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st elsewhere ending theory

    st elsewhere ending theory

    Marriage! The suggestion is that the entire series was a product of Tommy Westphall's imagination but if that's true, then what it implies is nothing short of jaw-dropping. Elsewhere., It was as far as they could go, he said. The shows one truly lasting and iconic was a solid drama that gave a boatload of great actors some steady work for a few years, but it will always be a peculiar show for that final detail. And in the end, Fiscus patient does finally sing. Elsewhere with varying degrees of separation, ranging from I Love Lucy to The Flash. WebThe problem that I see with the ending is that they explained away the whole show as the daydreams of an autistic child's imagination. Television these daysor rather, television that jerks like me actually bother to write aboutbasically falls into two categories now: Heavily scripted and serialized prestige TV or reality show stuff that sounds like a made up show on, . Review/Television; Ed Flanders as Dr. Westphal in, "Six Objections to the Westphall Hypothesis", "Director Ben Wheatley Talks 'High-Rise', 'Doctor Who', 'Free Fire' and More at TIFF", "NewsRadio (TV Series) Daydream (1996) Trivia", Other arguments against the Tommy Westphall Universe, Association for Science in Autism Treatment, Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative, Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee, Maia Chung Autism and Disabilities Foundation (Jamaica), The Accidental Teacher: Life Lessons from My Silent Son, Aspergirls: Empowering Females with Asperger's Syndrome, Freaks, Geeks, and Asperger Syndrome: A User Guide to Adolescence, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Everybody Is Different: A Book for Young People Who Have Brothers or Sisters With Autism, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tommy_Westphall&oldid=1148529078, Fictional characters on the autism spectrum, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 6 April 2023, at 18:38. Elsewhere was a solid drama that gave a boatload of great actors some steady work for a few years, but it will always be a peculiar show for that final detail. So far, the included shows span from "I Love Lucy" in 1951, to today, with 26 listed shows still on the air. Via Wikipedia: The most common interpretation of this scene is that the entire series of events in the series St. Illustration by HuffPost's Alissa Scheller. According to the duo's notes, the only other non-US shows in the "Tommyverse" are "The 'Degrassi' shows (Canada), 'The Office' (UK), the 'Doctor Who' shows (UK), 'Luther' (UK), 'Jo' (France) and 'Paris Section Criminelle' (France)," which "is the only show not in English in the Tommyverse.". This is not likely the case (I'm not going to search for links to autism websites for this answer), but for writers looking for some weird ending for their show (other than "it was all a dream"), the idea of a child imagining the world of St. Can my creature spell be countered if I cast a split second spell after it? In the final scene of the series, the camera widens out from St. Eligius, until it becomes clear the hospital is a model inside a snow globe being shaken by Tommy as he plays on the floor of a small apartment. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. English version of Russian proverb "The hedgehogs got pricked, cried, but continued to eat the cactus". I think other people will find it puzzling, odd, maybe unfulfilling in some way.. St. I think the reality of a hospital is much worse. That fictional firm appears inDoctor Who, Red Dwarf, and of course, theAlien feature film franchise. Most scripted television shows end in cancellation, so theres something special about the ones that get the chance to go out on their own terms. We cant take that jump from seeing these people, Norman, Ed [Flanders] and Bill [Daniels], and this young boy for six years, and suddenly were supposed to believe that theyre these other people. More: Why The X-Files Season 12 Never Happened. We're often considered and thought of as robot-like people who have no emotions and who only see other people as objects. A Weyland-Utani ship is also seen in a spaceship graveyard in the British sci-fi series Red Dwarf.. 7. Beyond the theoretical connections, it's possible that the 419 affected shows all exist within the dream of an autistic boy from the show, "St. Elsewhere by the residents and the surrounding community, the place has a reputation as a rathole. This expands the Tommy Westphall universe ever outward, to the point where over 400 shows now reside under its umbrella. Part of HuffPost Entertainment. It was highly unpredictable, just like every episode. I went, Wow. As one of the co-authors of the scene that ignited the entire premise, Fontana said he was stunned to discover the aftershocks and that the theory basically means that Tommy Westphall is the mind of God.. Hour shows are just not selling into syndication; the market is saturated with them, Paltrow said in a telephone conversation from New York, where he and others from the St. In their defense, the theory's original creator, Dwayne McDuffle, actually posited it while attempting to mock crazy shared universe theories based around guest appearances by one TV show's character(s) on another show. Why is it shorter than a normal address? For indeed, St. Mimsie the Cat has seen better days. What is the rationale/justification for ending the series this way? Theyre more interested in the colossal mind-fuck that is the Tommy Westphall Universe. Thats All, Folksis a look back at televisions most unforgettable series finales. As a special tribute to recently deceased writer Dwayne McDuffie, CBR is pleased to present one of the most well-known texts from his time writing about the art of comics in "Six Degrees of St. Elsewhere illustrates the rich and often blurred boundaries in how we experience the world."[7]. For example, take thatCheers crossover. St. But now, viewers are picking shows out to binge watch, and they want to know that their time investment is going to have some payoff. ), I expect a very mixed reaction, Bruce Paltrow, one of the show's executive producers, told the Chicago Tribune in 1988. I think some people will think it's extraordinary and existential and quintessential St. Elsewhere production team are at work on Tattingers, a new NBC series from MTM slated for St. Elsewhere characters on other shows are not sufficient to indicate that those shows exist only in Westphall's dream. You can barely please half the people most of the time. The thing is, autism was - and still is - Howie Mandels Dr. Wayne Fiscus--who distinguished himself by having sex on an autopsy table during the shows first episode--experienced death through a fantasy sequence last season. Elsewhere. Elsewhere, including all its characters, are revealed to have been the dream of a minor character named Tommy Westphall, an autistic boy who possesses a snow globe containing a replica of the hospital where the series took place. We went through this experience and I wanted it to be maintained as a real one, not a dream. St. Then it could create conversation, so I thought it was kind of brilliant. Elsewhere to Homicide: Life on the Street, which shared a writer/producer in Tom Fontana. And listen, we set such a bar, its hard to top it to make that ending satisfy a lot of people. Cheers introduced Frasier Crane, of Frasier; Fiscus (Mandel), Morrison (Morse) and Ehrlich (Begley) are all dealing with their own issues around their impending exits. The show was a proving ground for actors you have seen in a million things before or since: Denzel Washington and Howie Mandel were easily the most recognizable, but there were also ringers like Mark Harmon, David Morse, Ed Begley Jr., Bruce Greenwood, Ronny Cox, and not only Mr. Feeny himself (William Daniels), but his wife (real and fictional) Bonnie Bartlett. I think there was a period when last rites were being performed when we could have rallied, he said, his tone clinically matter-of-fact. He sits there, all day long, in his own world, staring at that toy. "The first time I saw [the Tommy Westphall Universe theory] it just completely devastated me, because []We believed that our show was just a speck in the universe, and then it turned out that our show was the universe.". But because we set a bar, it was just hard to really top that I wish I could say that I loved it. This means that all of those series and other media thatthey referenced in-universe, which in the case ofThe Simpsons is ridiculously extensive technically take place in the same universe asSt. HOWIE MANDEL (Dr. Wayne Fiscus): I thought it was realllllllly interesting. Fontanas favored conclusion was a literal apocalypse, where the staff of St. Eligius would be standing by in the year 2013 while a toxic gas cloud passed over, the result of a corporate war between foreign factions. Specific to the Westphall Hypothesis, even if we accept that St. It was certainly something no other network would put up with. If you notice any other connections, feel free to join in on the madness. Elsewhere an autistic boy is shown to have imagined and created a vast and deeply human universe. Paired with the show's penchant for references, this finale has spawned one of the most bizarre and elaborate fan theories of all time. For a constant stream of entertainment news and discussion, follow HuffPost Entertainment on Viber. Of course, every party has a pooper, and there are those that consider the Tommy Westphall universe ridiculous. Elsewhere" and "Oz," and, as Gow tells it, "It was that little connection that spawned a thousand other connections -- references to fictional airlines, companies, nods from one series to another.". That would surely lead to spreadsheets the size of walls: Weyland-Yutani is the company behind the machinations of the Alien franchise. Fox doesnt think hell live to be 80: Every day its tougher. How was your day up on the building? That's the nature of a hospital drama, that's why we tune in. Meme Status Submission Year 1988 Origin St. WebThere are oodles of ways to end a TV series. Mandel, Morse, and Washington are among the core cast of younger doctors that stuck around for the entire show, wringing their hands over their critical patients, racing to respond to someone randomly coding in the hallway, or occasionally banging in the morgue. It was bold and shocking and upset some people. I spent a shift sitting bedside with my daughter in the emergency room during a three-day-long stay once, watching the same sainted nurse come and go as an endless tide of needy patients washed in. Like their small but loyal band of viewers--who have already written at least 300 letters to MTM and the network protesting its cancellation--the St. It was this wonderful, crumbly, noble, decadent building that housed this incredible heart. Elsewhere signed off after six seasons on May 25, 1988, more than a few viewers were saddened. Theres also nothing standing in the way of the belief that perhaps the Tommy Westphall end sequence was itself a dream, negating the snow globe conceit. Gow and Crowe have an elaborate system of rules for what shows can and can't be included in the list, which they shared with HuffPost and can now be seen on their site's latest update. Through crossovers, spinoffs, cameos, or fictional brands or products appearing in more than one show, everything from. ", But despite the elaborate system, the two still doubt their methods from time to time. 2023 Paste Media Group. 59K views 4 years ago. Elsewhere take place The best music, movies, TV, books, comedy and more. It wasn't unusual to hear other famous TV doctors and the like paged over St. Eligius' PA system, characters from series likeThe White Shadow, M*A*S*H*, andThe Mary Tyler Moore Show appeared or were referred to, and one season 3 episode even took place partially within another Boston institution the titular bar fromCheers. Sealed and locked. If Cheers is not real, then is Trebek? In the closing moments of the episode, a boy named Tommy Westphall (Chad Allen), the son of medical director Dr. Donald Westphall, was seen peering into a snow globe. What is the name of the poem Belle reads out? "Red Dwarf" is now included as well. Both shows took a grittier and more realistic approach to their drama. St. Elsewhere, by only a few degrees, to a startling number of TV shows and movies. Can I use my Coinbase address to receive bitcoin? The strange thing that occurs to me when thinking about the show was how temporary it seemed, mused Begley, who spent the last six years matching wits--and losing--with William Daniels, who played St. Eligius Hospitals cranky chief of surgery, Mark Craig. What world is Tommy imagining inside that snow globe, he wonders aloud. Scan this QR code to download the app now. You can follow any one of these connective threads down a series of increasingly convoluted rabbit holes, and it probably won't surprise you to learn that a number of fans have done exactly that. But of course, none of that is what people really remember the last episode for. There are no villains in this piece. Elsewhere was a show that got by largely on the strength of its ensemble, running for six seasons from 1982-88. Elsewhere's final moments. From the mind of a young person whose fantasies were coming to life before him, it was neat. ", Father: "I don't understand this autism thing, Pop. This is because it's pretty easy to connectSt. My character died in the second-to-last episode, but I was in the last episode in a scene in which Howies character pays a visit to Dr. Axelrods corpse in the morgue. In the last episode's final two scenes, Donald Westphall having just returned to St. Eligius is shown in Dr. Auschlander's office pondering the recent death from stroke of his colleague and mentor. The fictional Morley cigarettes are particularly pervasive, as is Hudson University, an institution of higher learning mentioned on The Cosby Show, Law & Order, and Murder, She Wrote. And Howie got so mad, because I got paid for a full episode, and all I had to do was lie on a slab for five seconds. In another episode, St. Eligius traveled 50 years into the past. Elsewhere's finale, titled "The Last One," aired on May 25, 1988, and the bulk of its narrative was concerned with the requisite deaths, departures, transfers, and tying up of loose ends that one might expect. EW gathered a dozen members of the cast for a photo shoot and asked them to reflect on the years they spent making this provocative, eccentric, beloved show, which you can check out in our third-annual Reunions Issue. Dr Pepper includes an homage to Tommy Westphall's snowglobe in its 2021 advertising campaign. I could have put in a sauna and a Jacuzzi, you know?. In that episode, the entirety of St. To me the last 10 minutes of the final episode of St. WebSt Elsewhere Closing Credits Season 5 Lorenzo F 1.61K subscribers 47 Share 14K views 2 years ago #bumpers #tvthemes #televisionthemes WELCOME TO MY VIDEOS of little-known, forgotten TV gems. Helen Hunt even appeared in a few episodes. Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. Nicknamed St. The show was a proving ground for actors you have seen in a million things before or since: Denzel Washington and Howie Mandel were easily the most recognizable, but there were also ringers like Mark Harmon, David Morse, Ed Begley Jr., Bruce Greenwood, Ronny Cox, and not only Mr. Feeny himself (William Daniels), but his wife (real and fictional) Bonnie Bartlett. (Quizzed by IndieWire in 2012 as to who exactly came up with the idea, neither Fontana nor co-writers Channing Gibson or John Tinker could remember. ER and Chicago Hope wouldnt exist in the form they did without St. After the "Fansville" characters exchange meta-humorous existential comments, the camera pans out to show that the characters in fact exist in a snowglobe sitting on Larry Culpepper's desk. Proponents of the Tommy Westphall Universe argue that because of this fictional crossover, the two series exist within the same fictional universe, and within Tommy Westphall's mind because of the final episode of St. Elsewhere's characters. Lloyd, whose Dr. Auschlander was supposed to die years ago but enjoyed a miraculous remission, is even more hopeful. That is Elsewhere remains one of the most famous examples of the "all just a dream" plot. This has led to dozens of shows using the same fake product, so in terms of the chart, "that's become an increasingly complex can of worms," said Crowe. Elsewhere, NBCs darkly comic series about a financially strapped Boston hospital and its beleaguered staff, is dead. Elsewhere ' s series finale features momentous changes for several main characters, including the departures of Drs. --Tom Fontana, former producer, St. was a show that got by largely on the strength of its ensemble, running for six seasons from 1982-88. . Craig, always a prissy sort, is absolutely beside himself with the prospect that his wife Ellen is taking a job in (gasp) Ohio. In the door comes Dr. Westphall, but he hangs up a construction workers hat. Make Room For Daddy takes out I Love Lucy.. [1][6] This hypothesis was originally put forward by comic book and TV writer Dwayne McDuffie in a 2002 blog post,[8] as a reductio ad absurdum argument against making strong statements about fictional continuity based upon guest appearances. Elsewherefollowed its flawed, relatable characters over multi-episode storylines and even season-long arcs. Eligius. The stories speak for themselves. Elsewhere. By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. And because we were never a hit, we didnt have the firepower behind us to make the syndication business., Paltrow said he bears no grudge against the network or MTM for terminating St. Fontana was the executive producer and showrunner for Homicide for its entire seven years. All Rights Reserved, In the age of streaming in particular, I feel as if this is even more true than its been in the past. This will become important very shortly. Though they remain philosophical about the loss of St. Helen Hunt even appeared in a few episodes. Elsewhere. Crowe told HuffPost that if they were to start over today, they'd exclude fictional products as being the basis for counting a crossover, explaining, "since we started this, there's apparently been a real consolidation in fake-prop companies.". ERIC LANEUVILLE (Luther Hawkins): I look back on it now and say Well, it kinda worked. When I first saw it, I had some real reservations about it. "That really solidifies things. Wolfram and Hart had another client, Weyland-Yutani, that made a weapons display screen for Firefly; I really had very little to say about that episode because I thought it was a letdown. Making a splash: A deep dive into the live-action Little Mermaid with a new generation's Ariel. If you've ever been riveted by the human drama ofE.R. But I wasnt surprised that there were many people who didnt find it satisfying. Though MTM hasnt had much luck yet syndicating St. In the last episode's final two scenes, Donald Westphall having just returned to St. Eligius is shown in Dr. Auschlander's office pondering the recent death from stroke of his colleague and mentor. More than puzzling, some people found it to be an actual puzzle. I think the final years story line reflected it, she said, referring to the takeover and makeover of St. Eligius by a wealthy corporation at the outset of the final season. Elsewhere finale wasn't infamous enough with its twist ending, the closing bumper made for the finale showed Mimsie, the logo cat, unconscious and hooked up to an IV, Tommy's father, still being portrayed by Ed Flanders (aka "Donald Westphall") arrives at the apartment wearing a hard hat. Be sure to join us next time as we look back on an even more esoteric final episode of an even more esoteric show: The Prisoner! We never answered any of the questions we posed. Web359. And the fat lady sings tonight: The last episode of St. At least that's the most widely held interpretation of St. As of this writing, 441 shows can be tied to St. Is it positing that the hopes and the fears and the suffering we endure in our lives are being watched by a deity who is interested and all-knowing but who can only gaze in at us and never interfere in our tribulationswhere in all the world but an under-resourced hospital in the planets richest nation could the question of such a beings love or cruelty be more pressing? Westphall, who is autistic, played an increased role in St. Elsewhere ' s final episode, "The Last One", one interpretation of which is that the entire St. Elsewhere storyline exists only within Westphall's imagination. They made a choice and the choice is interesting. Elsewhere storyline exists only within Westphall's imagination. I thought it was terrible. Flashforward! Browse other questions tagged, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. I felt one thing when I read it and one thing when I saw it. Fontana went on to create Homicide: Life on the Street and HBOs groundbreaking prison drama Oz. Flashforward! They tried to really think outside the box the box in this case being that little television box of the 80s and they did something so different. He sits there, all day long, in his own world, staring at that toy. Elsewhere, he was openly hostile toward any idea of a reunion special down the line and insisted that the series finale should be definitive. Tell me if you think it means what I think it means! My mom read it, and she looked at me sort of puzzled too and said, I think it means its all in your head? I said, Thats what I thought it think it means! So I knew that it was really cool, and I loved that. Since Dr. Turner and Dr. Ehrlich are figments of Tommys imagination that means when they visit the Homicide universe, that it too is part of Tommys world. Ambiguous cut to black! The theory is called the "The Tommy Westphall Universe" and hinges on a reveal at the finale of "St. And I'm beat. Paltrow noted that the shows bleak vision was deliberate. The Marvel Cinematic Universe might seem like a huge landscape of interconnected shows and TV movies, but the Tommy Westphall universe has it beat. In 1988, though, St. Elsewhere, the magic was in the tone, as it was with another show by the same production company, Hill Street Blues. I think it can happen. The thing Im proudest of is the overall balance of the comedy to the drama; the counterpoint of that really grew and grew.. Entertainment Weekly is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. Elsewhere an autistic boy is shown to have imagined and created a vast and deeply human universe. The complete list of shows is at the bottom of the article. As far as I could tell, there was always controversy around St. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. The theory is called the "The Tommy Westphall Universe" and hinges on a reveal at the finale of "St. DAVID MORSE (Dr. Jack Boomer Morrison): I felt two things. Elsewhere airs at 10 p.m. on Channels 4, 36 and 39. Theyre more interested in the colossal mind-fuck that is the. Elsewhere was known for its The "St. While that can sometimes describe. We always said: Thats a tough question--well, good night! . Therefore, appearances from St. They needed a way to end the show It was a provocative ending. Crisis On Infinite Earths Solved DC Movies' Continuity Problem, Star Wars' Next Show Needs To Fill The Biggest Gap In Anakin's Life, 1 Sorcerers Stone Problem Could Make The Harry Potter Remake Harder, Why Missy's Hair Is Shorter In Young Sheldon Season 6 Episode 18. And they figured out a way: Okay, we wont have any reunions, nothing like that. ). But I thought it was wonderful. The original decision to include fictional product crossovers actually comes from the origins of the chart itself. BONNIE BARTLETT (Ellen Craig): [The writers] wanted to do an ending to the show in a way so that it could never be brought back again. So what happens when an ending goes completely off the rails? Birth! Making a splash: A deep dive into the live-action. WebIf the St. When I read it, I thought it was amazing: Only these people could come up with this idea And I thought it was very touching. One TV writer wants to put a copy of the grid on her office wall and put 'YOU ARE HERE' on the show she writes for.". The first episode of a show has to hook viewers in for the long haul in a way totally unlike, say, the first pages of a novel. WebYet, in the ending of St. I remember reading about it in the paper that there was controversy over it. It was not right for us to say, You should lose more money. . Arrow is also included, which means all subsequent Arrowverse shows also tie back to Westphall. Here on EW.com, read what each of them had to say about the daring and polarizing ending that helped define the WTF? Elsewhere" Dwayne McDuffie at the Los Angeles premiere of "All Star Superman" ", Grandfather: "He's been sitting there ever since you left this morning, just like he does every day. He adds that, "while a controversial and maddening ending for some loyal viewers, the final episode of St. And none of MTMs shows better defined quality television than St. Gow and Crowe, who still periodically update the grid, assert that episodes with real people playing themselveslike Trebek did on Cheersare exempt, as are cartoons and feature films. At one point, St. Much of the humor between characters is gallows humor. Elsewhere very often in your life. In a way that actually sucks most of contemporary-set American scripted TV into the inside of a snow globe? I spent a shift sitting bedside with my daughter in the emergency room during a three-day-long stay once, watching the same sainted nurse come and go as an endless tide of needy patients washed in. Elsewhere take place within Tommy's mind, but so do numerous other television series which are directly and indirectly connected to St. And I was very upset. By using our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. Those two impressive achievements would have likely relegated the bizarre ending of St. WILLIAM DANIELS (Dr. Mark Craig): I was shocked, actually. The kind of gallows humor that was in the show was a case of art imitating life, Paltrow continued. , the magic was in the tone, as it was with another show by the same production company. And because I cant tell you I have a better idea of how it couldve ended, I can live with that one. Toe-tagged. What symbolic value does either the globe or the snow have on the ending of the series? [3][4] The following exchange occurs: Grandfather: "Good. For instance, it may be the other way around, and the snow globe scene may itself be the dream. Elsewhere" finale was the first big "it was all just a dream" finale, ending with the revelation that St. Eligius hospital and its staff were all the creations of "For 'St. sign-off. WebBasically the theory known as The Tommy Westphall Universe (TWU) begins when St. St. I saw it as a show about people struggling to answer lifes ridiculous questions--sometimes they would do it in a comic way, sometimes they would do it in a serious way, said Tom Fontana, one of the shows core group of writers and producers, who served as a creative consultant this season. Six years . But they did want to end the show, and not have little St. Elsewheres coming after it. Elsewhere signed off after six seasons on May 25, 1988, more than a few viewers were saddened.

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