(no subject)

[twincityhacker]

Something that's bothering me for ages: Jack's a fixed point. But is the fixed point an issue with bodily immortality or mental immortality?

Like in The Heart Knows No Reason, tanarian thinks that if you bodyswaped Jack and Ianto, the immortality would follow Jack's body, not his mind.

I take the oppiste view, that Jack in Ianto's body would be the immortal one. Bad Wolf re-wrote the universe saying "Jack Harkness must live" and a person isn't just their body - it's also the thing that got transfered with the bodyswap. ( Mind, I guess? )

So, I'm just soliciting opinions. Jack and Ianto bodyswap. Is Jack-in-Ianto mortal, Ianto-in-Jack mortal, or are they both mortal as it's a mind-body thing that rules a fixed point.

Comments

[kazokuhouou.livejournal.com]

I think the immortality would be Jack in Ianto's body. It's my thought that life comes from the soul, and so the immortality would follow Jack's soul into Ianto's body.

Course, that's the only way I can reconcile Jack with the Face of Boe because no way in hell would Jack mutate into something like that on purpose.

[msp-hacker.livejournal.com]

*nods* Yeah, it doesn't make much sense at all, does it?

[smithy161.livejournal.com]

Actually, I suspect that, even if you allow mind-body switching to be possible, Jack might well be immune/unable to willingly do it. His mind is too much of a mess, and we've seen that he's immune to mind-reading.

But that wasn't what you asked, so... I think since a person is the combination of both mind and body, they would either both be immortal, or neither. Or maybe both experience some dilute effects, like swift regeneration but not actual immortality.

[msp-hacker.livejournal.com]

I've been thinking about this as well, but not in the context of body-swaping. I wonder if it's because of mental shields, or if his mind isn't where it appears to be, or something.

Though his mind being a complete mess is one of Jack's defining charecteristics, isn't it? Even when we first meet him, he has a giant chunk of it missing.

[beccaelizabeth]

depends if Rose wanted Jack for his body or as a whole package. Or, remote possibility, just for his mind. If just for body, body is immortal. If for mind, likewise mind. If as a whole, then they're both immortal.

However most likely Jack couldn't be body swapped because he's a fixed point as defined by Rose, Jack-mind-and-body.

Don't know if he could be possessed or copied though.

Copy would be immortal if it was Jack enough to fool omniscient!Rose.

... this all leads to fun bunnies...

[msp-hacker.livejournal.com]

...I can only imagine the temper-tantrum that the Bad Wolf would throw once she found out that she was fooled. The copy would definitely be dust, though. = )

[hideyuki-tah.livejournal.com]

My initial thought would be that it depends on how the universe defines a person. If who you look like is who you are, it'd be the body, if it's who you are, it'd be the mind. If it's both, and the universe decrees he must live well... two possibilities, both already covered.

1: Both would be immortal.
2: It wouldn't be possible.

Or it's entirely possible that he just re-emerges in his body. Though what that happens to his original host I haven't a clue.

[msp-hacker.livejournal.com]

Option #3? V. interesting.

[hideyuki-tah.livejournal.com]

I try. Though it would be a clearer option if I knew how the mind swapped worked. An attept to just copy over the original brain with the new one would probably be the method resulting in it re-emerging.