Theories, Odds and Ends

In this off week, I didn't think I'd post anything. But, as it turns our, I have a couple of theories and observations to share.

The Cop Out
As they come close to finishing the season finale, Lost show runners Damon Lindeloff and Carlton Cuse have been giving a lot of interviews, and recording a lot of podcasts lately. One such interview produced a response to a fan question that, I have to admit, I found a little disappointing.

In my mind, one of the more interesting questions Lost ever asked was how Libby ended up in the Santa Rosa mental hospital at the same time as Hurley, and if there was a greater meaning to that coincidence. Now, however, Darlton has recently said that, in their minds, the Libby story has already been told.

This, to me, is a big let down. I wanted some cool Libby/Hurley connection that perhaps also could hae explained her connection with desmond. Now, it appears, we'll never get that story. So what happened? Here's my guess - Cynthia Watros, who plays Libby, may just not be available for any guest appearances. Another possibility is that, with only 17 episodes left to write and shoot, they just can't find the time divert from the main story to tell us more about Libby (though, again, I was hoping Libby's story and the larger story would have been more connected). A final possibility, which ties in to my next point, is that perhaps the character whose story Libby's would have to link up with will soon get killed off...

Death Watch 2009
Another item that has had the internet buzzing lately is the rumor that a major character would die before season's end. For a while, the assumption had been that this death would come in the season finale, but now, the buzz is that we might see that death this week, in "The Variable."

This brings up the question - who's the next one to join the Lost body count?

In my mind, there are three obvious choices. First and foremost, you have to look at Sayid. As I opined a few weeks ago, his story seems to hae come to a natural end, and with DHARMA cunning for him for his shooting Ben, it would seem his days are numbered.

Second of all, there's Desmond. Sure, he beat Ben to a bloody pulp, but only after getting shot in the abdomen. This doesn't bode well for our favorite Scotsman. On the other hand, Ms. Hawking told Desmond that the island isn't done with him, and, since he has yet to go back, he seems a little less likely to go right now.

My third choice is Hurley. As I theorized last week, his head seems to be churning out a plan to sabotage the Swan station to change the future. I suspect Hurley may inadvertently create the "incident" that will ultimately, decades later, bring down Oceanic 815. Given the tremendous power in the area of the Swan station, if I'm right about Hurley's intention, couldn't he be in serious danger?

Finally, my dark horse is Sawyer. Now, I think Josh Holloway's spot as eye candy for female fans and a vital cog in the Jater/Skater/ Jackliet/ Juliyer quadrangle makes his death a bit of a longshot. But given that he's spend season 5 finally living up to his potential, could a heroic sacrifice be in his future? wouldn't that be the kind of shock Lost prides itself in?

The Magic Number
My last theory is a bit out there, so bear with me. Ever since season 1, we've know about the numbers - 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42 - which seem to have a recurring importance. The "Lost Experience" alternate reality game from the second offseason told us that the numbers were constants in the Valenzetti equation - a doomsday forumla that predicts the end of the world. We were also told that DHARMA's primary pupose was to change one of the numbers, and thereby avert this armageddon scenario.

(For their part, Damon and Carlton have said in podcasts since then that the numbers will turn out to have had their signficance since long before Valenzetti's equation was written).

Meanwhile, all along, those numbers repeatedly turned up, in various combinations, in the lives of the Lost characters. See, for example, the flight number, 815 (8-15 - get it?). But now, all of a sudden, in season 5, the number "3" has taken on an added importance. The Oceanic Six were off-island for three years. Team Sawyer spent three years in DHARMA before their former companions came back. And the flight that brought Sun, Jack, Kate, Sayid and Hurley back to the island was flight 316 (3-16). Is it possible that, in some way, the time-hopping antics of those who stayed behind may have actually done what DHARMA, by itself, was unable to do before. In other words, might one of the numbers have changed, for example, from 4 to 3? Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

Well, if I'm right (and I don't pretend to understand this stuff I wrote enough to have a strong sense that I am), we may learn about it this week, in the Daniel Farraday-centered episode entitled, "The Variable."

Until then, my friends, Namaste.