The Doppelgänger Dilemma

The existence of people unrelated by blood to individuals but with uncanny physical similarities to them is rarely disputed. There are thousands of examples in literature. So many that they have inspired myths of shape-shifters, mimics and dopplegängers in folklore all around the globe. However, most of the time the resemblance is merely skin-deep, simply a matter of general body shape, facial structure and close observation of popular fashions. Other times, when the likeness seems to be more difficult to explain, there is usually some secret genealogical reason. Many twins have met their long-lost or unknown siblings this way. Almost every instance of these tales has a perfectly mundane explanation. Almost.

However, with internet and the way it simplifies sharing pictures and other information worldwide, lately another type of doppelgänger stories have begun to proliferate. A much more morbid, much more unnerving type of doubles. For starters, all the almost-clonic individuals only seem to appear after the death of the alleged “original”. Furthermore, the few instances where the purported doubles were subjected to further investigation, they often shared more than mere physical similarities with their deceased counterparts. Although their behaviour could be quite different, they seemed to share incredibly similar backgrounds, interests and skills.

One of the most researched cases of this kind of doppelgängers was the mysterious clone of an extremely popular music star that, after the very mediatic death of the artist, left a trail of witnesses and audiovisual evidence behind. While there were a few physical differences, like completely different eye colour and an apparent rejuvenation of several decades, the public opinion ended up believing that the popular musician had decided to fake his own death, although the reasons behind that decision varied wildly between theory crafters: aliens, fountains of youth, secret cloning programs, demonic pacts, saurian illuminati and even more unbelievable elements were often used in some of these explanations.

Leaving unreliable and fantastical theories aside, there is enough proof nowadays to categorise the existence of these doppelgängers as a fact. Whether they are the unexpected result of mere coincidence, the miraculous duplication of genetical and phenotypical templates or some kind of paranormal manipulation, these doubles exist. We can only hope to learn how or why someday. Until then, avoid meeting yours just to err on the side of caution.