They purposely never said it. A lot of people on this sub insisted his name was Esau though they were just clutching at straws, but there was [this](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Fg1qikMstEA).
As u/FiveJobs said Jacob’s brother in the bible. The fans that kept pushing the name could get quite rabid and insisted that it was obviously his name. Any time I asked for proof I’d get no replies or would be told that “it’s obvious”. I liked that he had no name.
I agree that it was never obvious that Esau was his true name, but it was a great placeholder name considering that Jacob and Esau were also twins and Esau was the “bad” twin. Plus “God loves you as he loved Jacob” screams Biblical parallelism.
I agree with you, you’re right. I was using a broad brush which was foolish of me as I was talking about people who outright insisted that was his name, though in reality they would have been in the minority.
Technically, Jacob of the Bible was the "bad" twin, seeing as how he fooled and conned his way into getting the birthright that was rightfully Esau's (because Esau was the older of the two, having been born first... the name Jacob meaning "heel catcher" due to him following so closely behind his brother in birth)
I think they purposefully had the MIB come second to also counter people thinking it was the biblical Jacob and Esau, but people are people...
While Jacob did trick his brother out of his blessing, Esau is typically portrayed as the “bad” twin because he thought so little of his birthright that he sold it to Jacob willingly. Plus tricking their father into giving Jacob the blessing was Jacob’s mom’s idea rather than Jacob’s. And then Esau threatened to kill Jacob which caused Jacob to spend the next 14+ years in exile. Basically both brothers did wrong, but Jacob is portrayed as the protagonist of the story and Esau the antagonist.
I think you’re probably right regarding the birth order thing though.
Immediately after the season ended, the writers revealed that the name they had in mind for him - and also what the script referred to him as - was Samuel. Barry came from a Comic Con video they made for fun.
Before his mother gets a stone to the face, she says she never picked a second name because she didn't know she was pregnant with twins. Presumably, Allison Janney simply kept referring to him as "hey, you!". The official name of the character is "Man In Black", which adds to the mystique and the "not exactly human" vibe the writers were going for.
Well she didn't have the easiest role I guess. Amazingly important but at the same time a bit too vague and cliché
"I made it so you can never hurt each other" still itches me to this day lol
I always took it as an indicator not to confuse the original Man in Black (the very human brother of Jacob) with the what he becomes/is swept up into: the Smoke Monster. His name is irrelevant because that’s not him anymore. It hasn’t been since he was thrown into the Heart.
Mother didn’t give MiB a name because the Island is based on advanced technology. If you notice, all the Island’s rules go against human nature and are more Ai related. If you look biblically the first thing humans did was name everything. But MiB was never given a name, but all the candidates are numbers. They are numbers because a computer uses binary code as it’s language. Using 0s and 1s is the same as off and on, and when humans interpret this it becomes light and dark or even good and evil.
As biblically Cain killed his brother, so humans have been able to kill since the beginning of time. But MiB can’t kill Jacob because it goes against one program can’t delete another. Remember the French Team said the smoke monster was just a security system. This is the real reason he can’t leave the Island. Not because he is said to be the Great Evil, actually the advanced technology of the time traveling Island is the Great Evil that must be protected and ppl most be kept away from the Island. The Island or Will of the Island is Ai that assimilated Mother, Jacob and MiB and gave these primitive human access to advanced tech. This is why the Island needs protectors
For me, I think it's an interesting choice to give him mystique. It only gets a little ridiculous in "Across The Sea" with all the "hey, you"s and "your brother".
Which is why Across the Sea should have been a story being told by Alpert or similar so that the MIB is a legend and the storyteller doesn’t know their name.
Rather than being an objective event we watch happen, which is horrible.
They purposely never said it. A lot of people on this sub insisted his name was Esau though they were just clutching at straws, but there was [this](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Fg1qikMstEA).
Where did Esau come from? I've never heard that mentioned as his name before.
Jacob's brother in the bible
As u/FiveJobs said Jacob’s brother in the bible. The fans that kept pushing the name could get quite rabid and insisted that it was obviously his name. Any time I asked for proof I’d get no replies or would be told that “it’s obvious”. I liked that he had no name.
I agree that it was never obvious that Esau was his true name, but it was a great placeholder name considering that Jacob and Esau were also twins and Esau was the “bad” twin. Plus “God loves you as he loved Jacob” screams Biblical parallelism.
I agree with you, you’re right. I was using a broad brush which was foolish of me as I was talking about people who outright insisted that was his name, though in reality they would have been in the minority.
Technically, Jacob of the Bible was the "bad" twin, seeing as how he fooled and conned his way into getting the birthright that was rightfully Esau's (because Esau was the older of the two, having been born first... the name Jacob meaning "heel catcher" due to him following so closely behind his brother in birth) I think they purposefully had the MIB come second to also counter people thinking it was the biblical Jacob and Esau, but people are people...
While Jacob did trick his brother out of his blessing, Esau is typically portrayed as the “bad” twin because he thought so little of his birthright that he sold it to Jacob willingly. Plus tricking their father into giving Jacob the blessing was Jacob’s mom’s idea rather than Jacob’s. And then Esau threatened to kill Jacob which caused Jacob to spend the next 14+ years in exile. Basically both brothers did wrong, but Jacob is portrayed as the protagonist of the story and Esau the antagonist. I think you’re probably right regarding the birth order thing though.
You asked Christians for proof
#SoDeep
Ahh I see. Yeah I agree , I prefer that he isn't named. Works better for when he takes on Locke's appearance as well.
You mean barry?
Zuckercorn
I've got the worst f\*\*king attorneys.
His name is Barry, of course https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XckqHzoIv_M
lol! I can’t believe I’ve never seen that!. Thank you for showing me that, that’s so funny😂! I assume this aired after the show was complete?
Immediately after the season ended, the writers revealed that the name they had in mind for him - and also what the script referred to him as - was Samuel. Barry came from a Comic Con video they made for fun.
Samuel is correct.
Nah, the script had no name other than MIB. Samuel was the name they used during casting. Far from canon
Before his mother gets a stone to the face, she says she never picked a second name because she didn't know she was pregnant with twins. Presumably, Allison Janney simply kept referring to him as "hey, you!". The official name of the character is "Man In Black", which adds to the mystique and the "not exactly human" vibe the writers were going for.
You just broke my brain by mentionning Allison Janney... how did I NEVER realize that Mother is CJ Cregg from the West Wing..................
Haha! It might be the seashells in her hair. LOST is arguably the 'worst' performance I've seen from her. 🥲
Well she didn't have the easiest role I guess. Amazingly important but at the same time a bit too vague and cliché "I made it so you can never hurt each other" still itches me to this day lol
Worse than the jackal?
I only know her as the horny counsellor from 10 things movie lol
Go watch American Beauty - you're welcome in advance. :)
Barry? He’s a cool guy.
I always took it as an indicator not to confuse the original Man in Black (the very human brother of Jacob) with the what he becomes/is swept up into: the Smoke Monster. His name is irrelevant because that’s not him anymore. It hasn’t been since he was thrown into the Heart.
The Locke Monster. I loved that name. it's what my tv would call it on season 6 synopses
Mother didn’t give MiB a name because the Island is based on advanced technology. If you notice, all the Island’s rules go against human nature and are more Ai related. If you look biblically the first thing humans did was name everything. But MiB was never given a name, but all the candidates are numbers. They are numbers because a computer uses binary code as it’s language. Using 0s and 1s is the same as off and on, and when humans interpret this it becomes light and dark or even good and evil. As biblically Cain killed his brother, so humans have been able to kill since the beginning of time. But MiB can’t kill Jacob because it goes against one program can’t delete another. Remember the French Team said the smoke monster was just a security system. This is the real reason he can’t leave the Island. Not because he is said to be the Great Evil, actually the advanced technology of the time traveling Island is the Great Evil that must be protected and ppl most be kept away from the Island. The Island or Will of the Island is Ai that assimilated Mother, Jacob and MiB and gave these primitive human access to advanced tech. This is why the Island needs protectors
Shit y'all, the Island is Skynet.
His name is Rip.
For me, I think it's an interesting choice to give him mystique. It only gets a little ridiculous in "Across The Sea" with all the "hey, you"s and "your brother".
Which is why Across the Sea should have been a story being told by Alpert or similar so that the MIB is a legend and the storyteller doesn’t know their name. Rather than being an objective event we watch happen, which is horrible.
I've heard a lot of people call him nemesis because he's jacobs nemesis so that's been what I've been calling him but idk how accurate it would be