The 2023 show Bodies has a convoluted family tree with Elias Mannix playing a central role. This family tree results from a Causal Loop, a paradox. Without time travel, such a family tree is obviously impossible. So here is the Elias / Harker family tree explained; spoilers ahead.
If you’re looking for a detailed analysis of the show, go here – Bodies Timelines And Ending Explained.
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Bodies: Elias / Harker Family Tree Diagram
The Impossible Elias / Harker Family Explained
From the above diagram, it is clear that Elias is his own great-grandfather. How? For that, we need to understand two paradoxes – the Predestination Paradox and the Bootstrap Paradox.
The Predestination Paradox is caused by a person travelling through time. Normally, in a cause-effect situation, the cause is in the past, and its effect is in the future. Time travel can flip that. The cause can be in the future affecting an event in the past. This is also referred to as the Causal Loop.
In Bodies, the history of Harker businesses over decades is the result of Elias Mannix knowing that he will one day need to go back in time and start the Harker business. When the time comes, he uses the Throat to jump back in time, assume the identity of Julian Harker and start the Harker family business. The future predestines the past.
The Bootstrap Paradox is a scenario within a Causal Loop where a person or a thing comes into existence miraculously out of nowhere.
In Bodies, Elias Mannix goes back in time to create a family which eventually results in his own birth.
If you remove time travel from the equation, neither will the Harper business exist nor will Elias (Julian Harker). This is a paradox, an impossible situation created by time travel.
Bodies: Harker Family Members
In 1889, a mysterious man from the future assumes the identity of a dead man by the name of Julian Harker.
Julian woos and marries Polly, the daughter of a cop (Alfred Hillinghead).
Polly gives birth to a baby boy whom they name Hayden.
Hayden grows old to become the police chief and is the grandfather of Jack Barber. Jack takes on the surname of his mother, a character undisclosed in the show Bodies.
Jack Barber has a relationship with a woman called Sarah Mannix. When she gets pregnant, Jack disappears from her life. Sarah gives birth to Elias Mannix who she signs off to foster care.
Elias is a troubled individual who is adopted by Andrew Morley and Elaine Morley. After triggering the atomic bomb, Elias goes on to become Commander Mannix.
In 2053, Commander Mannix travels back in time and arrives in 1889 as the mysterious man from the future and assumes the identity of a dead man by the name of Julian Harker, and completing the Causal Loop.
Triggering the bomb is the event that leads to a future where Elias Mannix gains enough power to find and use a time machine, called the Throat, to go back in time to start the chain reaction that creates the Harker family and eventually Elias. Stopping Elias from triggering the bomb will not only save the 200,000 people who died but also erase Elias and the Harker family. This will also erase the creation of the bomb.
Who All Are Erased In The Harker Family Tree?
When Elias doesn’t detonate the bomb, he is erased from existence. But let’s take a look at why:
Because Elias doesn’t trigger the bomb, a new regime led by him never comes into power.
Elias never becomes Commander Mannix and hence doesn’t go back in time and impersonate Julian Harker.
Polly doesn’t marry Julian, so Hayden Harker is never born.
Without Hayden, Jack Barber is never born.
And finally, without Jack, Elias is never born.
And there you have it, the full family tree of Elias Mannix a.k.a Julian Harker. What were your thoughts on the show, leave your comments below.
Barry is a technologist who helps start-ups build successful products. His love for movies and production has led him to write his well-received film explanation and analysis articles to help everyone appreciate the films better. He’s regularly available for a chat conversation on his website and consults on storyboarding from time to time.
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