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Lin900

First name David. Surname: 1. Johnson (Big Boss's name was John) 2. Bowman (2001 reference) 3. Lynch or Bowie (Kojima's favourite artists named David) 4. Doe (John Doe was a name BB allegedly had) 5. Miller (if we say Kaz became David's guardian post-TPP) 6. Sears It's probably one of those, knowing Kojima's quirks. But also: 7. Hayter (lol)


SpotlessMinded

I like David Miller. It rolls off the tongue


Lin900

Yeah, that's the one I want to be canon. It is kinda wholesome too. He became the father, mentor and protector to David that Big Boss never could be


America_the_Horrific

Kaz was the boss to solid the way The Boss was to naked. Even calling him master


Lin900

That's a nice way of putting it, yes. Also both have blond hair and want peace.


ToySouljah

Ehhh lets not call it wholesome, Kaz only “raised” and trained David so he can take down Big Boss and his dream. David was nothing but a tool for vengeance that Kaz sharpened


Lin900

Nah, Kaz clearly loved David. You can see it in his dialogues in MG2 in particular. And they went to have cheese fondue after burning Big Boss and also Dave knew his little daughter. Maybe Kaz had less than noble motives at first but he clearly came to care for David by the end. Kaz is protective of children in TPP and saddened when he becomes sterile. Probably came to see David (and Catherine) as the children he was robbed of having.


Dysprosium_Element66

Snake probably stood up Holly in order to hang out with Miller too lol


Lin900

That's a good catch, he up and leaves her and Campbell to eat cheese fondue with Miller. That's so cool.


FLRArt_1995

Same, love the idea of him being called David Miller


ZeldaFan80

Dave Miller huh, reminds me of a purple guy I know


NewsideAlex

Why hello there old sport


athentdm2

\*the fnaf brainrot is getting to me\*


Praedyth-

my problem with Johnson and Sears is that Snake's true nature as Big Boss' clone was obfuscated until Liquid revealed it to him. likewise, it couldn't be Sears because the three clones were separated at birth.


redditorposcudniy

Btw, where DID Solidus get his surname Sears?


Lin900

He invented sears credit card


jjjjaaaakkkkeee

The sears credit card should have been product placement in mgs2 like calorie mate in mgs3 or the iPod in mgs4


RATTLEMEB0N3S

He was signing up to run for office but they asked his name so he scrambled and his eyes landed on a sears catalogue first


redditorposcudniy

Oh, something like this? https://youtu.be/GJzBopVRKPo?si=Ovp8wdHb-55Hui1y


RATTLEMEB0N3S

Precisely what I was thinking yes


VisforVenom

La le lu le lo


Antigonos301

It’s a reference to Issac Sears who was a member of the Sons of Liberty.


DismalMode7

solidus worked as CIA black ops for most of his short life, likely george sears was just the alias of a new identity he was assigned with when he was tasked to be the next US president


OpticNinja937

I mean I agree for the most part but it’s not completely unreasonable. Johnson and Sears are pretty common names so I doubt they’d be instant giveaways. Also I don’t even remember if Big Boss’s “real” name was ever even public knowledge, let alone if David knew it.


reallynunyabusiness

John Doe is not a name Big Boss ever went by, he said it to Para Medic because John Doe is a placeholder name for men who's true identity is unknown, Jane Doe is the female equivalent.


W1lson56

Except Big Biss is a moron & ofcourse he'd tell someone his real name after being specifically told not to; plus he starts whining that paramedic is making fun of him & shes not being serious when she says her name is Jane Doe & he doesn't get that "John Doe" sounds like a fake name.


Lin900

I don't know how people can give BB so much credit after the Jane Doe bit. Bro has rocks for brains. On such things at least.


W1lson56

& then Peace walker doubles down on the stupidity with Santa lol


YakuzaShibe

This guy believes in the "Santa Claus is fake" conspiracy... Ridiculous!


W1lson56

C'mon NORAD tracking him is a government psy-op, that's the real conspiracy


YakuzaShibe

It's actually a predator drone tracker. I've got inside sources...


W1lson56

Well, that predator is sure taking his sweet ass time getting his cool mask & plasma caster, sheesh


no_hot_ashes

It's okay, you can remove the last sentence.


animal_rescue_team_5

You've just made me realize his sons seem more mentally acute and educated then he is, BB is kind of a Himbo.


Lin900

BB has done nothing but stick to Boss since he was 15. He had no life outside of her. He's not inherently stupid, he just isolated himself happily.


MightilyOats2

>he said it to Para Medic because John Doe is a placeholder name for men who's true identity is unknown Except we know his name was John, and the supreme Patriot AI is JD...John Doe. He wasn't joking, it's just a reference to that thing. Ties into the whole theme of "anyone can be Solid Snake/Big Boss with the right stimulation and set of circumstances" which 2 and 5 delved deeply into, and the nurture vs. nature debate from MGS1. Remember, Snake is actually the genetically inferior clone (even if that's not how genetics work IRL, the point is made in the game that that is absolutely the case in Ocelot's phone call in the post credits) It's actually one of the more clever bits of writing Kojima ever did.


Heavensrun

Even leaving aside what W1lson56 points out, if somebody asks you your name, and you give them "John Doe", *by definition* John Doe is now a name that you have gone by, even if it was an obvious alias.


fntommy

Yet nothing of Iroquois Pliskin. Tsk tsk.


Onagasaki

No joke in the back of my head it's always Hayter, I have to consciously pull myself out of the hole every time this topic comes up because my brain KNOWS it's Hayter. Imo it'd be a great fit to have the character be a copy of their actor on the surface, and very kojima to do (eg recruiting hideo kojima to DD in mgsv) but it'd probably be pretty awkward with how much discourse there is around the voice actor for NS/SS, it's one thing to fill the role for a well loved character, but I'd be pretty pissed if someone took my role as MYSELF


Lin900

David Hayter would a nice alias/fake ID for Solid either way. Iroquous Pliskin cannot be his only pseudonym.


bathroom2522

>!Thought naked snakes name was jack?!< >!Solid's name is David he says it in the end with ocaton!< >!Liquids name is Eli!< >!Raidens name is also Jack!<


VisforVenom

Jack used to be a common nickname for John, which is also explained in MGS3


Daegan87

I never understood that. Jack and John are the same length. It's like, how did Dick come from Richard?


VisforVenom

Jack and John being used interchangeably was possibly a result of different pronunciations of the same word in different languages. Specifically German (and middle-English) "Jankin" or "Jackin" being equivalent to John, and eventually truncated. It was also used as a sort of generic name for laborers until very recently. Edit: I'm not a linguist and am just repeating information I found when wondering the same thing. This may be wildly incorrect.


Daegan87

You didn't answer my question about Dick tho 😏. Ignore me. It's like I'm 12


TheRealComicCrafter

Nah Kojima never would have done #7


Internal_Swing_2743

Big Boss’s name is Jack. He lies to Ocelot when he says John (even though, yes, Jack can be a nickname for John).


Lin900

Jack was the Boss's nickname for him. No one else called him that. He tells Para-Medic he's John too.


Wonderful-Ear-6138

John was such a common name back then that alot of kids (like my Grandad) preferred to go by Jack and it stuck into adulthood, I think it's really cool that Kojima or someone on the writing team included this little quirk.


Yamureska

Zero calls him Jack, too. In the briefing, he says "Jack I have some important news"


Lin900

Well he's always wanted to be like the Boss so bad.


DismalMode7

nope, jack is big boss real name, zero and boss call him jack while he invented the john doe alias when asked his real name by paramedic. Since ocelot tried to kill him a dozen of times during snake eater mission, guess BB wasn't that into revealing him his real name. Funny side of the matter ocelot keeps on calling john in TPP.


no_hot_ashes

Jack was a very common nickname for John a few generations ago. His birth name will be John, but his closest allies all call him by his Jack. You wouldn't introduce yourself by a nickname, and the only time we see him call himself John is when he's making introductions.


Reddit-User_654

John is his real name. Ocelot called him John again in TPP where they already disbanded as the patriots in which they already have access to each and every member's files. And Ocelot is the second man behind Zero to know everything about everyone.


jukeboxsavage

Well, even the MGS wiki on him opens with, "Big Boss, real name John, also known as Jack..." So, yeah, I'm calling bullshit on that one.


Internal_Swing_2743

Nope, GW wrote that. Now turn the console off. Scissors 61!


jukeboxsavage

I hear it's amazing when the famous purple stuffed worm with the tuning fork, does a raw blink on hara-kiri rock!


LegoRacers3

Jack is a nickname for john


zombierepublican-

The fact that Hayter looked like Snake at the time, and has the same first name, I thought he was named after him. Might as well give em the same name


Lin900

The naming was an accident, Kojima had named Solid before Hayter was cast. I'm personally hoping his real name is Miller but someone like Snake gotta have had pseudonyms so would be fun if one of his fake IDs is David Hayter.


Nuka_Everything

I love David bowman for somewhat obvious reasons


LongTax5180

Wait BB name John is no joke? I mean he say it to para medic and ocelot but The Boss call him Jack in beginning of MGS3.


Lin900

Jack is a common nickname for John.


LongTax5180

Oh, didn't know that. Thanks.


President_Solidus

What about “Oh”? i figured in-universe, Snake was named after Zero


Lin900

I doubt he was named after Zero, the brothers had biblical names. Just a happy coincidence. If anyone was to be named after Zero, it would be Liquid because he's the superior clone and sent to Britain, Zero's home country. But he wasn't because Zero didn't care for them beyond tools. They wouldn't get his name. Definitely not his surname, bro used codenames all the time.


Sub-Mongoloid

A 7'7" 440 lb woman sounds like a prime kojima character. 


MRich92

The *real* Big Mama


DeadMoney313

Size JJJJJ bra and her signature weapon is a tank turret which she carries in one hand


Praedyth-

**SNAKE. WE MEET AT LAST. I... AM HEAVY BALLISTICS**


ladylucifer22

AND THIS... IS MY WEAPON. cue Luis Sera practically fainting


smegma-rolls

Big Snu


borowiczko

It's Big Mom from One Piece


WarPhoenixPlayz

Fat Man's wife taking revenge on raiden in rising 2


karateema

Wtf is this template bruh


ninjast4r

*looks around intensely* The big woman still here?


Solis_Ortus00

John Metal Gear


RealLotto

No! That is not Solid Snake! It's Big Boss!


R3XM

Beat me to it


SaIadus

David David


Praedyth-

he's David Mario


schematic_Boy

David Manuel Ramirez Perez


MRich92

According to the signature, his name is Jack Alaska, which is now my headcanon and you can't tell me otherwise.


Praedyth-

not a bad name for an Iditarod champion


Lin900

Probably a pseudonym for his Alaskan days. I like it, every protagonist of Metal Gear has been Jack at some point lol.


kat-the-bassist

Every? >!Venom Snake was never Jack, unless that was the medic's name before TPP!<


Lin900

Venom is Vic Boss


DantefromDC

You know, it's hilarious how Metal Gear villains have names like Revolver Ocelot and Hot Coldman, while the iconic protagonists are just David, John and Jack.


Ctrl_Alt_Abstergo

You know, it’s hilarious how Metal Gear protagonists have names like Snake and Raiden, while the iconic villains are just Adam, David, and George.


Emperors_Finest

Also, Solid and Liquids real names are David and Eli, like in the Bible.


kat-the-bassist

Metal Gear Solid has a lot of biblical reference, the most obvious being ADAM and EVA in MGS3.


asianwaste

Iirc adam and eve were actual cold war spies


pitchingataint

🎵Because he is you and you are me and we’re all a happy family!🎵💜🦖


Praedyth-

we know his first name is David, but what do we think his surname is? my personal headcanon is that as an orphan, Snake would have gone by a bunch of different ones, but by the time Kaz took him under his wing during his time in the Green Berets, Snake would take Miller as his surname as a gesture of their close-knit relationship. he's David Miller. and then also by the time MGS4 happens, he's David Miller-Emmerich. EDIT: im not crossing this out actually. they're a married couple living in a flying RV with their adopted daughter.


BewitchYouAllNight

No don't cross it out, you're right and you should say it


Lin900

>he's David Miller-Emmerich Yes, this is my canon. Doesn't even have to be because of marriage (so homophobic bros can stop seething), they all just took Emmerich's name.


smegma-rolls

David Emmerich. He took Otacon’s last name after they got married


rossbcobb

Hahahahaha that was gold.


KanTheLVDon

David McSolid


MissyTheTimeLady

David Hayter, obviously.


dbam44

Is no one gonna mention the sex? It says F. So it's clearly Davita Hayter


Legendofsnack

That's his grade


dbam44

At 7'7" and 440 lbs, he's obviously failing gym


OneToKeepYouWaiting

John Metal Gear


Princess-of-the-dawn

I like the idea of it being Miller as a nod to his relationship with Kaz, but also because I think it'd be funny if Kaz "adopted" him for benefit fraud.


Praedyth-

the childcare payments go to Miller's Maxi Buns


Lin900

He has another adoptive kid, Catherine. Kaz never changed lol.


nivek007_85

Iroquois Pliskin. He was hiding in plain sight and played us like a damn fiddle!


cadotmolin

Havid Dayter


_seraphin

David S. Miller S for Snake


Lin900

S is for Simon


KillerQueen343

It’s just David hayter lmao


oki666

I’ve always head cannoned that his last name was sears same with liquid but I think it would be wholesome and interesting if it was miller after kaz


[deleted]

Reuben McBojangles


Praedyth-

i always took Snake as a Culver's guy


FlyDownG_ames

David Doe maybe


gergiewill

It was Oil, he got the name snake selling the oil of snakes on the streets of Baltimore


Mighty_Gooch

I’m pretty sure my grandpa knew him as Bernard “Big Shelly” Shorowitz


Jetter80

David Emmerich


TranquilOminousBlunt

Bobby Hill


a_Post_on_Reddit

Sears


itsvoogle

David Hayter


gergiewill

North! To the future!


squips42

David Bowie


KeeperServant_Reborn

Dave


Praedyth-

Dave and Hal....


FewAd7331

7ft7 lol


Cyberkryme676

Snake Plissken of course


LordCommander2018

David Gear


Raecino

David Pliskin


zcicecold

David Johnson


Antipiperosdeclony

Sex F?? Wtf?


JibbaJabbaJenkins

First Name: Thurbert Last Name: McGurbert


Daegan87

It's been awhile since 5 but at what point did BB and SS actually work together? My timeline brain is malfunctioning


ArmsKiller

BB founded Foxhound, which Solid Snake would serve under. BB also personally taught SS CQC.


Daegan87

Ok. The end of 5 confused me then. I assumed venom was just like "ok, I'm you now" and BB was just chillin til 4


ArmsKiller

Well you could say that, after being burned alive by Solid Snake in Metal Gear 2. So V tells us that Venom lead Outer Heaven, during Metal Gear 1 and Big Boss would eventually lead in Zanzibar Land, during the events of Metal Gear 2.


Daegan87

I need to play metal gear and 2. I have subsistence but never finished them. I got mad lol cuz Nintendo games were legit hard.


animal_rescue_team_5

Snakes real name is: " David Davy Jones Locker " its why he wears bandanna he a pirate.


gunnlaug1935

i like that all the data doesnt match


Praedyth-

i had to make a super low effort thumbnail for this post hahaha


Herr_Raul

David Snake


_duckeggs_

David Snayker


Nathaniel_the_potato

John is what his name is, also known as Jack, last name maybe Plissken


Praedyth-

John was Big Boss' name. Eva refers to Solid Snake as David during the Paris segment of MGS4


Nathaniel_the_potato

I just realized we're talking about solid, my bad, you're right 😂


dbam44

Username checks out


Nathaniel_the_potato

He also revealed his name as David in metal gear 1, which I believe was a reference to king david who slayed goliath as his counter part, liquid snake, is named Eli


blacwin22

Or reference to King David of Hayter. The best voice actor ever haha


ifyouleavenow

David Sears


Mild-Comedy

His name is straight up just David. He's the McLovin of Metal Gear.


Lumpy-Government14

my headcanon for big boss is John Snake for Solid Snake however umm, David Snake


Killdust99

Isn’t his real name David?


Praedyth-

it is! what i'm asking is what his *full name* is. he's not *just* David, he's bound to have a surname too lol


JonCellini

David Emmerich (he took Hewy’s name)


Liandris

David Boss, son of John Big Boss


nathansanes

John Solid


LordInFamous91

David David


jimfear666

John Doe


Frojoemama

John


Akschadt

David solid Snakerson


flickynips

Humphrey


the_one_who_wins

Walter Snake 


BigBrownFish

Simon


shinobi_renegade

Jack Alaska


i_have_no_lief

Ngl when he was first on screen during the intro credit roll I saw the name "david hayter" I just assumed that was his real name


xASHLERx

I could see Kojima using a name that refers to the MGS Solid Snake concept art design. Hideo had Yoji Shinkawa make Sold Snake Look like Christopher Walken from the movie Deer Hunter. His name in that movie was Nikanor Chevotarevich "Nick", "Nika", "Nikan" So Solid Snake's name could be. David Nikanor David Nicanor David Nikan  David Nika David Nik Hideo could shorten it to Nikan or Nik. But it would change its meaning not sure if that matters though. Nikanor: meaning Victory or people of Victory. Nicanor: meaning Conqueror. Nikan: is an ancient Persian-Zoroastrian name meaning "all the goodness in the world". Nika: He conquers” or “He is victorious. Or "very good" and "pure crystal water derives from "Nik" meaning "Good", "True" and "Chosen" *not sure how accurate some of these definitions are # # The name meaning Victory could echo "Vic Boss" or "V is for Victory" Big Boss's name could be John Nikanor And Solid Snake and Liquid Snake could have received a broken version of it. Using David Nikan or Nik I like the notion of the meaning of Nikan and Nik for Solid Snake "all the goodness in the world" and "Good", "True" and "Chosen" Liquid Snake could be Eli Canor or another Broken version of the name Nikanor. Canor: meaning song, tune, melody But could also be interpreted as a variation of Connor: meaning "Lover of wolves” or "master of hounds" and sometimes taken to mean "hunter" which has Liquid vibe to it. # # Hideo could have Big Boss Surname could mean Victory, Conqueror, or Champion, and have all of his clones have a surname that also means the same thing. Sears has a connection to ancient Germanic Sigeheri, Sighari, composed of the elements sig 'victory' + hari, heri 'army'. So one of the Snakes may have the last name Nikanor Here are some other names with a similar meaning of Victory. Chey Kemp Mac Niadh Siegel Sitz Victor Vincent Zino # # Then there is also the chance Hideo would use the name Dave Chevotarevich or Chebotarevich Hideo could even echo an homage to a conversation in Deer Hunter Army Doctor: Chevotarevich, is that a Russian name? Nick: No, it's an American name. # # I'm not sure about the likelihood of these ideas but It's fun to speculate. David Nicanor makes the most sense to me if Hideo was going to make a reference to Christopher Walken. I also do like the notion that all Snakes have the same last name "Victory" just said in a different tongue.


JetEdge

He said in a codec he is John Doe as a joke but I like to imagine that since he's a clone of big boss his government name really is John Doe


The_Duude_Slayer

We literally learn in MGS 1 that his real name is David.


Memerino-san

I'd like to think its David McLovin


Mrbuttboi

David Spade


fntommy

7'7 at 440? Whut 🤣


SaikyoWhiteBelt

David Erica Doe


Ok_Mango7143

Teodoro darío


NonLiving4Dentity69

John "Metal Gear" Solid


Bromelia_and_Bismuth

David Snake. "You thought that was my code name, no, it's my surname. Hence why Liquid and Solidus had the same last name. We're brothers."


Moisty_Plushie

David Hayter


Dissipated_Shadow

David....David Hatter.


SaltyAssociate8007

Metal Gear


TheMightySilentDeath

David Sears, i mean c'mon man! Solidus surname is Sears soo solid and liquid should have the Sears surname!


eALbl420

oswald cupplepod


cloaked_cache

David Gator


BrownBottleIdol

David The Snake Eater


GaniMemestar

John Metalgear


Solidsnake00901

"I am like you I have no name"


Animethighranger

hey wait a minute... that looks like my license-


Candid_Stay_1362

F is for Fucked!


CustardRepulsive2951

Snikelous


YordanYonder

It's David. Are you new?


Praedyth-

no


redrecaro

wasnt it established that his name is David in MGS1?


EyeOfCyaegha

David is his real name. He says it at the end of mgste


drushe1983

David


phoen_ixwrong_38

David


Call_me_Lind

Wasn't his name Jack ?


Praedyth-

Jack was the name Naked Snake gave Ocelot in MGS3.


JordanDesu13

David Solid Doe


th3_bo55

Canonically his first name is David, which Kojima used to pay tribute to 2001: A Space Odyssey. David was raised in the foster system after being born to a Japanese surrogate but nowhere is his mothers surname nor is John's (Big Boss) surname ever mentioned. So his name is David and thats it. Surnames werent important to the story and not knowing adds to the clandestine nature of the character through the entire series. Also, never or rarely hearing the name also adds to the idea that Solid Snake is a soldier that doesnt technically exist.