I hope this message finds you all well. What an episode, eh? Had to have been creepiest, most twisted episode of LOST this season and (arguably) the entire series. A LOT of subtle hints were dropped in "The Brig" and I honestly cannot decipher every one of them. But one thing is for certain — the next few episodes will take us deeper into the rabbit hole…where I personally would like to stay for a while. ...So... Shall we?
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"The Brig" -Episode 3.19-
1) Locke — So Locke is a free agent, huh? No surprise there... Has he ever really looked out for anyone beside himself? Sure he has helped the LOSTies here or there, maybe even saved a life or two, but we all know that was to advance his own personal agenda of finding "purpose" and fulfilling his "destiny." In season 1, he knocked out Sayid to prevent the group from finding Rousseau's radio signal. In season 2, he wanted to explore the Hatch instead of focusing on protecting everyone from the expected Other raid. Now in season 3, he goes off again as his "own man" to discover the secrets of the Island. But at what price?
I must confess that, while he sometimes annoys me, I am glad to see Locke pursuing this path. You know, even if it involves orchestrating the occasional murder, Locke is pursuing truth and I respect him for that. (Although I don’t know if Ben is the best route to truth...) He seems to be the only one (with Ben as the only possible exception) that fully understands what the Island is capable of. I think he (and hopefully us too!) will be repaid with lots of juicy info about the history and potential of this Island in the coming weeks...2) Ben (creepy as ever) — Okay, I am still confused about Ben, his motivations and the way he tries to get what he wants. It seems like he goes through SO much trouble to get something that could have been acquired through much less effort. Does anyone have theories on what he is really after? I (almost) believed Richard when he told Locke that the whole infertility thing was not the Others' main objective…buuut I also think he was part of Ben’s scheme to manipulate Locke. And the apparent plan to kidnap the pregnant women points to the infertility issue being a major one. So why manipulate Locke? Does Ben really believe he is special, or is he trying to get something else from him? Could Ben really walk the entire time? Did he simply put on the show to make Locke feel like he is healing him? (With Ben, there always seems to be more questions than answers…)
So the Others are preparing for another raid on the LOSTies. Why would Ben let Locke in on his plans? Did he purposely want the beach peeps to be prepared for a war? Was it his way of letting Juliet know they are on their way? Or was he really showing trust in Locke? And how did Locke get the tape recorder with Juliet’s log? We never saw Ben give it to him…but we did see Ben place it in a very convenient spot while Locke was watching… Ahhh! I reeeally hope next week’s “The Man Behind the Curtain” reveals some more about Ben and what he is really after.
3) The REAL Sawyer (and the Magic Box) — My suspicion, along with many others, that Locke's dad is the REAL Sawyer was finally confirmed...in the most excellent way. One of my hopes for this show is that the characters will begin to realize their off-Island connections. There has to be major significance in the fact that (seemingly) every one is connected, and this was the first major reveal that ended in such a gruesome and intense way. But how exactly did Coop get there? Can the Island really summon what “special” people call for? Was it Locke that brought his father to the Island? Or was it Ben & Co.?
According to Cooper, he is in hell. All he remembers is being slammed into the divider on the highway, riding in the ambulance and then waking up in a room, bound and gagged, to find his “dead” son opening the door (which confirms Naomi’s story that everyone in the “real” world believes there were no 815 survivors…more on that in a sec…) Can we really believe what this master con man is saying?? But if he didn’t believe he was already dead, why was he so adamant about egging on Locke and Sawyer to kill him? Doesn’t his story about the car crash and his Island visit sound a lot like the work of the Others? Seems very likely that they could cause a crash (kind of like how they killed Juliet’s ex-hubby with a bus), drug Coop and bring him to the Island. But when did they do this? It had to have been before Des turn the failsafe key, right? Or is Ben lying again?
4) James Ford — What does the con-man-formerly-known-as-Sawyer do now? Does he finally have the ability to become James Ford? Or will he become even more like the real Sawyer? Well I think he will struggle with this latest incident for a while, but overall this was a major step forward for him. (Yeah, a little weird to say that murder is a step forward…but many things are backward on this Island…) Many are speculating that since he has finally faced this part of his life, the Island will deem him worthy to die. While that has been true for the recently deceased, I would really like to see a transformation of Sawyer. I hope they keep him around for just a little bit longer.
5) Jack & Juliet — There has been a lot of discussion about the brief but important exchange between Jack and Juliet when Kate comes to them with the knowledge of a new person on the Island. Kate is quite confused, as were many viewers, about Jack’s treatment of her. Apparently he completely trusts Juliet — so much so that nothing Kate says would be inappropriate for Jules to hear.
Juliet’s comment, “We should tell her,” was the most intriguing to me in this scene. Were Jack and Juliet expecting the parachutist? Or were they simply aware of the fact that you cannot sent a signal out from the Island? Maybe they have a plan against Ben and don’t feel the LOSTies are ready to hear it. Maybe they are working for Ben and are trying to confuse Kate even more. My personal take on this situation as of now (because we all know next week could reveal something totally different) is that Jack and Juliet are planning against Ben and are waiting for the right time to share with everyone. But after watching the previews for next week when Sawyer plays his little tape of Juliet, I think Jack will be no longer be seen as trustworthy…thus beginning the division of the survivors… Too little, too late, Doc…
6) Naomi — She certainly didn’t have too much to say this episode…but what she did say was very important. So, according to Naomi, the entire plane was found with ALL the bodies accounted for. The outside world thinks everyone on board is dead. At this point, I’m with the group that believes there was a staged plane wreck…by Hanso and/or Widmore…The Hanso Foundation and the Oceanic Airlines websites have led us to believe that the Hanso Foundation was in charge of the search and rescue team for Flight 815. Naomi said that the search team sent small robotic cameras to investigate the wreckage…no DNA tests, no recovering of the bodies, just footage…which would be enough for most people to believe that everyone is dead. I mean, who’s gonna watch the news and say, “Oh! Oh! I bet those are NOT the real bodies! Someone is pulling our leg!” Right…no one…
An interesting thing to note though is that the supposed Flight 815 was discovered of the coast of Bali…which is nowhere near the place the plane really crashed…right? However, if Hanso was in charge of the rescue, I do not find it hard to believe that they skewed the facts and maybe said the plane was in the air a lot longer than it really was and this is where it ended up…
Another theory that has surfaced, with regards to Naomi, is that she is actually there to kill Desmond. She was sent by Charles Widmore who, after learning that Desmond was still alive of the Island, sent someone to finish him for good. Who conducts a search and rescue mission in the middle of the night? She was meant to come to the Island…in secrecy… I think this could play in well to the Naomi-is-there-to-kill-Des theory. I like to hold on to the hope that Penny sent her…but I do trust Sayid’s intuition (which has been dead-on thus far) and he seemed a little skeptical about the whole situation…
7) My crazy input — A couple things I have come across that have not yet shown any validity, but can be supported (or debunked)…
a) Dharma, the Others, the Natives — I am trying to formulate a theory that goes back in time further than anything we have seen. Next season I believe we will have insight into the history of the Island that predates Rousseau and/or Dharma. I have noticed a trend in the story arcs that goes like this… Each season focuses on one major story arc and then briefly introduces what the next season will feature. For example — Season 1 focused on the survival of the LOSTies with the Hatch introduced at the end. Season 2 was all about the hatch with the introduction of the Others at the end. Season 3 focuses on the Others with possibly a little history introduced at the end…Ben’s flashback is next week and I believe we will see how he (and his family?) was involved with the Island. So I HOPE that Season 4 will focus on the four-toed statue, the sacrificial pillar Coop was tied to, and maybe even a little Rousseau backstory…
b) The Island not as we see it — A looooong time ago, during the first season I think, there was a theory about the Island being mobie… Quickly I dismissed the theory, laughing at how obsessed with the show these board-posters were. *sigh* Well, yes I have become one of them…and this theory is making more and more sense to me. Is it that hard to believe that one of the reasons the Island was never found was that is keeps moving? What is the cable that runs into the ocean? Is it possible that it’s an anchor? Or some sort of vessel that can move the Island to a safer place? Of course, it would had to have stayed in the same spot since the electromagnetic anomaly in order for Naomi to find it so…who knows? Maybe they would move the Island after they were exposed by the turning of the failsafe key? Or maybe they would stay put since the lost communications? Am I way over the top here??
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Well, unfortunately that’s all the time I have this week. Certainly the “clouds” are starting to clear for us so that we may begin to see a little more of what is happening on our Island. With all that has happened in the past couple of weeks, I have high expectations for the end of this season…and a strong feeling that they will not let us down…
So...
Until next time…
Namaste.
SFO
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