The Finley Files: Down the Rabbit Hole with ‘The Leftovers’

A box recently arrived with a dossier, a lighter and a pre-paid phone all from ‘The Leftovers’ with instructions that they were watching….

By Duane Finley — Staff Writer

Like most interesting things these days, this adventure began on Twitter.

It was a late Sunday night and I was swimming in the aftermath of the most recent episode of HBO’s new series The Leftovers. “Guest” was the title of that particular installment and I was blown away by the emotional complexities—both visual and implied—the writers and makers of the show were able to pull off in one hour of television. Up until that point, The Leftovers had been a show with an excellent premise and tremendous promise, but the manner in which the “Guest” episode was executed brought everything crashing together in sensational fashion.

Once I found my footing and got things back on track, I took to my Twitter account to let my followers and friends know how phenomenal I believed the episode to be. While my social media presence is largely based around my career as a sports journalist, I still like to share my opinions and suggestions on everything entertainment with those likeminded individuals who choose to follow. When I sent that particular Tweet into the void of the interwebs, I didn’t give a second thought to it, but when I received a message two days later everything regarding my thoughts on The Leftovers changed.

Like most writers who cover the sport of mixed martial arts, my notification section is typically filled with thoughts on current news or which event people are looking forward to the most. But on this day, I had received a message from the official The Leftovers account. I was first informed they were “watching” then was asked to give them a follow so that a message could be sent to me. Naturally I was curious and therefore decided to heed their request.

First a direct message asking for my email address came. Next, an email asking for my home address. There was nothing additional in the messages they were sending except the information they were requesting and my responses were blank minus the details they asked me for. The moment I gave them my address I found myself what promotional swag they would be sending me and reveled in the idea of being the only one of my friends with a The Leftovers t-shirt.

That said, there was definitely something coming my way, and it was nothing like I expected.

Three days later the doorbell rang and I just happened to be upstairs working in my office. By the time I got downstairs and opened the door, there was no one there, just a box on the doorstep. Having no idea what the package could be, I ripped open the top to find the contents to be a shiny white box with no writing or markings. Later I would notice the words “The Leftovers” etched on the top cover but I wouldn’t discover that until much later.

I took the box into the living room and removed the lid. Inside, there was a brown file folder, a zippo lighter, a sign that read “We are Living Reminders” and an outdated Nokia flip phone. Once I opened the folder I was shocked to find a file put together on my persons, filled with personal information and photographs that included where my tattoos were placed on my body. There was also a note instructing me to plug in and power up the “burner” phone because I was going to be receiving very important messages.

The first thing I noticed about the phone was the smiley face sticker on the front, which is exactly like the one Tom carries as he waits for Holy Wayne to contact him with instructions. Once I accessed the phone, there were two messages welcoming me to “The Watchers” and informing me that I have now joined in on helping “them” understand the world that exists following the sudden departure of two percent of the human population.

Also inside the dossier was a personally addressed note informing me that I would be a crucial part in how things go from here. “The grace period is over,” the note said upon conclusion, and instructed me to prepare for clues and messages I would have to decipher. I immediately contacted The Nerdcore Movement Guru and one of my best friends Damon Martin, who was thrilled to jump into this adventure with me. In addition to this being a brilliant marketing plan from the show, it is a fantastic avenue for mystery lovers to travel as the complex plots have not yet begun to unfold.

Therefore, now that you have read the introduction to how this journey began, I invite you all to follow along as we go deeper into the rabbit hole. There will be spiders that breathe underwater, cryptic coordinates to Cairo and messages from the Quran passed along, and that was just the first three days. Every Friday I will be updating this column with the latest news, clues and adventures, but if you are eager to keep up with every move you can follow me on Twitter @duanefinleymma and Instagram duanefinley where I will be posting every clue as soon as it comes through with the hashtag #theleftovers. If you follow those accounts right now you can catch up with all of the previously posted clues and get familiar with how this thing is going down.

On a final and super-important note, I’m happy to announce this weekly column will not be my only purpose here on TNCM. Starting next week Damon and I will be unveiling “The Nite Owls Podcast” where we will be reviving the lost art of late night radio magic. Follow along, join the movement and kick some ass. This is going to be a great adventure and thanks for taking the journey with me.