I thought I’d start blogging my initial thoughts after each new episode. Eloquent, in-depth theory laden blogs can wait until later in the week, I just want to get the discussion started…
This episode was FANTASTIC. It was exactly what the Doctor Jack Shepard wouldn’t have ordered (because he’s always wrong) after the subpar filler that was “What Kate Does”. We got answers, we got questions, we got numbers, we got a drunk Sawyer and we got a Benjamin Linus eulogy.
First the eulogy. I believe that Other Ben is really remorseful over killing Locke. I still think jealous was a weak motive but I really do buy Ben’s remorse. In typical Other Ben style, however, he just couldn’t help himself from lying to Booby-Fett (Ilana) about killing Jacob. I suppose I would have lied to her to. Side note, did anyone else crack up after Frank’s reaction to Ben’s eulogy?
Because this episode covered so much ground I’ll give you my thoughts bulletized:
- I do think the young boy was Jacob. I’m interested in seeing if people can date the boy’s age based on his clothing.
- Why can’t Smokey change forms anymore? What happened between him posing as Slingshot (Alex) and now that keeps him stuck as our favorite bald ex-cripple. I assume the answer is killing Jacob?? It’s interesting that all of the sudden Jacob is the one playing shapeshifter.
- Do we believe Smokey about what a candidate is? Has Jacob been trying to choose a successor all this time? That doesn’t seem to jive with the conversation he had when he brought the Black Rock to the island in the Season 5 series finale. Maybe proving Smokey wrong is finding a successor. Maybe that’s what only ends once!!
- Does the island really need protecting if no one can get to the damn thing without Jacob leading them there? Clearly Jacob didn’t do such a bangup protection job in Timeline X since the island is at the bottom of the ocean. That leads me to another though…
- How the hell did Ben Linus get off the island to become a school teacher?? If the nuke blew up in 77 and sunk the island how did Ben get off?? He was in the temple taking a healing bath. I was able to explain away Ethan on the mainland because I assumed he was put on the sub with the rest of the nonessential personnel, but I can’t explain Ben. Maybe the nuke isn’t what sunk the island, maybe it happened later and Ben happened to not be there.
- How many things have been changed by the 77 nuke going off?? Locke is still with Helen and has a relationship with his dad. Hurley is a happy millionaire? Sticks (Shannon) stayed in Australia, Rose works for Hurley, Kate kill the wrong man, Desmond may or may not have been on the plane etc, etc.
- Don’t you love how Smokey threw the white rock away because of an “inside joke”
- There is no Kate and no Walt on Jacob’s chalk list. Clearly Walt has been completely written out, but Jacob visited Kate. Interesting…
Finally in case you missed it here is a recap of our Losties and their Jacob assigned numbers compliments of Sledgeweb’s Lost Stuff. I’m really anxious to hear people’s thoughts…
[UPDATED WITH MORE NAMES]
Oceanic
Alive
8 – Reyes
15 – Ford
16 – Jarrah
23 – Shepard
42 – Kwon (Jin or Sun? Both?)
313 – Littleton (Claire? Aaron?)
Dead
195 – Pace
4 – Locke
Others
10 – Mattingley
317 – Cunningham
117 – Linus (Roger? Emily? Ben?)
55 ? – Burke
Dharma
??? – Goodspeed (Horace? Olivia? Ethan?)
134 ? – Chang
French Team
? – Lacombe
Freighter
Lewis
Faraday
171 ? – Straume
US Army
233 – Jones
Undetermined
222 – O’Toole
291 – Domingo
346 – Grant
Partial
33 – XW?
20 – Rouf…
62 – …?
90 – Tr(oup?)
…? – …ersen
285 – Jen…
49 – …chan
30 – …la
195 – …?
?? – Reyno(lds?)
27? – …?
1? – Sullivan
…? – …zki
Finally Lost 
Good point about the island needing protection, or – not needing protection! And why did they _have_ to bury John Locke, while the rest of Ilana’s dead crew got no such burial?
>> How many things have been changed by the 77 nuke going off?? Locke is still with Helen and has a relationship with his dad.
Two little pieces of information from last night’s episode bring up a ton a questions…
1. Locke is engaged to Helen
2. Locke still has a relationship w/ his dad (assumed based on Helen’s comment)
Locke wouldn’t have a relationship with his dad, if he pushed him out the window, so how did Locke become paralyzed?
If Locke didn’t fall out the window, does that mean he never met Jacob in this time line?
Helen broke up with Locke after he was involved in some shady dealings with his dad, so is Locke’s dad no longer a con man???
If Locke’s dad is no longer a con man, does that mean he never conned Sawyer’s parents, and they never killed themselves? Or maybe I should say James Ford, since he would never have become “Sawyer” in that case…
If Sawyer’s parents didn’t die, does that mean he never met Jacob while writing a letter to his parent’s killers?
Sawyer originally went to Australia looking for revenge on his parent’s killer…if they didn’t die in this time line, why was he in Australia?
A whole bunch of assumptions in there, but still quite an interesting butterfly effect…
Whoa, more good points! One more: Hurley owned the box company John worked at (and was fired from). We can assume he won the lottery with “the numbers” in order to be able to buy the company. So the numbers are relevant in the “X” universe as well? Did Hurley spend time in the mental hospital where he learned the numbers? How would he have made such a turnaround from being in the hospital to having it so together by the time Locke ran into him in the parking lot…?
You read my mind on where I was going with the Locke being crippled thing. Can Jacob’s single acts really be the butterfly effect Smokey suggested they were? Did Jacob go back further in the past and do things to Locke’s dad to make him a con man just to affect Locke’s future?
I’m pretty sure Locke’s dad was a con man at some point because by 77 Sawyer’s parents would have already been dead. Remember when Sawyer told Jack that he didn’t go back and change it?
@Dukester, the numbers were still important until 77 so maybe Hurley’s friend still heard them. Maybe those numbers are Jacob’s way of bringing you to the island thus they seemed cursed to Hurley because those bad things had to happen to get him on the original 815 flight. Since the island is now gone, maybe those bad things didn’t happen.
Ah, according to Lostpedia, Sawyer’s parents died in 1976, so yeah that kills that theory…
Yes, I was wondering about that. I thought the time line seemed “off”. And Jacob didn’t visit Jack until much, much later. These timelines give me a headache!
Great thoughts! The white rock joke? Was that in reference to Jacob’s black rock? I don’t remember that he brought a black rock.
I don’t understand why there are no women on the list. This sounds like it will cause problems for the show!! Kate is such an important strong character, whey wouldn’t she have been considered. She and Sayer have the most uh…well…gumption of the crew.
Nancy, OMG how did I not realize there were no women on the list!! And why aren’t more people blogging and theorizing about this? Great call!!
This week it was confirmed Kate is on the list!
I think the white rock is an inside joke to fans (though Locke-Ness Monster probably meant it was an inside joke between him and Jacob), because we all associate Jacob with white (he was wearing a white shirt in the famous conversation by the statue in the season 5 finale), and the “Man in Black” a.k.a. Smoke Monster was wearing black. They have some kind of competition or battle where the 2 sides are trying to overpower the other… and since Jacob is dead now, he can toss that white stone right into the damn ocean!
A point about Candidate #42 (is that like Client #9, Eliot Spitzer?):
Someone on DarkUFO (an awesome Lost fan site with tons of information, if anyone hasn’t checked it out) pointed out that Jacob touched BOTH Jin and Sun… meaning that the candidate could be their CHILD, the combination of the two of them. There was a whole episode named after Ji Yeon and they have left that plot really hanging, with Sun abandoning the kid to come back to the island… So maybe Ji Yeon will be showing up somehow.
Great note about Ji Yeon!
I hope you don’t mind me mentioning it on my blog – http://superduperstream.blogspot.com/2010/02/s6e4.html
Great thoughts here and love the title to this article! Looking forward to more Ben/Locke interactions in school! Someone made a great call on seeing Harper in the teachers room. Wow. My 11 year old Lost-addicted-son (like his mom) pointed out a few weeks ago the possibililty of Ji Yeon never being born unless Sun and Jin crash on the island. Wonder if Sun and Jin will be able to conceive her in the new Sideways life. “Not unless they get along” my son says.
It is very interesting watching and listening to LOST with the “younger generation”. Jack, my kid, sees things from a really differently perspective. It’s like a fresh, clear, innocent, wisdom. He immedieately pointed out when seeing young David waiting for Jack at school, that it wasn’t the same school where Ben and Locke are because he is wearing a school uniform and the other kids at Blocke school were not. (after my big scream OMG he’s at the same school!!). He also pointed out 2 other “David” names in Lost. (they are all listed now on Lostpedia). Dave, as in Hurley’s Dave of course. And David, Libby’s dead husband. I don’t want to think there is are connections now to the “David” name (mainly because my brain in too tired) but my kid will say “c’mon Mom, do you really think the LOST writers just picked the name David for no reason”! Oy vay.
Keep up the great blogging. Your site is refreshing.
PS. Jack, (my Jack) thinks the island and all the people that would be on the island don’t even exist in Sideways life. And that is why we are meeting Ethan, Ben, etc.
PSS. I just want to see Sawyer and Juliet (David’s mom?) meet in the coffee shop (“no not the same coffee shop as Desmond and Libby”!)
Great thoughts, tell Jack (your Jack) he should probably have his own blog!
thanks for the reply. actually Jack, my Jack, did try a kids blog at the start of Season 5. It was called LOSTFORKIDS and lasted 2 episodes. He just couldn’t keep up with the amount of work it took. I tried to help but I couldn’t keep up either. That is why we admire all of you great LOST bloggers. Thank you for keeping us all connected.
If its ok with you, I’ll tell Jack (LJ-little Jack) to post his “younger-generation” LOST theories and obsevations here.
You can cross-reference your list of candidates with the list on Lostpedia (ex. 20-Rousseau, Alex or Danielle)
Keep up the great blogging-I think it is definately the most witty and well-written LOST blog I have seen out there (including posts from multiple users, such as Dark UFO)!
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