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The Numbers non-explanation
March 20, 2009
I know it's kind of late. But I just finished reading Damon Lindef's statement regarding The Numbers (wiki/Numbers). I was more than disappointed.
I believe his statement that "We call it the midi-chlorian debate, because at a certain point, explaining something mystical demystifies it," is mainly a cop-out. In Star Wars, there was never any mystery surrounding the origins of the Force. It was accepted as part of the Star Wars universe, in the same way that the possibility of time travel is accepted in the Lost universe, without need of a detailed explanation. The Force was never raised as a mystery to be solved in Star Wars.
The Numbers are quite different. They were the focus of major plot mysteries in season 1 and into season 2. Why were those particular numbers selected to be entered every 108 minutes? Would it have mattered if different numbers were entered? Could it have worked with 107 minutes? Why was Hurley so involved with the Numbers and not any one else?
There are secondary related questions as well: Why maintain such an important function (typing in the numbers) via a system that is so prone to possible human failure? Why weren't the Others checking in at the Swan? Did they really just assume that Desmond would never fail to reset the switch? Why not just press the fail safe button in the first place and avoid all the hassle of entering the numbers (I believe I know the answer that but I'd still like to see it answered officially)? Why was the system needed at all? Presumably there was no such system before the Dharma people arrived; how and when did the need for it arrive? And so on and so on.
Even if we assume that the meaning of the Numbers has to do with the Valenzetti Equation (although I believe that was never clearly stated on the show itself), it still doesn't answer any of these other questions.
For me, to dismiss the answers to such questions as of "no interest whatsoever" is simply saying: "We screwed up. We didn't have a good explanation when we went down this road. And now, rather than coming up with one, we're going simply say it doesn't matter."
I'm really sorry to see this.
