Season 6, Episode 10: "The Package"

After last week's AMAZING episode (and my super long blog post), I think no matter what we got this week we would be a little disappointed. No way can you top that episode, so naturally it was somewhat of a let down as we didn't get a lot of answers. (although I read that next week is supposed to be another great one.)

I don't feel like there is too much to write about this week, so I will just touch upon a few key pointers and save my energy for next week's big episode.

• Sun had trouble "believing" in their purpose on the island. She does not trust Richard, she does not trust fake-Locke, and she just wants to be left alone. At the end, when Jack talks to her, he makes the same promise to her that fake-Locke did. He promises to help her find Jin and to get her off the island. However, she TRUSTS Jack whereas she does not trust fake-Locke. I thought it was interesting that when Jack came to talk to her she was sitting on the beach staring out at the ocean. If you remember, when Jack was at the lighthouse and saw his name on "the wheel" he sat and stared at the ocean while Jacob came and talked to Hurley. Jacob said that for some people it was as easy as getting in the back of a cab and telling them what their purpose was, whereas others (such as Jack) needed to sit and stare at the ocean for awhile, to truly ponder the idea of their destiny. This is what Jack did, and eventually he really did believe in his purpose there on the island. He was trying to convince Sun of this earlier in tonight's episode, to no avail, but turns out she just needed "to sit and stare at the ocean for awhile." She had to come to make her own decision, and she chose to trust Jack in the hopes that he will make good on his promise.

• So, in Sun's "alternate reality," she and Jin are not married but are having a secret affair. She makes plans to run away with him, but little did she know her father had found out about their relationship and had taken all the money out of her bank account. Turns out that Keamy (the guy from the freighter) was actually hired by her father to kill Jin. He ties him him in the freezer and says to him that "some people just aren't meant to be together." (Remember this is what Juliet also said to Sawyer and also what her parents told her as a little girl). In a strange twist of fate (yes, fate?), Sayid actually kills Keamy, and helps Jin to escape. During a shootout between Jin and Mikhail (the interpreter who escorted Sun to the bank), Sun is accidentally shot (and soon after informs Jin that she is pregnant). Remember in their "real" past Sun was unable to get pregnant. It was only by the "miracle" of the island that she was able to conceive. Also, did you notice who the "language interpreter" was? It was Mikhail, the Russian guy from the island who lived alone in a cabin on the island. Remember how he had an eyepatch? Well, did you happen to notice that when Jin smashed his face down on the corner of the table, he hits him right in the eye. They zoom in real close on his damaged eye, which immediately made me remember that was our eye-patch friend from the island. Very ironic.

So I guess the whole alternate reality theory for Sun and Jin is to determine whether or not they are actually "meant" to be together. So different from their past before the crash, where Sun is having an affair with someone else and just about to leave Jin. Now here they are in this alternate/flashforward world where they are secretly in love, forbidden to be together, and letting destiny run it's course as to whether or not they are meant to be. I am wondering if Sun's life will ultimately be placed in Jack's hands - assuming that Jin will likely rush her to the hospital. Wouldn't it be ironic if our dear Dr. Jack Shephard was the doctor who was given the chance to "save" her. Also because of the fact that on the island, it was Jack who sat with Sun on the beach at the end of tonight's episode, convincing her that he would help her find Jin, and she confides that she does trust him. Ultimately, Jack "saved" Sun here as well, helping her become a believer in their purpose on the island. Wouldn't it be ironic if he "saved" her in the alternate reality too?

• Okay, back on the island, the "war" begins between fake-Locke and Charles Widmore. We also see that Widmore has built the same kind of "security fence" that the Others had in their camp to keep the smoke monster (Locke) out. Both of them are fighting for the remaining people on "the list." We also learn that in order to leave the island, fake-Locke needs ALL of them to go together. He also tells Claire that once he can get those remaining three people, "whatever happens, happens" - which is basically his way of saying that Claire has his "permission" to kill Kate as she had wanted to. The only reason fake-Locke stopped her before is because he needs Kate to help get him off the island. It seems like he does not care whether they live or die, he just needs them to help him escape. We learn from Widmore, that if fake-Locke does get off the island, all of the people in the world "will cease to be." Basically, if fake-Locke gets off the island and infiltrates the rest of the world with "the darkness in his heart," basically the world will end and everyone will die.

Enter "The Package" from Widmore's submarine. He explains that this package is not a what, but a "who." Sure enough, in the final seconds of the show, we see that it is "Mr. Hume" they are bringing from the submarine (Desmond). Remember when Eloise told him after he left the island that "the island is not done with you yet." We also know that Eloise and Widmore were once together and had a child together (Faraday), so clearly they still have ties. She must have helped Widmore to get Desmond back to the island since he supposedly has a "purpose" there. Widmore says that he came back to the island to try and save the rest of the world from fake-Locke. If you remember, when Desmond was first in the hatch, and the Oceanic 815 survivors first found their way into the hatch, when they ask Desmond what he has been doing down there, he replies that he is "saving the world." He believes the world has come to an end, and that the button-pushing is actually saving the world. I think that in Widmore bringing him back to the island, he is going to have some "purpose" in which he truly does have to save the world.

• Another little note - I have always recalled the episode "The Constant" where Daniel Faraday writes in his journal that "Desmond Hume is my constant." I have always believed that surely would come into play again and would certainly be important. Now that we know Desmond's role in coming back to the island as a key player in Widmore's plan, I think we will see more with Faraday and if he is his "constant." Will the island still skip through time? This would help support my theory that the survivors are going to carry out Faraday's scientific plans on how to "erase" their past by keeping the original 815 flight from ever crashing on the island. Because if Desmond never was in the hatch, he would not have avoided pushing the button that one day which caused their plane to crash. Everything ties back to Desmond. However, in the voiceover in the scenes for next week, they talk about Desmond having to make a sacrifice, and once again the line that "the island is not done with you yet." I think that Desmond is going to have to make a sacrifice for the island (perhaps either Penny or his son Charlie, or both) in order to "save" the world. Kind of like saving the ones you love, or saving the entire world. This would be Desmond's purpose. There have been tons of other islanders who have had to make sacrifices in the name of the island. Ben - sacrificed his own father and then ultimately his own daughter, all for the island. Dogan (the man from the Temple) sacrificed his son who he killed in a car crash...in order to save his life he sacrificed every being able to see him again if he went to the island. And even Widmore - who has sacrificed his relationship with Penny because of his "larger plan" with the island and with using Desmond to help save the world. So, clearly, everyone on the island is forced to make a big sacrifice - giving up the ones they love for the sake of the island, and ultimately, for the world and all of mankind.

Season 6, Episode 9: "Ab Aeterno"

WOW!! WOW!! WOW!! Best episode so far this season. I can't even process how much information we just got (why can't every episode be like this one?)

This episode is titled "Ab Aeterno," which is a latin phrase that literally means "from eternity"or "since the beginning of time." This emphasizes the fact that Richard has eternal life.

The episode opens once again with an eye opening - we haven't had the "eye" opening in a while now. Typically the person who the episode is about is the one whose eye you see in those opening scenes, but this time it was actually Alana, who is bandaged up in a hospital when Jacob comes to see her. Is Alana going to have a flashback episode? I would like to know why she is all bandaged up, and why she has such a close relationship with Jacob. Anyway, this is when he comes to her asking for help. He wants her to "protect" the final six candidates. Notice he says "the final six" which emphasizes that none of the other candidates are around anymore.

We then go to present time on the island, where we recently left off with Richard being suicidal and a little crazy. He says everything Jacob ever said was a lie, and proceeds to tell the others that they are all dead and the island is hell. (Of course, the producers were just trying to play with us by making us "think" that was the big mystery of the show and the island. But, come on, we still have 9 episodes to go, I did not for one second believe they were all dead.) As we continue through the episode, we learn that is really a metaphor for Richard's life and experiences. I think the point of the whole dead/hell theory was that in Richard's mind, he was dead (because without his wife, he had nothing to live for) and this whole time on the island has been his personal hell.) Now that he is questioning everything he has ever done for Jacob, and he is trying to persuade the other survivors that they too are dead and this is hell. It is this point that Richard takes off to find "the other person that they should be listening to." Of course we learn this is Locke (smoke monster/man in black) and that Richard has changed his mind and wants to follow him now.

Now we start to learn about Richard's backstory: It is 1867 in the Canary Islands and Richard's wife, Isabella is sick. He travels all night to find a doctor, but accidentally kills him when he won't give him the medicine. He returns to his wife, but it is too late and she has died. Did you notice she had a Bible in her hands as she was laying dead? Richard is taken to jail and is trying to ask forgiveness from God. The priest tells him that he cannot give him penance, as murder is something that cannot be forgiven. He tells him he is going to Hell. Just as he is awaiting being hung, a man comes and purchases him as a slave for the Captain of the Black Rock ship, Magnus Hanso. Remember the name Hanso? It was Alvar Hanso who provided much of the funding for the Dharma Inititative. Also remember when Widmore purchased the log book at the auction from Captain Hanso.

I also want to go back a bit and mention the scene when Richard is in jail, he is reading from the Bible and we zoom in on the passage he is reading, which is Luke 4:37. This is the story of Jesus Christ going into the desert after being tempted by the Devil. He comes across a man who has devil-like qualities (evil/darkness) inside him. This is a direct parallel to Richard coming to the island and being "tempted" by the Devil also, and then coming across the Man in Black (a man in human form but with devil-like qualities, filled with evil and darkness). In the Bible passage, Jesus commanded the "evil" unclean spirits out of the man without doing him any harm, and they come out.

After being "saved" from the hanging, Richard is now on the Black Rock ship, tied up in chains with the other slaves. They are caught in a storm and crash on the island. They are all killed by Whitfield (the man who purchased him), but just as he is about to kill Richard, the Black Smoke shows up and kills them all. It appears before Richard and looks him in the eye, but spares him. I am reminded of this same thing that once happened with Locke (the Black Smoke appeared before him and as Locke later described it, he looked him in the eye and what he saw was a beautiful thing.) Why does the Black Smoke spare Richard but not the other men? Does he see something in Richard that leads him to believe he can be "tempted?" Yes, I think he used his wife's death knowing that Richard could be "conned" or tempted the same way that the black smoke knew that Locke could be "conned" into believing he had to die to save the others (when really the man in black just needed to "use" his body). So, the man in black now appears before Richard, now in human form, and tells him "I am a friend." Notice this is also what Claire referred to him as (her "friend") and he promises to help Richard and to free him from the chains if he will help HIM in return. Richard promises he will do anything. After freeing him, the man in black says "It's nice to see you out of those chains." Remember this is the same thing that he (in the form of Locke) says to Richard again, just after Jacob is dead. This is how Richard knows that fake-Locke is really the smoke monster, and he gives him that same line about being out of the chains.

At this point the Man in Black explains to Richard what he has to do. He tells him they are going to escape from Hell but in order to do that he must kill the Devil. He gives him a dagger and tells him to put it through his chest, but he must do so before he speaks or it won't work. Remember this was the same instructions that Dogen (from the Temple) gave to Sayid when asking him to kill the smoke monster/man in black (fake-Locke). The Man in Black promises Richard that he will be able to see his wife again if he does this for him.

After trying (and failing) to kill Jacob, Richard learns that Jacob is NOT really the devil. The Man in Black tricked him, uses him, trying to get around that "loophole" of how to kill Jacob. He wants to kill him because Jacob is keeping him "prisoner" on the island and he wants off. Jacob then explains to Richard in metaphorical form, that the Man in Black represents evil and a darkness, just like the wine in the bottle. The island is the CORK that keeps the darkness from getting out and spreading. Basically the island is what keeps the man in black from unleashing evil on the world. Jacob's role is to protect the world from the evil getting out from its "cork." The man in black believes that everyone can be corrupted and that it is natural to sin. Jacob wants to prove him wrong. That is why he brings people to the island, to give them moral opportunities to choose between right and wrong. He knows that anyone who passes his "test" will be worthy of taking over his job if and when the Devil is able to find his "loophole" and kill him. (so far no one has passed, apparently, as he is still searching for a replacement candidate). Jacob does not believe in intervening, however, so for those that choose wrong, they die (I guess those are the ones that the Devil "takes" because they no longer are candidates for Jacob). So all of the people whose names we saw that were crossed off the list, are now dead? Jacob says that for those who cannot choose on their own between good and evil, he lets them go. So, these "final six" candidates are the only ones left who have the opportunity to CHOOSE good. With Jacob, he makes it clear that you always have a choice. A choice to do the right thing, to be GOOD.

So, after this explanation, Jacob offers Richard a job. He asks him to be his "representative" for those who he brings to the island. Richard asks what he gets in return. After asking first to see his wife again, and second to be saved from ever going to hell (which Jacob said he could not do), he then asks that he will live forever. Jacob says he can do that. Richard never wants to die because he is afraid he WILL go to hell for the sins he committed. After Jacob promises him eternal life, notice that he touches him. Remember all the "candidates" that he went to visit earlier in their lives, he touches all of them. (Jack, Hurley, Kate, Sawyer, Jin, Sun) - so does this mean that they all will have eternal life as well? He also touched Locke and Sayid, but once they became "evil," Jacob allowed them to die because they were no longer considered candidates. So it obviously was not Jacob who saved Sayid and brought him back to life in the Temple. I assume that it was the Man in Black, he saved him so that he could "take" him because he knew that the evil/darkness had spread and that he could "use" Sayid on his side.

Meanwhile, we go back to the present time when Richard has set off in search for fake-Locke (man in black) so that he can "change his mind" and ask him if his offer still stands. He digs up the cross necklace of his wife's that he buried long ago. It is at this point that Hurley shows up and tells Richard that he can talk to his wife (I'm still curious as to how Hurley can talk to dead people - when will we get another Hurley episode?) He finally convinces him when she tells him that it was not his fault that she died, that she knows he was trying to save her but that it was her time. Richard tells her that he just wants them to be together again and she says that they are together. Richard finally understand that he does not need to side with the devil in order to be with his wife again. He puts the cross necklace back on, which also symbolizes that he is good again - wearing the cross is a sign that he is NOT with the devil but that he has made the choice to be good, to be a man of God again. He finally understands that the Man in Black cannot make a promise for him to be with his wife again, because he knows she is in his heart always.

One last thing, Hurley tells him. He must stop the Man in Black from leaving the island, or they are all going to HELL.


A couple other things I also want to mention....

- I want to talk a bit about the four-toed statue. One of the big questions was always what happened to the statue? The only time we ever saw it in its full size was when we saw Jacob and the Man in Black sitting on the beach as they watched the Black Rock out at sea. It was then that the Man in Black told Jacob that he wanted to kill him, but that he just needed to find a "loophole." As they walked away, we saw the full size statue. Now we know that when the Black Rock crashed on the island, it hit the statue, breaking it up into pieces. Only the foot remains (which is where Jacob lived). Ironically, the four-toed statue is that of "Taweret," which in Egyptian mythology is the Goddess of rebirth and fertility. Both are very important in the underlying themes of Lost. REBIRTH, as we have just learned, is what Jacob gives to those who he brings to the island. He wipes their slates free of sin and allows them to start over, believing that everyone deserves forgiveness and that once on the island, their pasts should not matter. He gives them rebirth. We have seen tons of themes involving "rebirth" on the island. Secondly....fertility as we know is also important on the island. The Others have been doing fertility tests as women are unable to have children on the island. Mythology also tells us that the goddess Taweret was paired with another deity, and became the demon-wife of Apep, the original god of evil. This is symbolic of the two deities on the island, Jacob (representing rebirth) and the Man in Black (representing evil).

- Another thing....I think that in Richard's "vision" of Isabella coming to him when he was on the Black Rock, telling him they are both dead and that this is hell, I believe this was a dream. Richard had been shackled for who knows how long at that point, after everyone else had been killed. He was delusional and probably near death himself. I think this was just his interpretation, figuring he must be dead and in hell (after the priest told him he was going to hell). I do not think they are all dead or that the island is hell. Richard lived his whole life on the island believing that he "saw" Isabella, which is why he made a promise to the Man in Black to help him, because he just wanted to be with her again. However, I think it was the Man in Black who "appeared" to him as his dead wife as a means to "con" him into trusting him. The Man in Black has also done this with other dead people, trying to get others on his side and promising them the one thing they want most in order to turn them to the dark side (claire, sayid). This just proves that people, in their darkest moments, will promise anything just to get the one thing back that they lost. They will allow themselves to be corrupted (which is what the devil says everyone will do). I guess we just need to see if Jacob can prove him wrong and find someone who will choose GOOD to be his replacement.

This whole series of LOST and the whole existence of the survivors on the island is all just a game between Jacob and the Man in Black. Each one of them is trying to "win" the souls of those people, trying to prove to the other one whether Good vs. Evil will prevail. I guess we have to wait 9 more episodes to see which one wins. The whole show has always referenced good and evil, now we know why!!!

Season 6, Episode 8: "ReCon"

The more and more we see of the alternate realities of each of the survivors, it seems that each of them has become a better version of their self. This week we focus on Sawyer, who has spent his life as a conman, the same man that he is hunting (the real Sawyer)...he has actually become that man (his worst enemy). However, now in this new lifeline we see that Sawyer is actually a cop. Turns out he had a choice, to become a criminal or a cop, and he chose to go the GOOD route. Even despite this change in his lifestyle, however, he is still chasing "the real Sawyer" and won't give up until he kills him. Does that mean that deep down he really is a bad person after all? (He is using his role as a cop to do something to benefit himself, and to kill a man without any remorse).

We also learn that Sawyer, both in the past and in the future, can't hold on to a relationship. He is so fixated on chasing down the real Sawyer that he lets it get in the way of forming relationships, both with women as well as with his friend and partner Miles. Perhaps he is just destined to be alone. Back on the island, when Kate asks if he is with Locke, he replies "I ain't with anybody." I think that has always been the case with him. Sawyer only looks out for Sawyer. And even if he insinuates he is "with" Locke, he is only doing it for his own benefit. Every man for himself.

So back to the alternate reality...I am loving all the connections between the island castaways. Sawyer and Miles are partners in the LAPD. Miles sets him up with Charlotte, the archeologist who was sent on the freighter. Sawyer runs into Charlie's brother Liam in the police station (who is there to bail him out of jail after being arrested on the 815 flight). Then at the very end we see him chase down Kate after she crashes her car into his and takes off running. (I am reminded also of when she crashed the car killing her childhood friend Tom and then took off running). Kate is always running. Yet now it is Sawyer who catches her. Funny how they were in the elevator together after their flight landed in L.A., and he noticed the handcuffs on her, yet being a cop he didn't do anything to stop her. This insinuates to me that Sawyer, as a cop, does not have the "good" intentions that a cop should have. He only became a cop so he could pull some strings and help him do the detective work to find the real Sawyer. Most cops would see an escaped convict in handcuffs and would do something to stop them, yet he actually helped Kate get past the security guards coming off the elevator. Just goes to show that Sawyer is still the same guy deep down, a womanizer, a flirt, he is still "Sawyer" - he just happens to be a cop in this life.

There was also an interesting little find in Sawyer's apartment, he had a copy of the book "Watership Down" on his dresser. I've never read it, but here is the description I found when I looked it up: Watership Down is a heroic fantasy novel about a small group of rabbits. (Rabbits have played a large role in LOST...the Dharma test rabbits, the metaphors with Alice in Wonderland and the "looking glass" white rabbit). In the novel, the animals live in their natural environment, but possess their own culture. Evoking epic themes, the novel recounts the rabbits' odyssey as they escape the destruction of their warren to seek a place in which to establish a new home, encountering perils and temptations along the way. This sounds very similar to the plight of our Oceanic survivors.

So back on the island in "real" time, there is a lot going on. Fake Locke tells Sawyer who he really is (the smoke monster) and he shows Claire that he is boss (he slaps her and says that was "totally inappropriate" of her to go after Kate). Fake Locke actually seems like he is genuine in a lot of what he is doing. There was a very important conversation that he had with Kate, when he tells her about his childhood. He says that he had a crazy mother (yes, even he had a mother, back when he "didn't look like this, in this body.") This is very interesting because for the first time, someone has issues with their MOTHER, instead of with their father, as all the others have had (Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Locke, Hurley) and father/abandonment issues. Anyway, he talks about how even if things had been different, it wouldn't have changed anything. This goes along with our theory that DESTINY truly guides one's life, that even if certain events are different in one's life, it all will still end the same. As we have seen in each of the survivor's alternate realities, many of them have very different circumstances of their lives (Sayid's brother is married to Nadia, Locke is with Helen, Sawyer is a cop, etc.), but regardless of these major changes in their lives, things still end up the same. (Sayid is still a torturer, Locke is still in a wheelchair, Sawyer is still searching for the man who killed his parents). This also reminds me of when we saw Jacob and the man in black (smoke monster) sitting on the beach talking about how everything "always ends the same."

So we also learn that Widmore has commissioned a submarine and has made his way back to the island along with his own team. Sawyer makes a deal with him and also makes a deal with fake-Locke (see, he is still a "conman" at heart, making deals left and right just to further his own benefit...to get off the island). Sawyer's plan is to let the two of them "go at it" and meanwhile he and Kate can sneak off the island with the submarine. Here is what I think is going to happen: In the "locked box" inside the submarine I think is a bomb. Somehow they are going to get Jack and Hurley and Miles and use Faraday's plans for detonating the 1977 bomb and use it to carry out their plan of "erasing" their past so that Flight 815 never crashes on the island. Remember Juliet's dying words to Saywer: "it worked." She just didn't say WHEN it worked. So I do think they will erase their past, and everything we've seen so far of them on the plane, landing in L.A., and their lives afterwards is the future. So, as I said above, even with this huge change in their lives (not crashing on the island), they all still end up the same, deep down. Destiny prevails.

I read an article today that says next week's episode is going to tell us the backstory of Richard Alpert and apparently is going to give us a lot of answers, including WHAT exactly the island is.

There was a clue about what the island is, saying it is a 4-letter word, it does not have an A or an E in it, but there is an O. Anyone have any ideas of what that could be?

Here are my guesses:
— TOMB (thinking about all the Egyptian things on the island, the foot statue, the hieroglyphics on the cave walls, when I think Egypt I think of tombs. The island could be a "tomb" of all those who have died there)
— WOMB (problems with fertility on the island? The island metaphorically being the "womb" of the bad twins Jacob and Esau)
— LOOP (the island "looping" through time")

Leave your guesses of 4-letter words with an "O" in the comments section.

Season 6, Episode 7: "Dr. Linus"

I think what we are seeing in the past several episodes is how each of the characters' lives in their "alternate reality" future is not that different from their current lives on the island. For example, last week we saw that Sayid - though he tried to change - in the end he was still a murderer. This week we look more closely at Ben.

Let me go back a little bit though. I have mentioned numerous times over the years on this blog that I thought that deep down, Ben really was good. He has always said that "we are the good ones" and I always said how I felt in the end we would see that he really is good. I talked about how even though he most certainly has done evil things, it was always for the greater good. I think this was solidified in this episode.

On the island, it is discovered that Ben is the one who murdered Jacob (and not the smoke monster as he had told Alana). However, after she forces him to dig his own grave which he is able to escape from with the help of fake-Locke, she runs after him into the jungle. He uses the rifle that fake-Locke told him about and points it at her, to which she gives up and says he may as well go ahead and kill her. We would assume, that Ben being such an evil guy, he would go ahead and kill her right there when given the opportunity, but he does not. He opens up to her that he knows how she feels, because he watched his daughter die in front of him, and it was his fault that he didn't save her. He CHOSE the island over his own daughter. All of this in the name of Jacob, and he didn't even care that he made those sacrifices for him. We learn that Ben does have a heart, after all. It just turns out that he was always acting in the name of Jacob, in the name of the ISLAND, but that deep down the only thing that really mattered to him was Alex, and now she is gone.

Ben says that he is going to follow fake-Locke because he is the only one who will have him. Ben has always felt like an outcast, and now he feels that he has nowhere else to go. Alana says that she will have him. At this point we know that Ben is facing a choice...to follow GOOD or to follow EVIL. Remember he has always said he was one of "the good ones" so it was no surprise to see that he followed Alana. He is trying to redeem himself. Although he doesn't show it well, I do think that Ben truly is one of the good ones. All along he was always trying to do good for the sake of Jacob and the island, he just had to make some difficult choices along the way. Now, finally, without the fears of losing his power anymore, he finally makes the right choice and goes back to the camp with Alana instead of going with fake-Locke.

On the flipside, we also see what Ben's life could be in his alternate reality. It really is not that different. As a high school history teacher, he feels like an outcast, like he doesn't really belong, nobody takes him seriously, and his "power" is underestimated. When he has the choice to blackmail the principal and take over his job (giving him the power he always wanted), he ultimately chooses against it, because it would mean hurting Alex's chances of living her dream. This contrasts the history lesson we saw him teaching to his students at the beginning of the episode. He was talking about Napoleon and how exile wasn't the worst of his fate, it was the loss of power that was truly devastating. However, in this lifetime and on the island, for Ben, exile truly WAS the worst of his fate... he always thought it was the loss of power but after that was taken away he realized that wasn't what he wanted after all, his daughter was always more important. And now he is all alone and has no one. And that is the worst punishment for Ben. He lost everything he had, but when fake-Locke offers him the chance to regain his power on the island and be the leader again, he turns him down...choosing to follow the GOOD ones instead.

Meanwhile, we did find out some more information about Richard Alpert, Jacob, and the Candidates. After running from the Temple, back on the beach, Alana informs Sun that she, too, is looking for Jin. She says she is not sure if she is supposed to be protecting just one or both of them, all she knows is the last name Kwan. But, her job is to protect the candidates. Sun asks her about this and Alana informs her there are "only six" left, and the chosen one will be the new protector of the island, taking over Jacob's job.

We also learn that Richard Alpert was given "a gift" from Jacob. This would explain why he can't die. Because Jacob touched him, he can't kill himself, but he wants Jack to do it for him. Jack lights the dynamite but then explains that Jacob won't let him die either. He brought him to the lighthouse for a reason. He WANTED Jack to see that he has been watching him his whole life. Sure enough, the dynamite never blows up. If Jack is one of the chosen ones, Jacob will not let him die. We know that the other "candidates" are Sawyer, Hurley, Jin and/or Sun. Sayid was one but I am assuming he is off the list now that he has gone to the dark side. And of course John Locke was also a candidate but he is now dead. So does this mean that the rest of them are somewhat "safe" on the island because Jacob will not let them die as long as they are a candidate?

Anyway, Richard explains to Jack that it is not a gift but it is a curse. He has devoted his entire life to Jacob, a man who promised him there was a reason for everything and that they were doing all of this for a purpose. But now that man is gone and Richard just wants to die. But he can't die.

The episode ends with Jack, Hurley and Richard all showing up at the beach where Alana, Sun, Lapidus, Miles and Ben are all starting to set up camp. Remember this is the first time that they have all seen each other in the same timezone since the 2nd plane crash. When they came back to the island, Hurley and Jack landed in the 70s and joined the Dharma Initiative while Sun, Lapidus, Ben and Alana were in the present time dealing with fake-Locke and the trek across the jungle to see Jacob. So, finally Hurley and Jack are reunited with the Others, and they all embrace as they are happy to see each other again. This while Ben just stands there watching as they all hug, and no one runs to greet him. This is the story of his life. He has always been an outsider, and according to his alternate reality, he always will be. Ben is just destined to be an outsider....someone who may appear to be evil and seeking power, but who deep down is making sacrifices in order to protect the island. I actually kind of felt bad for Ben.

Then you see a submarine watching this whole scene unfold on the beach, and it is none other than Charles Widmore. He has found the island again and now is just watching. You have to wonder whose side Widmore is on...is he good or is he evil? Remember that he lived on the island for a long time (in the 50s), but was exiled. So is he back for revenge against Jacob? Or does he truly have good intentions and wants to protect the island as he always claimed?

9 more episodes....give us some answers!!!

Season 6, Episode 6: "Sundown"

Although I thought this was a good episode, I (still) feel like we don't really have many answers. Anyway, here are my thoughts from this episode. I had a hard time coming up with something to write about. We need some answers!!!


IN THE ALTERNATE REALITY:
- Sayid's brother is married to Nadia (his longtime love and the woman he eventually married after leaving the island, only to watch her get killed right in front of him, when Jacob stopped him on the street to ask for directions). We learn that in this alternate reality, Sayid felt he did not deserve her. He was trying to wash his hands clean of all the horrible things he had done. Turns out his brother is in trouble with a loan shark and ends up in the hospital after being "mugged." Did you notice Jack walking by in the hospital hallway? His brother had previously asked him to do what he does, but Sayid refused, saying he is not that man anymore. Sayid is later apprehended by the loan sharks and taken to see the man who was responsible, turns out it is Martin Keamy! (the crazy military guy from the freighter, who killed Ben's daughter). After Sayid kills all his men, Keamy backs off and agrees to let his brother off the hook. However, Sayid kills him anyway. This goes to show us that Sayid is still that same man. Deep down, he is still a murderer. This parallels the actions of Claire in last week's show, after the man from the Temple told her they did not have Aaron and Jin backed him up, she still killed him anyway. This is what happens to those who are "infected." (Except in this alternate reality, Sayid is NOT infected. This is the reality as if the plane never crashed.) So this just shows us that even without being infected, Sayid does in fact have an "evil" side. He told Nadia he was not that man anymore, but in truth he still is.


ON THE ISLAND:
- Sayid and Dogan (the Temple leader) are having a conversation about why they want Sayid dead. Dogan tells him that the scale measures good and evil, and his measured the wrong way. He tells Sayid that he is evil, and Sayid remarks that he is GOOD, that Dogan doesn't know what kind of man he is. Of course this directly contradicts what we just saw in Sayid's alternate reality, where he "thinks" he is still a good man, but he turns back to his old "evil" ways. I think a big question, though, is if it is considered evil if doing it for the greater good? For example, Sayid killed Keamy as revenge for hurting his brother. Does that still make it "evil?" I guess that is what the island is for - to determine who is good and who is evil, deep down. It seems the ISLAND is always a judge of character for those who truly are GOOD. All of the other survivors who did "evil" things also did it for the greater good (Sawyer wanted to find and kill the real Sawyer in revenge for killing his parents; Kate killing her stepdad for hurting her and her mom). I believe that the island is a judge for each of their characters.

Fake-Locke convinces Claire to go inside the Temple and deliver a message to Dogan. She obliges and goes to tell him that "HE" wants to talk to him. Instead, Dogan sends Sayid and tells him to kill him, but must do so before he speaks. He tells him that if he does this it will prove that there is a small amount of goodness still in his heart. Sayid indeed tries to kill fake-Locke but it is too late. (Too late because fake-Locke already spoke, and now also too late for Sayid. He did try to kill him as that was the last bit of goodness in his heart, but it's too late now, the infection has taken over now and he will become evil). Fake-Locke tells him that he can give him everything he ever wanted. Sayid agrees to follow him and then goes to deliver his message to Dogan and the Others. He tells them all that Jacob is dead and they no longer need to hide in the Temple. He tells them that fake-Locke is leaving the island and they can join him. If they stay, they will die. They have until sundown to decide.

This is similar to what must have happened with Claire, except the smoke monster appeared to her as her dead father (Christian Shephard), whereas he came to Sayid as fake-Locke. The smoke monster always appears to people in the form of someone who has died, because he "takes" their bodies. Remember when Claire just up and left in the middle of the night when Sawyer was trying to get her and Aaron back to the beach so they could be rescued? She just walked away, remember she saw her "dad" and went after him. Then later on we saw Claire sitting in Jacob's cabin with Christian Shephard. That must have been after he "infected" her with the sickness. He promised Claire that he would get Aaron back (that's the one thing she wanted the most). So, just like Jacob has made promises to get people to the island (he promised Dogan he would save his son if only he would come to the island, never to see his son again)...it turns out that the smoke monster is making the same kind of promises. So far, Claire and Sayid have followed him. But which one of them, Jacob or the smoke monster, will honor the promises they have made to their "followers?"

Meanwhile, Kate returns to the Temple and discovers Claire is there. She tells her the truth about Aaron, that she was the one who raised him. Of course Claire gives her the look of death and if she was not in that hole I think she would have killed her right there. Kate tells her that she came back to the island to rescue her. But Claire tells her that she's not the one who needs to be rescued. HE is coming and there's nothing they can do to stop him.

Sayid goes to see Dogan one last time and tells him he is going to stay, then kills him by drowning him in the Spring (the very spring that they drowned Sayid in...talk about irony!) The other man from the Temple shows up and is horrified to see what Sayid has done. He tells him "you just let it in" and Sayid replies "I know." Ben arrives with the other survivors and tries to help Sayid get out by telling him there is still time. Sayid says "not for me." By now we know he is completely infected and the "darkness" has now spread to his heart. He is no longer the same Sayid that we knew. The smoke monster shows up and kills almost everyone left in the Temple. At the end, fake-Locke is walking off with his new "followers" which includes Sayid and Claire, and now Kate who has no where else to go. What is going to happen to Kate as she goes along with them? Fake-Locke surely knows that she is not there to follow him. (Besides, she is still "good" and he knows it.)

I've talked about this many times, but clearly the island has a way of "judging" who is good and who is bad. There is always so much talk about who truly are "the good ones." We have seen in the past when the island determines who is "bad," that the smoke monster comes to get them, which I always took to mean that if the person had been evil, they were going to hell and that was what happened when they died - they were being "punished" by the smoke monster coming to get them. Remember when we saw Mr. Eko's brother (who was bad) get taken by the black smoke? I just assumed that was the island's way of sending him to hell, because he was bad. However, now I am thinking it's not so much like they are being punished after they die, but it is more that the smoke monster is RECRUITING them because they are bad. Like he wants those people on his side. Because he knows they can help him to take over. He makes them promises, they become infected with this "evil" and he recruits those who have come over to the dark side. From the very beginning of this show, it has always been about good vs. evil. I just want some answers already!!