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Why is Marty hanging around with Doc Brown?

posted 8 years ago by pantherfan99
18 replies | jump to latest

Did anyone else notice this? OK Marty is 17 he has a girlfriend. He is in a band. So one can assume that he is at least somewhat popular. So then the question remains: Why is he hanging around with Doc Brown who is in his 50's?
Marty goes back to 1955 Doc is alive and well and a full grown adult and let's say he 25, that would make him 55 in 1955. In OTL 1985 Lorraine has a problem with Marty having a gf (Jennifer). But she sees nothing wrong with her son hanging out with a man older than she is? Does this make sense? I know it's a movie..

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[–] buddyboy28 8 years ago

Why is he hanging around with Doc Brown who's in his 50's?

Because Doc's a scientist who (according to the backstory) pays him to help him out with certain things, and lets him hang out at his house and use his speakers. At 17 years old, you wouldn't think that was cool?

But she's nothing wrong with her son hanging out with a man older than she is?

What makes you think she actually knows? It never says. Marty comes across as someone who doesn't share much with his parents at all. Around the dinner table with his family, he says "Uncle Jailbird Joey" in the entire sequence. Even if she did know, back then no one thought sexual predator or child molester at every turn. Things were much different.

[–] Maximus256 (65) 7 years ago

Or maybe we're all forgetting this is a movie about time travel. Doc already "knows" Marty; he's known Marty since 1955. Doc also knows how integral to everything Marty is (or will become). Doc met Marty in 1955 and sent him back to 1985, and now has to wait for Marty to be born and grow up so that in 1985 he can go back to 1955 again. Marty is the one who proves to Doc that time travel is possible and that Doc will be (or already is) successful at it. So Doc has no choice but to invent time travel and make sure Marty uses it to go to 1955 to inspire Doc to invent time travel. So its not surprising at all that Doc would befriend and keep tabs on Marty throughout his life. Doc knows the time continuum depends on this cause-and-effect loop not getting broken. The two of them are forever intertwined.

[–] Cheepshooter (672) 7 years ago

This. Plus, lots of lower middle class kids befriend an old dude with no kids (or grown kids, or kids who turned out to be losers) who mentors them. I am the person I am today because I had some older people interested in making my life better, mostly through knowledge and experience.

[–] EightiesKid 8 years ago

They probably met in the late 1970s/early 80s of the original timeline.

Remember also, in the beginning of Part 1 his dad was a wimpy pushover, his mom depressed and alcoholic. Most likely, Marty wanted to spend as much time away from home as possible. He probably saw Doc as a mentor and a father figure he didn't have. Plus, he was eccentric and cool and full of energy, and they likely bonded by working in his experiments and inventions.

P.S. Doc is actually 35-40 (it varies from the novelizations and the animated series/video games) in 1955, and 65-70 in 1985. No way was he in his mid 20s, lol.

[–] PussyCrusher_Principal 8 years ago

Because, of course, Doc was a child-diddling molester, and Marty liked the extra special attention, and getting corn-holed - is that the answer you're looking for?

[–] Mint Berry Crunch (345) 8 years ago

Marty probably started out as a paperboy and Doc lured him in with offers of additional jobs for "candy" which eventually led to some chores around the house, where Marty found some fancy electronics and Doc let him fiddle with them.

[–] Cheepshooter (672) 7 years ago

"Where's that muscley-armed paperboy?" Ew. Doc was too focused on science to be distracted by young boys (or girls).

[–] ZakkWyldeMyLittlePony 8 years ago

Teenagers are encouraged to make older, adult friends.

Metallica and Iron Maiden fan who is also a Brony.

[–] Xyzzy 8 years ago

Adventurous Young Boy Hangs Around With Wacky Old Scientist is a trope that goes back to, I don't know, the dawn of time?

Boys went to school and were taught by men. It was not generally considered unusual or suspicious. Zemeckis and Gale are from that time period where such stories were still commonly told. 1985 was probably the tail end of that time period.

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[–] TxMike 8 years ago

There was even a TV show in the 1950s and 1960s called "Mr Wizard" where a couple of kids from the neighborhood would wander into his home where he would demonstrate various curiosities of science. I am old enough I used to watch it.

Mr Wizard http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043244/

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[–] Xyzzy 8 years ago

Yup. I just read "Infinite Worlds of Maybe" by Lester Del Rey which is, I believe, a YA book published in the late '60s. Premise? Young man (like 17, 18) teams up with his professor to chase the boy's father across parallel universes.

BttF is maybe a little quaint in this regard but nobody thought a thing of it at the time.
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[–] pioneergrrrl (2412) 8 years ago

Marty probably had a messed up family life. Doc had lots of outlets he could use to practice. The original McFly family did not have money for Marty to have practice space---so he had to find somewhere which would let him practice his guitar. And as a trade off, Marty had to help pitch in with some of doc's experiments. Marty likely was not himself interested in/good with science---but he probably figured since he was not getting graded on it and he did get to practice music........

[–] Cheepshooter (672) 7 years ago

In rural America, it lasted a little longer. Everyone knew some old guy who know how to fix anything, had cool old projects, and general knowledge you couldn't see anywhere else. Where else could you see actual backyard science experiments before YouTube? A kid today who doesn't have an older mentor, whether a dad, grandpa, or wild-eyed scientist from down the road, is missing out.

[–] [deleted] 7 years ago

Maybe they were related?

[–] MovieManCin2 (26342) 7 years ago

Because he liked him?

😎

[–] [deleted] 6 years ago

Well, as you can see, Doc Emmett Brown is extremely likable. Sure, he's a bit wacky, eccentric, perhaps a little bit crazy, but he doesn't seem dangerous or predatory, and he's occupied with inventing things, he has a real passion, knowledge, ideas, inventions, and spirit.

You don't see this kind of people a lot in the modern world, where most people just try to do what's 'right' (by their peers) and have lost their sense of adventure. Think of the Robin Williams adult Peter Pan, who has lost the 'spark'.

The Doc is very intersting an individual, very likable character, and probably an excellent friend.

He's also a useful adult with all kinds of resources that teens don't usually have. It's always useful to have an adult friend to get access to things you wouldn't otherwise have.

Also, why can't two people just be friends, without it always having to be about bodily qualities and artificial, superficial morality (think of The Simpsons and Reverend's wife screaming "Think of the children!")?

What if they're just two souls that are good friends, that happened to be incarnated at different times?

Are people really so cynical these days that this possibility doesn't even enter anyone's mind?

[–] MovieManCin2 (26342) 6 years ago

Yep. They were friends.

😎

[–] avortac4 (3770) 3 years ago

As Seinfeld once explained the complex psychology of 'how kids become friends', "I would've been friends with Stalin, if he had had a ping-pong-table" (I guess he didn't have the guts to say 'Hitler')

Kids befriend people easily and for VERY superficial reasons. You have interesting computers and electronic equipment? I WILL LIVE in your garage!

You have amazing inventions and a cute dog? Will you adopt me?

You have a cool car, neat truck and exciting audio equipment? Where do I have to sign to become your slave for life?

A kid befriends other kid because that other kid has a ping-pong table, look at all the stuff Doc has, and what an interesting life he lives compared to the mundane boredom of his horrible, dysfunctional family and probably not that many friends... why wouldn't he 'hang around' him?? I certainly would have as a kid / teenager.

As an adult.. well, I haven't quite reached that phase yet... still, I wouldn't hang around with Emmett nowadays, because I know he's not only a dangerous criminal, would put my life in danger (if the time travel experiment had failed, they'd BOTH be dead or in intensive care), works with terrorists, thinks it's OK to mock someone just because they're shy (George is doing his best, it's not HIS fault he's bullied, damnit!), is a bit of a perv (asks about a teenager's girlfriend's LOOKS as if that's the most important think to focus on during that moment of time-crisis!), etc..

And he experiments on ANIMALS, basically doing animal testing - he doesn't know the experiment won't fail, so he would basically kill EVERYONE involved, including his own dog if the experiment fails! Either super confidence or psychopathy (or both)...

When you think about it, Emmett is quite a creep with lot of screws loose, and everyone should avoid someone like him.