Season 6, Episode 16: "What They Died For"

I can't believe only ONE more episode of Lost left. I can't wait for the finale, but yet I don't want it to come because that just means Lost is over. (big sigh)

Anyway....they are starting to wrap things up and this episode is leading us into the finale and starting to wrap things up. While I don't think there were any HUGE revelations, alot is happening to set us up for the end. Here are a few things I want to mention from this episode, "What They Died For."

The episode started with Jack's eye opening. Once again we have seen numerous episodes opening up this way. In fact the very first episode of Lost was Jack's eye opening as he lay in the bamboo field after crashing on the island. Ironically we learn in this episode that the bamboo field where Jack woke up is very close to the "heart" of the island where the light is.

The alternate reality timeline was really good, I thought. We see more and more how Desmond is interfering in everyone's lives. First he makes the "fake" phone call to Jack saying they found his father's coffin. (I am still not sure what the significance of that would be.) Secondly, he goes to Locke's school and is seen by Ben. Does anyone else think it's weird that both times he went to Locke's school, Ben seems to be the only one who really notices him? They get in a fight, in which Desmond beats him up, and tells Ben he is not there to hurt Locke, but to help him "let go." I loved how they showed Ben having flashbacks of when Desmond beat him up at the marina. This is the first time Ben has crossed over into his previous life. Afterwards, Desmond goes to the police station to see Sawyer where he turns himself in. We then realize it is all part of his plan, as he gets thrown into the jail cell with Sayid and Kate. Desmond has everything planned out. Once the three of them are in the back of the police vehicle being transported, Desmond asks if they are ready to get out of there? Something tells me it isn't just the "car" he is talking about. He makes them promise they will do what he asks if he sets them free. I thought it was ironic that he talked about "setting them free" - just like we have seen with Fake Locke on the island. After they agree,they arrive at some sort of a big ship yard (with a nice little appearance by Ana Lucia!) Is this where the submarine is? I think it's very clear that Desmond is bringing them back to the island. Just goes to show that no matter what timeline, what happens in the past (or the future), they are MEANT to be on the island. And Desmond is going to make sure to get them all together again to be there.

I also LOVED the storyline where Locke is finally "getting it" that this is not just a coincidence, this is FATE. He goes back to see Jack and tells him he wants the surgery. When Ben told him about Desmond saying he wanted to help him "let go," Locke realized that was the same thing Jack said to him before. He is starting to put all the pieces together, and realizes these things all happened for a reason. Surprisingly, Jack says he thinks he is confusing coincidence for fate. However Locke tells him that he believes he is supposed to fix him. This mirrors the two of them in their past life on the island - with Locke believing that it is fate and Jack believing in just coincidence. It wasn't until Locke died that Jack finally started to believe in fate.


Now....moving on to island time.

Ben is very surprised to see Widmore back on the island. Even though he says he is there to help him, Ben does not believe him and refuses to run away with him. Ben says he will wait for Fake-Locke to show up, knowing the inevitable will happen. Sure enough, the "smoke monster" shows up and just like that he kills Richard. Wow! That was a big surprise. It was just like - BAM! Richard is gone. Wow. Then Locke comes walking up to Ben, and offers him a "deal" about promising him something in order to get him to do something for him. Locke wants Ben to kill the rest of the candidates for him (since he can't do it), in exchange he will leave the island for Ben to have it all to himself. Ben agrees (or so he makes Locke think, he still could be lying though). I think this is going to be the big turning point for Ben. We will finally know the truth if he is "one of the good ones" or not. Deep down he has always shown his evil side, though I have always been holding out hope for him that he has done everything for the good of the island. Now we will see the truth. Will he kill the candidates or not? Although he does kill Widmore - but that has been a long time coming. He still could not let him go for killing Alex, and as he said, "he does not get to save his daughter." I think that was for his own benefit (wanting to kill Widmore) but also to get Locke to trust him that he will kill the others. I'm not too sure though. I'm still thinking Ben could be "playing" him in order to protect the island.

We find out also why Widmore came back to the island. He apparently brought Desmond as a "fail-safe." His resistance to electromagnetism made him a last resort to Jacob, so that if Fake-Locke was able to kill all of the candidates, he could never leave. Now Locke has decided that he will find Desmond and somehow get him to destroy the island. What does this mean if the island is destroyed? Will that mean that the survivors will go about in the "alternate timeline" as if they never arrived there, or will it destroy their existance entirely?

Meanwhile, Jacob shows up again and instructs Hurley, Jack, Kate and Sawyer about what they have to do to protect the island. He tells them all why they are all there. He says that because of his "mistake," he is responsible for the monster. HE made him that way. And now someone needs to replace him to make sure the light of the island never goes out, since he can no longer do it. He chose each of them personally because they were like him. They were flawed. They were all alone and were looking for something they could not find. They needed the island as much as the island needed them. We have seen over and over in the past how each of the survivors was ultimately "saved' once they got to the island. All of them, like Jacob said, had nothing, and since arriving to the island, each of them has been given a second chance, a clean slate, a "rebirth." Jin and Sun rekindled their marriage, Kate became "free," Rose was cured of cancer, Charlie kicked his drug habit, Locke could walk again, Michael gained a relationship with his son Walt, Claire gave birth to and kept her baby boy. All of these things are instances in which the survivors gained something by being on the island, something they would not have had if they had not been brought there. So Jacob is right, they were all searching for something, and he gave it to them all once they were on the island. However, now that it's down to just a few candidates left, Jacob says he is not going to choose. It is for whoever wants it. He is giving them what he never had - a CHOICE. Jack immediately stands up and says this is his purpose and what he is meant to do, no question. Ever since Jack left the island the first time, he has felt a long, a sense of yearning for his true meaning in life. Apparently, he believes that this is undoubtedly his purpose and he volunteers.

Jacob brings Jack to a spring where he gives him water and asks him to drink from a cup. This of course is very biblical, representing the Cup of Life, Holy Communion, rebirth, etc.). Jacob instructs Jack to go back to the place where he first woke up on the island (the bamboo field he woke up in), and just beyond that field is where he needs to go. Interesting that the place where Jack started on the island, is right around the corner from the place where he now must go.

I have said before that I thought Jack was going to be the replacement for Jacob. Merely because that would pit him up against Fake-Locke. All throughout the series, we have seen Jack vs. Locke. From one of the earliest episodes titled "Man of Science vs. Man of Faith," it was always Locke and Jack against each other. It was Locke who felt he was meant to be on the island and Jack who wanted to leave, only for Locke to later leave him the note saying "I wish you had believed me." Now, ironically, it is Jack who feels it is HIS destiny to be on the island again - and this is his purpose. To protect the island from Fake-Locke. So once again, we have Jack vs. Locke, only this time it is Jack as "the new Jacob" and it is Locke who is "the new smoke monster." Both have replaced the previous people who served those roles. I have said before, and I will say it again, that I think the whole series will end with Jack and Locke sitting on the beach staring out at the ocean the same way we saw Jacob and MIB sitting on the beach - just showing us once again the "circle of life" on the island - this infinite "loop" that Jacob first spoke of to the Man in Black. It is the same story over and over, people come, they fight, they destroy, but the ending is always the same.

So that's it! Just a few more days to the finale!!!! I can't wait! I am also going to write another blog post between now and then, just going over some of my theories, favorite episodes, things to remember from the past, etc., so make sure to check back before Sunday.