

 

It's a stretch this last bit would work even back in the '70s, but now with DNA testing, it would never work. Maybe they had some future tech that dealt with that? It's been a while. Ah, skimming the short story, they do indeed duplicate teeth and fingerprints.

 

Thanks, that was the story. I actually remembered Millennium, but when i looked it up there were too many stories with that name. I didn't remember Varley, probably because when i think of him, i think of his space stories, the ones where there is no infection, people change sex as often as they change their socks, and colonies are called disneylands.

[AConspiracy]

I don't see how Pam and Peter's one night stand in the "current" worked.

He woke up the next morning and she had aged decades.

So they froze him for a long while, while she continued working on creating WP.

Then decided to unfreeze him and put him back in the same hotel room so he could see her older.

Then refreeze him for 2000 years so he could cause trouble in future WP?

Why bother with all that?

[Jel]

If there's a downside to reading these forums it's that the ideas and speculating and guessing in them often turn out to be better that the show itself. I think that happened to me with this episode.  

 

I am holding out hope for some more big reveals and mysteries revealed, but in the meantime, I wish you posters would write some tv shows; those I'd watch for sure

[grandemocha]

Then decided to unfreeze him and put him back in the same hotel room so he could see her older.

 

I'll have to rewatch, but are you sure he said he woke up in the same hotel room, or did he wake up in the Wayward Pines hotel room?

[Jel]

I don't see how Pam and Peter's one night stand in the "current" worked.

He woke up the next morning and she had aged decades.

So they froze him for a long while, while she continued working on creating WP.

Then decided to unfreeze him and put him back in the same hotel room so he could see her older.

Then refreeze him for 2000 years so he could cause trouble in future WP?

Why bother with all that?

Maybe we should revist the "aliens" theory?  Are Pam and the doctor aliens?

I'll have to rewatch, but are you sure he said he woke up in the same hotel room, or did he wake up in the Wayward Pines hotel room?

I think he said he woke up in a different hotel room, which I assumed was the two star (no pool or TV?!) WP hotel.

[SoothingDave]

Yes, he said he woke up in a different hotel room.

 

I am thinking that certain exceptional people (like Peter and Ethan) are treated differently.  Everyone else wakes up in the hospital after their "accidents."  Peter woke up in a hotel room.  Ethan wakes up in the forest.

 

Peter must be a failed experiment.  You have to figure not everyone will work out as planned.  You have backups.  If this revival of Ethan doesn't work out, I am sure they have another run-of-the-mill sheriff on ice to bide the time until they reboot Ethan again.