Bar

**The Bar** is a former gas station that has been converted into a bar for the residents of the Town by Tom. Tom's rudimentary distillery produces a crude potato vodka known for its poor quality.

## History

### Season One

Frank Pratt passes out drunk in the bar. Tom tries to wake him and after failing, leaves him on the floor. That night, Frank’s wife and daughter are killed by the Creatures.

Several days later, Jade enters the Bar and is amazed by it. Tom explains that he built it because he figured people need it. He asks Jade if he is okay, and he answers no and asks Tom if he is. Tom answers that he is great and pours Jade a glass of moonshine, saying it will help him feel better. Jade asks everyone how they are all just sitting there, and spits out his drink when he first tries it. Tom recalls that Jade was from one of the two cars and that he lost his friend, and tells him it gets easier. Jade replies that they’re all like rats in a maze, sitting content eating cheese. Jade continues to say the immediate problem is figuring out how to get home, but they don’t even know where they are. He likens it to throwing darts blind, and begins throwing darts around and shouting until Tom tells him to sit down and sits with him. Jade declares that he will be the one to figure out how to escape. He explains that he just sold a company for an obscene amount of money based on his algorithm, wistfully adding that he should be out celebrating. Jade then returns to the subject of escaping and says they need to understand their paradox and frame it to solve it. Tom compares there to Schrodinger’s Cat, with the people trapped in Town being the cat, and to the people they have at home they are both alive and dead. Tom then explains that he taught Intro to Philosophy at USC. He admits he knows nothing about computers, but if Jade is so smart, he should figure out how to get his radio to broadcast, glibly remarking that if the cat turns on a radio, people will at least know it’s still alive.

After Eric's suicide, Donna Raines goes to the Bar to drink and grieve. Tom remarks that this is the first time Donna has set foot in the Bar, and Donna tells him that it’s because he is bad at distilling, but she needs to be alone. Kenny then arrives, and asks Tom to leave them alone. The two argue about the radio tower, with Donna believing that if they fail it will take away people's hope. Donna promises to help with the radio tower, but needs the day to grieve.

### Season Two

As Tom dumps rainwater out of the Bar, he is shocked when he sees the Grand Rapids Runner Bus arriving. After being scared off by Donna firing a shotgun into the wheel of the bus, Brian and Kelly take shelter in the Bar, with Kelly remarking that they could be stuck in. As the night goes on, Kelly gets scared by the howls of the Creatures. They then hear knocks on the door and voices begging to be let inside. Brian goes to help them, and the two are attacked by the Creatures.

Jade bursts into the Bar and finds Bakta drinking alone. Jade complains about how he can’t find anywhere to be alone before realizing that she is the bus driver, apologizing before sitting down. Bakta says that Elgin begged her to turn around and she didn’t listen, blaming herself for their predicament. Jade asks if he asked before or after they saw the Fallen Tree. Bakta answers after, and Jade tells her that they were already trapped then, so she shouldn’t blame herself for that. Bakta explains that the passengers got on her bus and it was her job to get them to their destination safely. Jade mocks her for being self-pitying, telling her that is not her fault and she is free to feel bad, but should not carry any extra guilt over things out of her control. Jade then jokes that the people were on a bus, so things could not have been that great for them. Bakta laughs after giving him a look, and reveals that she was not even supposed to be driving that day. She took the job to pay for her degree, and had just paid off her tuition but decided to stay on the job for a few more weeks so she could treat herself with the extra money. She had thought that she deserved a reward, and then asks if this is what she deserves. Jade replies that he had just sold his company, which he had worked for his whole life, before arriving in Town. The two then toast to getting what they deserve.

At night, Jade struggles to sleep and ponders the old picture of the man in the picture with Victor in the background. Jade then has a vision that the man is standing in front of him holding the journal open to a drawing of the symbol, which begins oozing blood, terrifying Jade. When the vision disappears, Jade screams in frustration. The next day, Jade recreates the symbol using glass bottles on the floor. Victor walks in, and remarks that Jade doesn’t look good. Jade brusquely replies that Tom is dead and the Bar is closed. Jade then explains that he is trying to figure out what the symbol means, which Victor refuses to help with even though Jade knows that Victor knows something. Victor promises to share what he can, but Jade has to do something for him. Jade refuses at first, but then asks what he wants. Victor then asks him to play the violin, surprising Jade, who agrees to the deal. Victor then leads Jade outside. That night, Jade throws darts at a drawing of the symbol.

Tabitha approaches Jade while he works on refining the distillery. She asks him why he wasn’t surprised when he found her yelling on the ground in the woods. Jade reveals that Jim found him like that once, but did not explain what happened. Jade tells Tabitha that in his hallucination, he was attacked by an angry Civil War soldier. Jade then tells her that if she wants to learn more, she needs to help him with the still. After they finish fixing the still, Jade begins to explain his visions. The first was the man crushed by a boulder in the armoire in the Root Cellar, then the Civil War soldiers, and then the vision of Christopher. Tabitha asks about Christopher, and Jade gives her the photo of him with the journal, and points out child Victor in the background. Tabitha asks if the visions are different every time, and Jade says yes, except for the symbol which is always present. Tabitha explains that she always sees terrifying children, which mad her think she was losing her mind or being punished for Thomas’ death. Jade offers her condolences before telling her that she is not being punished, and offers the possibility that they are just trapped in a messed up place with no explanation behind it. Tabitha then notices the journal with the symbols, and says she saw it in the tunnels, which Jade then asks about.

While The Musicbox Monster haunts the Township, making it unsafe for anyone to go to sleep and possessing Julie Matthews, Marielle and Randall, Jade breaks a number of glass bottles on the table and examines the pieces. A vision of Tom asks what he is doing, and Jade explains that it’s a thought experiment. Tom asks if Jade will ask if he is real, and Jade replies that he thinks this is stress-induced psychosis and Tom will disappear soon enough. Tom asks about the purpose of the glass breaking, and Jade explains it’s a way to reorient his thought process to find a different way to look at the symbol because he has been looking at it wrong. Vision Tom takes a drink and notices that Jade changed the still, before telling Jade that he is overthinking it because he knows what he needs to do- find the symbol in the tunnels, calling it natural design. Jade says nothing about this place is natural, but Tom corrects him and says none of it is familiar. Tom tells him that if there are answers, which he grants is a big if, they will be in the tunnels. Jade asks if he is supposed to take advice from a man who died trying to rescue a woman who wasn’t even trapped. Tom says he would do it again because it was the right thing to do. Tom concludes that right now, there is a 16-year old girl who needs his help.

## References

1. ↑ Long Day's Journey Into Night
2. ↑ Silhouettes
3. ↑ Into The Woods
4. ↑ Strangers in a Strange Land
5. ↑ The Kindness of Strangers
6. ↑ This Way Gone
7. ↑ Lullaby
8. ↑ Belly of the Beast
9. ↑ Once Upon a Time?