[Warning: Spoilers for season 1 of Netflix’s The Society, ahead.]
If you’ve already binge-watched Netflix’s new show The Society, you’ve probably got *a LOT* of questions. Don’t worry—we do too. Some things are certain about this new gem of a sci-fi teen dramedy: Grizz (Jack Mulhern) and his ponytail are bae, Campbell (Toby Wallace) is the absolute worst, and that dog is cute AF. But some things aren’t so certain. Where exactly are the kids of New Ham? Do we really know who killed Cassandra (Rachel Keller)?? How bad was the smell, really??? Again, WE NEED ANSWERS. And fans are looking to give them to us. We’ve gathered the best fan theories surrounding this new show, which hopefully will hold you over until season 2.
They are basically recreating the Pied Piper of Hamelin.
.
The most common fan theory revolves around the similarities between The Society and the Pide Piper of Hamelin fairy tale. The OG story is basically about a piper who is hired by the city of Hamelin to remove their excessive rats (@NYC, let’s get on this as well). After he does so, the town refuses to pay him. So the piper then lures the children out of their homes the same way he did the rats. Crazy, right?
Well, the producers at Netflix must’ve thought so too, because the similarities are obvious. In The Society, the town is actually called West Ham…*ahem*, like Hamelin. And the man who they refused to pay for the town’s mysterious smell—who was then seen driving the kids away to No Man’s Land—is named Pfeiffer, which, of course, is German for the word “piper.” We’re on to you, Pfeiffer.
Netflix
The kids are trapped in a strange afterlife.
Some fans seem to think the kids died on that mysterious bus trip led by Pfeiffer and have ended up in a weird limbo (so to speak) that looks exactly like their former homes on Earth. Also, when the show flashes to the families in the Real World, the parents are seen mourning their children and wearing yellow ribbons, which are commonly worn by families in support of missing troops during war.
It’s all a giant government experiment.
Isn’t it always? With the kids seeming very much alive, it would be a bit of a cop-out if they were really dead. That means someone (or something) is behind all of this. And maybe it’s not just Pfeiffer. With the metaphors of government, tyranny, societal leadership, etc., fans are wondering if this is a giant government experiment to watch a new society emerge and discover the best ways in which young people try to restore order, carry out punishments, enforce rules, and more.
But this theory may be *too* predictable. Also, would they really let my girl Cassandra die like that?
Netflix
They really are stuck in an alternate dimension.
The kids end up using the stars to discover that they’re in a different location in the universe than their hometown (which is honestly impressive AF). They use this info to come to the conclusion that they’re probs in an alternate dimension, somewhere that looks exactly like home but definitely is *not*. Oh, and Alex Fitzalan, the guy who plays Harry, told ET that this is his prediction as well.
Now, what about The Dog that we want to both question and pet extensively??
Netflix
The dog discovered the portal that can transport the kids back home.
We see a dog in the beginning of the season in New Ham, and what appears to be the same dog is also seen at the end of season 1 in West Ham. Obviously, two dogs of the same breed do exist, but fans think it’s more likely that this smart little doggo found his way back and forth between the universes and could be the answer to the kids’ seemingly impossible journey home. What a good boy.
Cassandra isn’t *really* dead.
We refuse to take characters’ deaths that seriously after being tricked one too many times by PLL. Also, the same dog we thought Campbell killed is seen at the end of the season, alive and well (refer to above). So, Cassandra’s death in their current dimension doesn’t necessarily mean she’s also dead in the old one. In this essay I will….
Netflix
Even if she is dead, Dewey (Seth Meriwether) didn’t kill Cassandra.
Some fans think, *GASP*, Allie’s mom did it. Dewey confessed to Cassandra’s murder, but we never really see who shot her. It could’ve been anybody (including Harry, if you don’t want to dive into extra-wild theory land).
Here’s the thing. Allie and Cassandra’s mom is seen alive in episode 10 reading to kids at the school library in West Ham. Cassandra’s mom is also the owner of The Dog, who shows up right before she’s shot. Viewers have noted that not only can you hear the sound of high heels right before the murder, but Cassandra also looks extremely shocked by whomever it is holding the gun. We need season 2 ASAP.
