Holding the Leash of Cerberus and Soul Control
I’m not satisfied with the prevailing idea that Jacob’s Adversary and Smokey are one and the same entity. so I started thinking of how to explain things without the Adversary and Smokey being the same. My line of thought led me to wonder if maybe Smokey and his abilities could be controlled by the power of the mind?
I don’t think that this would be a far fetched idea considering that the Smoke Monster has the ability to scan people’s minds. Couple this with the idea that the Island seems to have a mind of it’s own and that some form of entity that appears to be made of pure thought or pure energy lives in the cabin; I think we’ve got some interesting possibilities about what may be happening on the Island.
Here is what I envision. Jacob’s Adversary exists as pure thought energy, can not exist in corpreal form on its own, and was at one time imprisioned in the cabin by Jacob. Knowing of the abilities that Smokey has, especially the mind scaning ability, the Adversary takes control of the Smoke Monster’s mind and searches the Island for a suitable canidate to inhabit. When a person is found the Adversary uses Smokey to see if the person can be used. If the person can’t be used they are disposedof immediately. If the person can be used, the Adversary directs Smokey to bring the person to the underground tunnels for further investigation. For a person to be of use I believe that they have to be dead first so that the Adversary can than take over their soul and manifest in that person’s visage. However, the Adversary’s control doesn’t last long and not all the souls are easy to take over. Some are may have a stronger will than he has. This is what I think happened when the Adversary tried to have Smokey nab Mr. Eko. Mr. Eko’s mind was to strong and wouldn’t make a good canidate to inhabit. The Adversary needs a person that would be willing to let themselves be utilized and controlled as easy as it is for the Adversary to take control of Smokey. Enter John Locke.
It has been shown on Lost that John is rather easilly conned and has extrordinary faith in the Island. I believe that the Adversary recognized this when Locke first encountered Smokey and then set in motion a plan to take over Locke’s soul and free himself of Jacob.
I’m not sure if this is what is actually happening but I think it is an interesting scenario to ponder. I also don’t think that all the visions on the Island are generated by Smokey and the Adversary, so it makes me wonder which visions we can trust?
Achalli, good call. I think the smoke monster is strictly mechanical in nature, like a computer, and it is a tool used by Mr. Black to aid in his search for a candidate. The evidence for the theory seems mostly audiovisual, like the tape-ticker and chain link sound effects or the bright light that occurs when it scans a character’s memories, which seem like camera flashes. Maybe these snippets of information get stored into a database of sorts that Mr. Black uses to manipulate the island’s inhabitants.
I hold to the idea that Smokey is a security system in the sense that it surveys the island for Mr. Black, who is trapped within Horrace’s cabin. In his pursuit to uncover a loophole, he creates and employs Smokey, and Locke becomes his most vulnerable and receptive target. While some of the strange manifestations occurring on the island come from the smoke monster, I would say that others are definitely the work of Jacob. I highlight some of them in my post, “On LOST. Reflections, Revelations, and Speculation After 5 Seasons.” Give it a read and let me know what you think!
Achalli, I totally agree that the smoke monster and Jacob’s Nemesis are not one and the same!
They are completely different entities, IMO.
I like some of your ideas and thoughts! In particular, I think it is entirely plausible that the smoke monster dispenses of people that are not in ‘unison’ with ‘the island’. Whether they are unrepentant as Eko was, or, if they simply have no purpose to serve.
I wrote a theory on the smoke monster, which I think is entitled the Smoke Monster is a ‘Tulpa’, (which is a ‘Thoughtform’).
You may find it an interesting read, as it seems to fit with your description of what you envision the smoke monster to be!
Consider the alternative, that Smokey and MIB ARE one and the same. It explains a bit more. In “This Place is Death”, for example, the creators use some simple movie tricks to point us to the idea that Locke/Smokey the same thing. Ben goes into his old Dharma cabin, and calls for Smokey. Waits outside, and we hear a rustling in the leaves. We expect Smokey, we get Locke. Same episode, in the temple. Ben falls through the floor, and Locke calls down to see if he needs help. Locke goes to get rope, and only when Locke is safely off-camera does Smokey show up. Smokey leaves, Locke returns. Sort of like Superman and Clark Kent. Now I know this may just be the creators messing with us, pointing us to a red herring, but I personally doubt it.
Second, and this is more to the point, I think I know why Eko was killed. I mean, aside from the creators and the actor having a falling out. Eko refuses to be repentant any further, and will no longer do Yemi’s bidding, now being useless and unwilling to help Smokey manipulate Locke. So he must be eliminated before he may convince Locke to disobey. Could it be that Smokey is the middle-man? Yeah, I suppose. But why? Why not the simpler explanation, that Smokey and MIB are one and the same?
I’m fairly convinced that Locke disappeared into the jungle because he went to break the line of ash, either freeing MIB’s soul or simply preventing it from happening again. We haven’t heard a peep from the smoke monster since Sun and Ben reached the island, and I think it’s because MIB no longer needs it. He now has access to Locke’s body, so the search for a “candidate” is over.
I have always been skeptical of the idea that Smokey serves as a judge, despite what the show’s producers imply through a cryptic show synopsis. It’s the mechanical sound effects they associate with it that make me leary. Instead, I think of it as a camera system, tasked by MIB to survey the island’s inhabitants. Instead, it’s MIB who ultimately makes any judgement calls on who stays or who goes. Eko, for example, basically threw up a middle finger and chose his own path. If MIB is not a fan of the whole free-will philosophy, I can imagine how that might piss the guy off a bit.
Dabs I just read your Tulpa theory, did you ever post theories on the old Lost theories site? You’re right that that is similar to the line of thought I had. What actually pushed me to this line of thinking was the Doctor Who episode “The King’s Demons.” In it the Master uses a shape shifting robot named Kamelion to try to disrupt the signing of the Magan Carta. Kamelion was able to be controlled by the power of the mind and was easy to take over. I started thinking what if Smokey was like that and this theory was the result. Ben, I’m having trouble locating your theory and don’t know if it’s a problem on my end. As soon as I’m able to locate it I’ll let you know. I like reading everyone’s ideas. Rock Tripod, I agree that MIB and Smokey being one and the same is the simplest theory that most likely will end up being true. However, I wanted to try to explain things with them being separate entities. Sometimes things that are too simple raise a red flag, that’s kind of what thinking MIB and Smokey are the same does to me. I like simple but it’s to simple. I appreciate your comment and it does give me ideas to consider, thanks.
Achalli, I was one of the long ago originals who posted on LT. I left a very long time ago.
I thought you mike like the theory, and although I didn’t see the Dr. Who episode you are speaking of, somebody else mentioned in my post, that it was also reminiscent of an episode from Supernatural, entitled the “Tulpa”. I haven’t seen it yet, either, but intend to.
Achalli, FYI, I changed my username, which probably explains why you can’t find the theory under ‘Ben’ anymore. You should be able to find it under WebCommoner.
WebCommoner, I just read your theory and liked it a lot. I left a more in depth comment under your theory. Thank you very much for pointing me to it. Dabs, I had a feeling you used to be on that site. I first encountered the Tulpa theory on that site. It was suggested to me in a comment left about a Smoke Monster theory I posted there also. Both you and WebCommoner leave very insightful comments and have very well thought out and interesting theories. I eagerly await to see what you post here, both theories and comments. As to the Doctor Who episode, it was a story from Peter Davison’s tenure as the Doctor. If you just Google Kamelion you should get enough information to what I’m refering to without actually tracking down the episode and watching it.
Achalli, yes I wrote that theory about three years ago.
I have posted many theories on this site. I am one of the first members who joined here, along with AES, another brilliant theorist, who has inspired many!
Click on my name, and you will see all of the theories I have written. I have many more theories to come in the near future!
Excellent stuff. I’m glad I have figured out how this site works now, lol.
Achalli I like the idea that Smokie is under the control of a master, so to speak but I do differ on who that master is.
I think I see Smokie as a manifestation of the island quite separate from Jacob and MIB but also malleable to their will.
Great theory!
Thank you mrsswawyer, I’m glad you liked it. I agree that Smokie is a seperate entity. My basic thought is that Smokie is a tool (that is what a security system is after all) whose defaul controller is the Island. However, it is vulnarble to the influence of others, say like Jacob and his Adversary, who know how to take control and utilize it. Like I mentioned in the main body the character of Kamelion in the Doctor Who episode “King’s Demons” is what influenced this theory.