Theory:Barbara

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The following fan theories are about Barbara.

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Theories

Theory	Citations	Notes
Barbara is the one in Angela's dream.	None.	+ Tracy seems too good to turn to a villain, Barbara on the other hand is still unaccounted for. - If the dream is just symbolic, the woman might not be a villain, but just the person who turns her son Nathan against her. + The woman in Angela's dream is not wearing a pearl necklace, which Tracy has not been seen without (she didn't even take it off when she slept with Nathan). - This may just be a consistency error. + Seems unlikely considering their consistency with her pearls so far. - Tracy worked for Pinehearst, like most of the other villains. + There were no frozen bodies in Angela's dream.
Barbara has a mental ability, like telepathy or mental manipulation.	None.	• Her two birth sisters, Niki Sanders and Tracy Strauss, have very dissimilar abilities, with one being physical (enhanced strength) and the other being elemental/energy-based (freezing). There may have been an effort to keep the sisters' abilities different from each other, which would make sense if they were being used in an experiment, as it would allow Dr. Zimmerman and his colleagues to test more variations of "induced" abilities. In that case, a mind-based power would make sense for Barbara, as it would be quite different from both Niki's and Tracy's abilities. - There's already a villain who is a telepath. If Barbara is meant to be a villain, then it's unlikely that a new character would possess the ability of someone who is still alive and on the same side (Knox has a variant of Niki's ability because she's no longer around). • West has the same ability as Nathan, and they were, even in some of the same episodes together during his (West's) appearances. • Echo DeMille and Jesse Murphy both were villains and both were trapped in Level 5. Both possessed the same ability. • Jesse was initially supposed to have earthquake generation as an ability, but the producers thought this would be too expensive to shoot, and so gave him an ability similar to Echo's at the last minute. + Peter and Claire are both killed in Angela's dream, despite the fact that they both possess the ability to regenerate. If Barbara is the triplet in the dream and her power is similar to the Haitian's, this would explain how their deaths are possible. • The only confirmed methods of killing regenerative humans are by a) preventing their regeneration with mental manipulation (as seen with Future Peter in I Am Become Death) or b) preventing their regeneration with power absorption (as seen with Adam Monroe in Dying of the Light.) Decapitation has been presented as a postulate but this seems unlikely when one considers that regenerative humans can survive the full force of a nuclear blast, which should destroy their head in the process of destroying the rest of their body and thus should be just as effective as decapitation if not more so. Death by gravitational manipulation seems more plausible, but is untested as of the current episode.
Barbara is a Level 5 escapee.	None.	- There are said to be twelve Level 5 escapees. Twelve to fourteen of them have been shown. + If her and the German know each other then it's possible that they committed a crime together that landed them in Level 5. - Bianca and Gael captured only the German. + Barbara may have escaped capture from Bianca and Gael, but gotten caught at a later date. + She may have been the triplet in the group of villains Angela Petrelli foresaw. + You gotta admit, if Tracy plays for the side of good, having Barbara on the dark side would make a good plot line. • Hypothetically, if Tracy were to play the role of light, while Niki's remorse over her alters actions leaving her morally gray, then Barbara by default would represent darkness.
Barbara has an ability that Future Peter has, but present Peter has not come into contact with yet, such as illusion or body insertion.	None.	+ It is almost certain Barbara has an ability. + Candice died, possibly before Peter came in contact with her. + As above theory, illusion would fit in with a mental ability. - Peter could've absorbed Candice's ability at Kirby Plaza, as he did with DL's phasing. He might not know he has it, though, explaining why he hasn't used it yet. + Candice could of dragged Sylar away from Kirby Plaza after Peter and Nathan flew into the sky. • It could be an ability that is the same as (or similar to) one he's already obtained, and therefore didn't realize he had it (for example, he already had Claire's ability when he first came into contact with Adam Monroe.
Barbara's power is super speed.	Dr. Zimmerman, when talking about his power formula utters "Super strength, super speed, something like that?"	- Most evolved humans don't gain their powers until they are teenagers, so chances are Dr. Zimmerman did not keep track of Barbara, Tracy or Niki for that long. He was most likely guessing. + There was a picture of Dr. Zimmerman and someone who is likely Barbara in Dr. Zimmerman's home. She looked to be a teenager, so her powers may have surfaced while he still knew her. - It could have been Tracy or Niki who met Dr. Zimmerman in that picture and then had their memory erased. - Tracy and Niki didn't realize they had an ability until several years after their teenage years, so Dr. Zimmerman was most likely guessing.
Barbara worked for the Pinehearst Company.	None.	+ Every villain that appeared in Angela's dream was shown to be connected to the Pinehearst Company (Knox and Maury are working for them, and Adam was abducted by them). Assuming that the woman who looks like Tracy Strauss is Barbara, she could have been recruited. + Ali Larter narrated the video on the Pinehearst website. - Tracy is confirmed to have worked with Pinehearst.
Barbara's last name is Zimmerman. She was raised by Dr. Zimmerman and his wife. The German was also raised as her brother.	What appears to be a family photo on Dr. Zimmerman's desk. (I Am Become Death)	+ Dr. Zimmerman's reaction to Tracy and the use of only Barbara's first name implies that, unlike Tracy, he personally knows Barbara.
Barbara is dead.	We have not seen her as an alive character in the show.	+ Dr. Zimmerman seemed surprised to see her when he thought she was Barbara. This could possibly be because he knows her to be dead. - Just because we haven't seen her before doesn't mean she's dead. We didn't see Tracy Strauss until Season 3 but she's alive. - It's possible that they just had a bad "father-daughter" relationship like Niki or Daphne, and he was surprised to see her.
Barbara's ability is levitation.	In a small promo that was featured before the airing of The Eclipse, Part 1 we see Ali Larter, who levitates off the ground.	+ Her current character, Tracy has the ability of freezing. Why would the promo feature her levitating if it was meant to be Tracy. This may be Barbara. • Ali Larter portrays both Barbara and Tracy.
Barbara has the ability of weather manipulation.	None.	+ Many of the evolved human abilities on Heroes are copies or modifications of the abilities in X-Men. Considering the powers of many X-Men characters have been put on the show, while one character, Storm, has not had her power of Weather Manipulation displayed on the show yet. Barbara could very well be the one who finally displays the ability. - Alice Shaw has that ability. • Abilities with multiple users exist. • Weather manipulation is usually portrayed as allowing characters to control the wind to enable themselves to fly, fitting the above theory about levitation. + Weather manipulation also involves controlling other elements like lightning, rain, twisters etc. - There has not been a reported case of unusual behavior in the weather within the Heroes timeline that Barbara may have caused. + Then maybe if the above theory of Barbara being a Level 5 escapee is true, then maybe The Company captured her before the Heroes timeline first started. • Or maybe if Barbara does indeed have the ability of weather manipulation, the power probably functions as only being limited to take effect within the vicinity she is in.
Barbara has the ability of "reality distortion" or "projection".	None.	+ If the triplet sisters have powers based on mental, physical and elemental, the writers will probably introduce Barbara with a mental ability we have not seen yet. + Reality distortion is an ability mentioned in the assignment tracker map.
Tracy, Barbara and Niki aren't actually triplets, but clones of the original.	None.	• If that was so, it wouldn't explain how two of them have vastly different powers, considering powers have roots in blood chemistry. • Triplets would likewise have the same DNA. • Not everything is identical in twins and triplets, even they have different fingerprints.
Barbara was Niki's sister Jessica.	None.	+ Both are said to be Niki's sister. - Niki, Barbara, and Tracy are said to have been separated at birth. + Niki, Tracy and Barbara are triplets, so the latter might have been Jessica and changed her name after what their father did to her, and met Dr. Zimmerman. - Jessica's grave says she died when she was 10 or 11; Dr. Zimmerman has pictures of Barbara at much older ages. - Jessica's grave says she was born in 1976; Barbara's triplet sisters' birth certificates say they were born in 1974. - Barbara and Niki are identical, unlike Jessica and Niki. - Jessica was Niki's adoptive sister. They were not related by blood.
Barbara won't show up until her sister is killed.	None.	• Tracy didn't show up until Niki died. • Tracy may be dead.
Barbara is Syn Anders' mother.	Syn's mother is called Barbara.	+ Syn has a power; she could have inherited it from a parent. - Syn is a highly unknown character; she has had virtually no characterization in any canon media, such as the central series or the web comics. Until she receives this prevalence, there would be no point in setting up this story line. - Barbara was 17 when Syn was born. - It's possible for women to have children at 17 (ex. Claire and Meredith).
The debut of Barbara will mean the death of someone.	None.	+ When fans first met Niki, though it was not her fault, she killed a man using her ability. + When fans first met Tracy, though it was an accident, she killed a man using her ability.
Barbara's ability is pyrokinesis.	None.	+ Tracy's power is freezing and they hadn't shown a full fire vs. ice battle since FYG. - As far as the characters are concerned, Tracy is dead. - Pyrokinesis is one the abilities with most known users, the writers know better than to repeat abilities that often.
Barbara's ability will be to manipulate others' abilities.	None.	+ It could be how Tracy returns, would explain that hint that Barabara's ability has something to do with water, and would make her ability different from both Niki's and Tracy's. - The water thing wasn't about Barbara, it was about a scene in Cold Snap, the one in which Tracy freezes everyone in the garage.
Barbara will the new female villian.	None.	+ We know she has an ability, and having an ability could corrupt someone, especially if that ability has a domineering effect. i.e Telepathy, mental manipulation, persuasion or especially reality warping. + In I Am Become Death, Barbara appears in a picture alongside Dr. Zimmerman and the German, implying they are a family, the German grew up to be a criminal and a murderer, Barbara could have been swayed by the German into becoming an evil person.
Barbara is the Barbara mentioned in The Agent.	None.	+ The end of An Invisible Thread shows an unknown triplet sister (either Tracy Strauss or Barbara) using a water-based ability to kill former Building 26 agent Kent Harper. The Barbara character in The Agent possesses the ability of water generation.
Barbara is a main character in Volume 5.	A character played by Ali Larter with an ability that looks like water mimicry appears at the end of An Invisible Thread.	+ Niki and Tracy have a third sister who we have not yet seen. + The ability demonstrated by the character at the end of An Invisible Thread is not consistent with either Niki's or Tracey's abilities. - Ali Larter confirmed Tracy's power has now evoled into control over all forms of water, liquid, ice and even steam. - Tracy seemingly melted and flowed away at the end of Cold Snap. The events at the end of An Invisible Thread could be a new aspect of her ability that emerged as a result. - Tracy was solidly confirmed to be water woman at the end of "An Invisible Thread".
Barbara speaks German and may in fact live in Germany.	If the photo is in fact a family photo, then it should make Barbara family of Dr. Zimmerman and The German.	+ Dr. Zimmerman's accent explains this. + The German must (obviously) speak German as well.