Monday, August 26, 2013

Cult-TV Theme Watch: Equations



An equation is a statement in which the values of two expressions are equal.  Equations typically employ mathematical symbols, and can vary from incredibly simple to incredibly complex.

In cult television history, equations have popped up again-and-again on-screen, usually scrawled on a blackboard, in chalk to suggest a theory in progress…about to be solved.  They are often written by someone who is mentally unhinged, or so consumed/obsessed with the problem that all other aspects of life have fallen by the wayside.


One of the most prominent examples of equations appearing in cult-television history comes from Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987 – 1994) and the second season episode, “The Royale.”  

Here, in the teaser, Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) discusses the famous “last theorem” of Pierre De Fermat, and notes that it is a riddle (or equation…) with no answer.  The remainder of the episode is about Riker, Data and Worf trying to solve another puzzle featuring no answer, only this one involves an alien planet with an ammonia atmosphere...and a recreation of a 20th century hotel.  In other words, Fermat’s Last Theorem (which I believe has been solved at this point…) is the thematic basis for the entire segment.


In cases like Space:1999’s (1975 – 1977) “The Black Sun” or the pilot for Sliders (1995 – 2000) the hastily-scrawled equation is simply physical evidence of a genius’s dedicated attempt to solve a problem, to break through a barrier that has never been breached. In Professor Victor Bergman’s (Barry Morse) case, the problem involves understanding the nature of a “black sun” (or black hole).  In Sliders, the problem faced by Quinn Mallory (Jerry O’Connell) is solving a riddle involved with a wormhole.  In the latter case, a duplicate of Quinn (from another quantum reality) actually completes the vexing equation.


As I noted above, sometimes cult-TV equations represent mysteries or tests, or are meant to signify some as-yet-unknown knowledge. In the first episode of Galactica: 1980, for example, the alien Galacticans made peaceful contact with an Earth scientist (Robert Reed) by solving an equation that he had never been able to crack.  This proved to him that they were his friends, or at least they spoke in his language; the language of math.

In Alias (2001 – 2005), one similar mystery involved the genius known as Rambaldi, who created byzantine technology (and solved complex equations…) five hundred years before his time.  

Gazing at cult-television equations, I know only one thing for certainly:  I’m more likely able to understand the ones featured on The Simpsons than those appearing on Lost (2004 – 2011).  Alas, I never was very good at math…

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