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->''"The goat was a shapeshifter."''
-->-- '''[=KillerKiller=]''', ''Roleplay/{{RubyQuest}}'' discussion

A term for wild, off-the-wall theories. Named after a leading [[TinfoilHat tinfoil-hat]] theory explaining the mysterious shaking, rustling trees on ''Series/{{Lost}}'' during its first season. The theory? The trees were having epileptic fits.

Although ''Lost'' has long since run its course, the image remains a potent title for the trope. No matter how absurd or irrational a theory (or tree) might seem, if it has enough ground, in the eyes of enough fans, it can spread new branches, seed new ideas, [[AscendedFanon and eventually come to influence the entire work]].

Crazy theories are not only common, but expected; especially for mystery series already host to its fair share of MindScrew. An ongoing series which uses ChekhovsGun to the point of becoming a ChekhovsArmoury encourages Trees because all newly introduced objects, people, skills, etc. will eventually be suspected of being a Chekhov's Gun. See StockEpilepticTrees for common species of Tree such as EveryoneIsJesusInPurgatory or AllJustADream. Not to be confused with AluminumChristmasTrees. Has nothing to do with EpilepticFlashingLights.

Epileptic trees that portend something so terrible or disappointing that everyone hopes they aren't true are known as WMG/PoisonOakEpilepticTrees. Epileptic Trees suggested InUniverse by the characters themselves are a sign of ScullySyndrome. When an Epileptic Tree is rendered null and void by the official {{canon}}, it's said to be {{Jossed}}. When an Epileptic Tree becomes canon, you're allowed to say "IKnewIt" -- unless WordOfGod reveals it became canon ''because'' it was an Epileptic Tree, in which case it's AscendedFanon.

Compare conspiracy theories, Epileptic Trees about RealLife. Some epileptic trees use FictionScience analysis as their base. See also InferredSurvival, UrbanLegendOfZelda and SchrodingersButterfly.

If you'd like to see the wiki contributors' own personal epileptic forest, check out our WildMassGuessing page. [[Administrivia/ExampleSectionectomy Don't waste your tree here]] -- go plant it in Wild Mass Guessing.
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