Eps 516-517 - "The Incident" Happens...or Does It?

The Tease
Jacob finally introduced! The whereabouts of Rose, Bernard and Vincent revealed!! A new character changes the meaning of everything we’ve seen on the show thus far!!! All of this, plus the most maddeningly ambiguous ending since the peer down the hatch, in season 5’s epic capper, “The Incident.”

Flashbacks
The flashbacks in the finale – with one notable exception – focused on the oft-mentioned but never truly seen Jacob. Jacob, we learn, has been on the island since at least the mid-1800s (and, we are led to believe, much longer than that). And yet, we also got to know Jacob as a mysterious figure who appeared at various times in the lives of our “main” characters.

Flashback 1 – Jacob, himself
We first meet Jacob spinning thread in a candle-and-fire-lit room, then weaving that thread into a tapestry.In this room are three jars. Jacob, wearing a white tunic, then goes to gather a fish trap, and cooks the fish on a rock. Off in the distance, he sees a tall ship. Another man, dressed in a black tunic, joins him. The newcomer says he just ate, so he doesn’t want any fish. He wonders aloud how the ship found the island, then directly accuses Jacob of bringing them there, to prove him wrong. Decrying that newcomers to the island always end up fighting and killing each other, the man who was referred to in the episode’s credits merely as “Man 2” insists, “it always ends the same.” “But it only ends once,” corrects Jacob. “Anything that happens before that, is just progress.” Man 2 (can we call him “Manny?”) asks, out of the blue, “do you have any idea how much I want to kill you?” Jacob coolly responds that he does, and Manny comments about how he’ll find a loophole. As Manny walks off, we see that this scene has taken place, in fact, in the shadow of the statue, which is revealed to be a crocodile-headed Egyptian god figure of colossal proportions.

Aside Number 1 – the subtext in this scene alone could be worthy of its own recap. I don’t know how long the writer’s room worked at crafting it, but it was one of the most brilliant and intricate scenes to date on the show. Where, oh where, to begin?

There’s the three jars. I invite any classics or archeology majors reading this to correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe these three jars call to mind Egyptian mummification. Traditionally, Egyptians removed the three most vital organs (I shudder to think which three those might be) and stored them in jars next to the mummy. Bearing in mind that mummification was common when pharaohs were buried, and pharaohs were believed to be gods, could it be that Jacob is, in the ancient Egyptian sense, a divine being?

Of course, the big reveal here is Manny. Ever since early in Season 3, the implication has been that Jacob, the unseen man pulling the Others’ strings, was the one force who alone would explain the island’s mysteries. Now we learn that Jacob has been locked in an eternal struggle with an adversary, one who unabashedly announced his (already known to Jacob) intent to “find a loophole” and kill Lord Other. This whole loophole thing calls to mind something else – the struggle between Widmore and Ben, in which they both understood they would be unable to kill each other. The Ben/Charles war, we know, has rules, though not immutable ones. And the loophole that caps off this episode certainly explains what happened to Alex.

Now that we’ve met Jacob and Manny, hasn’t their existence, and their conflict, somehow seemed obvious? Think back to season 1. When Locke taught Walt backgammon, he explained how the game is a battle between light and dark. Later that season, Charlie claimed to have had a dream about a white rock and a black rock, and, of course, the skeletons in the cave held a black stone and a white stone. Now here are two adversaries, one in white, the other in black. Clearly, Jacob at least recognizes that there will be only one true end to their struggle, and everything up to that point is merely “progress.” As we know, there have been many waves of people coming to the island over the years.

Then there’s the ship, which appears to be in the same position and configuration as the one Richard built in a bottle in “Follow the Leader,” is most likely the Black Rock. Manny’s suggestion that Jacob brought the ship here suggests Jacob has been recruiting people to the island for a very, very long time. That reference to Richard’s model, as well, suggests that Richard may indeed have arrived on the island on Black Rock. And, assuming the ship is indeed the slaving ship that will eventually settle in the dark territory, that puts this scene in 1843.

There’s also the look we got at the statue. Some quick online research suggests the statue is the Egyptian God, Sobek. Wikipedia tells us, in pertinent part, this about Sobek:

“Sobek was the deification of crocodiles, as crocodiles were deeply feared in the nation so dependent on the Nile River. The god Sobek, which was depicted as a crocodile or a man with the head of a crocodile was a powerful and frightening deity; in some Egyptian creation myths, it was Sobek who first came out of the waters of chaos to create the world.

“Gradually, Sobek also came to symbolize the produce of the Nile and the fertility that it brought to the land; its status thus became more ambiguous. Sometimes the ferocity of a crocodile was seen in a positive light, Sobek in these circumstances was considered the army's patron, as a representation of strength and power.

“Sobek's ambiguous nature led some Egyptians to believe that he was a repairer of evil that had been done, rather than a force for good in itself.

“In Egyptian art, Sobek was depicted as an ordinary crocodile, or as a man with the head of a crocodile. When considered a patron of the pharaoh's army, he was shown with the symbol of royal authority - the uraeus. He was also shown with an ankh, representing his ability to undo evil and so cure ills.”

This statue carries two ankhs, suggesting he’s really into undoing evil and curing ills. Aren’t these notions front and center in Lost’s major themes? And what about Sobek’s link to fertility? This, I’ll return to later.

Also, there’s the fish. Yep, that fish is a red herring. Could it be the obvious interpretation of this scene – that Jacob is a “good” guy, while Manny is evil, is in fact a deliberate turning upside-down of the reality behind this conflict? I tend to think not, but it’s cute of the writers to stick a literal red herring into the scene to at least playfully suggest that idea.

Finally - what did Manny eat? My theory at this point is that he is the smoke monster. What does one feed a sentient electric telepathic smoke cloud that can take human form?

Flashback 2 – Kate

In Ames, Iowa, we see young Kate, with her doomed childhood friend Tom (we know it’s Tom, because he has that toy plane) conspire to steal a lunchbox from a general store. They’re caught, but Jacob shows up, and offers to pay for the lunchbox so there’s no harm done. He crouches down and asks Kate, “you’re not going to steal anymore, are you?” Then he touches her on her nose.

Flashback 3 – Sawyer

Jacob interacted with young Jimmy Ford at his parents’ funeral. As Jimmy sits to write the letter to “Mr. Sawyer” that would come to guide his actions for years, his pen runs out of ink. Thankfully, Jacob was around to give him a new pen, noticeably brushing James’s finger when he handed it to him. After Jacob leaves, another man takes the note from Jimmy, and cautions him to move on. He says they’re gone. “What’s done is done,” he tells Jimmy, and asks him to promise that he won’t finish the letter. Jim promises (his first con?), and the man takes him to go say goodbye.

Aside Number 2 – this was yet another brilliant scene. Given all we know about James "Sawyer" Ford, this moment clearly shaped so very much of the man he would one day become. This is very much the start of the journey that leads James to Australia, and then onto Oceanic Flight 815…

Flashback 4 – Jin and Sun
At their wedding day, Sun and Jin recite their vows. Jin, who has to read his, says they will never be apart, because that would be like the sky being apart from the Earth. In the receiving line is Jacob, who offers his blessing. Touching them both briefly, he says in flawless Korean, “your love is a very special thing. Never take it for granted.” Jacob bows and walks away.

Flashback 5 – John Locke
Jacob reads on a bench – Flannery O'Connor's Everything That Rises Must Converge – and, in the background, John Locke plunges from his father’s apartment. Jacob walks to John, touches him, and John comes to. “Don’t worry,” soothes Jacob. “Everything’s going to be alright.” Jacob says he’s sorry this happened to John.

Aside Number 3 – is it just me, or was Locke actually dead before Jacob touched him? In the near future, Matthew Abadon would tell Locke how lucky he was to be alive. Maybe luck had nothing to do with it? Maybe Locke had a preview of Jacob's/ the island’s healing powers at this defining moment in his own life. Not that he remembered it…

Flashback 6 – Jack
We finally see that first solo surgery Jack told Kate about waaaay back when they first met. Christian, observing, tells Jack to calm down, that the only way not to paralyze the patient is to close his eyes, count to five, “and then fix it, Jack.” Jack counts to five, and calms down. He goes back to the surgery, then, when it’s done, he goes to buy an Appollo bar, which doesn’t fall out of the machine. Christian tells him the girl is not paralyzed. Jack, however, is upset his father embarrassed him to be happy at the result of the surgery. “Dad, I know you don’t believe in me, but I need them to.” Dourly, Christian asks, “are you sure I’m the one who doesn’t believe in you, Jack?” He walks off, and Jacob shows up to give Jack his candy bar, touching his hand in the process. “I guess it just needed a push,” says Jacob (but of course he could be referring as much to Jack as to his candy bar).

Flashback 7 – Sayid
Sayid and Nadya cross a street in Los Aneles as they plan to celebrate their their anniversary. Jacob interrupts Sayid by tapping his shoulder, but Nadya continues across the street, only to be killed by a car that drives off. In her dying breath, she tells Sayid she loves him, then asks him, in Arabic, to take her home.

Aside Number 4 – this of course is the moment in which Sayid started on his dark path of becoming Ben’s assassin. By and large, didn’t it seem that Jacob was doing good, or at least not hurting, with the other people he met off-island? So then how to square this horrible event with that general “Jacob=good” notion? How about this – that car was barreling through the intersection one way or the other. Don’t think of it as letting Nadya die, but rather saving Sayid.

Flashback 8 – Hurley
Hurley gets his property handed back to him at the county jail. He comically tries to fight his release. “Look, dude, there’s men with tranquilizer guns who want to hunt me down and bring me somewhere against my will.” The discharge officer is unimpressed. Hurley hops a cab, but finds Jacob inside with a guitar case. He asks what Jacob was in for, and admits, “I was in because I killed 3 people, only I didn’t really. I guess they figured that out.” Jacob, who manages to touch Hugo, says he wasn’t in jail. He was waiting for Hugo, and he’s definitely not dead. Jacob asks Hurley why he won’t got back to the island. “Because I’m cursed,” murmurs Hurley. “Is that so?” asks Jacob. “What if you weren’t cursed? What if you were blessed? You get to talk to the people you lost? Sounds pretty wonderful. I got some news for you, and you’re just going to have to take my word for this – you are not crazy.” Jacob tells him about the Ajira flight, and how getting on the plane in Hurley's choice. He leaves behind the guitar, and says it’s not his.

Aside Number 5 – Of all the returning Oceanic Sixers, Hurley’s story leading up to Ajira 816 was the only one we didn’t have…until now. It’s clear from the post-Ajira events that Hurley has had a weight lifted off his shoulders. He really seemed to believe his jinx had been a blessing, and now we know why. We also know why he carried a guitar case around, even while sneaking away from DHARMA camp – it certainly seemed to have been an implied suggestion from this stranger who set him on his path.

Flashback 9 – Ilana
In Russian, Jacob, wearing gloves, apologizes to Ilana, who is wrapped all over in bandages, for not coming sooner. He says he’s come because he needs her help. Ilana, who seems to know who Jacob is, says she’ll help him.

Aside Number 6 - A common factor in all but one of these flashbacks was that each character was physically touched by Jacob. With Locke, that touch revived him after his high fall. With Sayid, that touch seemed to save his life, even as it did not spare Nadya. What's more, I think we just discovered which of the flight 815 passengers were there by design, and that the designer was Jacob. Anyone else think the final season will be about why Jacob brought these particular people to the island? But, rather than touching Ilana, who seemed to know who he was, Jacob just directly asked for help. I'm curious why she was brought in differently than the others.

2007
The Locke-led expedition continues. Sun asks Ben who Jacob is. Ben says he's in charge of the island. Sun asks about Locke being the leader, and Ben clarifies, "John is the leader, but everyone answers to someone, and the leader ansers to Jacob." Sun asks what he’s like, and Ben, clearly wounded by his response, says he’s never met him.

Richard asks John about his having been killed by Ben. John says Richard’s been on the island longer, so he figured he would know what happened, but Richard says he has never seen anyone come back to life. Richard says he’s ageless because of Jacob, and if he had to guess, John is like this because of Jacob, too. John agrees (particularly ominous in light of the big reveal about Locke's nature later in the show). He says after he thanks Jacob, they’ll have to deal with the Ajira passengers. When Richard asks what he means, Locke responds sinisterly, "what do you think I mean?"

Aside Number 7 - this plan to wipe out the Ajira passengers is the surest sign yet that resurected Locke is more than a little different from pre-murder Locke. Did anyone guess where this was going? Also, I think the fake Locke was probing Richard to see if he knew or suspected anything.

Speaking of the Ajira passngers...Ilana’s crew rows ashore with their big box and knocked out Frank loaded in an outrigger. Bram wants to know why they brought Frank, and Ilana says they might need him. Bram asks if he might be a candidate? Frank is awake, and wonders what he’s a candidate for. Ignoring the question, Ilana says she’s a friend. Frank asks if she whacks and kidnaps all her friends, and she sayd only the ones they like. Frank asks what’s in the box. Ilana decides to show him – Frank looks in, grimaces, and says, “terrific.”

Aside Number 8 - The Ilana/Bram crew, even at the end of the episode, remain one of the biggest mysteries. For what could Frank have been a candidate? Is that why he was supposed to pilot Oceanic 815? After what we saw with Jacob's involvement in the 815ers' lives, can Frank's liks to both flights be considered a coincidence?

Locke trek continues. Locke asks Ben why he hasn’t told Richard yet about the kill Jacob plan. Ben says he assumed he’d want to keep it a secret. John, amused, wonders aloud when that started to matter. Ben, even more defeated, says he started thinking differently about things when his dead daughter threatened to destroy him if he didn’t do everything Locke said. Locke, positively beaming, confirms Ben will do whatever he says. "Well then, I guess I won’t have to convince you after all." Ben's exasperated delivery of the follow-up is priceless - "Convince me to do what?" Again looking like the cat that ate the canary, Locke says, "I’m not going to kill Jacob, Ben. You are."

Frank says he wishes they never showed him what was in the box. Bram explains they need to show it to someone else so they’ll know who they were up against. Frank asks what that would be, and Bram tells him, "something way scarier than what’s in the box." Bram insists they're the good guys, to which Frank responds, "In my experience, the people who go out of their way to tell you they’re the good guys are the bad guys." They find the cabin, but Bram notes that the ash is disturbed. This causes some alarm. Ilana tells the others to wait and goes into the shack. Inside, there is a machete, similar to the one Jacob used to gut the fish, holding up a parchment. She takes it to Bram, and says, "he isn’t there, and hasn’t been for a long time. Someone else has been using it." She orders her red shirts to burn the hut, and they do. Frank is concerned this will burn down the jungle, but nobody pays attention. Ilana shows Bram the parchment – it’s the god from the statue. Bram sees it, and says, “well I guess we know where we’re going.”

Aside Number 9 - I thought the ash around the cabin actually meant something! We've seen the ring broken before. If I'm not mistaken, the ash line was disturbed when Locke saw Christian and Claire in the shack last season. Is Christian the "someone else?" Given Ilana's reaction to this other person's presence in the shack, I'd say Christian's claim to speak for Jacob is highly dubious.

Locke continues to lead his merry band, and has them rest at the former 815ers camp. John finds Ben, who, without looking up, says, " I was enjoying some alone time." Locke points out the Swan hatch door, and notes that's where they first met. "Mind if I ask you a question?" asks Locke, to which Ben, not mising a beat (but also lying), responds, "I’m a Pisces." Ben admits he had only pretended to see Jacob, and was just as surprised as Locke when things flew around the room. He confesses he was embarrassed avout never having seen Jacob. "So yes, John, I lied. That’s what I do." Ben asks why John wants him to kill Jacob. Locke responds by deflecting, "because, despite your loyal service to this island, you got cancer. You had to watch your own daughter gunned down. And what was your thanks? You were banished. And you did all this in the name of a man you never even met. So the question is, why the hell wouldn’t you want to kill Jacob?"

Aside Number 10 - even as Locke 2.0 continues to relish his ability to swap roles with Ben, the once-great manipulator, he creeps me out. Meanwhile, Michael Emerson, in my mind, delivered his best perormance of the season this episode. This beaten down version of Ben truly fleshes out the character.

Sun moves through the camp, and finds Aaron’s cradle. In it, she finds Charlie’s ring.

Aside Number 11 - in the show's order of scenes, this triggers Sun's flashback to her wedding. But to the audience, this trip down memory lane is a reminder that this is still very much the same story we've been watching for 5 years, even if it has changed its focus several times.

The Others party stops, and John asks Richard why. Richard responds, "you'll see." They arrive at the leg of the statue. "Well it’s a wonderful foot, Richard," snarks Locke, "but what does it have to do with Jacob?" Richard responds, it’s where he lives.

Night falls at the statue. Locke stares at the foot. Richard plants torches, and asks if he needs to do this. If he waited, Jacob would come to him. John demands to know where Jacob is.

Sun asks Ben what happened to the statue. Ben says it was like that when he got here. "You expect me to believe that?" Demands Sun. "Not really."

Aside Number 12 - this exchange was a little awkward, but it seems to stand for the notion that Ben was present when the statue was destroyed. Now recall my discussion of Sobek, and his connection to fertility. Now also recall that, some time after Ben came to the island (i.e., after Ethan was born), pregnancy became a death sentence for island women. So I can't help but wonder if the baby plague was caused by the destruction of a fertility totem, and, if so, if that was done deliberately?

Richard objects to Ben's tagging along, insisting there can only be one leader, and only the leader can see Jacob. John says he thinks Richard makes up the rules as he goes along. If there’s a problem he is sure Jacob and he can work it out. Richard finds a hidden door, and pushes it in. "Tell him I said hello," mutters Richard, and then steps aside.

Aside Number 13 - I truly hope one of the 17 remaining episodes turns out to be Richard's backstory. He seems to follow a specific set of rules, but to what end? And why did Jacob make him ageless?

John pushes the rest of the way in. He and Ben enter. John reassures Ben, "I know it won’t be easy, but things will change once he’s gone. I promise." He hands over a knife, which Ben considers, then takes deliberately.

Sun sits and waits. Richard joins her. He offers her water, but she wants booze. Ilana’s group comes out, and says, don’t shoot. It’s ok. She lowers her gun. She asks which one is Ricardus. Richard steps forward, and says, "It’s Richard, actually.". Again, Ilana asks, "What lies in the shadow of the statue." He responds in Latin, "Ille qui nos omnis servabit."

Aside Number 14 - Oh. Of course. The answer to the cryptic Eglish question is a phrase in Latin. Perhaps there really was no point to my insistence Frank should have guessed the answer. As for what this means, I found two competing translations online: 1) "He who will save us all," and 2) "That which we protect." I found more support for option one. Any Latin scolars want to help out with this?

Ilana says she has something Richard needs to see. They open the crate, and dump out a body. It was in the cargo hold. The body is....Locke!?. Ilana, who saw Locke walking around and talking, said he was in the coffin. Sun (who in this storyline has played the part of the audience proxy) asks, "if this is Locke, who’s in there?"

Inside the statue, the other Locke leads Ben into the loom room, as though he knows his way around. Torches and fires are burning. Ben sees the completed tapestry – an Egyptian design, but with Greek writing. From:

Aside Number 15 - thanks to reader Simos Tsamkosoglou, for emailing me this about the Greek text:

"Even though the design is Egyptian Hieroglyphic, the inscription is Ancient Greek. There are 2 texts. One in the top as title and one in the middle. I thought as a Greek myself to help you with that and with translation. The first phrase is : 'Σοι δε θεοί τόσα δοίεν, όσα φρεσί σήσι μεμοινάς' which is translated as 'Let the Gods give you all these that your heart desires.' The second phrase is: 'Ούλε τε καί μάλα χαίρε, θεοί δέ τοι όλβια δοίεν' which is translated as 'Be good and happy (joyfull), may Gods give you happiness.'"

Simos continues, "both these phrases are from Homer's Oddyssey the ancient tale of the hero Oddyseus (Ullyses) and how much trouble he found trying to return to his land. The symbolisms are way too obvious for our heroes in LOST." Indeed they are, Simos. Consider these: Desmond, lost at sea for 3 years, striving, like Odysseus, to be reunited with a lost love named Penelope. Then there's Ben, who on the Ajira flight read James Joyce's Ulysses. And that's just scratching the surface!

Jacob sits and waits. He asks, regarding the tapestry, "do you like it? I did it myself. It took a long time, especially since I made my own thread, but I suppose that was the point." Faux Locke says, "Hello, Jacob," and Jacob responds, "well, you found your loophole." Locke responds, "indeed I did. And you have no idea what I’ve been through to get here."

Aside Number 16 - Bam! So Locke hadn't changed in a personal growth sense. Rather, he has been "Manny" ever since his apparent resurrection. This means that Manny is a shapeshifter, but one whose disguises Jacob can see through. I wonder who else Manny has been? If I had to guess, I'd say he's been Christian, Yemi, Alex, and perhaps even strange-behavior Claire (which is a bit of a stretch, since she sat next to Christian).

Since we've been hopping mythologies, I thought I'd toss in some Norse...could Faux Locke be Loki ("Locke-y")? In Norse mythology, Loki was the great trickster, the instigator of conflicts that more benevolent gods like Thor and Balder had to overcome.

Ben, observing the exchange, asks, "have you met before?" Locke responds, "in a manner of speaking." Jacob calmly addresses Ben. "Benjamin, whatever he’s told you, I want you to understand one thing. You have a choice. You can do what he asks, or you can go. Leave us to discuss our…issues." Tired of feeling dismissed, Ben asks, "so now, after all this time, you’ve decided to stop ignorning me? 35 years I’ve lived on this island, and all I’ve ever heard was your name. All those slips of paper, all those...lists. I never questioned, I did as I was told. But when I dared to ask to see you myself, I was told, you have to wait, you have to be patient. But when he asks to see you, he gets marched straight up here as if he was Moses. So, why him? What was it that was so worng with me? What about me?" Jacob responds, without inflection, "what about you?" This enrages Ben, who stabs Jacob twice. Jacob pulls John closer, and says, "they’re coming." John then rolls Jacob into the fire.

Aside Number 17 - so it seems Ben and Charles were bound by rules similar to those that bound Jacob and Manny. Were these Others leaders proxies for the island's gods? It also seems that the loophole is basically just convincing someone else to do the dirty work. I hope it's more than just that - I mean, did it really take Manny 160+ years to come up with that?

Also, did you notice how Jacob held onto Ben after the stabbing, one last touching?

Now, why did Jacob goad Ben like that? Was this his Obi-Wan, "if you strike me down, I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine" moment? And who did he mean when he said, "they're coming?" If I had to guess? Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley, Jin, Sun, Sayid, and an actually resurrected John Locke. On what do I base this? Why, the events of the other storyline in the episode....

1977

(But first, another....)

Flashback - Juliet
We see Juliet and big sister Rachel get the talk from their parents about their impending divorce. They insist they love each other but don't belong together. "What if you are supposed to be together," asks Juliet. "We just know," insists the mother, "and, when you’re a grown-up, you’ll understand." Juliet storms off, and says she doesn't want to understand. Of course, she does come to understand, a little too well, and it informs her seemingly arbitrary decisions, beginning on board...

1977 (For Real This Time)

The sub. Sedatives get passed out for the trip. Kate tells Sawyer and Juliet about the need to stop Jack's bomb plan. Juliet and Sawyer exchange a look. He tells Kate he wants to take his chances in the real world. "If Jack wants to blow up the island, good for Jack."

Jack and Sayid, reviewing Faraday’s journal, see they have to remove the core of the bomb, and detonate that at the Swan. Richard points out they sealed Jughead and put it underground because of radiation. He confirms what I suspected last week - Ellie is pregnant. Sayid says they have only 2 hours to get the core to the Swan site.

At the Swan site, Radzisnky shows up and wonders who stopped the drill. Chang did, because it shot up in termperature. After it passed 70 meters. Radzinsky, who has been working on this project for 6 years, insists they drill on. Chang tries to caution Radzinsky, but the paranoid nerd insits he came to the island to change the world, and that’s exactly what he plans to do. The drill reactivates…

On the sub, Sawyer ponders the nuke reset plan. But he insists he decided to leave, and he sticks by his decisions. Suddenly, Juliet knocks out the sedative guy. "We decided to leave," she reminds her beau, "and we’re going back. We can’t just let those people die. You want out?" They take the control room. Sawyer and Juliet demand to be let out, and for the sub to continue on its course, and not come back.

As Sayid loads the core in a backpack, Richard takes a sledgehammer. He asks Jack, "over 20 years ago, a man named John Locke walked into our camp and told us he was going to be our leader." Richard asks if Jack knows Locke, because two of his three off-island trips in the interim were to visit Locke, and he never seemed special. Jack smiles and says not to give up on him.

Aside Number 18 - we've seen the two visits to Locke. I seriously doubt the writers had Richard mention a third trip as a throwaway line. Any thoughts what else took him off island?

Richard leads them through the tunnels. He smashes through a rock wall with the sledgehammer – into the building that will eventually be Ben’s house, but now is Horace's. Eloise says she'll go first, but Richard knocks her out. Richard says she's their leader, "she’ll be angry, but that’s better than being dead."

Aside Number 19 - if there's only one leader, and it's Eloise, that means it's NOT Charles. I think this adds more to my theory that Charles must have tricked Elly off the island, to usurp her. Pretty low, since she's carrying his son...

When they emerge, Jack and Sayid find there’s still an alert underway. Sayid suggests they hide in plain sight, and commandeers Horace’s jumpsuit and holds his gun in plain sight. They get past Phil and a security team, only to be spotted by Rodger, who recognizes the man who shot Ben. Rodger shoots Sayid in the gut, (even as Sayid tries to tell him he's carrying a nuke) and Jack shoots back. Yet again, Hurley arrives in a DHARMA van to save the day (this time with Jin and Miles). They hop in, and Jack tells Hurley to drive on!

Sawyer, Kate and Juliet row back as the sub dives away. Sawyer and Kate banter, and Juliet looks on, sadly. Kate thanks Juliet for backing her up. Sawyer has no idea where they are…when Vincent runs out to greet them. He’s accompanied by Rose and Bernard! Rose sees them first - "oh, hell no! Bernard? They found us!" Bernard steps out, "son of a bitch."

Jack, treating Sayid, demands that Hurley take them to the Swan, then tells Jin he found a way to take him back to Sun. Bernard confirms they’ve been living in the jungle for 3 years. Rose says they didn’t join DHARMA with them, because they’re retired. They made this place for themselves. Sawyer reiterates that Jack is about the blow them all up, but Rose takes a zen approach. Bernard says, "so we die. We just care about being together." Rose can't believe they've traveled back in time 30 years, and they're still shooting at each other. Rose then directs them towards the barracks.

Aside Number 20 - I still think Rose and Bernard will turn out to be the skeletons in the cave. Whether or not that happens, I'm glad their characters got some closure.

In the van, Sayid tells Jack he can’t stop the bleeding. Sayid says he needs to modify the bomb. They suddenly stop, because Sawyer, Juliet and Kate are in their path, with guns. Jack gets out of the van. Sawyer says they need to talk, and he just needs 5 minutes. "Then you can do what you want."Sawyer gets Jack to sit on a log. He tells Jack how his parents died. Sawyer points out that was a year ago. He could have stopped it all from happeneing, but didn’t, because what’s done is done. Jack says it doesn’t have to be that way. Sawyer says a man only acts because he wants something, so what did Jack screw up so badly he wants to take back? Jack admits, "I had her. I had her, and I lost her." Sawyer tells him to just go an ask Kated to be with him, but Jack insists it’s too late. Sawyer says if what he's doing works, they’ll be strangers, and Kate will be in handcuffs, but Jack insists, if it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.

Aside Number 21 - a little disappointed in Jack's motivation, but then again, I'm a little disappointed by most things Jack does (could I be his father?) Still, it's great to see Jack vs. Sawyer finally come to a head!

"I guess there’s nothing I can say to change your mind?" asks Sawyer, who then lands a sucker punch. They fight. "Think you can come here and do whatever the hell you want? I had a life here!" shouts Sawyer, as he tackles Jack, then kicks him in the jimmies. He asks Jack if he’ll stop, and Jack says no. Sawyer pummels him, and would have kept going, but Juliet stops him – and says Jack’s right. They have to do this.

James demands to know what happened, since she’s the one who made him come here to stop Jack, and Juliet says only, “I changed my mind.” Sawyer is not satisfied. "I need you to tell me where all of this is coming from," pleads Sawyer. "I got a right to know why you changed your mind." "I changed my mind when I saw you look at her, says Juliet." Sawyer insists he's devoted to Juliet, but Juliet, recalling her parents' divorce, doesn’t think love means they’re meant to be together. If Jack can make it so they never come to the island, she says, he should, "because if I never meet you, I never have to lose you."

Aside Number 22 - sigh. I loved the Sawliet relationship. It was clearly doomed, but it was so belieavable, and almost as deserving of our rooting as Desmond and Penny. But, when you think about the relationships Juliet had before - the jerk of a husband in Edmund, being the other woman with Goodwin, being Ben's captive pet, and losing Jack to Kate...still, I hope that at the end, there's some way for these two to be together.

At the Swan site, the drill is right on top of the pocket. Phil radios to warn Radzinsky. They prepare for the men with bombs. Kate finds Jack, who says, "my talk with Sawyer didn’t go so good." As Kate tends to him, Jack asks why she made him promise not to ask about Aaron. She says it was because she was so angry at him for making her come back. "I came back so he can be where he’s supposed to be, with his mother." Jack insists his plan makes that possible, but Kate reminds him Claire was on her way to put Aaron up for adoption. "You don’t know what she was going to do," says Jack, who insists, "nothing in my life has ever felt so right." Suddenly there’s an alarm. The Swan workers scramble. Jack says it’s about to happen. Kate agrees to join him, and they get going. Sayid, who is not well, warns Jack – the bomb is rigged to explode on impact. Jack says it will work, and will save him, but Sayid says nothing can save him. He takes the pack, and a gun. Jack nods to Kate, and heads off. He finds James and Juliet. As he walks past, Jack says, “see you in Los Angeles.”

Aside Number 23 - poor Sayid. After losing Nadya, and sinking into darkness with Ben, you get the sense he doesn't want to pull through. But he was touched by Jacob, so...

Jin tends to Sayid. Miles asks, "has it occurred to any of you that your buddy is going to cause the thing he’s trying to prevent? Perhaps that nuke is the incident, so perhaps the best thing to do is nothing?" Nobody responds. They see Phill and his gunmen heading towards the Swan. Kate knows they’ll kill Jack if they see him, so the gang gets rolling.

Chang protests to Radzinsky that they need to be getting people away from the site, not calling security in. Jack hides behind a water tank. The gauges at the site go past red. Phil sees Jack and starts shooting. Jack takes out one guy, and keeps moving closer. Suddenly, the van shows up, with Kate and Juliet shooting their way in. Miles and Saywer jump out and help. Kate saves Sawyer. Jack gets close. Saywer knocks out Radzinsky, and takes Phil at gunpoint. He tells Jack to come out. "Hurry up and do your business," he barks. Sawyer gets Chang to turn off the drill, only it won’t shut down. Something’s pulling the drill down. Jack holds the bomb over the drill shaft, and looks to Kate, who nods at him. Saywer throws Phil aside, and he and Juliet smile at each other. Jack drops the bomb. Everyone tenses...but nothing happens. Sawyer grumbles, "this don’t look like LAX."

A humming begins, similar to when the hatch imploded. Metal objects start flying into the hole. The entire drill is pulled down. It pins Chang’s left arm (aha! That explains the motionless left arm in the Swan Orientation film!) Jack gets knocked out by a flying toolbox. Miles frees Chang, and tells him to get as far away as he can. Radzinsky tries to drive away, but the jeep gets pulled in. (Stuart, of course, gets out, since he's meant to die by shotgun decades later). Phil is about to kill Sawwyer, but gets impaled with rebar. Juliet gets stuck in a chain, and it pulls her into the pit. Kate tries to save her. Sawyer catches Juliet as she loses her grip. "Where do you think you’re going blondie?" shouts a desperate Sawyer. He tells Kate to help Juliet get the chains off but Kate can’t reach. Sawyer tries to hold on to Juliet. "Don’t you leave me," he pleads. Juliet says it’s ok. "I love you so much," she says, then gets pulled into the hole, and James is left crying above.

Aside Number 23 - he's not the only one! Juliet's fall left me weepy, both times I watched the episode.

Jack comes to and finds Kate pulling Sawyer back. The rig collapses into the hole. Down below, Juliet lies. She awakens, bloody, clearly in bad shape. She sees the bomb is still there, claws her way over to it, picks up a rock, and smashes away at it…Suddenly, the screen turns…white! With a photonegative of the Lost title card!!!!

Aside Number 24 - and that's where it ended?!?! Noooooo! You can't leave us like this until January!!!

But leave us Lost has, until we reconvene for the final season. So what happened? Was the white flash the bomb going off? Did Jack's plan work, or was Miles right that the bomb itself was the incident that always happened? Did everyone (or anyone) survive? Did history change?

For my money, history DID change. Yet, Jack and company will come back to the island. I think that's what Jacob meant by "they're coming." But I like to think that Jacob's little army will remember what they went through, as will Ben, who Jacob held after he was stabbed. Also, why else would the end title card be reversed, with black letters on a white background?

But what about the dead and left behind characters? We were told last summer that Emilie de Ravin (Claire) would appear in Season 6, but in what capacity? And what about Juliet? She does not seem to have touched Jacob. Moreover, Elizabeth Mitchell landed what appears to be a key role in ABC's relaunch of the 80's sci-fi series, "V," which, like Lost, will be a midseason show. Can she do both? Even if she can, will Juliet end up in the same position as Sawyer and the others? Or will she just show up in cameo so we can see her happily ever after?

Well, that's it for season 5, Lostophiles. The producers will be radio silent until this summer's San Diego Comic Con, so chances are, I will be, too. But I will check in from time to time, and will see you all back here for the final season, which has the tagline, "Destiny Calls.". Until then, Namaste!