2

At the end of Dirk Gently season 2, all the loose ends seem to get nicely tied up, except for one. In Wendimoor there was a prophecy that a man called Dirk Gently would come and

"find the boy" and set everything right.

But:

If I understood correctly, this prophecy was from 40 years ago, when the world was created. But at that time the world's creator - the boy - didn't know Dirk Gently. So why would he feature in the prophecy?

Or am I wrong, and

in fact the prophecy comes from a more recent time, after the boy was taken to Blackwing and made friends with Dirk?

2 Answers 2

2

The Prophecy itself appears to have come via Wakti Wapnasi (revealed in "Two Broken Fingers"), so not necessarily at the time of creation of Wendimoor.

The Boy, once restored, knew who Dirk was, so must have had some awareness of events occurring around him while he was indisposed. It seems that the Boy had some similar connection to Wendimoor even after its creation. While he may not have been able to have much influence there, there is definitely evidence that there were continuing connections between Wendimoor and our reality even while the boy was out of the picture.

It seems that Wakti was an aspect of or in some way linked to Mona, which is how Mona was also aware of the Prophecy to some extent. That link must have been established post creation, as the Boy did not come into contact with Mona until after the coma. Mona's knowledge of what needed to be done may have come from her holistic actress status, or it may simply be that both Dirk and Mona spent a great deal of time around the Boy while in Blackwing. It seems that the Boy was then able to incorporate them both into his plan to save Wendimoor. So the most likely explanation is that the Boy was able to interact in a limited way with Wendimoor while in the coma, and that he either intentionally or holistically set in motion Mona's link to Wakti, the Prophecy and the rescue plan while in that state.

2
  • I think this must be the answer, thank you.
    – N. Virgo
    Commented Jan 15, 2018 at 0:36
  • If the prophecy is based on The Boy’s connection to reality, how can it foretell certain events that are entirely out of The Boy’s reach? 1) “the great dark wizard found his apprentice” 2) “no one in Wendimoor could defeat him, and his army would come like a tide” 3) “the great weapon is retrieved” 4) “she who sees all opened a door into a dream” — Admittedly, this is much more vague than the name “Dirk Gently”, but it is also not just prophetical boilerplate that can be retrospectively interpreted into everything nor is it all self-fulfilling prophecy.
    – Wrzlprmft
    Commented Feb 4, 2018 at 8:14
2

Or am I wrong, and in fact the prophecy comes from a more recent time, after the boy was taken to Blackwing and made friends with Dirk?

While this is a plausible explanation for the prophecy featuring Dirk, it doesn’t explain how the prophecy can predict:

[…] once the great dark wizard found his apprentice, no one in Wendimoor could defeat him, and his army would come like a tide. The only hope to save Wendimoor is if the fiercest of foes were united, the great weapon is retrieved, and she who sees all opened a door into a dream, allowing through a man, who, with him, would bring a boy, […]

All of this only happens after the prophecy was first mentioned (in the very first scene of Season 2). While some of this can be attributed to educated guessing, prophetical vagueness mixed with confirmation bias, and self-fulfilling prophecy, it is unlikely that the Boy would get it all right by means of deduction or orchestrating the events.

The only thing that the Boy’s connection to Dirk Gently can explain is why the prophecy is so specific regarding his name, but not with respect to everything else. However, the fact that Dirk Gently is constantly referred to as Svlad Cjelli by Project Blackwing suggests that he only took on this name after leaving Blackwing. Thus, the Boy should not have known Dirk Gently under his current name.


Now, on the other hand, the Boy is able to create persons and things with real supernatural powers or properties:

  • The Mage is actually a mage, even when he comes to our world.

  • The airgun can actually be used as a weapon.

  • The pocket dimension at the Cardenas’ house and the flying purple people eater are what they are.

  • Most importantly, Wakti Wapnasi has actual magic powers (somebody says that she and the Mage are the only such persons in Wendimoor). During the events of Season 2, she uses them to connect to our world.

With all of this, it seems plausible that Wakti Wapnasi – who made the prophecy – also has actual prophetic powers.

So the answer to your question is: It is an actual supernatural prophecy.

4
  • +1 because this does actually make sense as an explanation, and oddly enough I hadn't considered it.
    – N. Virgo
    Commented Feb 4, 2018 at 10:01
  • I'm not sure your hypothesis about Dirk's name can make sense though. The TV show often refers back to events in the books, which I think probably only makes sense if those things happened before Dirk's time at Blackwing, and of course he called himself Dirk during those events as well. (Though that said, I'm not sure to what extent the TV show treats the books as canon - one has to suspend one's disbelief about Dirk's age and appearance to make it work, and it might be that the events of TV-Dirk's life are similar to those of book-Dirk's, without being the same.)
    – N. Virgo
    Commented Feb 4, 2018 at 10:05
  • @Nathaniel: to what extent the TV show treats the books as canon – The only reference to some events that may be the ones from the book are when Thor is mentioned and that’s not much more than name dropping. Many of TV-Dirk’s accounts do not match the books at all (having only solved one or two cases; never having had a real assistant, etc.), and those are made in a context where he has no motivation to lie. Thus I think it is safe to say that TV-Dirk and Book-Dirk live in different universes.
    – Wrzlprmft
    Commented Feb 4, 2018 at 10:25
  • The sofa from the first book is mentioned also. I seem to remember there being more references than that, but actually I can't think of any.
    – N. Virgo
    Commented Feb 4, 2018 at 11:29

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.