*** Official Lost Season 6 *** (2 Viewers)

[Jojo the circus boy]

With the dress Kate was going to wear, I think we can rule out a Drive Shaft concert. Unless druggie Charlie plays in halls and uses an acoustic rather than a hard sound.

Desmond's job was to get Charlie to the concert for Faraday, so it seems like it may all be the same one. From the earlier shows, Jack's son was a pretty accomplished pianist (I think it was a piano), so not a stretch that he would somehow be involved. If that is the case we could have Widmore, Eloise, Faraday, Charlie, Desmond, Jack, Claire (as a tag along since she is living with them), Hurley, Kate, Miles, Sawyer (?), Charlotte and who else?Doesn't surpirise me as maybe this concert is where the they all finally realize what Dez, Hurley, Libby and Charlie already have seen.

 

[jb1020]

Is Desmond trying to keep Jack from the concert? Seems like he is getting everyone to the concert, but he is sending Jack to get his dads coffin at the airport....

 

[Jojo the circus boy]

I love the cheesy explanation of why Kate's name was crossed out. "You became a mother, it's just chalk, you can erase it, you can still be the one"That was so bad, it's laughable. Not laughable that I am six years into this show but laughable like a line out of a bad Ben Affleck movie.

Oh yeah, forgot I wanted to mention that one. Maybe that's why you can't have children on the island? He didn't want the island's protector to be a mother (though it still seems to be possible... choice) so since he's drawing candidates to the island he doesn't want them to become mothers and be crossed off? Seems a little rough though.

Worked for me. Whoever was to replace Jacob had to have no meaningful ties to the real world. When Kate adopted Aaron that gave her a connection and in Jacob's mind that made her less desirable as a candidate. That explanation didn't bother me at all.

Kwon not crossed off though... hmmm.

I kept waiting to see Jin swim ashore as Sawyer was staring out into the ocean, there's still time , although now that the candidate has been selected, I don't see what he could add to the finale.

 

[badmojo1006]

Surprised nobody's mentioned this yet, but Sideways jack is about to perform surgery on sideways locke... Any chance he becomes Island consious and kills Locke there, thus eliminating the threat to the island?

I doubt this.. seems like it would be a very cruel angle considering that the real John Locke is not this monster.I am more along the lines of thinking that he cures Locke and this all contributes to the same old thing continuing on the island... and what we are watching is essentially just a chapter in the overall island.which should set up nicely for the Lost movie

I heard the creators say that this is the end. There will be no LOST movie

 

[sho nuff]

why can't the fanboys also accept the criticism

Oh I don't know...................maybe it's because you and other's "criticism" consists of "I hate this show and it's horrible writing. I can't wait for it to be over. I'm not going to watch it ever again." Over. And over. And over. And over. Coupled with "Where's Rose and Bernard?" that got old a looooooooooooong time ago.I'm just spitballin here.

Pretty much...the laughable claims I have read in places of "this is the worst written show ever"...the writing sucks...why don't they do this or that stuff that basically amounts to people on here acting as if they could write a hit TV show better.Perhaps...in the end, people loved the searching online for clues and theories...but that is what led them to not enjoy the show anymore.I know I find it much more entertaining the past 2 seasons of not searching constantly.Just enjoying it for what it is...a very good mystery/sci fi show.

 

[sho nuff]

I love the cheesy explanation of why Kate's name was crossed out. "You became a mother, it's just chalk, you can erase it, you can still be the one"That was so bad, it's laughable. Not laughable that I am six years into this show but laughable like a line out of a bad Ben Affleck movie.

Cheesy?I thought it was one of the best lines in the six seasons of the show. A metaphor that worked on a number of levels.

Cheesy in that it was such a cop out explanation. It's bad writing. They string you along and then you find out in the end the answer was brutally simplistic in nature and so simple you are pissed that you were ever interested.I guess I've been spoiled by watching shows like the Wire or Breaking Bad where the writing is top notch throughout.LOST is not untypical of network television but I was really hoping for something better.

Its now bad writing to get people interested? Get a buzz going?Then reveal the answer was right there and simplistic all along?Seems that is great writing.They have made people think over and over and over again on this show...yet some don't like when their reasons are not what the writers had in mind.

 

[Sack-Religious]

Surprised nobody's mentioned this yet, but Sideways jack is about to perform surgery on sideways locke... Any chance he becomes Island consious and kills Locke there, thus eliminating the threat to the island?

I doubt this.. seems like it would be a very cruel angle considering that the real John Locke is not this monster.I am more along the lines of thinking that he cures Locke and this all contributes to the same old thing continuing on the island... and what we are watching is essentially just a chapter in the overall island.which should set up nicely for the Lost movie

I heard the creators say that this is the end. There will be no LOST movie

IIRC, Disney actually owns the rights, so while Abrams, Lindelof and Cuse may say "no" to a movie, Disney may decide to do something in the future.

 

[Dr. No]

Surprised nobody's mentioned this yet, but Sideways jack is about to perform surgery on sideways locke... Any chance he becomes Island consious and kills Locke there, thus eliminating the threat to the island?

I doubt this.. seems like it would be a very cruel angle considering that the real John Locke is not this monster.I am more along the lines of thinking that he cures Locke and this all contributes to the same old thing continuing on the island... and what we are watching is essentially just a chapter in the overall island.which should set up nicely for the Lost movie

I heard the creators say that this is the end. There will be no LOST movie

listen to the simmons podcast.. the writers/creators don't own the show, Disney does.. and if they think a movie or spinoff show could make money, they'll do it.that being said... you're probably correct, somehow I doubt they do any more with it.

 

[KGB]

I love the cheesy explanation of why Kate's name was crossed out. "You became a mother, it's just chalk, you can erase it, you can still be the one"That was so bad, it's laughable. Not laughable that I am six years into this show but laughable like a line out of a bad Ben Affleck movie.

Oh yeah, forgot I wanted to mention that one. Maybe that's why you can't have children on the island? He didn't want the island's protector to be a mother (though it still seems to be possible... choice) so since he's drawing candidates to the island he doesn't want them to become mothers and be crossed off? Seems a little rough though.

Worked for me. Whoever was to replace Jacob had to have no meaningful ties to the real world. When Kate adopted Aaron that gave her a connection and in Jacob's mind that made her less desirable as a candidate. That explanation didn't bother me at all.

Kwon not crossed off though... hmmm.

I kept waiting to see Jin swim ashore as Sawyer was staring out into the ocean, there's still time , although now that the candidate has been selected, I don't see what he could add to the finale.

No, Jin is dead, we saw their lifeless hands floating.We didnt see/dont know if lapedis and richard are.Richard just seemed too important not to make a re-appearance, and as long as the plane isnt blown up, there is a reason for lapedis to still be alive.I think lapedius will show up, and they will try to fly off. I dont think it will work.I just cant see Jack, Sawyer, Kate, or Hurley dying. Earlier they said something like "someone needs to make the ultimate sacrifice" or sacrifice themselves for the island. I dont think Jack is new jacob, at least not permanently.I think it will be sawyer (light hair) and jack as the MIB (dark hair)

 

[Hear-the-Footsteps]

I have so many random thoughts that I don't know where to start. (And to be honest, after listing some, I will probably realize that I have so many more - that I will just stop this list at some point.)

1) I don't think Richard is dead. Smokey tossed him. But aren't we supposed to believe that Richard cannot die. a) He said so. b) He even tried with the bomb w/ Jack there.

2) I don't think Widmore is dead. a) I don't think Ben was allowed to kill him. (I know people claim he can b/c he broke the rules. But did he really break the rules, or just say something regarding that he might break them?) b) Seems like it wasn't climactic enough. Widmore plays into Desmond, Penny, expensive fake ships at bottom of ocean, was on the island years ago, and so much more. He has been intertwined into this show on so many levels and just like that Ben just shoots him. And la de da da, we just move ahead? I think he is alive. Of course, I can easily be wrong about this.

Also, just seems like Ben flip-flops his allegiances and his plan too easily and too often. So maybe he fake killed Widmore to make fake-Locke/MIB think Widmore was dead.

3) Is Jack going to make it to his son's concert that night? He said he would be there. But he also has to go to LAX to pick up his dad's body. (If Desmond and Hurley are in fact trying to gather everyone to go there (though perhaps that is not where they are trying to get everyone), and Jack is the only one not there - is that somehow symbolic of all of them living a non-island life from that point forward, with Jack being the only one to live an on-island life. Did that even make sense?)

4) Is Jack going to perform the surgery on Locke? If so, he might have a flashback and become aware all of a sudden that he knows him from some other time. (The same way Charlie did with Desmond (under the water after car got submerged; kissing Penny). The same way Ben become aware of getting punched by Desmond. Jack getting close to Locke in non-island world may cause some awareness like these others.)

5) I think they will want a final scene (or near the end of the finale) of happiness. (Think movies: does Hollywood let you leave the theater after the good guy won or the bad guy? Usually the good guy. People like to be happy.) So perhaps something showing Jin/Sun with their daughter in non-island world. Perhaps Charlie is with Claire. Maybe Hurley w/ Libby. Even Ben with Rousseau. But if they do this, does Jack end up with Kate? Or does Sawyer end up with Kate? And if Sawyer ends up with Kate, is that b/c Jack is one of the only ones (or the only one) still on the island.

6) Confused by Desmond and Hurley "knowing" things on non-island world, but not others. (ie, when he knew who Ana Lucia was). No idea how that will play out. Are they trying to get all the others together to bring them back to the island? Or getting them all together for some other reason? Also, how did he know Ana Lucia "was not ready yet?" And that begs the question, how does he know the others are ready (for whatever it is he has planned)?

7) No way they wrap up everything. Impossible. I agree with many that they are probably banking on us forgetting a lot of what we wanted to know. Just too many questions. Too many issues unresolved. Too many main characters to do something with: Jack, Ben, Smokey-Locke; plus what of Kate, Sawyer, and Hurley now? And as mentioned above, are Widmore and Richard really dead (I don't think so).

Plus off island, are we to believe that people that died on-island are still alive? There's a lot of them: Charlie, Sayid, Sun, Jin, Boone, Shannon, Libby, Lapidus (sp?), Charlotte, etc etc.)

8) Missing (or simply, where are they?): Claire, Desmond

9) Will the numbers that were beaten into our head over and over come up again in the finale: 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42

10) If Desmond is immune to certain electromagnetic powers, then instead of having Jack protect that golden light that keeps the entire world going - could they somehow have Desmond do something so that is no longer an issue; and then everyone (including Jack) can be on non-island world?

So many other thoughts / questions / theories / issues going through my mind, that I can't possibly finish this list.

 

[Lehigh98]

I love the cheesy explanation of why Kate's name was crossed out. "You became a mother, it's just chalk, you can erase it, you can still be the one"That was so bad, it's laughable. Not laughable that I am six years into this show but laughable like a line out of a bad Ben Affleck movie.

Oh yeah, forgot I wanted to mention that one. Maybe that's why you can't have children on the island? He didn't want the island's protector to be a mother (though it still seems to be possible... choice) so since he's drawing candidates to the island he doesn't want them to become mothers and be crossed off? Seems a little rough though.

Worked for me. Whoever was to replace Jacob had to have no meaningful ties to the real world. When Kate adopted Aaron that gave her a connection and in Jacob's mind that made her less desirable as a candidate. That explanation didn't bother me at all.

Kwon not crossed off though... hmmm.

I kept waiting to see Jin swim ashore as Sawyer was staring out into the ocean, there's still time , although now that the candidate has been selected, I don't see what he could add to the finale.

Not what I meant, we saw the non-crossed off name before they died anyway.I meant that the name wasn't crossed off even though they had a child and "meaningful ties to the real world".Maybe Jacob wasn't aware of that, maybe he didn't care, maybe it only applies to moms and he meant Jin.Not a big deal and doesn't really matter anymore I guess.

 

[Scruff Mcgruff]

My ending for Lost:

The Smoke Monster kills all the Losties and leaves the island. You see him in a cave that you are unsure is still on the island or not plotting an attack. The series ends with the twin towers crashing.

 

[Lehigh98]

I think MIB's plan to destroy the island will be... successful. The producers were being coy on Kimmel about what caused the reset / alternate timeline and hinted at it being something other than the bomb. I think its possible that MIB blows up the island and then we jump back to the reset / alt timeline. There they come to the realization that something has gone wrong and the light has gone out or is in trouble and they need to restore it. No idea how though. Each one of them has a little of the light inside them and when they get together...?

 

[mlball77]

I think MIB's plan to destroy the island will be... successful. The producers were being coy on Kimmel about what caused the reset / alternate timeline and hinted at it being something other than the bomb. I think its possible that MIB blows up the island and then we jump back to the reset / alt timeline. There they come to the realization that something has gone wrong and the light has gone out or is in trouble and they need to restore it. No idea how though. Each one of them has a little of the light inside them and when they get together...?

Whoa... I can almost see this being the route the show goes...

 

[Sack-Religious]

I've got a half-baked theory formulating in my head about a possible end to the show. Jack somehow leads FLocke and Desmond to the Heart of the Island. FLocke thinks this is great because now he can destroy the island, but in actuality Jack and Des work together (perhaps with the Mib's old dagger that I think will be making a reappearance) to subdue FLocke and Des takes FLocke down to the "Well of Souls." This is Desmond's sacrifice and finally kills Smokey/MiB. Does that make the island "sink"? I don't know, but I can see it going down like this. I realize there's probably a million holes that can be poked in this and I'm OK with that, but the storylines seem to be pointing in this direction with Des being the failsafe, having to make a sacrifice, Jack now knowing how to get to the Heart of the Island and FLocke saying that someone helped him out be getting Des out of the well so FLocke can use him to destroy the island.

Expanding/clarifying this a little.I'm guessing MiB won't go down the "Well of Souls" willingly and who better to take him down than the guy that's basically immune to the insanely strong electromagnetic forces that are down there? We've been told that going down The Well is a fate worse than death. Then again, Desmond does have a sacrifice to make, so since he seems cognizant of island and sideways reality, perhaps he's OK with suffering whatever consequences of going down the well since he knows he's OK in sideways.

Just thought of something else in terms of "The Well" it would be a good bit of irony and foreshadowing that Locke pushed Des down a well to eventually kill him, then Des actually takes Locke down The Well to kill him.

 

[Lehigh98]

Desmond does have a sacrifice to make, so since he seems cognizant of island and sideways reality, perhaps he's OK with suffering whatever consequences of going down the well since he knows he's OK in sideways.

I need to think through it more but it occurs to me after Jacob was telling everyone at the end how he drew them to the island becasue they were "flawed" or floating around with no purpose (forget what he actually said) that in the alt timeline it seems like the flaws aren't there or are less prevalent and they have more purpose driven lives (need to think through each one to determine) except for... Desmond.In the original timeline, Desmond has found Penny and had a child and was happily sailing around the world with them. In the alt timeline he has no Penny (yet?) and no son and is a bagman for Widmore. If given the choice I think most characters would rather be in the alt timeline but Desmond had it better in the original. Not sure if this will play into the final choices everyone makes and how things will tie up but it seems to set Desmond apart... again.

 

[packersfan]

I think MIB's plan to destroy the island will be... successful. The producers were being coy on Kimmel about what caused the reset / alternate timeline and hinted at it being something other than the bomb. I think its possible that MIB blows up the island and then we jump back to the reset / alt timeline. There they come to the realization that something has gone wrong and the light has gone out or is in trouble and they need to restore it. No idea how though. Each one of them has a little of the light inside them and when they get together...?

I could also see the series ending with the Sideways world being the new reality for all of the survivors - except possibly Jack who ends up alone on the island whereever it might be.I'm still banking on Juliette being Jack's wife who shows up at the concert.

 

[Jojo the circus boy]

prediction: Hurley takes Sayid to Airport to meet Jack, Sayid gives Jack a near-death experience, Jack gains island consciousness.

 

[Jojo the circus boy]

I think MIB's plan to destroy the island will be... successful. The producers were being coy on Kimmel about what caused the reset / alternate timeline and hinted at it being something other than the bomb. I think its possible that MIB blows up the island and then we jump back to the reset / alt timeline. There they come to the realization that something has gone wrong and the light has gone out or is in trouble and they need to restore it. No idea how though. Each one of them has a little of the light inside them and when they get together...?

I could also see the series ending with the Sideways world being the new reality for all of the survivors - except possibly Jack who ends up alone on the island whereever it might be.I'm still banking on Juliette being Jack's wife who shows up at the concert.

ex-wife?

 

[Sack-Religious]

I think MIB's plan to destroy the island will be... successful. The producers were being coy on Kimmel about what caused the reset / alternate timeline and hinted at it being something other than the bomb. I think its possible that MIB blows up the island and then we jump back to the reset / alt timeline. There they come to the realization that something has gone wrong and the light has gone out or is in trouble and they need to restore it. No idea how though. Each one of them has a little of the light inside them and when they get together...?

Interesting, and I kinda like this. The thing is, everyone, not only the Candidates have a bit of that light. But, bringing everyone together may re-ignite the pilot light, so to speak.I can see everyone being together at the concert and all having the same flashes Charlie, Hurley and Ben had.

Yeah, I remember them on Kimmel talking about the island being sunk and saying you'd have to look at it and see New Otherton, etc. to theorize on when it happened. It obviously happened post-DHARMA, so it makes sense that MiB could be successfull in his endeavour to put out the light. For some reason an image from season 1 keeps coming back to me. When Locke finally unearths the hatch, and he's looking into the "window" and Desmond turns on the light which shines on Locke's face and into the night sky. What if all the people in the Sideways world getting together do re-ignite the light and it cuts to an underwater scene of the island and from the middle of it, a light appears, shooting skyward. The island, and by extension, the light are now protected. The island basically can't be found when it's on the surface, so with it underwater, nobody can exploit it any longer.

Too hokey?

 

[packersfan]

I think MIB's plan to destroy the island will be... successful. The producers were being coy on Kimmel about what caused the reset / alternate timeline and hinted at it being something other than the bomb. I think its possible that MIB blows up the island and then we jump back to the reset / alt timeline. There they come to the realization that something has gone wrong and the light has gone out or is in trouble and they need to restore it. No idea how though. Each one of them has a little of the light inside them and when they get together...?

I could also see the series ending with the Sideways world being the new reality for all of the survivors - except possibly Jack who ends up alone on the island whereever it might be.I'm still banking on Juliette being Jack's wife who shows up at the concert.

ex-wife?

Yeah, ex-wife. Sorry.

 

[Leeroy Jenkins]

Surprised nobody's mentioned this yet, but Sideways jack is about to perform surgery on sideways locke... Any chance he becomes Island consious and kills Locke there, thus eliminating the threat to the island?

I doubt this.. seems like it would be a very cruel angle considering that the real John Locke is not this monster.I am more along the lines of thinking that he cures Locke and this all contributes to the same old thing continuing on the island... and what we are watching is essentially just a chapter in the overall island.which should set up nicely for the Lost movie

I heard the creators say that this is the end. There will be no LOST movie

I think they said THEY have no intention of making one. That there interpretation of Lost is over and will end as they intended it. They left some wiggle room though, because they stated that Disney owns Lost, so they cannot control what happens in the future.

 

[AcerFC]

Didnt Eloise know everything going on. It would make sense that the concert is the one at her house and she is pulling the strings with Farraday

 

[Statorama]

I'll let the haters hate, but damn these have been some satisfying episodes for me personally.

I'm having a blast just enjoying the show

 

[Pisgah Flying Pigmen]

random stuff:

How can anyone left kill Flocke with the dagger when, I believe, he has already talked to everyone left. The instructions from Jacob were to stab him before he talks to you(same instructions MIB gave Richard for killing Jacob, but then Ben was able to do so after Jacob spoke to Ben, correct?).

From Footsteps about 6 posts above

"Also, just seems like Ben flip-flops his allegiances and his plan too easily and too often. So maybe he fake killed Widmore to make fake-Locke/MIB think Widmore was dead."

I had same thought last night, but couldn't imagine Flocke falling for it.

I'm also assuming Richard still alive. Got to believe he plays a major role in the eventual defeat of Flocke.

 

[Tiger Fan]

At this point, I think I'll be happy with any ending other than Jack/Locke at the beach rehashing the Jacob/MIB conversation

 

[Sack-Religious]

For some reason an image from season 1 keeps coming back to me. When Locke finally unearths the hatch, and he's looking into the "window" and Desmond turns on the light which shines on Locke's face and into the night sky.

Been doing a little reading since I wrote this.That episode in Season 1 was called Deus Ex Machina. This term refers to a theatrical device which originated in ancient Greek theatre. This device consisted of a physical crane that lowered a character down onto the stage, the character representing a god. This god would help the characters with a sudden twist in plot. This term would come to mean any device within a plot that provided a sudden change, or solution, in plot.In script writing, the term Deus Ex Machina is often used to refer to a solution to the story, a means to an end that comes out of nowhere and has nothing to do with the story, sometimes leaving the audience feeling cheated. Sounds about par for the course for the show. Bring on the haters!

 

[JerseyToughGuys]

Surprised nobody's mentioned this yet, but Sideways jack is about to perform surgery on sideways locke... Any chance he becomes Island consious and kills Locke there, thus eliminating the threat to the island?

I think JTG said that a page back. Could be

 

[Lehigh98]

prediction: Hurley takes Sayid to Airport to meet Jack, Sayid gives Jack a near-death experience, Jack gains island consciousness.

Autoerotic asphyxiation? Interesting twist.

 

[packersfan]

prediction: Hurley takes Sayid to Airport to meet Jack, Sayid gives Jack a near-death experience, Jack gains island consciousness.

Autoerotic asphyxiation? Interesting twist.

That's how Fox Mulder is supposed to die when he finally goes.

 

[-jb-]

Fox was quoted saying that he hasn't heard anyone guess the ending correctly, and that it's both beautiful and sad.

 

[Leeroy Jenkins]

For some reason an image from season 1 keeps coming back to me. When Locke finally unearths the hatch, and he's looking into the "window" and Desmond turns on the light which shines on Locke's face and into the night sky.

Been doing a little reading since I wrote this.That episode in Season 1 was called Deus Ex Machina. This term refers to a theatrical device which originated in ancient Greek theatre. This device consisted of a physical crane that lowered a character down onto the stage, the character representing a god. This god would help the characters with a sudden twist in plot. This term would come to mean any device within a plot that provided a sudden change, or solution, in plot.In script writing, the term Deus Ex Machina is often used to refer to a solution to the story, a means to an end that comes out of nowhere and has nothing to do with the story, sometimes leaving the audience feeling cheated. Sounds about par for the course for the show. Bring on the haters!

Well I think that was the day that it really ceased to be a show about stranded flight crash survivors and became something more about the unknown.

 

[kupcho1]

How can anyone left kill Flocke with the dagger when, I believe, he has already talked to everyone left. The instructions from Jacob were to stab him before he talks to you(same instructions MIB gave Richard for killing Jacob, but then Ben was able to do so after Jacob spoke to Ben, correct?).

MIB spoke to his mother prior to using the dagger. He just didn't speak to her at that time as he was doing it.

 

[kupcho1]

My ending for Lost:The Smoke Monster kills all the Losties and leaves the island. You see him in a cave that you are unsure is still on the island or not plotting an attack. The series ends with the twin towers crashing.

oof

 

[The Dude]

I think the writers took an aggressive approach changing pre-crash history. I think it may have been too agressive. I see issues with collapsing the two timelines - like Jack's son or if Jack remains on the island - curious to see where that goes.

Still no idea wehat Des hopes to accomplish - unless each person is going to be their own Constant (somehow) and people's history needs to be reconciled individually. Which might make some sense why Jin and Sun are not involved (nobody to reconcile with).

I thought it was a good show but far from great.

Still not sure why unLocke didn't let Widmore blow the plane with everyone on it (after he slipped off the plane).

 

[Sack-Religious]

Not sure if anyone's read or posted this, but it's a good article/Q&A with Cuse and Lindelof with the NY Times (from May 16).

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/16/arts/tel...;ref=television

 

[Neo]

random stuff:How can anyone left kill Flocke with the dagger when, I believe, he has already talked to everyone left. The instructions from Jacob were to stab him before he talks to you(same instructions MIB gave Richard for killing Jacob, but then Ben was able to do so after Jacob spoke to Ben, correct?).

Just something interesting I found....the MIB killed his mom without uttering a word to her. Just snuck up on her.ETA...just saw kupcho's post reagrding it...

 

[cstu]

Surprised nobody's mentioned this yet, but Sideways jack is about to perform surgery on sideways locke... Any chance he becomes Island consious and kills Locke there, thus eliminating the threat to the island?

I doubt this.. seems like it would be a very cruel angle considering that the real John Locke is not this monster.I am more along the lines of thinking that he cures Locke and this all contributes to the same old thing continuing on the island... and what we are watching is essentially just a chapter in the overall island.which should set up nicely for the Lost movie

I heard the creators say that this is the end. There will be no LOST movie

IIRC, Disney actually owns the rights, so while Abrams, Lindelof and Cuse may say "no" to a movie, Disney may decide to do something in the future.

I don't think it's about saying no to a movie rather than after the finale there will be no point to a movie - at least that's what L&C have said all along.

 

[Leeroy Jenkins]

Not sure if anyone's read or posted this, but it's a good article/Q&A with Cuse and Lindelof with the NY Times (from May 16).

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/16/arts/tel...;ref=television

The fact that Ben's character developed differently than originally planned and that Mr. Eko was supposed to be a more integral character and that the "final scene" was contemplated in Season 1 makes me think all the Ben talk as the "hero" or redeemer are going to be wrong.

 

[packersfan]

Fox was quoted saying that he hasn't heard anyone guess the ending correctly, and that it's both beautiful and sad.

That could tie in with all of the survivors being alive in the Sideways world and that world being their reality while Jack is left alone to protect the island. What I'm now wondering is if Flocke somehow leaves the Island and invades the Sideways world.

 

[packersfan]

Not sure if anyone's read or posted this, but it's a good article/Q&A with Cuse and Lindelof with the NY Times (from May 16).

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/16/arts/tel...;ref=television

The fact that Ben's character developed differently than originally planned and that Mr. Eko was supposed to be a more integral character and that the "final scene" was contemplated in Season 1 makes me think all the Ben talk as the "hero" or redeemer are going to be wrong.

I liked seeing Ben going back to being the selfish, out for himself character he was initially. He has nothing to live for so why not be rid of his enemies and die alone on the island? That fits for him.

 

[TobiasFunke]

I love the cheesy explanation of why Kate's name was crossed out. "You became a mother, it's just chalk, you can erase it, you can still be the one"That was so bad, it's laughable. Not laughable that I am six years into this show but laughable like a line out of a bad Ben Affleck movie.

Cheesy?I thought it was one of the best lines in the six seasons of the show. A metaphor that worked on a number of levels.

Cheesy in that it was such a cop out explanation. It's bad writing. They string you along and then you find out in the end the answer was brutally simplistic in nature and so simple you are pissed that you were ever interested.I guess I've been spoiled by watching shows like the Wire or Breaking Bad where the writing is top notch throughout.LOST is not untypical of network television but I was really hoping for something better.

See I thought the brutally simplistic answer was kind of poetic. You know, sometimes the answer is a lot simpler than you make it out to be. That was the case here for both the Losties and by extension the viewers. That's one of the ways I thought the line worked. And honestly, even though it was so simple, it didn't leave anything unexplained, except maybe the numbers, since Kate's number isn't one of the magic six.Now if you call stuff like the "Looks like someone got her voice back" line from the Sun-Jin reunion horribly cheesy ... well there I can't argue with you.

 

[SmoovySmoov]

Still not sure why unLocke didn't let Widmore blow the plane with everyone on it (after he slipped off the plane).

Boy, that would have been a great scene. "I have been saying all season how I just want to go home and leave the island. Now that we're all here, I'm just gonna step off the plane for a second. I forgot my hunting knife." BOOM. LOST. That's so much better than these lazy writers could do.

 

[Statorama]

I'm getting an eerie suspicion that Ben knew Widmore had a bulletproof vest on and that we haven't seen the last of the bald bull.

 

[Sack-Religious]

Doc Jensen's latest

http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20313460_20386359,00.html

'Lost' recap: The Will And The Way... To The End

Jack drinks up, Hurley pays up, and Ben gets beat up in the penultimate episode

By Jeff Jensen | May 19, 2010

The Candidates are ready to run.

On The Island, destiny-seeking Jack Shephard accepted Jacob's nomination as his replacement as Island protector. At the same spot some 2,500 years earlier where he reluctantly accepted the responsibility of Island stewardship from his mad, manipulative Mother, Jacob blessed some river water and offered a cup to Jack — Holy Communion, Island style. The good doctor freely and willingly took and drank the mystic elixir, and his eyes popped from psychic revelation. In that moment, I imagined that Jack's brain was flooded with epiphanies. Now I know how to kill Fake Locke! Now I know where the Dharma palette drop came from! Now I know why I'm such a #####! If only we could inaugurate our presidents with this ritual, because clearly that Bible-swearing thing does no good.

In the Sideways world, we got another candidate ready to run — and I'm not talking Jack and his gut full of family-sized Super-Bran. No, I'm referring to John Locke, who had an epiphany by proxy. After learning that his colleague Dr. Linus has been beaten to a near pulp (and near Island Enlightenment) by the same suave Scottish bruthuh who ran him down, Locke decided that the pile-up of post-Oceanic 815 coincidences and synchronicities were too meaningful to ignore. Biting back on his own incredulity and skepticism, the born-again science teacher wheeled himself into Jack Shephard's office and announced he wanted the surgery that the good doctor offered him two episodes ago in ''The Candidate.'' ''I'm ready to get out of this wheelchair,'' he said. It was less about wanting to walk and more about wanting to meet the meaning behind this divine conspiracy. But more than anything, it was a choice. Like Island Jack, Sideways Locke seized the opportunity life had given him: the chance to decide who and what he wanted to be.

When I first saw this episode last week in the company of 2000 Lost fans at ''Lost Live'' in Los Angeles, a good portion of the crowd cheered at this moment. I don't know what that moment meant for them, but I know what it signified for me: The return of the original John Locke is nigh. I suppose we should sweat the prospect that Fake Locke's consciousness could come streaming into Sideways Locke's body should Jack's surgery trigger Island Enlightenment. But this is why this is a two-man — and two-Jack — operation. In the Sideways world, Jack will fix Locke's spine and facilitate Locke's awakening. On The Island, Guardian Jack will defeat Fake Locke and protect the spiritual circuit between the ''real Lockes'' of both worlds. It's sweet happily ever after... but I worry about the implications of what we saw in the opening moments of the season some 15 weeks or so ago, an ominous image that has been left for the last episode of Lost to explain: The Island, dead and underwater.

NEXT: A callback to the pilot

''What They Died For'' was a fun hour filled with deep thoughts about the fine line between free will and fate that paved the way for a series finale that promises to be an apocalyptic race-against-time thriller, part 24, part Heroes (albeit only season 1 Heroes, and minus the sucky finale). If ABC would like to up the ante on both the hype and the wink-wink, I would suggest spamming the culture with a marketing campaign built around the slogan ''Save The Cheerful Scotsman, Save The World!'' After all, both Smokey and the now-deceased Charles Widmore (slain by Island Ben, who has fallen off his white redemption horse... or has he?) seemed to suggest that super-buddha/super-magnet Desmond is the key to Island salvation — the messianic, love-driven, free radical Neo of The Matrix. The finale promises to be a corker — and I hope the Cork (metaphorically speaking) can survive it.

The Island World

Basic Black

The Island arc began with the remaining castaway heroes vowing to kill Fake Locke, a demonic man-thing that was once a Mother-scarred human. It ended with this humanity-stripped monster vowing to destroy The Island, the hiding place of The Source, the divine sweet spot of life, death and rebirth, whose radiance imbues all things with spiritual meaning. We opened on the beach with the castaway Final Four — Jack, Kate, Sawyer, and Hurley — the morning after the sub disaster. Kate's eyes were puffy from weeping for Jin, Sun and Sayid, but mostly for Jin and Sun — and Ji Yeon, the Kwon's now orphaned daughter. I'd like to think Kate was speaking for all those who were outraged by Jin's so-called ''selfishness'' by invoking her name and memory. She was also ramping up Jack for her big pitch. As he sewed up her gunshot wound with a black thread pulled from an old shirt, Kate's anguish and Fake Locke rage peaked: ''We have to kill him, Jack.'' But Jack needed no amping. ''I know,'' he said.

The sequence was a subtle callback to Lost's pilot, which now seems so very long ago, doesn't it? Once again, our heroes found themselves a rag tag band of beached castaways. Once again, Jack stepped up to play leader and hero and tended to the wounded. Once again, we got a tender moment between Jack and Kate built around the closing of a wound. In the pilot it was Kate sewing up the gash on Jack's side. She gave him a choice of colors for his stitch. Jack asked for ''basic black.'' As she sealed up his owie, Jack told her the ''count to five'' story — how his father had taught him how to manage fear during crisis. Before season 6 began, I wrote an essay about how this scene stood as a metaphor for Lost's philosophy of redemption, how the labor of our emotional, intellectual and spiritual healing, growth, and refinement isn't a solo act but requires a community of fellow fallen souls also seeking transformation. Now, six years later, Lost has brought us full circle, but with a twist as dark as basic black. The organizing principle of the original castaway community was defensive. Now, it's offensive. There's a monster roaring in the jungle, calling out for their blood. But they're not hiding from him anymore. Now, they're taking the battle to him, just like Sawyer did in ''Outlaws,'' when that demon boar raided his tent. Go get 'em, superhero pig hunters! Smite that piece of smokey bacon! Butcher that odious little porky!

NEXT: How do you solve a problem like the Smoke Monster? How do you catch a cloud and pin him down?

But how to kill The Monster? The answer promises to be one of the more pivotal and dramatic of the finale's revelations. And yet, I suspect the answer is... you can't. If Smokey is pure soul stuff, then how can the soul be destroyed?

Before they decamped from the beach and commenced Mission: Satan Assassination, Lost gave us a hero shot set to poignant Giacchino score of The Forlorn Four sadly looking to the skyline, as if saying one last goodbye to the friends they had lost to the ocean. Perhaps they were also silently bidding adieu to the dream of returning to the home sweet home that lies somewhere across the sea. I think when you decide to kill the devil, you have to make peace with the prospect of not coming back alive. This isn't a Fantastic Four story — this is a Suicide Squad mission. Did you see Kate slump against Sawyer? Was that Lost's way of telling us that Kate had ''made her choice''? A nation of Skaters would like to think so. But was Sawyer choosing her? A nation of Suliets would say, ''That matter was settled 30 years ago.'' (Go ahead, Skaters. Flame me with your hate. It tastes so delicious.)

The Candidates forged into the jungle. Destination: Desmond's well. If Fake Locke wanted Des dead, then Des must be important. En route, Sawyer nearly buckled from guilt and grief. ''I killed them, didn't I?'' Jack squared up on him and told him the truth. ''No. He killed them.'' In their few scenes together this season, Sawyer has done nothing but heap physical and emotional abuse upon Jack for his Juliet-destroying Jughead recklessness. Yet with the tables turned, Jack gave him grace as well as the gift of perspective. Hopefully Sawyer will use it to see a way out of his crippling despair and toward the heroism that will be needed of him in the final act. I've always hoped that the end of Lost would offer some understanding/reconciliation between Jack and Sawyer. My favorite moments with the pair have nothing to do with them fighting. (Of course, they're probably my fave moments because they're so different from their usual dynamic.) Sawyer telling Jack about meeting his father in season 1. Sawyer and Jack in The Hatch and talking about Ana Lucia at the end of season 2. Jack teaming with Sawyer to free Frank Lapidus at the end of season 4. Perhaps the finale will see them resign their animosity once and for all and bind them permanently as allies in survival and partners in redemption.

NEXT: Ashes to ashes

Meanwhile, in the rear of the wagon train, Hurley was bickering with a ghostly brat. Young Jacob's spirit showed up and demanded that Hurley fork over Ilana's leather sack containing his ashes. Hurley obliged, Jacob swiped and scrammed, and I had questions. Why did Ghost Jacob appear to Hurley in his 13-year-old kid form instead of his ageless 43-year-old adult form? (I don't know.) Do spectral entities on The Island have the ability to interact with the physical environment, or just their mortal remains? (I say: The latter.) Has Jacob always had the option to make himself visible to all the castaways, or did he require the ceremonial burning of his ashes to be so illuminated? Again, I say the latter. Hurley gathered Jack, Sawyer and Kate for a tense fireside chat with The Island's former guardian. What struck me the most about this conversation? Jacob = Jack. He's a fixer, haunted by past mistakes, and one mistake in particular: Turning his brother into a smoke monster. Jacob explained that he brought the castaways to The Island to remedy his error. Once Smokey figured out how to kill him, Jacob had to prepare for the possibility that his brother would succeed, and so he began scouting the globe for his replacement as Island guardian.

The implications of Jacob's download were provocative. No, the castaways didn't fall from the sky and land on The Island by accident like Jack once believed; they were brought here by a powerful force like metal filings to a magnet. But this ''powerful force'' wasn't fate or destiny (read: God/the divine) like Locke once believed. It isn't even a ''force.'' ''It'' is a ''he'' — a very human, flawed ''he,'' a frozen-in-time, super-powered, self-righteous, solipsistic, artsy-fartsy wino hippie man-child burdened with heavy mother issues, weighty responsibility and even more crushing guilt, who conspired to corral a bunch of people and subtly (and not so subtly) manipulate them into repairing his monster-making mistakes and clearing his conscience. There are other, more flattering interpretations, of course, and this one isn't necessarily the one I believe in. Yet I sympathized with Sawyer when he piped up and protested Jacob's presumptuous meddling in their lives: ''I was doing just fine until you dragged me to this damn rock!'' Actually, I think Sawyer could have been more forceful. Where do you get off playing God with our lives, you monkey-mouthed idiot savant!? If I wasn't so depressed, I'd get up off my log and kick you in your ghost nuts! You're a user! You're a schemer! You're a narcissistic fixer-cum-delusional hero-cum-con artist! You're... you're... the love child Jack, John and I never had!

Jacob responded to Sawyer's complaint by rising to his feet and calling bulls--t on him. On all of them. He hadn't plucked them from some ''happy existence.'' They were all miserable, spent, and wasted. He said they were all like him: ''flawed'' and ''alone.'' They all needed to be on The Island as much as Jacob did. Sawyer could have gotten up in Jacob's grill and challenged him further. Still, I got the point. From a timeless, spiritual perspective, the castaways are better off than they were before they crashed on The Island. Yes, they have suffered, yet their adventures together have brought them to a place where they find themselves more self-aware and liberated from ruts of self-destructive behavior. Jacob has also given them something which I'm not sure they yet fully recognize and appreciate, at least not in the Island world: a community of fellow souls deeply invested in each other's survival, growth, and flourishing.

NEXT: Promises, promises

But the charge remains: Jacob the Puppet Master unfairly pulled the strings on castaway lives and subverted their free will. Jacob's defense — and Lost's defense — would seem to be that the castaways have always had total control over the things that matter most from an eternal perspective: their internal lives, their character, their soul. ''What They Died For'' gave us a scene in the Sideways narrative that could be seen as a metaphor for the Jacob/Lost stance on the relationship between free will and fate. Desmond, the Jacob analog, broke Kate and Sayid out of jail — but they had no idea they had been liberated until Desmond spelled it out in the van. And even then, they didn't really believe it. Kate and Sayid had been oblivious to Desmond's machinations, but they were also powerless to stop the prison wagon from reaching Desmond's destination for them. Still, during the trip, they retained total authority over their inner lives, and upon their arrival, they had the freedom to do as they wish. Their actions may have forced Desmond into a response, but at no point did anyone hold a gun to their heads. In fact, the only manipulation Desmond used was holding them to their word to do as they promised — to have integrity, to be people of their word. We can't control our circumstances, but we can control our response to our circumstances. It may sound a little trite, but it's also the defining theme of our catastrophe decade.

There's another dimension to this debate, too. With all due respect to the castaways' outrage over their subverted self-determination, and with all due respect to the fans out there who are deeply aggrieved on their behalf, I defer to the immortal words of Ben Linus aboard Ajira 316: ''Who cares?'' Or more elaborately: Who cares about what you want when the meaning of life, if not all of existence, hangs in the balance? Per the Lost cosmology and worldview, the castaways have a vested interest in safeguarding The Source by dint of simply being alive. We can work these ideas for deep metaphorical meaning, but in the fantasy world of Lost, where everyone and everything is interconnected via mystical/electromagnetic light under The Island, the fact of the matter is that if The Underlying Meaning Of Existence is extinguished, we're as good as dead. It doesn't matter if it's not your fault. It doesn't matter if it was someone else's mistake you're being forced to fix. You can't run away from this fight. You're not allowed. You don't get that choice. Nobody does. Similarly, you can't ever be disqualified from fighting that fight, either — which is why Jacob couldn't deny Kate the job of Island guardian even if he wanted to. So sorry, Sawyer and friends. Whether you like it or not, we need you on The Island, and we need you to be a hero. So suck it up, you wusses.

NEXT: Time for a little out-Sourcing?

(All this said, I do find myself wondering if the current conflict on The Island can and will be resolved by a paradigm shift in thinking about The Source. The Island needs The Source — but does The Source really need The Island? We've been told that a little bit of the light exists in everyone. Well, why not take a cue from Hurley's Parable of the Hatch Pantry and just divide the rest of The Source equally among all people? Why not make humanity itself the exclusive dwelling place of The Source? It's time to decentralize! It's time for Mystic Reformation! That's my theory of Desmond. I think super-Buddha is going to get dropped into the Holy Wormhole and will absorb all the energy into himself and then redistribute it throughout all of mankind. The Source needs a guardian. But what it needs even more is for all of us to guard it.)

(And as I finish the preceding parenthetical, another one hit me. What if once upon a time, The Source did reside within all of humanity? What if we stopped believing in The Source, or we convinced ourselves that The Source stopped believing in us, so much so that now The Source exists as an anomaly that's hidden away from us — as something lost that must be found. The Truth Is Out There — but once, The Truth Was In Here.)

Anyway, back to the story. Jacob needed a successor, and Jack volunteered for the job. At first, I wondered if Jack, the recovering hero junkie/fixer addict, should have resisted the opportunity to become The Sentinel of The Source. Then I realized Jack was right — this is his destiny. His journey has seen him mature into the kind of guardian the Island needs: humbled and humble; introspective yet wired for justice; a man of faith and a man of science. Jack is the right man for the times — the face of 21st century new religion. That said, I find myself mulling two thoughts.

1. I am not convinced that The Island needs a Superman. I know that Jacob warned the castaways that if no one took the position, ''this will all end very badly.'' But how would he know? Who came up with the whole ''guardian'' idea, anyway? Did The Island grow a mouth and suddenly sing, ''Somebody saaaaaaave me!'' Or did some caveman witch doctor wash ashore shortly after the Dawn of Man and appoint himself to the task, starting a tradition that is certainly valuable but not necessarily invaluable. Even if we cede Jacob the point that The Island needs protecting from Fake Locke, wouldn't The Island/Source be okay on its own once The Monster was defeated?

2. Regardless, I am not convinced Jack will still have this job by series' end. I'm wondering if Jack might come to some radically different conclusions about how The Island should be managed — perhaps the conclusion I came to in Point Number 1. Stepping off that obsession, I wonder if Super-Jack will need to sacrifice his life in order to stop Fake Locke from extinguishing The Source forever and turning reality into a burnt-out husk of meaninglessness. Maybe he should work up his own list of candidate replacements, just in case.

NEXT: Miles gets wonky

Jacob flashed his successor some heavenly shiny eyes and sealed the deal on his consecration: ''Now we are the same.'' When you become Island guardian, do you gain psychic access to the collective intelligence of previous Island guardians? (Island Guardian = Star Child from 2001? Alan Moore's Swamp Thing? The Doctor from The Authority? Doctor Who?) From the dark of the forest, Sawyer, Kate, and Hurley bore witness to the birth of the new Island savior like adoring magi. Okay, maybe not so much with the adoring: the perplexed castaways were more like The Three Wise-Asses from the East. ''And I thought he had a God complex before,'' Sawyer cracked. Kate nudged him and shushed him and Sawyer actually seemed to feel a teeny bit guilty. Then Hurley said, ''I'm just glad it's not me.'' Which seems to force a ''famous last words, pal'' from us in the peanut gallery. Why do I now find myself suspicious that Hurley might end up with the Island Guardian gig by the end?

Empowered and enlightened, Jack was told by Jacob he could now seek out The Source. Current location: Just beyond the bamboo fields where he landed when fell from the sky. Jack shook his head. He knew that part of The Island well. He had never seen The Source over there. ''Yes, it is,'' Jacob said. Shades of: The Lighthouse, another mythological Island landmark that escaped Jack's attention — that is, until he developed eyes to see it. (I am reminded of the C.S. Lewis novel The Pilgrim's Regress, about a spiritual seeker who has a dream as a child of an island offering the promise of great meaning to his life, but after years and years and years of searching, he discovers that the place he's looking for... is right back where he started. See, Jack? You had the magic inside you all along...)

Meanwhile, on the other side of The Island...

Ben, Richard, and Miles completed a two-day hike (by my estimation) to New Otherton. Immediately, we got quips and banter, and immediately I was reminded how much I love these characters and how much I've missed seeing them over the past few weeks. My favorite of these early lines? Miles, upon arriving on the outskirts of the place he knew better as Dharmaville: ''I lived in these houses 30 years ago — otherwise known as last week.''

Ben in particular was in rare form last night, and his scenes with Widmore and FLocke (and in the Sideways world, Desmond, Locke, and a cleaned-up, sanity-restored suburban Rousseau) produced much of what made the episode fun — a knowing, twisted, sometimes poignant sense of humor. Walking the grounds New Otherton, Miles started going ''wonky'' as he heard a dead girl calling to him from the ground. It was Alex. Alpert revealed that he had brought her back to the village and given her a proper burial. He chose a plot of land near the swingsets, and FLASHBACK SWOOSH TO... ''Dead Is Dead,'' with Ben pushing his young adopted/abducted daughter on the swing — the happiest we have ever seen him on the show. A cloud of regret and melancholy passed over Ben's face. He dryly thanked Richard for his kindness, then pivoted and trudged into his house. So sad and so funny at the same time.

NEXT: Staying three steps ahead of Ben is harder than you think

Inside Casa De Ben, with its primitive art masks that remind us that Ben is an extraordinarily skilled actor (remember that), the would-be Ajira bombers entered Ben's secret room behind the bookcase to fetch the C4. Miles asked about the glyph wall. ''Is that the secreter room?'' Miles quipped. Ben explained that behind the wall there was a passageway that held the means to call Smokey. I think we got official confirmation from Ben that the entity in the old Goodspeed love shack which he took to be Jacob was actually the Man In Black. ''I was told I could summon the Monster. That was before I realized it summoned me.'' This is interesting to think about. If Ben has always been wrong about being Jacob's chosen one for a period of time, then that means his tenure as the leader of the Others was fraudulent and invalid — which means that Charles Widmore was probably quite sincere in his persecution of Ben. Megabucks Chuck never wanted to get back to The Island to exploit it. He wanted to get back to The Island to save it from Ben's corrupt administration. Still, I'd like to think that through it all, Jacob was always in control and will remain in control until his ashes evaporate in the campfire. I cling to my theory that Lost will end with Ben installed Island guardian, and that in fact, his Island story has been about preparing him for the job and to be worthy of the job.

Then Widmore arrived with Zoe in tow. The friction between Ben and Chuck — the man who essentially ordered the hit on Ben's daughter — was scrumptious. I loved the posturing between the two ex-Great Men Of The Others. Widmore helping himself to a glass of water in Ben's house. Widmore telling Zoe to ignore Ben's threats. Widmore saying, ''As usual Benjamin I'm three steps ahead of you!'' Widmore explained that Jacob had visited him shortly after the finale of season 4, when the freighter was destroyed. Jacob helped Widmore ''see the error of my ways,'' the ex-Other explained, and tasked him with executing the fallback plan in case the candidates didn't succeed in stopping Smokey. Then came the report from the docks: Fake Locke was coming. Ben and Alpert volunteered to deal with him. Ben suggested that Widmore, Zoe, and Miles hide in the backroom.

Richard sauntered onto the great lawn to meet with the Monster. Fake Locke greeted him by taking smoke form and batting him into the jungle. (I'm going to assume Richard will be found alive next week.) Stricken with fear, Ben took a seat on the porch and waited for the inevitable. Fake Locke strolled in. He took a seat next to Ben and unsheathed his knife and ''asked'' his Jacob-stabbing patsy to do some more murdering for him. Fake Locke offered him the reward that he offered him earlier in the season when he tried to entice Ben to join his camp: Management of The Island.

NEXT: Darth Smoke Moster is your faaaatherrrrr

Basically, Fake Locke was forcing Ben to become his a personal assassin — a reversal of what Ben did to Sayid during his Oceanic 6 days. Ben accepted, and we must ask why. We know that Ben is wired for survival. His typical M.O. is to glom onto a power player, then subvert and take control — very Sith-esque. With the death of his forgiving benfactor Ilana, Ben may have sensed that a shift in Island power had occurred and so he decided to shift allegiance accordingly. This would be a bummer. I had bought into Ben's redemption. I want him to stick with it. So here's another thought:

Ben is conning Fake Locke. Recall that Ben had broken ranks with the castaways over Hurley's plan to try and hug it out with Smokey. That didn't work so well — for either side. Ben, himself something of an evil mastermind, must have realized that; he must have realized that Smokey only needed him because something had gone wrong. Smokey was coming to him out of weakness, not strength. Smokey radiated intimidation — but I'm betting Ben saw through the tough-guy veneer. Smokey is vulnerable. And he's scared. And Ben knows it. His plan: Stick by his side, figure out what can kill this man-thing, take him down. Ben is on the side of the castaway angels. He must be! (Then again, if Island Ben does go totally dark, it does set up the dramatically delicious moment when his more morally principled Sideways doppelganger becomes fully ''Island Enlightened'' and remembers all his past life crimes. There goes that happily ever after with Rousseau and Alex.)

The scene that followed was pretty awesome — the three great villains of Lost together in one confined space, three heavyweight peacocks trying to out-preen each other for control. Fake Locke wanted Widmore. Ben directed him to the secret room. I wasn't expecting to see anyone in there; I thought Widmore and geo-stooge Zoe would have skipped out via the passageway behind the glyph door. Nope. They would have been better off following Miles into the jungle. When Zoe spoke out of turn, Fake Locke drew his knife and slashed her throat and put that busted character/subplot out of her misery. Fake Locke wanted Widmore to explain his presence on The Island and why he had brought Desmond with him. Big Bad Fake Baldie promised not to kill Big Bad British Baldie's daughter (Penelope to you) if he coughed up credible deets. Talk about an offer he couldn't refuse! Why not sweeten the deal with a bloody horse's head, too? (That wasn't funny, was it?) Widmore agreed to spill his secrets, but not within earshot of Ben. Widmore whispered his secret into his ear — and Ben popped a cap in the man who ordered Alex's assassination. ''He doesn't get to save his daughter,'' Ben quipped. Ice cold! But... NOOOOOO! I'm guessing the whisper made you want to yell at the television. How rude of Lost not let us eavesdrop on that secret!

NEXT: I feel the earth! move! under my feet!

Rest In Peace, Charles Widmore. The quick-tempered billionaire enemy of DesPen love — a pharmaceutical magnate with a penchant for prog-rock-inspired construction projects — joins a long list of Lost characters who get offed from the show with pitiless dispatch and leave behind a mess of unresolved questions. This season alone: Dogen, Lennon, Ilana. Before them: Faraday, Charlotte, Patchy. This is too much of a trend to not wonder if there's a point being made here. Death comes suddenly. We all leave the world unresolved to various degrees. It's all deep and meaningful... and yet even I felt a touch unsatisfied. I wanted to know more of Widmore. Remember back in season 4, when he #####ed to Ben about being plagued with ''nightmares'' — what was that about? Who was Penelope's mother? And did he dump Eloise Hawking before or after she turned into the hammy shock-haired horror from The Others? Regardless, I thought for certain we'd get a scene that offered a more substantial explanation for his return to The Island, one that gave Alan Dale the chance to chew some scenery with a meaty oration about Charles Widmore's CharlesWidmoreness. Nope. But we move on.

Fake Locke and Ben hiked out to the well to retrieve Desmond. Ben asked if he could ask a question. Fake Locke: ''Shoot.'' (Me: Laughing. Damn, I love these two together.) Ben asked why Smokey bothered walking when he could puff around The Island in a cloud. The Man In Black replied that he liked the feel of his feet on the ground. ''It reminds me that I was human,'' he said. Interesting: a question whose answer we might expect would be mechanical or mythological in nature is instead a subjective, i.e. arbitrary, character-driven answer. Just like everything Jacob. These solutions satisfy me; I do like thinking about Island mythology stuff as expressions of pathology and psychology. But you may not agree. I wonder, though, if this nostalgia for humanity, this belief that he is human, is the key to killing him. I wonder if the ultimate solution to the problem of The Monster... is to getting him to kill himself. Translation: Smokey = Rutger Hauer in Blade Runner. Kinda.

QUESTIONS

Smokey: ''I'm going to destroy The Island.'' How do you think he'll do that?

Desmond: He's a ''failsafe'' — a very season 2 term. Desmond turned the failsafe key. ''See you in another life, brother,'' he said. Then the sky turned purple. What might this mean for the endgame?

The rope down the well: Who do you think helped Desmond out of the well? Was it Sayid? Or was it someone else? Who? I would theorize... but I actually know this answer, spoiled from my recent reporting. So I recuse myself.

NEXT: On to the Sideways World

The Sideways World

Super-Bran!

Another Bloody Nick On Jack's Neck

A literal break in continuity; a sign of Jack's impending Enlightenment Apocalypse; a callback to the season premiere, indicating we're about to come full circle on the season.

Why Desmond Pranked Jack About His Father

Because Sideways Jack is becoming too content and too tethered to this world. See: his vibrant relationship with David, the reconciliation of his father issues; his new relationship with the soul sister he never knew he had, Claire. By jolting Jack with the reminder of his father's MIA corpse, Desmond was trying to irritate Jack's existential angst and destabilize his spiritual grounding to keep him vulnerable to SOIES. (Sudden Onset Island Enlightenment Syndrome.)

The Significance Of Super Bran

A metaphor for Island Enlightenment. A bowl of this stuff will really get things moving inside. Spiritually speaking.

Everyone Is Going To ''The Concert''

I suspect everyone will be there (including Jack's mysterious ex-wife — it has to be Juliet), I suspect Drive Shaft will perform, and I suspect Desmond will use these events to trigger Island Enlightenment. Will a rousing rendition of ''You All Everybody'' do the trick? Will a good thrashing in the mosh pit and a love-at-first-sight moment also be required? Call it a harmonic convergence. Call it: ''Remember that scene at the end of season 3, when Charlie cracked the 'Good Vibrations' musical code in the Looking Glass Station? Lost totally did that three years ago to foreshadow this Sideways world Driveshaft concert enlightenment-via-good vibrations series climax See? They really did have a master plan!''

Desmond's Ben Beat Down

When I watched the scene with the ''Lost Live'' crowd last week, everyone laughed. I do think it was intended to be funny. I loved the deliberate echo of Desmond's hit-and-run-over of Locke. As I watched Desmond watching Locke from behind the wheel of his car, I thought: ''He's going to try this again? Seriously?'' Then Ben pounced on the hood of the vehicle to play the hero, breaking the tension and evoking a laugh. Desmond got out and just pounded the snot out of Ben's face, and as he did, Dr. Linus found himself flashing on the memory of Desmond pounding the snot out of his face in the Island world during his failed attempt to kill Penny. Desmond's assault didn't trigger total Island Enlightenment in Ben, but it gave him a lot to think about, and the thoughts clearly left him troubled.

The Significance Of Sideways Rousseau

Alex, moved by the misfortune that had befallen her mentor, invited Dr. Linus over for dinner. Her mother seconded the motion. Her mother: Danielle Rousseau, restored to mental health, a radiant and sweet exotic suburban mom. ''We'd insist, even if we have to kidnap you,'' Danielle said. Where was Alex's father? ''He died when Alex was still young,'' Danielle replied. ''It's probably why she's grown so attached to you. You're the closest thing to a father she's ever had.'' The whole Sideways Rousseau/Alex played that way, winking ironically at every aspect of the Island Rousseau story. Ben enjoyed himself, which troubled him even more. The story also tried to suggest the possibility of a love connection between Dr. Linus and Alex's mother, and all of this, I think, was in service to this idea: Perhaps not everyone in the Sideways world would be better off with Island Enlightenment. Let's say this really is Reincarnation Land. Don't these souls deserve to live out the new existence they've been given by the cosmic Wheel of Life? Should Sideways Ben be robbed of happiness in this life by being saddled with the memories and consciousness of his damaged and damned Island-word self? Should Rousseau and Alex be victimized anew by being made to meld with the fate-screwed people they once were? Can they decline getting hit with the Enlightenment whammy stick? Do the Sideways world peeps have any control over the process that Desmond seems determined to unleash?

NEXT: Desmond channels Mr. Burns

The Significance of ''Let go'' and ''She's not ready yet''

Desmond left Ben with a message to deliver to Locke. ''Let go.'' Ben complied, and Locke was appropriately impacted. Locke then wheeled his way to Jack and asked for the surgery. It'll be interesting to see on Sunday if we actually get to see the procedure or if ''The End'' will pull a page out of ''The Candidate'' book and skip straight to the recovery stage.

After brutalizing Ben with harsh, violent grace, Desmond went to the police station and turned himself in to Detective James Ford, whose bright Sideways persona stood in stark contrast to his quiet, recovering Island alter ego. Sawyer threw Desmond into the stir. His cellmate: Sayid. In the next cage over: Kate. Desmond smirked. The twinkle in his eyes resembled the twiddling of an evil mastermind's fingers. Excellent! Everything is going exactly to plan. The incarcerated trio were put into a van and transferred to county. Inside, Desmond offered Sayid and Kate a deal. He'd bust them loose in exchange for a promise to do a favor for him. Kate and Sayid laughed. They didn't believe the crazy guy, so they said, ''Sure.'' There was a naturalism and lightness to this scene that I really enjoyed, and it permeated the entire Sideways storyline. It was as if Lost decided: You know, we're not really sure if this crazy idea is working or not, but it's really kinda too late to worry about it now so we might as well cut loose and have fun with it.

And with that, enter patrol woman Ana Lucia. This was a delightful surprise. Yes, I said delightful. The jail-bound van came to a stop. The back door opened. And there she was, the Island world Dirty Harriet cop and Tailie badass, telling the trio they were free to go. They found themselves on a pier, not county. Sayid and Kate: WTH?! Then Hurley showed up in his canary colored Hummer. He saw Ana Lucia and assumed she was Island enlightened. Nope. Hurley gave her an envelope — a payoff — and the crooked copper drove away. ''It was nice not knowing you,'' Ana Lucia said, speaking more truth than she realized.

Hurley had asked Desmond if Ana Lucia was part of his Island Enlightenment project. ''No, she's not ready yet,'' Desmond replied. Translation: Not everyone will be making the leap to Island hyper-consciousness. Not with this crew of people. And maybe not ever.

And with that, kids, my carriage just turned into a pumpkin. Time to stop, polish, post, and then sleep for a couple days to prep both intellectually and emotionally for ''The End.'' I began that last sentence thinking I'd find a touch of sadness by the end. Instead, I'm genuinely excited. I'm ready. I'm ready for the final chapter, ready to see how it sums up the season and brings the series to a close. I'm ready to watch meaning (which, to be clear, is different than answers) flood into the Lost saga like a surge of Island Enlightenment. But will the meaning leave us in despair, or take us into happily ever after? We shall find out on Pentecost Sunday. Hopefully, by the time it's over, we will be aflame with epiphany and wow.

Back on Friday with a Doc Jensen column, plus more info on we'll be covering the finale this weekend. In the meantime, please check out our new episode of "Totally Lost" with special guest stats Mark Pellegrino and Titus Welliver. What if Jacob and the Man In Black were forced into a room and had to hug out their issues? Well imagine no more! We bring you that scenario and more, including their insights into what happened last week in ''Across The Sea.''

 

[kupcho1]

BTW, I loved the "even if we have to kidnap you" line by Rousseau.

 

[Maik Jeaunz]

I love the cheesy explanation of why Kate's name was crossed out. "You became a mother, it's just chalk, you can erase it, you can still be the one"That was so bad, it's laughable. Not laughable that I am six years into this show but laughable like a line out of a bad Ben Affleck movie.

I actually thought that was one of the better lines of the show, and unexpected. if I remember right, he said something like "you became a mother. it's just a line of chalk, Kate...if you want the job, it's yours." it shows what the names in chalk were all about; it was Jacob's candidate tracking mechanism. there was no mysticism about it, no hidden meaning. he wrote the names of potential candidates and then crossed them out when he thought their potential was gone. it was very simple, but chalk on a wall was probably the best Jacob could do without an Excel spreadsheet.not sure what kind of answer you were looking for with the names, but what would you have been satisfied with? it sounds like you wanted some more fanciful explanation, with magic or mysticism or innuendo, but the writers gave a great explanation that was simple and plausible. if you wanted something more, then that must be lazy viewership on your part.

 

[Statorama]

BTW, I loved the "even if we have to kidnap you" line by Rousseau.

Liked that and when Hurley started explaining to the group "ok, what Jacob just said was...." with Jack interupting him to let him know they could see Jake.

 

[Statorama]

After LOST runs it's course, who's up for a Sawyer / Miles buddy cop show with Miles slowly learning that he can communicate with the dead.

 

[Sack-Religious]

BTW, I loved the "even if we have to kidnap you" line by Rousseau.

I like that one, as well.Miles was on fire last night, too."I lived in these houses 30 years ago — otherwise known as last week.''''Is that the secreter room?''Awesome.BTW - what was up with the Walkies that Ben and Miles now have?