Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Lost 6.08 "Recon"

“Take me to your leader.”

This had SUCH a great opening, echoing the first Sawyer flashback we saw with the briefcase full of money, and for a second we think, “Aw... poor Sawyer’s going to be the same vengeful schmuck in every reality, and... oh my god, what? He’s a COP?!” Much like last season’s “LaFleur,” this was a great episode that acted as the bridge from the first half of the season to the second.

Which then reminds me that this season is half over. ACK!! Sadness...

Highlights:
• The switcheroo at the beginning.
• “LaFleur.” Hahaha!
• Miles as the partner!! They’re Sawyersky and Mutch!!
• Anthony Cooper!! For a second I thought he was so close and hung up on the lead before he could figure it out... but then he thankfully dialled the number of another Cooper.
• I loved the way Terry O’Quinn delivered the line, “And I don’t wanna be killed.” Smokey’s #1 priority is self-preservation.
• Charlotte! Interesting that she and Sawyer barely had any contact in the other timeline. They were part of the same group trekking across the island, but I barely remember any conversation between the two of them.
• Charlotte’s hair. That was pretty fantastic. She looked amazing.
• Not-Locke to Claire after Claire almost sliced Kate’s throat open: “This is completely inappropriate.” HAHA!! That just seemed like the most bizarro-world line ever to me. Loved it.
• Liam!!! I was so excited to see him. I named my kid after him, you know. (Kidding.) I just know we’re going to see Chah-lie again!
• Kate: “That’s very insightful, coming from a dead man.” Locke: “Mmm. Nobody’s perfect.” GREAT line.
• Not-Locke talking about his mother. It’s like there’s really a heart somewhere in there. They’re certainly making him a more sympathetic character than we previously thought, despite everything. I wonder if he was drawn to John Locke because his mother was crazy, too.
• Charlotte calling Jim’s apology gift a “sad sunflower.”
• Kate’s car slamming into the back of Sawyer’s. Ack!
• “Freckles”!! I was so happy to hear him say that.

Answers, or... References to Answers:
• When Widmore said it was sad how much Sawyer didn’t know about the island, I thought, “oh YES he’s going to pull up a chair and tell us some background... PLEASE.” Sigh. Nope.

Did You Notice?:
• There was no “Previously on...” They must have thought this episode was OK to watch for newbies. (Har.)
• So a couple of weeks ago when people were wondering what had happened to Jin and Sawyer, we were joking they hey, maybe Not-Locke just puts them all in one spot... and... he did!
• Island Sawyer looked really haggard and a lot older, and then Sideways Sawyer looked a lot fresher and younger. Well done to both Josh and the makeup and lighting crew for pulling that off.
• Sideways Jim doesn’t seem to use nicknames for people, but did you notice his mark called him “Dimples”? Ha!
• No Claire... NO! Don’t pull back that sheet, don’t you DARE pull back... oh good god. Nightmares again for me tonight.
• Kate could have been a tiny bit more sympathetic when seeing creepy horrible nightmare-inducing shudderific please-make-it-stop awful baby, rather than just saying, “What is THAT?” Although... I’ll admit when I first saw it my response was, “OMFG what the $#@! is THAT?!” So...
• Not-Locke told the group that Smokey killed the people in the Temple as if he wasn’t actually Smokey. Guess he thought that might mar their trust in him a little bit.
• I couldn’t help but think, when Claire grabbed Kate’s hand as if she were a child that the confused look on Kate’s face was, “CRAP... do I have to raise TWO Littletons now?”
• Miles seemed less like a professional partner and more like a life partner in this episode. “You know you can tell me the truth about anything.” “Are you lying to me?” “I checked your credit card statements, baby. Have you been cheating on me?!”
• The books on Jim’s dresser were Watership Down, A Wrinkle in Time, and Lancelot, all books he was reading in season 1.
• You know, Charlotte might have been innocently looking for a t-shirt, but she really appeared to be looking for something, like she knew that binder was there and it was what she’d been seeking. Then again, it could have just been her curious, archaeologist nature that found something during her “dig” and she couldn’t help but look at it.
• I’m pretty sure in the other world Sawyer’s parents died when he was 8, but here he’s 9. I could be wrong about that, though.
• I kind of thought Kate’s dress from season 3 should have been in much worse shape having laid outside in the rain and muck for three years...
• Sayid scared me. I’m so incredibly sad about him.
• The flies hovering over the corpses were really REALLY bad CGI.
• ZOMG, Tina Fey’s on the island!!
• James looks in the mirror at himself just like so many characters have done throughout the series (think Through the Looking-Glass) and then smashes it. Just like Jack smashed all the mirrors in the Lighthouse.
• Sawyer says to Tina Fey, “God’s got nuthin’ to do with it.” This echoes Ben talking to Locke in S2 in the armoury when he told him, “God doesn’t care about this place.”
• Kate does not take Not-Locke’s outstretched hand when he offers it.
• I couldn’t help but think that when Sawyer and Tina Fey were pushing out that pontoon boat they were going to end up shooting at the time-jumping people from season 5. I’m assuming that will eventually be her people.
• Man, just as I’m thinking, “GOD, Liz Lemon, you ask SO many questions you’re as annoying as this other character who – sadly – shares my name and... oh. She’s a bad guy. Whew. Now it’s OK for me to dislike her.”
• Holy CRAP, is the one guy holding the gigantic gun Chip from Kate & Allie? I think he also played Schillinger’s son on Oz.
• When Not-Locke says, “Now Aaron has a crazy mother, too,” he seemed very child-like, like he was another kid saying that. I’m starting to wonder if Not-Locke wasn’t actually a man when he was turned into whatever he was, but was actually a child, and never reached a maturity level to deal with his issues. Think of how children are just giant bundles of emotions and they feel things so much more than we do, and can’t express them so they just lash out... just like Smokey.
• Aw... Laura Ingalls in her Sunday best! Oh how I used to love Little House on the Prairie... what was that episode? Did she lose her dog or something? I think I actually remember her all dressed up like that for some reason.
• James brings the giant flower to Charlotte the same way he brought one to Juliet in “LaFleur.”
• Not only is Tina Fey on the island, but Vic Mackey is the guard at the bottom of the sub ladder. Dude.
• So... OK. Widmore’s been trying to get back to the island for over 20 years and now that he’s here he’s just sitting on a sub jotting notes, and not running naked with unabashed glee through the jungle? (OK, I can’t say I’m not THANKFUL that that’s not the case, but you’d think he’d be a little giddier about finally returning.)
• Sawyer tells Widmore not to touch a hair on the heads of any of his friends. He said the same thing to Locke in S4 when Locke took off with Ben and Hurley in “Cabin Fever,” and he threatened to kill Locke if he touched one hair on Hugo’s head.
• I was so scared Claire was going to grab Kate’s gun (she had one arm on it when she hugged her) so I couldn’t completely enjoy the moment, but watching it again I think Claire was sincere. And that makes me SO happy, because I really want Claire to be OK and for Kate to be able to take her back and see her son. And maybe Kate can remain an important part of his life.
• When Not-Locke says, “That’s terrible” after Sawyer tells him that all of the people on the other island are dead, I didn’t believe that for a second. He knows how they died.

Hurley’s Numbers
The number on the bottom of the Ajira wing had a 48 in it.

So Many Questions...
• So... were the other cops sitting outside while the bug was in the room listening to James have sex with the mark? Um... awkward?
• The brass plate on Miles’s desk says “Miles Straume.” Considering his father’s name was “Chang,” fans just assumed he went by “Straume” because it was his mother’s name. BUT he said that Charlotte “works with my dad at the museum,” so it would seem he and Pierre Chang are still together (unless by “dad” he’s referring to a stepfather). Why the different name?
• Is Not-Locke telling the truth when he says Sawyer is the best liar he’s ever met? Because during the rewatch, we noticed that Sawyer was actually a bit of a crap liar. Almost every character saw through him at some point.
• So wait... did Smokey bring people with Serious Daddy/Mommy Issues to the island? Is that something that is required of a Candidate?
• What’s in the locked room on the sub?
• Kate says they’re eating rabbit. Could it be one of Ben’s? Is it a reference to Watership Down, that in season 1 they were all like the little bunnies far from home, but now they’re eating those bunnies and this world is SO much more complicated than anything from that book?

Next week: THE EPISODE I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR!!!!! The origin of Richard Alpert’s eyeliner!



And finally, PLEASE please go and click on Chris Temple’s idea every day until March 31. He’s one of the regulars over here, it’s a great idea, and I want to show that Lost fans can help make a difference. All of the details are here.

198 comments:

ARTAR said...

my favorite episode of the season! great opening scene! love miles as always! good usage of charlotte. Flocke smacking claire...ow!

most compelling flash sideways for me so far!

sawyer remembers kate from 815 landing. why didnt he do anything if hes a detective. he helped her getaway!?


im going to read rest of your post where you probably ask rest of my questions so ill come back for any unanswered!

Benny said...

Who's Sawyer?

IN THE FLASH-SIDEWAYS

James is still the ladies man... but a COP? What a turn of fate! Is that a sign of what's to come for Sawyer by the end of the episode... or at leas season?

Boss and Enos; this is really brining us back to the days in Dharmaville in the 70s doesn't in?

James seems to be on the track of Anthony Cooper. Evidence would be his phone call, his 'forgotten weekend' and the thick file in his drawer. Unfortunately he is still hiding much from his friends. When James tells Miles about that time in his life, one wonders if the letter had anything to do with it. But his goal remains the same, the method has changed. This again only adds to the confusion as to what sides Sawyer lies on. He chose the 'right' path but with the same 'evil' purpose at the end of his quest.

While Sawyer looks at himself in the mirror, he also smashes it. While it could only represent anger, it could be symbolic, a broken looking glass; as opposed to the intact ones the others have looked at. This reinforces the confusion about Sayer's character and where he'll end up... for Jacob, with Locke, allied with Widmore?

His visit to Charlotte may suggest that his true sideway-self has changed and that he's had the proper allegiances on the island. But then again his talk with Miles reinforces his intentions ("I'm gonna kill him").
Miles "Who's Sawyer?" is really the telling point this week, but rather who is Sawyer WITH?

His catch of Kate is only heightened when you consider he helped her get away at the airport!
His "son of a bitch" also has a different tone, happy rather than anger.

It's interesting how Charlotte was a former friend of Miles that Sawyer didn't know, just as they knew each other prior to their arrival on the island.
Notice Watership Down on the dresser.
Also, a quick appearance by Liam Pace. It looks like Charlie wasn't in Australia to see his brother, or Liam got in REALLY fast.

(cont'd)

ARTAR said...

im sure too many of us are waiting for richard episode!

loved flash sideways sawyers bookshelf as well.

please tell me Des is on the sub!

id love to see the videos Miles dad makes for the museum!

how did zoe give herself away to sawyer. i mustve dozed for a sec.

Benny said...

(cont'd)

ON THE ISLAND

It's interesting that the Temple survivors are not aware that Locke is the smoke monster. He gave them the warning to join him or die. And now he tells them that the black smoke killed everyone without letting know that he is in fact the black smoke, or at least with him. He is perpetrating a lie for his own personal purpose.

To me, Locke is an outright liar while Jacob is rather deceiving while not quite lying.

Interestingly though, Locke is directly honest with Sawyer. A different trust though Sawyer has not outright been claimed.
I also found it nice that Sawyer did care for Miles when he asks Kate about him, indicative of the long term relationship that's evolved over three years, and in the flash-sideways.

A hint of what may become of Sawyer is his "I'm not with anyone."
By this point, we're not even sure who he's with and what will become of him. His alliance with Widmore is even more indicative of that, given that we don't know who Widmore is with -- he's not big on Ben, but used to follow Jacob. Now he seems to be against Locke? Ben and Widmore seem to be two sides of Jacob's army by now.
But Sawyer thinks big, and is always running a greater con, planning letting them fight it out and use the sub... now the question is where does that leave the rest (Jack, Hurley, Sun and Jin (though he promised Jin)?

Anyone thinking that Desmond may be in that locked cabin on the sub?

While Locke is talking to Kate, it's hard to understand whether he's talking as Locke (Emily was crazy) or as the smoke monster (before I was this). Whoever he was, was his mother crazy?


IN THE END, it seems Sawyer really isn't with anyone, he's his own man. While his intentions in the real world remain to kill Anthony Cooper, the path he has chosen has been altered, siding with the law in his quest rather than running from it. On the island, his goal remains to get off the island, his allegiance are irrelevant in his quest for freedom.

NEXT WEEK Ab Aeterno (since the beginning) is the story of Richard, how exciting!


Notes:
Did anyone else think that the squirrel-aaron looked like Alf?
PS - kudos to Sheila Kelley (Zoe) who played Debbie Hunt in Singles.

Benny said...

@Nikki: That indeed was Schillinger’s son. That's really all I can see whenever I see him on screen.

And if you need help with the squirrel baby, I thought it looked like Alf a little bit!

@ARTAR: It was her pause about Guam and the no pause about visiting her boyfriend. She knew the purpose of her trip but did not remember where? Tipped!

Marebabe said...

This was an episode of surprises and delights! Too many to mention, really. But Sawyer and Miles as cop partners, detectives no less. Hoo-Lawd! Just like in the Dharma days only better! Can I get an Amen?! And wonderful details were sprinkled over all, like yummy delicious SPRINKLES! (Can you tell I loved this episode?) Charlotte, “Watership Down”, “Little House”, rabbit for supper, Kate’s little sundress with the coral flowers... I feel like the writers crafted this episode as a love letter/thank-you note to the fans, meaning we who instantly recognized all the tiny-but-wonderful references to past seasons of LOST. Those things were not forgotten, but infused with (even more) meaning and importance.

NotLocke to Sawyer: “You’re the best liar I ever met.” Whoa! That’s an amazing statement, considering that the one speaking also knows Ben Linus extremely well. Take a bow, Sawyer.

I wonder if Claire is suddenly sane again. I’m sure Kate wonders that too. And I’ll tell ya, I’m really starting to wonder (even more) about the whole good guy/evil guy thing regarding FrankenLocke. (Doc Jensen gave me that one. Thanks, Doc!) Old Smokey has the sincere thing down to a science. (Or an art?) When he looks me in the eye and speaks promises and words of comfort and hope, I want to believe him.

And who the hell is Zoe? I feel like Sawyer when he used to say, “Who the hell are Nikki and Paulo?” I guess I’m just amazed that they’re still introducing characters this late in the game. Maybe she’ll be dead before the first commercial break next week. (I think it would be hilarious if I’m being prophetic here.)

Rebecca T. said...

I enjoyed the episode while I was watching it, but felt slightly underwhelmed when it was over. There was so much random stuff left hanging for no apparent reason, especially in AlternaWorld. ah well, they can't all be Dr. Linuses

@Nikki: I wonder if he was drawn to John Locke because his mother was crazy, too.

I wondered the exact same thing.

How DO you kill Smokey? I mean, it doesn't seem like you could just walk up and stab him in the chest.

I was not happy to see Charlotte again. Ghk. Didn't realize how happy I was that she had died until I saw her again. I would have preferred pretty much anybody else. Except maybe she-who-must-not-be-named of course.

And she was most definitely digging through his drawers looking for something. Really. It was too frantic and hurried.

My sister and I noticed that Sawyer was totally rocking the Richard look - the same blue shirt with the same rolled up sleeves, the same man bag slung across his body. A little eyeliner....

And I'm sorry, I just did NOT buy Sawyer watching Little House on the Prairie. I don't know why, but that whole scene just seemed SO artificial. (says a girl who totally buys into time travel, smoke monster men and bug-eyed crazies being redeemed)

Did you notice that Claire's eyes were clearer in that last scene with Kate? Is it possible that discovering that Aaron is safe and alive might actually be helping her to return to sanity? Or was it just distance from Smokey? Or is it just another moment of her insanity.

Unknown said...

@Nikki: I’m starting to wonder if Not-Locke wasn’t actually a man when he was turned into whatever he was, but was actually a child, and never reached a maturity level to deal with his issues. I don't know why, but when you said this all I could think of was the kid NotLocke saw with blood all over. Was that himself? I know most people thought he was Jacob or something, and I don't remember if anyone thought it was himself. Before he became the smoke monster.

Ergh... There is still so much we don't know! I feel like this episode didn't GO anywhere. But it looks like next week is going to be a good one.

Oh, and I love where Sawyer says: "forgot my manners," made me laugh out loud.

ARTAR said...

@benny.

i too think des is on the sub. but hopefully not locked up. hopefully widmore was nice enough to give him some mackutcheon if thats the case

Unknown said...

@sonshine (says a girl who totally buys into time travel, smoke monster men and bug-eyed crazies being redeemed) Ahahahaha... I know. what is wrong with us?

Marebabe said...

There was another instance of Hurley's numbers. At the beginning, Sawyer's mark looked at the clock and noted that the time was 8:42.

Justin Mohareb said...

Numbers: He woke up at 8:42

sc465 said...

Ok, I've been lurking on this site FOREVER. I swear I know all you by name.

What's striking to me about this season is how often key phrases are repeated or tweaked. A couple from this episode:

1. "A deal's a deal:" Ben/Gale says this to Michael about not hurting his friends. Michael says it to Kate about giving a spot on the boat to Sawyer in Born to Run.

2. "I don't need saving:" Juliet tells Jack "we didn't need saving" in WHH, Sawyer tells Kate "my life don't need saving" in I Do.

3. "I ain't with anybody Kate:" In LA X Sawyer says "I ain't following nobody Kate."

That's all. Keep up the good work, everyone!

Verification word: angra - how angry I will be if much of the upcoming action happens on hydra, keeping everyone split up.

Unknown said...

i think the theory that the flash sideways is life as it is without Jacob has more support from this episode.

If Jacob never existed, he was never there to give Sawyer the pen at his parent's funeral, so he never writes the letter. Becomes a cop, but still carries around the hate and desire to kill "Sawyer." It's like he cant avoid his destiny, but in the end he will still have a choice.

Anonymous said...

@Artar: I thought that Zoe was dead obvious when she asked twice how many friends Sawyer had back on the main island, and if they had a lot of guns...

Did anyone else think that the bunch of guys who appeared from the bushes with guns trained on Sawyer seemed a little young? I thought they looked like a group of high-schoolers.


And yes, Nikki, Charlotte seemed to be looking for something in particular in Sawyer's dresser... if so, the blind date was presumably a set-up on her part.

JS said...

Sadly, I have only seen the second half of the episode so I am missing context here.

@Nikki - great recap. Everything I wrote down for the part of the episode I DID see was in there.

Anyone think Miles' gf might be Naomi?

So, Kate has a point about no one being able to fly the plane, but I am assuming there is no "submarine-ing for dummies" in Widmore's desk. Maybe they will kidnap the captain.

As you have mentioned previously, Nikki, Smokey is put off by the sonic waves, but for some reason doesn't go above them. Is Widmore setting some sort of trap for him and will use that as his "cage"?

Did Sawyer notice that that was the runway he was building with Kate, under Juliet's gun so long ago?

Matt Roeser said...

here's hoping eloise hawking, desmond, penny, and brother campbell are ALL in that locked room on widmore's sub...i mean when they open that door, i just want them all to pile out of there like a freaking clown car...maybe even the guy that was wearing the red shoes!

Anonymous said...

I thought Charlotte was looking for a t-shirt, since there didn't seem to be any in that drawer.

I wonder if Locke's crazy mother is a clue. Someone from classical literature/antiquity/history/Egyptology who was crazy (Medea?)

I have a horrible suspicion that Richard doesn't know as much as we hope he knows. But I want to know what he does know.

I'm confused as to whether FauxLocke is a spiritual creature (like being able to take the appearance of the dead and be a tornado of smoke) or a science creature (being controlled by sonic towers.)

If given a choice between trusting Widmore and trusting Smokey, I'm going with Smokey.

Benny said...

@Michael: I disagree. The letter said nothing about becoming a conman. It said that he would hunt and kill Sawyer. He still has the same objective, how he planned on achieving it is what's different.

In what we saw tonight, James chose to be a cop in his search for Cooper. We have known him to have chosen to 'become' Sawyer. I don't see the two having connection to Jacob since in both cases he plans on killing Cooper, which was the point of the letter.

Jacob talked to everyone at defining moments in their lives (Hurley and Sayid post 815). These moments still appear to ahve played a significant role in who they've become. I still doubt that this is world without Jacob.

Rather I see it as a world without Jacob's nemesis or without the island, and therefore Jacob no longer has a role for them, at least not the same role. It could be a world with neither as well.

Just as I see it...

Anonymous said...

LOVED LOVED LOOOOVED This episode many of your points were exactly what I was thinking... though I must point out Sawyer also told Tom friendly in the season 2 episode The Hunting party to not touch a hair in Kate's head :D I'm a HUGE skate fan and I must say I really hope they do end up together and what happens in the flas sideways as well

JS said...

Who is the MiB's mother?

Is it a real mother or is it some mystical god-like mother? Should we be thinking about Greek or Egyptian mythology? Any crazy mother's in those?

How can Smokey have been a real person and then become Smokey?

Who is Smokey's father? How was he created (when a man and a smoke mother really love each other....?)

Benny said...

@redeem147: that's also what I thought with Claire looking through the drawer.

there doesn't seem to be enough time to introduce this kind of intrigue in this world with 8 episodes left. They are focusing on connections between the characters. Their role in the past 5 seasons should mostly dictate their role in the flash-sideways, I think.

JS said...

@redeem147 - we are psychically connected. I think we were typing at the same time!

Anonymous said...

Loved all the tie-ins between on and off-island and the new character connections!

@NikkI -Thanks for voicing that you found Zoe/Liz Lemon annoying! (But my first comparison was Sarah Palin!) I thought the same thing! I couldn't decide if she was legit or not! Why would the writers introduce another unknown so late in the game? Was it going to be another N&P? I was so relieved when she turned out to be basically unimportant, basically just a vehicle to get Sawyer and Widmore together, cuz damn, she was getting on my nerves! @Marebabe - I sure hope she doesn't become a real character and that your prophecy is true!

So who is Miles' girlfriend?! Naomi? Juliet?

I wasn't expecting Charlotte as the date - she was stunning allbeit a little bitchy!

@Sonshine - yeah, I thought Claire didn't look so crazy anymore during the hug although I was a tad tense at first and was looking for hidden weapons! And Sawyer is tough on the outside but with a soft, sensitive core so I can kinda see him digging Laura Ingalls, but of course he would never admit it!

That's where the round-faced guy was from - Kate & Allie! Great memory, NIkki!

MattWilliams said...

No matter what reality Sawyer's in, he still gets action. Ha-ha


@SonshineMusic
Doesn't Sawyer previously make a comment about Laura Ingalls (Little House on the Prairie) in an earlier season? I want to say he does, to Kate. But I'm not 100% sure.

As for this episode, I really enjoyed it. I agree that it was one for the fans. revisiting the Hydra Station. Liam looking for his brother (CHARLIE!!!). and other stuff that I think many people have already stated.

Their's only a few things that have me worried. Sawyer smashing the mirrior. The fact that it was in the flash-sideways is why it scares me. Since most characters that look in a mirrior seem to have some sort of revelation (like a lightbulb just went off on top of there head). And the fact that he just smashed his.

In all honesty though, I prefer Sawyer's side. That is the lack of either side. Because until last weeks episode (Dr. Linus), Jacob's started to appear more and more manipulative. It's not even him thats really convinced me he's the "good" guy (Or on the side that is attempting to do right)
It's the people on Jacob's side that I find to be more trustworthy, that is their the ones who are trying to do the right thing now.

Side-Note: I secretly wanted the Losties to re-group back together and work as more of a team. That is really trust eachother and some how overcome Jacob and Flocke.

It's odd that in Season 1, Sawyer didn't want to get rescued. And actually neither did Locke. I don't know which one was the first to come out and admit it, but thats another discussion. Anyways now Sawyer really wants to get off the island and he's telling Jin and Kate that their coming too.

Sounds a lot like S1 Jack (along with S2, S3, and on island S4). Which is interesting to see. And after Sayid's "Turn to the Darkside" and the way he held himself in this one...I'm getting awefully worried about Sawyer.

He's character had made SOME big changes in the flash-sideways but he ultimate goal was still the same. He was still obsessed with finding Anthony Cooper. And Sayid didn't change in the fs, and things didnt go to well for him on the island.

I hope Sawyer pulls a fast one on us for the better in the episodes to come. He can be our Deus Ex Machina. Though thats probably saved for Dezzy and Walt. Whom we're still waiting to see (and possibly hear from).

oh, and just so I can go on record for being psyched about this too... RICHARD FLASHBACK!!!

Marebabe said...

Mkay. Having been a Little House fan since third grade when I first read the books, I feel that it is incumbent upon me to address these assorted Little House comments. First of all, Nikki, Laura’s pretty blue dress and hair ribbons were simply her Sunday best, which she wore for every dress-up occasion until she outgrew the dress. Her sister, Mary, had a dress just like it, made of the same fabric.

@Sonshine: Regarding Sawyer voluntarily watching such a sentimental show, remember that he watched it often when he was a kid, stuck at home for a couple months with mono. Not a lot of choice, so he watched whatever was on. We’re not sure how much he really LIKED the show, but I imagine that in this episode, when he was home alone with his nuked entrée and bare apartment, he did a little channel-surfing until he found a rerun he remembered from his younger days, and he stayed with it for a bit.

And TiaSabita: Sawyer actually did admit that he watched the show, to Kate. She laughed at him for calling it “Little House”, and that’s when we got the brief history of his long bout with mono and how he came to watch so much of the show.

DavidB226Morris said...

More and more evidence seems to suggest that without Jacob's touch everybodyy's life would be a lot better. Detective James Ford seems to still be on a mission to exact revence, but he seems to be a better man.

Sawyer has always been the wild card in the deck; torn between good and evil, never set on one side or the other. The difference is after Sawyer killed Cooper, he slowly became a better man? If Det. Ford finds the real Cooper and exacts his revenge (and for all we know, that Cooper isn't Locke's father) will he undergo a similar change?

Will somebody please tell me who the hell LaFleur is and what is he to Sawyer? There's gotta be some hidden meaning in that name, and we just don't know.

I really hope that Desmond isn't in the locked room. I really wanted him to get out of that craziness, and every inclination seemed to be that way. Remember that there's an episode titled Happily Ever After coming up? I haven't seen any spoilers (and for God's sake don't tell me) but I have a feeling that it's going to be Desmond-centric, and it's not gonna have a happy ending.

Next week, we finally get the much awaited Richard centered episode. We'd better get some real answers as to what he knows.

BTW, in the Dark Tower Series (which I still believe is integral to Lost, and will get back to soon enough) Roland's major nemesis for the saga is Randall Flagg. One of his aliases is the Ageless Stranger. Sound like anyone we know?

Let's hope I get this one posted

Austin Gorton said...

I think this was the first episode of the season where I found the flash sideways story
more interesting than the island story. Which is probably why, by the end, I felt a little let down. Neither story seemed to advance much. Lots of cool moments and some interesting developments, but nothing outstanding. I guess I'm with sonshineMusic; the last ep IS a tough act to follow.

More later...

Fred said...

Sorry Nikki, but the reveal that Sawyer was a cop, wasn't too much of a surprise. Loved it though, and the reprise of Sawyer with Miles was cool. The sheriff is back in town!

@ DavidB226Morris: Right, without Jacob's touch James Ford did make the right decision. As a young boy he could not write the letter, and who knows but his uncle may have lived and taken care of the boy. Perhaps, his uncle was called LaFleur--his uncle needn't be his father's brother. And I was thinking the same thing, was Desmond in the locked room. There had better not be another Smokie in there. Desmond seems a good bet.

I also half expect when Widmore and Locke do meet, they'll be friends. The question hinges on who killed the remaining Ajira passengers. One idea is it was Bram and Ilana's group--since the rest are not candidates, just eliminate them. But then, Locke told Richard to deal with the people on the Hydra Island from the plane. Deal with meant to kill them. Widmore would have had enough time to arrive and kill off the passengers. I am torn until further information comes out, but if it was Ilana and Bram, what does that say about Jacob?

Once again characters from the island meet in LA X, and then as quickly separate. Liam meets James Ford, and is bruished off. Kate runs into Miles and Ford, and then is captured, to be turned over to the Marshall. Charlotte appears, then vanishes back into the background after an unsuccessful date with James (much reminiscent of Sayid and Ilana). And we get that mirror reflection of James in this world, except he destroys the mirror, much like Jack in the Lighthouse. Was Jacob watching from another reality?

Once again Locke draws from dead-Locke for the story of his insane mother. I've always thought that Smokie borrows memories and acquires them as his won from other people. In assuming the form of Locke, he's acquired Locke's memories and also is assuming his personality.

@SonshineMusic: The whole pint of that Little House on the Prairie scene was to tell us/and Ford to simply let it go. That's a message Christian always gave Jack, and now it is being given to James.

One line form last week fits here. Sideways Locke says to Ben, "If the man in charge doesn't care, then you should replace him." Well, who on the island doesn't care? MiB is the answer. So have we got it all wrong, and MiB is really the one in charge, and Jacob is just refusing to let him go, to find a replacement. But that was weird about him not wanting to die. If he could have died, then why didn't Jacob or anyone at the Temple do it long ago?

The dead on Hydra was reminiscent of the Purge. All collected in one place, and probably killed out of the blue. Again who organized it? Was the Purge ordered by Jacob?

Erin {pughs' news} said...

Oh hallelujah! Sawyer is alive and well! I've been worrying about him (oh, and Jin of course...) for weeks.

But Nikki, when you remind us that it's the bridge between the first and second half of the season and the season is half over? HEARTBREAK!

I loved the scene with Little House. Sawyer told Kate once about how he used to watch it as a kid. Shows his sensitive side.

I clapped when Sawyer called Kate freckles. A giddy, happy little clap. Oh I hope these two can find happiness together...

How is it that Widmore was finally able to find the island himself and go there? Has HE found a loophole? (and I totally agree with you, Nikki, about him just hanging out and making notes on the sub- WHAT is up with that?)

Can't wait for next week. All about Richard! Hurrah!

The Question Mark said...

@DAVIDB226MORRIS: I loved the Dark Tower series! I too think the plot/conclusion of Roland's story is gonna have something to do with the show, in some way shape or form.

@TIASABITA: If Naomi turned out to be Miles' girlfriend, that would be sweetly and awesomely poetic. It would explain how he knows Charlotte (she's one of Naomi's friends from England, perchance).
NAOMI: "Hey, Miles, your partner is cute. Let's set him up with Charlotte, lord knows she needs a man to take her mind off digging."
MILES: Good idea, babe. Now keep talking. I dig your accent!

@NIKKI: If Smokey really IS a kid, then it gives credit to the theory that the little blond boy in tje jungle is himself.

Didn't Charlotte look amazing?! I loved the Sawyer/Miles partnership. It was a nice callback to "LaFleur", and they reminded me a little of Riggs & Murtaugh from Lethal Weapon. But that whole scene where Kate struggles with Claire, and then Locke hits Claire, and Sayid just watches and sighs heavily wa one of the most intense scenes this season! Loved it!

The Question Mark said...

Oh, by the way...when the woman (Kate) in the hood got out of the car and started running away at the end of the episode, was anybody else hoping (PRAYING) that it would be Ana Lucia?

VW: REPROBA -when aliens come back for seconds.

DW said...

I think Saywer let Kate go in the airport because he was supposed to be in Palm Springs. If he'd arrested her, Miles would have known he was in Sydney.

Loved Miles' and Sawyer's repartee. Loved turning a few of the shirtless Sawyer cliches on their head (while still retaining the eye candy--does he rub baby oil?).

Agree that Charlotte was looking for something in that drawer.

If Ben was on Jacob's side, then Widmore and Smokey should be aligned...sonic towers to the contrary.

Convergence said...

"Did anyone else think that the bunch of guys who appeared from the bushes with guns trained on Sawyer seemed a little young? I thought they looked like a group of high-schoolers."

Yes, what a contrast to Widmore's previous tough military subordinates. But why are they so young and different this time?

On Flocke's crazy mother and any Greek mythology tie-ins, Google for "Demeter," whose daughter Persephone was LOST in
the underworld when kidnapped by Hades, who went crazy searching for her lost daughter and turned the land barren and unfertile until her daughter was returned, who in some myths was a black horse or had the body of a woman but the head of a horse (remember Jack and Hurley playing the basketball game "HORSE"? remember the horses on the island?) who had twin sons Ploutos and Philomelus who fought with each other, who started the ritual known as the Eleusinian Mysteries one of whose requirements for membership of initiates was "a lack of "blood guilt", meaning having
never committed murder."

Start reading e.g. at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleusinian_Mysteries

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demeter

For that matter, read up on the story of Odysseus who "was one of the original suitors of Helen. He agreed to help Tyndareus, her father, settle the dispute for her hand in marriage, in return for which Tyndareus supported
Odysseus in his quest to marry Penelope. Odysseus and all the other suitors pledged to defend Helen's marriage to the winning suitor, Menelaus."


Helen? (Locke wanted to marry her in the 1st timeline but her dad
didn't approve). Penelope? (Hello, Desmond and Penny)

Also, Odysseus was trapped on an island for years by a vengeful goddess...

And don't forget to read about the floating island of Delos...

The Greek mythology tie-ins are a lot of fun to explore, and I think Darlton definitely had them in mind, but you will seriously get "lost" in all of it.

Fred said...

How did this episode resemble the one with Locke and Helen? First, Miles questions Ford about the secret trip to Australia, when he was supposed to be at Palm Springs. Locke was caught out in a lie when Oceanic returned his suitcase of knives, while Miles caught James out in his lie when he found out about Australia throguh the credit card receipts. Randy Nations uncovered Locke’s lie about Australia from contacts who said he never attended any meetings. Second, Locke was fired form his job only to meet an old island friend, in the person of Hurley. James lost his partner only to meet up with Kate, as, in true LOST fashion, her car slaming into Ford’s parked car. Kate’s little vehicle was blue, a colour reminiscent of the blue coloured dress of Little House’s Engels. In LOST, blue seems associated with a matter of fate compellling characters to change their attitude. Ford had been ruminating about his father and mother’s suicide/murder, when Kate brought him back to reality. Kate has always challenged James’ rational for acting ever since she called him on his letter, and helped him free his karmic self with the boar he was trying to kill. Kate may not be James’ love interest, but she is his conscience. In the first seasons’ flashbacks, Helen played a similar role for Locke. Especially, when Locke was sitting outside Anthony Cooper’s home, Helen rear-ended his car, and asked him to take a leap of faith. Third, the sub reappears. Its appearance had been significant enough for Locke to want to destory it, to keep everyone trapped on the island. Saywer had convinced Juliet to remain on the island, to pass on passage on the sub. And again it reappears, except this time, Sawyer wants off with Kate, a sentiment echoed by MiB. Since this is the bridge episode, James smashing the mirror may be more than just a moment of anger, but symbolic of the change that is about to come. The smashed mirror may be reminsicient of the Doors’ song line, “break on through to the other side.” If that other side is the island world, then perhaps it will no longer merely bleed through in little cuts, as on Jack’s neck or unaccounted for recognitions, but come full bore into LA X. So far the charcaters have been looking into a “glass darkly” trying to fathom something they cannot grasp as yet. A parallel world is emerging. On the Hydra, Zoe, with her glasses, her intention to pass herself off as a survivor of a terrible massacre, made me think of Ben in Season 2, and his attempt to pass himself off as innocent. Mirrors are popping up all over the island and in LA X, and one by one they must be smashed to break on through. Jack has done so in Lighthouse. James in Recon, from the other side. How will they meet?

Anonymous said...

I agree with the fact that maybe Sawyer didn't arrest or turn Kate in because he too was kinda up to no good, esp. if he still killed that guy in Sydney by mistake. I wonder if he will find a way to let Kate go or something like that. I think Desmond is in the sub too it would make sense because everyone's right he would never leave Penny and Charlie or ever step foot on the island again. Maybe Widmore kidnapped him from the hospital while he had some pain medication from surgery and wasn't quite aware of what is going on or one of Widmore's goons did drug him. I couldn't tell who was conning who here. I recall Nikki saying something I too thought that Widmore and Flocke were in cahoots together and the sonic fence could be part of their con on our Losties. I doubt since he was banished from the island and his power was taken away probably by Jacob somehow too that he would not be on the good side. Also in a Darlton podcast they commented way back that Widmore was the ultimate bad guy of the show or some words like that. So it's probably safe to say our Losties are walking into a trap. I also hope Claire is normalizing maybe somehow it would be sad if she got off the island and saw Aaron again and then be locked in Santa Rosa too, I want a happy reunion with those two. But I think Sayid is already gone and that the real one is dead he kinda acts like what Hurley has feared a cyborg or a zombie. I loved all the shout outs to loyal fans and all the easter eggs thrown in for us. I do however hope we start to get more answers next week with a show that we have all wanted for a while about Richard. Since half the season is gone we need answers soon they are running out of time. This was a good episode if say it aired last year instead of one of the final ones. Nikki I hope you get to see your Desmond on the sub or somehow else soon!

v said...

I guess FLocke was trying to kill two birds with one stone last week. His plan- have Ben kill Ilana and then go to Hydra and get captured (or killed) by Widmore's team.

Anonymous said...

Greetings from a long-time lurker from Germany

Didn't see anyone else mention this:

Did anyone else think Widmore is still on the sub, because he STILL can't go back on the island? Technically, he isn't. Maybe that's as far as he can go.

Of course it might also be a coincidence and he can come back because Jacob died.

Florian

Batcabbage said...

Fan-service be damned - this season is getting better with EVERY EPISODE! I thought I was excited to see Dr Linus' episode - this one was brilliant!

Loved the AU contrast - Jim as a cop, partnered with Miles, and out to get the grifters! I really never thought that the AU could get better than Dr Linus, but I'm so glad I've been proven wrong.

And here's a bit of Aussie coarseness for you all, which I relay to you with pride: The girl with red hair that Sawyer busted in the first AU scene? Batkitty said 'Aw, Charlotte!' when she first saw her, and quickly amended that assessment about a millisecond after we first saw her. After Sawyer's and Charlotte's 'interaction', Batkitty said, "Ha. I thought Sawyer was rooting Charlotte, and he ends up rooting her anyway." For those of you not familiar, 'rooting' is an Australian term that refers to the physical act of love. Batkitty reminded me twice to make sure I noted this. :) She says that Claire and Widmore would get it. HA!

I loved this episode, and don't have much to add. Although, Batkitty, who is reading right now, and wants me to post what she said, says 'It's totally Desmond in that locked door on the sub." And I'm not inclined to disagree with her. Because she'll hit me. With a fish.

Batcabbage said...

@Fred: Sorry Nikki, but the reveal that Sawyer was a cop, wasn't too much of a surprise.

Wow, really? Because I was totally blown away. I’m not being funny here, but is that because you’ve thought about Sawyers' AU life a lot? Because I try not to think about any of the characters’ AU existance. Maybe that just makes it more of a surprise for me. But really, I was blown away by Sawyer being a cop. I was totally sucked in, thinking they’d just set up another pidgeon drop, and Sawyer was a greasy con man. I was expecting a totally different take to his AU life rather than as a cop. As a matter of fact, I thought Sawyer was the one who was going to be set up.

Ali Bags said...

'rooting' Ha ha Batkitty! My favourite Aussie phrase along with 'pash' and 'dag'

Don't know about anyone else but I was getting some seriously feminine vibes from Not-Locke this episode. I'm sure he was originally a woman. The way he broke up the fight was how a woman would do it - I'll have to watch the episode again to explain it fully but Terry O'Quinn is doing something interesting with this character and I'm sure he's acting a smoke monster/woman in a dead man's body. Bet he didn't learn how to do that at drama school!



Sawyer makes one hot cop. There has to be a Sawyersky and Mutch spin off show. I vaguely remember discussing another spin off show last year but can't remember what it was - wasn't it involving Miles and Hurley? And Nikki, I totally agree with you that Miles was acting like Jim's significant other. Bless.

Ali Bags said...

And next week we finally get the Richard Alpert story, and it would be the week that I'm away in the wilds of the Philippines. Grrrrrrr!

Anonymous said...

I thought I'd throw this out there...alot of people are thinking the AU is what would be if Jacob DIDN'T touch them...what if...the AU is what's happenning because Jacob touched them??? thoughts? my name says anonymous...but you can call me Cloe...OxO

Hutch said...

Nikki - Love your commment "Sawyersky and Mutch - "Hutch"

asiancolossus said...

Great episode!
I was away in Sudbury last week watching Lost, and it wasn't on HD and it simply is NOT the same, but I liked last week's episode with Ben a bit better.

But wow for Josh's standout performance! I thought he did a bangup job. I totally got caught off guard that he was a cop. And I totally thought he was bluffing about the stakeout! Yes I agree Nikki, I totally caught the major "bro love" between Miles and Sawyer. Wouldn't it have been a stroke of genius to make Sawyer go the way of Mr. Friendly in the FS? LOL .... ok maybe not...

I just love how this season is all about winks to the die hard fans from the first few seasons. All the surprise crossovers and characters hooking up in the FS were just amazing!

When I first saw the car crash in the intersection it reminded me of Locke in the Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham. It was a blue car as well I think. I expected Locke to come out of that car....

I loved seeing Charlotte although I think she looked like she was on some sort of mission with the drawer. This episode shows that Anthony Cooper is still a scumbag, one has to wonder why he and Locke seem to be on speaking terms.

I totally thought Claire was going to go psycho after getting Kate to hug her. I still don't buy Claire's change of heart after going ballistic on Kate. Is she really crazy or is she just reacting to all she's been through in the last 3 years?

Totally got Tina Fey!!! I didn't buy her act for one minute!

I'm wondering why Widmore after seeing the crew on the island from the sub decides not to ambush them. What is the connection between Widmore and Not Locke? I'm beginning to like Not Locke a bit more, but he obviously does not have much regret about killing those at the temple, so this mother talk could all be an act.

Poor Sayid. He just totally looks like a zombie. I hope that he doesn't stay in this catatonic state until the end of the series, he and the actor deserve more than that. I hope its not too late for his redemption.

Looking forward to Richard next week. Not sure how much plot it will advance but it'll sure be interesting!

Sagacious Penguin said...

If the Altered Universe was definitely created at the point in time when Jughead was detonated (1977) -- then did little Sawyer still get touched by Jacob? If so maybe that initial touch is what's kept him on his revenge track even in the AU....

Remember Sawyer told Jack in 1977 in The Incident that his parents had already been murdered and he could have tried to go do something about it but didn't because What Happened, Happened....

Anonymous said...

Someone mentioned in the comments a long time ago that they thought Sawyer might be a cop in the alternate reality. Don't remember who.

Since the bomb on the freighter incident, I wasn't thinking about who might be in the locked room, but what. As in, an even bigger weapon.

Rebecca T. said...

@Marebabe(and a number of other people): thanks for the Little House reminder. I had forgotten about how he said he watched it when he was younger. But that's why I have you guys to remind me of the stuff I forget :) Okay, now I find it believable.

Re: LaFleur - I don't know where this concept is coming from, but I was thinking maybe it's his mother's maiden name? When he uses it in Dharmaville doesn't he say it's connected with Louisiana Creole - maybe that's where some of his family comes from? idk

@The Question Mark: For a moment I did wonder if it was someone other than Kate, just because of the way they were hiding her face.

Joan Crawford said...

I was surprised at Sawyer's behavior from before now that we know he is a cop. He helped Kate escape from the airport...why? Because she was hot? Did he somehow know what she had done? It doesn't make any sense. If he doesn't know her - she could have just done any horrible thing and yet he helps her flee.

Jennifer said...

WHAT is going on with Flocke and Claire?! Has Flocke got a little Christian in him? Very Daddy-dearest.

Nikki, the reason the Little House scene looked familiar is that almost every episode had a heart-to-heart with Laura and Pa. I totally loved that Jim was watching it. And taking a lesson from it! That's great!

I think the reason Widmore wasn't happier about finding the island is that finding it is only the first step to his nefarious plan, whatever it is.

Maybe Alt Sawyer and Alt-Ben should get together and compare taste in microwave meals.

Can't wait for Richard's ep!

Jessica said...

@Ali Bags said...
Don't know about anyone else but I was getting some seriously feminine vibes from Not-Locke this episode. I'm sure he was originally a woman. The way he broke up the fight was how a woman would do it - I'll have to watch the episode again to explain it fully but Terry O'Quinn is doing something interesting with this character and I'm sure he's acting a smoke monster/woman in a dead man's body. Bet he didn't learn how to do that at drama school!"

Yeah! I'm glad someone else is picking up on this too! I know that my theory on FLocke being fem started a few weeks ago but I haven't been able to string it all together. But to know that someone else is seeing the femininity in FLocke is awesome! Thanks!

FLocke's story about his crazy mom made me think more about my theory that Tawaret is somehow involved in the Jacob/FLocke family maybe as their mother...

Sawyer. Shirtless. nice!

That fight between Claire and Kate ending with FLocke giving a good smack to Claire!?!? That was the one moment in this episode that suprised me and made me suck in my breath (other than preparing my mind to see crazy-squirrel-baby-monster-ALF-doll again)! My fiance laughed and said "that's gonna be the smack heard round the blogs tomorrow, ain't it?"

Zari said...

Smoke-Locke tells Kate: “Well, nobody’s perfect!” after she calls him a dead man, and a little later S-L says “I’m not dead”...and “Before I looked like this.”
So, Smokey isn’t a dead man, he just plays a dead man by taking over dead bodies???

Then Smoke-Locke tells Sawyer: “They think they’re protecting the island from me, when all I really want to do is leave. It’s kill or be killed. And I don’t want to be killed.”
Smokey, at least as S-L, can’t be killed as we saw when Sayid tried to stab “him”.

Oh, oh, oh – Smokey has my mind really fogged up...

Word Verf: asherym : Once-upon-a-time kept Smokey in or kept him out.

Lisa(until further notice) said...

@redeem147: It was me. I thought he might be a cop or a bounty hunter. Bounty hunter might have been a bit cooler. Surprised and happy about the Jim/Miles duo extraordinaire. I'm thinking Miles talents mightbe better served in homicide or cold cases, however. Was he still born on the island? Charlotte too? To be continued...

I have to say, Sawyer is one good lookin guy. He looks great all cleaned up with his heair a bit less messy. Charlotte was gorgeous. I'm guessing there's going to be more to her story, as she seemed like she was "looking" for something in that drawer. I hope it doesn't end like The Economist, however.

Creepy island Sayid. Very sad, and I really thought Kate was going to lose it while Claire was attacking her and Sayid just sat there staring in crazy interest at the whole thing.
Kate: "Sayid, a little help here?"
Sayid: elevator music playing in his head.....

We need the Losties to get back together...and soon. Sun and Jin at least need to see eachother.

Is there any significance to the shirt Sawyer's wearing...lookin' like Richard and all? I mean, he was able to see the blond boy when he was in the jungle with NotLocke.

@Nikki...I love Liz Lemon. She, at least, would have been tolerable. This nobody Zoe was more annoying with the questions than Sun is.

That's all for now...going to watch again and see if any more can be gleaned from the episode.

Unknown said...

Does anyone else think that Walt is in that locked room on the sub? Watch him become the next Jacob and not any of the candidates. They have to incorporate Walt into the final season somehow, he was so important in Season One.

Charlotte looked amazing! I didn't much like her in season four and she wasn't used much in Season Five. It is nice in Season Six that we get to see how beautiful the character and actress really are.

Zari said...

Sayid is “alive”?! But he just sat there while Claire attacked Kate....

Word Verf: fiersc : What Sayid no longer is. :-((

Ali Bags said...

@ Jessica

More fuel to the fire on the Not-Locke-is-a-Woman theory. The very last line of 'Some Like it Hot' was 'Nobody's perfect' It was when Tony Curtis in drag reveals that he is actually a man, and his millionaire suitor says 'Nobody's perfect'

Joan Crawford said...

I was already mad at New Liz Lemon when I laid eyes on her. As she was running, I was saying "They better God Damn not be adding any new characters! We don't have time for this crap!"

Sawyer reminded me of Richard too.

Charlotte looked great. She had no business going through his stuff. I was glad to see her go. Charlotte is a faker. She is all "I am a real person who is respectable and not like other women so tell me the real deal." and he sorta does and then weridly she transforms into Marvin Gaye and they make the sex. Anyway, any snoop worth their salt knows you can't go digging until at least 6 weeks into the relationship.

I am really sad about Sayid too. I hadn't believed anything was really wrong until last night. ;_;

Ali Bags said...

Lol Joan! We really don't have time for any of that crap do we? I want to start yelling at the screen, 'Move it along, MOVE IT ALONG!'

Sawyer+Richard=AliBags heaven

Nikki Stafford said...

Benny: OMG, I kept thinking the horrible skull baby looked familiar, and I think you're totally right. ALF has officially become a horror demon for me now!

Anonymous said...

Ah, sigh, a Sawyer (Jim) centric ep! Missed him so much. One of my favorite lines was when the gal called him "Dimples," which I what I call him in my dreams!
Ariel

CBP68 said...

I loved this episode! I really was not surprised either that Jim was a detective. If his AU was exactly that, alternate, then yes, he should be a detective. I agree that Miles girlfriend is Naomi. They must have met in that kitchen where he had his "interview". Was that the same kitchen where Jin was locked in the walk-in freezer?

I also agree that Widmore cannot step foot on the island. Maybe Widmore and Ben join forces? I didn't think that the locked room on the sub held anything significant. Sawyer just looked like a desperate detective when he questioned that. Maybe it held on the booze or meds for the sub passengers when they take that long trip.

My biggest revelation, which makes me sort of sad, is that I think Kate will definitely end up with Sawyer. I knew it was her when her car slammed into the detectives. It only proves that she learned nothing from Jacob's touch and only turned out to be a criminal. I think that is the writers planting a seed to expect Kate to end up with Sawyer. She cannot go to Jack as she will always see herself as not worthy to be with someone so "good", so she goes "bad".

WV: wordshi- A plethora of words wrapped up in a nice sushi roll.

Joan Crawford said...

@LisaUFN - Kate: "Sayid, a little help here?"
Sayid: elevator music playing in his head.....


Hahaha!!! and then ;_;

@Alibags - I was thinking he was a woman too when he was talking to Kate about Claire!

For the record, I love the real Liz Lemon...just not New Island Liz Lemon.

Nikki Stafford said...

Michael: If Jacob never existed, he was never there to give Sawyer the pen at his parent's funeral, so he never writes the letter. Becomes a cop, but still carries around the hate and desire to kill "Sawyer." It's like he cant avoid his destiny, but in the end he will still have a choice.

I agree. I was doing a radio show this morning and said almost exactly this when I was talking: if Jacob hadn't given him the pen, the uncle would have talked him out of writing that letter. He would still be vengeful Sawyer but he would have made something of his life.

Nikki Stafford said...

Matt Roeser: here's hoping eloise hawking, desmond, penny, and brother campbell are ALL in that locked room on widmore's sub...i mean when they open that door, i just want them all to pile out of there like a freaking clown car...maybe even the guy that was wearing the red shoes!

HAHAHAHAHA!!! OMG, I love that image. ;)

Rebecca T. said...

It seemed to me that Kate was just as much if not even more upset over NotLocke's behavior towards Claire as she was over Claire trying to attack her. She looked so shocked. He was just so... violent.

@Lisa(ufn): Sawyer was definitely rocking the Richard look and my sister and I were definitely wondering if there was any kind of significance to this.

Nikki Stafford said...

JS: Who is MiB's mother?... Who is Smokey's father?

Could they be Adam and Eve?

Nikki Stafford said...

Oh, and I completely forgot to say this in my post, but I was disappointed and saddened that Charlotte was not with Daniel in the sideways world. Unless Daniel was somehow never born? If he doesn't exist in the SW world, then I officially don't like it anymore. ;)

Now, what if he and Charlotte ARE working together and rather than having time-travel properties in this world, he can see other timelines and is checking up on other people? Hm.

Long shot, I suppose. I just want Daniel back. :(

Nikki Stafford said...

Florian: Welcome to the blog!!

Did anyone else think Widmore is still on the sub, because he STILL can't go back on the island? Technically, he isn't. Maybe that's as far as he can go.

Fantastic idea... I can't believe I didn't think of this, but you're probably absolutely right. Just like Smokey can't cross the sonic barrier and Jacob and MiB can't kill one another, maybe Widmore can't come back, either.

Joan Crawford said...

I think if Smokey wanted to kill them all...he could have already. If he was already over there to kill all those other people, what stopped him from killing the Widmore crew? They didn't have the Zapping Posts up yet so I assume it is safe for him/her to go there. Why send Sawyer?

And yeah, there does seem to be some Life(s) Partner stuff going on with Sawyer and Miles. Miles, teeheehee, spying on him and then being all hurt and demandy and Sawyer smashing the mirror - he knows he has to go through a bunch of shit to get Miles to go back out with him now. And then the healing in the car *hearts and love*

Lisa(until further notice) said...

Ok...haven't rewatched yet. Life getting in the way. Thoughts mulling around in my head. @SonshineMusic: Rockin is the word for it. YUM. I gotta get my husband one of those shirts. He'd look good in it too :)

There is NO WAY that Widmore will be with Ben. I mean, Ben just tried to kill Penny 4 days ago (give or take a day). So my thoughts are that Ben is with Jacob and has always been, but along the way has been unknowingly "used" by MIB to be a part of his loop hole. Ok, I think Widmore has ALWAYS been with MIB. He wanted Alex killed from the very beginning, and I think Jacob had nothing to do with that decision. We don't see much more about Ben and Widmore's on island conflict before Widmore is exiled from the island, but I think he is definately on Smokey's side. I just can't see any sort of meeting of the minds here. Could be wrong though.

How did they know it was Sawyer (Ford) coming over from the main island? How did Flemmon know his name? And even if he told it to her during their stroll on the beach, how is it that Widmore was "waiting for him?" Why not waiting for Jin or Kate?

Was it just me or did Terry O'Quinn and Josh Holloway look exhausted? Evie too, but I think her eyes were all red-rimmed from her crying bout.

And seriously, that Flock/Claire smackdown was da bomb. Did not see that coming, nor was I sure it was appropriate. Good stuff.

One more thing...was this who Jacob was referring to when he said "someone is coming to the island"? Or could it be DESMOND. Maybe he just sort of "drops in" in his conscious/unconscious way. I mean, we don't even know if he was on that plane to begin with, do we? And I could see Des being a Jacobite rather than a Flockie.

Anonymous said...

@MATTWM & MAREBABE- Of course, now I remember the mono/Little House routine!

@DAVIDB226 - Maybe Richard is right and Jacob's touch is more a curse than a blessing and lives will be better without his touch. But I'm buying into the popular theory that his touch in the 815 crash reality is somehow affecting this new reality. Or, to agree with SAGACIOUS PENGUIN, who's to say they weren't touched in the new reality? We only know the plane didn't crash so anything else could have happened.

And I also want to know - what does La Fleur mean in James' life? A favorite dog, something associated with his mom?

@ERIN - Loved Sawyer finding Kate's almost new looking dress and remembering the 'good' times shared in the cages then later calling her a sweet pet name again!

I loved the parallel of the Little House/those you've lost will always be with you/letting go message in the AU with the letting go of his anger over Juliet's death and again accepting Kate in the island world.

@QUESTION MARK - Ah, now I think Ana Lucia is Miles' girl - forgot about her being a police officer and all. Or maybe she went the opposite of Sawyer and took the path of criminal over cop!

@ALI BAGS - Yes! I just knew Fake Locke was gonna tell Kate 'I used to be a woman just like you!' I was on the edge of my seat! Those darn writers are so careful not to mention gender when referring to 'him' - 'that thing', 'it', 'my friend'. Sneaky!

I was thinking more about how Claire seemed so sincere when she and Kate hugged it out and it all seems too convenient. Did MIB tell her to put on a show for now? When he told Claire she was 'inappropriate' did he maybe mean 'inappropriate time to kill Kate, maybe later'?

Sorry to be so verbose but I've got no one else to talk to LOST about! (sniffsniff)

Benny said...

@Fred:
I agree we are not sure of Widmore's allegiance, but if Widmore and Locke end up being friends as you say, I'm curious as to your theory for why he brought sonic pylons. Anything more than a ploy?

@Nikki/Erin:
My thoughts as to why Widmore is not all running around naked, he doesn't possess the island yet. There is still much work to be done and, as a successful businessman, he must not detract from his task at hand. He probably did go out and show a smile -- off screen. (as per Jennifer as well).

@Cloe: Given that what we saw in The Incident was from Jacob's perspective/flashbacks, it's definitely possible. One small hickup is that Jacob touched Hurley and Sayid post island, as the Oceanic 6.

Benny said...

Given that Sawyer's parent died between 1974-77 (as pointed out by Sagacious Penguin), it stands to reason that IF the incident somewhat caused the island to sink, then Jacob possibly touched Sawyer.

As for James letting Kate go at the airport. He actually HELPED her get away. By doing nothing his 'Palm Spring' cover would not have been blown. But he outright helped her escape. His personality hasn't changed much, despite being a cop.

Joshua said...

Good ep. Started out like gangbusters and then never really reached that high again, at least for me, but still pretty solid.

Totally with Florian on the good possibility that Widmore can't actually set foot on the island yet -- I was thinking the same thing at the time. And I know his team's construction of those new pylons would seem to indicate that he's there to combat NonJohn & The Mossy Posse, but I think we shouldn't think of that as a given. Seems just as possible that their purpose is just to prevent Ol' Smokey from interfering with whatever they're really there to do.

Speaking of which -- what the hell is in that locked sub room, anyway? I'm thinking it's not a who but rather a what, perhaps something intended to overwhelm (or flatly negate) all the competing supernatural forces on the island and level the playing field for Chuck's intended takeover. 'Cause I'm pretty sure he's just like Sawyer in that the only side he's on in this conflict is his own.

JennM said...

I showed up for work this morning and told my two fellow Lostie coworkers that I could barely remember what happened in the show last night—because I was just so excited about the preview for next week! It overshadowed everything else!

Thanks for pointing out the books, Nikki. I noticed Watership Down, but I thought it was copy of Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games underneath. Now that would be an exciting book to compare to Lost! But I realized it would make no sense to throw in a book that hasn't been referred to before, so I am glad you listed the actual books:)

I loved Miles as Sawyer's partner. In alt-U though, it seems that Miles has lost—or significantly toned down—his sarcasm. Too bad. It would have been really amusing to see Miles' usual sarcasm come from behind a badge:)

Benny said...

Widmore's allegiances!

I've read many who think that given the conflict between Ben and Widmore, they believe they aren't on the same side. In truth, they were opposing factions of the same higher order (Jacob). Think Catholics and Protestants being two sects of Christianity, yet both being in the same opposition to other religions!

While I'm not stating my beliefs here, I'm justifying one set:
Jacob's factions encompass Ben and Widmore (both fighting for their rights to protect the island and be the leader) while Locke's faction is made of claimed supporters!

Austin Gorton said...

@Nikki: “CRAP... do I have to raise TWO Littletons now?”

Bwah-hah-ha! I love it!

Miles seemed less like a professional partner and more like a life partner in this episode.

Well, he was apparently listening to Sawyer having sex with the mark at the beginning. That must bring two people together, right? ;)

The books on Jim’s dresser were Watership Down, A Wrinkle in Time, and Lancelot, all books he was reading in season 1

Were you happy to see they were books he's already read, so you won't have to read as many for your next book? :)

@Florian: Did anyone else think Widmore is still on the sub, because he STILL can't go back on the island? Technically, he isn't. Maybe that's as far as he can go.

Of course it might also be a coincidence and he can come back because Jacob died.


I love both those ideas! I definitely think there's something there.

@Joan: He helped Kate escape from the airport...why?

In addition to what others have said on the subject, perhaps there was some Island Reality bleed through going on, some unconscious voice telling him to let her go?

Maybe the final revelation as to the nature of the flash sideways will shed more light on the answer.

If he was already over there to kill all those other people, what stopped him from killing the Widmore crew?

If FLocke did kill those people, my guess is he killed them, came back to the main island, then Widmore showed up and FLocke knew it somehow. So he sent Sawyer over to find out how equipped Widmore was, because if he went himself, FLocke knew there was a chance Widmore was already prepared for him with the stubby sonic fence.

I am so turned out with regards to Widmore. Benny, your comment about Ben and Widmore being different sects of the same faith is probably the most illuminating thing I've come across in that regard.

I just feel like after all this time, they can't pull the ol' switcheroo that Widmore's been a good guy all along. Maybe a "not as bad as Ben led us to believe" guy, but not an out-and-out good guy, even if he is opposed to FLocke.

I mean, he DID send that freighter to the island, and even if he argues that he was trying to remove Ben because he knew Ben was inadvertently serving the will of Smokey and not Jacob, he did hire Psycho Keamey, who unnecessarily killed a lot of people, to do the job, so it seems like an end that doesn't justify the means.

I'm wondering if maybe he isn't an out and out third faction, aligned with neither Team Jacob nor FLocke, in it for himself, and currently focusing on FLocke since he somehow knows Jacob is dead and figures with FLocke gone, he can easily claim the island for himself.

Finally, can I just second (third? twenty-sixth?) the notion that these "I'm a character with critical information telling another character how little they know, but refusing for one reason or another to share that info" scenes are becoming a huge tease and rather tiresome? It was one thing when we weren't halfway to the end of the show, but now it's just annoying.

I'm not saying every episode needs to give us HUGE ANSWERS to be good, but at the same time, the writers can stop reminding us every ep of how they're still not giving us those answers. :)

Gillian Whitfield said...

Wah! I missed this episode when it aired. :'( I was on a school trip two hours away from where I live, and on the way back, the bus ran out of gas, and we were stuck on the side of the road for forty-five minutes until we got the bus running. We still went to dinner at Montana's and we got on the bus at 8:45. It wasn't as bad as the time when I was stuck on a train that was stopped for an hour and a half.

Now, onto the episode. I had to watch the crappy online feed on CTV. I really liked it. I'll watch the pop-up episode next week.

I really can't see Sawyer with Charlotte. I don't know . . . I can only really see him with Kate (I'm not a shipper), but that could be that it's the relationship that was focused on for the most part of the series.

Claire seemed really lucid at the end of the episode when she was bawling on Kate's shoulder. Maybe Not-Locke's slap shook her out of her . . . lifestyle choice?

Did anyone else squeal when Liam came onto the screen? I cannot wait to see Charlie again. I just KNOW he'll be back.

VW: Wrongs- Two of these don't make a right.

Ashlie Hawkins said...

I loved Sawyer (sorry, Jim) and Miles as partners - so great! My one complaint? No Detective Sawyer in uniform...the bare chest with the badge helped though...

Charlotte did look amazing - but why would Sawyer have told her to get herself a T-shirt out of his mystery drawer of childhood pain? Seriously, man. You don't have somewhere else you could put that? Or maybe you could not freak out quite so much when she finds it?

Fred said...

@Benny: I agree, Widmore bringing the pylons suggests antagonisnm towards Locke/MiB. This would place Widmore squarely in the Jacob camp. It also might explain why Lockeness had to return to the island, even as a dead body. If Jacob's side wishes to win they need an ace in the hole, and that is for MiB to so closely assume Locke's form that he reproduces not only Locke's memories, but also his faults, like being so easily conned.

But this also suggests that Widmore really was acting on Jacob's behalf when he ordered Ben and Ethan to kill Rousseau and Alex. It also suggests the strong likelihood that the passengers from Ajira were killed by Ilana and Bram. Not being candidates they were expendable. Ben had said as much when Jack asked on the plane what about the other passengers. Ben's response was "so what." In Jacob's world you are either under Jacob's rule or you belong in the "What about me?" category. This is very Old Testament, rathful God and Chosen/not-Chosen people stuff. In this case the passengers were not chosen, and so would be expendable. Lucky for Frank he's seen as a potential candidate, or I am sure Bram would have just shot Frank.

I like your idea that the way Jacob works, keeping most everyone in the dark, would likely lead to factions or individuals acting for Jacob against one another. But does that mean MiB is evil, or is he just another "god" but operating in another way--give out information, be considerate of his followers, but also vengeful in the form of Smokie.

Austin Gorton said...

@Ashlie Seriously, man. You don't have somewhere else you could put that?


All TV characters live by an unspoken rule in which they place things they don't want people to find in a spot where people will, invariably, find it.

It's like breathing or having a witty comeback ready at a moment's notice; they just can't NOT do it. :)

Donna S. said...

Did You Notice?:
• There was no “Previously on...”

Yes!!! I thought my DVR had made a boo-boo and started up late! (I have meetings on Tuesday nights and can't watch till later.)

Nikki Stafford said...

Hey guys: If you loved last night's ep, come over to the Globe and Mail chat right now: the episode is getting seriously slammed and I'm finding I'm the lone apologist for it!!

http://tinyurl.com/yl2fz2g

Donna S. said...

• Did you notice: James looks in the mirror at himself...and then smashes it. Just like Jack smashed all the mirrors in the Lighthouse.

Yes! That DID strike me...two guys with anger management issues, and don't like mirrors!

VW: "dunesycl" - a pedal-powered vehicle specially made for riding on the beach. On LOST island.

Donna S. said...

Re: Richard Alpert's episode next week...do you think we'll REALLY find out "his incredible story" next week, or is ABC just pulling our chains...again?

Donna S. said...

Artar...Obviously, when Sawyer saw Kate in handcuffs at the airport, he didn't blow the whistle cuz even though he's a cop, he's still a bad boy at heart, and to see a bad girl escapee really turned him on!

variabull said...

Sorry if someone already mentioned this but when Claire draws back the covers on her "faux baby" I see a small version of Tawaret not "Alf".

Austin Gorton said...

Someone (I forget who, possibly Doc Jensen) mentioned that when FLocke and Sayid were talking in "Sundown" it seemed like FLocke HAD to tell Sayid the truth (or some version of it) and couldn't outright lie to him.

I kinda got the same vibe from him again last night. He seemed surprisingly forthcoming with Sawyer, and even though he didn't tell his flock (FLocke's flock!) that he IS the black smoke, he told them the truth about the black smoke killing everyone.

Maybe he's just determined to "tell the truth" as he sees it, as opposed to Jacob, who seems to deal more with vagueness and obfuscation.

Either way, it seems like FLocke can't or won't lie, even if his version of the truth comes from the Ben Kenobi school of "from a certain point of view" truth.

Anyone else get that vibe?

Donna S. said...

Ali Bags said: "Don't know about anyone else but I was getting some seriously feminine vibes from Not-Locke this episode. I'm sure he was originally a woman. The way he broke up the fight was how a woman would do it - I'll have to watch the episode again to explain it fully..."

Oh, you mean the way he said Claire was acting totally "inappropriate"? Hmmm, could be. That does sound like the way these new-agey, modern mothers are taught to discipline their kids. Maybe next time, he'll tell Claire to go take a "time out". LOL

WV: "goilvaly" - The place where Popeye came down from the mountain and met Olive Oyl.

Fred said...

@Teebore: Don't you find it odd that Jack spent how many episodes yelling at Locke (the real one) not to lie. Now MiB/Locke seems to be telling the truth, as far as that goes on this show. So where is Jack? With the Locke who speaks the truth? Nope. With all mystical and confusing, tell none of my followers what the hell is going on, Jacob. Yup, Jack, you've come a long way.

Austin Gorton said...

@Fred: Ha! Good point. It is kind of funny how, after all his griping about how the Others do business, he's more or less part of their team now.

Then again, he was willing to detonate an H-Bomb based on faith alone, so maybe he's realized he can't exactly throw stones anymore? :)

Donna S. said...

To all people posting as "Anonymous"...

Did you know it's very easy to put in a name, any name, to post a comment? You don't have to set up an account. Just choose "Name/URL", and a box pops up where you can type in a name. (I don't put a URL, just a name only.)

Just saying...

Donna S. said...

Joan said: "Anyway, any snoop worth their salt knows you can't go digging until at least 6 weeks into the relationship."

And definitely NOT when the person is just going into the kitchen for a GLASS OF WATER, for goodness sake!!


WV: "balimp" - when your inflated rubber toy loses its air

Ashlie Hawkins said...

@Teebore - Oh, I know! It's terrible, it always seems so forced! "What?! How did you find that thing I left in a completely obvious location but never intended for you to see! Snoop!"

Jessica said...

@variabull said...
Sorry if someone already mentioned this but when Claire draws back the covers on her "faux baby" I see a small version of Tawaret not "Alf".

NICE!!!

Susan said...

OK I have a confession to make. Last night I forgot to record Lost. Well, actually, I didn't forget, I just thought I recorded it when I didn't. So I had to wait for on demand this morning.

I still have to go through all the comments, but I'll make a couple of my own first. Nikki, you hit on pretty much all of the points I would have mentioned, but I have to say that several parts of this episode were very predictable. Sawyer is a cop, the girl turns out to be Charlotte (if you saw her name in the credits), the people at Hydra are Widmore's group. All in all, it was an OK episode which is way more than I expect from a Sawyer episode.

word ver: nonsing - what I do since I don't have a good singing voice.

Susan said...

Not trying to start a ship war, but Sawyer was with Juliet for 3 years, cried himself crazy when she died, and was going to propose to her. I think with the little time we have left, if he does get together with Kate (whom he only knew for 3 months 3 years ago) it would completely diminish his apparently honest and grown-up feelings for Juliet.

Nikki I agree with your comment about a Daniel-less AU! The flashsideways are already lame as is, not to mention predictable, but a world without Dan would be even duller.

Benny said...

@Teebore: Highly likely he's a third party. As Sawyer pointed out, he knows Locke is not actually Locke. But he's the one who helped him off the island. And he was in talks with Eloise, just as Ben was... There might very well be Jacob, Locke and the Island. 3 distinct parties.

@Fred: It is indeed a delicate aspect of the war at this point. When attempting to kill Rousseau and Alex, Widmore may have been acting with a certain assumption of what Jacob's orders were (the viewer not knowing what exactly those orders were).
And that's where the issue lies, were they Jacob's orders all the time or an interpretation of them.

I don't remember seeing/hearing anything to suggest either, and that's probably where a lot of the uncertainties surrounding Jacob are founded.
Add to that the aforementioned comments that Widmore had been cast as "the big bed guy" by the writers and the whole things is whack!

humanebean said...

A very satisfying episode. Not really the "treading water" ep we sometimes get when the writers need to move the pieces around without much happening, but an altogether enjoyable flash-sideways twinned with some Island maneuvering.

A Few Things That Jumped Out At Me:
1) It just occurred to me this morning that we saw Flocke send Sawyer over to Hydra Island ... right after we saw him entice Ben to head over there as well! Do you suppose that he intended for Ben to get caught in Widmore's web, if he knew that he was there? Or, do you think he was trying to set up Sawyer and Ben for a showdown? Hmmmm.

2) Flocke is showing definite signs of cracking around the edges. I don't know if this is a function of him struggling with how much to reveal of his true intentions, juggling the different cons he is running on each person or indications that Dogen's sword-to-the-chest may have had some kind of impact. Coated with the "poison", perhaps? Or, did the burial of John Locke's body cause some problems for Flocke now 'stuck' in his chosen visage?

3) Charlotte was rocking the flowing tresses. I'm just sayin'. Me: "Are you Charlotte?" Charlotte: "Yes, I am." Me: "Wanna go back to my place and root around in my drawers- er, see my etchings?" Charlotte: "Um, sure!". Me: "CHECK PLEASE!"

4) Interesting that Miles is the 'senior' partner in the Marskey and Sutch union. I, for one, would pay cash money to see THAT spun off into a series.

5) Um, minority of one, here. I thought Zoe was cool. Please address all hate mail to: Locked Compartment, Submarine, Hydra Island.

6) In "The Life And Times Of Jeremy Bentham, Widmore told Locke that "there's a war coming, John. And if you're not back on the Island when that happens, the wrong side is going to win." Hmmmmm. Got any other bright ideas, Chuck?

7) Kate: "Then what?" Sawyer: "Then you and me are gettin' off this damn Island, Freckles". Me: "*groan* Skaters everywhere are popping the champagne corks."

8) Cue the preview for next week's episode. Cut to me jumping up and down on the couch, whooping uncontrollably, feverish with anticipation. Nurse Ratched? I think it's time for my medication, now.

latelylost said...

@Benny I've read many who think that given the conflict between Ben and Widmore, they believe they aren't on the same side. In truth, they were opposing factions of the same higher order (Jacob). Think Catholics and Protestants being two sects of Christianity, yet both being in the same opposition to other religions!

I said something similar in last weeks comments - Widmore and Ben are the mid-management power struggle. (Which means I agree with you.)

I am assuming that Charlotte works with Dr. Chang because of the island connection. But I could have misheard and Miles' father could actually be a step-father.

Yeah, Charlotte appeared to be snooping. I wonder, since she and Miles are buddies, and Miles was suspicious enough of Jim to run his credit card, that maybe she was snooping at Miles' behest.

If Desmond is in the locker, it makes sense. Kidnapping is likely the only way to get him back to the island. And Widmore was at the hospital when Desmond was shot.

I don't remember Liz Lemon's boy goon in chief from the television shows mentioned, but I do seem to remember him from a fast food commercial. It wasn't the Mr. Cluck's ad from ComiCon, was it?

@Justin - I noticed the numbers on the clock as well.

@Nikki - I miss Daniel, too. So very much. In my mind, he took a little sojourn from his time in 1970's Ann Arbor and was the "clever fellow" who built the Lamppost Station. And, of course, he also found time on the island, before he left for Ann Arbor, to program the Looking Glass computer. In my dreams, anyway.

@Susan. Sawyer was with Juliet for 3 years, cried himself crazy when she died, and was going to propose to her. I think with the little time we have left, if he does get together with Kate (whom he only knew for 3 months 3 years ago) it would completely diminish his apparently honest and grown-up feelings for Juliet.

Yup and yup.

This episode didn't resonate for me, although I blame no one but myself for that. Ken Leung was the real standout for me. Next week - now that's a different story.

VW: readm - What Sawyer does to his books.

The Shout said...

Sawyer and Miles fighting crime and bedding suspects in a post-Lost spin off anyone?

I am loving the pacing of the final season - the temptation would be to cram every episode with exposition but instead there's a perfect balance of character and plot. I think there is a feeling of characters being tested, especially now sides have been drawn.

The flash sideways get more interesting by the week and are definately heading somewhere.So far all the characters whose lives are the better (or who have had some kind of epithany) belong to 'the good guys' - Jack, Ben- whereas those who's basic character remains the same or - Sawyer, Kate,Sayid- are currently in Locke's camp. You could also include Locke in this group even though his life appears better on the surface, he lacks the faith of our Locke.

Donna S. said...

humanebean said: "Wanna go back to my place and root around in my drawers- er, see my etchings?"

Hahahaha!! Is that the Australian slang word "root"?? Good one!

lowercase dan said...

ok, so I have to say, Kate in a hoody was THE WORST DISGUISE IN THE HISTORY OF DISGUISES. ok, that's off my chest.

i get the feeling we've been had with all the struggles. let me explain:

We get the TONS of squabbles and leadership battles when looking at the show's history. And someone is alwasy deceived, and basically whatever new threat comes to any season of Lost ends miserably for them. an example of what i'm thinking of;

Ben vs Keamy: those guys were badasses, but in the end Ben made them look sad with the flick of a switch.

I feel like every new group that comes into this show starts off looking like incredible adversaries, but by the end they are destroyed, and brutally so. Each new group, even with Dogan's group.

But now, another group is about to join the frey (Whitmore) and it's the opposite. Feeble old man already duped off the island and his crew of short fat gunmen "completetly fooled" by Sawyer into Smokey's trap. They seem like fodder for Smokey, even with their Smoke repellant. This seems like a setup to me. Every battle we've seen has gone one way, but if this is the last then I'd expect a different approach.

SenexMacDonald said...

What can I say about this episode? I loved, LOVED it! I am with the camp that did not see Sawyer as a cop coming... Great! My husband, @Justin, laughed out loud at when Jim said 'LaFleur'. Great codename. :)

I had no problems with Charlotte being in the ep - she is sooo beautiful. I completely agree with what she told Jim when he came over to her place (how did he get that information btw? was he also sneaking a peak at something he shouldn't have been looking at?). Even if she did not get information from Myles, she has the smarts to know that if he can't come clean re. his past, women, or anything that matters - there can not be anything real between them. If you can't be honest and/or have a real connection, what's left?

For those of you who noted before me, that Little House ep had a message for Jim Ford. Will he take it to heart and learn from it? Don't think so - but it is possible.

Did anyone else think that the reflection of Jim in the mirror looked a little small? He was standing close to it so the image should have been the same size - unless the mirror is warped in some way. Otherwise, he looked a lot smaller.

I like that, as with Hurley, Miles can have that kind of close relationship with his working partner. I also would love to see that series. LOL

Okay, can someone tell me when FLocke got the (excuse me if this is unacceptable) "man-boobs"? I like the speculation that FLocke could be a woman or that boy in the forest. I also like Terry's acting re. FLocke. His breaks when talking, the movement with his eyes as he speaks - sets FLocke away from John Locke just on that basis.

Locked door - I am also voting for Desmond. What or whoever it is - is going to be important. I cannot see it being any other way. If does not turn out to be important, then I am going to be so disappointed! Especially this close to the end.

NEXT WEEK!!! Richard and how to do your eyes properly. :)

@Fred wrote: "One line form last week fits here. Sideways Locke says to Ben, "If the man in charge doesn't care, then you should replace him." Well, who on the island doesn't care? MiB is the answer. So have we got it all wrong, and MiB is really the one in charge, and Jacob is just refusing to let him go, to find a replacement. But that was weird about him not wanting to die. If he could have died, then why didn't Jacob or anyone at the Temple do it long ago?"

Jacob can't kill MiB anymore than he can be killed by him - unless they find an 'out' of some sorts as they have discussed. I would think that anyone working with them re. the people at the Temple, or any other place where their 'minions' are believe both Jacob and MiB are 'immortal' or 'invincible'? Or no one ever tried before Ben... that we know of.

I am beginning to think that Jacob let himself be killed. To change Ben? To rise again in some other form? To set in motion things that would reset the island once Flocke/MiB was gone/killed? If Jacob can be killed under certain circumstances, then so too can Flocke. He doesn't want to die - but for things to be put right, I believe he will have to be dead.

Richard???????

Susan said...

lowercase dan YES about the Kate disguise. That was another of the predictable elements.

humanebean I liked your comments about "John" cracking around the edges. He really is trying to keep too many balls in the air at once.

Marebabe said...

@variabull: HEY!! Where you been? I've missed you, lo, these many months. So good to see you commenting again. And I'm intrigued by your comparison of Claire's skull-baby to Taweret, he/she of the long snout. Verrrry interesting.

This-here is a first. I'm commenting FROM WORK! For as long as you-all have known me, I've been unemployed. (That lasted for 16 months.) But now, I am once again gainfully employed, by the same company that laid me off in 2008. So things are really looking up in my world. Just wanted to share. :)

Austin Gorton said...

@Marebabe: Congrats1 Gainful employment is always worth celebrating!

Susan said...

Yay for Marebabe!

I just had a thought, and if someone already posted it and I missed it, then I give you full credit. When "John" is talking about his crazy mother and how Aaron has a crazy mother, is it the beginning of him manipulating Kate by promising to give her what she wants i.e. Aaron? He's already done that for Sawyer and Sayid so maybe he's working on Kate now.

humanebean said...

Congratulations, Marebabe! Good for you - I bet that this is a relief from the enormous stress that you and your family having been living with for a mighty long time. That's better than a Richard Alpert backstory!

No, really! ; ]

Erin {pughs' news} said...

Does anyone else think it's weird that Widmore chose to go to Hydra Island and not the main island? Why set up the pylons there, on that little rock, when all the action is happening across the water (and all of our heroes/villains are there too)?

Benny said...

@Erin: that's actually probably why. He needs to set up before heading to the main island, where he knows everything is happening. Can't run the risk of encountering your enemy, whoever that is!

Benny said...

Speaking of Widmore, anyone else remember when Miles was being recruited by Naomi... Bram asked him (tried to coerce really) to reconsider not working for Widmore.

This would strongly show that Widmore and Jacob are not together, or at least that Ilana/Bram and Widmore are not on same terms.

DB said...

One question I had last night when watching the exchanges between Flocke and Sawyer: can't Smokey TELL when Sawyer is conning him? Hasn't it been acknowledged that the Man in Black can read minds (he knew what John Locke was thinking when Ben killed him; others have posted on how it seems the Man in Black has been able to make things appear on the island that were manifestations of memories from the Losties' pasts; we think it was Smokey who was able to pull information from Eko's brain and thereafter have his brother appear and bring up incidents from their past life), so as Sawyer was lying to Smokey and Flocke paused and then smiled at Sawyer, I was thinking, "Flocke knows he's lying." Which made me very afraid that the long con is being pulled by Flocke against Sawyer, and not the other way around.

Anonymous said...

Ouch, I thought this episode pretty much Sucked. Ok, maybe sucked is harsh as it wasn't terrible. It reminded me of a Kate-Centric show where nothing really happens. No key reveals, no plot advancements, nothing (Ok, clair almost killing kate, Sayid doing nothing and Claire's creepy hopefully heartfelt apology were mildly entertaining but that was all of 3 minutes).

The Opening and finding out Sawyer, in this reality, is a cop was about the exciting part of the episode.

Miles getting more lines is always nice . Finding Sawyer is Sawyer and the tortured "Avenging Mom & Dads death" Con Man in every time line was ok but basically a Snooze-fest.

Tina Fey was believable for about a minute, then it was too many questions, please shoot her.

Who was remotely surprised Kate is running down the alley at the end? Boring.

With only 8 episodes left and so many questions to answer this felt like filler.

No real questions were answered, or theme set in motion that might answer more questions.

On the Good News Side, Richards episode next week should provide tons of answers about Island Mythology and Richards role in this Mystery.

Paithan1 said...

Loved Sawyer as a cop--nice to see that he is still looking for vengeance. Too bad he caught Kate. Loved seeing Sawyer & Miles as partners (and Sawyer asking about Miles from the Temple.) But who is Sawyer playing...Kate or FLocke?

Unknown said...

The story continued to progress and I for one loved it. Holloway’s 3 episode hiatus was well spent working out and getting back in shape. Too bad all of us can’t lose weight and tone up so nicely in just 6-8 weeks. He looked great. (So did Rebecca Mader for that matter.)

I find the small continuity errors they make in Sawyer’s age annoying and so unnecessary. In season one we find out that Sawyer’s parents died in 1976, probably sometime near July. They have been consistent with that part throughout the series. But in Exodus part 2, Sawyer tells Michael that his dad killed himself when Sawyer was 8. I think he told Jack the same thing in The Incident last year. Last night Sawyer tells Miles he was 9, which was backed up by a newspaper article. Granted this is in the Alt, but his parents still died in 1976 as evidenced by Sawyer calling Anthony Coopers and asking where they were in 1976. Yeah, it’s a small thing, but why mention it at all if you can’t keep such details straight. (They even had Sawyer tell Linus in November 2004 that he was 35 which would have made him only 7 in 1976; so they goofed again.) Well enough of a rant on that.

I’ve been reading that some people thought this episode was slow-moving, filler, or didn’t have any answers. But a lot of the same people thought Dr. Linus was terrific. I don’t get it. The on island story certainly had a lot more to it than Dr. Linus and the off island story, though not as emotionally gripping as Dr. Linus, was just as interesting and had some nice little twists with Sawyer being a cop and partnering with Miles.

Some interesting mirroring effects between Sawyer and Jack. In the original timeline, Jack is childless and Sawyer is the absentee father of a little girl. While in the alternate timeline, Jack is a more hands on (at least he tried to be) father of a boy and Sawyer appears to be childless. Is this important? Probably not. But it’s interesting. It’s also interesting that Jack broke mirrors on the island while Sawyer did the same thing off island. Most people think that Jack and Locke are the ying/yang of the show. But often it is Sawyer and Jack that fill those roles.

I’m not sure how Sawyer intends to get away with playing Widmore and UnLocke off each other. In many ways he was honest with both of them, yet we know he hopes to con both so that he and his friends can get out of there alive. I can’t see how it will work, although Kate seemed relieved that the Sawyer she knew was back.

I liked Sawyer’s cool reaction to the revelation that UnLocke is the smoke monster. He knows he’s playing a dangerous game, but he also knows he doesn’t have much of a choice. I’m very fearful that it will end in tragedy for my favorite conman.

Sayid really appears to be out of it. I hope they don’t keep us in the dark about what is happening with him. When he didn’t come to Kate’s rescue, I was surprised, but I was also curious why Kate didn’t call him on it after UnLocke pulled Claire off of her. She didn’t even glance his way and we didn’t see him again for the rest of the episode.

I’m not sure I believe Claire’s sudden turn around about Kate. She seemed sincere, but so often we are led to believe one thing and then we have the rug pulled out from under us. I guess until I see indications otherwise, I have to believe Claire now understands that Kate did not steal Aaron but saved him.

UnLocke’s story about his crazy mother is undoubtedly a foreshadowing for a future episode telling us how MIB came to be. I’m looking forward to that major mystery being solved. Finally, someone that has more mommy issues than daddy issues.

Brandon said...

"It's either kill or be killed...and I don't want to be killed."

First off, the opening scene was fantastic. It was really nostalgic to and satisfying to see Sawyer pulling the same con we've seen him do time and time again. Right before he said it, I said "You weren't exactly supposed to see that." Just classic fan service. It's interesting that Sawyer and Miles are cops in this timeline, since that was their job in 1977 on the Island.

It's significant that Sawyer's real name as a detective is James Ford, and he uses the code "LaFleur" to call in the other officers. Does he, like Jack and Claire, have some minute, faint memory of his experiences on the Island?

Terry O'Quinn is once again giving a stellar performance as the Monster. It's obvious that he's LOVING this role, and he should...it's awesome! Him slapping Claire was definitely shocking - especially to Kate! She must REALLY be wishing she went with Miles.

It seems that the Monster will somehow be able to repair Ajira 316 from its crash damage. How does he plan to do this?

Even in the other timeline, Sawyer is searching for Anthony Cooper aka THE Sawyer who ruined his life. On the Island, it took Locke for Sawyer to finally find and kill Cooper. Will similar events take place in this reality?

When Miles reveals that Sawyer was in Australia, and now that we know he was still looking for Cooper, it's safe to assume that he still killed the Shrimp Truck owner (I think his name was Frank Duckett) by mistake. Of course, maybe he was just tracking down another Cooper and didn't kill anyone, since the false information about Duckett came from Hibbs, Sawyer's "con boss".

The Monster's conversation with Kate was very amusing to watch. Kate's relationship with Locke has always been a changing one. She's nice to him, then she's with Jack and against Locke completely, viewing him as a strange man (which most people did). The Monster's smile to Kate reminded me of when Locke smiled to Kate after the initial 815 crash, when he had an orange in his mouth, mimicking Don Corleone.

The Monster's second conversation with Kate was even better. The fact that his "man" had a mother and life is very interesting, and his comparison of himself to Aaron raises many questions. Will Aaron eventually become another "dark" person, or a replacement for the Monster entirely? When the Psychic tricked Claire into getting on Oceanic 815, did he know that Kate would eventually take care of Aaron, and Kate is who Aaron is ultimately meant to be with? Is Claire doomed to be a tragic character with no happy ending for her and her son?

Jacob knew Widmore was coming to the Island, but did the Monster? Did he send Sawyer to Hydra Island knowing that he would be captured? I think it's safe to say that the Monster killed the extra Ajira 316 passengers.

While the storyline with Charlotte was fun to watch, it's unclear how important she is in that reality.

It was upsetting to know that Sawyer is deceiving Widmore. Although, I assume he would have a grudge against him since the freighter was the reason he was on the Island for 3 years instead of a few months like the Oceanic Six...but yet again, he is a fantastic con man. Him telling Kate about his plan to use the submarine is the epitome of his character and what he's all about. He has this in common with Ben: he always has a plan.

Brandon said...

Everyone in the alternate reality is indeed meeting each other. Sawyer meets Kate again (most likely more permanently with her being a criminal and him being a cop), he meets Charlotte, knows Miles, Sayid has met Jin, Locke has met Ben, Jack has met Dogen, and Charlie is arrested (with his brother Liam looking for him).

Finally, it was nice to see Claire turn a bit sane again. Her understanding with Kate is very important, and the fate of Aaron may be more important than we think.

So, where do we draw alliances thus far? Let's see:

Jacob's Soldiers: Jack, Richard, Hurley, Sun, Ben, Illana, Miles, Frank.

Monster's Soldiers: Sawyer (disloyal), Jin (reluctantly), Claire, Kate (disloyal), Sayid, plus various Others.

It's important to note that only Claire and Sayid (and possibly the Others) are truly loyal to the Monster (that we know). Sawyer, Jin, and Kate are all reluctant or planning against him. This should be great to see unfold.

Now for Widmore. Charles didn't want Locke to die and is seen as an enemy to the Monster, therefore I believe he is on Jacob's side. Ben is now on Jacob's side, but technically used to be a soldier for the Monster (he thought he was serving Jacob).

NEXT WEEK:
RICHARD'S STORY!!!! Or as I like to call him...Bat-Manuel!!!

Marebabe said...

@Teebore, Susan, and humanebean: Bless you all! *blowing kisses* Thanks, really! I'm pretty happy about it, see? :) And humanebean, when you said that my news was BETTER than a Richard Alpert backstory, my instant reaction was something like "Let's not get carried away..." Still, I totally get your meaning, and I thank you for the sentiment.

I'm still getting used to my new schedule. Since this is a DAY JOB, my posting of comments at all hours of the night is pretty much a thing of the past. Well, maybe on weekends. ;)

Anonymous said...

Wow. I can't read trough all these, but have a fierce desire to just toss my comments out there...like diamons on N&P's grave!!! Okay, bad joke.

First off, Widmore was the one who urged Locke to get back to the island or the "wrong side" will win. He is a driving force behind FLocke.

So, Widdy laughed and readily accepted Sawyer's offer because - he and Locke are on the same team! Good for Widdy, bad for Sawyer. Maybe. I think Sawyer's going to pull it off - whatever "it" is.

Also, I would love to see Ben get a 'come back' here as well as the leader of the "Good Guys". It was, after all, originally a game of some sort between him and Widdy. Ben would have all kinds of intel not only about the island but Widdy as well.

Oh, and Charlotte was SO VERY much trying to find something in Sawyer's drawers - I thought that was played extremely obvious so as to leave no doubt. She wouldn't rifle through a drawer looking scared and hurried for a t-shirt she asked to get. She was also downright *gleeful* with what she found. She's up to something, just not sure what.

I can't believe its almost over, and I'm concerned I will feel let down - I'm trying to trust the process here, but so far there is not enough clarity, and I'm hating new questions being brought up when I'm still wondering about some fundamental q's!

Mama Lost

Anonymous said...

@Ali Bags! I was also thinking this last night. In all seriousness, FLocke's physique seems to be er..filling out? I recall him as being a bit more toned and muscular appearing and this time he looked soft and pliable, a little bit pudgy even. And this led me to thinking how he just seemed oddly... feminine. I was thinking it was all in my imagination, because I could not for the life of me think of why his would be so.

So,maybe something, or maybe FLocke's had one too many Smoke Brownies?

Mama Lost

LT McDi said...

first comment here..hi.
second comment..good, not quite great. I enjoyed all of the show except...not more new people..although I guess Widmore couldn' run the sub by hisself.

feel guilty that Claire got a smack...probably not enough though.
Not loving the crazy.

Sayid was just scary and all he did was sit there.

well done show

Tanyam said...

@ Donna S.

Did you know it's very easy to put in a name, any name, to post a comment? You don't have to set up an account. Just choose "Name/URL", and a box pops up where you can type in a name. (I don't put a URL, just a name only.)

Nope, I didn't know that. Thanks for the tip!

JennM said...

@The Shout
Sawyer and Miles fighting crime and bedding suspects in a post-Lost spin off anyone?

Yes!

tanyam said...

I am peeing my pants over next weeks' episode. I'm just sayin'. I've been waiting for this one for years.

Marebabe said...

Here's a good one. I was just reading Vozzek's latest over on DarkUFO, and he thinks Claire's squirrel baby looks like Jar Jar Binks! So now we've got Alf, Taweret, and Jar Jar. Anyone else?

JS said...

I realize I’m late here, but hopefully a few of you are still checking in on Thursday.

@Marebabe - congrats, that's great.

ENEMY OF MY ENEMY: @Benny et al – the allegiances certainly are hard to keep track of. I think we are going to find that though they thought they were on opposite sides, both Ben and Widmore will be on the Jacob side. Widmore never did have a relationship with Jacob (he never got the messages directly, and shut up every time Ben/Richard said “this is what Jacob wants”) but he cares about the island most of all. Smokey does not. Same religion, different denomination makes sense. Maybe Widmore knows “what” Ben is because he knows something we have been guessing at, but he isn’t able to prove. Ben has been doing his own thing, or worse, listening to Smokey all along.

ALL THE INDISCRIMINATE KILLING: even in a brutal war, soldiers avoid killing civilians where possible. Not on LOST. I keep getting the feeling that the indiscriminate killing going on is somehow justified in their minds because they either think the killing isn’t permanent, or know that those people exist in some other timeline or there will be some other reset, or some such thing. When Widmore said it was sad how much Sawyer didn't know, he was referring to the idea that Widmore wanted to kill everyone. We have seen Ben kill, but not Widmore directly. As a matter of fact, the only person Widmore wanted was Ben. Keamy was the one who decided to kill everyone, and rig the ship to blow as an insurance policy.

@Fred - agree that Ilana probably shot the redshirt Ajira passengers in the same vein of "it doesn't really matter if we kill them know because they'll be alright in the end”.

FLOCKE LENDS A HELPING HAND: I like his weird little smile when he puts his hand out to Kate, like he isn't sure of himself. He is trying to win her (and everyone else) over and as so many have already said he, he is juggling multiple balls. He is a politician, promising each constituency what they want, lying by omission, and overall managing his message. When he puts his hand out to Kate, he is asking her to believe him, but he knows it’s a long shot.

VW: Pharce. Srsly?

JS said...

RECON DELEGATION: Also, reading this somewhere else jogged my memory – there is some issue with Smokey crossing the water. I remember the whole shoes off/shoes on thing when he went over with Ben in Dead is Dead. Maybe someone else needs to be navigating? I am grasping at straws here but there is a kernel in there and I want to search the haystack. I call that last sentence a metaphor salad.

Ambivalentman said...

Each episode seems to be getting better and better. There's so much to like here:

1. I loved how clumsy Sawyer was with the "pigeon drop" at the beginning. It was obvious that he wasn't used to running the con, unlike in season 1's flashback when he looked like he had perfected the move.

2. Evangeline Lily's acting was some of her best in this episode. I loved the gravity with which she played Kate's turmoil. I really felt her agony and confusion as she dealt with psycho-Claire.

3. Evil Locke just keeps gettin' better! The story about his "mother" was eerie. Are we to think that maybe it's the real John Locke inside him coming out (much like during the chase of the blood-stained boy) as he shares this tale?

4. I wasn't as irritated with Liz Lemon as some of you (especially Nikki). I never even considered she'd be a new regular. I liked how she conned Sawyer (or did she?).

5. Sawyer's conversation with Kate at the end was awesome! I love how he used the truth to double-cross both sides. I guess it's true: The Truth SHALL set you free!

I have some other thoughts about the sideways world and what they mean. I just posted at my blog: www.pop-culture-pundit.blogspot.com.

Great comments everyone!

Anonymous said...

I assumed that the beach Widmore was looking at with people on it in the previous episode was on Hydra, and that he had all the people there killed (possibly by Tina Pailin).

Ambivalentman said...

Forgot one other thing (well lots, actually): Charlotte was HOT! It was pretty awesome to see her without blood gushing out of her nose.

Sidenote: I may have recruited some new LOST fans the other day at school. I was watching an interview on eonline with Rebecca Mader during lunch. A couple students came in to eat and started watching with me. The boys took a look at Mader and began oogling like teen boys do (I work at a high school). "Who's that?" They asked. I felt like a missionary making converts as I explained LOST to them.

Unfortunately, I don't think they heard much of what I said, as distracted by Rebecca Mader as they were.

Ambivalentman said...

One more thing:

Congratulations, Marebabe!

Coleman Glenn said...

Is it possible that Charlotte recognized Sawyer from her childhood on the island? As far as we know he was there even in Sideways Time, since if he and the rest of the Losties weren't there then there would have been no one to warn everyone off the island and blow up the bomb, which we've been led to believe is what put the island on the bottom of the ocean. She was pretty young, but he'd been around as head of security for three years of her early childhood, so she may at least have some hazy memory of him.

DavidB226Morris said...

Just another thought I had, buttressed by something Nikki wrote in Book 5. One of the biggest themes of Lost is the idea of Black and white. But... none of the characters are black and white, they're all gray

Here's a question that's been bugging me since 'The Shape of Things to Come', just because you have to choose a side for a war, it doesn't mean that EITHER of them is right. When we thought that the fight for the island was going to be between Ben and Widmore, my first thought was : These are my choices? A manipulative liar and sociopath, who's so bloodthirsty he'd cast the love of his daughter aisde as if he were nothing more than a pawn or... a manipulative liar and a sociopath who would let the only person he loved be killed thinking that she meant nothing to him? Do I have a door number three.

When I first saw 'the Incident' I missed the first minute, and somehow reversed the roles of Jacob and the Man in Black. I therefore thought Jacob's involvement with the castaways was a bit creepy.Now even if Jacob is still pulling the strings--- and considered we're still seeing him after he was dead, I think we have to assume he is---- does that mean that's he's good and everyone else is evil? The only real difference between Jacob and Smokey is that Jacob is making OTHER people kill in his name, and Smokey's doing it himself. If Richard, who was Jacob's strongest acolyte, no longer believes in him after (I'm guessing) decades of servitude, why should anybody fight on his side.

Perhaps the only true choice to be a candidate is whoever comes to the realization that while they may have to pick a side, they don't have to choose from the options available. Or maybe the right choice is not good or evil, but simply the island

Unknown said...

Lisa(until further notice) said...
How did they know it was Sawyer (Ford) coming over from the main island? How did Flemmon know his name? And even if he told it to her during their stroll on the beach, how is it that Widmore was "waiting for him?" Why not waiting for Jin or Kate?

Good question. I also thought it was curious that they were not only expecting him, but knew who he was. Does Widmore have files and pictures of everyone the way the Others did? Does he know who the candidates are? And how does Sawyer know that Widmore wants to kill/destroy MIB? Did he make that assumption because he saw the pylons being put up?

humanebean said...
A Few Things That Jumped Out At Me:
1) It just occurred to me this morning that we saw Flocke send Sawyer over to Hydra Island ... right after we saw him entice Ben to head over there as well! Do you suppose that he intended for Ben to get caught in Widmore's web, if he knew that he was there? Or, do you think he was trying to set up Sawyer and Ben for a showdown? Hmmmm.


I never thought about this. Flocke told Ben that he and those with him would be at the Hydra, but he tells those with him that they would be camping in that clearing for a couple of days. So it seems he wanted Ben to arrive at the Hydra island before him. Why would he want Ben to get there first? That’s a really good question. I don’t think he wanted to get rid of Ben, at least not yet. If he did, he could have just let Ilana do the honors. As for Sawyer, I really do think Sawyer was just sent for recon as Flocke said and also to test his loyalty.

4) Interesting that Miles is the 'senior' partner in the Marskey and Sutch union. I, for one, would pay cash money to see THAT spun off into a series.

Well I missed that. What makes you think that Miles is the senior partner? I didn’t get that at all.

Brandon said...
When Miles reveals that Sawyer was in Australia, and now that we know he was still looking for Cooper, it's safe to assume that he still killed the Shrimp Truck owner (I think his name was Frank Duckett) by mistake. Of course, maybe he was just tracking down another Cooper and didn't kill anyone, since the false information about Duckett came from Hibbs, Sawyer's "con boss".

Actually, I think it is safe to assume he didn’t kill Duckett for the reasons you said. Although it’s possible Det. Ford could have come across conman Hibbs in his line of work, I think it unlikely in this timeline. I think his actions on the plane in LA X also show that he didn’t commit a murder while in Australia. In season 1 that case of mistaken identity and subsequent murder colored everything Sawyer did. He was angry, self destructive and full of self-loathing and you could see that when he got on the plane in the Exodus flashback. James Ford in LA X was charming, helpful, and seemingly content with himself. Unless he is now some sort of sociopath, I would think we are safe in saying Frank Duckett, if he exists in this timeline, was not done in by Det. Ford.

Pamalamb said...

This was a great episode, but not my favorite - it's hard to follow Dr. Linus and come before Richard Alpert's episode. I had some thoughts and comments to share.

@The Shout: I also had the same thought that in the alternate timeline the Losties from team Jacob (Jack and Ben) are more together and able to deal with thier issues then the Losties from team Flocke (Sayid, James, Kate). We haven't yet seen Jin/Sun's flash sideways, but it will be interesting to see how they fall -- of course at this point they are on different sides; although, as I've said before I don't think either one of them has an allegiance to anyone, they just want to be together.

Speaking of Jin and Sun, I had an interesting idea about their alt. timeline story. Since Mills and James are cops together maybe Jin is a cop too -- the Korean connection -- and he is working undercover trying to bust Pak and his criminal connections. He really does speak English, but can't say so or it might blow his cover. He is using Sun to get to her father (It would be awesome if Jin knew English and didn't tell Sun, and she only speaks Korean). Maybe Keamy figured out he was a cop and that's why he was tied up in that freezer.

@Joan: I agree it was weird that James, as a cop, would help Katie escape at the airport, but it occurred to me that perhaps the island timeline is bleeding over into the alt. timeline and it influenced him to act as he did.

When James first mentioned to Flocke that Whitmore had sonic fence pilons, it occurred to me that he may be creating a sonic fence not to keep flocke out, but to trap and capture him.

I have never agreed with the theory that Aaron is really a young Jacob, but when Flocke spoke with Kate about his crazy mother and said that now Aaron has a crazy mother too, it made we wonder if maybe Aaron somehow is Jacob and Flocke made Clare go crazy on purpose. I'm still not sure I like this idea, but it just got me thinking.

When Charlotte slammed the door on James and his sad sunflower, I was so hoping that Juliet would come walking down the hallway and he would give the flower to her :). Speaking of Charlotte how gorgeous did she look in this episode. I never noticed her beautiful blue eyes before! and yes she is up to something -- she was definitely looking for something in James' drawers.

Anonymous said...

Great quick recap Nikki. I have to come in often. I am using a friends computer and this blog is bookmarked as one of the favourites. Have to do the same on my computer.

@Susan-Why was Sawyer with Juliet? Who told you Sawyer and Juliet were together romantically for THREE years? What made you think it was a relationship filled with real and honest feelings? From what I saw, the day we saw it, at the end, Sawyer lied and ran off to see if he could remember every Freckle afterall. Freckles returned and at the mere mention of Freckles, Juliet was giving out codes and when Rose and Bernard spoke of eternal love, Sawyer was unconsciously looking where his heart led instead of where his head was trying to lead his heart. This look caused Juliet to agree with the dumbest plan in television history. This agreement killed her.

So, excuse me for ignoring other great posts and great things that happened in this episode, to respond to just the relationship part, but I think fans of the Sawyer and Juliet pairing need to LET. GO. Its becoming disturbing. There is no way in Television history that a relationship introduced in the penultimate season of a show with an end date, that had all of 3 scenes or so, 90% of the scenes being about reactions to the return of what Susan is calling "3 month" girl, is meant to be the all consuming love of a characters life. They have spent 5 years showing you the connections between Sawyer and Kate. They have now, in their 6th year, chosen their last Sawyer centric, to show you that inevitable connection again and yet you are going on about some contrived obstacle relationship they set up last year? Seriously? Lets get with the show now guys and leave personal feelings aside. The reason no one was surprised that it was Kate that crashed into that car, even before she took off the hood, is because deep down every blessed Lost fan knows, that the story has always headed in the direction of Sawyer and Kate are destined to be together in the end, for all the romantic and mythological reasons you can think of. I am even pitching my tent in the camp that a woman has something to do with the hatred b/w Jacob and MIB. There is a triangle everywhere you look.

Anonymous said...

For Nikki and all-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QlaAEQQukY

M9 EGO said...

So many good points in this episode. Charlotte lost her horrible accent, but did you notice at the end when nonlocke and Kate were talking about Sawyer...the way they both said "errand" really sounded like Aaron ? I alos loverd Miles line to Jim " Do you want to die alone"...the writers are doing a brilliant job dropping in all these subtle hints between the different worlds and timelines.

Anonymous said...

This was the 8th hour of an 18-hour season, or the 7th episode of a 16-episode season. Either way, it's not quite half over yet. Next week's episode (which looks like it'll be a doozy) will mark the halfway point.

Benny said...

@redeem147: if you look closely, he's looking at Jack's group. You can definitely make out Hurley, Jack and Lapidus easily, with Richard and Ben alone on either side.

@Coleman: actually there was no time travel within the new sideways reality. While there is a connection between the two, there has been no crossover. And with no island and no crash, no time travel either.

@DavidB226Morris: We were discussing the idea some weeks back about how 'right and wrong' is relative to any side in narrative. There usually is an 'absolute right' but we don't know what it is yet in the narrative of the show.

Benny said...

@Deb/Lisa: Right after the 'mirror punching' scene, cut to Sawyer introducing himself to Zoe. Given that Widmore is interested in the island, I would figure he would prepare himself with all the knowledge he can get, including who the 815/316 were. Possibly knowing the candidate too (his connection to Eloise)

@Anonymous: The relationship may not have been all of three years (although I think Sawyer mentions something to that effect) but they were together in Dharma for three years. Sawyer and Kate were on the island for three months, difference factor of 12! You get to know someone more closely over that period.

Benny said...

Anyone think that the upcoming episode Happily Ever After" may just be a Sun/Jin flash sideways?

Just a thought!

Rebecca T. said...

@marebabe: congratulations! Hope it goes well for you :) I'm sure that's a relief. Enjoy!

I've got good news too, I got accepted into grad school, which makes me super happy :)

@Coleman: Is it possible that Charlotte recognized Sawyer from her childhood on the island?

That's an interesting idea and I guess it all depends on what exactly these flash sideways are. If it is a reset so that what happened, really always happened, then it's a possibility. But if it's an alternate/parallel world then she wouldn't remember him because he was never there.

@DavidB226Morris: The only real difference between Jacob and Smokey is that Jacob is making OTHER people kill in his name, and Smokey's doing it himself.

But I don't think that's true. I don't think Jacob has ever asked people to kill in his name. Just because people have, doesn't mean that he told them too. And 2 weeks ago we saw Smokey tell Sayid to kill Dogen. Plus, Smokey got Ben to kill Jacob.

Coleman Glenn said...

@Benny: I think you might be right, but can you be sure? We know that Ben was on the island with his dad, so the island and Dharma did exist up until some point, probably about when the bomb was detonated. If the bomb was not detonated by the Losties in the flash-sideways world, what made Ben and his dad leave? Why did that timeline turn out differently than the original timeline? What IS the connection between the two? Like I said, I think you're probably right (partly since Ben seems not to have been affected by the smoke monster in sideways time, which happened before the bomb detonated), but I don't think those questions have been answered yet. Or have I missed something?

Ilene said...

Long time lurker here..I've ready about half of the comments so far and haven't seen this mentioned so I wanted to bring it up.

With Jim and Charlotte and the drawer situation: When she asked to borrow a t-shirt, I thought right away that something wasn't right by the way she asked. Jim told her it was the "Top drawer on the right", but she quickly goes to the top drawer closest to the wall, which is on the left. The look on her face doesn't say "why isn't there a t-shirt in here?", it says "I am really looking for something". (At least to me)

The other thing I was wondering is, if Claire and Sayid both went through the same thing - the "claiming" or whatever, why is it that Claire seems to be able to snap out of it, and Sayid is just in a trance of some sort, totally unemotional? Or is it that Flocke is controlling them both?

Thanks for the blog Nikki!

Jessica said...

@Ilene said...
The other thing I was wondering is, if Claire and Sayid both went through the same thing - the "claiming" or whatever, why is it that Claire seems to be able to snap out of it, and Sayid is just in a trance of some sort, totally unemotional? Or is it that Flocke is controlling them both?"

I think this is an interesting point. One may say that it's because Claire has been "under the influence" for a longer period of time and is now capable of more than mild interactions.
What I think may need to be considered is whether or not Sayid is aware of what is happening to him. Jack and Dogen both spoke to Sayid afterwards, informing him that he was supposedly losing himself to evil/dark side. Maybe Sayid has closed down to self-monitor or to try to mentally fight what is happening to him. I said after "Sundown" that I hated the idea that the cunning, intelligent Sayid that we know and love would just be gone so I hope he is in there somewhere trying to fight it!

Susan said...

Wow "anonymous."

I am not a fan of Sawyer-Juliet, nor am I a fan of either of them individually, I merely made a comment based on how the writers wrote Sawyer's character and his feelings for Juliet.

Looks like I started a shipper war after all, Nikki, and I am sorry to you and everyone else. And thank you Benny for your comment about the Sawyer/Juliet relationship that clarified my comment.

Susan said...

And BTW yay for SonshineMusic!

Benny said...

@Ilene: I took it that she went to the top-most drawer (left dresser) and then she started looking on the right of that drawer.

Not finding any t-shirt, she started going through the drawer.

She looked intently true, but I'd rather believe that then having the writers put in some other plot while there's only 1/12 of the entire show left!

Truth is, we'll just have to wait and see.

Benny said...

@Sonshine: May I be the first to say... welcome to hell!

You're gonna love it here.

(both statements are true)

Benny said...

@Coleman: Here's my reasoning, bear with me. And that's only MY reasoning, it's not gospel obviously!

1. Ben was still recovering when the bomb went off on Day 3 of the Oceanic 6's arrival (Whatever Happened, Happened, Dead Is Dead). The incident happened on Day 4.
-It's not clear whether Ben was returned (Widmore tells him soon, but how soon), but Roger was still in the camp a mere hour or two (estimate) before detonation. It don't give him much chance to evacuate.

2. The 2007 on-island scenes we see have Christian show a picture of the Oceanic 6 DHARMA recruits to Sun. So they were at least in that 'reality's' past
-This suggests that, if the bomb caused the island to sink, up to the point detonation, the past of the two realities should have been identical, including DHARMA and time-travelers.

If we assume that the bomb caused the island to sink, then you inevitably have to believe in branching (as suggested by [2]), where branching happens at that specific point.
Given branching and identical pasts, [1] would suggest that Roger would not have escaped the detonation and would not have survived to be in the sideways 2004.


This all rests on the bomb detonation causing the island to sink. If that assumption fails, the rest follows.
Given that we see Ben and Roger well alive and in good terms, I'm opting (until shown evidence of te contrary) that they are two different histories where one affects the other and possibly vice-versa.

myselfixion said...

@Nikki: I’m starting to wonder if Not-Locke wasn’t actually a man when he was turned into whatever he was, but was actually a child, and never reached a maturity level to deal with his issues.

I think that maybe you are on to something here. On re-watching Jacob talking to Hurley at the Lighthouse about "someone coming to the Temple, someone bad," I thought that was a very childlike thing to say as well. Perhaps the kid that the Locke-Monster saw in the woods is the real Jacob and he is inhabiting the dead body of the avatar that ben killed at the Foot Statue?

Benny said...

I forgot to add:

The assumption that the bomb sunk the island leads to formal reasoning that it cannot have sunk the island in the flash-sideways. Therefore the bomb did not sink the island.

That's from the branching perspective. But if we have two different worlds (no branching) then there could evidently be some bleed through of energy (as posited by Blam some time ago.)

This theory would lead to different histories (no time travelers present) and allow Ben and Roger to leave the island earlier than July 1977.

The bleed through energy would, to the very least, help sink the island in this 'history'.

In short: the bomb from history-A caused the island to sink in history-B.

Marebabe said...

@Sonshine: Wonderful news! Congratulations! You've probably said it on here before, but I missed (or forgot) it. What's your field of study? And what do you want to be when you grow up? ;)

VW: crusebul - creative (phonetic) spelling of "crucible".

Rebecca T. said...

@Susan, Benny and Marebabe: Thanks for the good wishes :) I'm going for my masters in English and I want to be a college professor :) (But I never want to grow up. Grow older, yes, but grow up, never :)

Zari said...

@Pamalamb: Charlotte “was definitely looking for something in James' drawers.”

You say that like it’s a bad thing. :-))

Word Verf: propotio : What Harry Potter was until the very “n”.

humanebean said...

@Sonshine - let me add my congratulations to the rapidly accumulating pile! As a lifelong lover of literature and the world of ideas, I applaud your desire to be an English professor and share your passion with your students. Well done, you!

@ Lisa(until further notice) - my comment re: Miles and Sawyer in their roles as SuperCops was based on the interaction between them. We see Miles really take charge, be directive in his conversations with Sawyer, push him to be honest and act more maturely. Really, almost the inverse of his character on the Island! By contrast, Sawyer the policeman appears to be cruising along on charisma and talent. In this context, Miles appears more dominant in the relationship, thus my comment about him being the "senior partner". Make sense?

@Anonymous - easy there Big Guy/Gal. Please be mindful that your passion for your argument can come across in print as unnecessarily sarcastic and accusatory. That's not the way we play in this little harbor on the internets. If you disagree with someone, take the time to express yourself with some restraint and respect for the person whose comments you disagree with. It can mean the difference between someone taking you seriously and considering your point of view ... and being dismissed as an Argumentative Assassin and all-around Cranky Customer. Also, putting a name to your post is considered the threshold for courteous commentary.

I say this giving you the benefit of the doubt and assuming that you meant no real harm. If I am wrong about this, (in the words of Woody Allen) please be fruitful and multiply ... but not in those words. ; ]

Jennifer S said...

Have now read all 156 comments and have some thoughts:

When Widmore told Locke, "There's a war coming, and if you're not there, the wrong side is going to win", did he mean Jacob as the wrong side? And that Locke had to be there to be the loophole? I will never buy Widmore as anything but evil. He hired that whack-job Keamy!

Think Claire and Flocke are running a long con on Kate. Too many switcheroos there -- and from the look on Claire's face when Flocke smacked her, it was like he told her to attack Kate and she wasn't expecting him to intervene, let alone smack her.

AnaLucia and Miles? No way.

If AR Miles was suspicious enough to run Jim's credit card, he probably got Charlotte to snoop for him too.

bubszpa: Bub's Russian spa

Terri said...

Wow, not much left to say!

Daniel in the locked cupboard maybe?
As someone way back on the list of comments said, maybe he did create the lighthouse and programme the looking glass and Now he's working for daddy? albeit reluctantly?

Also...

How do you get lots of sonar pilons in and out of a submarine?...

Anonymous said...

Terri maybe they were originally stored in a secret place on Hydra Island?

Anonymous said...

To Marebabe and Sonshine - CONGRATS!!!!

Sonshine - you say you want to get older - well, if you think grad school is gonna be hell you just wait for the growing older part!!

All the comments rock and intrigue me as usual!!

latelylost said...

@Terri - that was me (I?) speculating based on my fondness for Daniel. But I think he created the Lamppost, not the Lighthouse. Unfortunately, unless there is more than one alt I don't think Daniel is in the cupboard. I do think it may well be Des, though. It occurred to me that this is likely exactly how Anthony Cooper was brought to the island - drugged and locked in a cabinet.

After all, Cruella DeVille told Des the island wasn't done with him. And she was at the hospital acting creepy with Penny and little Charlie. (Boy, could Daniel tell Flocke a thing or two about overbearing, crazy mothers).

Widmore & Co. are on Hydra, where there is also, unless I've misplaced one, an outrigger. Maybe it will actually be the baby-faced goon squad chasing the flashing Losties and Juliet will take one of them down.

I'm wondering if Flocke really thinks the Ajira plane can fly, or if that was just an excuse to get Sawyer to Hydra? But, if that means Frank gets to stick around, I'm down with the plan.

Nikki Stafford said...

Wow, guys, sorry... I promised I'd be back and present and engaged but I'm editing a book on True Blood and it has to be to the printer by April 1 and I'm just in this mad dash to get it done, and it's become all-consuming. I'm trying to get through the comments now and you guys are just amazing. But I want to be back in the club!! So here goes...

Asiancolossus: This episode shows that Anthony Cooper is still a scumbag, one has to wonder why he and Locke seem to be on speaking terms.

You know, it NEVER occurred to me that this would still be the same guy that Locke was looking at in the photo; I'd completely forgotten Locke was OK with Pops and yet Sawyer's looking for him. Great connection...

This weekend I'm rewatching the entire season up to this week and here's hoping it keeps me more alert next week to find those connections!!

Nikki Stafford said...

Jennifer and Marebabe: Nikki, the reason the Little House scene looked familiar is that almost every episode had a heart-to-heart with Laura and Pa.

True, but I actually clearly remember this one, and Pa telling her all about people dying. I KNOW I know this episode... I just wish I could figure out which one it was.

Jessica and AliBags: Don't know about anyone else but I was getting some seriously feminine vibes from Not-Locke this episode. I'm sure he was originally a woman.

Yep, I agree... I've been wondering if he was a woman from the first episode of this season. Although this week I actually started thinking maybe he was a child, as I suggested in my DocArzt post this week.

Joan Crawford: For the record, I love the real Liz Lemon...just not New Island Liz Lemon.

I have to second that in case anyone thought I was dissing Liz. Never, Liz. Never. I want to BE Liz Lemon. Actually, I think I am like Liz in many ways. Esp when they flash back to those awkward teen years. Sigh.

Nikki Stafford said...

Teebore: Were you happy to see they were books he's already read, so you won't have to read as many for your next book? :)

LOL!! Oh you know me too well, don't you? Ha!

ashlie: Charlotte did look amazing - but why would Sawyer have told her to get herself a T-shirt out of his mystery drawer of childhood pain?

LOLZ!!! LOVE this description of his drawer!!

Unknown said...

@ humanebean – I think you got me confused with Lisa, although I can see how that could happen since right under my name I had put a quote from her. Thanks for providing your reasons for thinking that Miles was the senior partner. I had thought they were equals in the partnership, but Miles certainly did seem to hover over Sawyer like a big brother, which is funny since physically Sawyer towers over him. Miles pushed Sawyer into dates he wasn’t particularly interested in and involved himself in Sawyer’s personal business; so he did seem to be in Sawyer’s face a lot. In truth, I think Sawyer was justified in being angry with Miles intrusion into his personal life. Miles stepped over the line running Sawyer’s credit card unless he suspected Sawyer was doing something illegal and I’m not sure why Miles would have thought that. Certainly, keeping some things private is not a crime and Miles should have respected that instead of accosting him in the locker room and ending their partnership over something that wasn’t any of his business anyway. On the other hand, it was obvious that Miles thought something was not right, was concerned, and just wanted to be sure everything was okay with his friend and partner. In the end Sawyer thought his friendship and partnership with Miles was more important than keeping his vendetta a secret.

Blam said...


Ha! Little House!

A great recap as usual, Nikki... Once again, I'm late to the party and the season is slipping away so quickly. 8^(

Congrtaulations, Marebabe!

VW: lainedis — Hating on Lois by spelling her last name wrong.

Blam said...

I may have mentioned this some previous week, and if not it's entirely possible others have, but the flashsideways events could be taking place "before" the main Lost universe we know instead of "after" it.

Most of the conjecture has been either that the AU was created as a by-product of the boom/flash at the end of "The Incident" or that it is a consequence (perhaps even "reward") stemming from decisions made by characters in the OU storyline. What if it's the way things had always unfolded or were meant to unfold, but Jacob came along and changed everyone's destinies for good or ill? Of course, even if that's the case, how it will play into the main narrative is yet to be seen.

VW: razonest — A very sharp birdie berth.

Blam said...


Joan: I was surprised at Sawyer's behavior from before now that we know he is a cop. He helped Kate escape from the airport...why?

He didn't stop her because if he got involved he'd have to ID himself and he wasn't where he was supposed to be. He helped her because she had freckles like Half-Pint.

VW: subecksh — Mr. Hansen's less-worthy material?

Austin Gorton said...

@Blam:What if it's the way things had always unfolded or were meant to unfold, but Jacob came along and changed everyone's destinies for good or ill?

Hmm...your idea intrigues me. I shall have to stew on this a bit.

He helped her because she had freckles like Half-Pint.

Ha! Good point.

humanebean said...

@Deb - whoops! Sorry about that - I did indeed confuse you with Lisa. My bad.

I agree with your analysis of Miles/Sawyer's flash-sideways relationship. It's one thing to be concerned about your partner and friend, it's entirely another to go run his credit card and confront him with the discrepancies in his story. That's kinda harsh (and slightly illegal, might we add). It didn't seem as though Sawyer had done anything to that point to generate this kind of 'intervention' on Miles' part. But, it did serve the plot nicely. ; ]

Blam said...


ashlie: I love "mystery drawer of childhood pain"!

Charlotte's search definitely seemed purposeful, but a dumb scene all too common on (especially good) TV: "Y'know, I could grab a shirt for you, but, heck, just hit the drawer where I keep the thing whose discovery by you will lead to a massive, knee-jerk, distrustful hissy fit ruining what we have going here."

VW: remisc — To decide something goes in the catchall category after all.

Blam said...


Nikki: Sayid scared me. I’m so incredibly sad about him.

That was weirdness.

Nikki: OK. Widmore’s been trying to get back to the island for over 20 years and now that he’s here he’s just sitting on a sub jotting notes,

That was also weirdness, although Florian made a good call about him possibly not being allowed back on the Island yet.

VW: guole — Avocado dip without the cam.

Blam said...


redeem147: I have a horrible suspicion that Richard doesn't know as much as we hope he knows. But I want to know what he does know.

I know.

JS: Should we be thinking about Greek or Egyptian mythology? Any crazy mothers in those?

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!! You could say.

Nikki: ALF has officially become a horror demon for me now!

Whaddaya mean "now"? ALF was plenty creepy before the squirrel-bones baby came along.

VW: chizat — A talk with Snoop Dogg.

Blam said...


humanebean: Cue the preview for next week's episode. Cut to me jumping up and down on the couch, whooping uncontrollably, feverish with anticipation.

You could have slapped me with a fish. This had so better live up to expectations. And that might even be possible. 8^)

VW: notess — 1. A lady jotter-downer. 2. bee, cee, dee, arr, tee, vee, etc.

Blam said...


Teebore: I shall have to stew on this a bit.

Add onions for flavor, but strain before serving, please.

VW: boophala — A shout-out from Ms. Betty (not Rubble, not White; this one, whippersnappers).

Blam said...


I too noticed Locke's flabulous chest this episode.

Did anyone else think was strange to hear James introduce himself to Zoe as Sawyer? Granted, it set up the "Is your real name even Zoe?" / "Is yours Sawyer?" exchange, and we see that he was at least in part being wary, but the majority of characters have been calling him Jim or James for the past couple of seasons, and I wasn't even sure that he self-identifies as Sawyer anymore.

I have more stew fodder for Teebore and, well, all of us overthinkers. This episode and the discussion here got me wondering if maybe Esau/Smokey really is a manifestation of Jacob's psyche after all, something I'd previously not bought into. This could be why "he" can't kill Jacob, if Jacob is somehow bound by the same inability to take his own life that Richard, et al. are. And it would explain how the little blond boy, who looked more like a young Jacob, could ["also"] be a young Smokey (although I've seen blond kids grow up to have black hair and salt-&-pepper beards like Esau did on the beach in the Season 5 finale). What it doesn't explain is how Smokey could have become so independent that, Jacob's potentially Obi-Wan Kenobi death aside, it feels less like he's fulfilling Jacob's wishes (even subconsciously) rather than being a true adversary.

VW: objets — French objects. Really. Actually a word in French.

Jessica said...

@Blam said...flashsideways events could be taking place "before" the main Lost universe we know instead of "after" it

I was discussing this with some folks, trying to flesh out a theory. The theory got this far: the flash-sideways is what originally happened and what we have been watching the last 5 seasons is really an "alternate" timeline. At some point in the flash-sideways future, Jacob reaches out to the candidates to offer them the opportunity to save/change/help the world by going on this adventure and that the timeline was then reset to cause the 815 crash. Kinda silly? I know. But hey who knows what's going on in the deep recesses of Darlton's twisted mind!?

arleece said...

In the scene with Miles and Sawyer in the police station, when Miles brings Sawyer a cup, the cup appears to have a temple, black smoke monster, and a row of black boxes around the bottom, which could be the hieroglyphics we have seen on the countdown clock in the hatch and elsewhere. Did anyone else notice this or have a clear screen capture?

Pamalamb said...

@Jessica: That is a really intriging idea that Jacob would give the AU losties the opportunity to actually chose to have their plane crash and go through all of the stuff they've been through in order to save/change/help the world and/or island. It would sort of be ironic that Jack wanted to set off the bomb so that none of it would happen and he ends up choosing to set it all in motion. In a way it is sort of a combination of freewill and fate.

I forgot to mention before, and I am so sorry that these wishes are so belated, but congrats to Marebabe and Sonshine. Marebabe: I hope your work schedule wont keep you from this blog I love to read your thoughts every week. Sonshine: good luck in your continued education and an early welcome to the world of teaching -- It's the hardest job you'll ever love!!

VW: mulasy: What my cat is everyday of her life!

Sagacious Penguin said...

I'm reeeeaaally late with my LOST blog this week, so apologies. But you can now read my blogified thoughts on Recon in the usual spot:

www.sagaciouspenguin.blogspot.com

Cheers!

Brrr said...

I definitely knew right away that the scene with Sawyer in the hotel room was a police sting, what still served as a great surprise was I was convinced the woman was the one who was a cop/marshall/FBI agent.

I'm even more convinced than ever that this season is NOT the end. There's just too much still going on. It might be the end of the TV show, but I don't believe for a second it's the end of Lost.

E.B. said...

DavidB22Morris:Will somebody please tell me who the hell LaFleur is and what is he to Sawyer? There's gotta be some hidden meaning in that name, and we just don't know.

There is a servant called LaFleur in an old book called A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy. It is a thinly veiled fictionalized account of the real travels of the author, and is somehow related to Tristam Shandy. The author of the book, Stearn, referred to it as "a Work of Redemption and declared that its aim was ‘to teach us to love the world and our fellow creatures.’

http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-SntmntlJrnythrghFrncndtly.html

Is this related to our Sawyer/Ford/James? I don't know. It is interesting that he references this name to himself in the flashes where he seems to be better man, so to speak.

E.B. said...

Nikki: Oh, and I completely forgot to say this in my post, but I was disappointed and saddened that Charlotte was not with Daniel in the sideways world. Unless Daniel was somehow never born?

I didn't get to do the full re-watch with ya'll, but for some reason I never bought real romantic love between Charlotte and Daniel despite what was said in the episodes/scenes with them. I always felt that Daniel felt guilty and responsible that another person was getting sick and dying from the time travel illness like the girl from his experiments. I thought his words in those episodes were geared more toward giving a dying Charlotte a drive to pull through and live, and hope, as well as (dying)comfort. I felt "his love" was like a brotherly love.
Did anyone else get this or did I just miss something?

I totally agree that Widmore can't leave the sub, and can't set foot on the Island.

E.B. said...

RE: Sawyer letting Kate go in the flash sideways

Knowing that even as a 'good guy' Sawyer is a bit of a rascal, it doesn't ring untrue to me that he'd let a pretty lady get away when he was off duty. Particularly if he was off duty on a revenge mission he was keeping on the down low. After all, he was doing the deed with a suspect, so his 'ethics' aren't exactly sterling.

RE: Charlotte and the Sawyer's Drawer

Did anyone else note that there were no t-shirts in that drawer anyway! It was the drawer he said for her to look in. All I could think is why the heck would you send a person you barely knew (canoodling aside) into the drawer where you kept your private file? Something's weird about that whole scene and I don't think it's necessarily Charlotte snooping.
~~~
I was so RELIEVED that Sawyer said he wasn't with UnLocke, and that he doesn't appear to have totally crossed over to the dark side as Sayied has. Oh, and I am bummed about that, like so many of ya'll. For me the irony is someone we've basically liked and rooted for, Sayied, is now bad; and someone we've disliked and mistrusted because of his wicked ways, BenLinus, is now good (?). Great themes of choice and redemption, which rang very familiar for me as a person who holds to the Christian faith. Judas and Peter, anyone?

Benny said...

@E.B.: (and other as well)

The whole situation goes as follows:
- She asks for a t-shirt;
- He tells her TOP drawer on the RIGHT;
- She opens the TOP drawer of the LEFT dresser (which was higher/top-most than right dresser) and looks on the right;
- Can't find a t-shirt and looks around, finds the Sawyer file;
- James is angry throws her out;
[...]
- James tells Miles she looked in the wrong drawer.

The whole thing seems to makes sense from all characters' perspectives.

Charlotte: She thought the top-most drawer, on the right within it. Can't find a t-shirt so looks around - should not have done that regardless.

James: He meant top drawer on the right dresser. He was understandably angry.

The mis-communication comes from James having two dressers of unequal heights side-by-side, that's really what we should be debating!

Rebecca T. said...

I just rewatched the episode with my Dad since he was out of town on Tuesday and I had one major thought to throw out there and another comment to make.

Thought: In S5(4?) Sun pairs up with Widmore to take down Ben. Now all parties have returned to the Island, but Sun and Ben are (albeit temporarily) on the same team. I don't know if there will be any fallout from her Widmore alliance, but I thought it was interesting.


Also, weighing in again on the drawer/Charlotte/Sawyer thing. I debate on whether to do this, but in rewatching it...

-she waits until he leaves the room and then scurries to the left drawer.
-opens it up and paws through it rather frantically - not casually as though she were simply trying to find t-shirts. She is sifting and lifting, obviously (imo) looking for something.
-she pulls out the binder and the picture falls out.
-she smiles a very knowing "ah-ha" smile and opens the binder
-But it apparently wasn't what she was expecting, because she immediately looks shocked.

Also, when Sawyer asks her what she's doing she acts very guilty and gives a weak response.

I know we could debate this all day long and I'm sure I won't change anyone's mind, but it seemed even more clear to ME on rewatching it that she was looking for something specific.

But seriously, what do you think about the Sun/Widmore thing?

E.B. said...

@Benny & SonshineMusic

As a mildly dyslexic person who regularly mixes up right and left...I missed that. :-o Thanks for the clarification/explanation. :)

Benny said...

NOTE: Principal Reynolds, played by William Atherton, who also played Walter Peck in... Ghost Busters!
(in was on this weekend, he looked familiar).


@E.B. I'd missed the right dresser on first viewing, and noticed the absence of t-shirts. Upon second+ viewing, that was my interpretation anyways. As you can see, Sonshine had has different one!

Rebecca T. said...

I think this is the wonder of Lost - that twenty different people can watch it and come away with SO many different interpretations. :)

Benny said...

...and more importantly, many of those small aspects will never be further explored, leading to many permanent interpretations!

Think Annie, Sawyer's visit to Kate, and now possibly Charlotte snooping.

Rebecca T. said...

...which is why we will continue to have conversations like this LONG after the final LOST banner has boomed onto our screens

VW: chuttr - what happens when you try to chatter while you shudder

Benny said...

Just had a crazy thought. May mean nothing but here goes!

When Jin asks Claire who told her the Others took Aaron, her reply is:
C: "How can I be so sure? First my father told me, and then my friend told me, so I'm pretty damn sure."
J: "You're friend?"
C: "My friend!"

And later, when Locke walks in Claire's shack and Jin exclaims "John", she immediately corrects him with a laugh, "That's not John, this is my friend."

Point is, she knows Locke is not John himself and refers to him as 'her friend' but still referred to Christian as 'her father'. Is it because the Christian she saw was NOT a manifestation of the black smoke? or because she couldn't notice it was the smoke monster? or... other ideas?

Just some mulling until tomorrow night!

Benny said...

Correction, I'm pretty sure Jin says
"Your friend" and not "You're friend".

Benny said...

[also posted on Dr. Linus]

A comment on the island sinking. What makes me believe it's not the bomb, and that Ben and Roger did not leave on the evacuation is the line Roger gives Ben at dinner:

"Imagine how different our lives would have been if we'd stayed. [...] Who knows what you would have become?"

This certifiably suggests that they left out of choice and not because of some imminent threat to the island. Mentioning the possibility of a future had they stayed there.

verif: station... really? could there BE a bigger sign?

Marebabe said...

Well, whaddaya know! I was just reading the latest from Fishbiscuit, and she answered the question about exactly which episode of “Little House” Sawyer was watching. (It’s really true – there were so MANY heart-to-heart talks in the show just like this one, that it was hard to nail down which one we were seeing. Even for a fan like myself, who has seen every “Little House” episode many times.)

This scene was from “Remember Me”, a two-part story that guest-starred Patricia Neal as Julia, a widow with three children who knew she was dying, and she was trying to arrange for her children to be adopted and settled in a new life once she was gone. I guess, SPOILER ALERT! She spoke to the people of Walnut Grove during a church service, explaining the situation, and asking them to consider the possibility of adopting John, Carl and Alicia. She asked Charles Ingalls to be the executor of her will, to see that her children were properly cared for, and he agreed. So she dies, and her funeral takes place at the end of part one.

Then I did a Google search and found this: “Immediately following Julia's emotional funeral, Charles begins working to honor her final request. As John, Carl, and Alicia board temporarily with Mr. Edwards and Grace, Charles is approached by a few potential adoptive parents, and he is opposed by many – including his cherished daughter Laura – when he makes a controversial decision about the children's futures.”

That controversial decision was to allow the two boys – but not Alicia – to be adopted by a farmer and his wife. The farmer wanted the boys because they would be strong, able-bodied farm hands, but Alicia was too small to do much, and he felt he couldn’t afford the financial burden of all three. It’s an agonizing decision, but Charles agrees, because no one else has come forward to adopt the children. Meanwhile, Isaiah Edwards and Grace have grown so close to the children that they can’t bear to see them torn apart this way. Isaiah and Grace have been courting for quite awhile, and they suddenly and dramatically decide to get married on the spot so that they can adopt the three children. Talk about a weepy ending! Classic "Little House".

Beth Skipper said...

Awesome episode!

Note when James said he made a choice between a life of crime and becoming a cop.

Is this more insight into the choice each character has? Battle between good/evil? hmmmm