Moments Easily Missed: The Rewatch Edition – Room 607

Today we’re taking a closer look at 2×02 “Primary” and who is keeping watch over Room 607.

What has always puzzled me about this episode is the question of who the manager at the Emerson Hotel calls when Cole and Jennifer Goines first appear there in 2016. While the Concierge has no idea who Cole is, the manager recognises him from the photographs in room 607. That makes sense because, as he reveals to Cole, he grew up cleaning the room and recognised Cole from the pictures in the room. Still, when Cole arrives and is given the wrong room, the manager calls someone to alert them to the fact that James Cole is back in residence.

Based on the conversation which the manager in 2016 has with the stranger on the other end of the phone, we can be sure that the person is someone that knows about Cole and someone that knows about the room that has been purchased in perpetuity. But, it is never articulated who it is the manager in 2016 is speaking to. Based on the fact that the below photo is taken in 1944 and the call is being made in 2016, it seems unlikely that it is the manager’s grandfather on the other end of the phone. When we consider the fact that everything in 12 Monkeys means something, it seems odd that he would be making the call, unless there was more to it…

Makes you wonder who he might have been talking to… and when they’re going to come back into the picture.