The Variable

It what was billed as "The explosive 100Th episode of LOST". The Variable lived up to the claim in that at least there was an actual explosion in the episode. Let's review:

PAGING DOCTOR NOAH DRAKE TO TREAT A CASE OF HEARTBREAK

After kicking Ben’s ass, Desmond is rushed to the hospital to have his gunshot wound patched up. While Penny waits for word on her husbands condition, Eloise comes strolling in as only Eloise can. She comments on Charlie Hume’s hair and says she knows Desmond. She adds that she thinks it was her sons fault that Desmond was shot. Penny thinks she is Ben’s mother but she says she is Daniel Faraday’s mother. We all knew that by now right?

ALL I GOT IS A PHOTOGRAPH AND I REALISE YOUR NOT COMING BACK ANYMORE

Dan tells Miles he came back to the island because of the picture with Hurley, Kate, and Jack in it. Apparently this is something he didn’t see happening. Is it now possible he thinks that somehow the future can be changed. Dan goes to see Jack to find out how they got back to the island and in 1977. Jack tells Dan that his mother told them how to get back to the island. Dan tells Jack that his mother was wrong. So here is Dan’s plan, all in a nutshell: 1) Get to the island a few hours before a catastrophic incident that he has full advanced knowledge of. 2) Convince Chang he's a time traveler and have him evacuate a hundred or so people from the island with the sub. 3) Get the 815Er's to help him meet up with Mommy. 4) Find and detonate an atomic warhead. Sounds like a plan! I guess the important thing is Dan’s attitude of Whatever Happened, Happened has changed and things can be different with a little help.

SING US A SONG YOU’RE THE PIANO MAN

Dan is told by his mother that he cannot play the piano anymore because he doesn’t have time to do science and math as well. For the first time, we get a character that has “Mommy Issues”. Dan says he can make time. Eloise says she wishes he could do just that. Looking ahead to the end of the episode, take into consideration this is a woman who at this point in her life already knows she will end up killing her adult son years later when he time travels his way back to the island in a time when she herself was still on the island. She cannot fight her fate anymore than Ben, Widmore, or even Locke could.

WE ALL NEED TO DO SOMETHING TRY TO KEEP THE TRUTH FROM SHOWING UP

Dan makes for the Orchid station with Miles. Jack goes to see Sawyer and tells him about Dan being back on the island. Sawyer gives Jack a “yeah OK, thanks” and starts to close the door on Jack. Juliette tells Sawyer to tell Jack about what is going on. Sawyer gives Jack the lowdown on the video tape and then introduces Jack to Phil, who is tied up in the closet. Two episodes ago Juliette knew that her and Sawyers’ time was coming to an end with the DI. It took Sawyer a little longer to come to grips with it. The look on his face tells us when he arrives at this realization. Even if it was just a temporary happiness, it was some of the best happiness he has ever known in his life.

NO ONE EVER SAID IT WOULD BE SO HARD I’M GOING BACK TO THE START

Dan goes down into the Orchid with notebook in hand and we are watching the beginning of the season all over again. Dan tells Chang that he has to evacuate the island. The energy that killed the one man under ground at the Orchid site will also spill out at the site of the Swan station. The result will be of catastrophic proportions. Dan doesn’t hold back, he even goes as far to tell Chang that he is from the future. Dan shows him his notebook and tells him that he has equations that he couldn’t have unless he is from the future. Miles tries to stop the conversation. Dan tells Chang that his son and Miles are the same. How many Chinese men named Miles do you know? More than I know who have red hair and are named Rusty! Chang asks Miles if all of that is true and Miles tells him it is not. Thanks a lot Miles, either he is still going with Dan's idea of "WH,H" or he is trying to change the future a little bit for himself. Think about it if Chang doesn't get his wife and child off of the island them perhaps Miles could have a relationship with his father. Dan tells Miles he is trying to get Chang to do what he is supposed to do. Which is what, exactly?

RUNNING IN CIRCLES COMING IN TAILS HEADS ON A SCIENCE APART

Dan and Theresa are together at Dan’s graduation from Oxford University. Eloise takes him out to lunch to celebrate but she tells him that she only made reservations for two. Eloise corrects Dan when he calls Theresa his girlfriend and tells him she is his research assistant. She can be nothing more because Dan will never have time for women to be in his life and they will only get hurt. Dan tells her he is getting a research grant from someone named Charles Widmore. Eloise gives Dan his famous notebook with a nice inscription inside the front cover before she leaves.

SHOTGUN WILLIE GOT ALL OF HIS FAMILY THERE

Sawyer has the whole group in his house discussing what they have to do next. They have two choices, either leave the island on the sub or run back into the jungle. Jin says he won’t leave the island if there is still a chance that Sun is also there. Hurley agrees. Dan arrives and Sawyer asks Miles if he is still crazy. Miles says that Dan is worse than he was before. Dan tells them that he needs to find the hostiles so he can find his mother who is one of them.

LEFT ME STANDING ALL ALONE ALONE AND CRYING

We revisit another scene originally from Daniel's first flashback. He is seeing the wreckage of flight 815 being discovered on the news and he is crying. Widmore pays a visit and it seems that Dan may already have some sort of time jump sickness that Desmond had. Widmore questions Dan some more about why he is so upset at seeing the plane crash. Dan says it is sad that all of the people on the plane are dead. Widmore tells Dan the plane is a fake and that he put it there. He adds that some of the people from the plane crash are on an island and are still there and alive. Finally we have verbal proof from Widmore himself that is was indeed him that put the fake plane crash wreckage in the ocean. Widmore tells Dan that he can tell all of this to Dan because he knows Dan will forget all of it. Widmore tells Dan he wants him to go to the island and adds that it will heal Dan’s mind. Does Widmore know Desmond is Dan’s constant and that he needs to see him to get over the sickness? Daniel tells Widmore he sounds like his mother. Widmore tells Dan that it is because his mother and he are old friends.

THEY SAY THAT BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO

Sawyer asks Dan about his mother being an Other and Dan says that Sawyer met her when they time jumped to 1954. Hurley has one of the best lines when he asks about “Fonzie time”. Sawyer says he won’t help Dan but Jack says that they should because they don’t belong there. Sawyer reminds Jack that he belonged there just fine until they got back to the island. Jack asks Kate if she know where the hostiles are. Jack tries to convince her by saying that whatever she came back to the island for it isn’t where they are now. Seems to be true to me. In fact, I think Kate, Jack, and Hurley are only there to convince the rest of the group that they have to leave the DI in order to get to where they belong as well. The time of the DI is coming to an end for Sawyer and Juliette and the rest of the time jumpers. They had to let go of their island life just as the rest had to let go of their off island lives. When Sawyer says to Kate; “Come with us Freckles.”, it throws up a red flag to Juliette. She quickly gives Kate the code to the sonic fence and tells her to take Dan with her. “It’s over for us here anyway.”, she comments. What exactly is over for them? Playing house with Sawyer or their time with the DI or perhaps both. Dan asks Miles to take him and Miles throws in with Sawyer and gives Dan the keys to the van. Sawyer tells them that if they change their mind he will meet them at the beach.

QUESTIONS OF SCIENCE AND PROGRESS DON‘T SPEAK AS LOUD AS MY HEART

Kate and Jack go to the motor pool to get some weapons. Why exactly are there so many weapons in the motor pool? Dan goes and speaks to a young Charlotte who is on the swing set. That swing set deserves it's own flashback episode! He has the meeting with Charlotte that he said he was going to avoid but now he thinks he can things. The last words Charlotte ever said to Daniel about not being allowed to have chocolate before dinner, were also the first words she ever said to him. Afterwards, Dan makes his way to the motor pool and Radzinski shows up with his group of men. We get a nice shoot out scene as the three of them make their escape.

I WAS JUST GUESSING AT NUMBERS AND FIGURES PULLING THE PUZZLES APART

Dan is trying to play piano but doesn’t appear to be so good at it anymore. Eloise walks in and tells him he should accept Widmore’s offer. Dan says he can’t do the math anymore. He agrees to go only after Eloise tells him that she will be proud of him for going. The chance that the island could heal him isn’t enough to make him go. He was still looking for his mother’s approval.

WHO’S GOT MY BACK NOW WHEN ALL WE HAVE IS DECEPTION?

At the sonic fence Dan tells Jack any of them could die, at any time. I wonder if this is some foreshadowing for a future Jack death? It couldn’t have been for Dan’s death, that would be too easy. Meanwhile back in Dharma Ville, Sawyer asks Juliette if she still has his back and she asks him if he still has hers. She also tells him she will tell him “I told you so.”, when they get back to the beach. Outside, the alarm sounds and Hurley and Jin see Radzinsky and his men going into Sawyers’ house. I have no idea what Jin said here so if anyone knows can you let me in on it? Sawyer tries to calm Radzinsky down but Phil gives them away and Sawyer and Juliette are now the DI’s prisoners.

TELL ME YOUR SECRETS AND NURSE ME YOUR QUESTIONS

Dan tells Jack what he knows about the island and what his plan is. The Swan hatch and the cement being there like Chernobyl is something Jack already knows about, Dan is now starting to make sense to Jack. He goes on to tell them about the button, Desmond, and the plane crash. All of these are in the chain of events that are about to begin. Dan tells Jack and Kate about people being variables and that is how the past can be changed. He says that he must prevent the Swan hatch from ever being built. He tells them that in order to do that he has to detonate a hydrogen bomb. Kate has a great “Oh really?/Oh shit!” look on her face. I’m still not exactly sure how Eloise is supposed to help them get to where they are supposed to be but I guess it is in their own time period where Ben and Locke are. I’m also going on belief in the fact that Dan knows what he is talking about.

IT’S TWO HEARTS LIVING IN TWO SEPARATE WORLDS

Eloise tells Penny that Desmond is another casualty in a conflict that is bigger than any of them. Eloise also tells Penny that for the first time in her life she has no idea what is about to happen. This could point to the fact that something has already changed in the past and this is why she has no idea what is going to happen next. The nurse shows up and tells Penny that Desmond is recovering and is going to be fine. Des tells Penny that he made her a promise that he would never leave her and he meant it. This could possibly be the last time we will see Penny and Desmond. It seems as though their story could now be done. Outside the hospital, Eloise meets with Widmore and she tells him that Desmond is fine. She tells him that he should go in and see his daughter. Widmore says that his relationship with his daughter is something he had to sacrifice. Eloise tells Widmore that she had to send her son back to the island knowing … a nice place to interrupt the conversation as Widmore adds that Dan is his son as well. Bitch Slap! Oddly enough, both of them sent Daniel back to the island by telling him that the island would cure him which it did but they also both knew going to the island would be his death.

I HAD TO FIND YOU, TELL YOU I NEED YA AND TELL YOU I SET YOU APART

Jack tells Kate he is getting used to insane as they arrive at the hostiles camp. Kate tells Jack that what Dan is talking about doing will erase everything that has happened to them. I’ve always thought, as well as a lot of other people, that LOST will end the same way it began. For awhile now I have felt that the show is taking us around one big circle and where do circles lead you? Right back to the beginning. Just a little FYI, did you know that other than LOST the show was almost called “Nowhere” as well as “Circle”? I’m not really sure what all that points to but Dan goes into the hostiles camp with his gun drawn. He shoots at one of the Others and demands to see Eloise. Richard tells him she is not there. Dan asks Richard where the bomb is and tells him he has three seconds to tell him where Eloise is. Richard tells Dan to lower the gun that nobody has to get hurt. Dan begins to count down from three and a shot rings out (in the Memphis sky). Did anyone else think Richard got shot? Richard seemed to flinch as if he was, but alas, it was poor Twitchy who falls. Then Dan sees his mother. He tells her that she knew this was going to happen and she sent him anyway. She asks Dan who he is and he tells her that he is her son. Throughout the episode Daniel thought of himself as a “Variable”, however the fact that Eloise killed him, and she apparently knew she was going to kill him, then he isn’t the Variable at all but is a “Constant”. Dan was always killed by his mother on the island in 1977. But, just because he's killed, does that mean his equations and conclusions were incorrect? Or was he just a victim of poor execution? Even Jack could see that his plan for diplomatic relations with the hostiles totally sucked, and when Jack's making wincing faces at your plan, well, that's just not a good sign.

WHATEVER HAPPENED, HAPPENED VERSUS THE VARIABLE

For weeks we have been told that “WH,H” but in this episode it is shown that Eloise and Widmore are working awful hard to get Daniel on the freighter with the rest of the group. If it was always supposed to happen, why do they have to push so hard? Why does fate need people to play it’s sheriffs and deputies? I’ll let Vozzek69 explain it:

To say that "WH,H", you're saying that the past is irreversible. But who's past are you talking about? How do you qualify the perspective of that particular past? Like Daniel tells Jack, "this is our present". To them, everything they're experiencing in Dharma is not something they've already experienced in the past. Which is why Daniel doesn't have a scar on his neck when Jack meets him. Taking this into account, every day that dawns is a new future for Jack, Kate, Hurley, Sawyer, Miles, etc. This new day is filled with potential possibilities for them because, unlike their past, it's not yet set in stone. They can change things, even if they don't yet realize it, which seems to be why people like Hawking try so hard to convince them that they can't. WHH works when you consider that the past "is the past". But although these people time traveled back to 1977, it's a 1977 where they weren't supposed to be (Daniel's exact words to Jack). This isn't the "true" past as it once happened. This is a new past, which becomes their present, which is filled with all new potential future possibilities. This allows for change WITHOUT changing the past. They're not altering the past, they're changing their future. You have to look at it from their perspective, not from the perspective of someone on the outside, like us, sitting here in 2009.

FINAL THOUGHTS

'He has always pressed it, and he always will. We always let him and we always will let him. The moment is structured that way.’ is a quote from Slaughterhouse Five. Slaughterhouse-Five is a science fiction novel by Kurt Vonnegut. The novel tells the story of a wayward soldier, Billy Pilgrim, and his experiences with time travel. Daniel crying at the television is reminiscent of Billy Pilgrim's memory loss and random tears in the book. Daniel uses Miles in an attempt to convince Dr. Chang he is from the future, which is similar to Billy Pilgrim using someone to convince his daughter he had been to the future. When Daniel mentions how he had previously never considered the variable, humans, he mentions their "free will," which set them apart from scientific equations. This is a popular theme in the Slaughterhouse Five book, as the Tralfamadorians (aliens that kidnap Billy) claim that free-will is unique to the human race.

Three hours of episodes left this season.

Lost Music

This week we turn an eye towards Kate and Sawyer with the help of Patsy Cline.

Some Like It Hoth

I SEE DEAD PEOPLE

This is the first episode to focus on one of the members of the freighter team. Also it doesn’t contain a “previously on LOST” blurb at the beginning of the episode either. The first thing we can do is count how many times we see some familiar numbers show up in the episode. There’s 3:16 on the microwave, that’s one. The woman looked familiar to me but for some reason I didn’t recall her as being Miles’ mother even though I knew it was going to be a Miles flashback. Did anyone not know that the boy was Miles until after the woman called his name? The door Miles goes to is number 4. 4 is considered a bad luck number in Japan, Korea and China, as it is a homonym for the word "death" in Japanese, Korean and Chinese. On the rabbit statue there is a number 8 on the ear. I thought I knew what Miles’ ability was but this scene confused me a little. Did Miles know the man was inside the room dead because he could see through the door because it looked like they tried to show he could or was it just a voice coming from behind the door and we were shown what was inside before Miles went in? When Miles freaks out and says that the man is still talking to him you had to feel bad for the kid.



I SEE GOTH PEOPLE

Yes, I’m doing the new recap format for this episode so we will continue with the flashback parts. A very pierced (somebody actually counted and they say that Miles had 15 piercings in his ears and face) and very Goth looking Miles shows up years later at his mothers’ house. Miles' spiky hair with a white line through it resembles Rufio, the leader of the Lost Boys from the movie Hook. Miles’ mother has a nurse and doesn’t look very good. She would appear to be dying of some sort of cancer if I had to offer a guess because it seems that she is showing signs of having had radiation treatments. Or is it radiation that is killing her? Where would she have gotten that? Oh yeah, that's right. Miles wants to know why he is the way he is and he asks about his father. His mother tells him that his father never cared about him and that he kicked them out when Miles was still a baby. She also tells him that his father is dead and his body is somewhere Miles can never go. They made it fairly obvious where this story was going didn’t they? There are some that say it is possible that Miles' mother was already dead in this scene and he was talking to her corpse. That would explain the respirator and the IVs that were in the room but not hooked up to her. The other side of the theory is she was disconnected from them and was about to die and that is why they are not being used but still in the room.

I SEE DUMB PEOPLE

Miles, a few years after his visit with his mother is now making money with his ability. A man asks him to contact his son to see if his son knew that he loved him. Miles tells the man that he needs a body to do what he does. Then he tells the man that it will cost double what he said because the boys body was cremated. We’ve seen this side of Miles before. He likes to charge double for his help it seems. Miles takes the man’s hands into his own and a few seconds later tells the man that his son did know he loved him and he leaves. I didn’t believe Miles for a second, did you? Naomi shows up and introduces herself to Miles and says that he is being recruited by her boss to work on a job with her. In "The Economist" Miles said that he first met Naomi on the boat, while in this episode she is seen recruiting him prior to the expedition. It is possible he simply lied about it or is it just a simple error?

I SEE GREEDY PEOPLE

Naomi takes Miles to a restaurant were there is a body back in the kitchen. She tells him that this is his audition and he is to tell her all he can about the dead man. This time we see that Miles really is getting some messages from the body. The man was carrying pictures of empty graves and a purchase order for an old plane to Charles Widmore. Are these the same pictures that Tom Friendly showed Michael? If so, we know how the man died and is it in fact Widmore who really did make the fake plane crash? Or is it possible Widmore thought Ben was behind it and he was getting proof but the man was killed before delivering the evidence. It's possible neither was behind it and the new player in the game (The New DI) is behind the graves and the fake plane crash site. After the audition, Miles turns down the job but quickly changes his mind when Naomi tells him he will be paid 1.6 (16 another of the numbers) million dollars to do the job. Now a quick word on this; I don’t think that Widmore ever intended to pay anyone 1.6 million dollars. I think that he figured Miles and whoever else would be quite expendable and would never make it back in order to claim the money. Of course I could be wrong and Miles was paid up front, after all Widmore certainly seems like he would have that much lying around anyway.

I SEE … A TUNA TACO? WAIT … WHA? REALLY?

Miles is grabbed and thrown into a van. The guy who talks to Miles is Bram, the dude on the island with Illana in 2007 or whenever it is. Bram tells Miles he is being watched and they know he works for Charles Widmore who Miles says he doesn’t know. Miles says he doesn’t know what lies in the shadow of the statute and Bram tells him he is not ready to go to the island. Bram tells Miles that if he goes with them he will get all the answers he is looking for: who he is, why he has a gift, and he will know about his father. All of that will be answered if Miles doesn’t get on the freighter. Miles tells Bram that he doesn’t care about his father that all he cares about is money and for 3.2 (23 backwards) million he will not go on the boat. Bram tells him they aren’t going to pay him anything and then tells the rest of the goons to toss Miles out of the van. Bram leaves as he tells Miles that he is on the wrong team and that Bram is on the team that is going to win. So if they wanted Miles to not get on the freighter why didn’t they just keep him for however long it would have taken for him to miss the freighter? Many have theorized this is part of the people needing to want to do something (like Jack wanting to operate on Ben’s back tumor) and not being forced to do something. Here’s my thoughts real quick on who these people are; Bram is one of the new and improved Dharma Initiative members. If you remember I posted a video several months ago before the new season began featuring Pierre Chang calling for the Dharma Initiative to be reformulated. I think they have been and this is where we are headed.

I SEE DUMB PEOPLE REVISITED

Miles returns to the man who wanted to know if his son knew he loved him. Miles gives him his money back and tells him he wasn’t able to communicate with is son. The man says he would have rather not known Miles had lied. Miles tells him it would not have been fair to his son and that if he wanted his son to know he loved him he should have made sure to tell him when he was alive. Seems like Miles does have some Daddy issues. The fact that Miles gives the man his money back, something he tells Bram that is all he cares about but tells the man about loving his son shows he does care about his past and how his father fits into it. I don’t think Miles knew the island was where he would find his family history or see his father but it seemed to show that lack of a fatherly influence was something that Miles did indeed carry with him no matter how much he claimed to be the opposite.

SEX, LIES, AND VIDEOTAPES

OK, maybe just lies and videotapes. The Sports Illustrated cover that Miles is reading states: "After 23 (#) years ...NEW BOSS IN L.A." Sawyer calls Miles and tells him to find the tapes from the monitors and erase them to cover Kate and his tracks. Watch Sawyer reset the sonic fence before going through it but remember I pointed out he didn’t reset it when they went through back in “Whatever Happened, Happened”. Ha, hey TPTB, what’s up with that? Pretty small detail I guess really but still they are getting sloppy. Monitor 4 (#) is the tape Miles is to erase, the same number of the room where he found the dead guy when he was a child. Sawyer tells Kate to go back to the infirmary and see Juliette. Sawyer reminds Kate that he is head of security. Something that may not carry much weight before long. Horace enters the security office and tells Miles that he has an important errand for him to do. Miles is brought into “the circle of trust”. Miles is to go to sector 334 and give something to Radzinski and wait for Radzinski to give him something back. Miles questions the sector as they are not supposed to be in sector 334. Miles leaves without taking the tape.

CALL ME THE DEAD BODY MAN

Miles finds Radzinski who doesn’t seem to be as impressed with Miles being in the “circle of trust” as Miles is impressed with being in it. Turns out it is a body bag Miles gives to Radzinski and sure enough, Radzinski and his Dharma buddies fill it up. Radzinski tells Miles that the man had an accident, more specifically he fell into a ditch. Miles asks if the body has a bullet wound. Miles is fast becoming a big favorite of mine, contrary to a lot of other peoples feelings on him. “The ditch had a gun?” is one of the best lines of the episode. After Radzinski and his cronies put the body in the van and go back into the jungle, Miles does his Ghost Whisperer act. So, we now know the Swan hatch was in hostile territory. That is a big piece of information that we never knew before.

ROAD TO SINGAPORE

Miles returns to the security center and Horace is on the phone with Pierre Chang. He tells Chang “if it was caused by the electromagnetism, we need to know”. Horace gives Miles his next task which is to take the body to the Orchid for Chang to see. Miles doesn’t want to do it. Hurley is putting coolers into the van that contain lunch for the workers at the Orchid. Uh, garlic mayo? That’s either really good or really bad. The Hurley/Miles traveling road show is about to take off for parts unknown. Hurley tells Miles they can carpool to help stop global warming which hasn't started yet. Al Gore would be proud and I knew this episode was gonna be funny last week when I saw the previews.

THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM

Kate makes it back to the infirmary right before Roger gets there. He wants to know where his son is and at first thinks he is dead. Juliette tells him that she left the room for ten minutes and doesn’t know what happened to Ben. Roger bolts from the room as he tells Juliette he is going to go to security. Juliette looks at Kate and comments; “Well, here we go.”. Listen for the big wet splat noise that is sure to be coming soon when the shit hits the fan.

SIR, HOW DARE YOU FART BEFORE MY WIFE. I’M SORRY I DIDN’T KNOW IT WAS HER TURN.

As the Dharma van rolls on “It never rains in southern California” plays on the radio. Hurley wants to know how to spell bounty hunter and instantly I wondered how Hurley knew about Illana. One of the funniest scenes of the episode. Hurley smells something foul and thinks it was Miles. Miles tells him it could be his sandwiches. Miles pulls over so Hurley can check on the food. Hurley finds the body bag and the body. Miles tells Hurley about the corpse. Alvarez was digging a hole when he felt a sharp pain in his mouth. The pain was from a filling in his tooth being yanked out and then it was blown through his brain. Hurley asks Miles how he knows all of this. Hurley asks Miles if he can talk to dead people like he can.

Back in Dharma Ville, Roger is on the swing drinking away his troubles. Kate walks up and tries to comfort him but makes it a little too obvious she knows more than she should. Roger tells Kate she should mind her own business. When will Kate learn?

ROAD TO ZANZIBAR

Hurley and Miles continue their discussion about communicating with dead people. Miles tells Hurley that talking to the dead, having conversations with them, playing chess with them like Hurley does is not how “it” works. Hurley jumps all over this and then goes on to tell Miles that he is jealous that his power is better than Miles’ power. They arrive at the Orchid and Chang is not happy to see Hurley with Miles. Hurley tells Chang that he won’t say anything about the body. “If you wanna keep a secret, don’t tell the fat guy!”, remember that? Chang warns Hurley that he will be on the Hydra island weighing turds for their silly experiments if he says anything about the body. See even Chang admits most of the Dharma experiments are silly. Remember the tube that the Pearl people had to send their little notebooks up? Hurley says that Chang is a douche. Miles says that douche is his father. Was anyone surprised by this fact at this point? Hurley asks Miles about his dad. Miles says he doesn’t want to talk about it. Hurley comments that if Miles didn’t want to talk about it he wouldn’t have brought it up. Hurley’s right about that one. Miles tells Hurley that his first clue that Chang was his father happened on the third day he was in the DI. Miles says his mother was in line behind him at the cafeteria. Chang comes back and says that Miles it to take him to see Radzinski. Miles asks about the body and Chang asks; “What body?” Is that a Geiger counter in Chang’s hand or is he just happy to see us?

DR. JECKYL AND MR. LINUS

Jack realizes real quick that Dharma erasers suck and that Roger Linus is a dick when he is drunk. Egyptian history and hieroglyphics are on the chalk board. Roger tells Jack to get out and then kicks the bucket. For once kicking the bucket means just that; actually kicking a bucket. Roger is not very likeable when he is drunk but is sort of ok when he is sober. We get that point! Jack can relate I guess. Roger questions Jack about knowing Kate. He believes that Kate had something to do with Ben’s disappearance. Jack tries to cover for Kate. He tells Roger that he knows Kate and she wouldn’t do anything to hurt his son. His explanation to Roger actually made Jack look guilty instead of helping clear Kate because I don’t think Roger has changed his feelings about Kate one bit.

ROAD TO UTOPIA

Hurley questions Chang about the Orchid station, his family, and his musical interests. Miles knows what he is doing. Hurley is so smooth and subtle. Not! Chang says his wife is a fan of Miles Davis but he likes country which explains why he listened to Shotgun Willie. When Miles says that he and Chang don’t run in the same circles, Chang says he is unaware that there are circles that people ran around in. This tells me that Chang has been a good father and husband. It would seem that he has no knowledge of the social scene on the island. Chang would of course know about the circle of trust I assume. Chang tells Miles to stop and he gets out of the van and opens a camouflaged fence. Is that really supposed to fool anyone? Hurley sees the workers putting the numbers onto the hatch door and he knows they are building the Swan station. Hurley gives Miles a quick history lesson on the Swan hatch. Hurley continues to push the envelope as far as Miles and his father is concerned. Miles still balks at the idea and steals Hurley’s notebook. Hurley had been writing Empire Strikes Back. Guess the bounty hunter he mentioned earlier in the episode was Boba Fet.

ANYBODY UP FOR SOME DIKE FINGERING?

Sawyer returns home and tells Juliette he feels like the little Dutch boy trying to stick his finger in the oh, hey Jack, how’s it going? Jack tells Sawyer about Roger Linus and his suspicions about Kate. Jack leaves and Sawyer thanks him for the heads up. Vozzek69 sums up this scene the best and I quote:

“Jack helps Sawyer out this scene with some vital information, letting him know that he's still got his back. Sawyer shows genuine appreciation of Jack's help, too. This was good to see, because both of them are powerhouse LOST characters from the shows inception. They've also always been out of sync with each other: as one of their stars is rising, the other one seems destined to fall. Just as Jack and Locke argue Science and Faith, Jack and Sawyer's power and popularity are stuck in their own kind of Ying-Yang balance, going all the way back to supremacy of the ping-pong table and ending with the battle for Kate's panties. I for one am looking forward to them forming the dream-team again, both finally getting back on the same side like they did when they kicked some Other ass a few seasons ago. Each of them are good, but together they're worth more than the sum of their individual parts. I think we're all ready to see another 815 rally, and I hope it comes soon. And maybe somewhere along the lines, someone should mention to Juliet that she's wearing a red shirt.”

Phil is next up and tells “Jim” that they need to see him in the office as there has been a new development. Phil shows Sawyer the video tape and says he knows it was him that took Ben. Phil tells Sawyer that he has not told Horace about it yet and thought he deserved a chance to explain himself. He tells Sawyer he gives him the benefit of the doubt. BITCH SLAP! Or maybe it was a punch, but it sounded like Phil was taken down with an open hand. “Get some rope”, Sawyer tells Juliette. Ok, I gotta say I think this was a huge mistake on Sawyer’s part. I think Phil could have been taken into Sawyer’s “circle of trust” if he had tried. He had just said he deserved the benefit of the doubt so he was open for an explanation. I think Sawyer could have handled this an entirely different way and came out better for it. Only time will tell.

STRANDED ALL ALONE IN THE GAS STATION OF LOVE AND I HAVE TO USE THE SELF SERVICE PUMP

Hurley just won’t let the Miles and his father topic go. This time he has taken the simpatico approach telling Miles about his relationship with his own father. Hurley compares Miles to Luke Skywalker. Hurley says that Luke overreacts and ends up getting his hand cut off. Will Chang overreact and get his hand cut off? Hurley actually does get through to Miles, somehow, even though I don’t think the Ewoks sucked. That’s one of the first things I have ever disagreed with Hurley on. Miles walks past Chang’s house and he sees that his mother was wrong. It doesn’t seem that Pierre didn’t care about his son at all. He seems to be caring for him fairly well. Reading to him (a book about polar bears no less!), kissing him, even smiling which it seems is not something Chang does very often. Miles is touched by this and begins to walk away as Chang comes outside and says “Miles I need you.”. For a second Miles was Changs’ son and acted as such when he turned towards Chang and asked “You do?”. The child from the beginning of the episode came back for a few seconds as Miles did get some of his answers regardless of what Bram told him. Or his mother for that matter. Chang tells Miles they are to go to the dock to pick up some scientists that are arriving from Ann Arbor. We see Daniel Faraday getting out of the sub and Miles is surprised to see him. Dan sees Miles and says “Long time no see”. For a second I thought that maybe Dan was going to look at Miles and say; “I’m sorry do I know you?”. Since it seems that Dan has been off of the island, is it possible that he is the one that invented the pendulum at the Lamp Post station that was used to find the island? Also notice that Dan, when we last saw him, was an emotional mess. Right after Charlotte died he fell apart. Sawyer told Jack a few episodes ago that Dan was not with them anymore. Has he been gone for almost three years? Whatever he has been doing in the time he has been gone, one thing is for sure, this is a different Dan than the one we last saw. He looks confident, almost seemed a little bit cocky even. Perhaps while he was gone he found out his statement “Whatever happened, happened” isn’t as accurate as he once thought and he is back to save them and Charlotte as well. Especially when you consider the next episode is called “The Variable”. A little bit of info about that - TPTB described The Constant as being a bunch of pebbles in a stream. They are there but they don’t disrupt the flow of the stream. The Variable, however is described as something large being placed into the stream and not necessarily stopping the flow but definitely changing the course of it. Sounds like a change is gonna come!

FINAL THOUGHTS

First of all I don’t think Chang kicked his wife and baby off of the island because he was a horrible person. He got them off of the island the only way he knew he could. He had to make his wife think he hated them in order to get them to safety. It ended up hurting less for him and he felt it would be more successful than to tell her the truth. Maybe his wife wouldn’t have left if she knew the truth. It was a sacrificial act not a selfish one that ended up sending Miles and his mother away from the island.

In case you are wondering, the episode title is also a reference to the movie Some Like It Hot. In the movie, the two main characters are a comedic duo and witness a mob murder - The Saint Valentine's Day Massacre. This is similar to Miles and Hurley's situation when they become aware of the death of Alvarez. In the movie, the two main characters disguise themselves to avoid retribution from the mob after witnessing the murder just as Miles and Hurley continue to conceal their true identities from the DHARMA Initiative to protect themselves. They best not be dressing up as women anytime soon though.

OR - Since we are always talking Egyptian Mythology and it was seen on the blackboard, consider this for a minute: "Some Like I, Thoth" as in The Book of Thoth, the book buried in the City of the Dead. Thoth's role as mediator is well-documented. It is he who questions the souls of the dead about their deeds in life before their heart is weighed against the feather of Maat. He is the great counselor and the other gods frequently went to him for advice. Just puttin’ it out there and thanks to Lostpedia.org for that.

Something else pointed out by Vozzek69 is that it is sweet irony that Radzinsky is overseeing the digging of the Swan Station. He is actually digging his own grave.

Super props to Lostpedia and DarkUFO for the screen caps as well.

No episode next week. Oh the withdraws!!

Champion!!

Congrats to Sawyer, our winner of the Field of 64! Enjoy some videos featuring the winner himself!

Consider this the weekly musical interlude as well!!

Dead Is Dead

“And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.”

That’s biblical man. So who is this man that comes riding into camp with his flowing locks? He quickly dismounts and goes off to confront Richard. Richard tells the man that he brought a boy that was dying to their temple. The man tells him that he should have let him die. Richard says that taking him to the temple was what Jacob wanted. This seems to quiet the equestrian douche bag. Richard also tells him “the island chooses who the island chooses“. The man goes in to see Ben. It would seem that when Richard said that Ben wouldn’t remember anything, he meant about the shooting. Ben remembers his father but says he doesn’t want to go back to Dharma. The man tells Ben "Just because you're living with them doesn't mean you can't be one of us". This is similar to Isabel telling Jack the meaning of his tattoo: "He walks amongst us, but he is not one of us". Ben asks the man who he is and of course he is Charles Widmore, the 1970’s version.



Wakey-Wakey, Eggs and Baccy!

That is not biblical. Back in 20007 Ben wakes up and sees Locke alive and seems surprised. He says that he is shocked to actually see Locke alive even though he expected it would happen. Locke asks Ben why he was trying to go to the main island and we get quite the explanation. Ben says he broke the rules and he came back to the island to answer for what he had done. He came back to the island to be judged. Dun Dun Dun! Locke asks who Ben is going to be judged by and Ben says they don’t have a word for it but that Locke calls it “the monster”. DUN DUN DUN!!

Et Tu Bug Eyes?

Ben approaches as the Ajira gang are doing something to a big metal crate that Illana says they have to move. Is Locke's coffin in there? What if the real Locke is still in there? Ben offers to help but they tell him they don’t need his help. Ben walks away after saying “Have a great day!” a funny but weird scene. Caesar walks up and has some questions for Ben concerning Locke. Ben tries to convince Caesar that Locke wasn’t on the plane. Ben is such a sneaky bastard! When Ben introduces himself to Caesar it seemed like Caesar might have known who Ben was. The two make an agreement to keep an eye on Locke. Caesar tells Ben he will have his back and shows Ben the sawed off shotgun that he has in his pack.

Does That Thing Come With A Chinstrap?

We flashback to a younger Ben who is wearing a horrible toupee. He is with Ethan and he approaches a campsite. He looks to be about ready to shoot someone when he hears a baby crying. As he is startled and looks around he knocks something onto the ground which is shown to be the music box that belongs to Danielle Rousseau. She asks Ben if he is the one that “infected” them. Then I think she cursed him out in French. Ben gathers up the baby and tells Rousseau that if she wants her baby to live and if she wants to live she will not follow him or try to find him. He also says that if she ever hears whispers she should run the other way. Very intriguing. Danielle had claimed to Sayid in Solitary that she had never seen any of the Others, though this could be attributed to the fact that she is insane. Also, the pillar of black smoke which Danielle claimed to have preceded Alex's kidnapping was not shown.

Office Space/Corporate Takeover

Ben is in his office going through some drawers and pulls out a picture of Alex and himself taken during happier times. Funny that neither of them are looking at the camera. Locke is enjoying his new found power over Ben, he tells Ben that running his people from an office seems a little too corporate for him. Then he puts his feet up on Ben’s desk, classic. Locke is letting Ben know that he is no longer in charge. Locke asks Ben why he killed him. Ben tells Locke that he had to die in order to get everyone back to the island. He had failed in his attempts and he was going to off himself anyway. Locke asks Ben why he didn’t just let him commit suicide? Ben goes on to tell John that he, John, had important information that Ben needed first. He killed Locke because he didn’t have time to talk him back into hanging himself. Great line. Ben tells Locke that he was doing what was best for the island. Locke tells Ben he was only hoping for an apology which Ben does not offer which seems to surprise Locke. Watch the smile fade from his face to fear. Or is it anger? A mixture of the two is my best guess. After all of this, Locke declares that he has decided to help Ben. Ben tells Locke that being judged is not something John wants to see. John tells Ben that if everything that Ben has done has been in the interest of the island then the monster will understand. At no point do I think Locke thought everything Ben has done has been in the best interest of the island. Locke wasn’t really into helping Ben as much as he was making sure Ben actually would be judged. I think Locke might have felt that Ben was going to be found guilty, not worthy, or however you want to describe it, and end up dead like Eko after he was judged by Smokey and he wanted to make sure it actually happened.

The Enemy Of My Enemy Is My Friend

And you have to make sure you say that with a really annoying accent. Just like Caesar has, or had. Caesar tries to stop Locke and Ben from taking one of the outriggers and heading to the main island. Notice Ben sort of screws with Locke for a second when he tells Caesar “He didn’t really give me a choice.” and Locke is like Huh? Locke stands up to Caesar and tells him that he is taking a boat and Caesar is not going to stop him. Caesar goes for his gun and Ben points it at Caesar and asks; “You looking for this?” and then shoots Caesar. Shocked the hell out of me I can tell you, I did not see that coming! Locke didn’t seem very surprised by it but what he did find surprising was Ben tossing him the shotgun and telling Locke to consider that his apology. My course of thinking here is Ben needed Locke to trust him again and the way to gain a mans trust, especially a man you had already killed once, was to save his life. We saw Ben purposefully putting Caesar on alert concerning Locke a couple of scenes ago. His line about Locke not really giving him a choice served to enforce the doubt and suspicion Caesar had for Locke. Knowing Caesar had the shotgun Ben was able to snatch it away before Caesar could use it against Locke. Would Caesar have shot Locke? Hard to say but one thing is for sure, Walt’s vision about people surrounding Locke on a beach wanting to hurt him came true. And unless Ben is a horrible shot, bye bye Caesar, who by the way, holds the title of “worst accent on the show ever” in my eyes. It was even worse than Paulo’s. I also liked how Ben served notice to the rest of the Ajira group when Ben went all Dirty Harry on them. “We’re taking a boat. Anybody else got a problem with that?” Notice that as Locke was packing his shoes before returning to the main island or his "home", if you will, he cleaned them off by banging the heels together three times prior to putting them in the bag. A really obscure Oz reference?

The Return Of The Lost Son

That’s biblical too, man. Ben and Locke arrive at the main island and Ben remarks; “Home Sweet Home”. Locke notices the other boat already docked there and Ben tells him it would be from Frank and Sun. Ben says “someone else” hurt his arm and Locke comments that Ben makes friends everywhere he goes. Ben reminds Locke that sometimes friends are more dangerous than enemies. The scenes in this episode between Locke and Ben were some of the duos best scenes they have had together. I like them better than most of the Locke/Jack scenes we have had in the past. Ben has to go to his house to summon the monster so he can be judged. Locke says that Ben is lying; that he doesn’t want to be judged for breaking the rules but rather he wants to be judged for killing his daughter. Ding Ding Ding!

Waiter, There’s A Child In My Soup

Ben returns to the others camp carrying baby Alex. Widmore is there eating soup wearing a hairpiece almost as horrible as Ben’s and asks Ben if he did it. Ben says there was a complication. Widmore says that Ben’s orders were to kill Danielle. Ben says he didn’t kill Danielle because she is not a threat to them and she is insane. Then Ben says that Charles had not told him about the baby to which Charles says Ben is to kill “it”. We sure do go back and forth between who is the bad guy and who is the good guy amongst the Others all the time, eh? Widmore reminds Ben that everything he has done has been in the best interest of the island. Ben asks if killing the baby is what Jacob would want. Again Charles is quieted by being asked about Jacob. I’m starting to think Widmore didn’t have a connection to Jacob, or at least not as strong of a connection as perhaps Richard or Ben did or does have. Ben offers up Alex to Widmore and tells him that if he wants the baby dead for Widmore to do it. Widmore chuckles and walks away. In a way, we know Widmore made good on Ben’s offer about 16 years later. Ben’s a happy papa and looks to Richard for approval.

There’s A Light Over At The Frankenstein Place

Locke continues to question Ben about some of his past actions concerning the Others. Specifically he asks about them moving into the barracks. Ben tells Locke that he has no idea what the island wants. Then a light comes on in Ben’s house. Ben says that it is Alex’s room where the light is coming from. Locke tells Ben he better go check it out. Don’t know if I like the “new” Locke as much as the “old” Locke. Ben walks into his house that he hasn’t been in for three years and it would seem everything is still as it was when he left. The Risk set that Hurley, Locke, and Sawyer were playing is still there as if they had just recently stopped playing. I for one was certain that it was going to be Alex’s ghost that was in Ben’s house. It turned out to be Sun and Lapidus is with her. Lapidus shows Ben the picture with Hurley and Kate in it from the 70’s. Ben says he didn’t know about them being in the Dharma Initiative. They go on to tell him about the “crazy old guy named Christian” that gave them the picture. He also told them that if Sun wanted to see her husband again she would have to wait for John Locke. Before they crash to commercial we are treated to a creepy/humorous wave from John Locke after Lapidus and Sun see that he is back from the dead.

Silence Is Golden

So how long did they all stand there looking at each other in silence. That was kinda funny. Frank wants to go back to the plane to be with the rest of Ajira and try to call for help. He doesn’t want to trust a murderer and a guy who can’t remember how he got out of a coffin. Locke tells Sun that he is the only help she will need to find her husband. Frank leaves and Locke reminds Ben that he has something to do before they can get to the business of finding Jin. Ben goes into his secret room where Ben went when he summoned the monster against the freighter goons last season. Ben goes further underground and he finds Smokey in a mud puddle? Huh? Ben turns something that seems to flush the mud puddle and after the water drains he says “I’ll be outside.”. I call shenanigans! That’s how Ben summons the smoke monster? Are you frigging kidding me? Why not some blood letting, some lit candles and some chants. That’s how you summon the smoke monster who is some sort of ancient judge, jury, and executioner? You just simply have to flush a toilet apparently. Seriously, I’m getting more annoyed by this the more I write about it. WTF? OK, moving on.

I’m Leaving On A Submarine, I don’t Know When I’ll Be Back Again

We are treated to a moment where Ben is pushing his daughter Alex on the swing set and Richard comes up to talk to Ben. Notice Richard is cordial to Alex, as if he is happy to have her with them. Richard tells Ben the sub is about to leave but that Ben doesn’t have to see them off. Ben says that he does. Widmore is being escorted to the sub in handcuffs as Ben arrives to say goodbye. Ben says that Widmore brought all of this on himself. Widmore asks Ben if this is really what he wants. Ben runs down a few things Widmore has done wrong which includes leaving the island regularly (something we thought Ben was also doing later on), having a daughter with an “Outsider”. Charles asks Ben what makes him think he deserves to take what is his. Ben tells him because he will do whatever it takes to protect the island. He won’t be selfish and he will sacrifice anything to protect the island. Widmore leaves with the warning that if the island wants Alex dead then she will be dead. Widmore claims that one day Ben will have to choose between his daughter, Alex, and the island. Which we know did happen and Ben chose the island over his daughter. Charles also tells Ben that if Ben is wrong, one day he will be standing where Widmore is now standing. He leaves as he tells Ben, “I’ll be seeing you, boy.”. Let’s interpret this scene a little bit. Widmore was the one who gave the order to kill Alex. Ben didn’t do it thinking that the island didn’t want Alex dead. Flash forward sixteen years and Alex is killed by men hired by Widmore. So did the island want her dead or is Widmore more powerful than the island? It's hard to believe that Widmore could be that powerful so I believe the island did in fact want her dead. Maybe, though, it wanted her dead exactly when she died, not when Widmore ordered it to be done. If you have a "to do" list and on it are dishes, wash the car, vacuum, go grocery shopping, and take out the garbage and you do all of them in that order. Now say it takes you longer than you would expect and you end up taking out the garbage after the trash men have already went by your house, then what? You did what you were supposed to do just not when you were supposed to do it. Maybe that’s how the island gives out its list of things it needs done. It doesn’t put a time stamp on it so it can be difficult to know when it wants certain things done. One thing we do know is that Widmore and Ben both were forced from the island for one thing or another but under different circumstances. Widmore was not doing what was in the best interest of the island and has never been able to find the island again in order to return. Ben has. Therefore I am confident in saying that although Ben’s actions or motives may have been questionable in the past, the island has allowed him back so it must not be all bad. Right?

Sometimes, Dead Is Better

Ben goes outside, like he said he would, after summoning the mud puddle monster and asks Sun where Locke is. She said he had to go do something. Sun suggests that Jack lied about Locke being dead but Ben assures her that John was most definitely dead. Then she asks Ben if he knew that Locke would come back to life if they brought him back to the island. He tells Sun that he had no idea it would happen. He says he has seen the island do some incredible things but never anything like this. “Dead is Dead” he tells Sun, “you don’t get to come back from that.”. He then says that the fact that Locke is walking around scares the living hell out of him. Ben tells Sun that she should go inside when Ben hears rustling in the jungle. He tells her that what is about to come out of the jungle is something he cannot control. Locke walks out of the jungle and ironically I think Ben was right about what he said even though he wasn’t talking about Locke because now Locke has all the answers and Ben doesn’t know dick. For those of you reading this in Canada, dick is the same as squattah. Ben says he doesn’t know where the monster but Locke tells him that he does. Locke assures Sun that although his situation is odd he is still the same man he used to be. John is getting a lot of pleasure from being the one that Ben has to follow now instead of the other way around.

Teaser

Now for the scene I was really looking forward to. Seeing what happened at the Marina. Ben calls Charles and tells him he is about to kill Penny. He also tells Charles he is going back to the island. I was touched that the name of the boat is “Our Mutual Friend”, the name of the book Desmond had with him for so many years. And they cut it short. Damn them!

Surely, This Must Be The Temple. No, It’s Not And Stop Calling Me Shirley

Ben has many questions for Locke who tells Ben that he doesn’t like the shoe being on the other foot. Sun interrupts their dick waving session and tells them they should keep moving. Ben says he knows where they are going. It was a place they took him when he was a child. He tells Locke that it was the place they took him to be healed. Locke says that they should hope it is as generous this time around. Zing! So that’s not the Temple, it is the wall around the Temple that was built to keep people like Sun and Locke out. Locke tells Ben they are not going into the Temple, they are going under it. Before Ben goes in he tells Sun that if she ever gets off of the island she is to find Desmond and tell him that Ben is sorry. She asks him for what and he says that he will know.

Oi! What You Doing Here Brutha?

We go back to the marina and Desmond sees Ben and asks him what he is doing there. Ben shoots Desmond and goes on to confront Penny. He begins to tell her about how terrible of a man her father is. She says that she has nothing to do with her father. Ben continues to tell her that Widmore killed his daughter. He is then interrupted by the appearance of Charlie Hume. Ben doesn't shoot Rousseau when he sees her child, Alex. He later doesn't shoot Penny when he sees her child. Can we cut this guy a break yet? He lowers his weapon as Desmond (nobody thought he was actually dead did they?) tackles Ben and gives him the whipping we saw that he had received way back in “316”. Nice camera and effects work when Ben is floating in the water with the blood flowing from his mouth. Nicely disturbing. Another connection to this scene is the appearance of Charlie Hume stops Ben from killing Penny, just as the appearance of a young boy stopped Sawyer from implementing one of his cons. Ahh see you didn't think of that one did you?

You Cryptic Bitch!

Lapidus makes it back to the Hydra island and is informed by a guy in a red shirt, (don’t you just love TPTB‘s sense of humor?), that Illana and some others have found guns and have put themselves in charge. Frank goes off to find them and they are still working on the metal crate thingy. The pull rifles on Frank and he asks what is going on. She responds by asking: “What lies in the shadows of the statue?” Say what now? Let's go back for a moment. Shortly after we met Caesar and Illana for the first time I thought that it was possible that Caesar had been on the island before. Perhaps he was one of the original Others and that Illana would be some easy kill fodder in an upcoming episode. Seems I was wrong about who would be kill fodder and possibly I was wrong about who was on the island before. Maybe Illana was. “What lies in the shadow of the statue?” sounds like some sort of security answer or even password. Something like “What did one snowman say to the other snowman?”. It’s not a Dharma security question it seems to be an Other’s security question. Or could it be something else entirely? Anyway, after seeing that Frank was not going to be able to answer their little riddle, Illana smashes Frank with the rifle, almost knocking him out. She tells her lackey to get everyone else and to tell them “it’s time”. She also instructs them to tie up Frank and that he is coming with them. Nightey night time for Frank.

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

Underneath the Temple, Ben tells Locke that he was right, that Ben is looking to be judged for killing Alex. Ben tells Locke that he can go on from there by himself. Ben crashes through the floor and John goes to look for something to get Ben out. Ben walks around and we see a crap load of hieroglyphics. There is a broken statue in a little niche in the wall and a really interesting carving on the wall. It would seem that Anubis is depicted in the carving and he is communicating or perhaps summoning the smoke monster. We hear Smokey in the grate (Cerberus vent?) and he starts to come out of the grate and fills the room slowly engulfing Ben. Smokey shows Ben his history with Alex. I for one feel that what he is shown hurts him more than actually dying would have. Unlike Eko, Ben is sorry for some of the things he has done and would like to ask for forgiveness. This showing of the need for forgiveness and repentance and is enough for the Smokey to allow Ben to live. But not before one last warning. Earlier, Ben gave his "Dead is dead" speech, explaining that he doesn't believe people can walk around after they die, even on the island. Now, right here in front of him, he sees his deceased daughter, Alex doing exactly that. Alex returns and Ben apologizes and tells her that it was all his fault. She says “I know” and grabs him and shoves him against a pillar. She tells him that she knows he already intends to kill Locke again and if he does she will hunt him down and kill him. Watch Ben’s face, he was going to try and kill Locke he has a shocked look as if to ask “How did you know?” He is then forced to declare allegiance to John Locke and that he will follow him and do everything he tells him to do. Alex leaves and Ben is an emotional mess. John returns with a vine to pull Ben out and he asks Ben what happened. Ben seems surprised to be able to say “It let me live.”.

Final Thoughts

Last week when I watched the preview for this episode I immediately thought “Uh oh, Ben’s last episode.” There’s a rampant rumor of a major death coming very soon and last night Caesar eating a bullet wouldn’t count as the major death to me. Ben dying would. Even throughout the episode I kept thinking “Wow, they really are going to kill Ben. His story is complete.”. But they didn’t, at least not yet. Ben’s story is told. He’s all done with flashbacks. We’ve seen all we need to see. So therefore the only thing left is he isn’t telling the truth when he said he would follow John Locke and do everything he said he would. Of course unless it is his destiny to die protecting Locke. But Ben got a stern warning from Alex/Smokey. Perhaps the threat of harm to Locke isn’t over yet for Ben. Either way, I don’t see Ben making through the rest of this season.

This episode was good. It wasn’t great and certainly not what I had hoped it would be. I think we have gotten all of the answers about Smokey that we are going to get. More of the story will come out as we get more info on the statue and what Anubis has to do with it all because it was definitely Anubis in the carving. Since Anubis is the Guardian of Death can Smokey be considered to work for or with Anubis? Is Smokey the souls of the dead? Spirits gathered together as one entity doing the job to either allow souls to continue on or to devour them. We see that when the spirits i.e. Yemi, Christian, Alex return they are not exactly as we or the people seeing them quite remember. The form was that of Alex and at the beginning of the conversation it was Alex but after slamming Ben up against the pillar it was Smokey. Do you see Alex hunting Ben down and killing him if he hurts Locke or do you see Smokey doing it? My other question is what is the deal with “What lies in the shadow of the statue?”? This is a code, but for what? When Ben called Widmore to tell him he was going back to the island did Charles contact Eloise and get the flight information as well? If so, does Widmore still have people he can call, like Illana, to gather together and also be on the plane? Since it was such short notice perhaps Widmore couldn’t arrange for all of the people to meet prior to the flight so “What lies in the shadow of the statue?” is the code in order to know who is in the group and who is not? That seems to make the most sense to me at this point. The biggest question still to be answered is who will be on the outrigger that finds Sawyer, Juliette, and the rest and begins shooting at them? Who does Juliette shoot? So many answers are yet to come.