Quantum Leap questions

[Captain Kathryn]

I haven't really watched this show since the '90s, but just started to put it on once in a while for a distraction since it's on Netflix. But either I missed something or they don't explain much?

-Where do the real people go to when Sam leaps into them?
-Do they know what Sam did?
-Does Sam ever get to be himself again? (haven't seen the ending of the show or any episodes where he goes "home")

Just wondering if anyone knows. I tried googling without much luck, especially for the first question about where to the real people go to while Sam is in their form.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

When Sam leaps in to somebody's life, that person is transported to Sam's home time, and ends up in a place called the "Waiting Room". They stay there until Sam leaps somewhere else, whereupon the 'leapee' returns to his or her life with usually no memory of what happened.

and Sam did leap home once. This is because Al had temporarily started a leap of his own. When that happened, Sam was back in his own life. Sam eventually leaped again so Al could return home.

 

[Captain Kathryn]

Ah ok. I see.

So Sam is expected to live out the rest of his life doing this or is it ever over at some point and he can return home? Just wondering.

 

[Christopher]

But either I missed something or they don't explain much?

They don't explain much.

-Where do the real people go to when Sam leaps into them?

Into his body in the "waiting room" in the future, where they're briefed by Al. We did see this a few times in the show. I think there was one where he leaped into a murderer who escaped from the lab in the future and had to be recaptured. Or was that one of the novels or comics?

-Do they know what Sam did?

I don't think that was ever made clear. What was to stop them from going back to the same bad behavior that Sam corrected? Why didn't they all end up institutionalized for talking about going to the future and being in someone else's body?

-Does Sam ever get to be himself again? (haven't seen the ending of the show or any episodes where he goes "home")

I think there was one episode where he leaped into his teenage self, and one where he did end up back home briefly. As for the series finale, I don't want to spoil it if you haven't seen it.

 

[Captain Kathryn]

Now they just mentioned the Waiting Room in the episode I'm watching. I posted this too soon. haha

Ok, I'll wait for the series finale to see about if he returns home or not. I guess I don't want to be spoiled.

 

[Marc]

But either I missed something or they don't explain much?

They don't explain much.

-Where do the real people go to when Sam leaps into them?

Into his body in the "waiting room" in the future, where they're briefed by Al. We did see this a few times in the show. I think there was one where he leaped into a murderer who escaped from the lab in the future and had to be recaptured. Or was that one of the novels or comics?

Nope it was an episode - Killing Time iirc from the 5th season and pretty much the only time we saw "the future" outside of The Project.

-Do they know what Sam did?

I don't think that was ever made clear. What was to stop them from going back to the same bad behavior that Sam corrected? Why didn't they all end up institutionalized for talking about going to the future and being in someone else's body?

-Does Sam ever get to be himself again? (haven't seen the ending of the show or any episodes where he goes "home")

I think there was one episode where he leaped into his teenage self, and one where he did end up back home briefly. As for the series finale, I don't want to spoil it if you haven't seen it.[/QUOTE]

The Leap Home was the 2 parter that started with Sam leaping into himself as a teenager with the second part involved his brother in Vietnam and the price that was paid for a change in history which changed a very sombre moment from one for the early episodes.

The Leap Back saw Sam as the observer and Al as the leaper. Also follows on from The Leap Home.

There was also a Leap For Lisa where Sam leaps in a young Albert Calavicci.

 

[Christopher]

There was also a Leap For Lisa where Sam leaps in a young Albert Calavicci.

And the Lisa in question was played by Terry Farrell before she was Dax on Deep Space Nine.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Where do the real people go to when Sam leaps into them?

Into his body in the "waiting room" in the future, where they're briefed by Al. We did see this a few times in the show. I think there was one where he leaped into a murderer who escaped from the lab in the future and had to be recaptured. Or was that one of the novels or comics?

It was an episode, called "Killin' Time".

And Sam's mind and body leap together. Sam doesn't leap into other people's bodies. This is pretty much confirmed on the show. For example:

- Sam leaps in as a blind concert pianist, yet he can still see

- When he's the pregnant woman, he insists that it's impossible and that he can't be pregnant. Al says something like "That's right, it's your body, not hers".

- The clearest proof is the one where Sam is the legless Vietnam veteran. But Sam can still get up and walk around - we actually see him do it. (It appears that he's floating in midair.)

I don't think that was ever made clear. What was to stop them from going back to the same bad behavior that Sam corrected? Why didn't they all end up institutionalized for talking about going to the future

Like I said, when a 'leapee' returns to their life (after Sam leaps out), they don't remember what happened. For example, there's one where Sam leaps in as the Mafia hitman. We see Sam leap out of that person and into the don. But the hitman doesn't remember being in the waiting room or anything like that.

So Sam is expected to live out the rest of his life doing this or is it ever over at some point and he can return home? Just wondering.

MAJOR SPOILER for the final episode:

Spoiler: finale

We learn that Sam never returned home. We don't know why, exactly, but I guess it's just because Sam wants to keep doing the work he's doing. In that final episode, we actually see Sam leap somewhere that he specifically wants to go to - where he tells Al's wife Beth that Al is alive but is a prisoner of war in Nam. And we also learn that Sam can go home any time he wants, but he somehow chooses not to.

 

[Christopher]

And Sam's mind and body leap together. Sam doesn't leap into other people's bodies. This is pretty much confirmed on the show.

And yet their clothes always fit him somehow. It was a contradiction the show never explained.

The Ashley McConnell novels went with the interpretation that it was his mind leaping into their bodies, which always made more sense to me. Frankly, the show was a total mess conceptually. Good drama, but intensely awful science and logic.

Like I said, when a 'leapee' returns to their life (after Sam leaps out), they don't remember what happened. For example, there's one where Sam leaps in as the Mafia hitman. We see Sam leap out of that person and into the don. But the hitman doesn't remember being in the waiting room or anything like that.

Then how do Sam's actions have any lasting impact on their lives if they just go back to behaving the way they did before? And don't they wonder why they don't remember anything from the previous few days?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

And Sam's mind and body leap together. Sam doesn't leap into other people's bodies. This is pretty much confirmed on the show.

And yet their clothes always fit him somehow. It was a contradiction the show never explained.

Dramatic license, most likely.

Then how do Sam's actions have any lasting impact on their lives if they just go back to behaving the way they did before? And don't they wonder why they don't remember anything from the previous few days?

It's probably a subconscious thing. That, and the fact that Sam's actions affect other people as well. Even if the 'leapee' might not act any different, others around him/her will.

 

[Pavonis]

Then how do Sam's actions have any lasting impact on their lives if they just go back to behaving the way they did before? And don't they wonder why they don't remember anything from the previous few days?

Sam's not there to change people's behavior, he's there to change events - i.e., prevent a premature birth, hit a home run, heal his future wife's relationship with her estranged father, win money in a boxing match to support the construction of a church, save people from death, etc. If anything, Sam is supposed to act like the person he leaped into, rather than try to change their future behavior.

As for claiming they were in the future, first they'd have to remember it, and if they did, they'd next have to believe it really happened themselves. If they figured it was a dream, or a false memory, perhaps they'd ignore. Or perhaps the swiss cheese effect that Sam suffers from is a result of some memories being transferred to he leapee, leaving them with some memory of what went on while Sam was there (along with some memories of Sam's). Who knows? QL is definitely not hard sci fi.

 

[Marc]

The Ashley McConnell novels went with the interpretation that it was his mind leaping into their bodies, which always made more sense to me. Frankly, the show was a total mess conceptually. Good drama, but intensely awful science and logic.

At the time she started writing them, the show hadn't decided/indicated whether it was Sam's mind or his entire body lept and she noted in one of them (Prelude iirc) that she went with the former.

Looks like it wasn't until late in the 2nd season they clarified
"Theorizing that one could time travel within his own lifetime, Doctor Sam Beckett led an elite group of scientists into the desert to develop a top secret project, known as "Quantum Leap". Pressured to prove his theories or lose funding, Doctor Beckett prematurely stepped into the Project Accelerator and vanished"

 

[Christopher]

Sam's not there to change people's behavior, he's there to change events - i.e., prevent a premature birth, hit a home run, heal his future wife's relationship with her estranged father, win money in a boxing match to support the construction of a church, save people from death, etc. If anything, Sam is supposed to act like the person he leaped into, rather than try to change their future behavior.

Theoretically, maybe, but sometimes it's more complicated than that. Like, in one episode his mission was to get the leapee back together with his ex-wife. What happens when the guy returns to his body and finds that he's somehow back together with his ex-wife and has no idea how it happened?

Or perhaps the swiss cheese effect that Sam suffers from is a result of some memories being transferred to he leapee, leaving them with some memory of what went on while Sam was there (along with some memories of Sam's).

That's almost plausible, but it's a tenuous fix for a problematical concept.

QL is definitely not hard sci fi.

Definitely not. But even a pure fantasy should establish a clear and consistent set of rules for how its world works, and QL never did that.

 

[Metryq]

HIGHWAY TO HEAVEN with technobabble.

 

[dansigal]

Theoretically, maybe, but sometimes it's more complicated than that. Like, in one episode his mission was to get the leapee back together with his ex-wife. What happens when the guy returns to his body and finds that he's somehow back together with his ex-wife and has no idea how it happened?

I tried never to think about this too much, because there's clearly no way it ever makes sense. I just assumed that for whatever or however reason, the person Sam leaps into has no memory of the future and remembers the events of what happened when Sam was him as if they experienced it themselves. Not a perfect theory, but it does the job.

 

[MacLeod]

and Sam did leap home once. This is because Al had temporarily started a leap of his own. When that happened, Sam was back in his own life. Sam eventually leaped again so Al could return home.

Well that's not entirely accurate, Al's leap was accidentel. It started in the S3 finale "Shock Theatre"

 

[Tosk]

Just enjoy the show and don't sweat the science.

 

[EnderAKH]

So, "just repeat to yourself it's just a show and I should really just relax?"

 

[Captain Kathryn]

Just enjoy the show and don't sweat the science.

Oh that is pretty much what I am doing. Some stuff is cleared up now for me, but yeah it seems like they don't explain a lot of things in scientific detail which is fine. It doesn't pretend to be hard sci-fi. Thanks!

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

The simplest way to deal with any problems that may arise with this show? Just repeat:

"Oh, boy."