Monday, February 16, 2009

S5Ep5 - This Place is Death

Hello my dear friends -

"This Place is Death" served up the climax of "very bad things" that came to pass on the Island once the O6 left. The time flashes hit with increasing frequency, forcing Charlotte to, uh, resign her post as President of the Bloody Nose Club just as Sawyer became a card-carrying member. Locke, thanks to a tip from the fading Ms. Lewis, completed the first part of his mission to bring back the Lostaways who departed: he successfully turned the Frozen Donkey Wheel, but not before being reprimanded by Zombie Dad for letting Ben do it the first time around. Now the stage has been set for us to see exactly what transpired when Locke returned to the outside world.

Speaking of the outside world, I'm going to kick off this post with a look at the L.A.-based events, so let's head to the Long Beach Marina...


I GOT A BONE TO PICK WITH YOU
AND I'M SURE YOU KNOW IT'S TRUE

It was indeed Ben that Sun was gunning for (pun intended). After we were treated to our first glimpse of two-and-a-half-year-old Ji Yeon thanks to an ill-timed phone call, Sun busted out of her car and went straight for the man who had finally wrangled all but one of the Oceanic Six together. He's like, "Cool your heels, sweetie. I didn't kill your hubby, and I can prove it." Kate -- still fuming from the realization that Ben was the mystery client paying lawyers to pursue her -- did the right thing by getting Aaron out of there. As Kate's leaving, Sayid also decides to wipe his hands of the situation. He warns Ben and Jack that he plans to create an extra-special Breakdancing Move o' Death for the next time he runs into either of them, and then ends with, "Jarrah, OUT!"

That left Sun and The Mad Doctor as the only ones willing to take a ride with Ben in the Reincarnation Van.

During that ride came my fourth favorite scene of the episode. Sun and Jack were all, "I'M going to shoot Ben first... No, I'M going to shoot Ben first! OK, let's both shoot him at the same time, because that's how much he sucks!" and Mr. Linus was having none of it. He swerved off the road and delivered an intense verbal smackdown to his stunned passengers. "Dammit, Jack... just because you shaved your beard doesn't mean you're not a frickin' crackhead. As for you, Sun... well, once a floozy, always a floozy. If you both don't shut up, as God is my witness, I will find a way to bring Smokey to L.A. and sic him on your ungrateful asses!"

I enjoyed Ben's little tirade not only because it was hilarious, but also because it gave me hope that Ben is indeed trying to do the right thing after all... that he's a "good guy." Yes, I'm still positive that he has his own agenda for bringing back the O6, but his van rant proved to me that he at least believes he's trying to help the 815ers, too. Ever since we first met him in "One of Them," we've seen Ben dole out critical information only when he has absolutely no other choice. Now he's at the peak of his frustration because he knows he has to be exceedingly careful about what he chooses to share with those upon whom his own return to the Island depends. Unfortunately, he's lied to them so much that they have every right to question his motivations.


GIVE ME SOMETHIN' TO BELIEVE IN
'CAUSE I DON'T BELIEVE IN YOU
ANYMORE
, ANYMORE

Ben finally stops the van and reveals the "proof" that Jin's alive. He gives Sun her husband's wedding ring.

SUN: How do you have this?

BEN: John gave it to me.

JACK: [interjecting] You said John never came to see you.

BEN: That’s true, Jack, I went to see him. [To Sun] Jin gave it to him before he left the island.

SUN: Why did he not tell me himself?

BEN: I don’t know. Maybe he never had a chance before he died.


There are a few important things we can take away from this scene, assuming (and yes, it's a huge assumption) that Ben's not lying:

1) Ben knew that Locke had left the Island long before Locke ended up in a casket.

We were already aware that Ben has off-Island Others working for/with him, so perhaps he's had these people monitoring the O6 ever since they returned home. My guess would be that when Locke started visiting members of the O6 and pleading the case for them to return, Ben's people saw it and reported back to him.

2) Ben went to see Locke -- not the other way around.

This one makes me more than a little nervous. Neither Undead Christian Shephard nor Ageless Richard ever mentioned one word to Locke about needing to involve Ben in the mission to get the O6 back to the Island. In fact, it seems like Ben was never supposed to turn the FDW or leave the Island in the first place. So to hear that he tracked down Locke and most likely inserted himself in whatever plans Locke had made spells trouble in my mind. While I've said before that I think Desmond's interference with Charlie's death might have been what kicked off the disastrous turn of events on the Island, I'm now starting to wonder if ignoring Ben from the start would've also resulted in a better outcome for everyone. If Lost is a story about each of the 815ers coming to terms with where they've gone wrong in life, then perhaps the key for Locke will be learning to trust himself rather than Ben. So when is he going to start doing so?

3) Locke may or may not have visited Sun.

Sun's "Why did he not tell me himself?" could be interpreted two ways:
1) Why didn't he tell me himself... when he visited me?
or
2) Why didn't he ever come talk to me?

If Locke tracked down Sun and relayed how Ben killed Keamy -- causing the freighter Jin was on to explode -- that might explain Sun's level of rage and determination to bring Ben to justice. However, I don't really see why Locke would visit Sun just to tell her that.

Based on Ben's comeback to Sun that perhaps Locke didn't say anything to her about the ring because "he never had a chance before he died," I'm inclined to believe that Locke and Sun didn't meet after he left the Island. I think he wanted to hold true to his promise to Jin (which I'll revisit later in this post) and therefore thought it would be safer if he just stayed away from her entirely. She'd have enough reason to hate Ben without Locke sharing the full story behind the freighter's explosion.

Perhaps the question we should be asking is: what did Locke tell Ben about Jin?


ALL THAT'S LEFT OF THE DREAMS I HOLD
IS A BAND OF GOLD

Locke could have kept Jin's secret. He could've told Ben that Jin washed up on the beach and that they buried him. If Locke intended to die in an attempt to convince the O6 that they needed to return, and if he shared that plan with Ben beforehand, then he could've said something to Ben like, "Hey, once I'm gone, make sure Sun gets this ring so that she has some closure." Ben could actually have no idea that Jin's really still alive. He probably doesn't care either way -- he just knew he could use the ring as leverage to get Sun's cooperation.

OR

Locke could've told Ben the truth in the hopes that Ben would do the dirty work. Remember when John was supposed to kill Original Sawyer/Daddy Locke in "The Brig" but (with Richard's help) got Sawyer to do it instead? I think Locke might be pulling a similar stunt with Jin's ring. He could've spilled everything to Ben and given Ben the ring as a means to motivate Sun to return with the group. Then the Island (which is what Locke cares about above everything else) would be saved... while he never directly breaks his vow to Jin. For Ben and Locke it's a win-win situation.

I'm banking on the hope that we'll eventually get to see all of Locke's off-Island adventures... so for now, let's return to the scene outside of Hawking's Headquarters...


THE IMPOSSIBLE
IS POSSIBLE
TONIGHT
(TONIGHT)

Sun decides that she will stick with Ben, and they (along with Jack) prepare to go talk to "the woman who can help them" return to the Island. Then, wouldn't you know it, Desmond strolls up at the exact same moment and asks if they're also looking for Faraday's mom. I would've loved it if this scene was in slo-mo and there was a soft breeze blowing Des's hair back from his face as he walked toward the group and then the camera panned to Ben as his mouth drops open, ever so slightly (still in slo-mo). I can picture it perfectly in my mind.

Did you notice that upon seeing Desmond, Ben suddenly appeared remotivated? He almost ran into the church to show Hawking who'd come for a visit.

All I can figure is that:
- Ben knows of Desmond's "uniqueness" regarding the rules of time travel on the Island, and thought that his presence might more than make up for the fact that four of the Oceanic Six weren't along for the ride. Or...
- Ben hadn't been aware that Hawking was Faraday's mother, but now that he knows, he has even greater hope that his mission can succeed as Hawking will be extra-motivated to save her son. Or...
- Ben did know that Hawking was Faraday's mother, but didn't realize that Daniel must have convinced Desmond -- while still on the Island together at some point in the past -- to attempt to save those who had been left behind. Ben is obviously willing to accept any extra help he can get and is heartened to hear that he's not the only one working to prevent the destruction of the Island (and those on it); across space and time, Daniel is, too.

So everyone goes into the church, and Lost fans who never watched any of the past "enhanced" episodes finally got their first confirmation that Ms. Hawking's name is Eloise (we'd still never heard her last name spoken until the end of this episode when Zombie Dad mentions it). I'm not going to repeat everything I wrote before about Ellie, the young woman who captured the Freighties in "Jughead" and who most likely grew up to be Ms. Hawking/Daniel's mother, but if you want to review those theories, the two relevant sections begin here.

Clearly, we're soon going to learn exactly how the group must go about returning to the Island. As the next installment is entitled "316," my guess is that Ms. Hawking has figured this number to be the bearing the O6 have to follow to catch an "opening" in space-time... a wormhole of sorts that will close once seventy hours have passed. Other bearings have been 325 (which Ben gave to Michael when he left via boat with Waaaalt) and 305 (which Daniel gave to Lapidus when he headed back to the freighter, and which was also referenced on Eko's Jesus Stick: "Lift up your eyes and look north John 3:05"). In "The Lie," Daniel told everyone that he'd have to calculate a new bearing if they were to attempt to leave the Island via Zodiac -- but he never did so as the flashes kept messing with everything.

Then of course there's the Bible verse, John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Seeing as how Lost's John has just left the Island and has often been viewed as a Savior-like character on the show (the parallels between John and Jesus will be even stronger if Locke does indeed "rise from the dead"), the next episode's title could be a religious nod as well. But I'm still going with "316" being the bearing needed to return to the Island.

Let me end my coverage of the Los Angeles scenes by saying how much I loved Desmond's "What's goin' on here, brotha?" look when he first saw Hawking. In the next episode I hope we actually get to hear his reaction to discovering that Daniel's mother is the same strange woman who tried to stop him from buying an engagement ring for Penny all those years ago.

Now, on to the Island...



THE MONSTER MASH

There must have been a Korean/English dictionary floating along with Jin during the time he was stranded at sea, because he sure was talking up a storm with Rousseau's crew. He was able to ask her what year it was and then confirm that there was a radio tower on the Island. It's fair to guess that without Jin, Rousseau may have never recorded her infamous transmission. Once she had to kill off all of her friends and her husband, she might have given up hope had she not known there was a radio tower within walking distance.

Another thing Jin clued everyone into was the fact that the bizarre noises they were hearing in the jungle were being made by the "monster."

Yes, Smokey was back in all his glory. We got quite a good look at him this time around, too. He finished Nadine off Oceanic Pilot-style and then gave Montand a scenic -- albeit bumpy -- ride back to his lair. A lair that's apparently beneath the unseen-until-now Temple.

Rousseau's group wasn't going to give Montand up without a fight, though. The snarky Frenchman found himself playing the role of the rope in a Smokey versus Science Team Tug of War match. The loser of this game was Montand's arm. In the span of a quick, gross cutaway, one of my five biggest pre-Season Five questions was answered.

Now there's a new mystery: what in the hell happened once Montand was dragged underground? Immediately after his arm landed with a quiet thud on the jungle floor, we hear Montand crying for help. Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but all I could think at that point was, "Oh, no... this is just like that crap in The Ruins that left me sleepless for two nights." (For those of you who haven't read Scott Smith's disturbing bestseller or seen its film adaptation, in it there are evil vines that are able to impersonate human voices.)

The rest of the science team eagerly climbs down the hole to rescue Montand -- except for Danielle, who is stopped by Jin. So now we know why Danielle was the only one from her group who didn't get "the sickness." Jin saved her.


BUT IT'S PLAIN TO SEE
I'M NOT THE MAN I USED TO BE
OH, IT'S PLAIN
AND IT'S A SHAME

I'M NOT THE MAN I USED TO BE


Next, a flash carries Jin to a point in time just a few months later -- the Temple area is now deserted, except for Montand's decaying arm. Back at the beach, Jin finds that members of Rousseau's team have been shot and killed. He also comes across the music box that Sayid will end up fixing for Danielle in the future. Did you notice the instrument cases that were lying around? They were shown pretty prominently... which means we were meant to notice them.

The first thing that popped into my head was: instruments = musicians = one of these French peeps was the one who ends up programming the musical code in The Looking Glass. Now, why a French person would choose "Good Vibrations" by The Beach Boys to base a code on is beyond me, so I doubt anything will come of this little idea. But as always, I thought I should mention it just in case. I have no idea how any of those guys could've gotten down to The Looking Glass in the two months or so before they were killed by Rousseau, and I also don't think the jamming of communications on and off of the Island would've begun in 1988 -- but stranger things have happened in this series. For the record, I still think Charlie was the one who programmed the code. Don't ask me how this could work or why I think this, because it's just a gut feeling I've always had -- nothing more.

Anyway, back to the beach. Hearing an argument nearby, Jin creeps toward the voices until he spies Danielle with her rifle pointed at her husband, Robert. Scenes like this one are, in my opinion, the best examples of Lost's brilliance. In Season One, Rousseau told Sayid how she had removed the firing pin from her husband's rifle before she killed him. So it's not like we didn't know what was going to happen as we watched everything transpire from Jin's point of view. Still, I was absolutely on the edge of my seat as the Rousseaus' last conversation went down. It was especially sad now that we got to see what a loving guy Robert had been before Smokey had his way with him.

What we could gather from Robert and Danielle's argument was that ever since the team entered Smokey's lair, they had all been "different." Different enough for Danielle to fear for her life (and rightly so, as Robert had intended to kill her and their unborn child in the process). Robert claimed that the monster was simply a "security system"... a piece of information that Danielle would end up passing along to the Lostaways in the Season One finale. But regardless of whether or not they learned anything useful about Smokey from their experience, the French science team members were adversely affected by whatever happened to them under the Temple.

Could they have been instantaneously brainwashed by Smokey or otherwise possessed by whatever else was down there? Is this what would've happened to Locke if he had successfully been dragged underground by the monster back in Season One? I really have no idea. Even though this was the first time we've seen the Temple, we have heard about it before. It's where all of the Others had been sent once Ben and Richard learned about the threat from Keamy's team; Ben thought it might be "the last safe place" on the Island. He had a map that showed the Temple as one of the Dharma stations. It obviously wasn't a place that all of the Others were familiar with, however, because Karl and Alex had no knowledge of where it was. Further, Ben had said that it was OK if Rousseau took cover there, but that "it wasn't for" any of the 815ers. Alas, as we know now, Karl, Rousseau and Alex never made it to the Temple that fateful day.

But back to 1988... after Rousseau shot Robert, she was about to do away with Jin, too, figuring that he also must be "sick" as he disappeared in front of her eyes a few months prior. Luckily, another flash saved Jin in the nick of time... and Danielle, as far as we know, went on to live the next sixteen years in isolation after having Alex stolen from her by the Others. Wouldn't you agree that Danielle is definitely in the running for the Saddest Life Story Award?


I'M SO EXCITED
AND I JUST CAN'T HIDE IT

Next, Jin finds himself alone again... but not for very long. My third favorite scene of the night was when Sawyer realized who it was that he'd just captured in the jungle. The joyous reunion hug he had with Jin was awesome and served as a much needed high point in an otherwise dark episode.


To get Jin up to speed on what was happening with the flashes, Charlotte displayed her fluency in Korean (shocking those who hadn't heard it before... which was everyone except Jin).

Shortly thereafter, our favorite redhead takes a turn for the worse, and the rest of the group has no choice but to leave her with Daniel and continue on to the Orchid in the hopes of stopping the torturous flashes. But before the group splits apart, Charlotte has a spine-chilling freak-out where she starts yelling in Korean to Jin and then ends with, "Don’t let them bring her back. No matter what – don’t let them bring her back! This place is death!"

Yikes.

The look on Jin's face was one of pure horror, which made the scene all the more unbearable.


THERE'S NOTHING LEFT TO TRY
THERE'S NO PLACE LEFT TO HIDE
THERE'S NO GREAT POWER
THAN
THE POWER OF
GOOD-BYE


The group finds the Orchid, but then another flash brings them to a year before the station was built. Charlotte's clue about "looking for the well" helps Locke find the hole he must descend into. However, Jin heeds Charlotte's warning and blocks Locke's way until he promises that he won't bring Sun back with him if and when he returns. Locke give Jin his word, and then down he goes.

It came as no surprise to me that another flash occurred before Locke reached the bottom of the cave. My second favorite moment of the night was when Sawyer completely lost it as the earth closed up beneath his feet. I mean, was that heart-wrenching or was that heart-wrenching? I've always enjoyed the dynamic between Locke and Sawyer -- it was interesting before "The Brig"... and infinitely more fascinating after the two men were bound together by their roles in Original Sawyer/Daddy Locke's murder. Since we still have no idea where Rose, Bernard, Vincent or any random redshirts are, as far as Sawyer is concerned, Locke was the last of the Flight 815 survivors left with him on the Island. I was beyond crushed when he started digging furiously in the ground and hollering for the others to help.

On that note, I've really been struck this season by the complete one-eighty Sawyer's attitude has taken. Remember his "Every man for himself" motto and how he hoarded all of the goodies right after the crash? Now he's saying things like, "It don't matter what I want" and jumping out of helicopters and crying over ol' baldy. I love it.


TELL EVERYBODY
WAITING FOR SUPERMAN

THAT THEY SHOULD TRY TO

HOLD ON

BEST THEY CAN


So Locke lands with a sickening crunch at the bottom of the chamber and realizes that he's now all alone. Or is he? After a very nas-TAY shot of Locke's leg bone sticking out through his pants, we see a shadow moving toward him. There's no shame in my game, so I will freely admit to almost wetting my pants during that scene. I really had no idea who in the hell was going to materialize and was bracing myself for the show to finally delve into the world of goblins and demons and whatnot. At the very least, I thought we'd finally get to meet Jacob and that he'd be some gnarled, ancient, wizard-looking dude.

Alas, it was only Zombie Dad who peeked around the corner, holding an oil lamp -- just like Locke had done when he cautiously entered Jacob's cabin in "Cabin Fever." Was it just me, or did Undead Christian's voice sound a lot different than it did before? The whole thing was so damn weird, I really don't know what to make of it. The most important parts of their exchange were that Undead Christian scolded Locke for letting Ben move the wheel, wouldn't/couldn't physically help him to stand, told him that he must get everyone to come back and that he might have to sacrifice himself in order to do so, specifically instructed him to take the group to Eloise Hawking, and then casually passed along greetings to his son. I love how the scene ended with Locke shouting, "Who's your son?!?!"

There are so many theories about what's going on with Undead Christian that I'm never going to be able to cover them all, so I'll just stick to what I think:

- Christian is not Jacob. In fact, he's already told us that he's not Jacob. When Locke came upon Zombie Dad and Possibly Dead Claire in Jacob's cabin in the episode "Cabin Fever," Christian said that while he wasn't Jacob, he could speak on his behalf.
- I continue to believe that Jacob is just a weird spirit-thingy... like the spirit of the Island itself or something. He lets those who have died speak for him. Right now Christian is his main mouthpiece.
- Christian came to the Island in a casket... and Locke may be returning to the Island in a casket. So it's possible that Locke is going to take over as Jacob's right-hand man in the near future. I wouldn't like that at all, so I hope that's not what happens. But Undead Locke is better than no Locke at all, I guess.

While I can't wait to see exactly what Locke did while he was parading around in the outside world as Jeremy Bentham, I'm even more curious to find out when the Island went once the wheel was put back on its axis. I can only assume that there was one more time flash as Locke was sent careening to God-knows-where. Did the season premiere, as well as Charlotte's final scenes, give us some hints as to when the gang ends up?


C'MON AND
SAVE ME...
WHY DON'T YOU
SAVE ME?

Alone with Daniel in the jungle, Charlotte starts whirring through the years in her mind, and she confesses that she's been on the Island before. She spent some of her childhood with the Dharma Initiative before leaving for England with her mother (while her dad apparently stayed behind). That's how she knew to tell the others about the pre-Orchid Station well.

The other critical bit of information that Charlotte remembered was that a "crazy man" came to her during those early years on the Island and warned her to never come back after she'd left or else she would die. She knew now that this man had been Daniel. That reveal was my favorite moment of the night. I truly didn't see it coming. If I didn't like Faraday's character so much I probably would've laughed at Charlotte's memory of him as a scary freak. However, I do adore him, so it was heartbreaking to watch his facial expressions as he realized that he's going to keep trying to save Charlotte in his future (but her past)... and that it's not going to work. (And by the way, if any of you out there are really digging this unconventional "love story" between Charlotte and Daniel and you haven't read The Time Traveler's Wife -- one of my all-time favorite books -- you really need to read it. Like right now.)

Moments later, after uttering a most rockin' final line, Charlotte Staples Lewis dies.

Do I think that Charlotte will "stay dead"? It's hard telling with this show. I'm really hoping we get to see the scene where Daniel talks to her when she's a young girl (and since the season kicked off with Daniel in a Dharma outfit at the Orchid, I think we will). I'm also guessing that they wouldn't have highlighted Charlotte's Korean language skills again (much less ever) if that wasn't some sort of clue. The leading theory on this point is that she was once involved with Paik Heavy Industries (Sun's father's company). So maybe Adult Charlotte will appear again in a flashback. But if the past is able to be altered with a little help from Desmond, and another iteration of time occurs where Charlie doesn't un-jam communications and the O6 don't end up leaving the Island... then maybe the helicopter team will never arrive. Which may mean that we'll never see Charlotte again -- but we'd be comforted by the knowledge that she doesn't become unstuck in time and die on the jungle floor at age 25, right?

I'll wrap up with some quick thoughts about who Charlotte's parents might be. When we first met this redhead, everyone -- including myself -- assumed she could be the daughter of Annie and Ben (without Ben even knowing this). Now that we've confirmed Charlotte was once on the Island and that her mom left but her dad stayed -- and that they were a part of Dharma -- I think that theory is still in the running. We never did find out what happened to Annie, remember. There's also the chance that Annie ended up with someone besides Ben and that Charlotte is that couple's daughter.

Another strong possibility is that Charlotte's parents are Horace (redhead) and Olivia Goodspeed -- the ones who brought Ben and his dad to the Island. We know Horace died in The Purge, but we don't know what happened to Olivia. None of these options would explain why Charlotte has a British accent, though. Nor would they really jibe with a comment she blurted out as her mind was going berserk: "You know what my mum would say about you marrying an American." So of course we have to include the possibility that Eloise Hawking might have been Charlotte's mom (making her and Daniel full or half-siblings) or that Charles Widmore may have been her father. And I know that this may be the craziest theory yet -- but the identity of Charlotte's parents might not even matter and therefore may never be revealed. Seriously, if we never find out who they were, would that really impact anything? Right now, no.



BEST LINES OF THE EPISODE

ROBERT: You were on this island before?

JIN: You see helicopter?

MONTAND (In French): First a boat. Then a helicopter. Next thing you know he'll be talking about a submarine.




[Deep growling]

ROUSSEAU [to Jin]: Did you hear that?

ROBERT: What is that?

JIN: Monster.




SAWYER [To Miles]: You heard the man, translate.

MILES: Uh, he’s Korean. I’m from Encino.





DANIEL: So...you speak any other languages?

CHARLOTTE: Just Klingon.



LOCKE: We’re here.

JULIET: Thank God! What are the odds that we would end up in the same time as this thing?

[Another flash occurs, after which the Orchid station is absent]

SAWYER: You just had to say something.




SAWYER [to Locke]: You’re going down there?

LOCKE: Uh-huh.

SAWYER: What exactly are you hoping to find?

LOCKE: A way off the island.

SAWYER: You expecting a subway?




DANIEL: What?

CHARLOTTE [in a mischievous, childish voice]: I’m not allowed to have chocolate before dinner...

[Charlotte dies]







Thanks for reading...

Until next time,
- e

52 comments:

Erika (aka "e") said...

Lyrics this time around were from:

“To Be Young” by Ryan Adams

“Makes Me Wonder” by Maroon 5

“Band of Gold” by Freda Payne (remade by several artists more recently)

“Tonight, Tonight” by The Smashing Pumpkins

“The Monster Mash” by Bobby “Boris” Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers

“I’m Not the Man I Used to Be” by Fine Young Cannibals

“I’m So Excited” by The Pointer Sisters

“The Power of Good-bye” by Madonna

“Waiting for Superman” by The
Flaming Lips

“Save Me” by Aimee Mann

- e

Robert Klotz said...

If Lost is a story about each of the 815ers coming to terms with where they've gone wrong in life, then perhaps the key for Locke will be learning to trust himself rather than Ben. So when is he going to start doing so?


Bullseye. Perfectly said.

I wouldn't be surprised at all if Ben had a direct hand in putting John in that casket.

Lakshmi Prabhu said...

Thanks e...I was waiting anxiously for the recap....and yeah,nice song choices!

Unknown said...

so, if charlotte was on the island before, and ostensibly, so was miles, do you think they knew each other?

This also brings up some interesting ideas about who abaddon is what he's doing. We're lead to believe he assembled the team, which included three people who had, or will have been, on the island. He also was somewhat instrumental in getting Locke on flight 815. I wonder if he had a hand in anybody else's arrival on the island. I also wonder if he was sent to see Locke by Widmore, since Widmore had met him as a young man.

Also, where are Rose and Bernard? I hope they are well.

Anonymous said...

I've read a lot of people connecting Charlotte and Ben. Lots of people are saying she could be his daughter, and Annie her monther. But don't forget that when she first met the losties, Ben grabbed a gun and shot her in the chest, hoping to kill her. If it really was someone he cared about, why would he shoot her? I don't think we're gonna see much, if any, connection between him and her.

Reylloc said...

Great write-up, e.
I'm with you on all points - I don't think finding out who Charlotte's parents are will matter, because we probably already know her folks, we just don't know they ARE her folks, but it'll be a good "Lostincidence" nonetheless. I don't think Christian's voice sounded crucially different, besides being 4 years older & needing to sound like he was in a very cold chamber & deep underground, he sounded like any old dead chief of surgery would sound.
My guess is we're going to see a little of the O6 (O3?) return to the isle, and a LOT of Locke's journey, from FDW to LA. A couple of Qs to be answered (soon) will be: where does Locke transport to - Tunisia? Terlingua? Toledo? And how much of a hassle is he going to have getting to LA, especially with a potentially fatal compound fracture, no Visa (or Mastercard), no money, and no friends? Maybe Ben will go to meet him near the polar bear burial grounds.......
Why did Horace have a nosebleed in Locke's dream?
Or is that the Lost version of "for those of you about to die, we salute you"?

Alexistran said...

My opinion on the lingering shot of the music cases fits in with my theory that there is a spiritual war for the island.

Christian on one side
Jacob on the other.

One keeps bringing a musician, the other keeps killing him before he can disable the looking glass - except Desmond mucked that up.

I don't know which is the bringer and which is the killer though but that's my theory (part of a much bigger theory on the whole duality of lost).

Anonymous said...

Poor Rose and Bernard! Does no one even care where/when they are?

Another great recap e! Love your theory about Locke needing to trust himself.

My only question, how do we know Charlotte was referring to Sun when she was yelling "Don't bring her back to the island!"? I know Jin thought she was referring to Sun, but couldn't she have been remembering what (creep, strange, old) Faraday likely was yelling at Charlotte's mother when Charlotte was a child?

Just wondering...

Crista

Anonymous said...

Hi Erika,

it's almost more fun reading your blog than watching the show - at least the waiting time is as exciting as we never know when you're finished. Thanks.

I can't believe that you did not mention these lines:
Sawyer: Are you sure we shouldn't lower you down?
Locke: And what would be the fun in that?

The scene from episode one with Faraday in the Orchid becomes more clearer now. He now knows that telling Charlotte to never come back won't save her. So now he updates his plan and carries some sort of explosives down near the FDW to prevent Ben from moving the island and allowing himself to stay on the island with Charlotte (as it was before FDW was turned the first time).
My bet about "when is the island" after Locke dj-ing the FDW: around 1970 at Dharmas time (BTW: That's the only time they haven't flashed to so far).

Gustavo Fernández Walker said...

Hi there, e!
I wanted to share with you a freaky dream I had the other night. I just finished watching last week's episode for the third time (I guess that's kind of freaky, too, but you got to admit it was a great episode...) and evidently I was deeply impressed by it, because a thought came across my mind as I was dreaming. It wasn't that I was actually dreaming "about" the episode... It was as if, in my dreams, my mind kept trying to figure out the answers to most of the questions that any of us Lost-fans usually ask ourselves when awake. So, I really have no hard evidence to back this, but the idea sounded great in my dream, very convincing. It was something like: "You have been looking at this the wrong way: you always thought that there was a battle between Widmore and Ben, but that's not the case. The thing is: Ben was working for Widmore, but somehow he betrayed him, and defected to the true enemy of Widmore (whoever he/she/it is). The thing with Ben is that he is actually betraying everyone in order to get what he wants." Then I thought of Gollum: very much like Ben, he can help you or try to kill you. In the end, he's just in it for himself. I just loved it when Desmond asked if everyone was there to see Faraday's mom. Ben's look was one of the highlights of the episode...

Gustavo Fernández Walker said...

One more thing: ¿shouldn't Ji Yeon also go back to the island? I mean, she was born in Korea, but she was conceived on the island. So what if Charlotte was talking about Ji Yeon ("don't let them bring her back")?

Jill said...

Great post E!!

When Charlotte said that Daniel was a creepy man that told her not to come back to the island, I could't help but think that Daniel was Jacob or one of his followers (Jack's Daddy).

Just a thought.
J

Ernie said...

I can't take credit for this, but after checking it out myself it looks to be a possibility. Listen to the recording of the numbers repeating when Danielle's team is on the beach (both in "The Little Prince" and "This Place is Death"). You know the loop of 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42. Well the voice repeating the numbers sounds a lot like one Hugo "Hurley" Reyes.

Ernie said...

Here's the audio of the numbers

Erika (aka "e") said...

Hi guys -

A few quick responses:

- Miles didn't remember ever being on the Island, so I think his mom left with him when he was still a baby... so I don't think he and Charlotte would have interacted with or remembered each other. But maybe if he was REALLY young and just didn't remember it or something...

- Yes, if Charlotte is Ben's kid, then he certainly isn't aware of it as he shot her. He also announced who her parents were when Charlotte first landed on the Island, and we hadn't heard of them. I am kind of over all of the "who's everyone's parents?" theories at this point.

- I always thought Horace was bleeding in Locke's vision because that's what happened when he was gassed in The Purge (Ben's father also bled out of his nose when Ben gassed him in the Dharma van).

- I heard the rumor about it being Hurley on the numbers transmission, but I listened several times and just didn't think it was him, so I didn't mention it. It is was him, they sure made it hard for us to hear?!?

- Jin also told Locke not to bring back "his baby," so he's covered if that's who Charlotte was referring to instead of Sun. : )

- I have a feeling Rose and Bernard will pop out of nowhere and save the day at some point.

- I really hope Daniel is not Jacob. I really hope NO ONE "is" Jacob, I guess I should say.

- e

Roland said...

Note that in "Solitary", Danielle told Sayid: "So, we made camp, dug out this temporary shelter ... Temporary ... Nearly 2 months we survived here ..."

But in 505, Danielle was still living on the beach until she shot Robert. The "date" of this shooting, based on the degradation of Montand's arm and Jin's sighting of the Black Smoke Column appears to me to be about 6 weeks. It can't be much more because Danielle is still pregnant at the time of Robert's death.

Note also that in "Exodus Pt 1", Danielle tells us that "The Dark Territory" near The Black Rock is where Montand lost his arm. We don't know how close the Black Rock is to The Temple, but as of 505, we know that The Temple is where Montand lost his arm.

So ... my best guess as to why these two versions of events differ so dramatically is that they occurred in two different Time Loops.

Roland said...

My take on Ben's reaction to Desmond's arrival is that he realised that Widmore sent Desmond to LA ... and that Penny (whom Ben had threatened to murder) was nearby.

I hope that Ben is willing to "let go" of his desire for Vengeance or that he didn't mean what he said to Widmore.

Craig said...

Re: 316. I was thinking that 316 might have something to do with Ajira Airways. We saw the water bottle recently and I assume it will come back into play somehow. I have no real reason for thinking the number refers to that other than it sounds right and is similar in format to 815.

Anonymous said...

e- great job as always...

One thought that has me puzzled -

Why did Sun bring out "baby" photos of Ji Yeon to show Kate last week when she had such adorable "toddler" pics on her cell phone wallpaper?

There has to be a reason or they wouldn't have showed us...

Anonymous said...

is charlotte the little girl who was friends with ben when he was younger? the one who made the doll for him on his birthday and who he used to push on the swing?

Anonymous said...

The scene with Locke and Christian underground was very Jesus-talking-to-God in my opinion. In fact, Christian told Locke he would have to die and I imagined Locke breaking into the JC Superstar falsetto: "All right! I'll diiieeee!" But I think Christian's line "say hello to my son for me" confuses the issue. Maybe Jack's the true "savior"? But I agree with you, e, that Locke coming back to life will pretty much seal the Jesus deal.

Mel

Heather said...

Is there a connection between Charlotte Staples Lewis and Clive Staples Lewis (the one and only C.S. Lewis)?

I hope Rose saves the day, and that Vincent is okay too.

Thanks for the great recap!!

Beerage said...

Great post e :)

I saw the episode yesterday night and it still sends shivers down my spine. I found this episode very disturbing and scary, perhaps because I was in the house alone, it was dark and there was weird noises outside. It got to a point where I was considering turning Lost off, I stayed for the fun ride though.

I really hope Jacob isnt a spirit, I hope its a real person who we havent met yet.

I also agree that when Locke was down by the wheel the figure that would appear would have been Jacob.

Am I the only one that feels this episode went really quickly? I couldnt believe it when the Lost credits rolled.

Lastly about the credits, when the Lost logo appears right at the end, when a character dies it doesnt make that "boom" sound. Charlotte died, but as I recall the "boom" still happened, I may be wrong though.

Anonymous said...

I've long suspected a link between Smokey and the re-animated corpses (Christian, Yemi, possibly Claire and Robert Rousseau). Maybe the monster can absorb and mimic dead people? Maybe it knows how they ought to behave by scanning the memories of the deceased's associates. This might explain why these people seem a little off.

SKID said...

e, (posted this on LAST week's post, and forgive me if it is uncouth to re-post, but I do think this is relevant to the upcoming episode and would love your thoughts . . .)

I sent the following comment to DOC Jensen at EW since following some comments I wrote to him last year, he made me his un-official LOST Art historian. Hilarious since I know nothing about art and am way more interested in tropical tie-wearing nonsense BUT I digress from my usual Faraday Tie Updates since I felt compelled to write a quick observation LOADED with potential meaning although I will stop short of necessarily arguing that it is a direct "clue" bearing any weight.

I noticed that in last week's episode Ms. Hawking is lighting candles in her "sanctuary over science lab" while standing in front of a painting of "The Doubting Thomas" (done by Caravaggio in thr 1600's) placing his hands in the side of Jesus as proof of His . . . drum roll . . . resurrection.

I would have stopped there since there are obvious connections to the many "resurrections/reincarnations" we have already been exposed to, BUT I would ADD that Thomas was called twice by Jesus "Didymus" which means . . . louder drum roll . . . "TWIN".

. . . implying that Thomas either WAS a twin or some argue that it was a nickname, and others suggest that maybe he just looked like someone else (perhaps even Jesus). No doubt the name (like on LOST) WAS of some significance for the bible writers to include it. In this culture twins were looked upon with some negative regard because they messed up laws of inheritance and birth-rights, a tradition going all the way back to Esau who had his birth-right STOLEN by his twin brother . . . maybe BIGGEST drum roll . . . JACOB.

Again, no real revelation, but the only Thomas I can think of in the show would be Claire's boyfriend and the FATHER of Aaron. I cannot go so far as to suggest that this connection is meaningful and I tend to run from theorists who jump on the "they have the same name and/or same skin color so they HAVE to be connected" bandwagon, BUT I do find it interesting that from the Greek word for "twin" we get our word "double" AND "doubt" (DOUBLE-mindedness).

SO, (and I will be more than impressed to know that anyone has even hung around to read this much) I would lean on the side that the painting really means nothing more than pointing us to a key figure in the biblical narrative who BELIEVED . . . AND . . . DOUBTED (common themes in LOST).

You might even say that history will always regard him as a man living in the tension of being a man of science OR a man of faith.

Maybe there is something deeper. IF so, (maybe) you read it here first.

Now back to planning my "HE TOOK OFF THE TIE" Party . . . for which I am growing more confident that my printing invitations for sadi party was a waste of time.

Alyssa said...

e-

I always enjoy your recaps! They're about as good as watching the show!

With regard to Danielle killing everyone, I thought that perhaps she really DID go crazy! And as far as her husband having a gun on her, well... she killed everyone else, so he was prepared! Maybe that's just too simple...

But! I must say that I loved the comment about the Time Traveller's Wife... It's one of my all time favorite books as well.

Thanks,

Alyssa

sweetpeas said...

Thanks so much e, like everybody else I love your blog. I wanted to expand a little further on noticing the musical instrument washed up with Rousseau's team’s wreckage on the beach. What struck me was the personalities and similarities her team had with the group from flight 815. Pregnant young girl – Danielle & Claire. A musician on her team – Charlie. Montand’s jerkish behavior so similar to Sawyer in Season 1 and Robert (Rousseau’s boyfriend) said at the Temple as Jin tried to convince them not to go down after Montand “we don’t leave anyone behind!”! Who has said that a zillion times? Jack. Maybe had we gotten to know the rest of her team there would have been a Kate and a Hurly. Remember way back when they showed Juliet and Ben watching the 815 plane crash from their perspective Ben says something like “This isn’t the first this has happened.” That always bugged me. I have no idea what this all means other then the island needs these certain types of people…possibly different groups have been coming with these same similar personalities over and over and not just the 815’ers over and over as some speculate. Mabye it does this hoping Smokey won't get to them before they can do what's needed to be done. My out there theory would be that Ajira Airways (the water bottle they find on the beach) is either the way the ’06 get back to island like many think but I think they are making a big deal out of this airline, if it was simply the way that the ’06 get back I don’t think they would have made so many hints over the past year towards it…I think it’s something bigger than the way the ’06 get back. I think it may be another group with some same personalities aboard as our beloved 815’s…who knows!

Unknown said...

My favorite line of the episode:

SUN: "You said it would take 30 minutes to get there."

BEN: "Sorry, I didn't account for traffic!"

I think this was the writers' inside joke for anybody who lives or has lived in L.A. So true and too funny!

As always, thanks, e, for the great recap.

another e

Anonymous said...

"...as far as Sawyer is concerned, Locke was the last of the Flight 815 survivors left with him on the Island."

What about Jin?

Anonymous said...

regarding Farraday forewarning Charlotte, i can't help but think of the film 12 Monkeys when the time loop is finally closed at the end and we realize all the struggle to change the future has been for naught.

to Farraday's point, time is a string and can't be changed, just moved along. but, to the rules Lost has set up, Desmond and Locke (and maybe others?) can change the past and therefore the future.

this leads to the question of when is everyone once Locke turns the FDW. if Farraday, in love with Charlotte, knowing he's at another spot on the string and that it won't change anything, finds himself in Charlotte's childhood, you can bet he'd still do his darnedest to get her to stay away.

if after Locke turns the FDW, they come to at another time on the island, it will be interesting indeed to see how Farraday travels to when Charlotte is a girl.

as always, thanks for a most enlightening post e.

Mellis said...

This is probably information about a spoiler, e, but I think the "when they are" question was answered through this year's Comic Con video.

It's on YouTube if you haven't seen it or want to, but it might contain a spoiler, so....

Anonymous said...

I just noticed something upon re-watching "This Place is Death".... when Jin meets up with Sawyer and the group after the flash, and Sawyer explains to him what is going on, Jin goes off in Korean. Jin walks over to Miles and Charlotte and says "translate". We assume he is talking to Miles, because Sawyer says to Miles, "You heard the man.. translate." and the camera flashes to Miles. Yet if you look closely, Jin is speaking directly to Charlotte! Hmmm...

Lula! said...

Just ordered The Time Traveler's Wife. Because you said I needed to read it now. And I trust you.

Another brilliant recap...you made me chuckle with the, "Jarrah, out!" line.

Unknown said...

When Ellie first sees Daniel in "Jughead" she says something like, "you just couldn't keep away." The first time I saw this, I thought it meant that Ellie and Daniel had met before.

Anonymous said...

e,
Thanks for writing!
Can I ask a favor of you? I ask you to watch the final minute of the episode where Desmond appears and they go into the church; then compare the scene to the point I will try to make here:
Ben’s reaction, when Desmond says “Faraday’s mother”, is a look of SURPRISE. Then, Ben turns his eyes as if in thoughtful realization of this new info. Then, Ben doesn’t say a word (he’s upset), he storms into the church, and say’s ‘Hi Elloise’. At that point Ben’s LOOK and TONE is one of MISTRUST and Suspicion.
The point is, after learning from Desmond that Elloise is Farady’s mother, Ben is now suspicious that Elloise may be a partner with Widmore, and they are stringing Ben along.
Thoughts?
See you next week!
Greg

Anonymous said...

e,
I thought Charlotte said “Can we bring Annie?”
Wouldn’t this prove Charlotte is not the daughter of Annie,
because a child would not refer to their parent by the first name.
Thoughts?
Greg

Anonymous said...

Brilliant idea Crista... I bet Daniel tries even harder to get Charlotte to stay away by screaming at her mother, "Don't bring her back to the island!" and since Daniel also thought this was directed at Jin and not a Charlotte flashback, he won't realize it until he's screaming it at her mother... that's going to be a crazy look on his face when he does.

Great post, as always e, you are the best!!!

Anonymous said...

"And by the way, if any of you out there are really digging this unconventional "love story" between Charlotte and Daniel and you haven't read The Time Traveler's Wife -- one of my all-time favorite books -- you really need to read it. Like right now"

I read The Time Traveler's Wife several years ago now, but I immediately made the connection to Daniel and Charlotte. It's kind of strange how both actors fit the physical descriptions of those characters also; Claire had red hair, the man (blanking on his name) was a somewhat geeky academic. Too bad these actors weren't cast in the film.

Great recap!

Anonymous said...

"as far as Sawyer is concerned, Locke was the last of the Flight 815 survivors left with him on the Island. "

...Jin?

Anonymous said...

I just finished reading the book "The Ruins". Throughout the entire book I couldn't help but compare their situation to that of the 815ers. I totally saw the vines as fitting in the island.

Great recap-I look forward to this every week. There seems to be so much I've missed or forgotten over the past seasons and you bring it all to life again. Thanks.

Life Is A Road Trip said...

OMG, The Time Traveler's Wife was such an awesome book, and I didn't even make the connection. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Korie makes some good points. I have been trying to figure out Abaddon's role and also feeling like not only the 4 rescue people being "encouraged" to go by Abaddon, but what about getting the other important people onto flight 815 to get them to the island in the first place. Maybe Ben or Widmore has been working diligently for years to get the right people in the right spot at the right time for "reason yet to be truly discovered." I'm not thinking Ben as he ws truly surprised whent the plane fell out of the sky, but yet he immediately assumed that there may be survivors. This goes back to my theory that according to the rules, you can't die earlier in the timeline if in real time you die later. IE why Michael couldn't die until the freighter, why Locke has cheated death mutliple times, and why Ben assumed their would be survivors if for any reason anyone on the plane had been to the island before or had some time loop issues.
Anyways, things are really moving nicely this season and for us hardcore fans, I think it has been great and looks to be getting even better. EW magazine had a great article last week. Can't say it has spoilers, but it does touch on some of the upcoming episodes and the episode's focus point. I found it a good read and did not feelit revealed anything that hasn't been discussed by our resident expert Erika! Awesome job E!

PenguinJosh said...

Another brilliant recap, Erika!

You always give me something else to ponder :D

Josh xx

Nick said...

Good stuff, as always. Definitely hoping we get some Desmond/Hawking confrontation this week.

Anonymous said...

I noticed when they played the enhanced version of the previous episode that they basically tell us that Widmore is the economist. Does that mean there is not going to be a big reveal about this?

Will Abaddon return to the show now that the actor who plays him is on Fringe?

I belive that John will come back to life and not be a zombie. That's what my gut keeps telling me.

Anonymous said...

Could Rose and Bernard be the "Adam and Eve" skeletons? :(

Anonymous said...

E-
Awesome, and insightful post (as expected), no big surprise there, but I have a quick question: Besides the aside where Danielle points to the Temple on the way to get the TNT and says "that's where Montand lost his arm" are we supposed to have seen him or heard anything about him until we saw that gruesome event in "This Place is Death?"

And if not, how in the world did you pick up on that, and realize it would be an important answered tidbit???

And might I go a step further to say wow, I am so amazed it was one your Five unanswered questions" who knows, maybe the producers do read this blog after all. If not they're missing out!!

PS I have read the Time Travelers WIfe, and it too is one of my all time faves!! Heartbreaking, beautiful, (confusing) and brilliant. Keep up the good work, see you next week!!!

Anonymous said...

I LOVE your posts, they're soooo entertaining. You are always on point and very funny!

MikeNJD said...

Another great job e. Nothing really to add, I just wish I remembered all the stuff you do. I totally forgot about Danielle saying she removed the firing pin out of her husband's rifle! You're good you.

Anonymous said...

Im with Greg on this one.

Ben was angry when he entered the church. he didnt knew Eloise was Daniel's mother, you can see in this face that he is upset.

Unknown said...

Thank you for your insightfulness once again, miss e. My favorite part of this epi was Sawyer pulling at the robe stuck in the ground. Crazy crazy stuff.

Anonymous said...

Oh my God!!! Where is the recap for 316??? Don't you know we are addicts by now :))) I need my Monday morning fix...