Why do I bring this up? Because of the 4 letters that Charlie etched on his hand in Episode 1 of the first season: F-A-T-E. The fate in this instance is that if people were meant to be together, they will be together. It won't always be easy (and it won't always be in the timeline you think), but they'll be together in the end if it's meant to be. You got that feeling when Sawyer and Kate were in the elevator in the 2004 redone timeline (yes, the elevator, like Sliding Doors) and he helps her out.
That doesn't mean things are going to be hunky dory for all of the Castaways. Well, for some of them things are better: Desmond doesn't seem to have taken that trip around the world--though his disappearance during the flight scared Jack and put a jolt through me as well--and Hurley seems to have "only good luck" for a change--though you wonder if this may be him posturing the same way Locke did.
Speaking of Locke, he's still in a wheelchair. Kate is still a Fugitive (now a fleeing one like the movie). Charlie tried to kill himself. Boone is still trying to save Shannon and Jack is still trying to save everyone. And the Island isn't just missing a hatch, it's missing land too, buried deeply beneath the ocean.
The one person who seemed at peace was Juliet (who I still think was pregnant). When she asks Sawyer about "going dutch", and says "it worked" to Miles from inside the grave, does that mean she saw a glimpse of her alternate timeline and realize that fate put Sawyer and her together anyways? I think that's what we're going to find out. The question for the past year has been who would end up together out of the Jack-Kate-Sawyer-Juliet love quartet. I think this may be our first clue.
Now are we really in two different timelines or do we just have two views of the loop? One is the 2004 Castaways in 2007 with everything that happened to them; one is of the 2004 Oceanic Passangers in 2004 with the 1970 events having effected their action? Or is it the Sliding Doors phenomenon where we have two outcomes from changing the future and not changing it? I hope we find out...
Sawyer and Juliet again delivered the most emotional moments of the season. Their embrace inside the hatch hole was as touching a moment as you're going to get. Sawyer's wish to have Miles find out what Juliet wanted to tell him was an interesting twist and I think what she said actually spared him from going after Jack and killing him. Though he seems to think that Jack's punishment is really to stew on this island. This is a huge departure from the man who spent his whole life trying to kill the real Sawyer who ruined his childhood and spent the first few seasons of LOST trying to intimidate people with guns.
Hurley was great this episode, bringing humor into a very dark situation where Juliet was trapped under the rubble and Sayid was dying. Hurley's relationship to Jacob makes me feel that he has was blessed as Jacob said rather than cursed. And I'm interested to see his timeline if he really is "lucky" as he claims on the plane.
Without getting too much driven by the plot (since the episode really was not), let's talk about new questions and answered questions:
Old Questions Sort of Answered:
- The Ash - We saw the break in the ash around Jacob's cabin last episode and we learned via the late Bram that being enclosed by the ash protects you from the MIB/The Smoke Monster/FLocke
- The Temple - We know where they go when they bring people to the temple, but there's still unexplained questions about it.
- Healing People - We get an idea of how Ben didn't die when he was bleeding out after being shot by Sayid, though I guess the water was less muddy then
- The Flight Attendant/Kids: We saw them for a glimpse when Sawyer and Kate were locked away in the animal cages but we finally got to see exactly where they went.
- Charlie's Guitar Case: We found out what was in it--An ankh. The Egyptian hyrogliphic symbol that means: "eternal life" (sort of like Richard Alpert, no?). And inside that was a note, with names. Like the one Ben had that one time (though I'm still trying to figure out if he made that one up or got it from Richard who got it from Jacob?). Little bit of a side note: Amy's husband Paul was killed by the Others and he had an Ankh around his neck--did he steal it from The Others and that's why they tried to kill him last season (before Sawyer and co came to the rescue)?
- Where They Ended Up In Time: It seems they're all in the same 2007 (or is it 2008 or 2009?) timeline. It seems that finally Jin and Sun are in the same timeline. I think this fixes whatever glitch happened before
- Bram/Ilana's Group: We find out they are Jacob protectors, though we sort of figured that out already. Lapidus and Sun don't seem to trust them, but I think they'll come around.
- The Whispers: It's the temple people coming to get you
- What exactly did blowing up the bomb do? Make Desmond's trip around the world pointless? Change the numbers for Hurley?
- When Jack says he recognizes Desmond, what does he mean? Did he see him at the stadium like in the other timeline or is déjà vu making him feel like he knows Des? Or did he meet him another time in his rebooted past?
- What are these people doing at the temple and who are they? The Asian guy from Tropic Thunder seems to be the leader but who are the followers and what's with the whispers/kidnapping?
- Where are the other Castaways we haven't seen yet? Mr. Eko? Libby? Ana Lucia?
- When FLocke said to Richard Alpert: "nice to see you out of those chains" what did he mean? Did he mean the chains of bondage from being a slave on the Black Rock? Did he mean a slave to Jacob? Did he mean the eternal life and youth Jacob granted Richard? Tell us, Ricardus!
- When Sayid came back to life, what happened? Did the water healing work? Did MIB take over his body? Was the water black because MIB is already in it? Did they get the ash defenses up in time? Is Jacob/another being taking over Sayid's body? So many questions on that!
- Why do the Temple people (the other Others?) want to talk to Jack alone? I think it has something to do with his father and the body. Maybe they took the body to try to stop the MIB from taking it over?
- Where the heck is Jack's dad's body? Ummm...?
Déjà vu is a glitch in the Matrix, but it seems to be a glitch caused by the bomb detonation. Is this a good or bad thing? We're yet to find out. But I wouldn't be surprised if the Sliding Doors analogy holds and that the timeline you think will be better, won't end up that way until FATE intervienes and puts people together who are supposed to be together. I can't wait
Grade so far: A-. It's still too jumpy for my liking (we jumped between three distinct plots and then veered off even further midway through the episode), but everything else was wonderful and exciting and everything I've been waiting for the past few months. I want some more answers, but I'll take what I can get as it comes.
Best moment of the week: I think it was just seeing all the dead Castaways alive again. Boone and Charlie, it's nice to see you again. You too, Claire.
Best line of the week: "I'm sorry you had to see me like that" - MIB to Ben after turning into the Smoke Monster. Perfectly Delivered
Thoughts? Theories? Comments? Lost (pun intended)? Let me know what you think about the episode in the comments below QQNJS7QGAG8Z
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One of the questions we brought up last night was--Where is home that MIB/FLocke want to go to? The Temple? Also what about Stacey's theory that Jacob is in Sayid's body? They made it very clear that if Sayid dies everyone is screwed.
ReplyDeleteone more thing
ReplyDeleteMaybe Jack's fate/destiny is to help Locke out in the parallel universe (2007 where plane lands). He gives him his card and tells him that "nothing is irreversible." Maybe this will be his big save!!! It is quite strange considering they have always been at odds with each other.
Keep in mind - parallel universe Jack doesn't have any memory of it working. This is where I think things were a bit weird. On the plane it seemed like Jack was nervous about it going down, like he knew about the whole Lost saga. But he shouldn't know, cause with the reset it never happened. The rest of the characters on the plane don't seem to behave like this. Maybe it is just some poor Matt Fox acting.
ReplyDeleteI like the comparison to Sliding Doors- good movie.
ReplyDeleteI think this episode gave us more questions than answers. I mean who is Richard Alpert. My theory is that he came on the black rock (cause he was in chains) or maybe FLocke is refering to metephorical chains (under Jacob's control) and now that Jacob is dead he is free?
It seems to me this is the start of the "war that is coming" The war between black and white!! (and maybe the start of the third big incident-as per the 3 swan theory)
Also, if you remember Richard visited Locke when he was little and he had a picture of the smoke monster hanging on his wall.... what do you make of that? And when Locke came to Richard and told him that he was traveling through time and would be born in 2 years from their meeting, Richard believed that Locke was their future leader, but infact it was a whole misunderstanding. How did this get over looked by Jacob?!? or didn't it?
You remembered that much of sliding doors?
ReplyDeleteGreat point, Ari. There seem be 2 timelines/plotlines in play right now. Two parallel universes, if you will. One is on the Island, where everyone wound up in approximately 2007. The other is some alternate reality, where the bomb worked, which prevented the hatch from being built, Desmond from forgetting to input the numbers, Oceanic 815 from crashing, and all the saga from occurring. As Ari said, Jack sitting on the plane landing at LAX would have NO IDEA about everything we've seen happen.
ReplyDeleteI think that's the point of Season 6. The characters play out two realities: one on the Island where they all knew each other, and one where everyone's messed up life from before continues (i.e. Kate is still a fugitive, Hurley is still a lottery winner, Sawyer is still a con man, etc.). Then we'll see if fate puts them all in the same places regardless of their journey to get there.
That said, it's still not clear what the bomb accomplished. Here's what is DEFINITELY not clear: the bomb may not have even blown up. That white flash, as Miles said, could have been a time flash. Think about it...they couldn't hear, they had headaches, etc. The bomb is still sitting at the bottom of that hole in 1977. The moment before Juliet hit the bomb with a rock, they were all flashed forward to 2007. That would explain why the hatch had been built and then destroyed when Desmond turned the key. That would ALSO explain why they are still on the Island and know each other. That would ALSO explain that the other major plotline of these two episodes -- Oceanic 815 landing successfully at LAX with everyone not knowing each other -- is simply a parallel universe, an alternate reality.
Which makes me wonder...why delve into that at all? It's not like we don't have enough questions to resolve on the Island.
Which brings me to my biggest issue with the first 2 episodes. There are only 16 episodes in the final season. They wasted 2 of them by answering few questions and instead asking many more! Why??? LOST is already the biggest ensemble cast ever, and instead of bringing the show from outer space back towards earth, they have introduced a SLEW of new characters, specifically a few dozen temple worshippers. What. The. Hell. Cuse/Lindelof, please start wrapping this up.
To paraphrase Jerry Maguire...fewer questions, more answers.
I actually did check Wikipedia/IMDB for the Sliding Doors stuff...it has been over a decade.
ReplyDeleteBecca, good point about "the war". It seems that it's sort of a battle between everyone and FLocke/MIB...which is exactly what the Season 6 Last Supper picture depicted.
While I agree with you, Ari, that he doesn't know for sure what happened before, I believe that parallel universe Jack is experiencing a heavy dose of deja vu and that's why he was nervous.
Also, did you see the lines were switched from Rose and him? In the pilot, Jack reassured Rose all would be all right but in this episode, it was the opposite? Very interesting...
A few other thoughts...
ReplyDeleteWhy does Jack have deja vu but nobody else does?
Why is the federal agent guarding Kate the worst federal agent in the history of federal agents? If I ever get arrested, I hope it's by this guy.
Why isn't Jacob's dead body visible in the fire pit moments after FLocke kicked it in there? Did it disappear? Or did it burn up in about 30 seconds? Or maybe...he's not really dead.
Who are these people in the temple? Where did they come from? When did they come from? Do the Others know about them? Why do they speak multiple languages? Why's the kung fu master in charge? Why's the healing water red? And why is the John Lennon doppelganger wearing round glasses that look EXACTLY like the ones Ben used to wear?
What's with the Jesus crucifixion symbolism, you know, when Sayid is carried out of the water, and his dead body is positioned so that his arms are spread out like Christ? If Stacey is right and Jacob is really inside Sayid, that's very un-Lost in that the Jesus reference is practically slapping you across the face.
Why is the healing water (or should I say baptismal water) red?
I am not convinced that the "whispering" mystery has been solved. But there are definitely some parallels between the Others and the Temple Worshippers. I.E. running around unnoticed, ambush attacks, suspiciously strong punches that knock people out with one blow, etc.
How/when did the flight attendant become a Temple Worshipper?
If the Temple Worshippers are there to protect Jacob, why are they in a temple and NOWHERE NEAR the statute that Jacob lives in? It seems like they did an AWFUL job of protecting him from Ben and FLocke, because the only people around to protect Jacob were Ilana and Bram and a few others. I think Jacob would have appreciated Kung Fu Master when Ben was about to stab him in the heart.
About the bomb: We don't know if there was a time flash, just cause, OR if the bomb caused the time flash. Remember there are two ways (that we know of) to make the island flash through time: 1. turn the wheel; 2. release the engergy from the swan.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the bomb exploding is why the island flashed.
oh and ya know what else we will find out.... what happens to Aaron when Claire gives him up for adoption. Remember the psychic said that it would be a mistake for Claire to give up her baby?
One more thing guys. I know none of you on the NYaT watch this show but I think it is now extremely relevant: JJ Abrams other franchise, Fringe (on FOX). In Fringe the concept of a parallel universe, one where "the other choice" in any free will scenario plays a MAJOR roll. It is basically the foundation of the show. As a Fringe fan and fairly avid viewer I am starting to see major parallels between the concepts on it and now the new parallel concepts on lost - especially with the whole idea of destiny and fate.
ReplyDeleteCan anyone else remember whether Desmond was on the first Oceanic 815? If not, and I don't remember him there, why was he on the plane in last night's episode?
ReplyDeleteHe was not on the first flight. Desmond got to the Island by doing the Widmore-sponsored "boat trip around the world" on Libby's boat and was (not) pushing the button when the plane crashed.
ReplyDeleteBut maybe blowing up the Island changed all that and Desmond and Penny are together...we'll find out, I'm sure.
plus boones blondie sis Shannon was apparently not on the plane either - she stayed in Australia. I'm sure we will be hearing more on that.
ReplyDeleteExactly. So how can Desmond be on Oceanic 815??
ReplyDeleteEven if the bomb worked, that would prevent the hatch from being built, which would prevent Desmond from ever needing to push the button.
BUT, that doesn't mean he wouldn't end up crashing on the Island in Libby's boat! So what gives?? Damn you LOST.
Ari, good point about bimbo Shannon. I don't imagine she'd be important to anything in the story -- in fact, I doubt that plot point will ever be explained. It's either a decoy/redherring, or a fallback plot point if things were to ever change direction mid-season.
ReplyDeleteShannon is not there for a very simple, non-mystical reason, she was shooting other projects and could not take off the time to flim LOST. So the writers made up an excuse of why she wasn't on the plane and they'll see if they can get her to do a few episodes later on in the season to wrap up that story line.
ReplyDeleteA lot more innocuous that it seems
someone turned down LOST for another project? gasp!
ReplyDeleteJay - Desmond can be on Oceanic 815 because the bomb did more than just reset time - it prevented the entire incident from ever happening. This could have had a profound effect on the Dharma Initiative and Whidmores life - which in turn would have effected Desmond.
ReplyDeleteSure, the bomb prevented the entire incident from ever happening, which surely had a profound effect on the Dharma Initiative and Widmore's life.
ReplyDeleteBut, why would that put Desmond on Oceanic 815 from Sydney to LA? That would be a pretty damn big coincidence...unless there's some crazy mystical Lost-esque stuff going on, as per usual.
Just want to share this website- really interesting interview with cuse and LINDELOF http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/02/02/lost-premiere-damon-carlton/
ReplyDelete"The second thing that we do is we drop out of the plane and we go below the water and we see that the Island is submerged. What we’re trying to do there is basically say to you, “God bless the survivors of Oceanic 815, because they’re so self-centered, they thought the only effect [of detonating the bomb] was going to be that their plane never crashes.” But they don’t stop to think, “If we do this in 1977, what else is going to affected by this?” So that their entire lives can be changed radically. In fact, it would appear that they’ve sunken the Island. That’s our way of saying, “Keep your eyes peeled for the differences that you’re not expecting.”
oooooooo
The Doc Jensen recap on ew.com suggests (and Lostpedia confirms) that during the closeup of the submerged island, you can see a shark swimming with a Dharma logo on it. Pretty cool.
ReplyDeletedoes the shark have a fricken lazer beam? cause if not im just not all that interested.
ReplyDeleteOk so I'm JUST getting here - after the past 8 weeks of my life have been spent catching up. I'm sure it's different watching it all the way through than having to wait 6-7 months in between seasons. I really didn't have time to formulate all these questions - the thing that is getting me most are the parallel timelines.
ReplyDeleteAre there two of each person now?
I'll post my thoughts as I catch up.
In Part I, we didn’t account for cases where there might not be a “current” tab that gets highlighted. Bifold doors
ReplyDelete