Copied over all speculation from I Know You, which was redundant, and added a link from that article here. Marked for clean-up as there is a lot of repetition and some better formatting is needed.
← Older revision
Revision as of 15:55, January 26, 2013
Line 1:
Line 1:
+
{{Cleanup}}
+
{{Spoiler}}
{{Spoiler}}
Line 33:
Line 35:
*He could be a reference to the Men in black legends, according to which strange men in black suits would appear to random people when something paranormal occurs, and these men would know everything about the people they encounter.
*He could be a reference to the Men in black legends, according to which strange men in black suits would appear to random people when something paranormal occurs, and these men would know everything about the people they encounter.
*In the late 19th century, it was rumored that Satan roamed the earth in the form of a human wearing a black suit, black top hat and had a black moustache.
*In the late 19th century, it was rumored that Satan roamed the earth in the form of a human wearing a black suit, black top hat and had a black moustache.
+
* The Strange Man may be Satan. When he says "I hope my boy turns out to be just like you" he may be referring to his nephew (also named Satan) in Mark Twain's unfinished novel 'The Mysterious Stranger'.
+
* It is possible the Strange Man is simply another Aztec deity. In Undead Nightmare, John meets an Aztec goddess. This strange man could embody any of the over 100 deities the Aztecs worshipped, making it very hard to determine which one it is. The Strange Man references his son, so it is a deity with a son. He is also a man so the deity is a god. While this makes it easier to determine who the Strange Man, it is still nearly impossible to separate him from all the gods that have a son. So most likely, the Strange Man is just another bizarre encounter by Marston.
+
* There are many theories regarding who or what the Strange Man represents. The evidence most heavily suggests God/ a god, Satan or Death (aka the Grim Reaper), as bullets do not harm him, his tasks for John are basic morality tests, and he seems to know everything about John, stating "this is a fine spot" while standing on what will be the exact location of John's grave. This supports that he is Marston's Guardian Angel, as he would like to choose the best location for Marston's body after his inevitable death.
+
* It has also been suggested that the Strange Man is John Marston's Guardian Angel.
+
* One of the reasons to suggest he is "God" apart from him knowing everything about John is when he says he's sort of an accountant (which makes sense if you think of "people" instead of "money").
+
* Another reason is that during the second encounter in Mexico, a mule can be seen in the background, which is one of many symbols referring to Jesus.
+
*Another theory suggest the man could be John Marston's father, or a close relative. If the player goes to [[Beecher's Hope]] and look at the pictures on the wall in the house, s/he will see a picture of a man in a black suit. This is not actually the strange man, due to different facial features, however it could be a picture of the strange man in the past.
+
*This might be totally random, but if you draw lines between the three spots where the Strange Man was met on the map, it will create an equilateral triangle, or in this case, the Holy Trinity; the symbol of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, or the all seeing eye referring to the illuminati. Yet another evidence suggesting the Strange Man is God. This is also a very weak clue, but when adding together the Strange Man saying he is a sort of accountant and other mysterious quotes (God), he speaks about his son and there is a donkey at the second encounter (Jesus) and the fact that he is invincible during the last encounter (Spirit).
+
*The Man states "I hope my son turns out like you". In the sense the man is God, then this would refer to Jesus.
+
*Another reason that the strange man may be God is that John Marston at the very beginning says "Do I know you?" and the strange man responds: "I hope so".
+
*The man states "I'm an accountant...of sorts", which could mean that he is the Grim Reaper. Also, bullets don't affect him, as Death cannot die.
+
*The Strange Man might be purgatory. His personality and the way he dresses is like he is God or the devil. John curses and kills, but is natually kind (if the player plays him that way).
+
*The final encounter with the Strange Man occurs where John Marston is eventually buried. The Strange Man says it is a beautiful spot showing foreknowledge of John's death which lends credence to the views of him being Death or God.
+
*Another reason the strange man could be God is that if you chose to donate money to the nun, when John is talking to her, he says "Ain't it the lord's responsibility to look over his flock, not mine?" and the nun replies, "Yes, but the lord has brought you to me so you could help me."
+
*The Strange Man could be a repressed memory from Marston's past that allows him to "soul search", as all of the tasks are related to a question of morality, or Marston's redemption from his previous life.
+
*After the Strange man angers John by refusing to tell his identity, John says he would "not be responsible for his actions" if the Strange man did not tell him who he was. Directly after, the Strange man tells John, "Oh, but you will. You will." This could be interpreted as an allusion to the belief that after one's death, a person is "held responsible" for his actions in the form of judgement, and another reason to believe that the man is God, Death, or some supernatural figure.
+
*The Strange Man may just be a "Spirit" of a lost one (ex: Father/Mother) that crossed over to try to help John with his moral problems. For example, the first task he gives him is to talk a man out of cheating on his wife, maintaining the other man's morals of marriage and sacred bondage (which may also be a reason for being God). The second task of either helping or robbing the nun is also on moral grounds (If the Strange Man was to be God, then this would give the second task more sense because he is trying to see if John will help him and support his followers or not). The last task/meeting is a big reason that the Strange Man is a spirit of a lost loved one or God. The quote "This is a fine spot" may either refer to John's ranch where he looks to build a new life with his family or John's future grave spot (reason for Strange Man being Death/Grim Reaper or another entity for knowing the spot where John dies in advance).
+
*Most of the clues seem to indicate that the Strange Man is the Grim Reaper; dressed in black, accountant of souls, intimate knowledge of John's life, waiting for John to show his true colors after facing a few moral dilemmas, and impervious to bullets. However, several intriguing clues point toward the Strange Man as being John's lost father whom he never met. The redemption theme could be behind the tasks set forth for his son John, to help redeem his father's lost soul; leaving/cheating on John's mother and living a life of sin. If John's father died several years prior, this could also explain the apparent similarity in age between the two men. However, John's father is mentioned as being Scottish several times during the game, so the Strange Man being his father would appear very unlikely.
+
*The man could simply be a representation of John's morality, as he is not affected by bullets and knows John's name.
+
*Some evidence supporting the theory that the Strange Man could be God, is that John fires three bullets at the Strange Man. This could possibly mean that each bullet shot would result in the death of himself, or one of his family members/loved ones (seeing as shortly after, Uncle, John then Abigail died.)
+
*After the Strange Man angers John during the third encounter, John exclaims "Damn you!" and the Strange Man replies with "Yes, many have." This could refer to the commonly used saying "Death be damned". This would be direct proof that he is Death or the Grim Reaper.
+
*In the loft of the nearby abandoned farm at the final meeting place, the words "Oh my son, my blessed son" are painted on the ceiling - further supporting either the Strange Man as God or Marston's father theories.
+
*It could also be seen that he is in fact, John himself. As "Do I know you?" "I would hope so" indicating he hopes he would know himself, thus making this all a test to see his own true colors.
+
*The strange man is not necessarily immune to bullets. When John fires off the shots at the man, the camera is aimed on John. It is entirely possible John missed on purpose, and only fired the shots in an effort to intimidate the man into telling him who he was and how he knew him and his past.
+
*The Strange Man could not be God because he says ''You've forgotten far more important people then me''
+
*Supporting the theory that the mysterious stranger is death/god, is that John fires 3 bullets each symbolyzing the death of himself, uncle, and abigail. but he also fired a fourth bullet that got stuck. this bullet was to represent the death of jack, but since it did not leave the gun, jack did not die.
===Personal===
===Personal===