Our list of the best quotes from Netflix period horror mystery television series created by Jantje Friese and Baran bo Oda. 1899 centers on a group of European immigrants who, en route to New York, come across a ship adrift in the middle of the ocean, and their journey begins to turn into a nightmare.
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1. The Ship
'Everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, it's not the end.' - Ling Yi, Yuk Je (1899) Click To Tweet
Maura Franklin: The brain is wider than the sky. For put them side by side, the one the other will contain. With ease, and you beside. The brain is deeper than the sea. For hold them, blue to blue, the one the other will absorb, as sponges buckets do.
Maura Franklin: Father? I know what I have seen. I’m not crazy! What did you do to my brother? Where is my brother? He was on the Prometheus. He found out what you were doing on these ships. Why don’t I remember? What have you done to my memory? I’m not crazy!
'That's what they do, don't they? They show you the world, and then they tell you you can't have it.' - Virginia Wilson (1899) Click To Tweet
Maura Franklin: [reading from the postcard] “I found out what our father did. Meet me in New York.” Don’t trust anyone.” Your brother.”
Maura Franklin: I am Maura Franklin. Born in Morefield. Today is October 19th, 1899. I am not crazy.
'The brain drives our thoughts, our behavior. It holds all of the secrets of the universe. There's a whole hidden world inside each of us which only needs to be deciphered.' - Maura Franklin (1899) Click To Tweet
Landon: I’m not superstitious. All I’m saying is it’s been four months now, and they still haven’t found the Prometheus. A big ship, just disappearing. It’s odd.
Darrel: It didn’t disappear. It sank. End of story.
Landon: You don’t know that.
'What is lost, will be found.' - Maura Franklin (1899) Click To Tweet
Virginia Wilson: [as she sits at Maura’s dining table] Don’t make such a face. I’m really doing you a favor. I mean, I get it. I’ve traveled by myself for years now. I know sometimes it’s preferable to seek solitude over company. But I also know how fast one is judged, and there are already rumors circulating.
2. The Boy'Have you ever lost someone? It's like you're dying with them. They can move on. And you're stuck.' - Eyk Larsen (1899) Click To Tweet
Landon: [to Olek] The whole ship was empty? You didn’t find anyone on board? Nobody except that boy?
Darrel: Do you reckon they’re dead?
Landon: What can kill more than a thousand people?
Darrel: What normally kills people. Other people.
'Being alone like that shows you what kind of a person you are.' - Maura Franklin (1899) Click To Tweet
Landon: Maybe one giant wolf?
Darrel: How many giant wolves you seen in your life? And why did it keep him alive, that giant wolf of yours? Why didn’t it kill the boy?
Landon: Maybe it’s him.
Darrel: Who?
Landon: The boy. Maybe he’s the wolf.
Eyk Larsen: On the Prometheus, was there anything…? Did you experience anything strange?
Maura Franklin: What do you mean by strange?
'Even the birds up there have their own prison. They can't escape who they are. And neither can we.' - Jérome (1899) Click To Tweet
Anker: [in Danish] Be with us, Lord, in a world where the powers of darkness are strong. Don’t let the waves of darkness close around us. Have mercy on us when we lack endurance and fortitude. Strengthen us when we are trapped by worry and fear. O Holy Spirit, may we be protected from evil and all the falseness of the world. Let your spirit light up before us and testify with our spirit that we are yours. Then even darkness will become light for us. When you are together with us, nothing shall harm us, our Lord.
3. The Fog
'Sometimes one has to adjust to a situation as it unfolds. With every calamity comes opportunity.' - Virginia Wilson (1899) Click To Tweet
Yuk Je: [in Cantonese] We should have never gotten on this ship. It was a mistake. All of it, a huge mistake.
'Our brain isn't always entirely reliable. Everything that we see, and feel, and hear are the result of electrical impulses. And sometimes we misinterpret those impulses. It's what makes people go mad.' Click To Tweet
Maura Franklin: [referring Ada’s death being ruled as natural causes] I’ve met her. Two days ago, in third class. She looked healthy. There was nothing wrong with her.
Dr. Reginald Murray: And that’s why I think it’s a mistake for women to venture into the field of medicine. They’re too attached to their emotions to clearly perceive the facts at hand. Ever heard of Darwin? Survival of the fittest? It’s the process of natural selection, and a way for God to clean out the bad seeds.
'Frustration and boredom are great motivators to seek out other pleasures. Human behavior is quite predictable.' - Virginia Wilson (1899) Click To Tweet
Wilhelm: [in German] We had a clear view. And then from one second to the next, this. First the compasses, and now the fog. We can’t navigate anymore. What should we do?
Eyk Larsen: [in German] We hold our position. Wait until the fog has cleared.
'We all wear masks. We all pretend. Presenting a perfect illusion on the outside, while we desperately try to hide who we are on the inside.' - Ángel (1899) Click To Tweet
Franz: [in German, referring to Eyk] This is a mistake. Just like every other decision he’s made on this trip. We’ve gone off course. He turned the ship back around. He’s completely lost his mind.
'We're not supposed to have dreams. And if we take what doesn't belong to us, our dreams turn into nightmares.' - Ling Yi (1899) Click To Tweet
Eyk Larsen: Can we see things that aren’t there and still believe they’re real?
Maura Franklin: Our brain isn’t always entirely reliable. Everything that we see, and feel, and hear are the result of electrical impulses. And sometimes we misinterpret those impulses. It’s what makes people go mad.
'Things never work out the way you imagine they will.' - Lucien (1899) Click To Tweet
Eyk Larsen: [referring to the shaft under his bed in his room] Am I mad? Or do you see what I see? I know this ship inside out. This is not supposed to be here.
4. The Fight'Life hurts. The moment you think you've got it all, it smacks you in the face.' - Lucien (1899) Click To Tweet
Wilhelm: [in German] We searched the whole horizon. No sign of the Prometheus.
Franz: [in German] That’s impossible. She was tied to us.
Wilhelm: [in German] Maybe she didn’t disappear. Maybe it’s us who disappeared.
Sebastian: [in German] I think the ship company wanted us to sink that ship so no one would get off it alive. That boy they brought back. Since he’s been on board,
people have started dying. That’s not a coincidence.
'People taking power who don't deserve it. It never ends well.' - Jérome (1899) Click To Tweet
Iben: [in Danish] The devil dresses as an angel. Do you believe me now? The devil is not going to get his way. Find the boy.
Clémence: [in French] There is a mutiny out there, and the only thing you’re interested in is finding more ways to hurt me.
Lucien: [in French] Life hurts. The moment you think you’ve got it all, it smacks you in the face.
5. The Calling
Eyk Larsen: [referring to the boy, Elliot] They threw him off the goddamn railing. There’s no way someone survives that. And yet, here he is. How is that possible?
Iben: [in Danish] Justice is always on the side of the survivors. The Light will always prevail. We’re not going to surrender. Even if it means more sacrifices.
Tove: [in Danish] You know she’s sick. Mother. The voices she hears, that’s not the voice of God. She created her own world. Her own truths. We all just followed her. But hearing voices is not a sign of God. It’s a sign of madness.
Krester: [in Danish] What if she’s right?
Tove: [in Danish] Do you honestly think all this is the will of God? After all that has happened. You helped her kill that boy.
Krester: [in Danish] It’s not like you haven’t killed before.
Tove: [in Danish] That was different.
Lucien: [to Clémence, in French] You want to know if I was ever really in love with you? Every morning, I wake up wishing I wasn’t. You are a constant reminder of what I can’t have. A life. Love. You.
6. The Pyramid'People are oblivious to reality. They only see what they want to see. Imprisoned by their mind's restrictions. When all they have to do is shift their perspective to see the full scope of things.' - Henry Singleton (1899) Click To Tweet
Daniel Solace: We’re in the middle of the ocean, and the engine is down. If we don’t get it up and running again, then we’re all going to die out here.
Eyk Larsen: If we want to survive this, we need to trust each other.
'I suppose it's like all those things you want so badly when you're little. Fall in love. Get married. Have children. It always ends up being the complete opposite of what you imagined.' - Clémence (1899) Click To Tweet
Maura Franklin: [to Eyk] Thank you. For not thinking I’m crazy.
Ángel: [in Spanish] Could someone please explain what the f*** is happening?
'They say we should write our own story. But that's not true. It has already been written.' - Iben (1899) Click To Tweet
Eyk Larsen: Maybe you were right. Maybe this is some kind of dream.
Maura Franklin: Well, who’s dreaming it then? You or me?
7. The Storm
'It's human nature's ultimate flaw. One shouldn't base a choice on love, anger, hate. They're just silly feelings that cloud the mind.' - Henry Singleton (1899) Click To Tweet
Daniel Solace: I love you. Never forget.
Maura Franklin: I wish this moment would last forever.
Daniel Solace: It’s right there. Stored in your memory. Weren’t you the one to tell me that one’s whole reality is actually inside one’s mind? It’s all there. You, me, this. Inside your brain forever.
Daniel Solace: Reality is more than neurons firing around in your brain. Reality is not what’s on the inside. It’s what’s happening on the outside.
'Reality is more than neurons firing around in your brain. Reality is not what's on the inside. It's what's happening on the outside.' - Daniel Solace (1899) Click To Tweet
Maura Franklin: But none of this would exist if it weren’t for the mind to experience it. And, going a step further, it actually might not exist at all. So we’ll never know whether the stimuli in our brain are caused by a reality or a construct of one.
Daniel Solace: You’re a hopeless romantic.
Daniel Solace: Maura. Never forget.
Maura Franklin: Never ever.
'We'll never know whether the stimuli in our brain are caused by a reality or a construct of one.' - Maura Franklin (1899) Click To Tweet
Ramiro: [in Portuguese] If God exists and if He created this, I swear He must be crazy.
8. The Key'May your coffee kick in, before reality does.' (1899) Click To Tweet
Maura Franklin: Sometimes we have to let things go because we can’t keep them forever. One day you’ll be a grown man, and I’ll have to let you go. Because I can’t keep you forever.
Elliot: Don’t be silly. I’ll live with you and Daddy forever.
'Sometimes we have to let things go because we can't keep them forever.' - Maura Franklin (1899) Click To Tweet
Henry Singleton: They came on this trip because they made the choice to forget their past. And now they’re all stuck in here as well.
Henry Singleton: [to Elliot] Your mother has fooled you. She has fooled all of us. She’s the only person who can get us out of here. If you’re brave enough, I can show you the truth.
'Our brain is a very complicated construct. As much as we can try to forget the things we don't want to remember, we will never be able to delete them entirely. They're part of who we are. Woven into our very fabric.' Click To Tweet
Maura Franklin: Our world has rules, and they can’t be bent. But nothing in this world follows any rules of logic. This here, it isn’t real. It’s an illusion, a magic trick. A simulation.
Maura Franklin: I thought this was just about me, but it’s not. It’s about all of us. I don’t know why, but we’re all here for a reason.
'We're born into this world either a seeker or an avoider. To be an avoider is pure bliss. To be a seeker, on the other hand, brings nothing but pain.' - Henry Singleton (1899) Click To Tweet
Henry Singleton: Our brain is a very complicated construct. As much as we can try to forget the things we don’t want to remember, we will never be able to delete them entirely. They’re part of who we are. Woven into our very fabric.
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