Hello, fellow addicts. And apologies to those who will have to skip over these entries. Your loss.
Figure it’s about time to get back in ‘Lost’ mode. You know - that bizarre thought process that leaves you wondering about the paradoxes of time travel, course correction and whether it’s possible for a television show to melt your brain.
Less than a week until ‘The Beginning of the End’ kicks off so let’s remember where we are. Namely, in total confusion.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Jack: Doctor with drinking/drug/daddy issues who went from skeptic to believer. Waking up in thirty years in the past can do that to a person. Last seen convincing Kate to blow up the island and leaving Sayid to bleed to death by the side of the van. Calls into question his credentials as both an M.D. and multitasker. Loves Kate (who doesn’t?), but not nearly enough to want things to remain the way they are.
Kate: Resident hottie/convict/murderess who ‘adopted’ baby Aaron after escaping the island only to turn around and give him to Claire’s mother before returning to the island. A bit of confusion as to where her loyalties lie, although she did team up with Jack to help him rig a big, fat, atomic bomb, so maybe it’s clear after all. Also has daddy issues.
Sawyer (aka James Ford): Bad boy/con man/nickname slinging/head of Dharma security who is Jack’s foil and – at times – ally. Straight talker who assumed leadership role for four years while stuck in the 70s. Wow, putting this in writing really makes me question my devotion to this show. Also has daddy issues.
Hurley: Lottery winner who believes he’s also cursed. Spent time in mental hospital to deal with his unhealthy relationships with dead people. Charlie, Mr Eko, and Libby all still make visits. Also had daddy issue, but those seemed to have been resolved when Cheech restored his car.
John Locke: Former paraplegic who started walking again after the initial plane crash. Ardent believer in the magic of the island, as you would be if you were miraculously healed. His one moment of doubt resulted in a big white flash that took Desmond’s clothing and gave him the ability to see the future. Hopefully he won’t make that mistake again. Temporary leader of the Others before having to leave to recruit the Oceanic Six to come back to the island. May be dead, but his form is still being used by something. While other characters have daddy issues, they pale in comparison to this sorry bastard.
Sayid: Former Iraqi Republican Guard who’s an expert in torture, assassinations, under cover lovin’, watching everyone he cares for die horrible deaths and shooting twelve year old boys. Although, that last one needs some work. A man of action, he was last seen bleeding from gunshot wound while the rest of the crew tried to blow the island to pieces.
Ben: Creepy leader of the Others who has spent most of his life on the island. Supposedly wants to protect the island from outsiders, but tends to take things a bit far. Did I mention he also killed his own father and gassed the entire Dharma Initiative? No? I probably should. He also kidnapped Rousseau’s daughter and pretended it was his own, strangled Locke to death then staged it as a suicide, and seems to know more about the island than anyone. Last seen stabbing Jacob in a fit of jealous rage, which, quite frankly, seems fitting.
Juliette: Fertility specialist originally recruited to figure out why all women on the island couldn’t have babies. Turned into Sawyer’s play mate and mechanical whizz while back in the 70s. Ben had the hots for her and even had her lover killed by sending him to do battle with Ana Lucia.
Sun and Jin: Korean married couple. She’s a schizophrenic femme fatale who had to leave Jin on the island so she wouldn’t die giving birth to a baby she immediately leaves behind to go BACK to the island when she learns Jin may be alive after all. He (Jin, is the he, in case you’re wondering) winds up back in the 70s doing odd jobs and perfecting his English to a disco soundtrack. Used to be a bad ass in Sun’s father’s company. His job involved beating up and killing people just because the boss said so. I heard the benefits were great, though.
Jacob: Not entirely sure, yet. We know he ages really well, sports a constant two day growth of beard, and spends time in a gloomy (and I imagine smelly) statue foot and has had some sort of ongoing feud with another really old dude. Also had previous contact with Jack, Hurley, Kate, Sawyer, Sayid, and Locke. I’m betting there’s something to that.
Bernard and Rose: Married couple who were separated during the initial crash. Rose’s cancer goes into remission on the island prompting both of them to live in the jungle away from all the lunacy.
Desmond: Sailboat racing, former Scottish (right?) soldier who is the first to figure out this time traveling thing. Married to Penny who is the daughter of Widmore who we haven’t gotten to, yet. Calm down. Last seen being shot by Ben, brushing off that gunshot like lint and tackling then beating the living snot out of Ben. Also has a son named Charlie who we assume was named after Charlie Brown from the Peanuts comic.
Charlie: Oh, this Charlie? You think? Former rock star (Drive Shaft RULES!)/heroin addict/living person who sacrificed himself to save Desmond and the rest of the island inhabitants. Was in love with Claire and was father figure to Aaron thus handing down the daddy issue aspect to a new generation. Still enjoys hanging out with Hurley.
Claire: Mother of Aaron, love interest of Charlie. Disappeared for long stretches and only showed up to sneer and act all bitchy as a ghost figure. May be dead, may be between worlds or may just be having the worst case of post partum depression ever.
Faraday: Absent minded time travel expert who fried his old girlfriend’s brain with time traveling experiments and probably did something to himself at the same time. Last seen getting shot to death by his own mother after traveling back 30 years. That’s a long story.
Charlotte: Red haired, nose bleeding love interest of Faraday who was a child on the island before returning with Faraday and crew. Bad decision as her brain went POP while bouncing around time. Pity.
Miles (aka Psychic Asian Dude – PAD): Psychic dude (hence the nickname) who is also the son of the leader of the Dharma Initiative. See how everything links together? Yeah, me neither. Can ‘talk’ to dead people to find out how they died and their stories, which becomes less remarkable when you consider Hurley does the same thing while trapped in a mental hospital. Maybe he can talk to Jacob after he’s bled out. Might be the quickest way for this show to give us some answers.
Richard Alpert (aka The Ageless Wonder): Eye line wearing, ageless, metrosexual who has some deep connection to the island. A bit disconcerting to witness his confusion in the season finale. Helped Ben orchestrate the genocide of the Dharma Initiative. Never leads the Others, but is advisor to those who do. Doesn’t appear to have much of a sense of humor. Guess when you live forever you’ve heard all the good jokes.
Chick Hauling Around Locke’s Body (aka Iliana?): Don’t recall her actual name, but she was also visited by Jacob who informed her ‘a war is coming’. Seems to know a lot about what is going on including Locke ain’t Locke. Has a crew working for her and knows the answer to what lies at the foot of the statue (or something like that). That answer very well could be ‘Jacob’s lifeless corpse’.
Widmore and Mother Faraday: The initial power couple of the island who – it is implied – were ousted by Ben and his band of merry men. Let’s just say it’s gotten ugly between Ben and Widmore what with them killing (or trying to kill) each other’s daughters and stuff. Mother Faraday tutored Desmond on ‘course correction’ and grooms Faraday to be a math whiz, even prompting him to give up silly things like playing the piano and eating full meals.
Note: If you’re wondering why I’m including characters that have died, see below for my prediction on this upcoming season.
BIG QUESTIONS
Did Island Go Boom?: And, if so, who survived the blast? We’re assuming Juliette is dead since she fell hundreds of feet, was last seen trying to detonate a nuclear bomb by bashing it with a rock, and is now starring in ‘V’. Plus this will officially reopen the Sawyer-Jack-Kate love triangle, which is way easier to track than the Jack-Kate-Juliette-Sawyer love parallelogram that took place last season. I hate math.
If Bomb Blew, Has Anything Changed?: Or is this explosion ‘The Incident’ that Dharma folks refer to in the training videos? Perhaps this explosion triggers a chain of events that make Flight 815 crash land on the island again. See below for some thoughts on that. Keep in mind that last season’s finale was titled ‘The Incident’. While that seems way too straight forward for Lost, it just may be that simple.
Who Is Jacob?: And why does the other dude want to kill him?
What Was ‘The Loophole’?: Jacob refers to it just before Ben stabs him. ‘Guess you found the loophole,’ he says to fake Locke.
What Is The Cabin?: Two things here. First what was it? Second, what was the significance of the ring of ashes (or whatever) being broken when Locke went to find it the second time? My guess is this was a prison meant to keep in fake Locke (whoever that may be) and he managed to escape to plot Jacob’s murder.
Or something. If you haven’t guessed, I’m pretty much talking out my ass at this point.
What Are The Whispers?: Ben tells Rousseau to run the other way if she hears them. They seem to indicate super natural events are about to occur. Juliette sees a long lost friend; Sayid’s girlfriend (whose name I always forget) sees Walt’s ghost and gets shot by Ana Lucia only one of which should be considered super natural; Mr Eko gets dropped by the smoke monster. I could go on, but you get the point and I don’t remember any other examples.
Whose Side Is Whose?: Is Ben the good guy? Is Widmore the good guy? Do we even know if Corpse Carrying Chick (CCC) and Jacob are ‘good’? Is there even a good vs bad in all this or is it all just shades of gray? Nearly certain I just quoted a ‘Monkees’ song.
What Is The Smoke Monster?: Something has bothered me about Smokey since they first introduced it. We know it’s something that Ben can unleash. We see him unclog the worst toilet backup ever to release it.
But, when we first meet Smokey he chews up the pilot for Flight 815 and leaves his bloody corpse at the top of a tree. More importantly, two things have stayed with me since Season One:
1: When Locke is dragged by Smokey to the opening of that tunnel, there is a mechanical sound to it. Like the sound a roller coaster makes when it’s being pulled up that first hill. Does this mean it’s more a mechanical beast than spiritual?
2: The first time everyone realizes this is one strange island, we hear the monster (we assume it’s Smokey) and see trees being knocked over in the distance. One of the survivors says ‘That sound reminds me of home’ or something like that. When someone else asks where they’re from, they answer ‘Manhattan’. Or maybe it was ‘Coney Island’. Either way it was answered with a New York area. I have always found it odd this exchange took place and hope in means something. Otherwise I’ve had this memory rattling around in my head taking up space I could use for things like where I left my $100 Bose headphones or what year I got married.
Who Are Adam and Eve?: Jack finds two skeletons in Season One. Bernard and Rose, perhaps? Jack and Kate? Jacob and CCC? Kathy Lee and Frank Gifford?
What Is Walt’s Role In All Of This?: He sure seemed to get the interest in the Others when this show first started. They even blew up Michael’s raft, kidnapped him and put him through a battery of tests in an Other camp. Then he and Michael betrayed Jack and company and escaped rapidly approaching puberty on a boat. He makes brief appearances (the last was seeing Locke in NYC), but something tells me the show isn’t done with him.
What Is Aaron’s Role In All Of This?: Again, in Season One, much was made of a pregnant Claire visiting a ‘reader’ who told her the baby must be ‘raised by no other’. Did he mean ‘no Other?’ Or was he simply telling Claire not to put him up for adoption? The Others also made a big deal about him by kidnapping Claire and hanging Charlie from a tree, but they’re always kidding around like that.
Where Are The Children?: From the beginning all the children were snatched away by the Others (or someone) and all we’re told is ‘They’re safe’. But where are they? What are they doing? We see them stroll casually by when Jack and Kate are jailed in the bear cages, but that crazy woman only tells Jack is they are there to ‘Observe’. What’s that all about?
What Is Libby’s Role?: Three things we know about her: She was in the mental hospital with Hurley, she donated the sail boat to Desmond so he could sail around the world (or at least as far as the island), she learned the hard way pillows won’t stop bullets.
Think that’s enough for now. Onto my theory. I mentioned this last season, but let’s go through it again.
HALF ASSED THEORY (In bold to make it official)
Throughout last season I was bothered by several inconsistencies within the story arc. Things like:
- Sayid shooting little Ben in the chest only to have the bullet wound in his stomach when Kate finds him. Or was it Juliette? Whatever.
- Differences in phrasing in repeated scenes. For example Sayid telling Ben and Jack at the marina ‘If I see either of you it will be unpleasant for us all’. This is repeated later as ‘If I see you again it will be very unpleasant for us both’. I know, stupid, but bear with me.
Even Kate says something slightly different when she takes Aaron away from that same marina scene. One time saying ‘I don’t want either of you near my son’ while ‘I don’t want you near my son’ another time.
- Ben shooting Desmond on his way to kill Penny. When he first shoots him, it sure looks like it’s done at point blank range right into his chest. Yet, Desmond recovers in time to tackle and beat Ben senseless. Later, in the hospital Desmond appears to have an arm wound.
Now normally this wouldn’t be a big deal, but this is Lost. The producers and writers of this show pay attention to every detail, which is why it’s noticeable.
Let’s add the entire concept of ‘course correction’ – something Lost took great care and several episodes explaining – to the mixture. The idea being that certain things are ‘supposed to happen’. Mother Faraday explains to Desmond her efforts at attempting to save a man from dying. She would save him from being hit by a bus only to have him choke to death the next day. As she said in that episode ‘I’ve lost count how many times I’ve tried to save his life’.
She was pointing out to Desmond that no matter how many times he saves Charlie’s life, Charlie was destined to die and die soon. She was proven right when Patch blew up the underwater hatch, taking Charlie with him. (Hey, what happened to that Russian bastard? Thought we’d see him again).
This leads me to believe that last season we were actually seeing different variations on the same events. I think our Lost friends are caught in a time loop that is desperately trying to ‘course correct’ something that has gone terribly wrong.
Let’s look at the time line: Flight 815 crash lands, everything happens as it we’ve seen it so far, Jack is convinced blowing up the island will stop things, he convinces his friends to help, they blow up the island (or not) and everything happens all over again. 815 crashes again on the island, the Oceanic Six escape, the freighter blows up, Oceanic Six come back in 1977, attempt to blow up the island. Round and round we go.
Each time events unfold, there are slight differences. Phrasing, bullet holes, who shows up where and when.
This means that there is something – whether it be a person, an event, something that should be said but isn’t – that needs to change in order to break the cycle. Maybe it’s Jacob’s death. When he is stabbed by Ben, does he somehow restart the cycle in order to prevent his own death? That would certainly explain why we see Jacob interacting with Hurley, Sayid, Kate, Jack, Locke earlier in their lives. Perhaps he needs to physically touch the people he whose timelines he needs to control?
Is it something more trivial? Is it Jack, Kate, Sayid, etc not leaving the island the first time? Is it the crash of Oceanic 815? Maybe Jack is correct in assuming that was never supposed to happen? Maybe they were supposed to crash during the second plane crash that carried CCC, Ben, and Locke’s dead body.
This could also mean that we may see a variation on Season One this year. Does Jack again wake in the jungle, run out to the beach to the wreckage of Oceanic 815? Remember when Jack, Kate, and everyone else were white flashied off the plane and landed in 1977? What if every time 815 crashes, he’s white flashied off the plane and placed in the jungle just like before? That Jack waking up in the jungle is the starting line for the course correction and this season will be a replay of the first only from a different point of view?
Frankly, I don’t know, but this concept makes the most sense out of something that truly makes my brain hurt. I’m sticking with it until proven otherwise.
This is it fellow freaks! Time to get pumped!!
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Check out Lostpedia which has complete run downs of every 'Lost' episode, character and theory you could ever imagine. I make it a point not to delve too deeply in here for fear I'll lose my mind.
