But first, a further observation that hit the internet last week about "Happily Ever After." In last week's recap, I pointed to Eloise Hawking, er, Widmore's brooch and pondered its significance. But as an astute observer pointed out, and Jeff Jensen relayed, and I now steal...the brooch itself closely resembled the symbol with which the Others branded Juliet after she killed Danny Pickett. The only real difference between her line bisected with a starburst and Eloise's pin is that Mrs. Widmore sported two such starred over lines, running parallel. The significance? It could be as simple as Lost having only one designer who likes that look. Or it could be a signal that the Others' symbology reveals that they sort of know something about the island, and the larger universe, but it takes an Eloise to be aware of the nature of parallel universes with their respective similarities. Or not. Either way, just a thought, based on a keen observation. So without further ado...
The reunion of a love that even death couldn't stop! A shocking death leaves our heroes rudderless!! A beloved landmark blown to smithereens!!! All this, plus an apparent conflict straddling two universes, in "Everybody Loves Hugo!"
Foreword
Typically, I get the flashback or sideways portion of the episode out of the way first. Given the shocking ending of this week's flash-sideways, and how it was (apparently, or at least deceptively) set up by the island story, we're going in reverse here, and will open on the island. What's more, given that I seem crunched for time, I'm going to post my island recap today, and will follow some time before Tuesday with the Sideways Recap.
Island Story
Hurley visits Libby’s grave on Boone Hill. He wonders aloud why Libby, of all the dead Losties, has not come to visit him (unspoken, even with no person to talk to, is Hurley’s obvious belief that somehow he’s unworthy of a visit from the one dead comrade he most wants to see). Ilana to round him up for her expedition to Black Rock to fetch dynamite. Hurley asks, “you sure that’s the right move?” Ilana responds, “no, but it’s the only move we’ve got.” “Well,” Hurley says, his trademark conciliatory look weighing down his expression, “you’re the expert.” He tells her about Libby, without going into details. As Ilana leaves, Hurley hears The Whispers. As they disappear, Michael comes out. Hurley, still in the middle of his visit with Libby, cannot think of a single person he’d like to see less than her killer. Nevertheless, Michael tells Hurley he’s here to stop him from getting everyone killed. Hurley just stares, and Michael, frustrated, asks, “you going to say something?” Hurley does not like getting pushed by this man. “Why should I trust you? You murdered Libby and Ana!” he accuses. Michael says that blowing up the Ajira plane will kill people, and it will be Hurley’s fault if he doesn’t stop it, because people listen to him. Jack approaches, Michael disappears, and Hurley says he’s talking to no one.
Aside #1 – Of all the spirits who could come to visit Hurley, it’s interesting to see that Michael is the one who did. But then again, especially while Hurley is deep in thought about Libby, who better to get a rise out of him? As for Michael’s message, sometimes it takes the observation of someone you otherwise would not trust to make you see something you’re not ready for yourself, i.e. the fact that Hurley’s friends and comrades, who have embraced his ability to talk to the dead, really do listen to him as a sort of prophet.
Ilana rounds up the troops. She has 4 sticks of Black Rock brand unstable dynamite (apparently, the beach isn’t so far from the middle of the jungle when you think you’re following Jacob’s plan). Hurley warns her this is a bad idea (after all, if she’s protecting them from the smoke monster, then trapping them on the island with what will surely then be an angry smoke monster seems like an odd plan). Ilana continues to have faith in Jacob and Richard. As she makes her case, i.e. that Flocke is evil, and needs to be stopped, she puts down her bag o’ dynamite…and blows up!
Aside #2 – In Lost, you never want to be the character who knows a little more than the people around you. It’s a sure way to be killed in a shocking manner. See also Daniel Faraday getting shot by his mother while she actually pregnant with him. After all, if people with too much information get to hang around long enough, the other characters might get to ask them questions, which would give us answers before the show wants to reveal those answers. And that, dear Lostophiles, can never, ever happen.
At the still remarkably stationary
Flocke, sensing Sawyer’s frustration, says, “there’s a difference between doing nothing and waiting.” He says the Oceanic 6 (er, 5) only managed to come back because they were together. Ergo, they need to wait for Hugo, Jack and Sun to join them, or they can’t get off the rock. Kate mutters that she doesn’t see that happening.
Aside #3 – Jeff Jensen pointed out this week the similarity between this “parable of the stick” and Michelangelo’s famous claim that he did not turn marble into sculpture, but rather, the sculpture was always there, and he merely discovered it by removing the irrelevant parts. I’ll add this thought – much like the man whose visage he’s chosen to adopt, I get the feeling Mr. artist-formerly-known-as-Man-In-Black has the unfortunate combination of a strong sense of purpose about his actions and a lack of any idea what his plan really is. Rather, Flocke knows he wants to leave, and strongly believes that doing so requires the candidates to be gathered (and, it seems, terminated, only not by his direct action), but doesn’t really seem to have a complete idea how this is supposed to play out. This is not the first time Flocke has taken on characteristics that are decidedly Locke-like. See, also, Flocke’s tirade in “The Substitute” where he bellowed out the familiar, “don’t tell me what I can’t do!” Indeed, his plan to sit and wait for Jack and company to come to him seems more like it’s based on a hope that the island will reveal its needs to him than on any actual confidence it will happen, even though, of course, it eventually does. More on these Flocke/Locke similarities later.
Sayid comes back, ignores Sawyer, and asks Flocke if they can speak in private. He says he saw Widmore’s people, but there was no reason to kill them when he found what they came for (apparently, the snapping of that one guy’s neck doesn’t count, since infiltrating assassin/spies get at least one free kill before it starts to count against them). Intrigued, Flocke asks, “so you found what they had hidden in the sub?” “I most certainly did,” Sayid responds, and his cold, altered persona gets us to recall how “old Sayid” would have smiled slyly when reporting some valuable intel. Sayid pulls back branches to reveal Desmond tied to a tree.
Hurley finds looks through Ilana’s things, and finds a Russian translation of an existentialist text (I’ll direct you to Jeff Jensen’s recap at ew.com for a lengthy discussion on the significance of this book, and existentialism, to this episode, and the entire season). He then sees her bag of Jacob ash. He looks inside, then takes on a determined look as he rises to rejoin his comrades. (Query whether, even unbeknownst to him, Hurley just got, if not a message, than at least some inspiration from Jacob’s remains). Richard, hurriedly preparing a bag or two to fetch some more dynamite, makes ready to jump into Ilana’s shoes, lest her death mean nothing. Jack asks, pointedly, if her death’s real meaning was to convince them to “stay the hell away from dynamite.” As they continue to argue, Jack tries to impress upon Richard that he promised Sun that he’d get her off the island, and Richard laments, “well, you shouldn’t have done that.” Hurley watches this argument, then, surprisingly, says they should go with Richard.
Flocke greets Desmond, and apologizes for his having to be tied up so he didn’t run away. Desmond says, as he explained to Sayid, he has nowhere to run to. Flocke smiles, “if that’s not the best argument I ever heard against captivity, I don’t know what is,” and starts cutting Desmond’s binds. He asks why Widmore brought him back. “Seeing as how I was kidnapped,” Desmond says matter-of-factly, “you’ll have to ask Mr. Widmore.” He tells Flocke how Widmore shoved him into a box and blasted him with electromagnetism. Flocke asks how he can be sure what it was he was blasted with. “Experience,” Desmond responds, which seems to remind Flocke of Locke’s memory of Desmond, a memory he files away for later. Getting right down to it, Flocke asks, “do you know who I am?” “Of course,” says Desmond, without a hint of irony, or the more expected, “duh.” “You’re John Locke.” Flocke considers this answer, then smiles, slightly. Flocke dismisses Sayid, and says he and Desmond are taking a walk. He tells Desmond he has something to show him.
Aside # 4 – The question, “do you know who I am,” in context, essentially had 3 possible answers. The first would be something like, “uh, yeah, guy, you’re John Locke, right? I mean, we spent a few months together here three years ago? Remember? I suckered you into pushing my button for me while I tried, in vain, to sail away, and then I foolishly listened to you tell me not to push the button?” Had Desmond answered as such, Flocke might have been content to allow the deception to continue. The second response would have been some variety of “you’re the smoke monster,” or “you’re someone/something impersonating John Locke.” With such a response, Flocke would have confirmed that Desmond is merely caught up with what’s been going on. But Desmond came back with “you’re John Locke.” The flat intonation in the response indicated he understood why the question was relevant, and yet picked the visibly obvious response. The way Flocke reacted was to consider the response, if not an insult, then perhaps an accusation. Is it that Desmond, in just a couple of minutes, also sees how much the Locke persona has taken over this otherwise formless host? As we’ll explore later, it could be that Sideways Locke and Flocke are more deeply connected than simply sharing a face, and somehow Desmond, with his EM-blast-induced hyper awareness sees this. In any case, Flocke seems a bit unnerved by Desmond’s laid back attitude about their encounter, but simply smiles at the answer he gets.
Richard leads the former team Ilana towards Black Rock. Ben comments, “it kind of makes you think. Ilana. Hand picked by Jacob to protect you candidates. No sooner did she tell you who you are, she blows up. The island was done with her. Makes me wonder what will happen when it’s done with us.”
Aside # 5 – Is Ben questioning his decision to follow Ilana? He blindly followed Jacob, to the end that he got so frustrated (and lost so much), he murdered his leader. Then, at his lowest point, he accepted Ilana’s forgiveness and invitation to join her in picking up Jacob’s task, only to see his new leader tossed aside by the island just he felt he had been. Not that Flocke is a better option. This whole monologue just struck me as a guy who’s kind of learned to despair his “I’m screwed no matter what” status.
Richard says he doesn’t want anyone else handling the dynamite (assuming, perhaps, that he is still protected by Jacob’s touch – query why he let Ilana go for the dynamite before, at all)…but then they notice all Hurley is gone. Hurley comes running towards them…from Black Rock, warning them all to get back. A moment later, Black Rock, one of the first, greatest mysteries of Lost, blows up in a huge fireball. Richard angrily demands, “why the hell did you do that?” Hugo, looking determined, stares right at Richard, and insists, “I’m protecting us.” Richard insists they’re all dead now (shades of Bill Paxton’s awesome delivery of the “game over” line from Aliens reverberate). Miles grumbles to Hugo, “a warning would have been nice.” Hurley frowns, “I did say ‘run’.” Miles, who seemed content to follow any plan, just so long as it was a plan, asked, “why’d you do that?” Hurley explains, “Michael told me to do that. One of the dead people who came back and yell at me.” Miles, who may have a case of “my dead people communication talent isn’t as cool as yours” envy, asks, incredulously, “and you just listen to what they say?” Hugo responds, “dead people are more reliable than alive people.”
Aside #6 – Hurley raises a good point. Has he ever been steered wrong by a dead person? Even when Jacob doesn’t give him all the details, he seems to set him on the right path. Charlie convinced him of the need to return to the island. Ana Lucia taught him to hide from the cops. And then there’s the sense that, once dead, these people, friends or otherwise, no longer have a reason to lead him astray. I wonder if that will hold true…
Flocke asks Desmond, “remind me, Desmond, how long were you down in that hatch?” When Desmond responds, “three years,” Flocke answers, almost taunting, “If I didn’t know better, I’d say this island has it in for you.” “There’s nothing special about me, “Desmond responds. “This island has it in for all of us.” Then they both see the boy in Others clothing. Flocke angrily tells Desmond to ignore him. The boy smiles at Desmond, then walks off.
Aside # 7 – There seems to be some confusion as to whether or not this scruffy Other boy is the same one who “reminded” Flocke he couldn’t kill Sawyer. I looked at still images of both. While the earlier boy looked more…blond, the lighting was different in the two scenes. Ultimately, I think we’re meant to understand that both were the same boy. But there is some credence to the notion that this version is an older version of the same kid we saw earlier. One theorist, who had his thoughts repeated this weekend by Jeff Jensen, surmised that the boy may be Jacob, who, since his death, has been appearing as he was as a boy, aging over time. This theory holds that the rapid aging functions in some way as a sort of hourglass, perhaps to the time when Jacob’s final candidate will replace him. The frustration, followed by anger, Flocke showed upon seeing the kid certainly does indicate that he feels like he’s being rushed, or otherwise having his hand forced, but the reminder that the kid is present.
Richard wants to get grenades from the DHARMA barracks. Hurley says Jacob is nearby, and tells him they need to talk to Locke. Richard, duped before by Hurley’s insistence that they come to Black Rock, wants proof. He says to ask Jacob what the island really is. But Hurley says he doesn’t have to prove anything. “You can either come with me, or you can keep blowing things up.” Richard calls the bluff, but only Ben says he’ll go with him. And then Miles says, “I saw that thing in action. It doesn’t want to talk,” and, reminiscent of Sawyer joining Team Locke is Season 4, he moves off to follow Ben and Richard. But Frank, Jack and Sun say they’re going with Hurley. Richard warns them not to get in the way. When they’re gone, Jack says, “alright, Hurley. Let’s go talk to Locke.”
As night falls, Sun writes to Frank, “did we make a mistake?” “Probably,” Frank mutters. Jack asks Hurley what the plan is. Hurley, nervously, asks, “how do you break the ice with a smoke monster?” He’s worried, and confesses he didn’t see Jacob. Jack says he knows. Jack unloads his recent self-realization, and tells Hurley how badly he has wanted to fix things since Juliet died, “since I got her killed.” But then, he says, he realized he can’t fix everything. He needs to let go. Not that this has been easy for him. “You have no idea how hard it is to sit back and let other people tell me what to do.”
Aside #8- It’s perhaps Karmic that Jack, who spurned Hurley’s insistence shortly after they became the Oceanic 6 that they needed to return to the island, would now find himself following Hurley. I wonder to what extent Jack’s new attitude is swinging the pendulum just a bit too far. It’s great that he’s learned he doesn’t have to rush to fix everything. But shouldn’t he have learned after his DHARMA adventure, that when you sit around waiting for inspiration to hit you long enough, ideas like detonating hydrogen bombs start sounding good?
They hear The Whispers, but as Jack readies his gun, Hurley says he knows what the whispers are. He tells Jack to wait, then follows the sound. Finally alone, he asks, “hey, you around?” He calls to Michael, specifically, and Michael emerges. Hurley asks, “you are stuck on the island, aren’t you?” With a slight nod, Michael responds, “because of what I did.” Michael says the whispers are the ones who can’t move on. He directs Hurley to Flocke’s camp. Despite his innate hatred for the man who took away Libby, Hurley digs down for some forgiveness, and asks Michael, “is there anything I can do to help you?” Michael considers this, and responds, “don’t get yourself killed. And Hurley, if you ever do see Libby again, tell her I’m very sorry.” Hurley, perhaps not wanting to consider what would make such a reunion possible, says, “I’ll be sure to do that, dude.”
Aside #9 – And with that, one of Lost’s great mysteries is (largely) solved. The Whispers are, indeed, the souls of those who have died on or near the island, or had their bodies brought to the island, who could not move on because of what they have done. I wonder how closely they are tied to Hurley’s ability to see dead people? Is he just better attuned to their frequency (since, we’ve seen, all the characters seem able to hear the whispers, even if they can’t understand them). But what do the Whispers want? Do they, like Flocke, want to escape? Are they leading Hurley into a trap, getting him to help Flocke arrange his escape, in some manner they can follow? Are they benevolent, warning of danger to those who may hear them? Why are they trapped here? And doesn’t this explanation sort of admit that, yes, the island is purgatory, after all, at least for some people?
Flocke leads Desmond to a well. Desmond shrugs, “what is it?” “It’s a well,” smiles Flocke. “Let me guess…you’re wondering how deep it is,” and Flocke lights his backup torch and drops it into the well, where it ultimately disappears with a splash. He asks if Desmond knows how old it is? “Very old,” Desmond guesses, not quite sure what the point of the guessing game is. Flocke smiles in agreement. “so old, in fact, that the people who dug this well did it by hand. They weren’t looking for water. They looked for answers. They didn’t find what they were looking for. The reason I wanted you to see this, is Charles Widmore is not interested in answers. He’s only interested in power. After all, this isn’t the only well.” As Desmond listens, a sort of “what’s your point?” look on his face, Flocke seems frustrated that he hasn’t gotten any kind of rise out of the Scot. He asks why Desmond isn’t afraid, out there alone with him in the jungle. Desmond looks at him quizzically, still not the least bit concerned, despite being challenged about his lack of fear. “What is the point in being afraid?” Desmond asks. And Flocke smiles, then throws him into the well!
Aside # 10 – You get the clear sense that Desmond is perhaps even more aware of what’s “really” going on than Flocke is here. I also get the sense that Flocke knows damn well that his savage, sudden attack would not kill Desmond. There are two reasons for this belief – 1) the smile from the Others boy. I took that to mean, as the prior encounter told us, that Flocke can’t kill certain people directly. Although “Hume” is not a candidate, per se, that smug smile the boy gave Flocke indicated he wouldn’t be able, permitted, or both to kill Desmond. The other reason? The promos for next week, which showed Desmond sitting in the bottom of the well. I do think Flocke knew he couldn’t kill Desmond, but throwing him down a well sure seems like a good alternate means of keeping him from causing trouble.
Now, let’s talk about this well. First of all, this is not the well Locke fell down before he turned the donkey wheel. Since the island timeline is once again at 2007 (or 2008), that well is long since gone, replaced and built over by the Orchid station. But, as Flocke pointed out, there are multiple wells (perhaps corresponding to the EM pockets on the Jin Kwon map that Widmore’s people plan to follow). Do not be surprised if Zoe and Jin lead the rescue party that finds Desmond, even if rescuing Desmond is not exactly their first priority.
I also wonder if, before he was a smoke monster, man-in-black was one of those people who dug these wells, searching for answers. Perhaps one of those very answers is what made him a smoke monster. But that, alas, is pure speculation…
When Flocke returns after nightfall, Sayid asks, “how’s our friend?” “You don’t have to worry about him any more,” Flocke assures him. Sawyer asks Flocke where he’s been. As they’re about to argue, Hurley comes out. “Son of a bitch,” Sawyer mutters, reduced of late to these one-liners. Hurley begins his détente with, “umm. Hey.” “Hello, Hugo,” says Flocke, smug in his victory now that at least one candidate came willingly. “I don’t know who you are, dude, or what you want, but we have to talk, dude.” Hurley gets Flocke to give his word that there will be nobody hurt if his friends come out. Flocke symbolically hands over the knife, and Hurley calls his group out. Sun looks around for Jin, but is defeated not to see him. Jack sees Kate, and they smile at each other. Flocke says, “hello Jack.” And the two men – who had not previously met – eye each other.
Aside #11 – Thanks for bearing with this two-part structure. Click the title of this post to be whisked away to part 2 of the recap, addressing the Sideways story.
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