Episode 604 - "The Substitute" Locke is Lot More Likeable

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what Willis was talkin' about!

The numbers make a shocking return! Ben's meek confession!! Sawyer's place of prominence!!! All this, plus (gasp!) a happy alterna-Locke, in the final season's best entry to date, "The Substitute."

Alternaverse - Locke2

Locke 2’s world is quite different than what we expect. When Locke2 suffers the indignities of his handicap - busted ramp, stuck in sprinklers - he laughs it off. That’s when we see he lives with Helen2…whereas Locke and Helen broke up before his injury. They discuss wedding plans, and yikes! She says they should elope with her parents and his father! Helen2 finds Jack2’s card, and suggests Locke2 should call, since meeting a spinal surgeon could be - destiny (Locke2 smiles - does he respond to destiny?)

Aside #1 – This initial look at Alterna-Locke was incredibly illuminating. We learned that while he, like his island-world counterpart, somehow ended up in a wheelchair, it most likely was not as a result of his con artist father, Anthony Cooper, having flung him out a window. Why do we know this? 1) Locke2 isn’t so bitter and angry as his pre-crash counterpart (a personality trait uniquely tied to Locke’s daddy issues); 2) Helen2 is still in Locke2’s life, whereas her island world counterpart was driven off by Locke’s obsession with Cooper, and 3) the most obvious clue – Helen2’s suggestion that Locke2’s dad should come to a small wedding. And yet, still, Locke2 is wheelchair bound. That silly universe with its course correction…

But Locke2 is also a bit of a liar. He told both Helen2 and Randy2 – his same douchy boss at that same box factory - that he was at a conference on the company dime, when he was, instead, doing something persona, i.e. his wheelchair walkabout. In a nod to pre-island life, Randy2 salutes John2 as “Colonel,” his Axis and Allies codename from way back in the seminal Season 1 episode, “Walkabout.” Randy2, however, already sniffed out the lie, and when Locke2 tries to charm his way out of discipline, he gets fired.

Aside #2 – kudos to Doc Jensen for pointing out these brilliant bits of set dressing at the box factory that I missed: The pictures in Locke's cubicle were interesting.
There was a photo of Locke (with hair) with his father, Anthony Cooper; they looked to be hunting, as we saw them back in ''Deus Ex Macina.'' There was also a photo of Locke with Helen in a tropical setting, presumably Hawaii. The curious thing about both photos: Locke appeared to be standing. When and how did Locke become dependent on a wheelchair for pedestrian perambulation? TBD. Island Locke didn't get thrown out of that eighth-floor window by Bad Dad leaving him below-the-belt paralyzed until after Helen dumped his father-fixated ass. So it appears that Locke's loss of lower legs was a trauma that he and his soul mate experienced together.

Locke2 tries to leave the factory with dignity, but his van ramp is blocked in by a big yellow Hummer - the boss’s car. Locke2 finally gets mad. Hurley2 sees the commotion, points out that Locke2 could have parked two spots over in the handicap spot, (a slightly less rebellious form of “don’t tell me what I can’t do,” eh), and introduces himself. He explains the reserved spot, and the fact that he owns the company. He introduces himself, and Locke2 says he just got fired. Hurley2 says Randy2 is a huge douche. He gives Locke2 a number for his temp agency, and tells him to call.

Aside #3 - Doc Jensen’s thoughts on this scene (and his set dressing observation) are worth noting: Locke snapped. This time, the insult to injury was too painful to not ignore. He could have avoided the sitch had he parked in the handicapped stall, but as Locke would explain, he didn't want to. Locke then had an encounter with Hurley, who in the Otherverse is large and in charge and not at all the fatalistic scaredy-cat Island dude we met in season 1. Was it just me, or did you get a Jacobesque vibe from Hurley, all empathetic benevolence as he responded to his ex-employee's prickly anger with patience and grace and supreme knowingness and the hooked him up with a new job via his temp agency, another division of Hurley's financial empire? Watching this scene, I couldn't help but think about Helen's earlier line about destiny. And I found myself flashing back to this scene later in the episode, when Helen challenged Locke's incredulity about miracles. Was the Locke-Hurley crossing total coincidence, quantum synchronicity, or divinely orchestrated appointment? An elemental faith/reason debate worthy of old school Lost. But I am reminded of the old adage that our world is chockablock with everyday miracles — they just don't look the way we expect them to. What we expect is something like, say, miraculous healing for crippled legs after falling from the sky. But a miracle could be other people, too — like meeting a guy who can give you a job after getting fired, and better than that, a guy who sets you upon your true destiny. But we'll get to the school in a minute. PS: Did you see what was in Locke's box of stuff in his lap? Was that a polar bear figurine in there?

At Hurley2’s Temp agency, the quirky woman helping him asks Locke2 what kind of animal he describes himself as. He asks to speak to her supervisor. It’s Rose2! She questions if he’s a good match for a construction site coordinator. She asks him to be realistic. She discloses her terminal cancer. She got back to living whatever life she had left. So, how about we find you a job you can do?

Aside #4: Rose lives in L.A.??? Guess terminal cancer is enough of a reason to get out of snowy Buffalo.

Locke2 wakes up, and gets dressed. He seems…mopey, almost like we remember Locke after he was first crippled, just before Matthew Abbadon convinced him to go on Walkabout, only in alternaverse, Locke2’s melancholy doesn’t quite dip into depression. What an amazing job by Terry O’Quinn to play the nuances of two versions of the same character with similar, but slightly different, emotional responses. Locke2 pulls out Jack2’s card, and calls, but when the receptionist answers, he says she can’t help him, and hangs up. Helen2 overhears, and John2 tells her how he called Jack2, but wasn’t going to see him. He tells her he got fired, when there’s a doorbell. They deliver the lost luggage. She signs for the knife case. Locke2 confesses that he didn’t go to the conference. He tells Helen2 to open the case. It’s his knives (some things don’t change – query how “back to nature” a walkabout is with so many knives). He tells her about his walkabout, and that they wouldn’t let him go. (translation – Locke2 lied to Boone2). He had the same shouting experience as we saw back in Season 1, only here, he says they were right. “I’m sick of imagining what my life would be out of this chair” he fumes, more out of frustration than his island self’s anger. Fearing he’s upsetting Helen2, he warns her not to wait for him to walk down the aisle with her. “If you need me to get out of this chair, I don’t blame you, but don’t wait for a miracle, because there’s no such thing.” And Helen2 reveals the philosophy that seems to underpin the whole island-free but remarkably similar world we’re getting acquainted with – “There are miracles, John, and the only thing I was ever waiting for was you.” She tears up Jack2’s card, and they smooch. Finally, we see that Locke2, unlike his island counterpart, really has found acceptance of his condition, as well as the love that makes lamenting it pretty pointless.

Locke2 does find himself – at a high school. First, he teaches a girls’ gym class, and then a biology class (hello, Mittleos science camp). He tells the class, “today we are going to talk about the reproductive system.” (Hello, Mittleos fertility clinic). Locke asks a boy where the teacher’s lounge is. He wheels in, and finds another faculty member blocking his access to the hot beverages- it’s Ben2! He’s annoying as ever, ranting about the coffee. Ben2 introduces himself, and says he teaches European History, and Locke2 is a substitute (hence the title).

Aside #5 – Ben2’s presence off the island confirms part of what we suspected last week when we saw Ethan2 – the island did not sink or get obliterated immediately when Jughead blew up. Rather, Ethan2 (who was a DHARMA baby) and Ben2 (who was convalescing with the Others) had time to leave the island and rejoin the “real” world. I feel like when we learn more about Ben2, and what happened when Richard took him as a child into the temple, this prickly personality will be quite revealing. For now, it’s great to see course-correction bring these two together.

Island

As fascinating a character study as the Alternaverse sequences were, the heart of "The Substitute" lay in the mythology-rich island scenes.

Flocke flies over the island in smokey form - our first real look at his perspective since Season 1, when he looked down on Locke. He detects Sawyer in his house, does some flashing, then goes to where he left Richard, suspended in a tree.

Flocke, it seems, chose Locke’s form to get close to Jacob, because (like Frank), he was a “candidate.” Flocke mocks Richard for never getting bigger answers from Jacob, and instead offers to show him and tell him everything he ever wanted to know, if he joins him. Richard refuses, and Flocke warns that people don’t usually get a second chance. Richard asks what Flocke means by "candidate." Flocke smiles -Richard really knows so little. Flocke says he would never leave Richard in the dark like Jacob did, that he would respect him more. Richard seems pretty fearless, given how beat up his is. Flocke is suddenly distracted, when he sees a vision of a young blond boy, with bloody hands(?) But Richard turns around, and there’s nothing there. The boy clearly upset Flocke, who takes leave of Richard.

Aside #6 - So Flocke can see visions? And they're not him, i.e. smokey, taking another form? And they have an upsetting affect on him? Interesting...

Ben finds Ilana crying in the foot statue. He tells her everything that happened - except for the part where he killed Jacob (he blames Flocke, or rather doesn't correct Ilana when she asks if that's what happened). He explains that Jacob was kicked in the fire and burned. Ilana, to the tune of what sounds like an Indy Jones score knock-off, scoops up some of Jacob’s ash, and puts in in a bag. Ben asks why Flocke took Richard, and Ilana responds, “he’s recruiting.”

Flocke returns to Sawyer’s house, where loud music is playing, and James is getting hammered in his underwear. James sees him and asks, “I thought you were dead.” “I am.” James pours them both some scotch, then basically throws a glass at Flocke. “I don’t give a damn if you’re dead, or time travelin’, or the ghost of Christmas past.” he tries to order Flocke out, but Flocke points out it was never James's house. Sawyer sees right away - this is not Locke, because Locke was always scared, even when he tried not to seem scared. Flocke seems impressed by this level of insight, and introduces himself as the person who could answer the most important question in the world - "why are you on this island?" Sawyer tries to dismiss this, but Flocke insists he can prove the series of rotten luck - plane crash, raft destroyed, helicopter too heavy - doesn’t explain it.

Frank covers Locke’s body. Sun says everyone else was headed to the temple. Ilana says they should go, too. Sun, finally speaking up, asks, "what makes you think that I’m going with you?" Ilana's response chills her - "Because you want to find Jin. I know that if he’s on the island, and he’s alive, he’ll be at the temple." It's clear that Sun never mentioned Jin to Ilana, which is what convinces her to go along. Sun suggests they need to bury John, and Ilana sighs.

Flocke asks James why he isn’t with the others at the temple. The blond boy appears again (not bloody this time), and Sawyer sees him, too. This surprises Flocke. The boy runs, and Flocke chases. He looks up at the boy. “You know the rules," the boy scolds. "You can’t kill him." Flocke responds as would the man whose face he now wears - "Don’t tell me what I can’t do.” The boy shakes his head and walks off. “Don’t tell me what I can’t do!”

Aside #7 - wow. A lot to unpack. First of all, this brings up the time that Sawyer saw Kate's black horse vision in "What Kate Did." There has only been one other character - Sayid, seeing Shannon's Walt vision - who managed to see another person's private vision. Is there some connection between Sawyer and Sayid? Given the reveal at the end of the episode, that question looms large.

Then there's this blond kid. He's dressed like a Temple Other...or like Jacob? Is this young Jacob? And what about the discussion of rules? Is this similar to why Ben can't kill Widmore? Whey Flocke needed Ben to kill Jacob? And why was Flocke bothered by Sawyer's ability to see?

Sawyer calls to Flocke. “Look, whoever you are, you got about 20 seconds.” But it's Richard who staggers out, and tries to convince Sawyer to take him to the temple. Richard says Flocke will kill him. "He wants everyone dead, everyone you care about," warns Richard. Flocke returns and Richard runs. "You ever catch up with the kid," asks Sawyer," "What kid?" responds Flocke.

Sawyer asks Flocke if he reads, and brings up Of Mice and Men. "Nope," responds Flocke, "that's a little after my time." (No big surprise, after that whole Black Rock arriving scene). As Flocke walks on, Sawyer tells him about Lenny getting executed. "Doesn’t sound like a happy ending," says Flocke. "It ain’t," responds Sawyer, pointing a gun at Flocke's head. Flocke turns and dares him to pull the trigger, and Sawyer realizes it would be pointless. "What are you," asks Sawyer. "What I am is trapped. And I’ve been trapped for so long, I forgot what it was like to be free." Before that, Flocke explains he was a man. He knows joy, anger, pain, fear, and betrayal. He knows what it’s like to lose someone he loves. "You’re so close," he urges, "it would be a shame to turn back now."

Aside #8 - it seems Flocke will play part of the Faraday role this season - only moreso, this is a character who will flat out give us answers, though his answers will be skewed by his agenda.

Ben asks why Ilana why bring Locke's body to the statue? She says the Others had to see what they’re up against. For some reason, according to Ilana, Flocke is now stuck looking like Locke.

Aside #9 - or perhaps Ilana will be the new Faraday. She clearly knows more about the island than our Lostaways, and will impart knowledge upon them (and us) from time to time. How does she know so much?

They carry Locke to the graveyard, and bury him next to Boone, Shannon, and the others. Ilana asks if anyone wants to say anything. Ben steps up. "Alright, I knew him. John Locke was a…believer, a man of faith. He was a much better man than I will ever be, and I’m very sorry I murdered him." Frank, his back turned, mumbles, "This is the weirdest damn funeral I ever been to."

Flocke leads Sawyer to a cliff, with ladders leading down. Flocke is more than happy to go first. Sawyer watches, then gingerly starts to follow. Flocke switches to a rope ladder next to the bamboo one, which breaks under Sawyer’s feet. Sawyer grabs another rope ladder, but it comes loose and drops him against the cliff face. Flocke catches him and pulls him over to another ladder.

Aside #10 - it appears, rules notwithstanding, Flocke thinks he has a use for Sawyer beyond just having him die. Because there was no other reason to save him here. Will Sawyer, now missing Juliet, go along with it?

They reach bottom, and head for a cave. Inside is a scale, and some other artifacts. The scale is balancing a white rock and a black rock. Flocke picks up the white rock and chucks it into the ocean, and snarks, "inside joke."

Aside #11 - this little sequence made me want to rewatch season 1. There were so many references to black and white rocks. I couldn't help but wonder if the characters that had those dream sequences - Charlie and Claire come to mind - were somehow just on the edge of being aware of this strange seaside cave? And other than "Jacob and Smokey," what do these rocks stand for?

Flocke lights a torch, and leads James further in. That’s why you’re here. The names of the Lostaways are all written on the ceiling, the dead ones scratched out.

Flocke says he doesn't know if 42 - Kwon - refers to Sun or Jin.

Aside #12 - what the WHAT? So, these numbers, before they were Valenzetti's, before they were DHARMA's, were Jacob's? And he assigned them to names? The last six names correspond to characters who are still alive - or were just before Jacob died - and these, of course, are Hurley's lotto numbers.

Note that 23-Shephard points to the row that Jack sat in on flight 815. Except in alternaverse, where Jack2 sat in row 24.

Note also that, the Jin or Sun mystery is hardly so mysterious. I'm positive "Kwon" refers to Jin. Why? 1) Sun, unlike the others, did not time travel (Locke was already dead). 2) Other than Reyes, the other numbers all correspond to "J" men - John Locke, James Ford, Jack Shephard and Sayid Jarrah.

But Sun's not the only one missing - where the frak is Kate? "Austen" did not appear to be a crossed out name, as did Littleton (she's still alive!), Troup (author Gary), and a number of other variously familiar names. We could see "Jones" and "Mattingly" - the soldiers who the Others killed in 1954. We could see "Goodspeed," referring either to Ethan or to his father, Horace (or Amy)? What we see out of this is that Jacob had a list of names a loooong time ago, and brought them all to the island, each in his own time. Flight 815 was just the last batch of "candidates." (Thanks to my buddy, Grant, for pointing out a number of these names to me).

But Kate's not there at all, at least not in a way we could see...

Flocke tells him Jacob died, and Jacob had a thing for numbers. Flocke says Jacob came to Sawyer at some point in the past and manipulated him - "choices you thought you made were never really your choices. He was pushing you to the island." James is a candidate - nominated to take over for Jacob as the protector for the island. (Aha!)

Aside #13 - this explains all the mysteriously coincidental connections between the characters in their flashbacks. They were connected in that Jacob, if Flocke is to be believed, was manipulating them all towards the island! It's not just serendipity. But if there's no island in the alternaverse, how did the characters all end up on Oceanic 815?

Flocke tells James he has 3 choices - (1) do nothing, and his name gets crossed out; (2) - accept job, become the new Jacob, and protect the island - from nothing. "It’s just a damn island, and it will be perfectly fine without you or the others." The third choice - just go. Just get the hell off the island. "How do we do that," asks Sawyer. "Together," responds Flocke. "So what do you say, James, are you ready to go home?" "Hell yes."

Aside #14 - Doc Jensen unpacked this whole scene so well, I thought I'd just give you what he had to say:

The White and Black Rocks
What Smokey Said: Upon arriving in Jacob's cave, Un-Locke spotted two large stones, one white and one black, sitting on a scale. He grabbed the white rock and threw it out into the sea. Sawyer asked: Huh? Un-Locke replied, ''Inside joke.''
Percentage Chance I Believe Smokey: 100% Or maybe 0%, because I got the sense from Smokey's angry toss that this so-called ''inside joke'' wasn't all that funny for him. My guess is — obviously — that the white rock represented Jacob, and that tossing that rock was symbolic of Fake Locke's (apparent) victory, and, perhaps, his rejection of the white/black categorization of his morality and his relationship with Jacob. My guess is also that whenever and whatever was decided between Jacob and his nemesis — the nature of their conflict/game; the roles they would play; the rules they would play by — it was all hashed out and settled in the cave, and the deal was sealed with some ceremonial putting-rocks-on-a-scale thing.

The Castaways Were Brought To The Island For A Reason
What Smokey Said: Jacob had picked six castaways — Locke, Hurley, Sawyer, Sayid, Jack, Jin or Sun — and meddled with their lives and subverted their destinies and free will in order to corral them to The Island and groom one of them as his replacement as Island protector.
PCIBS: 91% What I didn't believe, though, was this:

The Island Is Meaningless
What Smokey Said: When Sawyer asked why the Island would need protection, Locke snapped: ''From nothing, James. That's the joke. There's nothing to protect it from. It's just a damn island!''
PCIBS: 0% My rejoinders to Smokey would include the following: (1) The Temple's magic healing spring. (2) Frozen donkey wheel time travel magic. (3) That Ghost Kid. (4) Oh, and uh… freakin' YOU, Smokey! Bottom line: The Island is totally special, and my guess is that whatever makes it special will prove to be Jacob's primary defense for playing god with castaway lives.

The Numbers
What Smokey Said: Lost fans, prepare to rethink your Valenzetti Equations. With a dramatic reveal of the cave's ceiling, we learned that Jacob assigned each of his potential replacements a number. He wrote their digits next to their last names on the ceiling of his cave with chalk. Locke: 4; [Hurley] Reyes: 8; [James ''Sawyer''] Ford: 15; [Sayid] Jarrah: 16; [Jack] Shephard: 23; [Jin or Sun?] Kwon: 42. Why? Un-Locke shrugged. ''Jacob had a thing for numbers,'' he said.
PCIBS: 49% It's not that I think Jacob doesn't have a thing for numbers — I just think that Jacob has good reason for assigning numbers to his candidates, and more, that Un-Locke knows what that reason is and isn't telling Sawyer. DEBATE! Where's Kate?

Sawyer's Three Options
What Smokey Said: (1) Sawyer could do nothing, see how the drama plays out, and possibly get his name crossed off the list of candidates. (2) He could accept the job. (3) He could leave the Island with Smokey.
PCIBS: 100% I actually believe he's 100% truthful about the three options, although I'm also 100% sure he didn't tell Sawyer everything he needed to know about each of those options for him to make the most informed choice. Here's what I think Smokey omitted. Option 1: The reason why the names get crossed off when that candidate dies? It's probably because of Smokey's conspiratorial machinations. Option 2: If Sawyer took the job, Smokey would move heaven and hell to find some way to kill him. Option 3: Leaving the Island will obliterate the entire Island world reality, or delete from the history of the world the specific lifelines of the castaways that lave, PLUS the lifelines of anyone inextricably intertwined with those lifelines. Whatever Smokey has up its butt, I think he has a (quantum) suicide wish.

Sawyer's Response To Smokey's Offer
What Was Said: ''So what do you say, James?'' Smokey asked. ''Are you ready to go home?'' Sawyer replied, ''Hell yes.''
Possible Chance I Believe Sawyer: 0% Because I believe as heartbroken and furious as Sawyer may be… he ain't betraying the castaways to this monster. I think the minute Sawyer saw that ghost kid — that dead ringer for himself when he was a kid — and saw Un-Locke chase after him and then return without him, Sawyer made up his mind that this Fake Locke was one freakin' scary creep and needed to be brought down. Why didn't Sawyer put a bullet in him when had a chance? Because he needs to do what the Monster did to Locke: study him, observe him, figure out his weaknesses and how he can be mortally attacked, and then do so. In other words, Sawyer is doing what Sawyer does best: he's pulling a long con, the riskiest con he's ever pulled: fooling the devil into thinking he has an ally — and then stabbing him in the back with his own pitchfork. [Editor's note: my ''Totally Lost'' co-host Dan Snierson just informed me that my 0% assessment was ''crazy talk'' and demanded I increase my percentage to a more plausible... 2.7%. DONE!]

Back to the "where's Kate" debate. My guess - Kate is Jacob's ringer. If Richard and Ilana were right, Flocke is trying to kill off the candidates. So then perhaps Jacob never assigned Kate a number so that Smokey would leave her alone. Like she's an extra "Queen" in a game of chess between them. Maybe Sun is, too. And Frank, since Ilana thought he might be a candidate (I sure wish we could have seen the rest of that wall).

Finally, I got to thinking about the notion that Jacob was affecting everyone's lives since early on. Surely that one little moment we saw him meet each of the candidates in the Season 5 finale was not, by itself, sufficient to get them all to the island. What if Jacob fed Sawyer's informant the fake "Sawyer" intel that sent him to Australia? What if Jacob hit Locke's teenage mother with a car, forcing early labor, which sent Locke into the foster care system, leading to a lifelong quest to reconcile with his father...etc. etc. (Of course, Locke's mom got hit by a car in 1956, and the timeline didn't change until after 1977...this theory might need work...)

Anyway, love the mindblowing, theory-expanding nature of "The Substitute." Until next week, when we regather for "The Lighthouse," Namaste.

Episode 603 - "What Kate Does" is Go After Claire

This week, I'm a bit behind, so this will be a "broad strokes" type of recap...

The return of a missing "friend!" The return of a superfluous Other!! The reappearance of a contextually changed other Other!!!! All this, plus Kate2's big adventure, on "What Kate Does."

Foreword

The title of this episode invokes the Season 2 episode, "What Kate Did," which explained the crime for which she was wanted. For a very detailed look at parallels between the episodes, see Doc Jensen's ew.com recap.

Alternaverse

Kate2's story picks up where she left off last week - carjacking Claire2's cab at the airport. There's a thoroughly unamusing Arzt-channels-Dustin Hoffman moment, then they drive off. The cabbie gets bold at a red light, and takes off running. Kate2 hops to the front seat, and humanely lets Claire2 out, but refuses to let her take her suitcase.

Kate2 finds a chop shop, and pays the creepy proprietor to bust her out of the cuffs. She goes to the bathroom to change into something from Kate2's bag, and inside sees all the trappings of a mom-to-be, including a stuffed Shamu. Fun fact: this is the same plush toy that 2-year-old Aaron had in the Season 4 episode, "Something Nice Back Home."

Kate2, now free, knows what she has to do. She finds Claire2 sitting more or less where she left her. Claire2, after a brief "should I or shouldn't I" moment, hops in Kate2's cab. She explains that she's on her way to meet the family that's adopting her unborn baby, and rationalizes that they probably just forgot to pick her up at the airport. When they arrive at the house in "Brentwood" (Aside - Hawaii often does a good job of standing in for other locales, but semi-rural Oahu looks nothing like L.A.'s densely packed Brentwood neighborhood).

Sure enough, Claire2 finds her would-be adoptive mama crying, because her husband just left her (Juno, anyone?), and she says she can't do it alone. Suddenly, Claire2 experiences labor pains, so Kate2 rushes her to the hospital. Once there, Kate2 spots a cop car, so she sticks with Claire2 through admission. Kate2 goes to find an OB to come help the Thelma to her Louise, and the doctor turns out to be...Ethan2 (Rom) Goodspeed!? In an awesome bit of dramatic irony, the good doctor says he wants an ultrasound before he does anything too drastic, because, "I don't want to stick you with needles if I don't have to." (Get it? Because Other Ethan kidnapped Claire, and kept sticking her with needles?) Suddenly, Claire2 blurts out that the baby's name is Aaron, and Doc Ethan2 says, "I have a feeling Aaron is going to be quite a handful." (Chuckle Chuckle).

Unpacking the hospital scene - this sequence is the biggest, densest part of the episode. As on the island, Claire2 had flase labor pains shortly after flight 815. As on the island, Ethan2 is intimately involved in Claire2's late-term pregnancy. As on the island, Claire2 suddenly "realizes" that the baby's name is "Aaron," rather than just choosing that name based on taste or a favorite uncle or anything like that. And, as in island world, Claire2's plan to give up Aaron2 to an adoptive couple in L.A. is thwarted by forces beyond her control.

Philsophically, the biggest moments in this scene were, of course, the presence of Ethan2, and the ultrasound photo Claire2 saw. If this alterna-verse really split off after the incident, the presence of Ethan2 tells us that the Island inhabitants were not obliterated by Judghead (unless, of course, Ethan2, unlike Ethan, was successfully evacuated on the sub). Assuming the former, that tells us that Ethan2 survived, and then subsequently left the island, meaning the detonation of Jughead is not what caused it to sink, at least not immediately.

There's also the matter of the ultrasound, depicted here...

Check out the date - October 22, 2004. Well, folks, that's a big deal. Remember, this is the same day that flight 815 landed with our alterna-characters...only, the crash of flight 815 took place on September 22, 2004. Supposedly, however, online chatter suggests that Lost's continuity guru, script supervisor Greg Nations, has revealed that something about the date on the photo is right, and something else is wrong. No idea what that cryptic clue means, but I am wondering a doctored photo made just for the episode could have a wrong date on it...something to watch out for.

The rest of the hospital sequence was fairly mundane. Claire2 covered for Kate2 when the police came looking for her. Kate2 asked Claire2 if she believed that Kate2 was actually innocent of what she had been accused of, but when Claire2 decides, yeah, she does, Kate2 seems less than convinced. And then, as Kate2 departed, she shared her unsolicited opinion that Claire2 should keep the baby.

Island World

Back on the island, we returned to the moment where Sayid first awakens from his apparent resurrection. Kate wonders to Sawyer how that could be, and Sawyer, still so angry about Juliet's loss, snorts, ''He's an Iraqi torturer who shoots kids. He definitely deserves another go around.'' Miles keeps giving Sayid weird looks, making me a bit annoyed that he just doesn't say which part of Sayid's death and resurrection is making his spider sense tingle. As they go outside, and Sayid wonders what happens, Hurley starts to assure him that the Others are protecting them, at which point Miles gives us one of his better lines, "as you can see, Hugo here has assumed a leadership position, so that's pretty great." Jack lets Sayid know that it was the Others, and not him, who saved Sayid's life.

The Others "ask" Sayid to go alone with them, and Jack insists, ah, no, not until you tell us what's up. "Once we've spoken with Mr. Jarrah, we'll be more than happy to tell you anything you want to know," says barefooted Lennon. Jack gets all, "oh no you don't, you sneaky Others," and says, "something tells me you won't be happy to tell us anything." During the scuffle that ensues, Sawyer gets ahold of a gun, and announces he's leaving. Dogen pleads with him, "please, you have to stay," to which Sawyer responds, "no, I don't" before directly addressing Kate, "don't come after me."

Naturally, Kate announces she's accompanying the Others' search party to bring Sawyer back, and so does Jin. Of course, they have their own agendas. Kate wants to get Sawyer to help her on her Claire-quest, and Jin wants to find the damn Ajira plane and, with it, Sun. They're accompanied by two bumbling Others, Aldo (he of the clocked over-the-head-as-part-of-the-Season-3-Wookie-prisoner-trick fame), and Justin, who apparently talks to much. I'm not sure why Aldo was so intent on stopping Justin from telling Kate and Jin anything; perhaps it was the bitterness he felt that Kate didn't seem to remember bonking him in the head with a rifle butt. In any case, Kate and Jin almost trip a couple of Rousseau-esque traps that Justin divulges can't be Rousseau's, because she's been dead for years, and Kate realizes she can intentionally spring the traps to escape. Jin refuses to go with her, though, because he wants to find Sun, so they part company.

Back at the Temple, Dogen tortures Sayid (turnabout!) with electric shocks to the chest and a red hot poker, after coating him with a fine dust. Lennon assures Sayid it was just a test, and he passed, but after Sayid is dismissed back to the bubbling pool room, Dogen confirmes Lennon's suspicion that Sayid did not pass the test.

Jack goes to demand an answer as to why Sayid was tortured, and the armed guards at the door find they really just have to let him pass. Dogen tells Jack that Sayid is "infected," which Jack scoffs at given the lack of a fever. Dogen pulls a much less subtle version of the ol' Ben trick and expressly tries to manipulate Jack. He asks if he feels responsible for Sayid's getting shot, and all the others who were hurt or killed helping him, then offers him redemption in the form of getting Sayid to take a weird green pill. Jack tells Sayid about the exchange, and Sayid says he trusts Jack, only Jack, humbly, admits he doesn't even trust himself.

Ultimately, Jack doesn't give Sayid the pill, and instead calls Dogen's bluff by trying to take it himself. Dogen forcibly heimlich's Jack to get the pill out, because it's poison. He and Lennon explain that, what's happened to Sayid is that he's been, for lack of a better translation, "claimed." There's a darkness growing inside of him, which, when it reaches his heart, will mean there is no Sayid left in there. When Jack asks how he can be so sure, Dogen relates that he knows because it happened to...Jack's sister (which is less a Luke/Leia moment since Jack has known for three years now about his relationship with Claire).

Kate follows Sawyer to the abandoned barracks, where Sawyer digs up the engagement ring he had for Juliet under the floorboards of their old place.

Exactly where does one acquire such an object while stationed with the DHARMA Initiative? Gues Lafleur had some pull...

Kate follows Sawyer out to the submarine dock, and Josh Holloway has just about the most beautifully emotive scene any Lost cast member has had to date. Kate tries to apologize for Juliet's death, but Sawyer, wracked with guilt, explains that Juliet dies because, three years before her death, Sawyer convinced her not to leave on the sub, because he didn't want to be alone. "Well, I guess some men are meant to be alone," he chokes back, and once again, the Sawliet relationship gets me all choked up.

But I have a prediction. They will meet again, and in fact, it will be over coffee, and Juliet will suggest they go Dutch. Lost has established this pattern - what seems to be a random babbling just before a character dies is actually the channelling of a memory/ vision of another encounter in another time with the character the dying one is babbling to. Remember Charlotte's bizarre parting words, "I'm not supposed to have chocolate before dinner?" Then we learned that's what young Charlotte said when she first met Faraday. I think the same thing happened with Juliet - in the moment before she died, she channeled her meet-cute with Sawyer2 from alternaverse. The universe, it seems, will course correct...or at least I hope it will.

Kate apologizes for going after Sawyer, and he forces a smile through his tears before tossing the ring into the lagoon. Sawyer then returns to his old house, presumably to mope himself to death, leaving Kate on her own in her quest for Claire.

Jin, meanwhile, gets ambushed by a very unhappy Aldo (and still pretty dense Justin). Justin suggests they take Jin back to the temple, but Aldo has had all he can stand with these uppity 815ers. He pulls a gun on Jin, and suggests maybe they should report that he died accidentally while they pursued Sawyer. Justin warns him, "he's one of them," and Aldo corrects, "he may be one of them."

WTF is that all about? I thought Jacob's list established their bona fides...

Anyway, at that very moment, Aldo and poor Justin are gunned down, supporting theory that it's better to be a red shirted away team member in Star Trek than it is to be an Other with a name in Lost.

As Jin looks up to see who saved him, he (and we) get a surprise - it's Claire, only she seems to have gone all feral, and rather Rousseau-esque...

So it would appear we've reencountered "the sickness" that Rousseau told Sayid took her crew, forcing her to kill them, way back in Season 1. It stands to reason that this is what changed her crew, including Robert, when they followed Montand into the chambers outside the Temple, since that's where Sayid was infected as well. It also seems that the sickness explains why Robert almost murdered Rousseau in cold blood when his firing pin misfired, and she killed him, instead - because he had the sickness. And now, we're told, Sayid has it, too.

But...if we also know that Claire has the sickness, perhaps it was Rousseau, and not her crew that got sick? Since Jin flashed from the Montand's arm scene to the time that Rousseau shot Robert, we didn't see what happened after they went in the hole. Maybe the reason Rousseau was so nuts was that she had the same sickness, which caused her to go all paranoid and kill her crew? But then she seemed to genuinely love Alex when they were reunited. Does this offer hope for Sayid, and, for that matter, jungle Claire?

Well, that's all for this week. Until next time, when we reconvene for "The Substitute," Namaste!

Preview of 602 - "What Kate Does."

Finally, after a very long hiatus (dating back to before the airing of the Season 5 finale, "The Incident,") Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse put out another of their podcasts this week. It was, by and large, interesting, but most of it was contained in the various interviews they've given lately. I was struck by one thing, however. They are adamant that the phrase "alternate universes" is a poor descriptor of their "flash-sideways" storytelling, revealed for the first time in "LA X." They claim the problem with the term is that "alternate" makes one world seem less real than the other, and they insist both are equally real.

First, this begs the question of what "real" is. After all, either way, we're talking about a fictional narrative. And as fans of one particular strain of the fiction, one that we've watched through 5 seasons, isn't the island storyline a little more "real" to us? (See this week's edition of "Totally Lost," wherein Doc Jeff Jensen and Dan Snierson share this thought).

So then, how can this one-season wonder be just as "real" as the island story, when they seem mutually exclusive? And then it hit me. Let me break it down.

1) The new reality is taking place in 2004, while the more familiar reality, after all the time-travel hocus pocus, is back, firmly, in 2007.

2) We already know that the island exists, in part, outside of space and time as we know it (hence the inability to escape without following a specific vector, and the inability to find the island from the outside world).

3) We know that the universe has a way of "course correcting" whenever a force acts to try to change the natural course of events.

4) We know that at least one person, Desmond Hume, was somehow immune to the "course correction" in the sense that he could have his memories altered, in some way that made him, per Daniel Faraday, "uniquely special".

5) We also know that Jacob, whoever or whatever he is or was, specially selected a number of characters - specifically, Sun, Jin, Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley, Sayid, and Locke - with his touch. not surprisingly, these are the same characters that left the island, only to return.

So, with these data in mind, what the frak is going on? Quite simply, as ghost Juliet put it, "it worked." The bomb did change the past, as we've started to see in the flash-sideways storyline. But the "big moment," the place the whole Lost story has been building, is the coming war on the island. Course correction is kicking in, and somehow, these strangers from 2004 will somehow, over the next three years of their lives, be brought back to the 2007 they always should have experienced.

Now, admitedly, this will be difficult to reconcile. The main problem? Flash-sideways people live in a world where there is no more island. So how will the universe course-correct? I haven't the foggiest. Perhaps Desmond, special as he is, will be able to retain memories of both lives, and will reconnect with Jack2 et al. Perhaps the pocket of energy in the Swan pit will somehow raise the island out of the depths of the ocean. Perhaps Eloise Hawking will just get all uppity, like she did when she first met Desmond, and bitch-slap the characters back to their own native reality.

The point is, this flash-sideways 2004, and the 2007 we've been following all along, will turn out to somehow be the same story. And you heard it here.

Finally, before we head into Episode 602, a bit of a thought experiment. Let's assume Jughead's detonation in 1977 immediately caused the island to blow up, and everyone on it was killed (I don't think that happened, but until we figure out a different sinkage date, bear with me). What would be different in our characters' lives before Oceanic 815?

• Rousseau's crew never would have marooned in 1988, meaning Alex would have been born somewhere else.
• Charles Widmore may not have left the island to father Penelope, meaning the Desmond on the plane would not even know her.
• Widmore also wouldn't have been exiled in the early 1990s, meaning he would never have created the boat race that led Desmond to the island that no longer exists.
• Widmore also would not have had the chance to order DHARMA purged.
• If Widmore never left the island, he never sent Matthew Abaddon to convince John Locke to go on Walkabout after his injury. But if he didn't, how did Locke end up in Australia?
• There was no numbers transmission leading to Leonard hearing the numbers leading to Hurley playing them.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this. Just something to make you go "hmm."

Anyway, check back in later this week for my recap of "What kate Does."

Episode 601 - Lost (finally) Lands at "LA X"

Na-ma -f_ckin'-ste, y'all! it's been too, too long since we've had new Lost to discuss, but here we are, at the start of Season 6, the "Swan" song of Lost. This is your only warning - if you have not seen the two hour premiere, "LA X" (space intended to be there), read no further (but seriously, why would you be reading this?) But if you saw what I saw (or think I saw) this week, then jump headlong in...

...but first a word from our sponsor. Seriously, people, what's the deal with spam messages getting posted as comments to my posts??? Isn't the fact that I need to keep setting up new email addresses to stay away from you bottom-dwellers enough? Now you have to mess with my blog? You're lower than graffiti artists. Go away. Now, back to our program.

The Temple revealed! The Smoke Monster unmasked!! Jughead's effects in graphic, confusing detail!!! All this, plus a little too much Rose/ Bernard PDA, in "LA X"!

Aside Number 1: If you've seen the episode, by now you've figured out that the narrative conceipt of Season 6 is what the producers are calling "Flash-Sideways," in which we get two seemingly mutually exclusive stories of the same characters. For the time being, I'm going to refer to the characters who begin Season 6 fully aware of the events of the past 5 seasons using their familiar names. The characters who landed in L.A. on Oceanic 815 will be known henceforth as either "alterna-Jack" or "Locke2." And to avoid any further confusion, the guy who we thought was Locke while the "real" Locke was still dead in a casket is "Flocke," short for "faux-Locke." Just so's we're all clear...

Alternaverse
"LA X" introduced us to a parallel universe/ alternate timeline (pick your Star Trek/ Marvel Comics terminology of choice) in which, thanks (presumably) to the detonation of Jughead in the Swan pit, Oceanic 815 never crashed, and the characters arrived, safe and sound, in L.A. Indeed, our first look at these characters only covered the events of the (mostly) uneventful flight, and their arrival at the airport, without any details of their lives since returning from Australia. But one thing became very clear, very quickly - the changes in their lives did not begin with not crashing on the island. Rather, there are already apparent changes in these alternaLosties' backstories that are manifest. The obvious conclusion from this is that the many ways these people's lives intertwined before the crash were not a coincidence, at all, and the fact that the Swan hatch was never built seems to have created a chain reaction that changed a number of these people in slowly revealing ways. Of course, we also got hints of Eloise Hawking's "Course Correction" theory at work...

Alterna-Jack
As is customary with Lost, we mostly got Jack's perspective on things. What was clear from the outset is that there have been a few subtle changes. Check out this video comparing the similar events from the Pilot episode with "LA X"...




So anahoo...Jack2 gets only one extra vodka from Cindy2 (two before) and gets comforted by Rose2 (rather than vice versa). The initial look on his face suggests an awareness, if only subconscious, that this place he finds himself is somehow...off. His initial conversation with Rose2 starts what I thought was an awesome trend of double-entendres throughout the alterna-clips. In particular, Jack2's comment, "looks like we made it," and Rose2's response, "we sure did," while ostensibly about surviving some turbulence, could just as easily refer to the fact that their plane did not break up and crash on an island, as it did at that point in "real" life.

The next change (not a change, but the natural progression of not having crashed) is that Bernard2 returns from the tail-section restroom, and rejoins Rose2 in their seats. Jack2 then hits the can himself, only to find a shaving cut just opened up under his collar. But note the look on Jack2's face as he takes a long gaze at himself in the mirror. Is it that he can't believe he's here (even if he doesn't know why)? Or is that just the toll of the stress of fetching his dead father and going through rough turbulence?

Aside #2 Here's course correction at work - this cut thing seems to have happened at almost the precise moment that Jack realized he had a serious cut on his back after the crash. It's as though Jack2, much like Jack, is somehow "meant to" be cut and bleed at that moment, even if this version is considerably more innocuous...

When Jack2 returns to his seat, he finds that the aisle seat, previously empty, is now occupied by a man we recognize as Desmond2 (for now - more on this later). This, of course, is another marked departure - Desmond was never on flight 815. Rather, he arrived on the island 3 years earlier, and his failure to hit the button caused 815 to crash. As for what Desmond2 is doing flying from Sydney to L.A. rather than "saving the world, bruthah," your guess is as good as mine. In any case, Jack2 seems to recognize Desmond2, but they chalk it up to that weird feeling people get when someone looks familiar.

Aside #3 - the "for now" bit is my hedge - given Des2's disappearance (see below), and Faraday's claim that he's uniquely special makes me wonder if Desmond will somehow find himself experiencing both timelines, and clueing in our alterna-characters about their other destinies...

Also, and thanks to "Doc" Jensen for this, the book Desmond2 is reading is a work by Salmon Rushdie, the most famous quote from which is "what's the use of stories that aren't even true?" Something to ponder as we continue down the alternaverse rabbit hole this season...

As the Jack2/ Desmond2 exchange ends, we get a really funky camera move, out the window, into the water, to the floor of the ocean, where we see...the Dharma barracks? And the Dharma shark? And the ankle and foot of the Tawaret statue? The obvious implication is that, sometime after Jughead blew, the island sank. This is why Desmond is not there to push the button, and why the island doesn't drag 815 down. The questions asked by this reveal, though, are (1) when exactly did the island sink (the fact that the aforementioned structures are still intact suggests it was not immediately following the blast, because I can't imagine pre-fab houses surviving an H-bomb) and (2) how did it sink?

Cindy2 then pages for a doctor, and explains to Jack2 that a passenger has been locked in the lavatory and won't respond anyone's knocks. Sayid2 also makes an appearance, and assists by kicking in the lavatory door. They find Charlie2, not breathing. After a tense moment, Jack2 clears Charlie2's airway of the bag of heroin that had been lodged in there. Charlie2 comes to, and, in another double-entendre moment, asks, "Am I alive?" To which Jack2 responds, "yeah, you're alive."

As Charlie2 is escorted away by air marshals, again echoing the course-correction theme, he grouses at Jack2 that he was supposed to be dead, and Jack2 should have let him die. More of the double-meaning smacking us in the face. The message? What's done is done, doc. Stop messing with things.

Jack2 returns to his seat and finds Desmond2 is gone. We knew Desmond2 was seated, "officially," elsewhere on the plane. Did he go back to his seat, or back to our "regularly-scheduled programming?"

After touching down, while in Customs, Jack2 is paged to the courtesy counter. They inform Jack2 there was a mix-up with Christian's coffin, and not only is it not on the plane, they don't know where it is. Jack2 is upset because, well, his dead dad is missing, and the funeral is only 2 hours away (that's a bit of excessively tight scheduling, eh?)

Aside #4 - I can't help but wonder at this point, was Christian ever loaded onto the plane? We never saw his body after 815 crashed. Maybe the empty casket was someone else's? Or maybe this mixup is just alternaverse's lamer version of the same mystery, i.e. what happened to Christian Sheppard?

Anyway, more on Jack2 when he crosses paths with Locke2 in a bit...

Alterna-Sayid - there don't apear, thus far, to be so many changes in Sayid2's story. Just as always, he seems bound for L.A. to try to find Nadia2. We see him look at her photo both on the plane, and in the customs line. For now, that's all the Sayid2 we get. But I'm sure that will change, particularly given what happens to Sayid Prime...

Alterna-Kate - We'll come to realize before long that Kate2, even though she's being escorted in cuffs by the same marshall, in fact, did not kill her father. Rather, another man died. The meaning of this is not yet apparent. What is apparent is that there is no plane crash this time to free her. Rather, Kate2 needs to effectuate her escape after landing. She swipes Jack2's pen on the plane, then uses the old lock pick in the bathroom technique...except it doesn't work right. The marshall tries to hurry her up, and she decks him, takes his gun and jacket then tells some women that a man in the bathroom attacked her. This buys Kate2 time ...

...and she hops into an elevator with happy-go-lucky Sawyer2. Sawyer2 spots her handcuffs, but when security muscles their way in, he nonchalantly blocks their view of Kate2's cuffs, then galantly escorts her out when the door opens, enabling her escape.

As she looks for a route with no cops, Kate2 spots a TSA employee entering a code in a locked door. She enters the same code and escapes to the taxi line, where Frogurt is miffed at her innocent attempt to swipe his cab. She gets in line behind Hurley2, but, when she sees the angry marshall pointing her out to the cops, she hops into the first cab she can find. Alas, Kate2's cab already has a passenger - Claire2! Holding the driver at gunpoint, Kate2 demands they drive, and drive they do! Where on Earth is Kate2 going? Perhaps next week's episode, "What Kate Does," will explain that.

Aside #5 - I loved how we could only see Claire2's head and shoulders. In other words, we have no idea if she's pregnant. I posit she is not. To the extent there is no island anymore, there is also no force that needed Aaron to arrive. Perhaps, in this world, Claire2 knew who her father was, and flew in for his funeral? Update - thanks to my friend, Windy, for pointing this out, but after I posted this recap, ABC updated the "bug" widget on top of the blog with a preview clip that made it clear that Claire2 is, in fact, pregnant. Still, I think the ambiguity was intentional...

Alterna-Hurley - we got a glimpse of this Hugo2 in one of the two Comic Con preview clips this summer (the other was Kate2's). Unlike the meek, uninspired Hurley who won the lottery only to buy the franchise that used to employ him, Hugo2 bought the whole Mr. Cluck's chain. And he doesn't think he's cursed - in fact, he says to an annoying fan (Arzt2!) that he's the luckiest man alive, ever since he won the lottery. This prompts his neighbor, Alterna-Sawyer, to warn him not to announce his lottery winnings, lest people try to take advantage of him.

Aside #6 - We didn't spend too much time with Hurley2, but he raises some questions...like why doesn't he think he's cursed? If the island sank, did Leonard ever hear a DHARMA transmission of the numbers? If not, what numbers did Hugo play and win the lottery with? And where did he get them? I'm sure we'll see more of Alterna-Hugo as the season rolls on. Also, as Arzt pointed out, what was the multi-millonaire owner of a major corporation doing in coach?

Alterna-Sawyer - On my first viewing, I smelled Sawyer2 hatching a scheme to con Hugo2 out of his lotto winnings. On my second viewing, I found his warning to be a bit more sincere. And then I realized - this Sawyer2 doesn't strike me as a lifelong angry man who just the night before murdered - in cold blood - the wrong man, only to be forcibly deported from Australia. This man is relaxed and fancy-free, even if he's world-wise enough to help Kate2. Interesting. But, again, we only got a glimpse of Sawyer2, so I'm sure there will be more to his story.

Alterna-Locke - Locke2 meets Boone2, who reveals he tried to break up Shannon's relationship, only to fail. This change, the producers say, is meaningful (though it was in fact inspired by the unavailability of Maggie Grace to return to the show). Boone2 makes a dramatically ironic comment that if the plane goes down, Locke2 is the guy he stick with, after Locke2 tells him that he's coming back from walkabout...the same walkabout that Locke Prime was not allowed to go on. This begs the question of whether Locke2 is wheelchair bound (we learn later that, yup, he is). But this Locke2 is not the angry, bitter victim we've pitied for 5 seasons. He's more at peace, even when filling out a claim form for his lost bag o' knives. There, Locke2 meets Jack2, and philsophizes that the airline didn't lose Christian2, but only his body. Jack2, for all his differences, still has to fix things, so he asks Locke2 what got him in the wheelchair. He explains he's asking because he's a spinal surgeon. Locke2 says his problem is not amenable to surgery, but Jack2 insists, in that cocky "I saved my wife after a lethal car crash" way, that "nothing is irreversible (more nods and winks). Jack2 gives Locke2 his card, and offers a free consult (which, c'mon, we all know Locke2 will take him up on, as these characters will all need to start interacting more for the story to make sense).

Alterna-Sun and Jin2-We first glimpse the Kwon2s as Sun2 - in the same demure outfit and hair we saw in the pilot - smiles at Rose2 and Bernard2's canoodling. Jin2 looks up from the watch he's delivering for Sun2's dad and asks what she's staring at. Much more optimistically and brashly than you'd expect from Sun Prime, Sun2 tells her how sweet Rose2 and Bernard2 are. Jin2, however, is still very much the die man his other self was before the crash, and responds only by ordering - albeit gently - that Sun2 button up her top button.

At customs, Jin2's bag is searched. He is unable to explain what "business" he is on, since his English is not up to snuff, but he gets hauled off for further searching and questioning when the agents spot a large pile of wrapped American cash in his luggage. Sun2 is asked, after Jin2 is taken, if she speaks English, since that could help sort things out. After staring blankly, Sun2 says, "no...English."

Aside #7 - I feel like this is an ever-so-slightly softer version of Jin. I wonder if the money was always in his case, i.e., is this his plan to run away with Sun2 after he delivers the watch? Or is the money indicative of even deeper, nastier work for Paik2? If the Kwon2s are closer, then perhaps Sun2 isn't lying when she says she doesn't speak English. On the other hand, it may not yet be desperate enough a situation to risk getting found out by Jin2. I wonder if Jin2 shoots blanks?

So that's about it for our alterna-characters. We're told by the producers (on Jimmy Kimmel Live, right after the episode aired), that it is significant that we didn't see Libby, Ana Lucia, Eko, Michael or Walt on the plane, though in Walt's case, it's partially because Malcolm David Kelley has aged too much to look like he did in 2004. But where last night got real trippy was in the reveal that the characters not only were on the plane, and it didn't crash, but that they also were back on the island we all remember in 2007. One final observation - is it just me, or is seeing these people leading "normal" lives just a little weirder than the time-hopping, smoke-monster-infested, ziggurat-housing island story? (For the producers' quick explanation of what we should be understanding about the altered reality, click on the title of this post).

Island

Our first glimpse of what happened on the island post-Jughead comes in the form of Kate starring in Lost's signature extreme-close-up-of-opening-eye shot. Kate, who had been in the Swan site pit, wakes up at night in a tree, her hearing muffled, steadies herself, then climbs down. The first thing she sees is the back door to the Swan hatch - translation: detonating Jughead did not prevent the hatch's construction. She then finds Miles, before getting a hint of what time she's in when she looks in the hole before her feet and finds the area in its post-implosion condition. Translation: whenever she is, it's at least late 2004.

Aside #8 - it was clever to start this sequence with Kate. At this point in the narrative, we had not seen Kate2, leaving it totally plausible that some characters got zapped back to the plane, while others still lived in their as-we-knew-it timeline. Of course, we soon figured out this was not the case...

As Kate looks around, she spots first, Sawyer, then Jack, lying on the ground just outside of the pit. There was some obvious subtext the fact that she paused for a moment before deciding to rouse Jack first, ahead of Sawyer. Wait a minute - how can Jack be here? He's back on the frikkin' plane!!!!

When they've all figured out where they are, Sawyer's rage boils over. He is not the least bit subtle in pointing out to Jack that Juliet's dead, and it's all his fault. And Jack (giving, in my mind, Matthew Fox's best performance to date on the show), really can't escape the dual bad feelings of piercing guilt and shock that his plan didn't work. Sawyer kicks Jack, who looks to Kate, as if to say, "but...destiny?" but he has no meaningful response to Sawyer's accusations.

Back at the van, Hurley is still holding Sayid, who is still bleeding from the bullet he received from Ben's dad. Jin is also there. Why did these guys end up still by the van, while the characters from the Swan site got more scattered from this time jump? Jin tells Hurley they must have traveled through time, because this is what he experienced before (white flash, loud noise, headache, different time of day). They hear Sawyer shouting, and Jin goes to find them. Sayid asks Hurley, "when I die, what do you think will happen?" It's as though Sayid has clued into the "redemption" theme of Lost, and realized his fallen short. As Sayid blacks out, Hurley hears some rustling. Out steps Jacob, who says to Hurley, "Hello, Hugo. Got a minute?"

Down in the pit, while the arguing continues, Kate hears something. They realize it's Juliet, and she's trapped under the rubble of the Swan implosion. They all start to try to dig her out, but one large beam can't be budged. Jin goes to get the van, which had chains in it.

Jacob tells Hurley he died about an hour ago (i.e. nobody else but Hurley will see him), killed by "an old friend who tired of his company." Can't help but wonder if he meant Ben, or the man in black. Jacob tells Hurley to take Sayid to the Temple to be healed, that it's crucially important that he not die. He says that he'll find the way by asking Jin to take him to the hole in the wall where the French team went, and he urges Hurley to bring the guitar case.

Prediction - Hurley will end up being the "new" Richard Alpert. Now that Jacob's dead, Hurley will be the only available prophet for him to talk to in order to direct the Others. It's cool how this was set up in the season finale, when Jacob suggested to Hurley that it's a blessing, not a curse, to be able to talk to the people he's lost.

Jin arrives, and they load Sayid into the van before going to bring the chains. Hurley asks Jin, "dude, if I asked you to take me to the hole, where you were with the...French team, would you know what I'm talking about?" Jin, matter-of-factly, ponders this, then admits, "yes." But there's no time for that, now. They arrive, and hook the chains up to the beam. It gives, and Sawyer finds a way in. He finds, Juliet, still barely clinging to life. Sawyer tries to reassure her, but when she deleriously fails to recongize him for a moment, he knows she's slipping. When she recalls who he is, she's upset. She says she banged the bomb, because she wanted to send him home, and now she sees he's still here. After he gets her free, Juliet recongizes him again, and says, "James - kiss me." In the worst-written Sawyer line, ever, he responds, "you got it, Blondie," and plants one on her lips. Her dying words are, "I have something to tell you, and it's very important..." but she never gets to give her message.

Aside #9 - it broke my heart to see Sawyer find Juliet again, only to lose her all over again. I still have hope that somehow Sawyer will find Juliet2 when the two worlds converge...

Sawyer carries her out, and stares daggers through Jack. "YOU did this," he accuses. Again, Jack is utterly speechless.

Sawyer covers Juliet's body, as Jack says he can't stop Sayid's bleeding. Hurley gets the courage to speak up, and announces they have to take him to the temple. When Jack asks why, Hurley confirms that, since Jack can't save Sayid, they have to trust him to. Sawyer says he's not going. Kate offers to help him bury Juliet, but he says she should help Sayid. He does, however, ask Miles to stay behind. Kate says she'll leave a trail for them to follow, but Sawyer says he ain't following anyone.

After Sawyer and Miles finish burying Juliet, Sawyer tells Miles he wants him to do his thing and find out what Juliet was trying to tell him when she died. Miles gives it a whirl, and after contorting a bit on the fresh grave, looks up and says, "it worked." Sawyer pleads, if it worked, what did she say? But then Miles explains - that's the message. "It worked."

Aside #10 - presumably, Juliet was referring to the Jughead plan. How did she know? Did she get some inkling from the "white light" moment she must have experienced? Is this message to Sawyer step one in reconciling the two worlds?

The Beach

We rejoin the Others brigade where we left them, gathered around the statue of a big foot. Inside, Ben stares incrudulously at the fire where, presumably, Jacob has burned to nothingness (I didn't see anything in there that looked like a cooked demi-God, did you?) Flocke cleans off the knife that Ben used to do the deed, and tells Ben he can stop staring. Ben's shock is palpable. He wonders aloud why Jacob didn't try to stop him? Flocke boasts it's because he knew he was beaten (whatever the exact loophole was, Flocke clearly reveled in it). Flocke orders Ben to get Richard, and tell him he wants to talk to him.

Outside, Sun and Frank watch as Richard has a heated discussion with Ilana, Bram, and some of their group. Richard insists nobody gets to see Jacob unless they're invited in, but Ilana tries to convince him they were invited. Frank relates to Sun his doubts that these are the "good guys."

Aside #10 - Saying that once, in the finale, is a witty quip. Saying it twice makes me wonder, should we really doubt that Jacob and his chosen acolytes are good guys? It sure seems like Jacob's adversary uses the nastier techniques...

Out comes Ben, and he tells Richard John wants to see him. Ben lies and says, of course, everything is fine with Jacob (his own guilt? Planning to pass the buck to Flocke, by saying Jacob was fine when he left?). Richard angrily grabs the nape of Ben's neck, shoves him nose-first to the ground by the corpse of the real John Locke, and says, "fine, I'll talk to John, but maybe you should talk to him first!" The look of terror and confusion on Ben's face is precious.

Richard agains asks Ben what happened. As Ben reiterates that he should go inside, Bram decideds he's done waiting, and he takes a couple of flunkies in with him. Ben goes in, too, and tells Flocke that Richard isn't coming. When Bram and company arrive, Flocke brags about Jacob's death. Bram's people open fire, their bullets apparently striking the back wall, but not affecting Flocke. Flocke ducks behind a column, disappears, and suddenly Smokey arrives. Smokey starts ripping into team Bram. Bram, meanwhile, opens a small sack and dumps a ring of the type of ash that encircled "Jacob's" cabin around himself. This, miraculously, stops Smokey. But Smokey isn't about to give up. It smacks the ceiling, sending a stone plummeting that staggers Bram. Immediately, Smokey is upon him, impaling the big gunman on a piece of Jacob's loom. Smokey dissipates, and suddenly Flocke is there. He smiles at the terrified Ben, saying, "I'm sorry you had to see me like that."

Aside #11 - Yes, yes, yes!!!! You wanted answers? How about this? Smokey is not a thing. It's a man, albeit one with a fairly unique set of abilities, including shape-shifting. Is there any doubt now that Smokey was also Yemi? Or ghost Alex? Or that all of these things were just the man in black who told Jacob he wanted to kill him as much as 160 years earlier? We also found out what the ash was for - whatever it's made of, it stops Smokey in his tracks. But you better use a big ring, or else Smokey can just chuck stuff at you. The how of it all is still fuzzy. But the what is finally revealed!

As Flocke lines up the bodies, Ben stares at him, mouth agape. Finally, he forms the words, "you're the monster!" Flocke smiles and says, "let's not resort to name calling." Flocke then goes off on a rant about how joyfully pathetic Locke was, beginning with the last thoughts that went through John's head as Ben strangled him - "I don't understand." He then berates his doppelganger by saying John Locke was weak, pathetic, irreperably broken, and yet the only one of the 815 survivors who realized how pitiful the life he left behind truly was. Ben asks what Flocke wants, and he smiles that, ironically, he wants the one thing John Locke didn't - to go home.

Aside #12 - Let's unpack this. First, just how on Earth did Flocke know what Locke was thinking when he died? I get that he can read minds with that flashing lightning thing, but how did he know what Locke was thinking in L.A.? Especially given that, apparently, Flocke is trapped here on the island? Next, it can be no coincidence that John Locke was dismissed as "irreperably broken" by Flocke in the same episode where Jack2 told Locke2 that there are no irreperable injuries. Not sure where that's going, but I'd put a finger on it for later. Finally, what is home? Flocke has been here for a long, long time. It seemed beating Jacob was all he cared about from what little we knew about him. Indeed, it's clear now that not even Ben had more insight into this person/ creature. So what's home, and what, aside from killing Jacob, does he have to do to get there?

Outside, Richard sees a small fireworks display (more on that in a second - the important thing is that this confirms, if there had been any doubt, that the time-hopping Dharma-suited Lostaways are now on the same island at the same time as Sun, Frank, and Flocke). Ben and Flocke emerge, alone. Ilana's remaining people raise their guns, but Richard shouts not to shoot him. Flocke addresses Richard, saying how good it is to see him out of the chains. Richard suddenly seems to recognize who Flocke really is, just in time for Flocke to knock his block off. Flocke picks up Richard's unconscious body and tells those assembled - Others, Ilana-ites, Sun and Frank (and perhaps all or none of them in particular) that he's "very disappointed in all of you," then tramps off, past "his own" body.

Aside #13 - There are several ways to try to interpret the Flocke/ Richard exchange. I prefer the most obvious - Richard was a slave on the Black Rock. Whatever the answer, it's clear he was bound in some way before. It's odd to me that Richard only seemed to figure out who Flocke was after he revealed he knew Richard's past. Wonder what Richard has to say when he wakes up. For what it's worth, Nestor Carbonnell claimed at the big premiere party in Hawaii that Richard's backstory is coming (they just shot it), and it's told in a way that really blew him away.

The Temple
The rest of the action in "LA X" took place at the one locale we'd heard so much about, but never saw before - the Others' Temple. As Jacob promised, Jack and crew found the Temple by going through the underground hole that first the Frenchies, then Flocke and Ben went into outside the outer wall of the Temple area. There they find Montande's one-arm-short-of-a-clap body (Jin tells Hurley it was the smoke monster that did it to him), and carry Sayid gingerly around the hole that Ben made when he caved into Smokey's chamber. Suddenly Kate, then Jin, disappear, as Jack hear's the whispers. Before long, Jack is alone, when two Others grab him. They drag him through the passage, and out to a clearing, where his companions are. And where, at long last, we see...the Temple.

We also get our first glimpse of the group of Others who reside at the Temple. Unlike their counterparts from the DHARMA barracks and beach camp, who seemed to prefer contemporary clothing, these Others wear frocks and vests straight out of a 60s revival hippie commune. They also seem even more aggressive than their house-loving counterparts. I couldn't help but wonder if Locke was on to something when he accused Ben's crew of being pharacies for daring to live with electricity and modern convenience. Also, the Temple Others answered a small but lingering question - what happened to Cindy and the kids, Zach and Emma, who had been taken from the tail section, but who were not among the group that waited with Richard for Locke's return?

The temple Others are led by Dogen (trust me, that will be his name), a Samurai-looking smile-deficient man who we learn knows English but chooses not to speak it because he doesn't like how it tastes on his tongue. Dogen is aided by Lennon (trust me, that will be his name), an even less smiley uber-hippie with stoner glasses, who translates for Dogen.

Twice Dogen orders the Lostaways shot, even after Cindy says they were on her plane, only to reconsider based on Hurley's actions. First, Hurley says Jacob sent them to save Sayid. On the second kill order, Hurley refers them to the guitar case Jacob had him bring to the island. Inside is a giant ankh (an egyptian symbol, at a Mayan-type ziggurat), which Dogen unceremoniously breaks over his knee. Inside is a piece of paper. We don't see its contents, but presumably it includes one of Jacob's lists. Lennon asks who these people are. They identify themselves, and Dogen gives a nod. The Others lift Sayid and start to bring him inside. When asked what the paper says, Lennon responds that it says if Sayid dies, they're all in trouble.

Inside is a bubbling pool. The fact that it appears muddy and not clear alarms the Others. Dogen cuts his own hand with a knife, then sticks it in the water. On two viewings, I couldn't quite tell if his hand healed but stayed bloody, or didn't heal, but the implication was clear - this pool holds the secret of the island's healing power, but there was concern it wouldn't work. Lennon ominously warns that there are risks to what they're doing, but Jack tells them to proceed. The Others take Sayid, looking very Christ-like as they carried him, into the pool, and hold him face-down in the water as Dogen turns over a big hourglass. Sayid starts to thrash, but they hold him down. As Jack tries to intervene, he ends up on the wrong side of Dogen's Kung Fu fury. The last grains of sand fall, and Dogen orders Sayid to be lifted out. They briefly examine him, before Lennon declares he's dead. Jack, still being Jack, tries CPR, but Kate convinces him to let go.

As the Lostaways sit around, mourning yet another loss (Jack already blames himself), Cindy and the kids bring them food, and the Others shove Miles and throw an unconscious Sawyer into the room. Miles boasts that his boss took out a bunch of Others before he was hit with a rock.
Hurley is taken for a private chat with Dogen and Lennon in some sort of hydroponic room. When Hurley reveals that Jacob's dead, they spring into action, and sound the battle stations alarm. The temple gates are shut and barricaded, and ash is spread around the outer wall. A rocket is sent up - the fireworks glimpsed by Richard et al on the beach. Hurley comments about how this seems to mean he and his friends won't be getting out, but a scared Lennon tells him, "it's not to keep you in. It's to keep him out!"

Aside # 14- this brings up an intesting theme - was the ring ash around the cabin meant to keep someone in or out? Given that Smokey seemed to have free range for a while, I think the ash was how Jacob stayed protected in the cabin. But why the sense that he was really always in the foot statue? And why no ash around that area to keep Flocke out?

Hurley says good-bye to Sayid, but Miles, sitting nearby, has a look that I interpreted to mean this guy isn't quite dead. But when Hurley asks what's up, Miles says nothing. Sawyer wakes up, and seems almost amused that they've been caught by the Others...again. But Kate smiles and says she thinks they're protecting them this time. Sawyer sits up and shoots a nasty look at Jack. Kate gives Sawyer a pleading, "please don't kill him" look, and Sawyer responds, "I ain't gonna kill him. Jack deserves to suffer on this rock just like the rest of us."

The Others come and ask for Jack. He refuses to go, saying they can tell him whatever they have to say right there, but they insist they cannot. There's a brief struggle, that's interrupted when Hurley calls Jack because...Sayid just sat up! Looking confused, Sayid asks, "What happened?"

Aside 15-In case you're wondering, the producers have said that, no, Sayid was not possessed by the spirit of Jacob (Jimmy Kimmel asked them when they appeared on his show Tuesday night), but we should be wondering what did happen to Sayid? It stands to reason it's the same thing that changed Ben after Sayid shot him, and after Richard warned he would lose his innocence. Of course, Sayid has no innocence left to lose, but it will be interesting to see what happened to him. Perhaps it will explain in part why Cindy, the kids, and the other tailie abductees so fully embraced the Others after they were taken.

It also appears that the war that was coming is now under way. Is Widmore alligned with Flocke? Does Ben know who he's alligned with? If Jacob was spending all of his time in a giant foot, why does his death make the temple vulnerable? Wasn't smokey hanging out there before?

Anyway, I'm intrigued by the new dual-reality story line, and hope it pays off. Between Juliet's message to Sawyer, my belief that Desmond will bounce between worlds, and the fact that in Alterna-verse there's probably still a living Daniel Faraday, I think the two worlds will collide. If you want more of an explanation of what is going on, click on the title of this post to go to an interview with Damon and Carlton about the new "flash-sideways" storytelling. Until next week, in the homage-ly-entitled "What Kate Does," Namaste, and welcome back!

Season 6 Preview

So...we're only days away. The questions that will be answered, OMG! What did Jughead's detonation accomplish? Who lived and died? What was Frank Lapidus a candidate for? Now that Jacob's dead (if he is), what will Faux-Locke do next? A hint of some these answers has made it online in the form of the first 4 minutes of Monday's premiere episode, "LA X." You can watch them here.



Kinda cool, no? Especially the way that Jack seemed, at the start of the scene, to notice how odd it was that he was on the plane, and not on the island circa 1977 (he did, right?)

There's more good news for Season 6. As many of you have heard by now, much of the "departed" cast will be back in some capacity. Dominic Monaghan (Charlie) will sneak away from Flash Forward for 4 episodes. Ian Somerhalder (Boone) will check in, fresh off the set of Vampire Diaries. In a huge, unexpected coup, Cynthia Watros (Libby) will return, hopefully to explain how Desmond's boat donor ended up as Hurley's fellow inmate at the asylum, and how she then ended up sane as can be in Australia. And there will be others, as well. The big problem looming now - since the show seems, at least for a while, to be going back to 2004, how to bring back Walt, who's now 6 years older (and noticeably so) than he was in the pilot?


Anyway, enjoy this preview, amd check back later this week for the LA X recap.

Warming up the engine for Season 6

Yawwwwn! It's been a loooong hiatus - and there's still a little more than 2 months to go before Lost returns on February 2. But with Doc Jensen's return to regular Lost postings at EW.com (click the title of this post to be whisked away to the Doc's musings), I thought it was time to start warming up for one final season of LLL.

First, in response to the Doc's column (which centers on the anxiety/ excitement dichotomy in internet chatter regarding what appears to be a continuity "reboot" at the start of Season 6), I am reminded of my prior geek obsession, Marvel's X-Men comics. In my mind, the most successful plotline of the post-Chris Claremont era of the X-Men was the "Age of Apocalypse," in which all 8 X-Men titles were suddenly scrapped in favor of stories taking place in an alternate universe, where Charles Xavier never lived to form the X-Men, and the world had turned into a dark, despotic regime led by X-Men baddy Apocalypse. In addition to a brilliantly conceived, interlocking complex narrative, the series offered an amazing look into familiar characters. Some had such pre-determined character traits that, despite radically different surroundings and backgrounds, they emerged into characters similar to the ones we already knew. Others, who were more products of their pasts, departed dramatically. Ultimately, reality "rebooted" again to its prior state, but not without having been affected profoundly by this through-the-looking glass crisis.

I am profoundly hopeful for a similarly satsifying Lost season, if, indeed, such a reality re-do is what's in store (and if it is not, then bully to the producers for all the false clues suggesting otherwise).

But that said, I am trepidatious about the season to come. It's no big shock that I've loved, I mean seriously loved Lost throughout its first 5 seasons. All along, I've carried my team Darlton-inspired faith that the writers knew what they were doing, and all would pay off.

But now, for the first time, I head into a season wondering if that will turn out to be true. Obviously, not every one of the zillion questions the show has posed to its astute viewers can be precisely answered (leading to the possibility of continued debate long after the series has ended). But now we've reached that point where faith will either be rewarded, or sharply disappointed. How many potentially great stories fell apart with lousy endings? (I'm talkin' to you, X-Files, and every X-Men crossover since "Age of Apocalypse"). And what about the inevitable mourning period, when there will be nothing left to dissect except the minutia such as where the pocket watch Locke and Richard kept giving to each other actually first came from.

I think it's this fear (coupled with a busy year at work, a kid who's now a toddler, and a wife who's now 8 months pregnant) that has kept me from obsessing about Lost all throughout the hiatus as I have in previous seasons. Indeed, I haven't even watched the last installment (or 2?) of the kitchy "Secrets of the DHARMA Initiative" video ABC.com has been posting since the end of the summer.

But that said, I am pretty stoked for the possibility that the final season will bring us the most satisfying TV conclusion since Bob Newhart woke up as the character from his previous eponymous series to the realization that he had just had an elaborate, years-long dream.

So until "LA X" (extra space intentional) on Groundhog Day, my fingers will remain crossed. Namaste.