#oatheories

[theoanetflix]

Trailer Theory!

This part of the trailer is killing me. Like, they really overloaded me with just these few shots. I have other posts I want to make but I have too much to say about the trailer for 1 post so I’m splitting it up.

This post is loooong so I’m putting the rest under the cut :)

Okay so, we now know for definite that there’s multiple dimensions. And that the dimensions have split before. I think the reason that The OA likes to be called ‘The OA’ more than any other name she’s been given might be because she’s had so many names in all the different dimensions, whereas The OA is one unifying name. In the trailer, a man calls her Miss Azarova, which was her surname back in Russia at the beginning of season 1. I’m assuming in season 2 we’re with “Nina Azarova”, not “Prairie Johnson”

Originally I thought that this season would take place in multiple dimensions, and I’ll make a post about that as well, but to me it seems more likely that it’s going to take place in just one. Well, at least OA (or ‘Nina) will be in 1 dimension. I’m not sure about the others, I need to do more digging. We know that OA meets back up with the captives but we don’t know which dimension that’s in yet.

This is my rough addition to the flowchart we see. The triple lines show the path that season 1 took, and I think season 2 will loop round so that we move from ‘Prairie’s Dimension’ to ‘Nina’s Dimension’.

The red text shows the split in each dimension (The two... ‘Forking Paths’.. if you will ;)... S1E6). There are some splits we’ve never seen so I’ve put question marks there. I split it every time we see OA interact with Khatun. It’s likely that the paths forked every time she had an NDE, but we know that the five movements are the only way to stay in a dimension, so I think that even if the paths did fork, they didn’t go far. Therefore it didn’t seem worth including them. However, when OA gets hit on the back of the head, she meets with Khatun and chooses to live. That’s what makes me think there’s another full fork where either she chooses to stay with her father. (or maybe she doesn’t try to escape at all. If that’s the case, there’s a dimension where she’s still blind) Maybe those dimensions will be explored in this season, however I think if they are explored it’ll be in later seasons.

I think there isn’t a time jump after the ending of season two. We’ve seen behind the scenes photos where Brit Marling is in the wolf jumper with the gunshot wound, so I think the season will start off in “Prairie’s Dimension” and then we’ll see OA wake up in “Nina’s Dimension” which is what we see at the beginning of the trailer.

The reason I’m so certain that we’re in “Nina’s Dimension” is because that’s what’s on the left hand side of the flowchart, and it seems to be what’s been filled in first. And I think if anyone were to make this sort of flowchart, they’d fill in their side first. As well as that, on the right, one of the things listed is ‘PRAIRIE’. ‘NINA’ isn’t listed on the other side, probably because she didn’t think it was necessary to write her own name. Also, we’ve seen her be introduces as Miss Azarova. It makes sense that she’s Nina Azarova for the entire season.

This is the only other shot in the trailer where she’s wearing the same outfit she wore while writing on the wall. It’s the shot where she says “Homer” before she lists Scott, Rachel, Renata, BBa etc...

I think this scene might be her piecing everything together, so it’s likely it comes near the end of the season. At the beginning of the trailer she answers that the president is Obama, so she seems to have memories from “Prairie’s Dimension”. However, we know dimensional travelling can cause amnesia. She may have forgotten a lot of what happened and spends the season remembering. I didn’t notice her scars in the trailer but I’m sure they’ll play a part, since they were intended to help the captives remember the movements. It’s got to be significant that we barely see Homer in the trailer. He has two of the movements on him, they never wrote down the 5th. This flowchart could be a ‘map’ to help her find Homer, or it could be what jogs her memory of him. Or it could be something else entirely! We don’t know! I just know I’m excited for the new season!

[egg2k16]

The OA and Names, pt. 2

Hi guys, I made the first part years ago and just now got around to making the second part now, which will cover the Crestwood 5

Steve – garland, crown: In the beginning, Steve thought he was untouchable and inscrutable, he thought he was the hottest shit on the planet. He was untouchable, much like how kings and royalty seem to be. But then, OA changed him, made him realize he can become something so much more than that, become in-tune with his invisible self. He relinquishes his crown of superiority to become just another person, but a person who knows themself now. Crowns could also reference his curly blond hair, extremely coveted and praised throughout history

Jesse – the Lord exists: Jesse is shown to be a pothead, smoking with his sister. He doesn’t have much exposition, but we do see that he becomes concerned about the existence of angels when OA says she is the Original. He wonders if his mom really did turn into an angel when she killed herself, which ties back into the common doctrine sometimes spread by the Catholic church, which is that, “when someone kills themselves, it’s because God needs more angels” 

Buck: Buck’s name doesn’t have a direct definition, because it’s considered a nickname, but I did manage to find this: “The word for a male goat or deer, used as a given name or nickname that denotes a robust and spirited young man.” This is obviously Buck’s chosen name as a transgender man, and it seems fitting that he chose a name that asserts his identity and place in the world. He does have spunk, he’s excited and emotional about various things, he wants to belong to a group, the Crestwood 5. And thankfully for him, the Crestwood 5 took him in and made him a part of themselves

(His deadname means “who is like God?” Although not a proper name anymore, it does connect him back to the angel theme, especially considering he stayed with the book about angels)

Alfonso – ready for battle: This is a name that’s been favored by Spanish royalty. French is on the lacrosse team, he knows how to move on the field, knows defensive and offensive tactics. He also seems to have been in fights before, namely with Steve back when they were 12. French is also ready for responses to Buck when they were discussing Hap, and how he could’ve possibly changed into a bad person; French assures him that they’re not going to change like that. Going back to the king theme, a good king strives for peace but prepares for war – French seems to do that by protecting his younger brothers and mom from his drug use, he does well in school, he won a scholarship that let him attend any university in Michigan to stay close to take care of his family. He worries a lot

Betty – God is my oath: BBA is still hurt and raw from the death of her brother, Theo, and even told OA that she wished she’d met her sooner, that she would’ve loved Theo. BBA even takes up an acronymic name like OA, it being just her initials. “God is my oath” can also mean fidelity to something or someone in which you believe in, loyalty given with love: she rushes back into the cafeteria because her boys were there, and performed the five movements with them to protect the rest of the students, and inadvertently helped OA jump dimensions.

[sharkiegorath]

i don’t know where i’m going with this but listen

Ouroborus has been mentioned before, because of the snake references? idk.  

There's this Reddit thread about ‘OA’ and the infinity symbol. (Note the comment that in some versions of the logo, OA herself “bridges the gap between the loops”.)

Khatun's location may have been modeled after Yayoi Kusama’s infinity rooms.

The Johnsons entertain an investigative reporter. She mentions a boy who wrote about his trauma, saying that “the process of telling this story has somehow exorcised it [...] when we typed 'the end', that meant it was truly over.” OA says she can't write a book because his story had an end, while hers is "just beginning". 

OA could stand for 'Omega Alpha' - instead of Alpha [and] Omega, the usual arrangement. It's convenient that when ‘Alpha’ and ‘Omega’ are swapped, alphabetized, and behind ‘the’, it sounds like 'DOA' (dead on arrival). But it may be additionally significant that the literal end is the beginning.  

The show already references one of Jorge Luis Borges' stories, The Garden of Forking Paths. Infinity and labyrinths are a recurring theme in his work, like the stories in The Aleph.

Evelyn's guardian angel appeared as a little girl when Evelyn herself was a little girl who’d drowned. Chronologically, OA's first appearance was as a little girl who drowned. 

Evelyn actually knows she's going to die after she gives OA and Homer the fifth movement: "It's almost over but I get to hold my Stan one more time." Shortly afterwards, OA and Homer touch for the first time. 

Towards the end of OA's story, Evelyn (and Stan) gets shot. Towards the end of the present-day story, OA gets shot. 

OA's story ends with her chasing Hap's car down a road. The present-day story ends with Steve chasing OA's ambulance down a road. 

OA's storytelling ends in the last episode, not long before the first episode begins. 

The second scene of the first episode is OA in a hospital. She’s probably in a hospital again in the final scene of the last episode.

[brayinghorses]

The OA and Names pt. 1

heyyy this is my first post about The OA, and amazingly, it’ll be about names and meanings. Note: this’ll be covering the Basement 5′s names, the Crestwood 5 will be another post

OA - Original Angel: OA says that she’s the original angel. Since she has “borrowed” from Christian, or at least Abrahamic, mythology, we can assume that she is one of the first angels created, namely the Archangels. Khatun said that OA is “the first one.” Michael and Gabriel are considered archangels by most faiths, but there’s lots of doubt concerning Gabriel, so the only one we know for sure is one is Michael. Michael is the one who defeated Satan and is viewed by many as a protector. OA could be seen as a defeater, seeing as she wants to take down Hap, as well as a protector, in that she wants to rescue the others in the basement.

(Prairie is self-explanatory, and is even given a meaning in-show: her eyes are as blue as the prairie sky. Nina means little girl, which was her name while she lived in Russia, as a young girl. Neena, a variation, in Hindi means “pretty eyes”, which comes back to Prairie’s blue eyes).

Homer - Hostage: The literal definition of Homer in Greek is hostage, which really sucks, because surprise, surprise – he is one. But before that, he was a hostage of his own situation – he had to help his girlfriend, who was pregnant with his child. When Hap takes him to Cuba, he is still Hap’s hostage, but this time it’s mentally. As OA said, “The first time you fall asleep in a prison, you forget. You wake up a free woman. And then you remember that you’re not. You lose your freedom many times before you finally believe it.” Homer is still Hap’s hostage, and must do whatever he asks of him.

Rachel - Ewe, female sheep: Rachel is a Biblical figure, a wife of Jacob, and she is described as being “beautiful in form and countenance”. Rachel could be said to be pretty, but after her NDE, she gains a gorgeous singing voice. I’m not entirely sure what ewe, or sheep in general, have to do with her character, but it could mean that she was a bit passive while in the basement. She breathes the gas out of Homer’s tank, she didn’t discover a movement, she watched as OA and Homer brought Scott back to life – a “mindless sheep,” which wouldn’t really be fair to her.

Scott – From Scotland, a Scotsman: This is a very straightforward name, but as a surname it can also mean “a dart”. A very far-fetched idea, but: he talks to the plants to make them grow. There are several species of plants that can be used to make arrow poison, such as aconite, golden poppy, manchineel tree, etc. One could gather from this information that poison from plants could also be used on darts.

Renata – Reborn: Renata is from Cuba, whose name means “where fertile land is abundant” or “great place.” We obviously know that Cuba is Not a great place (at least, anymore), and that she was kidnapped after being lured to Homer’s room. Not exactly a great place or a good opportunity to reinvent herself. In the basement, she gains the fourth movement. The number 4, spiritually, is an “indication that your angels are offering you love, support, encouragement and inner-strength, enabling you to do what you need to do and achieve your goals with diligence and proficiency.” She seemed like a solitary woman back home, where she would have meaningless sex with people, and only look at her audience towards the end. To be able to be part of a group who are in the same situation as her could bring her motivation to do something with herself, which would be offering them the fourth movement. In this way, she is reborn.

[one-mediocre-hat]

just noticed that renata’s wearing a wedding ring....

[oa-theories-blog]

Alright so this has been in my drafts for a long time and I thought I would finally finish it up since I have some free time. Basically a while back I noticed something strange when the OA twitter account tweeted a gif from Prairies homecoming (link is here: https://mobile.twitter.com/the_oa/status/819227399053197312 ).

Sorry my pictures are so terrible it only makes it worse. But It’s difficult to see (most likely intentional) because Prairie has a blanket over her head, but it appears that Rachel walks by quickly in the background. I know it’s hard to tell from the pictures but I suggest you watch it again yourself either from the gif link on twitter or on Netflix cause it looks to be her. I thought I might be crazy but after doing some investigative work online, I was able to find people who agreed and even found this comparison picture online that shows that she’s wearing the same jacket.

Now I know your probably thinking what I thought when I first saw this and that is WHAT THE HELL? How can this be possible? I’m still not sure myself, and it's possible that it's not actually her. But it looks like her to me. My best guess so far is that it’s possible that when OA jumped off the bridge that she really did enter another dimension. Or it could just be more evidence that Hap's mine is in another dimension. Either way it is very interesting. If anyone has any ideas please share!

[hydfreak-blog]

OA Theory

In episode 7 there is a shot where you can see prairie’s parents talking to Dr. Rahim and in braille there is ‘Rachel’ written in braille on the wall in his office. Rachel very shortly mentioned how she was in a car crash with her brother and how he had supposedly died. Rahim told Prairie in ep. 4 that she just needed to take the time to heal ‘just the same way you would like when you’ve been in a car crash’.... ‘I understand more than you know’ (which made me suspect earlier that he must have had an NDE himself) What if this little brother didn’t actually die.... or coincidence much?

@buckvuvevo I spend too long browsing your tumblr with theories so im curious what you think

[oatheories]

what is this photo, you ask ? well, it’s my latest OA Theory and you’d better pay attention because it’s a little bit confusing !! (cheers to @the-fifth-movement for helping me sort this out)

The premise of this theory is that there are multiple dimensions, each containing the same people. When your body dies in Dimension A, your consciousness leaves Dimension A and joins with your consciousness in Dimension B. (This will make more sense when I explain it in context of The OA.)

So: after the bus incident in Dimension A, Nina’s body is dead. Her consciousness jumps from Dimension A to Dimension B.

In Dimension B, Nina survives the bus incident, now blind. She becomes Prairie, meets Hap, etc. etc. Then, when trying to escape, she dies again. Prairie’s body is dead in this dimension. Her consciousness jumps from Dimension B to Dimension C.

In Dimension C, Prairie - now OA - survives being hit on the head. She helps everyone figure out the experiment, helps Evelyn, gets dumped by the road, winds up at Crestwood.

Still in Dimension C, OA tells her story: the story of her collective consciousnesses, A+B+C. Finally, she performs the movements outside the cafeteria and gets shot.

In Dimension C, OA’s body is dead. Her consciousness jumps once again - this time to some unknown Dimension D.

I think this theory has some validity to it because it gives an explanation as to how they are able to change dimensions, and why they experience amnesia after travelling. (OA B’s memories are much stronger than OA A’s memories when they are in the same body, although she is always able to recall things that provoke intense emotions… such as Homer.)