Rohan Jain
Netflix’s ‘1899‘ is an intriguing sci-fi psychological-thriller TV series that leaves you with more questions than answers. The story is about the passengers aboard Kerberos, sailing from the Old World to the New World. The passengers hope to escape their traumatic past and start afresh in America. However, when Kerberos finds Prometheus, a ship that disappeared four months ago, all their hopes are quashed.
When Maura, Captain Eyk, and a small crew go aboard Prometheus to check for survivors, Daniel climbs onto Kerberos. Daniel starts tampering with both ships’ machinery to fulfill his mission, and as the story progresses, we understand his true motivations. In the end, when Maura wakes up, she sees several passengers, but Daniel isn’t one of them. Does this mean Daniel is dead? While there are several theories about the character’s fate, we have one that might pique your interest. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Daniel’s Disappearance: Dead or Deep Within the Simulation?
Daniel is either dead or has been taken away by Ciaran. We believe Daniel figured out the simulation and thus got out of it. However, he wanted to save Maura and bring her back to reality. So he added his own consciousness to the simulation to help Maura remember her past and leave the simulation. However, Ciaran figures this out, takes him away, and perhaps traps him in a completely different simulation.
In several incidents, Daniel functions slightly differently from others in the simulation. For instance, in most scenes, Daniel is a passive observer of everything unfolding on the ship. He doesn’t seem fickle-minded like the others and simply lets things happen as he tries to figure out how to break the simulation. Daniel also remains unaffected when most passengers go into a trance and jump overboard. Another interesting thing about him is that he remembers everything, unlike other passengers who struggle with their memories. Even Henry cannot tamper with Daniel’s mind as he does with Maura’s mind.
All these instances prove that Daniel already knows everything and has figured out how the simulation works. So, it is likely that he would have woken up on the spaceship in 2099, much before Maura does. However, for Daniel to re-enter the simulation and help Maura, he had to ensure that he remembered everything once he went back into the simulation. Otherwise, he would be like other passengers on the ship. When we look at these details, it leads us to believe that Daniel tampered with Ciaran’s simulation and inserted his consciousness into it. This is one of the plausible ways in which Daniel can help Maura return to reality.
When Daniel’s consciousness enters the simulation, he knows Maura doesn’t remember him or Elliot. Maura didn’t remember Elliot because he died, and she didn’t want to remember the pain. However, in Daniel’s case, Ciaran likely made her forget Daniel. This way, it would become harder for Daniel to convince Maura and get her to believe him.
Throughout the show, Daniel looks sad, and every time he looks at Maura, there’s a sense of longing in his eyes. One probable reason behind this is that while feeding his consciousness into the simulation, Daniel might have known that he won’t be in reality for long. Soon Ciaran will find out what Daniel did and then take him away. Ciaran might kill or trap him in another simulation for eternity. Daniel is well aware of these possibilities, and that’s why he tells Maura that by the time Ciaran figures out what’s happened, Maura will already be in reality.
But he says it with a certain sadness. When Maura asks him if he’ll be there in reality, he says that he’ll always be there. There’s a sense of doom in the statement. People tend to say these things when they are going to die or never see the other person again. But it can also mean that Daniel will always be with her in spirit. Thus, there’s a good chance that Daniel is dead in 2099, but somehow he will always be there with Maura in the form of consciousness.
Read More: The Two Injections in 1899, Explained
