Recon was a decent episode of Lost this past week. It lacked a little in some areas, but definitely moved the story along. We are going to keep it short this week. Let’s take a look.
Flash-sidways first, Sawyer is a cop. Didn’t see that one coming. Interestingly enough, Miles is Sawyer’s partner, just like the good ole days in the DI (Dharma Initiative) security force. It was cool to see that Saywer goes by James in this timeline and that LaFleur, his fake last name in the DI, was the code word for his sting operation.
Apparently Miles’s dad, Pierre Chang, made it off the Island before it sunk, or never went to it, or Miles has someone else he refers to as “dad.” I say this because his dad works at a museum with Charlotte. Due to this connection, Miles sets Sawyer up on a date with Charlotte. Things go south when she goes snooping around in his dresser and finds a book about Sawyer’s parent’s murder. He snaps on her, then tries to reconcile with her later, possibly days later, and she tells him that he blew it. On a completely different note, we also saw Liam, Charlie’s brother, in the police station looking for Charlie. (Minute but interesting crossover.)
Later, Sawyer tells Miles that he went to Australia to find Anthony Cooper, his only lead for the murder of his parents. He also admits to Miles that once he finds Cooper, he is going to kill him. At that moment a car slams into their car and immediately the driver jumps out and flees. James chases the driver down only to find that it is Kate, the person he allowed to escape at LAX in the season premiere.
And that’s it! A second unresolved flash-sidways plot, the first being Sayid finding Jin tied up in a pantry in a kitchen where Sayid had just killed Keamy. It will be interesting to see when they come back to both of these and how. I sure hope this doesn’t mean we have another Kate episode in store. Honestly, if Kate never showed up in another episode I don’t think I would mind.
On to the continuing story line that we do know, the original timeline. From the start some interesting promises are made that could affect how the story plays out. Jin does not want to be with Locke. (Thank goodness) Sawyer says he knows that it is not Locke but he just wants off the Island, however, he promises Jin that they will not leave without Sun. (Can Jin and Sun just get back together? They’ve been apart so long I’m even starting to feel sorry for them. That’s a more compelling love story that Jack/Kate/Sawyer. Kate is just the worst (Is my disdain for Kate clear enough yet?))
Locke tells his people that the Smoke Monster attacked the Temple. (They are so ignorant.) He explicitly tells Sawyer that he is the Smoke Monster, but we already knew that. Locke seems like a decent enough guy now. Sure he killed people, but he tried to explain that he was the victim. He just wants to leave the Island. I do not quite buy that he is the victim and just wants to leave the Island but he at least seems to have a purpose. I’m glad he is not evil for the sake of being evil. Most bad guys are just bad for story convenience, however it is always good when they make it where the bad guys do what they think is right but are just a little twisted. Locke seems to be this way; he is just trying to achieve his goal, sure he may do a few sketchy things like cause a genocide, but hey, he’s not recklessly killing…..(There is a lot of sarcasm in that.) He tells his people he will answer all of their questions as soon as he can. He even protects and apologizes to Kate when Claire tries to harm her for taking Aaron. Locke set Claire straight and now she is cool with Kate.
Locke sends Sawyer to Hydra Island to see who is on it because Locke intends to go there with his people, take the Ajira plane and fly away from the Island. Sawyer finds a woman who is piling all the bodies of the Ajira flight together, somehow they all mysteriously died. I have a hunch Locke killed all of them in Smoke Monster form. I think Locke really knew that they were all dead, and probably was suspicious of Widmore being there so he sent Sawyer to test him and see what he would do.
Meanwhile, Locke talks with Kate and tells her that he had a crazy mother. Is he talking about real Locke’s mother who was crazy or his own mother? If it is his own then that is very interesting to see another human side to this bad guy. Judging by how he has been civilly handling things among his own people I could see him going off the deep end and going crazy on people in the end. A psycho Smoke Monster, that would be interesting!
The mysterious woman, who was posing as an Ajira passenger, takes Sawyer captive and down into a submarine where he talks to none other than Charles Widmore. Widmore’s people are currently setting up a sonar fence system to trap or keep out Locke. (Interesting) How does Widmore know all of this about the Smoke Monster?
Widmore wanted Sawyer to lead Locke straight to them and lie to Locke about finding anyone on the Island. If Sawyer does this then Widmore agreed not to harm any of Sawyer’s people and to provide them a way off the Island. (This might be a moot point. Does Widmore even want to hurt Sawyer’s people? I don’t think so. He’s good and I’m sticking to that!) Sawyer agrees to this but does not hold up to his agreement. He goes back and tells Locke of the deal he “agreed” to and about the sonar pylons.
In the end, the “big” twist was subpar at best. Sawyer insists, as he even said at the start of the episode, that he works for no one. While Widmore and Locke fight it out Sawyer and Kate and presumably others will leave the Island. Kate points out that neither of them can fly. To this Sawyer simply replies, “We ain’t taking the plane, Freckles. We’re taking the sub.” Boom…Twist…?.... Is that a twist? Can they even pilot a sub? I guess it could be important that Widmore would not have his sub. Not a good twist though. As a friend of mine, Garin, said, the real twist was so far at the end it was after the episode when they revealed that next week would be a Richard Alpert centric episode. (More on that later.)
Sawyer has been a little aggravating to me lately. He’s just playing the middleman, not committing to anything or anyone and using everyone. I’m afraid that they are going to have him do something heroic and self-sacrificing in the end that will make me feel like I have to like him. I don’t like those cheap tricks!
Let’s talk about the next episode, Ab Aeterno. This is Latin for what I believe to be meaning something like “Counting from Eternal.” (There is probably a better translation, but I used a free online system.) This episode is Richard Alpert centric. I have wanted to see this since the first time we found out he was unique and unusual, the man that seemingly does not age.
I am interested to see how they will delineate that this is a flash-back episode not a flash-sideways. Or is it going to be a flash-sideways? I think we will be given a lot of answers tonight. We will see that Richard did come from the Black Rock as a slave. (All but already explicitly stated.) We will probably see Jacob give him his gift. I wonder if it was meant as a curse at first, maybe Jacob and Richard were not always on good terms. Hopefully we will see the dynamic between Richard, Jacob, the Smoke Monster and maybe even Christian Shepherd. It would also be nice to see more of Charles Widmore at any age. I think tonight is going to be a big night for answers!
By the way, please feel free to leave comments below. I would love to hear what you have to say about the show, theories or reactions to anything I say.
In the words of Smoke-Locke “You are so close; it would be such a shame to turn back now.”
Until next week when we have seen a little bit more Lost, Namaste.
Steven
Here are the sneak peeks ABC has put out for this week’s episode. Watch at your own risk!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Dr. Linus- Episode 6.07
What can I even begin to say about last week’s episode, “Dr. Linus?” So far I think this has been the best episode of the season. That’s not hard to believe though since all Ben episodes have been awesome! Let’s get started with the flash-sideways.
This episode was more of a philosophical and faith based episode than anything, and that is why I liked it. Right from the first flash-sideways scene I knew we were in for something deep. Ben Linus, who has a doctorate in modern European History in the flash-sideways, is shown in his class discussing Napoleon’s exile on the isle of Elba. Watch the video below for the full effect. This perfectly mirrors Ben’s life in the original timeline.
We learn that Ben still went to the Island in the flash-sideways timeline but that he and his dad left for some reason and seem to regret it. (In this timeline it seems that his dad actually likes him) What made them leave it? Do they know that it is sunken now? Did they leave it when everyone was ordered to leave before the bomb went off? (Assuming the bomb went off in this timeline)
Ben finds his redemption in this timeline when he does what is best for someone he cares about instead of doing what he needs to do to keep/obtain power. Alex Rousseau is a student of Ben’s that tells him that the principal is having an affair with the school nurse. Ben tries to blackmail the principal for his job, but the principal says that he will not write a recommendation for Alex that she desperately needs to get into Yale if Ben goes through with blackmailing him. Unlike what we would think Ben would do, based on his decision of choosing the Island over her in the season four episode, “The Shape of Things to Come,” Ben backs down from blackmailing the principal thus letting Alex get a good recommendation from the principal.
Now we also have to ask, why is Alex where Ben is in this timeline? I guess if Rousseau and her people really went on their expedition they would have returned home. Still, it was interesting to see that Alex ends up being decently close to Ben. I wonder if this is meant to show that people will always be drawn to each other if destiny says they need to be close regardless of the timeline. Is that why there are crossovers in the flash-sideways? It was pretty cool to see Locke in Ben’s flash-sideways, as well as Dr. Artz.
Now for the original timeline, Miles “talks” to Jacob’s ashes to discover that Ben killed Jacob. (Interesting, I thought, based on another Miles flash-back, he needed a body to talk to a person. Is this an inconsistency? Maybe. However, he told the guy in the flash-back that he needed a body to read the deceased person’s thoughts and that he could not help him since the man had scattered his son’s ashes. Since Ilana presumably had all of Jacob’s ashes maybe Miles could read his thoughts. So it might be an inconsistency, but maybe not.) When Ilana discovers what Ben had done she order’s him to start digging his own grave. She intends to kill him because Jacob was the closet things she had to a father.
Meanwhile, Richard Alpert meets up with Jack and Hurley and claims he is taking them to the Temple but ends up taking them to the Black Rock. He says that everyone at the Temple was dead or gone. Richard, in total desperation tries to go and kill himself. It is revealed that if Jacob touches someone it is a gift. Richard’s gift appears to be some form of immortality. Richard cannot kill himself. I guess Richard is like the race of elves in the Lord of the Rings series. They cannot die unless someone kills them. Does this mean that Richard can’t get sick either? I guess you are not supposed to get sick on the Island anyways, but we have seen that happen.
With all of this being said, when Jacob touches someone does that mean they all get “immortality” or are there other gifts? Remember, we have seen Jacob touch Jack, Hurley, Sayid, Kate, Sawyer, Sun, and Jin. Are they all gifted with immortality? If Jacob touches anyone at all does he pass on the gift or is it a willful touch and thought that is needed to pass on the gift? When Jacob grabbed Ben when he stabbed him does that mean that Ben is now gifted as well? Also, do we think that Jacob has touched others? I think so. I submit that he has touched at least Claire and Christian Shepherd.
The producers have said that Christian Shepherd is “undead.” Now, assuming that Christian is a separate entity from the Smoke Monster (which I have not always been sure about and am still not sure where I stand on this) has he ever been touched by Jacob? He was dead, but when he came to the Island, Jacob’s domain, he was brought back in some capacity. Is this what brought Sayid back? I personally thought that Claire might have died when the barracks were blown up in season four. Did she come back because she had been touched by Jacob? If this is true about Sayid and Claire then we are still missing a point as to why they are “evil” now. All I mean to say by this is that I think that it is very possible that Jacob may have touched others than the ones we already know about. We cannot be too arrogant or ignorant to think that we know who all Jacob has touched.
Getting back to the story, Richard goes into the Black Rock and says that this is the first time he has been back here in all of his time that he has been on the Island. (He all but explicitly said that he came on the ship. Isn’t that frustrating?! I’d go as far to say that he was a slave, but who knows. That would imply that he came to the Island in the late 19th century.)
It was so powerful to see Richard, who has been with Jacob and has followed him for centuries, completely lose his way.
RICHARD: I devoted my life, longer than you can possibly imagine, in service of a man who told me that everything was happening for a reason, that he had a plan, plan that I was a part of, when the time was right that he'd share it with me, and now that man's gone so...why do I want to die? Because I just found out my entire life had no purpose.
Sounds a lot like Elijah of the Bible. In I Kings 18:20-46 God answers Elijah’s prayer and proves that he is the real God. Then, Elijah kills the 450 prophets of Baal. One of the greatest victory stories of the Bible. However, just a few verses down Elijah has lost his confidence and faith and hopes to die, similar to Richard eh? “It is enough; now, O LORD, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.” (NASB I Kings 19:4) A little further down he says some more things, “I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life to take it away.” (v. 10)
Here, Elijah had been a part of some great things and great victories but when things started to go bad he lost his way, only for a time though. Similarly, Richard has been at Jacob’s side for centuries and in a moment of despair he lost his way, but as we already saw, it did not last long.
Jack tried to light a stick of dynamite to blow Richard up since he wanted to die. Jack chooses to sit with him because, after seeing what Jacob wanted him to see in the Lighthouse, Jack is slowly starting to think like real Locke and become a Man of Faith. He feels that he was brought to the Island for a purpose, and it’s not to blow up with Richard. Jack was right and the two survived and went with Hurley to join the other followers of Jacob at the old beach camp.
While Ben is digging his own grave Miles comes to talk to him and tells him that Jacob did care that he was about to die, despite what Ben thought.
MILES: Right up until the second the knife went through his heart, he was hoping he was wrong about you. I guess he wasn't. (Wow. Today is not Ben’s day)
Smoke-Locke then comes to Ben and provides him an escape from Ilana and tells him that he can join his group on Hydra Island. (Apparently Smoke-Locke is also a Jedi because he can telekinetically move things, as seen by the brace on Ben’s leg. Talk about a crossover. I mean, we knew the producers love Star Wars, but wow, a Jedi. Or would he be a Sith? I’m going to go with Sith; he’s got to be bad.) Smoke-Locke tells Ben that when he and his people leave the Island the Island will need a new leader and he wants Ben to do the job. Is this a new leader in his position or Jacob’s position? Or is it a way to tempt Ben to joining his side? It does not appear that Ben is one of Jacob’s candidates so what exactly did Smoke-Locke mean by this leadership position?
Ben tries to escape to the jungle to get a gun left for him by Smoke-Locke to use on Ilana. She chases after him and we see one of what I believe is the most emotionally powerful moments of Lost thus far. I do not feel I can do it justice by writing it so here is the clip below.
It appears that Ben has finally found his redemption. Lost is all about redemption and its characters. This was an amazingly beautiful scene. This whole scene has shown just how much this season is boiling down to good vs. evil. Like Richard, Ben lost his way, his faith. We already saw right before Ben killed Jacob that if anyone he mirrors Job in the Bible.
BEN: Oh... so now, after all this time, you've decided to stop ignoring me. Thirty-five years I lived on this island, and all I ever heard was your name over and over. Richard would bring me your instructions--all those slips of paper, all those lists--and I never questioned anything. I did as I was told. But when I dared to ask to see you myself, I was told, "You have to wait. You have to be patient." But when he asked to see you? He gets marched straight up here as if was Moses. So... why him? Hmm? What was it that was so wrong with me? What about me?!
JACOB: What about you?
When bad things started to happen to Job he dared to confront God about why he had to suffer. God basically tells Job that he is in control of all things and really shows Job how much he does not know. With all respect, in this similar parallel, Ben complains to Jacob how he was been treated and complains about all the bad things that have happened to him and by Jacob’s response it shows that Jacob has always been in control on the Island.
I realize that both the Elijah and Job metaphors are not perfect, but very similar and worth noting. After all, most metaphors are not exact; otherwise it would be considered copyright infringement.
Finally, we see that Jacob’s people are finally getting together. (About time, Locke’s probably already put all his people through basic training.) I am looking forward to seeing Richard interacting more with the other main characters. The episode ended with something big, Charles Widmore on a submarine mere feet from the Island! I am excited to see how he will change the dynamic of the show by being on the Island. Was he the person Jacob was trying to help get to the Island? It is possible, but where is he going? Is he going somewhere for Jacob? Or is he going to Hydra Island to meet up with Smoke-Locke? Is he aware of Smoke-Locke? Widmore told Locke when he was off Island that he needed to get back to the Island because if he was not there then the wrong side was going to win the war. Was this because he knew Locke needed to have his form stolen by the Smoke Monster so he could win the war? These are a lot of questions. I still think Widmore is good! I’m holding to that until further plots develop. I believe Jacob has a different mission for him and that is where he is going to right now.
By the way, please feel free to leave comments below. I would love to hear what you have to say about the show, theories or reactions to anything I say.
In the words of Smoke-Locke “You are so close; it would be such a shame to turn back now.”
Until next week when we have seen a little bit more Lost, Namaste.
Steven
Here are the sneak peeks ABC has put out for this week’s episode. Watch at your own risk!
This episode was more of a philosophical and faith based episode than anything, and that is why I liked it. Right from the first flash-sideways scene I knew we were in for something deep. Ben Linus, who has a doctorate in modern European History in the flash-sideways, is shown in his class discussing Napoleon’s exile on the isle of Elba. Watch the video below for the full effect. This perfectly mirrors Ben’s life in the original timeline.
We learn that Ben still went to the Island in the flash-sideways timeline but that he and his dad left for some reason and seem to regret it. (In this timeline it seems that his dad actually likes him) What made them leave it? Do they know that it is sunken now? Did they leave it when everyone was ordered to leave before the bomb went off? (Assuming the bomb went off in this timeline)
Ben finds his redemption in this timeline when he does what is best for someone he cares about instead of doing what he needs to do to keep/obtain power. Alex Rousseau is a student of Ben’s that tells him that the principal is having an affair with the school nurse. Ben tries to blackmail the principal for his job, but the principal says that he will not write a recommendation for Alex that she desperately needs to get into Yale if Ben goes through with blackmailing him. Unlike what we would think Ben would do, based on his decision of choosing the Island over her in the season four episode, “The Shape of Things to Come,” Ben backs down from blackmailing the principal thus letting Alex get a good recommendation from the principal.
Now we also have to ask, why is Alex where Ben is in this timeline? I guess if Rousseau and her people really went on their expedition they would have returned home. Still, it was interesting to see that Alex ends up being decently close to Ben. I wonder if this is meant to show that people will always be drawn to each other if destiny says they need to be close regardless of the timeline. Is that why there are crossovers in the flash-sideways? It was pretty cool to see Locke in Ben’s flash-sideways, as well as Dr. Artz.
Now for the original timeline, Miles “talks” to Jacob’s ashes to discover that Ben killed Jacob. (Interesting, I thought, based on another Miles flash-back, he needed a body to talk to a person. Is this an inconsistency? Maybe. However, he told the guy in the flash-back that he needed a body to read the deceased person’s thoughts and that he could not help him since the man had scattered his son’s ashes. Since Ilana presumably had all of Jacob’s ashes maybe Miles could read his thoughts. So it might be an inconsistency, but maybe not.) When Ilana discovers what Ben had done she order’s him to start digging his own grave. She intends to kill him because Jacob was the closet things she had to a father.
Meanwhile, Richard Alpert meets up with Jack and Hurley and claims he is taking them to the Temple but ends up taking them to the Black Rock. He says that everyone at the Temple was dead or gone. Richard, in total desperation tries to go and kill himself. It is revealed that if Jacob touches someone it is a gift. Richard’s gift appears to be some form of immortality. Richard cannot kill himself. I guess Richard is like the race of elves in the Lord of the Rings series. They cannot die unless someone kills them. Does this mean that Richard can’t get sick either? I guess you are not supposed to get sick on the Island anyways, but we have seen that happen.
With all of this being said, when Jacob touches someone does that mean they all get “immortality” or are there other gifts? Remember, we have seen Jacob touch Jack, Hurley, Sayid, Kate, Sawyer, Sun, and Jin. Are they all gifted with immortality? If Jacob touches anyone at all does he pass on the gift or is it a willful touch and thought that is needed to pass on the gift? When Jacob grabbed Ben when he stabbed him does that mean that Ben is now gifted as well? Also, do we think that Jacob has touched others? I think so. I submit that he has touched at least Claire and Christian Shepherd.
The producers have said that Christian Shepherd is “undead.” Now, assuming that Christian is a separate entity from the Smoke Monster (which I have not always been sure about and am still not sure where I stand on this) has he ever been touched by Jacob? He was dead, but when he came to the Island, Jacob’s domain, he was brought back in some capacity. Is this what brought Sayid back? I personally thought that Claire might have died when the barracks were blown up in season four. Did she come back because she had been touched by Jacob? If this is true about Sayid and Claire then we are still missing a point as to why they are “evil” now. All I mean to say by this is that I think that it is very possible that Jacob may have touched others than the ones we already know about. We cannot be too arrogant or ignorant to think that we know who all Jacob has touched.
Getting back to the story, Richard goes into the Black Rock and says that this is the first time he has been back here in all of his time that he has been on the Island. (He all but explicitly said that he came on the ship. Isn’t that frustrating?! I’d go as far to say that he was a slave, but who knows. That would imply that he came to the Island in the late 19th century.)
It was so powerful to see Richard, who has been with Jacob and has followed him for centuries, completely lose his way.
RICHARD: I devoted my life, longer than you can possibly imagine, in service of a man who told me that everything was happening for a reason, that he had a plan, plan that I was a part of, when the time was right that he'd share it with me, and now that man's gone so...why do I want to die? Because I just found out my entire life had no purpose.
Sounds a lot like Elijah of the Bible. In I Kings 18:20-46 God answers Elijah’s prayer and proves that he is the real God. Then, Elijah kills the 450 prophets of Baal. One of the greatest victory stories of the Bible. However, just a few verses down Elijah has lost his confidence and faith and hopes to die, similar to Richard eh? “It is enough; now, O LORD, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.” (NASB I Kings 19:4) A little further down he says some more things, “I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life to take it away.” (v. 10)
Here, Elijah had been a part of some great things and great victories but when things started to go bad he lost his way, only for a time though. Similarly, Richard has been at Jacob’s side for centuries and in a moment of despair he lost his way, but as we already saw, it did not last long.
Jack tried to light a stick of dynamite to blow Richard up since he wanted to die. Jack chooses to sit with him because, after seeing what Jacob wanted him to see in the Lighthouse, Jack is slowly starting to think like real Locke and become a Man of Faith. He feels that he was brought to the Island for a purpose, and it’s not to blow up with Richard. Jack was right and the two survived and went with Hurley to join the other followers of Jacob at the old beach camp.
While Ben is digging his own grave Miles comes to talk to him and tells him that Jacob did care that he was about to die, despite what Ben thought.
MILES: Right up until the second the knife went through his heart, he was hoping he was wrong about you. I guess he wasn't. (Wow. Today is not Ben’s day)
Smoke-Locke then comes to Ben and provides him an escape from Ilana and tells him that he can join his group on Hydra Island. (Apparently Smoke-Locke is also a Jedi because he can telekinetically move things, as seen by the brace on Ben’s leg. Talk about a crossover. I mean, we knew the producers love Star Wars, but wow, a Jedi. Or would he be a Sith? I’m going to go with Sith; he’s got to be bad.) Smoke-Locke tells Ben that when he and his people leave the Island the Island will need a new leader and he wants Ben to do the job. Is this a new leader in his position or Jacob’s position? Or is it a way to tempt Ben to joining his side? It does not appear that Ben is one of Jacob’s candidates so what exactly did Smoke-Locke mean by this leadership position?
Ben tries to escape to the jungle to get a gun left for him by Smoke-Locke to use on Ilana. She chases after him and we see one of what I believe is the most emotionally powerful moments of Lost thus far. I do not feel I can do it justice by writing it so here is the clip below.
It appears that Ben has finally found his redemption. Lost is all about redemption and its characters. This was an amazingly beautiful scene. This whole scene has shown just how much this season is boiling down to good vs. evil. Like Richard, Ben lost his way, his faith. We already saw right before Ben killed Jacob that if anyone he mirrors Job in the Bible.
BEN: Oh... so now, after all this time, you've decided to stop ignoring me. Thirty-five years I lived on this island, and all I ever heard was your name over and over. Richard would bring me your instructions--all those slips of paper, all those lists--and I never questioned anything. I did as I was told. But when I dared to ask to see you myself, I was told, "You have to wait. You have to be patient." But when he asked to see you? He gets marched straight up here as if was Moses. So... why him? Hmm? What was it that was so wrong with me? What about me?!
JACOB: What about you?
When bad things started to happen to Job he dared to confront God about why he had to suffer. God basically tells Job that he is in control of all things and really shows Job how much he does not know. With all respect, in this similar parallel, Ben complains to Jacob how he was been treated and complains about all the bad things that have happened to him and by Jacob’s response it shows that Jacob has always been in control on the Island.
I realize that both the Elijah and Job metaphors are not perfect, but very similar and worth noting. After all, most metaphors are not exact; otherwise it would be considered copyright infringement.
Finally, we see that Jacob’s people are finally getting together. (About time, Locke’s probably already put all his people through basic training.) I am looking forward to seeing Richard interacting more with the other main characters. The episode ended with something big, Charles Widmore on a submarine mere feet from the Island! I am excited to see how he will change the dynamic of the show by being on the Island. Was he the person Jacob was trying to help get to the Island? It is possible, but where is he going? Is he going somewhere for Jacob? Or is he going to Hydra Island to meet up with Smoke-Locke? Is he aware of Smoke-Locke? Widmore told Locke when he was off Island that he needed to get back to the Island because if he was not there then the wrong side was going to win the war. Was this because he knew Locke needed to have his form stolen by the Smoke Monster so he could win the war? These are a lot of questions. I still think Widmore is good! I’m holding to that until further plots develop. I believe Jacob has a different mission for him and that is where he is going to right now.
By the way, please feel free to leave comments below. I would love to hear what you have to say about the show, theories or reactions to anything I say.
In the words of Smoke-Locke “You are so close; it would be such a shame to turn back now.”
Until next week when we have seen a little bit more Lost, Namaste.
Steven
Here are the sneak peeks ABC has put out for this week’s episode. Watch at your own risk!
Sundown- Episode 6.06
I was thoroughly pleased with this episode of Lost. I believe it really moved the plot along and further intrigued the audience. As usual, let’s discuss the flash-sideways first.
This episode was a Sayid episode and true to Sayid episodes it really did an outstanding job. Just a few basic things. In this timeline Nadia is married to Sayid’s brother, Omer, however, it is obvious and explicitly stated that Sayid has feelings for her. We see Omer for the first time, other than when we saw him as a child in the season five episode, “He’s Our You.”
Due to a bad business deal that Omer gets into with some loan sharks he is injured, forcing Sayid to confront the loan sharks and “handle” the problem. Interestingly enough, it was none other than Martin Keamy that Omer was in debt to. In the original timeline, Keamy was the mercenary that came on the freighter in season four to take Ben off of the Island. In the process, Keamy killed Alex, Ben’s daughter. (Biologically Rousseau’s) Keamy was killed by Ben in the original timeline, however, in the flash-sideway Sayid killed him. (Interesting that it was the two of them that killed him both times.)
Maybe the most interesting thing about this flash-sideways was the fact that it did not have much resolution. Everything was fine until Sayid found Jin locked up in a pantry in the kitchen where he just killed Keamy. Where did Jin come from? Why was he there? More importantly, why was this the last scene of the flash-sideways?! Was Jin delivering a watch or package to someone in there on Mr. Paik’s behalf? That was why he was originally coming to America. It also seems that in this timeline he came to America to deliver things, as seen in the season premiere when he was taken by the customs office by not declaring his watches and large amounts of money.
Now, onto the original timeline’s story. Dogen tells Sayid that he thinks it would be better if he was dead. This turns into a huge and impressive fight scene between (as Hurley would put it) a Samurai and a former Iraqi Republican Guard soldier. Pretty epic fight scene. We were informed that according to Dogen, every man has a scale with good and evil on the two sides. Sayid’s scale “tipped the wrong way.” This is very interesting. As easily seen, Egyptian mythology is everywhere in the show, that being said, does anyone see where I’m going with this?
In the Book of the Dead, an ancient Egyptian writing, the process of being judged at the end of one’s life is described. The deceased’s heart is weighed on a scale against the Feather of Truth. If the heart weighed less than the feather then the person was able to enter into the good afterlife. This meant that their heart was not full of evil that was weighing it down. So does this sound eerily similar to what Dogen said? I’d say so! Sayid “dies” and then they run tests on him, sounds like a modern day retelling of mythology.
Sayid is fooled into thinking he can redeem himself by killing Smoke-Locke. He is unsuccessful which makes me wonder how Jacob was able to be killed. Anyways, Smoke-Locke entices Sayid to join his side by hinting that it may be possible for him to get back Nadia, even though she died. Sayid then goes to the Temple and warns everyone that if they want to live they can join Smoke-Locke by leaving the Temple and he will eventually take them off the Island with him.
The episode comes to an end when a huge brawl breaks out in the Temple. The Smoke Monster rampages the Temple and takes his new followers with him. Sayid also kills both Dogen and Lennon. However, they fell in the pool. Does this mean they will come back to life? I doubt it, but still something that needs to be considered. Kate confronted Claire about Aaron so it will be interesting to see how this knowledge will play out over the rest of the season. For now, it appears that Jin is with Smoke-Locke (probably just out of convenience/against his will) as well as Sayid, Claire, Kate and Sawyer. Kate seems pretty lost and confused so I could definitely see her and/or Jin switch sides. Who knows what Sawyer will do, but Claire and Sayid seem like they will be in service to Smoke-Locke, but who knows, maybe things will change and they will not be “infected.”
I kept this one short because it is a little late.
By the way, please feel free to leave comments below. I would love to hear what you have to say about the show, theories or reactions to anything I say.
In the words of Smoke-Locke “You are so close; it would be such a shame to turn back now.”
Until next week when we have seen a little bit more Lost, Namaste.
I am not going to put the sneak peeks up because this post is old and it would be redundant. Sorry this is late, being gone all spring break has put me behind schedule, but I am working on it right now.
Steven
This episode was a Sayid episode and true to Sayid episodes it really did an outstanding job. Just a few basic things. In this timeline Nadia is married to Sayid’s brother, Omer, however, it is obvious and explicitly stated that Sayid has feelings for her. We see Omer for the first time, other than when we saw him as a child in the season five episode, “He’s Our You.”
Due to a bad business deal that Omer gets into with some loan sharks he is injured, forcing Sayid to confront the loan sharks and “handle” the problem. Interestingly enough, it was none other than Martin Keamy that Omer was in debt to. In the original timeline, Keamy was the mercenary that came on the freighter in season four to take Ben off of the Island. In the process, Keamy killed Alex, Ben’s daughter. (Biologically Rousseau’s) Keamy was killed by Ben in the original timeline, however, in the flash-sideway Sayid killed him. (Interesting that it was the two of them that killed him both times.)
Maybe the most interesting thing about this flash-sideways was the fact that it did not have much resolution. Everything was fine until Sayid found Jin locked up in a pantry in the kitchen where he just killed Keamy. Where did Jin come from? Why was he there? More importantly, why was this the last scene of the flash-sideways?! Was Jin delivering a watch or package to someone in there on Mr. Paik’s behalf? That was why he was originally coming to America. It also seems that in this timeline he came to America to deliver things, as seen in the season premiere when he was taken by the customs office by not declaring his watches and large amounts of money.
Now, onto the original timeline’s story. Dogen tells Sayid that he thinks it would be better if he was dead. This turns into a huge and impressive fight scene between (as Hurley would put it) a Samurai and a former Iraqi Republican Guard soldier. Pretty epic fight scene. We were informed that according to Dogen, every man has a scale with good and evil on the two sides. Sayid’s scale “tipped the wrong way.” This is very interesting. As easily seen, Egyptian mythology is everywhere in the show, that being said, does anyone see where I’m going with this?
In the Book of the Dead, an ancient Egyptian writing, the process of being judged at the end of one’s life is described. The deceased’s heart is weighed on a scale against the Feather of Truth. If the heart weighed less than the feather then the person was able to enter into the good afterlife. This meant that their heart was not full of evil that was weighing it down. So does this sound eerily similar to what Dogen said? I’d say so! Sayid “dies” and then they run tests on him, sounds like a modern day retelling of mythology.
Sayid is fooled into thinking he can redeem himself by killing Smoke-Locke. He is unsuccessful which makes me wonder how Jacob was able to be killed. Anyways, Smoke-Locke entices Sayid to join his side by hinting that it may be possible for him to get back Nadia, even though she died. Sayid then goes to the Temple and warns everyone that if they want to live they can join Smoke-Locke by leaving the Temple and he will eventually take them off the Island with him.
The episode comes to an end when a huge brawl breaks out in the Temple. The Smoke Monster rampages the Temple and takes his new followers with him. Sayid also kills both Dogen and Lennon. However, they fell in the pool. Does this mean they will come back to life? I doubt it, but still something that needs to be considered. Kate confronted Claire about Aaron so it will be interesting to see how this knowledge will play out over the rest of the season. For now, it appears that Jin is with Smoke-Locke (probably just out of convenience/against his will) as well as Sayid, Claire, Kate and Sawyer. Kate seems pretty lost and confused so I could definitely see her and/or Jin switch sides. Who knows what Sawyer will do, but Claire and Sayid seem like they will be in service to Smoke-Locke, but who knows, maybe things will change and they will not be “infected.”
I kept this one short because it is a little late.
By the way, please feel free to leave comments below. I would love to hear what you have to say about the show, theories or reactions to anything I say.
In the words of Smoke-Locke “You are so close; it would be such a shame to turn back now.”
Until next week when we have seen a little bit more Lost, Namaste.
I am not going to put the sneak peeks up because this post is old and it would be redundant. Sorry this is late, being gone all spring break has put me behind schedule, but I am working on it right now.
Steven
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Portfolio Number Review I
For those of you reading this blog you will notice that this post is different than most. As you probably already know, this Lost blog is for a class I am in, Writing for the Mass Media. Today, this post is going to show what I have done in class so far this semester.
- All of my blog post can be read by scrolling down or by following this link which will show them all. This has been a fun exercise for me where I have put up my thoughts and predictions about my favorite television show, Lost. I have tried to let it have its own personality. I follow grammar rules but occasionally break certain norms to efficiently get my point across. This just means in some rare instances I speak in incomplete sentences. Another technique that I have just started using is to include humor. Since it is my blog, I want it to be informative and entertaining. I have started using parentheses to allow me to include a humorous voice. In keeping up with Mass Media Writing techniques I also include many hyperlinks and video content in each post. Currently, I have three registered followers; however, I know many more of my friends read it because they talk to me about it. I drive traffic to it by linking it to my Facebook and sending out texts to my close Lost friends that I have a new post up. Not only has this been a fun exercise but it has allowed me to practice practical and real-world web journalism techniques.
- This link will take you to my first story on The Link. This story was a basic feature story that included a photo slide show. This story told two cousin's story of trying out for the Burksy's auditions. Once the Burksy's happened I went back in and updated this story by placing three hyperlinks to other stories. One of the stories I linked it to was one that I wrote for the Bison. This story told more about the format of the Burksy's. The other two stories were written by others. One showed all of the nominees and who won. The other link was a video package with footage of the Burksy's in it. While my story was a feature, I wanted readers to be able to see exactly what the Burksy's were and how they turned out. I wanted to display every angle.
- This link will take you to my second story for The Link. This story was about Sarah Palin coming to Little Rock and speaking to the Republican Party of Arkansas. This story allowed me to do something different, bullet points. Since I was covering a speech, I took advantage of that web journalism technique. There was not much I could do to go back and update the story. However, I wanted to do something so I added two more pictures. I was originally going to add just one, but I played around with the content uploader and found that I could make it where when the mouse is over the picture it changes to another picture. I decided to put this new technique into my article because I wanted to do something new. Both of these pictures just give a broader view of the event venue.
- I decided to write a third story for fun because I had time, I knew the people it involved and it was at least interesting, if not slightly Harding newsworthy. This link will take you to my third/extra story on The Link. This story covers how Zach Cantrell found Beth Anne Colvin's lost engagement ring. I decided that I could cover this using an audio clip. I guess this could count as my story with photo, cutline and audio clip, however that is not down to be due until April 15. Regardless, it was fun to experiment with the audio capabilities. This was a fun story to cover. I edited to the best of my abilities but I'm not sure it was looked at very extensively by the editors of The Link. Either way, it is content that I will gladly edit/update if and when necessary.
- I'm not sure if I am expected to include this or not, but the news site that I evaluated was www.al.com.
This is all of the content that I have written for my class. I hope that you have enjoyed seeing what I have done and I hope that you will continue to follow me and others on The Link.
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