Lost: Where We’re At
It’s been eight very long months, almost as long as a pregnancy, and we’ve been on the edges of our seats ever since the show ended. The season 3 finale was fantastic (you can read a 20-page analysis of it in my book... I had lots to say), and ended with such a “WHA?!” moment, jaws collectively dropped throughout the Lostverse. So... where are we at? OK, I could be here all day typing up again where we’re at, so instead I’ll just do some point forms, and if you watched the episode, you’ll remember what happened. If you didn’t watch it, you should check out season 3 before attempting season 4 (and watch seasons 1 and 2 before 3 if you didn’t... this show is REALLY complicated).

The characters have divided into 5 camps right now:
Jack, Kate, and most of them are at Rousseau’s tower to turn off the signal she’s been broadcasting for 16 years. Rousseau and her daughter Alex have just been reunited, and Daddy Ben has had the snot beaten out of him. Naomi’s been killed by Locke, and Jack has grabbed the sat phone to complete the rescue call, which they’ve been told has been sent from Penny Widmore, Desmond’s girlfriend. Ben is yelling that if he completes that call, it will be the beginning of the end, but Jack stubbornly makes it, and gets a response that help is on its way. The survivors are over the moon, thinking they’re about to be rescued.
Season 4 prediction: They won’t be rescued right away, and things are probably about to go all Lord of the Flies. The premiere is called “The Beginning of the End,” suggesting that Ben was right. However, given the nature of the flashforward – showing that in April 2007 Jack and Kate will have been rescued and Jack will want to return to the island – we know there WILL be a rescue, it’s just a matter of when.

Sayid, Bernard, Jin, Sawyer, Juliet, and Hurley are all on the beach right now. The first three were left behind to ambush the Others who were coming to kidnap the women, but considering they had the combined military experience of, well, SAYID, it didn’t go as planned. Juliet and Sawyer had doubled back to find out how things were going. But just as they were lined up by the Others to be killed, Hurley appeared in the VW van, mowing down one of them, while the others helped kill the rest, including Sawyer shooting Tom point blank.
Season 4 prediction: They’ll continue to be separated from the rest of the survivors, but could be a big help by being separated.

Desmond and Charlie are in the underground hatch to stop the jamming frequency. Mikhail set off a grenade in the room Charlie was in, causing it to implode and Charlie drowned, but right before he died he received a transmission from Penny, who knew nothing of the impending rescue mission. He wrote “Not Penny’s Boat” on his hand, giving Desmond a new mission.
Season 4 prediction: Desmond will have to make his way to the beach to let the gang know that it’s not Penny’s boat, and then the whole gang will have to try to get to the rest to let them know, but it’ll be too late. Desmond’s fortune-telling will probably come in handy.

Locke has broken away from the rest of the group, and is on a spiritual journey at this point. He’s been shot in the gut by Ben, who left him for dead, but prompted by a vision of Walt, he’s risen from the grave and shown up to Rousseau’s tower just in time to throw a knife into Naomi’s back, warn Jack about picking up the phone, hold a gun to Jack’s head, and then lumber back into the jungle. When Ben sees Locke come out of the jungle in the first place, his jaw drops. He never thought Locke would rise up, and now probably sees him as some sort of Messiah, which he’d heretofore thought was his position.
Season 4 prediction: Locke will find out more about Jacob, that mysterious invisible man in the woods, and might join forces with Ben somehow, with Ben being his inferior.

The rest of the Others are in the jungle on their way to some old ruins, which is where Ben’s sent them. Their numbers are depleted, with Mikhail, Greta, Bonnie, Tom, Ivan, Diane, Juliet, Karl, Alex, Danny, Jason, and two others gone, and they’re currently being led by Richard Alpert. Problem is, Nestor Carbonell, who plays Richard, left the show for NBC’s Cane, which prevented him from appearing on Lost, word has it. So it’s not clear how they’ll be led, or what will happen to Richard’s character.
Season 4 Prediction: The old ruins will include the four-toed statue, and we’ll FINALLY find out something more about that.

This season will also include several flashforwards as well as flashbacks, so the time spectrum will be even wider. I’m looking forward to guessing if we’re in the past, present, or future with each episode. It’s going to be a wild ride! See y’all tomorrow to discuss.