Friday, February 26, 2010

S6Ep5 - Lighthouse

Hello my dear friends -

Curse Chicago germs! I'm pretty sick, people. That's why I was kinda glad that -- in my opinion -- there wasn't a ton to talk about in "Lighthouse." (Unless you count all the mirror/reflection symbolism and little nods to recurring themes in the series, like Alice in Wonderland and rabbits -- but I really have no energy for that kind of stuff at this point - sorry!)

My nasty illness is also why I'm keeping this post more succinct than usual -- though I did throw in a section at the end about "the big picture."

But first, the flashes.

WHEN YOU COMIN' HOME, DAD?
I DON'T KNOW WHEN
BUT WE'LL GET TOGETHER THEN, SON

YOU KNOW WE'LL HAVE A GOOD TIME THEN


The biggest surprise of the night was that Jack has a teenage son, David. That means in the alternate timeline, Jack would've had to have hooked up with the kid's mother in the late '80s or early '90s for David to be in junior high in 2004 (this is of course assuming his son was not adopted at an older age). We can figure that Jack was born in the early '70s, which probably means he became a daddy right outta high school. (Remember, I'm not talking about Matthew Fox's age, I'm talking about the presumed age of the character Jack Shephard.) So it most likely wasn't Sarah that he married, had David with and then divorced, because in the original timeline Jack and Sarah didn't meet until her accident in 2001.

If you're confused about the timing of everything, just know that my point is that Sarah probably isn't Jack's ex. We might never find out who that ex is (though you can bet I was like, "Oh my gosh, who's going to be in that house?!?! Juliet... PENNY?!?! Did ALTJack dig the older chicks and get with Ms. Hawking!?!?!") because the writers have bigger fish to fry at the moment and there are already a lot of other 815 connections in the flash-sideways. To play devil's advocate with my own theory, though, it could still be Sarah that Jack married because -- hell, why not? Enough has changed for our characters in the alternate timeline that really, anything is possible. But I still think that either way, the identity of David's mom probably doesn't matter.

(If anyone could follow the above two paragraphs and is NOT on Nyquil, you should be very worried.)

I think the bigger question to ask about Jack's flash segments is, why would he have a son in this version of events in the first place? That's part of what I'll talk about at the end of this post.


WELL WE'RE ALL IN THE MOOD FOR A MELODY
AND YOU'VE GOT US FEELIN' ALRIGHT


After helping his mom find Christian's will (which listed Claire... who might be the connection that brings Jack and Kate back together in this timeline -- remember Kate still has Claire's credit card and could easily find her again), Jack returned home to find that David had vanished. After a little investigative work, Jack tracked him down at an audition. (I got a chuckle out of the "Welcome All Candidates!" sign in the entryway.)

I can only assume that David's character name was a shout-out to pianist extraordinaire David Helfgott (whose life was the basis for the Oscar-winning movie Shine). 'Cause he was tearing it UP on the stage. My first thought was that maybe this kid is the one who ends up programming the musical code into the Looking Glass station, but that doesn't really make sense since he's not in the same timeline, so forget I even mentioned it. My second thought I voiced aloud to my husband: "Oh crap, that kid is going to glance into the audience, see Jack there and then totally blow it and Jack will NOT be able to 'fix it.'" Thankfully, that didn't happen. What did happen is that David finished his piece successfully, and while Jack was waiting in the wings, who does he meet but Dogen. That was the second-biggest surprise of the night for me. You all know that I was not in love with Dogen in the previous episodes, but dammit if he hasn't grown on me. I was hoping he'd have the scroll necklace thingy on, but his shirt was too buttoned up to tell.

Will the Jack/Dogen encounter amount to anything more, or is it just another neato run-in in the flash-sideways universe? I'm thinking it's the latter -- I'm failing to see another circumstance that will bring those two together. For now I think Dogen's purpose was to remind Jack that, um, he's like the worst dad ever. David's in junior high and Jack has no idea how long he's been tickling the ivories? For shame!

Ah, but it was all made right in the end, when Jack had a very moving and heartfelt talk with his son in the parking lot. His words weren't quite up there with "We have to go BACK!" or "Why do you find it so easy?!?", but overall this scene is certainly a contender for one of the Top Ten Jack Moments of the series. He stopped himself from becoming like his father. Better late than never, right?

OK, Island time.


I KNOW YOU CAN
WON'T YOU DO IT FOR ME NOW?

After Jack and Dogen stopped being polite and started getting real with each other, and after Miles and Hurley grew tired of playing tic-tac-toe (?!?), Hurley went back into the Temple, and there was Jacob, totally pouring something into the spring. No idea what it was -- maybe something to make the water run clear again?

Jacob's like: "What up, dog? Can you run an errand for me since I'm dead?" Said errand is soooo complicated that poor Hurley needs to scrawl instructions up and down his arm. Do you know how hard it is to wash off pen ink? Hurley's a good sport because I wouldn't have done it. Anyway, the point of the errand is to help someone find his or her way to the Island.

While Hurley's dealing with Jacob, Sayid's upset that all the Others are giving him the stinky side-eye. "Are they jealous of my tank top collection? I mean, they're pretty fitted to my body but I will totally share if that's what's causing the problem here." Jack tells him that no, it's actually that they think he might go loco at any given moment and that they'd wanted Jack to poison him with the little green pill. Jack also shares that the Others have seen this happen to "someone else," but stops short of naming Claire.

Now Hurley's trolling around some hallway o' hieroglyphics and Dogen catches him and demands that he leave. Jacob materializes (only to Hurley, of course) and tells Hurley to say "You are not the boss of me and I can do whatever I want so nyah nyah -- deal with it!" In response Dogen reverts to spewing Japanese and takes off. Then Jacob's like, "Uh, I told you to bring Jack," and Hurley says, "But he's such a freakin' DOWNER all the time," and Jacob replies, "Sorry, dude, them's my rules."


BONES
SINKING LIKE STONES
ALL THAT WE'VE FOUGHT FOR
ALL THESE PLACES WE'VE GROWN

ALL OF US ARE DONE FOR


Hurley gets Jack to come along by uttering the magic phrase, "You have what it takes." That's just like somebody telling Locke all of the stuff that he CAN do. It works.

Along their trek to god knows where, they run into Kate. She does NOT want to tag along with them for once -- she's dead set on locating Claire. "I hope you find what you're looking for," are her parting words. I think that sentiment could apply to all of the characters at this point, don't you?

Next thing we know, Jack's stepping on Shannon's inhaler and Hurley's gazing upon the Adam and Eve skeletons, last seen near the beginning of Season One. He wonders aloud something that we've of course all been theorizing about: with the insane amount of time-traveling that's transpired, couldn't those skeletons be two of the 815ers? Why yes, Hurley, I imagine we'll find out that they are and that's exactly why Darlton wanted to plant that seed with the audience. "Normal" fans of the show would have forgotten all about Adam and Eve, so they needed to be reminded.

One note about the skeletons, since their identities are one of the mysteries I've been the most curious about: I rewatched "House of the Rising Sun" to be sure, and my memory served me correctly -- the skeletons did not used to be next to each other. Now they are.


If you want to see for yourself and have your Season One DVDs nearby, pop in Disc 2, go to HOTRS, and the scene in question is at the beginning of Chapter 4. Or you could 1) just trust me or 2) infer that the skeletons are not near each other in that episode because of Jack's comment (from the transcript) that I've bolded below.

KATE: Who is he? How'd he get here?

JACK: I can't exactly perform an autopsy but there doesn't seem to be any major trauma to the bones. There's another one over here. Someone laid them to rest here.

. . .

KATE: Any idea how long they've been here?

JACK: Long. It takes 40 or 50 years for clothing to degrade like this.


Let me first say that I do not think the movement of the skeletons is anything to get all worked up about. I think the easiest explanation is that their repositioning might've simply been a conscious production choice, most likely because the characters those skeletons belong to will end up being a couple. And it would seem kind of weird if a couple had been laid to rest across the cave from each other. The vast majority of Lost fans would've never noticed the difference, and if/when the skeletons are revealed to be Bernard/Rose, Jack/Kate, Sawyer/Kate, Desmond/Penny, Widmore/Hawking, Jin/Sun or some other couple then it will make more sense that they're side by side.

As for who *I* think the skeletons are? I've never bought into the Rose and Bernard theory because that would've meant that Rose and Bernard died immediately after we last saw them in 1977 at their retirement beach home. (And 40-50 years haven't passed since then, either.) I think it's more likely that the characters in question died in the '50s, or maybe there is something so bizarre happening with the time warp on the Island that it was impossible for Jack to be correct about how long the people had been deceased. All I know is that Jack was the last one seen with the small black and white stones in the pouch he removed from one of the skeletons, so he's still Suspect #1 in my mind. Thoughts?


LET IT SHINE ON
LET IT SHINE ON
LET THE LIGHT FROM YOUR LIGHTHOUSE
SHINE ON ME

(Shout-out to Kyle C for suggesting this section's lyrics!)

Lots of big revelations from Jack in this episode, huh? We've already talked about his "I love you no matter what!" speech to David, and then at the caves he not only told Hurley that his father was NOT in his coffin after Flight 815 crashed, but he also copped to returning to the Island because he thought it would "fix" him. I think that all of this self-reflection on Jack's end is clearly necessary in order for him to be able to fulfill his ultimate destiny, which is of course what Jacob also refers at the end of the episode.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Next, Jack and Hurley reach a lighthouse that nobody's ever seen before. Even though they had Jack acknowledge that fact, I was still kind of annoyed -- I mean, come on -- somebody would've seen this lighthouse by now. But I'm over it.

They climb up to the top and Jack grows increasingly pissed off because Jacob hasn't graced them with his presence yet. Hurley said that they're supposed to turn the big wheel in the middle of the room to degree 108. As they start doing so, Jack notices weird reflections in the series of mirrors behind the wheel. Let me just tell you that I was SO excited when I saw those buildings flashing by -- I thought it was going to be a portal into another dimension, kind of like in the His Dark Materials books. I thought the characters would be able to leap through the mirror -- you know, "Through the Looking Glass" and all that. Instead, Jack put the names on the degree markings together with the images in the mirrors and turned the wheel to his own name. Once he turned the counter to 23 and subsequently saw the home he grew up in, he decided that Jacob had been using the contraption to spy on him and -- like an exceedingly frustrated Lost fan -- demanded answers right then and there.


WALKING ON
WALKING ON

BROKEN GLASS


Jacob failed to materialize and dole out answers, so Jack did something I thought was kind of dumb -- he smashed all the mirrors. No otherworldly portals for YOU now, Jack -- good job. I'm not fond of when the Mad Doctor does things without thinking them through first. But, like the presence of the lighthouse, I'm over it.

The funny thing was that Jacob DID actually appear, it's just that 1) Jack was off sulking and 2) couldn't have seen him anyway. Jacob told Hurley that some peeps can just be told what to do ("Not that there's anything wrong with that, Hurley..."), while others need to be influenced a bit more subtly. Jacob said that Jack has "something to do" and that he needed to understand how important he was, so basically the entire errand he'd sent those two on was a set-up. Hurley's like, "But what about the person who needs to get to the Island?" I thought Jacob would say that there wasn't actually anybody coming, but instead he said that whoever it was would "find another way."


AND I WON'T TELL 'EM YOUR NAME

I'm sure most of you thought the same thing I did once you saw the lighthouse: "Oh, it must be Desmond who's sailing to the Island. YESSSSSSSS!!!!" He's been known to sing "I'm on a BOAT!", right? But when pausing on the wheel's 108 mark, the name there was "Wallace" (AND it was crossed out). Not "Hume."


Hmm. We know of no Wallace. Here's the thing, though... since Jacob really just wanted Jack to realize he'd been tracked his whole life, I don't even know if we can trust that Person #108 is who's coming to the Island in the first place. It sounds like the lighthouse wasn't even necessary to get that person ashore. So I'm still rooting for Desmond's return. And I'm definitely rooting AGAINST yet another new character being introduced.


ANYBODY SEEN
MY
BABY?

Elsewhere on the Island, Jin was bleeding out thanks to Claire's bear trap. Man, those scenes were gross. He's resting in her Rousseau-ish tent and she's out retrieving Justin the Other, who wasn't actually dead like we thought he was. She kept interrogating Justin about where Aaron was, and he kept saying he had no idea. Finally when she was about to bludgeon Justin with an ax, Jin shouted, "Kate's had Aaron for the past three years... and, for what it's worth, he looks NOTHING like your little Frankenstein doll over there!"

But Claire still gives it to Justin in the chest. D'oh.

Then Jin has to cover and say that Kate did NOT in fact have Aaron, but rather the Others had him over at the Temple, and that she'll need Jin in order to get there. At that point Fake Locke pops his head in the tent and Jin's like "What the..." and Claire introduces him as "her friend."

The main question I have about all this is whether or not Claire's seeing "her friend" as Locke or as someone else, since it seems as though her friend has been guiding her for the past three years and the Man in Black has only been in Locke's form for a few days. I'm not sure we'll ever get an answer to that one, though.

Jacob did warn Hurley that some eeeevil was on its way to the Temple and that it was too late to do anything about it, so now we know that he was most likely referring to Team Clocke going in to 1) retrieve the baby who is not actually there and 2) raise all sorts of holy hell. It will be interesting to see what happens if/when Sayid and Fake Locke come face to face, if Fake Locke is indeed the entity that put a "claim" on our favorite Iraqi. And, you know, since the previews couldn't show us ANYTHING since the next episode is going to be SO CRAZY (seriously, how ridiculous was that preview?), I guess we'll just have to wait and see if that's what goes down.

That's it for my episode analysis. Now here's what I think is going on overall.


THE BIG PICTURE

Before the season began, I figured that we would see an alternate version of events -- what the Losties lives would've been like had they never crashed on the Island. I also assumed that all of their lives would be significantly worse in that scenario. While we have yet to see what everyone is up to, so far -- with the exception of perhaps Rose and Bernard (since they were REALLY happy at their Retirement Beach Hut and Rose no longer had cancer) -- that prediction has not panned out.

As of right now in the flash sideways timeline:
- Kate is on the run, but not in jail like she'd feared she would be. And since there's a chance she didn't actually commit the crime she's accused of, she might escape prison (or at least get a light sentence) if she is ever caught. Plus, she made a friend in Claire -- awww!!!!
- Claire will most likely keep Aaron.
- Jack just turned a corner in the relationship with his son. And, um, Jack HAS A SON.
- Sayid appeared happy and was most likely going to meet Nadia after he landed.
- Hurley is the luckiest guy in the world and totally happy and chill.
- Sun and Jin... hmm, things aren't that rosy there, but we haven't seen much more of them so I'll reserve judgment for now.
- Sawyer we haven't seen enough of yet to know what's going on with him.
- Rose has cancer but is at peace with it.
- Locke is confined to a wheelchair but has made peace with it, has what appears to be a good relationship with his father, and is getting married to Helen, who rocks.
- Charlie - A drug addict, but presently still alive.
- Boone - Still dopey, but presently still alive.
- Arzt, Frogurt - Still alive.
- Ben's a teacher, Dogen's a dad.

So then I started thinking, "OK, they're showing us these two versions of how the 815ers lives could have been, and eventually each character is going to have to choose one version to stick with." But then I realized that that could never work, because it's not like off-Island Locke could just remove himself from the Island events and not have it affect what happened with/to the characters who might've chosen to stay with their Island lives. It's got to be an all or nothing scenario.

Then I thought that we just haven't seen enough of the off-Island events yet and that perhaps things are going to head south for everyone and it will be clear that the original timeline was what was "supposed to happen." Another idea was that events in the off-Island timeline would start (or eventually be able to) affect things on the Island -- but I'm still having trouble figuring out how they would communicate that to viewers now that we know the off-Island flashes are in 2004 and the Island events are years later. I guess they could always just cover 2005-2007 in the alternate timeline, too, and then everything would be synced up.

Most recently I got very worried that they're headed toward making ONE character -- Jack -- responsible for deciding everyone's fate. My problem with this scenario is absolutely nothing against Jack -- it's more with the fact that this would seem to fly in the face of the series' whole "free will versus fate" battle. It's not free will or fate if one person decides the fate of many. But since Jack had the nick on his neck, the weird reaction to his appendectomy scar and the faint memory of Desmond, I started thinking that he might end up being the only one who eventually has full recollection of BOTH timelines for ALL characters and then has to ultimately decide which one timeline should be kept and which one should cease to exist.

What gives me hope is that Kate also seemed to have a spark of recognition with Jack outside of the airport, and was also moved by the whale stuffed animal of Claire's (which, as I discussed in my "What Kate Does" post, she bought for Aaron herself in the original timeline).

So right now I'm just hoping that it's going to end up being the type of thing where all of the characters -- TOGETHER -- make a conscious choice to choose their Island existences over their No Crash existences. As my brother pointed out to me, when Jacob and the Man in Black had their infamous talk about how "it always ends the same... but it only ends once," what if the difference between the Losties and all of the other people Jacob's brought to the Island is that a subset of the 815ers actually chose to come back? So in a way, they've already taken a step toward deciding which life they want to lead.

Anybody got any other ideas? Like I said at the beginning of this season, I'm totally just rolling with things and am not getting too crazy about the various theories, but I figured now that we're 27.78% of the way through the season I'd let you know where my head was at.


BEST LINE OF THE EPISODE

"I just lied to a samurai." - Hurley


OTHER BITS


- In my last post I told you about how a fire consumed fellow blogger Vozzek's home. And I told you to buy his book already! He would like to thank everyone who did, and I wanted to pass along an update he gave recently on The ODI's podcast. I mentioned that Vozzek is one of the most positive people I know, and I think his upbeat personality really shines through in the linked clip.

- My husband and I went out to eat recently and were amused by the first cocktail listed on this bar menu. Of course we had to try it.



- My boy Zach D, LLL reader and writer, interviewed Michael Emerson (aka Ben) for GQ.com and it's an absolute must-read -- totally hilarious and, of course, spoiler-free. Here it is!

- Matt R, a LLL reader who had a "super-fan" interview with Entertainment Weekly's Doc Jensen a few months ago, is best known for making incredible videos that serve as invitations to his Lost viewing parties. They're like movie quality, seriously. Now he's extended his creativity to a t-shirt design revolving around the Dharma Shark (that's Ezra James Sharkington to listeners of the Official Lost Podcast) and I thought it was very cool. If you want one for yourself, here's his CafePress page.



And with that, I'm off to find a spring to dive into that will hopefully cure my own personal version of "the sickness." Wish me luck.

Until next time,
- e

68 comments:

Alexistran said...

Get well soon e!

I think the reason Dogen showed up in the LA-X timeline was to impart the words "It's hard to watch when you want to help", I think that's a hint about his role in what's going down in the original universe.

Also, I think there's another possibility, one that stems from Juliet's final words to Sawyer. That the alternate universe is some kind of afterlife. That in someway everyone who dies, passes over into the next world and that next world is this timeline we're seeing unfold.
That would fit with all those hints about what happens after you die that we got in LA-X.

Anyway that's my 2cents

~Alex

Erin said...

Great write-up! Love the lyrics headings, especially Cat's in the Cradle, and I found myself laughing aloud several times. My theory since The Substitute has been that the flash-sideways are the end of the story, that somehow whatever they do on the Island now leads to them being transported into that existence, but I'm sure there's a good chance that's wildly off the mark. Loved this episode, in any case...

Anonymous said...

Hey e!

I'm still kind of locked into the big picture being connected to the tapestry Jacob wove. 2 kings, the people under and the greek writing all have me thinking one thing. The end of the war has to deal with our fave 815ers and the dead they are close to from the Island events ("only the dead have seen the end of the war?")

Think about this ... Jack lost his Dad, Hugo lost Libby and Charlie, Sayid lost Shannon, Sawyer lost Juliet, you can argue Jin and Sun both lost Michael, Ben lost Locke, Locke lost Boone, Kate is the wild card and she may have lost Claire for all we know. I hear ramblings about Ilana, and we know she lost Bram and Jacob! Even Miles lost his whole team other than Lapidus.

OK, enough rambling, I jus wouldn't be suprised if the war had to be won form both sides ... living and dead ... thoughts?

Anonymous said...

Feel better soon, e! I just got over "the sickness," and it practically wiped me out.

Great recap, as always. I'm just chilling, enjoying the last season, trying not to over-think everything in these first few episodes. I'm going with the idea that what we've seen so far is mostly setup for the end, and Darlton will pull it altogether for us by the finale. :)

--another e

badwobot said...

I hope you are feeling better soon!

Your write up confirmed what I already knew - I am not "normal" -- or at least not a normal viewer of LOST because I yelled "Adam and Eve were NOT next to each other!" at that scene. Of course maybe the 815ers rearranged them before leaving the cave?

I was leaning toward David's mom being Juliet because of his eyes. Why couldn't we have zoomed in on a picture in the ex-wife's house? darn!

Be well!

Life Is A Road Trip said...

Am I missing something? Aren't the appendix on the RIGHT? Jack looked down at his left side (where Kate stitched him up after the crash?). In the MIRROR it was on the right. I love this show, but I can't keep track of everything! I'm sure there is an easy explanation for this.

Hope you feel better soon!

Mair said...

great write-up, as usual. My only comment is about Jack choosing the island existence...think he would chose that over the timeline with his son? Bummer...

and feel better - Nyquil ROCKS!

mair

Billie said...

Best Line of the Episode:
When Jack tells Hurley he wants to talk to Jacob and Hurley says, "It doesn't work like that. He just kinda appears like Obi Wan." ...or something like that...sorry...I didn't record it!

BTW, still enjoying those Dharma beer koozies! Thanks, e!

janneman said...

Thanks for the recap!

There was one thing in particular I was wondering about after this episode, but maybe I missed or forgot something:

Hurley has always been freaking out about the numbers. Now he's standing there in the lighthouse, the numbers right in front of him, he and jack talk about 108 and 23 and he doesn't even notice them!

Seems a bit strange to me.. Anyone got an explanation?

doctoroctopus8 said...

hope you feel better soon

tanzio said...

Tank top jealousy, song lyrics, and a fantastic recap all on Nyquil. Damn, you rock, girl!

TeallGreen said...

I'm sure I'm not the only one...but the 108 is:

4. “Locke”
8. “Reyes”
15. “Ford”
16. “Jarrah”
23. “Shephard”
42. “Kwon”

4+8+15+16+23+42 = 108

So, maybe it's just that simple? Maybe there is no person #108, right?

Sherlock938 said...

Thank you for the excellent recap. It's in no way below your high standards. But get well soon anyway. The "Illness" is spreading in Berlin too and it hit me recently so I was really in the groove with your write-up. ;-)

I would like to share one idea. David was playing the same piano-piece by Chopin, "Fantaisie Impromptu" Opus 66 Daniel Faraday used to play in "The Variable". It struck me instantly, could it be Daniel is Davids piano-teacher in this timeline? Even the handwriting on the notes resembles that one in Daniels journal.

Overall I was very satisfied with The Lighthouse. Since last week it has that old Lost magic again.

Namaste

Marcus

kristyn said...

i followed the whole post *and* it made perfect sense... i'm not on nyquil and i am indeed veryyy worried ;)

feel better e! some ice cream with magic shell ought to do it!!! :P

*kristYn from cali*

Anonymous said...

E-

I love reading what you have to say every week but I've never had the time to respond to your comments about Richard (oh how I love him). I happen to be good friends with a relative of Nestor Carbonell and I can tell you that he honestly doesn't wear eyeliner. His own family has been making fun of him for it since he was young. I know it's an answer that most Lost fans have been looking for ;)

-D

Jamie said...

I think Jack is having some sort of memory loss issue in the sideways universe. He can't remember having his appendix out, he can't remember how long his son has been playing piano. Perhaps drug/alcohol induced (think to his mom's reaction when he turned down a drink). Not sure why, but really think those things were intentional.

Unknown said...

Ok I have a few things on my mind....
I'm totally pissed at Jackie for throwing a temper tantrum and braking the cool ass light house. He is so good at wrecking things before you get info from them (people included).

I think Jack is having the most recall because he is going to figure it out and tell everyone...not that he will make the decision for everyone else. They can and most likely will start to have the same recall to the two realities.

One small thought is that Locke is dead and so he doesn't really get to choose, if there is a choice in the end to stay on the island or not.

the two stones you mentioned (blk and wht) I dont' know if you said this before but they are in a book I'm reading. A boy is given 2 stones from a king to use when he is unable to make a choice. The kings advice is to get to a point where the boy can make his own decisions for his life and follow his destiny.

I'm bummed that Jin did not explain more about Aaron and Kate...always a few more sentences and we would have had a BREAK through...but then where would all the drama and anticipation be.

Even though I hope that all the questions will be answered I doubt and have doubted LOST can do it. In some ways I it's perfect and in other ways it's annoying.

Oh, and the whole Jack has a kid thing...kinda makes me think that his off island life will end up being more fulfilling and cycle braking than any love for Kate and new life on the island he could create. The Island will "fix it". And finally we can all die happy?

Glad I found your blog, thanks!

Unknown said...

Janneman!!! You are right...what are those writers thinking!

I do love the Star Wars line, again Hurley and his Star Wars :)

Anonymous said...

Is it just me or does the skull of Claire's faux aaron look awfully canine? I hope Vincent is frolicking around the island somewhere, or did Micheal and Walt take him with them? I can't remember!

Also I want that shirt! but $30 is out of my price range :(

pejafor3 said...

Long Live Nyquil
Great recap.
Feel better soon.

pejafor3 said...

..Spit my coffe, after reading
picture comment about Claire's Baby.

Erika.... stay away form the green pills.
:))))

Maria said...

I hope you're feeling better, Perastika (which in Greek means get well soon). I thoroughly enjoyed the episode and your recap.
I think that Hurley stopped caring about the numbers earlier in the show and now that he's more confident and a key player in S6, he's just into moving things along and figuring them out(like the rest of us).
As for the best line I thought "cause we weren't looking for it" was pretty cool.
One more thing (just for the fun of it) "Na maste" (with a space just like in LA X) in Greek means 'Here we are'! I know it's not used like that in the show but being a linguistic I just love how languages work and sometimes "interact".
I can't believe we have only 13 episodes to go.
Let's enjoy the rest of the ride!

Garry from UK said...

Get well soon - e

Did you notice under the name Wallace was the name Friendly, remember Zeke anyone :-)

I reckon he will turn up in the "sideline" (Flash sideways and Alternate Timeline).

Anyway, a friend of mine who studied Philosophy messaged me after The Lighthouse and sent me a link from Wiki-pedia. As follows Wallace is also the name of a David Wallace a Dr of Philosophy and Physics and he was involved in various theories regarding many - worlds.

If you are prepared to believe Wiki here it is -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Many-worlds_interpretation

Matt Roeser said...

hey e!

awesome recap as always! thanks for posting the link to my dharma shark shirt! you rock!

hope you feel better!!

Inquisitor said...

e-

Don't worry, Claire seems to know that Smokey ain't Locke. When he shows up, Jin's all like, "Woah, JOHN?!?!" and Claire goes, "Chillax, it's not John. He's that friend I mentioned!" (Or something like that).

Which makes me think that Smokes at first lured Claire in with the form of Christian, then mind-warped her and revealed his true self because he already had his "spell" on her. Also, I don't think he lied to her from the beginning about Aaron. Quote from LostPedia: "Claire was not seen again until Locke discovered her in Jacob's cabin. As Locke conversed with Christian he heard a noise from somewhere else in the Cabin, and as he moved his light to see what it was, he was shocked to find Claire sitting comfortably on an old armchair. Locke instantly panicked upon seeing her and asked why she was there. Claire calmly claimed to be "fine," and said that she was "with him," referring to Christian. When Locke asked her about Aaron, Christian stated that Aaron was where he needed to be and that Claire was safe. Christian warned him not to tell anyone about her whereabouts. Claire seemed bizarrely content in the cabin, showing little concern about Aaron and smiling faintly at Christian's words to Locke, especially when Locke said he knew that he had to save the Island."

Sue Liberman said...

For someone who is sick, you certainly came across incredibly aware ( when I take Nyquil, I am out of it for three days!)... I have one stupid question--I thought Jin was left on the island...how did he know Kate took care of Aaron for three years???...get better soon so you can be even more amazing!!!

Erika (aka "e") said...

Sue - Jin had some time (seemed to be at least a few weeks) with the returning 815ers (Hurley, Kate, Jack) when they landed in 1977 and hid out in the Dharma village... and they filled Sawyer, Miles, Juliet and Jin in on what had happened in the past three years off-Island. In addition to knowing about Aaron, he also knew Locke had been killed.

- Erika

Chico said...

I think Jacob's mission for Jack is for him to kill his father. Claire said she was not alone, she was with her father and her friend. So Christian seems to be part of team fake Locke as well.

Remember how Locke was supposed to kill and Ben told the others "he is not who you think he is" when he failed?

This could be some test that the successful candidate needs to pass.

Anonymous said...

Hi e!

Your awesome posts are my weekly treat! Hope you're feeling better. Just wanted to share that "Piano Man" should actually be credited to Billy Joel, rather than his LOST-esque interconnected contemporary and performing buddy, Elton.

Also, I didn't read too much into the fact that Adam and Eve had been moved, figuring that the Losties had just (respectfully) tidied up the place a bit during their stay in the cave.

Thank goodness for this crazy community of intense fans and amazing e-journalists (you put the "e" in e-journalists, btw!) who love to ponder the minutia! Enjoy the rest of the season!

C-

Erika (aka "e") said...

And the lyrical headings are from...

Cat’s in the Cradle by Harry Chapin
Piano Man by Billy Joel (thanks to "C" for the catch, I once again blame it on my cloudy head since I've seen him in concert -- WITH Elton!)
Do it For Me Now – Angels and Airwaves
Don’t Panic - Coldplay
Light from Your Lighthouse – The Fireman (Youth, Paul McCartney)
Walking on Broken Glass – Annie Lennox
Name – Goo Goo Dolls
Anybody Seen My Baby? – The Rolling Stones


Thanks for reading!
- e

SDS said...

Hey E :) as ever, glad you are still blogging!

I'm glad I wasn't alone in thinking that David would look into the crowd and see Jack ^_^ nice to see we think alike there.

I keep forgetting there are "normal" fans of Lost who forget things like Adam and Eve :D I guess the company I keep are the "abnormal" fans then?

I am adding the moving skeletons to my list of discrepancies/mistakes in Lost, and hope to have a full list published soon!

Finally, I was going to add those three links to my latest round-up of Lost stuff unless you have any reservations about that (I don't see why you would though - free advertising for all involved! ^_^)

http://superduperstream.blogspot.com/search/label/Lost%20Weekly%20Round-Up

As always - its been a great read :D

-Chris

Waterland said...

Having watched Lost from the very beginning, I know better than to make a declarative statement regarding what happened/is happening/will happen. But I'm going to make a declarative statement now. Claire died. When her house blew up, Sawyer went in to get her and she was never the same again. But it's not her behavior that tipped me off--it was the weird look that Miles gave her when he first encountered her post-explosion. He gave the same look to Sayid after he drowned and resurrected. In order to be infected, you must first die--your body then becomes a host for...whatever those green pills will cure. And it's why the others burn their dead. No body, no risk of "infection".

drallabg said...

Hope it isn't an "Infection"! Seriously get well and still hope a good Locke shows up!

cekma said...

The lighthouse wasn't seen before because it can't be. Only if Jacob allows you to see it. It's like the dark tower. That's why Damon and Carlton wrote a line in there that was exactly what the audience was thinking: why have we never seen this before?

I think Jack noticing the scar from his appendix is another example of the two universes bleeding into each other.

I think Juliet is Jacks ex in the parallel uni. I refuse to call it an alt. It's just as real as the island uni. When Juliet was dying in Sawyers arms and she said "maybe we can get some coffee sometime.". I think she was talking to Jack in the parallel about getting together.

Garry UK said...

Also to follow on from what I said about Wallace being 108!

Jack's son is called David?

David Wallace the guy who wrote about Many Worlds!

Maybe Jack did have a son in the original timeline but he didn't know about him and he was called Wallace instead of Shepherd?

Crazy I know! Just random thoughts.

Also the screen shot I got of Wallace being the 108, I have watched The Lighouse three times now and i have not seen the 108 Wallace thing.

Maybe we didn't get that scene in the UK?

Can anyone back up the 108 Wallace screen shot?

:-)

Garry UK said...

Also looking at the names around the dial surely there can be only 360 names in total, unless Jacob rubs the names out and tries again but SHEPHERD was written in capitals and it looked like it had just been written.

My head hurts!

Also (I like the word also) I have been watching Lost since the beginning but I didn't notice the Skeletons had moved grrr!

However I do find solace sometimes when - e writes something that I was thinking for example, when he walked into Shepherd Jr's piano display I also cringed thinking that Jack was going to mess it up for the kid.

Jack is known for his Bull in a China shop antics, he must be a Taurus :-)

Margie said...

I really enjoy your weekly write-ups. You are brilliant! For Chris and others who are keeping track of Lost's discrepancies, Sun's wedding gown in the Season 1 flashback is FAR different than the one she is shown wearing in the Season 5 episode when Jacob visits her and Jin at their wedding. The Season 1 gown is matronly and old-fashioned. The gown of Season 5 is glamorous and reveals her bare shoulders.

Alison said...

Why didn't I find this blog earlier? You're the best - get well soon!

I'm thinking about Chico's suggestion that the candidates might have to pass the test of killing their father. Ben and Kate passed, assuming we count Wayne and not Sam Austin as Kate's father. Locke passed by getting Sawyer to kill his father, which may have counted for Sawyer too since Sawyer's biological father was already dead and he took on the name of Locke's father. Maybe the form/body of Christian Shephard is wandering around so that Jack can meet him, get all worked up and kill him? Or maybe Jack in effect killed Christian when he exposed his surgical malpractice, sending him down the path to an alcoholic's death. Hurley's dad is fine, but when Hurley is on the mainland, Hurley pretty quickly manages to get himself locked up in Santa Rosa where he can't do much harm to anyone. Sun turned against her father, but hasn't killed him. Jin's father is such a good guy - I hope Jin doesn't have to kill him. Faraday meets Widmore but instead of killing him, Faraday gets killed. We don't know much about Sayid's father. Do we even know who Desmond's father is? Both Claire and Aaron have daddy issues. Did I leave out any candidates?

Then there's the rule that you can't kill a candidate, which is why Ben was so shocked when Keamy killed Alex. Then Ben killed Locke, so now Ben's alive but out as a candidate.

Long Live Locke : )

Wanders said...

I'm of the opinion that Hurley's line about Adam and Eve was there as a shout out to those of us who have thought from the very first season that Adam and Eve were actually two of our beloved Losties. But only a shout out. Now that it has been stated by Hurley, it isn't going to happen; it's time to let it go.

I don't think this is the first time Hurley has acknowledged the theories floating around the Interwebs. Remember when the radio played big band?

Anonymous said...

"It's not free will or fate if one person decides the fate of many."

But couldn't it be argued that Jacob has been doing that all along?

Great review! I can't wait till it all comes together!

Anonymous said...

Did you realise that Fake Locke may now be with Candidate Kwon (I presume he would have known he was with Candidate Sun Kwon back at the statue), having disposed of Candidate Sawyer (or at least got him off the island)? There may not be many candidates left soon!

Also thought that the way Hurley talked about Adam and Eve it sounded like he was talking about some future time travelling that might occur rather than that that had already happened.

Cheryl from Lakeview said...

e, I never contratulated you for your book deal. Nice job! I hope it goes brilliantly for you. And get well soon.

Mac said...

e:

I think that you and the other bloggers overlooked the symbolism of Miles' and Hurley's tic-tac-toe game. Tic-tac-toe appears to represent the much larger game that Jacob and MiB are playing... "it always ends the same.." Playing tic-tac-toe always results in a frustrating stalemate -- unless one of the players takes a huge risk by trying a different move (changing the rules??).

Why, at the temple, don't the 815ers interact with the others that seem to be milling around, wearing the clothes (no zippers or snaps)from their "real" time lines? Learning their stories could certainly help our heros gain insight on, well, everything.

Thanks for your wonderful insight on our favorite show, and best wishes in pursuing your dream. We'll be waiting to hear more

Anna said...

I think whoever made the point of Claire possibly being dead for 3 years in the jungle is onto something. I hate to get all parental about the plot line (but really, parents are HUGE in everything that happens) but that is really the only explanation that I'm willing to accept for why Claire just wandered off into the jungle, leaving Aaron. It would also make sense when you factor in Claire showing up in Kate's house when Kate is raising Aaron DEMANDING that she not bring him back, as if the real Claire, not the "claimed" one, is making a plea for her son's safety?

Also, did Ben die? When he was young Ben, after Sayid shot him? They took him to the Temple, where the water was still clean, but did they fix him in time? Could he have been a "claimed" Ben, walking around all this time, messing with everyone? Juliet and Alex both commented to other people about Ben's being dangerous. Ben allows Alex to get killed, kills Locke, and then basically blows Richard off, not to mention the killing of Jacob, what IS his beef with the world? It can't just be the stuff with Roger Workman, or if it is, he's the touchiest, most childish dude on the show. Everyone else seems to be working through their daddy/mommy issues.

Anywho, wonderful reading yours and everyone's take on things; I can't wait for the next bombshell!

Benshog@aol.com said...

Light/dark, or 815ers/others are themes that really boil down to good/evil. For a long time, most Lost fans assumed that good/evil was the major themes in this show. I think we'll find that as the season rolls on that good/evil will no longer exist, or at the very least, what we thought of as good, is actually not so good - leaving the viewer to conclude there is no good or evil, just point of veiw from one side or another.

We've seen this already in the show. The idea of 'others' is anyone who isn't us. The others were evil at first, until we found out a bit more about them. Now they are part of us (815ers). Our point of veiw changed, so it is no longer good vrs. evil with the original others.

Free will versus determinism I feel is going to be the main theme this season, and for the series as a whole. The off island life (free will) looks like it's going much better for everyone. On island (determinism via Jacobs manipulation) is not a path they chose, but one thrust onto them - or at least, one that was heavily inluenced by a biased outside source.

But in the end, that doesn't mean that Jacob is evil and Flocke is good. That's just of point of view, we get to decide the outcome we are comfortable with. We have free will to make our own choice.

Anonymous said...

Have any of you Big Lebowski fans ever noticed that Jacob (Mark Pellegrino) is Woo's (the rug piser) accomplice??

Inquisitor said...

I think the David Wallace theory fits, and I know just where to find him in the original timeline: Scranton, PA! (That's right, Office reference :D)

Anna said...

your name's lebowski, lebowski. you wife is bunny.

he is also rita's ex paul in dexter. . . .

Garry UK said...

Thats where I have seen him beore I thought he was one of the thugs in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey!!

Brasco said...

A few for ya...
What if Kate's real last name is Wallace, she has used many alias's? That would explain why she wasn't on the ceiling in the cave and she could be 108.
When they first show Jack's condo, there is a picure of Jack with his Dad in a white suit and a women, I think it's his mom, but she almost looks too young. Can anyone confirm who that is?
I found it interesting that the lighthouse would show "someone" how to get to the island and the lamppost showed the oceanic 6 how to get back.
Overall, I think the sideways flashes are mirror laden because there are like the reflection, reversed as compared to reality, I think the sideways flashes are only another way of working coincidence into the show and seeing an alternative life to what is really happening on island. I think the island is more important than we know.
I have also been thinking about Flocke and Zombie Dad, what if Jack's dad was the Shepard on the list and that's why his Dad's house was seen in the mirror, then his dad may have been a candidate and possibly touched by Jacob while he was visiting Jack. If the Dead dad's body lands on the island, maybe Smokey/MIB can take that form and is stuck like that until another dead candidate shows up and then he can get stuck in that. Jack's dad would never have been able to get ben or potentially anybody else to kill Jacob, Locke had the trust and relationship with the Others and Richard and Ben to get to Jacob.
There has to be more to Ben as many other fellow bloggers are saying.
FYI, I did enter the T-shirt contest with a "Dogen's School of Medicine" entry with the tag line "A tradition of teaching proven medical techniques"
Thanks for the write up!!!

Nick Markart said...

I noticed something!! jacks number is 23, and in the bible, psalm 23 is the psalm of the shepherd!

heres a little equation..

Jack Shepard = #23 = Psalm 23 = Psalm of the Shepherd

**GASP**

Anonymous said...

I just keep wondering if they are going to start to die like they did on the island. Like, how much is predetermined. Locke was always going to be paralyzed, Rose was always going to have cancer. Was Boone going to die at a young age anyway? or was it just because he was on the island that he died? Are they going to start dying in a similar way as they died on the island?

Aunt J-ha said...

I felt the same spark of indignation over the lighthouse (minor, just a spark) and I told my husband the best birthday present I could ever get would be a annotated map of the island, including all pertinent landmarks and settlements.

Great write up Erica! I Hope you feel better by now.

Greg S. said...

I like your thoughts on the relationship between the two timelines.
A lot of people seem to have a problem understanding the sideways universe because they think it only diverged from the original one when flight 815 landed in LA. Juliet's cryptic "it worked" gives us a clue to what created the sideways universe. The sideways universe is a divergent reality that was created by Jack and co. successfully preventing "the incident".

My current theory is as follows:

Faraday was right when he says "what happened, happened". There is one timestream that can get split into two realities, but these separate realities always "course correct" back to the main timestream. We saw some examples of this when Desmond kept saving Charlie's life. But Desmond's interference only delayed Charlies death by several days. The timestream only took about a week to course correct.

Now when Faraday came up with his new "variables" theory, he used the metaphor of throwing pebbles into a river. You can cause a small disturbance in the flow of the river, but it quickly returns to normal. This is the metaphor for Desmond's diverting Charlie's death for a few days. Then Faraday said if you could get a big enough boulder you could actually divert the flow of the stream permanently. This was a metaphor for his theory that preventing the incident would mean no "button pushing" etc. and therefore no 815 plane crash.

I think Faraday's reasoning here was all correct, but failed to take into account the paradox of time travel being the mechanism which put them in a place to prevent the Incident. If they prevent the 815 crash, then no one is there to prevent the incident.

So when Juliet set off the bomb (and I bellieve she did) that energy, plus the energy being released by the drill hole was enough to create a new reality where the incident did not happen, but instead of "diverting" the timestream into the new course, it "split it in two" so now we have two equally valid timestreams running "side by side".

(Continued in next post...)

Greg S. said...

(Continued from previous post...)

So the sideway timestream and the original timestream are identical up until 1977, then they split and different things start happening in each. This allows plenty of time for Jack to have a teenage son that he didn't have in the original timestream. I think this is why the producers are adamant that the sideways timeline is not a dream or "what-if" story, but is just as real as the original timeline.

Another part of this theory is that both the bomb energy and the "time/electromagnetic" energy under the Swan were used up in creating the Sideways timestream, so there was no immediate devastation on the island. This allows for Ethan, Ben, plus both Others and Dahrma people to leave the Island and become doctors, teachers, etc. (I don't think the bomb sunk the island. I think that something else caused it at least a little bit later, otherwise Ben would not have had time to leave the island).

So the combined energy of the bomb and the time/electromagnetic energy under the island was a big enough "boulder" to create a new timestream, but in a universe where "whatever happened, happened' and there are no paradoxes, the original timeline is preserved because the original circumstances are needed to create the opportunity to set off the bomb.

Now the timestream is still going to course-correct back into one timeline, but it's taking 30+ years rather than the week or so that we saw in Desmond/Charlie's case. I think the two timelines will merge/course correct back into one shortly before the series finale (maybe during the series finale). The interesting thing will be if the charaters who are still alive after the merge will remember both realities or not. (I don't think there will be two Jacks, Sawyers, etc because the course corrections on Charlie's death didn't create multiple Charlies.)

Anyway, this was pretty much the view I've had since watching the season premier and so far the new revelations have only supported it. I may be entirely wrong, but so far it matches the evidence we've been shown.

The Andelins said...

Big fan of the blog!! Just recently stumbled upon it from Sussing Out LOST. Just wanted to point out: (My husband and I are re-watching all seasons on netflix in preparation for the big finale) In season 2, when they first go into the hatch and meet Desmond, there is a big sun drawn on the wall with the number 108 in it... Maybe you remembered that, but I thought it was interesting!!

Paige said...

E! I know I'm a little late on the "congratulations on the book deal" but I say better late than never. Congrats on the book deal! It couldn't have happened to a more deserving person. Your blog is awesome!

Also, when Kate's name wasn't written on the "candidate cave" in The Substitute, I immediately thought that it made her very important. Jacob touched her but never wrote down her name. Like he knew MIB would find the cave. She's the wildcard.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

@Nick Markart - What else is interesting is that David wrote Psalm 23. Lots of cool coincidences in Lost.

Unknown said...

Hello, I want to thank you four your recaps, love each one of them and read them many times, I wish a have a theory, but still LOST, with so many events every week is very difficult to make my mind.

Hope you are well now, take care.

Greetings from Colombia South America,
Lucy

Spanio said...

In House of the Rising Sun, Jack also suggested that the caves were too good of a place to be used exclusively as a tomb. He decided a shelter would be a more fitting use. I always assumed that that meant they were going to move the skeleton couple out of the caves and use their resting place for extra counter space.
I was actually very suprised to see that the skeletons were still in the caves at all. But the fact that they've been moved closer to each other doesn't necessarily mean someone's made a mistake. That could just be where Jack moved them to when he moved in. A little Feng Shui to spruce up a tomb never hurt anybody.

HappyNat said...

I agree with Mac about the Tic-Tac-Toe game, being a symbol. When I saw that scene it reminded me of War Games (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086567/). Where they have to show the computer that nobody can win "Thermonuclear War", but having it play itself in Tic-Tac-Toe over and over.

There has been no "winner" in the Jacob vs. Man in Black battle for years and years. It also ties with the ying-yang/good vs. evil balance.

Actually, I'm just glad I got to talk about War Games . . .

Anonymous said...

Hope you feel better soon. I hate being sick!

Hi! So I was just eating lunch when I read "Are they jealous of my tank top collection? I mean, they're pretty fitted to my body but I will totally share if that's what's causing the problem here."
and literally I almost choked because I was laughing. No worries. I wouldn't blame anyone for my inability to take small bites and chew carefully. But it's rare that someone can make me do that.

Ok. So I was just journaling old school my self about Lost and I wrote "The Sideways world is one in which the island does not exist" which I followed up immediately with "and of course I just stated the obvious"

I just feel like we forget that I guess. And. I feel like there is something super obvious about it that is in plain sight that we aren't noticing because we don't know to notice it yet.

Anonymous said...

Dear E,
My name is DARIUSH,this is my second comment.Not only did the first one not get any answer or attention!,but also it was earased from the list of comments after a day.why?!! just kiddin.i'd asked : Is there any significance 2 the death of main characters' fathers?
btw,as i mentioned b4(in my first ignored comment!!),i love ur recaps.sth is worth mentionin though,as the time goes by and we get closer 2 the end of this amazin ride with "LOST" and recaps,it seems 2 me that u r gettin softer in lettin go of lots of unanswered questions.as u keep sayin in ur write-ups,i guess even u,have made a peace with the fact that those questiones,even the important ones,r gonna b left unanswered.i hope i'm wrong 4 my sake and the sake of all other hard core fans.no matter what happens,there's no doubt in my mind or in the mind of the people who visit this site that u r "THE ONE" among all the lost recapers.
keep up the good work
peace

Erika (aka "e") said...

DARIUSH -

Hmm, seems like *SOMEBODY* needs to pay better attention! : )

Your original comment was entered in to the post for What Kate Does. It is still there at the end.

https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=20981436&postID=4874588889000474177

One I publish I comment I don't go back through them and delete any -- ever.

I also don't have time to respond individually to comments anymore, but rather I respond to the most frequent questions in the next write-up. If you don't know why this is, then you missed my "The Future of Long Live Locke" post which explains why I'm cutting down on my write-ups this year.

And for the record, I don't think there is any significance to the fact that a few of the main characters' fathers have died. The bigger thing is that they almost all have daddy issues that they need resolved, and that's something we've known since Season 1.

Thanks for reading!
- e

Kristine said...

I throughly enjoy your posts and I look forward to them after every show. I like your format also; it's a nice easy read. Thanks for continuing to blog even when your sick and I'm sure super busy with your new job. Thanks again!!

Unknown said...

Just came from reading the Lighthouse entry. I am also
very curious about the identity of Adam and Eve. I was
watching season one again a couple of weeks (not sure which episode) and Hurley made a joke about Jack and Kate moving into the caves together. Just a joke? Maybe not!

WarrenJ said...

Don't know why your exact words finally triggered it in my head, but your comment about the Island nudging people toward a fate made something click. What if in the alternate timeline everyone gets to live out these redemptive lives, but then something horrible ends up happening to all of humanity? I agree with you that the ending has to make sense to the non-message board crowd, but the Valenzetti equation and the idea of the end of the world were put out there. What if the choice someone (Jack?) has to make is between everyone living a life of suffering to save the world, or living happily until it ends? Fate vs Free Will. It only ends once, everything else is just progress.
I look forward to your take every week. Thank you.