LOST Season 4

Greetings!

Long time, no see, friends. For those of you who don’t know, I’m getting married this Saturday (to the most wonderful woman ever), so you must forgive me for my lack of time to write a weekly LOST blog. There’s no way I can include everything I have observed during this AWESOME season, but there are certainly some MAJOR developments that deserve attention. Shall we?

---

Let me first say that I feel this has been best season since the first, and it again shows something unique about our beloved primetime soap opera (yeah, I said it). Every season, LOST changes…and Season 4 was no exception. From the first scene with Hurley’s high-speed chase, to the freighter blowing up and sinking, we have been on a non-stop action ride through the past, present and future. After last season’s finale, I had no idea how Season 4 would continue the plot or how they could top it. But…they did. In a big way…

1) The Mobile Island — For all those of you who thought I was crazy for subscribing to the “Island can move” theory about this time last year: HA! I never imagined it would be in such a large capacity, but we’ve all known from the beginning that something was different about this Island. Like, maybe it isn’t really an “island.” I’m not exactly sure what that means at this point, but a normal island cannot just disappear like that. And if it was really an island in the traditional sense (like the top of an underwater mountain poking above the surface), traveling deep into its core would reveal warmer temperatures, not freezing ones. So something tells me the Island is some sort of manufactured, experimental piece of…something (time travel related? “other worldly”? a magnet for pieces of time throughout history?)…that became an entity of its own.


And if you cannot come back to the Island after moving it, as Ben claims, we can assume that he has never moved the Island. But it sure looked like he knew exactly what he was doing when he blew the wall out, climbed down (Jacob’s?) ladder and turned the frozen donkey wheel. (I don’t think he learned all of that from watching the orientation video we were so privileged to see.) Is it possible that he had seen the process performed before? Maybe, just maaaaybe, he saw Widmore move the Island?? There is much of the Ben/Widmore connection we have not seen and this will definitely come into play in Season 5. However, Ben is a veeerrrry sneaky man and it wouldn’t surprise me if he had previously moved the Island and found a way back, like he probably will (again) before the series ends.

2) Locke — Wow. Locke. Dead. How many of us were expecting that?? This definitely felt like last season’s finale, when we were left with no idea how Season 4 could begin, or how it would continue. The whole question of how he got back, how long he was back, how often he spoke with the Oceanic 6 and how he died are just some of the new plotlines to be introduced. (Not to mention the whole Jeremy Bentham alias thing.) Did Locke move the Island again when “bad things” started happening after the Oceanic 6 escaped? Is that how he left the Island? And I’m wondering what exactly is going to happen when Ben, Jack and company bring him back. It seems they are building him up to be a Christ-like figure; one who will die, resurrect and serve as “savior” again.

But to me the motives of the Island are peculiar. I’m not sure exactly what it wants or what it needs besides its own survival. Is it possible that the “spirit” of the Island is a malevolent one, seeking out the destruction of anything that threatens it?? Maybe it wants the destruction of the “world,” instead of saving the world, so it can exist without any interference. Looked what it produced in Ben. I mean, I know many of us have come to like and maybe even care a little bit about him, but let’s face it, he is a slimy, deceitful trickster. We were reminded of this in the finale when Locke told him he was going to blow up the freighter and kill everyone on it, and he simply said, “So…”

I REALLY hope Locke turns out to be the one who stands up to the Island. I think that’s what Richard and his people are searching for. They need someone to take control of its wild spirit and harness the power it contains. Right now, the Island is calling all of the shots, and it has/had Ben doing an incredible job of fulfilling all its desires. Maybe that’s why Richard was upset when Locke chose the knife. Maybe the Island cannot be conquered with physical force.



3) Sun/Widmore — A lot of things were set up in this episode, but one of the most important scenes was the Sun/Widmore encounter. I think we might see Sun’s character take a very dark turn if she becomes involved with Mr. Widmore, and this would not be totally inconsistent with her character. She can subtly manipulate people with her innocent face and soft demeanor, and man, if you cross her, you’re pretty much done. I admit I like to see her take control, especially when her father is involved, and I think this will be a wonderfully refreshing direction for that character.

4) This is not the same ol’ LOST, folks — I think most people feel that if they’ve put this much time into the show, they might as well see how it ends. That’s why there’s a lot of talk about the show “going too far,” or it not being “the same as Season 1.” But I think that’s where the beauty of the show lies. It’s introduced on the surface as a survival tale with some “supernatural” elements. But, just as with all of the characters on the show, we learn that there is much more than meets the eye and that things are way more complicated than we originally thought. Who thought in Season 1 that we would eventually see characters in horrible condition off the Island in the future, or the Island basically disappearing into thin air?

If you become nostalgic thinking of Jack finding fresh water or Locke hunting a boar, I’m sorry, but we won’t be seeing much of that any more. We have reached the level where we finally start seeing the bigger picture of what is really going on. The survivors of Oceanic 815 were just a device to lead us into a secret battle going on for one of the greatest treasures known to man. Who is involved, how they are involved, why they are involved will begin to take center stage as our LOSTies become more and more intertwined with these happenings. Trust me, you’ll want to stick around…



---

We have a long wait until a new episode of LOST, but Darlton has promised us a few appearances along the way. Comic-Con is always a hotspot for LOST fans because they know some juicy info will be revealed. I think a few podcasts will pop up between now and the Season 5 premiere as well, so we’ll have…something. But it will be painful, I know. Hang in there!

I hope this has helped at least a tiny bit with stepping back, taking a deep breath and trying to look at the show in a new light. There are a lot of details I’m very interested in that I didn’t get to (mainly the freighties: Charlotte’s connection, Miles’ abilities, what knowledge Daniel has, etc.), but I know the strike this year pushed a few plotlines to next season. However, I’m sure we will be satisfied when LOST returns and the action continues!

Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers as I take a new direction in my life with my beloved Jacqui. The next time you read an SFO LOST blog, I’ll be a married man! =)

Until then…

Namaste…and good luck.

SFO

"The Other Woman" -Episode 4.06-

Greetings!

Looks like I won't be able to get to my LOST recap this week. However, I know we all love some sort of analysis, so please read and forward the following link to all your LOST-addicted friends and family. This woman has an AWESOME weekly LOST blog.

http://longlivelocke.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-03-10T22%3A15%3A00-05%3A00&max-results=1

Thanks!

SFO

“The Constant” -Episode 4.05-

Greetings!

So, since I didn’t get to a recap last week, my original plan was to write a “double recap” this week to cover the last two episodes. However, after watching “The Constant” a few times, I cannot stop thinking about it. Therefore, this installment of my LOST ramblings will mostly cover Desmond’s episode and the HUGE reveals we received.

---

“The Constant” -Episode 4.05-

Get Down With the Sickness — A rapid and fluid switch in consciousness from two different time periods.

I think this revelation has finally answered some HUGE questions that stretch as far back as season 1. While the plot did not move significantly forward in this episode, it might have been the most revealing yet…

1) Possible Issues Solved:

*Is Desmond’s side effect the sickness that has been referred to since season 1? When Danielle and her crew arrived on the Island (allegedly 16 years ago) she claims she had to kill her entire crew because they became “sick.” Now, looking at Desmond in this episode, you might not think he would be much of a danger. But imagine you just crashed on this mysterious Island and all of a sudden, your crew begins passing out and waking up confused and disoriented, bleeding from the nose, falling all over the place, etc… For a woman with child, I can see how this would be extremely frightening. What’s more interesting to me, however, is why Danielle did not contract the disease. According to Faraday, exposure to electromagnetism or radiation is a factor for these “side effects,” so is it possible that since Danielle was pregnant, she was bedridden and did not do much on the boat, keeping her free from exposure to any of those things. *sigh* Who wouldn’t LOVE to see a Rousseau flashback???



*This experience of Desmond’s could also shed light on the flashbacks we’ve been seeing since the beginning of the series. It is possible that the side effect of coming or leaving the Island on the wrong bearing gives you FULL awareness of this consciousness shift? Could all of our LOSTies be experiencing some varying degree of this? That is, some sort of subconscious consciousness shift? Whenever we see an 815er’s flashback, the way it snaps back into Island reality looks a LOT like Desmond’s experience in this episode. This would be an awesome revelation, making the flashbacks not just some random plot device, but an actual subconscious reliving of the event by the characters.

*Throughout the series we have been exposed to several encounters with “the whispers.” Could this perhaps be the traveling consciousness of those who have lived on/died on/visited our Island? This also makes me think of the possibility that the consciousness of the dead can still travel to different places and times. What comes to mind is the most recent (and extremely bizarre) encounter between Hurley and Charlie in the future where Charlie says, “I’m dead…but I’m also here.” Whaaaaaaaa???

*Could this also somehow explain the nature of Jacob? Is Jacob somehow trapped between these worlds? Could he somehow be “stuck” and “unstuck in time” (Slaughterhouse Five, anyone?) at the same moment? Is this why he needs Locke’s help?

*What I would love to know is if this “power” can be harnessed and manipulated. Is there some sort of device that can replicate this process? Was that one of Dharma’s interests? Now, of course, if there was one person who could do it…it’s Ben. Could this explain how he could leave this Island without anyone knowing? Does he have the ability to visit any place in the past, present or future? Man, this would give Ben a LOT of power.

Now I know there are holes in all of these theories, but I think this episode truly proved that we have reached the answer portion of the series. Things are all starting to fall into place and they are NOT afraid to finally give us clues as to what the frick is going on!

2) the other Others — One of my LOST buddies recently asked me about the other Others. Like, where did Richard Alpert & Company go and what the heck have they been doing? Well, remember it has only been a few days so, what seems like a year to us, is practically a blink of the eye in TV land. Anyway, I have a GOOD feeling that we will be learning more about our Other friends very soon. And I am very interested in learning more about the Temple (which is where they are according to a reference from Ben late last season)!

3) the new Others — So it’s pretty obvious that our friends on the boat and the new ones on the Island have a higher understanding of the Island and its properties. Charlotte was very adamant about not saying anything to the LOSTies and keeping up the act that they have no idea what’s going on but…gotta love Daniel. He’s like the freighter Hurley in that he rarely keeps his mouth shut. But that’s good news for us!

4) Desmond’s Flash-all-over-the-place — There are a couple of significant differences between the previous Desmond time jump and this one. First, there was no constant flow the two periods of consciousness in “Flashes Before Your Eyes.” Desmond simply relived that one experience and then came back (with flashes of the future). I see this as a side effect of turning the failsafe key, and the most recent experience as a side effect of leaving the Island.

The other difference between the two Desmond episodes is this: in “Flashes Before Your Eyes,” Desmond’s 2004 consciousness traveled back in time, and in “The Constant,” Desmond’s 1996 consciousness traveled forward in time to 2004. Could these just be side effects of the failsafe key and leaving on the wrong bearing? Anyone, anyone? And now that Desmond has found his constant, does this consciousness shift continue? Can he manipulate it??

Oh, and one thing I wanted to note about Desmond’s time traveling in this episode was the scene with Charles Widmore. First of all, papa Widmore was at an auction with Black Rock/Hanso-related paraphernalia and he ended up purchasing the journal of one of the Black Rock crewmembers. Also, didn’t he treat Des with a small amount of respect? I mean, I know he said he wanted Penny to tell Des himself that she didn’t care for him, but even this was a change from the previous Widmore that would do anything to be sure they didn’t even make contact. So, when he gave her address to Des, a red flag went up in my mind. Then he left the water running after he clogged the drain (at least that’s what it looked like to me). The sound of the water running was the first sound Des heard when he returned to 1996 and could have been the cause for him jumping back. Does Widmore know more than we think? I'm not sure how to interpret that scene…all I know is it gave me a funny feeling.

5) (current) Des and Penny scene (FINALLY) — One of my favorite scenes this season, hands down. We’ve waited SO long to see this moment and I think it solidified the importance that these two have in the overall series. It was awesome to watch 1996 Desmond smile as 2004 Desmond spoke with Pen for the first time in three years.

Ooo, and Penny said, “I know about the Island”...confirming many theories that the Widmores are instrumental in the current power struggle for the Island.

6) Favorites from “The Constant” (feel free to add more):
*Opening scene when Desmond brings his 1996 consciousness with him to 2004 and says to Sayid, “WHO ARE YOU???”
*First time we see Fisher Stevens (aka Minkowski): “It’s happening to you too…isn’t it?” (However, I don’t think that will be the last of him…)
*ALL of the 1996 Des/Dan scenes!!! (especially when Daniel puts on his radiation vest and Des asks, “What do you do about your head?”)
*Final scene when Daniel looks through his journal to find that Desmond Hume is his constant. He’s SO gonna get unstuck in time…if he isn’t already…



---

I know I didn’t get to a lot of the big things in the episode but, as usual, I just hope it serves as a starting point of discussion. If something isn’t clear (I know I can go on some tangents) feel free to message me and I’d be happy to...attempt...an explanation. =)

I can’t wait to see what’s next!!!!

Until next time…

Namaste…and good luck.

SFO

“The Economist” –Episode 4.03–

Greetings!

I hope this message finds you all well. I apologize for the delay on this analysis. It has been a busy few days and I’m feeling a bit under the weather. However, I’m happy to say that I’ve been cured of my spoileritis. That’s right, I gave up spoilers cold turkey and after watching this episode, I am happy with my decision.

I wonder how long it will last… Aaanyway……

--------

“The Economist” –Episode 4.03–

1) Sayid, present/future — So let’s begin with the opening scene. There was something strange going on with Sayid and Naomi. Some people are saying that Sayid was so concerned about Naomi simply because of his respect for the dead, but at certain times throughout this episode, it almost seemed as if Sayid knew Naomi. (Now I know this theory may seem off the wall right now, but each week The Powers That Be (TPTB) are popping theories in a second and leaving hints for new ones at the same time.) What was the significance of Naomi’s bracelet? As soon as Sayid took it off of her wrist and read it, he immediately wanted to know how he could get off the Island. Did he recognize something about this bracelet? Maybe the initials R.G.? Or was he simply reminded of his love, Nadia?



Sayid’s first flashforward was…woh. I figured if it was a flashforward then Sayid would be struggling as we’ve seen most of the Oceanic 6, but I was still naïvely holding onto the hope that at least one of them would have a normal life. Not so. The two men shot the breeze on the golf course and things were peachy…until Sayid mentioned he is one of the O6. Obviously, this guy’s name was on the list Sayid received from his boss, so this guy had to have some idea that he was in trouble. But I loved how calm Sayid remained through the whole encounter, and that was topped off by him walking through the sprinklers after the murder.

2) Locke — So Locke was looking for someone to tell him what to do next. He thought a trip to the cabin would prove the power he believes he has. But I think Locke is different these days. At first, I thought he might been returning to his roots of Island shaman, but he seems to be a power-hungry leader that is not willing to compromise. And, of course, Jacob does not want a house party. John is naïve to think Jacob would entertain an entire crew of folks. Ben was visibly nervous just bringing one person to the shack, so how could Locke think Jacob would meet him with his party?

I would not be surprised if a Locke/Hurley power struggle begins to emerge after their encounter at the cabin site. I can definitely see people following Hurley, even if he is not sure what he is doing. I don’t see anyone really trusting Locke’s motives at this point.



And I’m still struggling with Hurley’s cabin vision from earlier this season. It seems that the cabin he saw was not even near where the circle of ash is, and Locke was surprised to find that Hurley had seen it. We did see Locke’s eye in Hurley’s cabin vision, right? So does this mean that it was simply a Hurley hallucination? Or did Jacob give that vision to him? Can the cabin manifest anywhere it pleases?

3) Faraday’s experiment — Some sort of time difference between the “real world” and the Island has been confirmed in this episode. However, the nature of this is yet to be explored. There are a few things we can deduce from this experiment though. First, I don’t think the time of 31+ minutes is a constant. Based on Daniel’s advice to Frank about staying on that specific bearing no matter what, I’d say that the time dilation depends on how one enters/leaves the Island. Second, I think this is a recent development that resulted from Desmond turning the failsafe key. If you recall, Des confirmed that the plane crashed on September 22, 2004, so at that point, time between the two worlds was moving at the same pace. However, after the failsafe key was turned, time began going crazy on the Island. Is it possible that time on the Island is slowing down (or speeding up) significantly because of Des? Another thing that is interesting though, is the real-time conversation between people on the Island and those off the Island. Any ideas what is happening with time?



4) Ben’s revelations — Ben’s secret room: possibly the biggest “What the???” moment of the episode. Yes, it happened fast and might not have seemed that important, but I think this implies that Ben can come and go from the Island as he pleases. This is a BIG reveal! What’s even more important is the work he is doing off-Island. I hope we learn soon what exactly that is. I am always surprised at how deep Ben’s character goes. I thought he might be pretty low on the command chain, but it’s turning out that Ben may be one of the BIG players.

Okay, okay, I was mistaken. The biggest “What the???” moment was the Ben reveal at the end. Even though his voice was altered (for what reason?), I could tell almost immediately that it was Ben. But when they showed his face, he looked as creepy as ever. The dialogue in this scene was very strange. Ben said something about “these people” not deserving their sympathies and then something about “remember what they did the last time” Sayid thought with his heart and not his gun. Sayid replies, “You used that to recruit me into killing for you.” Whaaaaaa???

When did this (forced) partnership between Sayid and Ben begin? Could it have been on-Island? I believe there was a very important off-camera encounter between these two when they were locked up as prisoners of Locke.

5) Miscellaneous — Just a few random observations. First, the opening Locke scene (when they were looking for the cabin) solidified the fact that (at least some of) the 815ers have become the Others. When Sawyer was talking about shooting off some of Ben’s toes, it reminded me so much of Pickett, and Locke’s response was very similar to how Ben would have handled the situation, no?

Also, I think there is more to the Locke/Sayid deal than we know. I mean, Locke already had Miles captive, so how would that have been any leverage for Sayid? Was there something else Sayid gave/promised him?

And lastly…Sayid got played, man. I thought he had that chick wrapped around his finger, but she was more ruthless than he was! And the conversation (in German) with her boss after she shot him was creepy. I’m SO glad they translated that for us.

By the way, who do you think her boss is?

--------

Favorite moments/lines/exchanges:
*Frank’s face when Jack tells him Sayid was a torturer
*Sawyer talking about sending Ben’s piggy to market
*Hurley — “Oh, awesome, the ship sent us another Sawyer.”
*Frank (talking about Daniel) — “Half the stuff he says goes way over my head. The other half goes way, way over.”
*When Desmond mentions the name “Widmore.” They may not know Penelope, but they do know Widmore!
*Sayid — “I’m not going to hurt you, Hurley.”
Hurley — “I saw you break that guy’s neck with the breakdancing thing you do with your legs.”
*Ben — “I lost a dollar, ya know.”
*Sayid’s face as the helicopter took off
*the Ben reveal at the end

--------

That’s all, folks. Wish me luck in my pursuit of being spoiler-free! (It’s a long, tough road, my friends.)

Until next time…

Namaste, and good luck.

SFO

“Confirmed Dead” –Episode 4.02–

Greetings!

Well this was indeed an exciting and telling episode, but what has me more excited right now is the latest news about the writers’ strike! Both Damon Lindelof and Carleton Cuse have reportedly returned to work today and expect to churn out at least three more episodes for this season. Hopefully, if they can get everything moving soon, we could see up to six more episodes! There has been no news about if they will squeeze the rest of the season into whatever they can finish this season, or if there are still going to hold episodes as planned. Either way, we should have more LOST than originally expected!

But I digress, back to the matter at hand…

-------

“Confirmed Dead” –Episode 4.02–

1) Opening ROV Scene — If it wasn’t for the “Previously on LOST…” montage, I would have been very confused at the beginning of this episode. For a second, it almost did not look or feel like LOST. However, that feeling is usually a good sign that we’re in for a treat of an episode…and we got a doozy, folks…



The first time I saw this scene, I did not think much of it. I thought it was meant to simply confirm that there has been some extremely large and intricate cover-up regarding the crash/disappearance of flight 815…which it did. But as I watched it again, I wondered what exactly they were looking for. Was this part of the “815 salvage team?” It’s interesting that the man who discovers the plane is so surprised when he finds it. “It’s…it’s an airplane… It’s Oceanic flight 815!” If they were looking for 815 then there would be nothing shocking about that discovery. If there weren’t looking for the plane, what were they doing down there? It certainly seemed as if they were looking for something. Was this video a setup? A way to fake the surprise of finding the missing plane?

2) Naomi’s Flashback (?) — This was one of the best scenes of the episode. Here we see Naomi in an unrecognizable location speaking with Matthew Abbadon (Whaaaaa??? The creep formerly known as Oceanic Pres?). We learn that she was responsible for getting the crew in and out safely, but she reeeally did not want to babysit, “a head case, a ghostbuster, an archeologist and a drunk.” For Naomi, this seemed like a ridiculous crew to bring into this “hostile” situation, but according to Abbadon, they were all chosen for a specific function.

I definitely think that Ben is NOT their main mission. It is certainly a key part to their being there, but if it was just a kill/capture Ben deal, then they would have used someone with military experience or training, as Naomi mentions. But no, this group is there specifically for something else. What do you think it could be?

3) The Newbies — Ah, doesn’t it feel good when the LOST creative team introduces characters the right way? I was immediately drawn to these newbies and their flashbacks…something I didn’t feel when Paulo and Nikki were introduced last season. This episode really represented how quickly we are moving, seeing as how we got flashbacks of characters before we really even see them on the Island.

Daniel Faraday: A physicist? A “head case?” Both? This is the first of the freighties we are introduced to (besides Naomi, of course) and I think I like him the best (of the bunch). He genuinely thinks the survivors are good people and seems almost too innocent to be involved with the true mission of his colleagues. Faraday also notices something interesting about the way light scatters on the Island, which I think tells a little about his mission. I think he was brought there for a reason other than Ben, but I do not know exactly what that is yet. Any ideas?

Dan’s flashback is also worth noting. Is he really unstable enough to where he cries just hearing about the plane crash? Or is there something…deeper…some foreboding feeling that overwhelms him because of what is to come? I do believe he didn’t know why he was crying, but he might have some special connection to the Island that we do not know about yet.

Miles Strom: The second of the helicopter folks that we see. Quite different from Daniel, no? Fiery, skeptical and…a ghostbuster? I think his mission on the Island is clearer than Dan’s. When I saw his flashback, I immediately thought of Jacob. Does he know about Jacob? Is that why he was sent there?

There were/are a lot of theories out there claiming that the house he visits in his flashback is Walt’s grandmother’s house, but there is no evidence to support that at this time. There were no pictures of Walt or anything, and for some reason, I don’t think Walt is into the drug scene. However, I do think he was hanging out in Room 23 at some point…

Charlotte Staples Lewis: C.S. Lewis? Yes yes, a cool reference but way too contrived. I prefer the subtler nods… I mean, Staples? C’mon, they could have used Sally, Sarah, Susan, anything. But I guess I shouldn’t be complaining. Any mention of C.S. Lewis is a good thing, right?

I know I’m not the only one to notice that Charlotte seems to know more about Dharma and the Island than anyone else aboard that helicopter. When she dropped into the water, she looked like she finally had achieved what she had been searching for for so long. And in her flashback, she was definitely looking for some sign of Dharma.

Her flashback was the head-scratcher of the episode for me. A Dharma polar bear skeleton in Tunisia??? Weeeeeird… Is this evidence of some sort of Island portal that leads to other parts of the world? Or could this have been a plant to further manipulate Charlotte into joining the mission?

Frank Lapidus: So the most interesting thing about this new character is revealed in his flashback when we learn that he was supposed to fly 815 on September 22. Was the other pilot a plant? Or was Lapidus let go because of his drinking/appearance? Either way, he had some interesting info for the Oceanic employees when he called that hotline. (By the way, did you try the number? If not, give it a ring: 1-888-548-0034)

I was very surprised to find out that Frank was able to land the helicopter safe and sound on the Island. Must be a damn good pilot…he’s the only one that we know of to successfully land a flying machine on our Island, right? However, he also said there wasn’t much fuel left to get back and that they would have to wait to take Naomi on the next trip. How do the Oceanic 6 get back then? Multiple trips? A helicopter-hijack suicide mission?

4) The New Others — Yeah, that’s right, our beloved LOSTies have taken a turn down a familiar road. Have you noticed how our 815 crew has become more and more like the Others? I have had a feeling like something wasn’t quite right with them, and it wasn’t until this episode where it started to dawn on me. There are two scenes that really stick out as indications of this.

The first is when Jack, Kate, Dan and Miles are trekking through the woods to find Charlotte and Jack tells them to put down their guns down. He tells Dan and Miles that his friends are aiming guns at them and Miles responds with, “How stupid do you think I am?” *GUNSHOTS* “I don’t know, Miles, how stupid are ya?” Does this not remind you of Locke, Sawyer and Jack meeting Mr. Friendly & Co. in the woods so long ago?

The other scene was when Charlotte arrives on the Island. She is so happy to be there and to be alive but then…Locke & Co. emerges from the jungle and they look as creepy as the first time we saw the ragged Others. And Locke’s line at the end of that scene really sums up their transformation: “We don’t want to be found.”

5) Ben — Seems like there’s enough material in each episode to have a Ben section in these notes. I have a feeling Ben will end up being one of the saviors of the Island. But for now, he is continuing his wonderfully captivating manipulation of anyone who speaks with him. He finally confesses what he knows about their newbies and why they are there. And the most interesting nugget of info comes in his last line: “Because I have a man on their boat.”

Ben says this almost matter-of-factly, like everyone should have figured out by now that he is WAY ahead of them. So who is this spy? The first thought that came to my head was Michael. We know that character is coming back this season, and it would be great to see Michael working for Ben on the boat. But I’m not totally convinced of this yet. Another possibility is Minkowski, the guy who everyone talks to when they call the boat. Wasn’t it strange that he wasn’t available to speak to Miles when he needed to tell him something important? Maybe he was found out by the other freighter people and was being questioned? One last suggestion is Charlotte. Could Ben and Charlotte be working together to perform an excellent rendition of we-pretend-we-really-hate-each-other-but-really-we-are-both-messing-with-your-minds?

--------

Well that’s all I have for now, my fellow LOSToholics. There are a few other things I wanted to get to but since writing this recap isn’t my full-time job, my time is limited. However, I trust that you will respond with your musings on the show! I look forward to hearing what you think!

Until next time…

Namaste, and good luck.

SFO