So, umm……woh… How about THAT for a finale?? My head is still spinning. Most people who I’ve heard from thoroughly enjoyed last night’s episode but there are still a few who were a little disappointed. I guess that’s normal with a show like LOST, but personally, I cannot imagine a better ending to this season — the Others’ story was pretty much wrapped up (most of the named Others are dead), we had plenty of action (13 deaths!), and we had something that has NEVER been done on LOST…a flash forward!!! I treated myself to the extensive spoilers that were around for this episode and learned of this twist prior to its airing. It ruined the viewing in one sense but enhanced it tremendously in another. Nonetheless, “The Powers That Be” certainly left us with a lot to speculate until February…so why don’t we begin?
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“Through the Looking Glass” -Episode 3.22-23-
1) Charlie — To be honest, over the past season, I began to lose interest in Charlie’s character. We hadn’t seen a flashback of his in a while and that was probably because there wasn’t much more to tell. It seemed like they were keeping him around to be the sarcastic, slightly annoying guy who pops his head into others’ business and makes a dry, but often funny, remark. Or wait…isn’t that Hurley? Anyway, after the last two episodes of the season, Charlie has regained my respect and I feel he deserved the heroic death he was given last night. Of all the characters to leave, I was never as emotionally involved as I was with Charlie last night. Eko used to be my favorite character and even his death was a little flat and left something to be desired. But watching Charlie shut Desmond out of the room (because he knew nothing but that door would stop Des from seeing Pen) and accept his destiny was very powerful. He even continued to think of all the other survivors as he made sure to inform Desmond that Naomi is lying about being part of Pen’s rescue crew. So cheers to the (former) rock star who completed the difficult transformation from addict to hero. You will be missed.
2) Ben and the Others — So Ben is a flippin’ nutjob…right? Weeell, I’m not so sure. I mean sure, he kidnapped a baby and brainwashed her into thinking he is her father and her mother is dead… Sure he basically shot Locke in the back after being threatened by his communion with Jacob… So what if he ordered his “troops” to abduct all pregnant women and kill anyone in their way. He’s still trustworthy, right? It’s true he has a background of creepy Island-man-style rule, but after seeing Jack’s state of mind in the future, Ben might be telling the truth about making that call and/or leaving the Island. Is it possible that they really ARE the good guys? I find that hard to believe…but with LOST, I have no problem believing it can get creepier… Well, whatever the case, it was very enjoyable (at least for me) to see a wrench thrown into Ben’s plans and watch him suffer because of it. I admit it was satisfying to watch Jack land blow after blow upon that liar’s face. I mean, I hate to advocate violence, but if anyone on this show had it coming, it was that guy.
And what’s left of the Others? Does Ben have anyone to lead anymore? If you watched “LOST: The Answers,” Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse (often known singularly as Darlton) said the Others are a group of 30-40 people (“we think…”). If that’s true, then “Jarrah, Kwon and the dentist” just wiped out a good chunk of ‘em, and Mikhail helped that cause as well. So who is left? Richard and his crew? Are they part of Ben’s recruits or are these Richard’s people…the natives? I believe that construction is underway on “The Ruins,” the set for season 4, which will most likely be introduced with the temple that Ben mentions in this episode. I’m reeeeeally hoping they explore the natives a little deeper next year. But until then, we have plenty to discuss…
3) Jacob (Locke and Walt) — I did not write any reviews for the few episodes leading up to this one, and there is one very important thing I want to discuss…Jacob. That scene in “The Man Behind the Curtain” when Ben took Locke to see Jacob was one of my favorites this season. For a minute, I was with Locke and agreed that Ben was a raving madman. It was actually quite humorous watching Ben have a conversation with himself. But after that creepy, “Hellllp Meee,” and seeing Jacob in the chair (you did see him, right?), it looks like Ben was telling another truth. The question bothering me is: what is the relationship between Ben and Jacob? Can Ben really hear Jacob? Does he really follow orders from Jacob? Or is Jacob some sort of prisoner to Ben? Why would Jacob need help? And how can Locke help him? Also, what is the relationship between Jacob and the smoke monster? Are they one in the same? Does Jacob roam the Island in smoke form to gather information about people in order to use figures from their past to lead them in certain ways? Is the perimeter of dust around Jacob’s cabin his prison walls? Or the smoke monster deactivated? Was that actually Walt or Smokey/Jacob taking the form of Walt in order to get John to do his bidding? LOTS of questions surrounding this new mystery and I believe all this will be addressed next season. But it does seem like Locke is taking direct orders from the Island now, as he knew exactly where to go and who to kill. This could be a great direction for his character next season.4) The Snake in the Mailbox (aka the Flash Forward) — Ahh, yes, now to the really juicy stuff. “Snake in the mailbox” was the name given to the shocking twist that took place in this episode. You know, like you open your mailbox and reach in to grab your mail and BAM!...there’s a snake waiting for you. For the past few weeks many people were guessing at what this moment could be but I don’t think anyone saw this coming (except us spoiler addicts). Spoilers for this finale were leaked over a week ago, before “Greatest Hits” even aired, and many people swore they would stop watching the show if in fact we got a glimpse of Jack off the Island AFTER the action we have seen on the Island. I stray from the word “rescue” because I’m not sure if that is accurate yet. People were complaining that since we now know Jack eventually gets off the Island, none of it matters any more. It doesn’t matter who Jacob is, who/what the smoke monster is, etc., because all the mystery has been taken away. Really?? All of the mystery? Well, how did Jack and Kate get off the Island? Did they all make it? Was anyone left behind? Was Ben right…was making that call a bad move? Who is coming to the Island as a result of this call? Who is Jacob? Who is Naomi? What was Penny doing hanging out in front of a videophone? Was Jack actually seeing those flash forwards or was that absolute truth we were witnessing? Yeah…seems to me there’s a whole other layer of mystery that joined a lot of our original ones so can’t quite see how one could make that claim. I think the move to include a brief vision of the future was a brilliant idea to help breathe new life into the format of the show and I’m racking my brain trying to come up with possibilities of how season 4 will begin…
5) Time Theories Resurface — This episode has brought back, with increasing enthusiasm, many of the time warp/time travel/time loop theories that were brought up most recently with “Flashes Before Your Eyes.” Some tend to believe that Jack has somehow acquired powers similar to Desmond and we will find out at the beginning of season 4 that it was just a vision or dream sequence. I’m not too fond of this idea. Seems like it would be a bit of a cop-out. I think that presenting something like this in the finale gives it a little bit of credibility. Others believe that all the characters are in a time loop and Desmond turning the failsafe key, going back in time and changing things, created a new loop. One in which they get rescued and something apparently terrible happens to make Jack so miserable. Then there are some who think that Kate and Jack are in a different timeline entirely and that’s why Jack’s comment about his dad could be true. In this timeline, Jack’s dad is still alive, Kate is not a fugitive (seems strange that she was not on the run, easily accessible and able to meet Jack on a whim) and Jack has completely lost control. I cannot decide where I stand on this issue. Certainly time plays a very important role in this story and there’s evidence to support and deny every one of these theories. But as usual, I’m not on board quite yet. I still believe we are in one linear timeline, and Jack’s daddy comment was just to confuse us about the flashback/flash forward and also to show just how out of touch with reality Jack is since he returned. Something is fishy though… Jack is apparently “tired of lying” and Kate wants nothing to do with him. What’s going on here?? Any ideas?
6) The Obituary/Funeral — What was this all about? Seemed like this threw Jack even further into his drug-crazed wandering…not to mention his trip to the bridge. Who could this possibly be? Someone who is not friend or family? Someone Kate knows too? Someone from the Island? There are several possibilities, all with their own evidence to support them. A few to consider — Scenario 1: Ben… Naomi’s people arrive on the Island and take Ben since he is the leader of the group that purged the Dharma folks. Jack wants to pay him respect since he now understands Ben was right and they should have never made the rescue call. Kate is disgusted that Jack even wants to go and is trying to distance herself as far away as possible from the Island. This also explains why no one was there at the funeral home (which was named Hoffs/Drawlar, an anagram for Flash Forward). Scenario 2: Locke… Locke is brought back against his will and dies on the mainland. Jack, like with Ben, realizes Locke was right and feels he needs to pay respect. Again, Kate is disgusted at Jack and his obsession with getting back to the Island. And Locke has no friends or family, which would explain the empty viewing. Scenario 3: Michael… Is it possible that Michael did in fact make it off the Island? Was he the only other one that knew about the Island? The final connection Jack had?
7) Season 4 — What do you think season 4 will feature? Has the format changed? Have we said goodbye to flashbacks forever or was this just a tease? Will season 4 be off-Island with flashbacks to the on-Island adventure? Or on-Island with flash forwards? I think they will return to the normal format (at least for next season) with flashbacks because there is still a lot to explain about what is happening on the Island and how the characters’ flashbacks shape the choices they make. I would welcome a new format however. I do like where the show is going. I’m really wondering about the first scene of season 4. Seems like they have created this tradition of letting us see something from an angle we have never seen before: season 2 opens with Desmond in the hatch and they make it look like a flashback…season 3 opens with the book club scene, again making it look like it is taking place off-Island. So what could they possibly do to open season 4? We will all be expecting something unexpected!
8) The Island as Redemption — After watching Jack in the real world post-Island, it made me realize that the Island is Jack’s paradise. First off, Ben was right, Jack has nothing to go back to. Second of all, on the Island Jack always has something to fix. The ultimate problem being rescue, which apparently is a process he has started. Even if he denies it, he thrives on conflict and fixing problems…and there are plenty of both on the Island. I then started thinking about the other characters and asked myself if any of them have something to go back to… Seems like most of the survivors were running away from something, and now they are all safe from whatever that was. I really like the story arc of Jack trying to get back to the Island…back home… What a strange twist that would be… All this time trying to get back to the real world when the Island is what he has been searching for his entire life… Has the Island become Jack’s new home…like Danielle?9) My Favorite Moments (please feel free to add more) —
*Jack looking all Jim Morrison like, popping pills and listening to Nirvana
* Ben introducing Alex to Rousseau (haha, all bloodied up, lying on the ground but still formally and politely says, “Alex, this is your mother.”)
* Sayid knocking the guy’s legs out from under him and snapping neck with his legs
* Hurley’s homicidal joyride
* Finding out Sayid, Jin and Bernard were still alive
* Watching Des look to find Mikhail nowhere in sight
* Jack’s last line: “We have to go back!!”
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Well season 3 has been everything I expected and more. We got lots of answers and some HUGE questions, which will pan out over the next three seasons. But, good grief, how are we going to make it to February?? I thought I was going to go nuts during the 13-week hiatus this year so I have no idea what’s going to happen. They have given us plenty to work with and I hope they open up the dialogue more with new websites and similar nuggets of info to work with. Either way, I will be scratching my head for a while as I process everything that has happened, and hopefully I’ll be ready in February when the ride continues…
Thanks to all of you for encouraging me to write! It really helps me sort out my crazy ideas about the show and hopefully it opens the discussion for you and your LOST-addicted friends and family!
Until next time…
Namaste.
SFO
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