Theory:Matt Parkman

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The following fan theories are about Matt Parkman.

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Theories

Theory	Citations	Notes
Matt is a clone of Maury Parkman.	They both have the same ability.	+ Very few other characters have the same- or even similar- abilities as their parents. - Matt still has his hair, while Maury is balding. + Matt and Maury are not the same age.
Matt is able to read the minds of animals.	A turtle seemed to speak to Matt to tell him where he could find water.	- The voice Matt heard ended up being Usutu. • The sound of the voice was that of Usutu, but it could have been the turtle actually speaking. Why would Usutu tell him where to find water when he had a canteen of water already?
Matt can kill with his ability.	He implied this to Knox.	+ Bob said that whatever the brain controls, Matt can control. + If this is true, he could possibly make the brain stop the heart beating or stop someone breathing. + The good side needs some more offensive abilities, if they are supposed to defeat the villains. - Having wit/smarts can be just as effective or more effective than an offensive ability. + Betty was able to kill someone with her ability. Since Matt's ability allows him to do the same thing as Betty/Candice, it can be reasonably assumed that he can kill someone as well. + If Matt can control the functions of the brain, by all means he can stop the brain from functioning all together.
Matt Parkman is a stronger telepath than Arthur Petrelli was.	None.	+ Matt was able to free Angela Petrelli from the "coma" Arthur put her in. - Matt was only able to get her out because Arthur "unbound" her after she told him to. + Because Matt was able to overcome Arthur's influence, twice (the locked doors, Daphne). • Arthur may have stolen telepathy from a person whose ability was not as highly developed as Matt's. - It's not about how the developed the power is when it was absorbed, but how good a person is with it, Arthur had telepathy for a much longer while than Matt. + It doesn't mean Arthur was a more powerful telepath. + In "Behind the Eclipse: Week Eight", Joe Pokaski and Aron Coliete commented that "Matt’s power is evolving in ways that his father's never did."
Matt will become the next major villain.	None.	+ The power of precognition is one that requires great strength of character and responsibility. Matt's shirking of his ex-wife and son, his job, his family ties, and his immature relationship with Daphne all have roots in negativity and irresponsibility. - Matt thought that the baby wasn't his; he had good reason to be "negative". + The baby is his. - He could still get bitter at Janice for not telling him the truth. - Isaac had some major flaws but was still considered a 'good' prophet. - Even though he was a serial killer, Sylar seemed to look for retribution from his mother after gaining the power of precognition. - How does Matt's relationship with Daphne "have roots" in either negativity or irresponsibility, let alone suggest Matt's potential for villainy? Furthermore, how is it immature? + Angela Petrelli is a good example of a villainous prophet. + Arthur, to an extent, was a villainous prophet. • He was a villain long before he gained precognition. - Not only precognition requires strength and responsibility. For example, space-time manipulation does. Hiro was childish and irresponsible, but he successfully became a hero. • He has also done very irresponsible things because he wanted a quest, such as allowing his half of the formula to be stolen.
Matt actually has the power of psionic mimicry.	None.	+ Matt never developed powers until he was near those with mental abilities, and seems to be able to master those abilities with relative ease shortly after being exposed to them. - Matt was shown to struggle with his ability at first, picking up thoughts when he didn't want to. + Matt first developed telepathy after being told by Eden to go eat donuts. The Haitian was nearby. + Matt's power expanded to full blown telepathy and casting illusions after reuniting with his father, Maury Parkman, and being trapped by him in a nightmare. - They had the same ability. Matt simply picked up some new tricks. • Ted Sprague tried something new with his power. This new trick wasn't radioactive. • It was still related to radioactivity. + Matt developed precognition shortly after meeting Usutu, a precog and eating his paste. + This would also explain the 'feedback' Matt and Peter Petrelli experienced when they first met, as both their powers were trying to mimic each other. + Bob Bishop said that whatever the brain controls, Matt can control. • Telepathy can be used in different manners, it's not a specialized ability such as illusion or persuasion. - Matt encountered Angela several times, but he never saw prophetic dreams, although her ability is mental. - Matt encountered the Haitian several times. Although telepathy can be used to supress memories (as shown by Arthur in Villains), nobody has used it yet to negate abilities of others. + The Haitian suppressed Matt's ability each time they met, perhaps Matt never had an opportunity to absorb his power. - Sometimes Matt could overcome the Haitian's ability and read thoughts, although in single words. - Telekinesis is a mental ability too. But neither Matt or Maury moved things with their mind. - The same with enhanced memory.
There is another telepath inducing nightmares about Sylar in Matt's mind.	Volume Five seems to be full of new characters with powers.	+ Although Matt does understand what he did to Sylar was wrong, it is unlikely he'd want to let him return.