Cal Is Doctor Manhattan
This theory is bold, but one that has been posited by several Reddit users. Through six episodes, Doctor Manhattan has made only brief appearances either in dialogue, on TV screens, twisted theatrical productions, and via one, uh, big blue dildo. But Doctor Manhattan is set to appear in full at some point—we know as much from one of the season’s
trailers.
Cal, Angela’s stay-at-home husband, has also been one of the series’ most mysterious characters. We know that he and Angela met in Saigon, Vietnam, and that something happened to him there that Angela didn’t want him talking about to Agent Blake, but we know little of his background beyond that.
As ksendor
outlines, there are a few stand-out instances that suggest that Cal could be the blue god himself: He’s quick to affirm that Doctor Manhattan can’t pretend to be human in a conversation with Angela; Laurie has taken a liking to Cal and mentions him to Angela on several occasions; the camera holds a shot on Cal’s surprised face when he sees Laurie at Chief Crawford’s funeral; and at the end of the graphic novel, Doctor Manhattan suggests he has a renewed interest in humanity.
It’s true that, at least in the comics, Doctor Manhattan can’t pretend to be human. But the mere fact the show would explicitly say as much certainly leaves open the possibility that they’re misdirecting—just as they did with the false narrative in the show-within-the-show,
American Hero Story, Cal’s line could’ve simply been a tactic to misdirect the audience. Even more, Doctor Manhattan is, again, pretty much a god—it’s been 30 years since we’ve last seen what the good doctor is capable of, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see that he’s figured out how to disguise himself as a human. On the other hand, Laurie’s interest in Cal could simply be related to the fact that, as she’s suggested herself, Cal’s hot.
In the comic, Doctor Manhattan did tell Adrian Veidt that he’d regained interest in humanity, but he also said, “I’m leaving this galaxy for one less complicated.” To that, Adrian responded, “But you’d regained interest in human life,” and Manhattan replied: “Yes, I have. I think perhaps I’ll create some.”
I like this theory, but my guess is that Doctor Manhattan will tie into the show as the god that created all the servants that Adrian has been hanging out with on the Jupiter moon
Europa (or wherever the hell the other side of that portal leads to), rather than unveiling himself to secretly be Angela’s husband. There’s a lot left to be learned about Cal (and from the looks of this
next episode’s teaser, it seems we’ll soon learn some answers about what happened in Vietnam), and it’s still unclear what exactly happened to him on the White Night, but it might be too much of a thermodynamic miracle for Doctor Manhattan to be living among the humans as Mr. Abar.