Where Everyone Went on The Leftovers

I have no idea if people are enjoying this show or what the consensus on it is thus far, 4 episodes in. I'm purposely abstaining from reading anything about it because I don't want it to taint the theory I developed after the first episode. I know where everyone went on The Leftovers and I don't want anyone else's fan theories to ruin my false sense of confidence.


So, yes there are *spoilers* in this post, but I suspect you already knew that. I'm hoping my theory will end up being a big mega spoiler for the entire show. I hope I ruin it for everyone that reads this. Also, obviously, I have not read the book, nor do I have any speculation as to whether the book ending and the show ending will be the same. That could be a real spoiler, now wouldn't it?

Before I get to the heart of it, I'd like to lay out the guts:

1. Everyone that is gone disappeared instantaneously, clothes and all. No one has any idea why or how this happened.
2. The people that disappeared seemed to disappear at random across all nationalities, genders, ages, creeds, and perceived moralities. We're talking Gary Busey and babies, rapists and The Pope, poof, gone.
3. The people that are left, ahem, The Leftovers, are doing about as well as you'd expect given the situation. The world keeps functioning, but there is some emotional fallout.
4. A lot of these leftover people have been slowly losing a grip on themselves since the disappearances, even those who have not lost a loved one.
5. There is a cult like group of people called "Guilty Remnant" that live together, don't talk, wear only white, and chain smoke cigarettes. They peacefully assemble at town gatherings and "recruit" by stalking their marks from a distance. No one on the show has any idea what their deal is yet.
6. There is another cult like group with a leader who acts like some kind of creepy, huggy, antichrist. He has a thing for young Asian girls and has impregnated one of them.
7. Domesticated dogs have gone feral.
8. Our main dude Kevin Garvey, a cop played by Justin Theroux, is starting to maybe see things that other people aren't seeing. It looks like he might be going crazy just like his crazy ole dad.  

Outside of this, I know that the guy that created this show is the same fella that created Lost. All I know about Lost is it was about a group of people stranded on a deserted island after a plain crash, and mystery and mystery were revealed then wrapped up with a maybe-not-so-great explanation that it was some kind of *spoiler* Dallas-esque afterlife dream? Regardless, there was a reality bending undertone.

Enough back story, here's my theory:

The people on The Leftovers disappeared because they are in a computer. The disappeared suddenly and without explanation the same way I could delete this sentence with a few keystrokes. I'm not talking a Matrix computer situation, I'm talking no bodies in goo-pods, no scorched sky former earth. On The Leftovers, their entire existence and their entire universe is in a unfathomably large and complex computer system that some other being created millions of years ago. This is why "Guilty Remnant" has abstained from speaking or breathing normal air and opt to wear white, the absence of color. They know that there is no earth, there are no people, and there are no families. They are telling other people to "save their breath" because nothing is real and nothing matters. Their behavior is the bare minimum of effort they can give and the bare minimum of participation with the world they live in without killing themselves.

Other people, like Liv Tyler's character, are slowly becoming aware of this. They are innately able to sense that something is off, even if they cannot pinpoint exactly what it is. The dogs act as a kind of canary in the coal mine (which was mentioned in one of the episodes); the idea is that eventually, everything will fall into chaos.

I believe a few of the characters that have been revealed so far are more keyed in to what's happening. One of those people is Kevin Garvey. Like his father, Kevin Garvey Sr, Kevin Garvey (Jr) is starting to see the things that are "off" or peculiar in his world. His father does not believe that he or his son is crazy, and advises his son to keep his observations under wraps for the time being lest he end up in a mental health facility like he is. I don't think it's an accident that both characters have the same occupation and the same name.

And the weird Antichrist guy? Initially I thought he might actually be crazy, but I'm starting to think that he might be more similar to Kevin Garvey. He is aware of something and connects to reality in a way that other people cannot. I haven't decided if he's a Neo, an Oracle, or an Agent yet, but he's different from everyone else somehow.

So that's it. I wouldn't be surprised if other people have the same theory because nothing is truly new or unique in this world, right? It's not a matter of what you think of, it's a matter of how fast you think of it and publish it on the Internet. Nothing matters. There is no deep meaning behind life. Holy hell this show is a downer. Was Lost like this? Why do I feel so empty, so... leftover.

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The Leftovers is on Sunday nights on HBO. It airs at the same time as The Strain, so if you like worms coming out of eyeballs more than you like slow-paced bent-reality type shows, I recommend you watch The Strain. Unless, of course, you have a DVR, in which case you can record both. I assume you do have a DVR if you have HBO. Oh wait, you can watch it on HBO Go. Yeah, do that.