This does not seem like sloppy writing to me. Sayid is on that boat to get answers and we all know that Sayid is not one to sit around and wait for some one else to figure it out. Their situation is looking bleak on that boat (people are dropping off like flies), why would he wait? Sayid is one of the O6 (and he works for Ben) maybe this is the begining of his deal to get off the island.

Perhaps even more likely, the Captain works for Ben too and Sayid is going to be the one with egg on his face in the next new episode.

My feeling is that Widmore is more than just a little shady. I don’t see Ben having enough clout to go into country and be able to dig up 300 bodies without being spotted or reported to that country’s authorities. That type of clout could only belong to a select few in the entire world and Widmore seems to have the money and power to pull something like that off. The only reason Faraday “shut down” the poison gas station was to be able to control it. The station was layered with encryptions he had to bypass or break through after he initiated the countdown. He know has the power to release the gas anytime he wants or is ordered to. That had to be done in order to let the people from the boat explore the island and get what they were after. Then, everyone on the island will be doomed. Another possibility is that Widmore works for someone else, be it a secret private corporation or person. Either way I don’t see why Ben would even want to bring attention to an area anywhere near the island. Too big of a risk.

After Sayid’s flash forward I’m wondering if his crash landing on the island was an accident after all. A doctor being on a plane that large isn’t a stretch but an ex-Iraqi interrogator that just happens to be in Australia crash lands on Ben’s island and he ends up working for him once he is off the island. I’m starting to think Sayid was a plant and the crash wasn’t so accidental.

He said, she said …

Ben says Widmore is responsible for the faked crash of Oceanic 815; Widmore says its Ben. And everyone’s taking sides. My opinion is that we’re being set up. A third possibility that I haven’t seen anyone raise is that it is neither Ben nor Widmore — someone that neither is aware of, so that both Ben and Widmore are honest, but misinformed, when they attribute the threat to the other. My thought is that the rest of this season will involve an escalation of tensions between the B and the W camps, only to find out in the season finale that there is an even more ominous threat, not to be revealed until next season. The economist anyone?

Curiouser and curiouser …

There is no way that Tom traveled to and from the island in that dinky submarine quick enough for his island timeline to make any sense. I’ve always thought there was more to the Looking Glass station than has been revealed thus far. Just as the looking glass was a portal between two worlds for Alice, I think the looking glass stations (yes, plural) are the portal that the Others use to travel so freely to and from the island.

The logo and design plans that Sayid had do not match the station where Charlie met his demise. My bet is they DO match a companion station off the coast of Portland. I originally thought that perhaps Dharma had built some sort of teleportation mechanism but I now think that the looking glass stations somehow control or focus the same forces that are at play when people travel at one of the bearings (305, 320) that get people off the island using more conventional modes of transport.

We know that bearings are important because of different time dilation affects that seem to be associated with each but I don’t think it is just a time effect. If you think in terms of a space-time continuum, then then different bearings could dislocate you in either time and/or space. Think of the polar bear remains in Tunisia. Anyway, maintaining the right bearing is tricky and the risk high if you are off.

Back to the looking glass stations — my theory is that they provide a fixed and predictable worm-hole link between the mainland and the island and that in this particular case the dislocation is entirely spatial, with no or minimal time dilation.

When the show was over, the announcer made a mention of how we know the O6 and they flashed Aaron’s face as one of the 6 flashes.

I think they just blatantly told us for the sake of killing this argument.

Though, I think you were making a pun, on Regina’s literally becoming an anchor woman.

Thanks Connie for the ending of the Job story. It was good to be reminded of that.

I found it curious that there is no enhanced version of last week’s Lost.
It’s also interesting that they had some pretty tight shots in that episode. That leads me to think they are hiding something or a lot of somethings, especially, since what’s behind the toy store clerk changes 3 or 4 times. I definitely don’t buy it as continuity mistakes, after seeing the 2 hospital rooms with Michael.

I agree that Sayid revealing Michael to the ship captain is sloppy and defies Sayid’s intelligence. He would more than likely have held his cards until he needed to play them. Nothing is to be gained by him ratting out Michael. Besides, Sayid wasn’t exactly friends with Ana Lucia and Libby, so why is he so bent on getting back at Michael. This makes no sense and slaps in the face of the intelligence that the writers have given Sayid previously in handling situations like this.

Also, we are all assuming that Jin did not get off the island with Sun. Maybe their date of rescue was the same date as the crash and there was some other incident that caused Jin’s death on that same day. This could be a major smokescreen by the writers.

I don’t think the Island is averse to people dying in a general sort of way, but it does seem that the Island keeps the people alive that it needs for its own purposes. The Island has a plan and it’s laid out like a human Rube Goldberg contraption. It looks crazy and convoluted, but when it is put into motion it is a thing of beauty. Maybe Ben has seen the whole plan and knows how and who is needed to make it work.

havasupi-I like your theory about Michael not passing the note and Frank being the note passer. There is now some question as to whether or not Captain Gault is also a mole for either Ben or someone else (because of his passive reaction to Sayid outing “Kevin”). Finding out who he is really allied with will make the meaning of the note clear and who may have sent it.

Also like your Job analogy. At the end of the book of Job, after all of his suffering and hearing the bad advice from his friends, God comes down to Job and basically says, “Where were you when I was creating the world and all its wonders? Who is man to question the ways of God?” BUT because Job did not blame God for his suffering, God restored everything Job had lost and them some! Perhaps in the final episode of Lost, everything will be “course corrected” only better than it was before: Jack stays married, Clair stays with her boyfriend, Kate’s mother gets abuse counseling, Hurley gets Starla and they use the lottery money to open a free-range ranch for escapees of Mr. Cluck’s, Charlie’s band eclipses the Beatles…someone stop me before I hurt myself! ;O)

JRR-If I am not mistaken, Zoe Bell played the part of Regina, the upside-down-book-reading-chain-wearing high diver.

“8 survived, 2 died” sounds very much like Jin and maybe Claire are listed as dead but had to be accounted for as survivors of the crash for some reason. Which could mean that they are seen or brought out by the outside world folks. In any case, I have a bad feeling about Claire.

Was it just for the Kurt Vonnegut reference, or who is the host? The muted out his name, or the contestants?

And what was the game show called?

Yeah, I have to agree that the two hospital rooms are Michael’s two accidents, and that Libby was his nurse.

Another thing that I didn’t mention before is that I don’t think Michael left the “don’t trust the Captain” note. Possibly, I missed something, and that is why so many seem so sure he did. But, I think it was the helicopter pilot. When asked if he did, he answered with a question, “why would I do something like that?” that is not a “No.” and to answer a question with a question usually points to a lie.

To answer all the defensive ones about Aaron being a 6. Sorry, about my little joke. “… then I’m an Oceanic 6″ It was a silly joke and not meant to rile anyone. Of course Aaron could be a 6 in the Lost world. But if he is, and this is my opinion and why I think it is a sign of iffy writing: it is a cheat. The outside world would take Aaron as a 6, the TV audience knows that he isn’t, technically, and to merge the two is deceptive.

I’m not so sure about Ben being a Good Guy. And I have trashed most of my theories about the the show. I have kept the spine of my theories in that it is a show about the precarious choice of Good vs Evil, and how do you tell the difference? If you only see one side, you see in black and white, once you ad dimensions and other p.o.v.s everything gets blurry.

So, it seems that now there are two choices. Widmore and Linus. And there has always been the choice between Good vs. Evil conceit of the show. I know the writer’s dismissed the Purgatory theory. But what if, one is God and one is the Devil playing it out on Earth? That would line up all the supernatural, ghost, time travel, not being able to kill yourself until you finish your “job”.

And speaking of Job, as in they guy in the Bible, Jack seems to be wearing his mantle. He was once a successful surgeon, loses wife and finally gets lost at sea. Job was the pawn of a bet between God and the Devil, If everything is away from Job and Job loses his faith the Devil wins, if Job loses everything and still keeps his faith God wins. Seeing Jack as what he became after rescue, loss of faith, Devil seems to have won — unless the push to go back to the Island is a sign of Jack regaining his faith.

Who are Jack and Michael saying, “I’m sorry” to? They both seem to be looking up when they do it.

I am not a bible thumper, I’m just interested in theology, all kinds.

In no way am I saying the writers of Lost have gone Evangelical.

But the show seems to have a connection with the gain/loss of Faith (all kinds of faith), in my mind.

So, the whole Ben being a Good Guy? A good guy never has to say he is a good guy. For one thing. And Ben is a master manipulator. A bomb that doesn’t go off on the someone who set it to go off believing is job was to kill everyone on the freighter, that is one heck of a manipulation. I don’t care what Ben’s rationale of “innocents on board, and I don’t kill innocents” is. He’s a puppet master, he is pulling the strings. If one of those strings pulls a trigger, the puppet isn’t the only one to blame.

The note on the bomb: “Not Yet.” The left side of the paper wasn’t unfurled all the way. I think there was more to that note.

I wonder about who can leave the island too. If pregnant women die in their 3rd trimester, why weren’t they shuttling them off the island? To deliver their babies safely and return later? That makes me think that traveling off the island might not be the regular way to fly. I know Ben had a drawer full of passports, but maybe that was a manipulation too.

I think it was a very conscious decision to change the intubated pateint to a nonivasively ventilated patient in the hospital. Michael’s vital signs monitor at the bedside was also different.

I’m wondering why Ben and Tom and Richard and some others (Ben’s man being beaten by Widmore) can leave the island, but others (Juliet and the pregnant women) can’t. Youd think that Ben not wanting “innocent” people to die would just let the women leave. The whole Others thing is very creepy and cult-like and I wish we could learn a little more about what motivates them to follow Ben. Fear? Manipulation?

This was not the best crafted episode in my opinion, but it did (I think) answer a lot of questions. They might not be critical to the Lost mythology, but we learned how Michael got back, that Walt is back in NY, that they didn’t travel through time, that fortysomething black men don’t like Mama Cass ;)…

Did anyone else have a little hatch flashback when the alarm horn sounded on the boat? DES, PRESS THE BUTTON!

Michel’s mother — Walt’s grandmother — looked a little like the woman from the Miles flashback. But that seemed to be in LA, not NYC. I was also wondering if the obituary clipping from last year mentioned “Kevin Johnson,” but it was actually someonthing Lantham according to the old postings.

I do like this weird notion that the island won’t let people die (except pregnat women). It’s a very “monkey’s paw” kind of thing, and perhaps that’s why Ben won’t let the people who want to leave get off the island.

Go go gadget island! Save Rousseau!!

The Importance of Teambuilding - written by John Locke

Why I don’t Like My Dad - written by Danielle

Why I don’t Like the Feeling of This - written by Carl

Why You Shouldn’t Stand-Up When People are Shooting at You, - written by Rosseau

How I Can’t Get Son Back from My Mom Even Though I Killed, Lied and Cheated a Bunch of Other People - written by Michael

How to Make Rash Decisions - written by Sayid

How to Say Nothing When Rash Decisions are Being Made - written by Desmond

Why I Have a Male Friend in my Penthouse, I Don’t Care to See Kate Undress, and I Throw a Football Like a Girl with Jack in Season 3 - written by Tom

What I Have In Common with Professor Dumbledore - written by Tom

Another Meaningless Day at the Beach - written by Kate and Jack

How to Purchase an EXACT REPLICA Plane, Excavate and Dress 324 Dead Bodies, Transport the Plane & Bodies, and Plant Them at the Bottom of the Ocean Next to the Island Nobody Can See - written by Charles Widmore

“Okay, after sleeping on the episode, I had another observation that caught my attention last night but which I think may have more significance than I had thought. Anybody else notice Alex holding her stomach during the conversation where Ben tells Alex to go to the temple? Anybody else get the impression that she may be pregnant (thanks to Karl) and that maybe Ben knows this?”

I WAS THINKING THE SAME THING! Nice catch.

I also wondered about Naomi’s arrival on the Island and her helicopter. It could be that what Des, Charlie, Jin and Hurley saw that night was Frank breaking through the “time warp barrier”. It is curious, though. There was definitely only one helicopter on deck in Michael’s flashbacks.

The whole Oceanic 6 controversy stems, I think, from people’s disappointment that one of the O6 slots was filled by a mere baby when others were more deserving and would be more interesting to hear about.

Regina gradually went bonkers. What was her state of mind when she was communicating with the Freighties on the Island? Did the captain know they were all communicating with one another via sattelite phone? My guess is no.

Lostpedia.com has a good timeline of events on a day by day basis.

Lost in Brookly: T’anks!

Sometimes the person who “commits murder” through manipulation, plotting and deception of others (Ben) is more guilty than the person who kills in the heat of the moment (Michael) or to right a perceived wrong or rescue a loved one (again Michael, Kate, Sawyer, Ana Lucia).

So far, Linus has demonstrated that he’s a stone cold murderer (gassing the Dharma staff, attempted murder on Locke; he’s a kidnapper (Kate, Jack, Sawyer, tailies; he’s a liar and a conniver (every time his mouth is open).

Widmore is being portrayed as being a heavy, especially in his treatment to Desmond. I suspect he wants only to challenge Desmond to prove his worthiness — maybe greatness. Widmore arranged the sailboat as a secret benefactor and set Desmond on his course. He also handed over Penny’s new address very easily to Desmond (The Constant).

In the end, I can envision Widmore and Desmond toasting shots poured from a bottle of MacCutcheon.

Listed as DYING on the date Flight 815 went down, I have a basic problem with the logistics. How did they get a two-month old crash victim to Korea for burial? Could be his ashes there - NOT! Nah, he’s alive, either on the island or maybe in Korea.

Those two toothbrushes in the bathroom are significant, too. That wasn’t an accident.

Sun survived delivery, so does that substantiate she DIDN’T get pregnant on the island after all? Juliet said the pregnancy issue developed at conception, and that getting off the island wouldn’t alter it. I suspect Sun wanted to believe Jin was the father, but never really accepted it.

I’m anxious to see how two helicopters / two pilots are explained. I guess Naomi could have been the pilot when she bailed out; but not likely.

Until then… I’ll just keep an open mind.

Well, I didn’t love this episode, partly because I am not a big fan of Michael’s character. I think the writers kind of drop the ball with him. Lost writers are great at giving us characters that could so easily fall into stereotypes (on a different show) and breaking them down into all of their complex parts. They don’t do this with Michael. All of his flashbacks have always felt a bit contrived. For the contradictions they want us to accept they need to spend a lot more time with this character, otherwise, it just doesn’t jibe.

The “Manhattan” scenes were painful to watch for someone who lives here. It was clearly Hawaii with some makeup on. Seriously, there haven’t been alleys in Manhattan since the 80s, they have all been converted into luxury condos. And you just don’t ever see the sky (as we did with the scene where Michael gets into his car to crash it). Overall though, this is not a big deal.

One question I haven’t seen asked: So, how is Walt with his Gramma in NYC and talking to Locke on the Island? Must be the whisper-transport?

Anyone else think the captain is working for Ben?

Anyone else still think Ben is pure Evil incarnate? What was this whole “I don’t kill innocents..” baloney. Um, there is a mass grave full of bodies that says otherwise…and only 2 weeks ago week we saw him glorying in the death of Goodwin, which he indriectly caused. Are we meant to believe all the people in that mass grave were not innocent…I sure hope not.

I don’t think the Widmore/Linus face off is about good v. evil, I think they are both bad for different reasons.

It was great to have some questions answered about Micheal. When he and Walt escape they must have been picked up by some “others” and transported secretly to the USA that way…it’s the only thing that makes sense given security, passports, and stuff that some folks have mentioned above. Otherwise he would have gotten a ton of media attention, wouldn’t be using an alias, etc.

Does anyone think it’s weird that we’ve heard the same “it’s Whidmore’s boat”, “Widmore is behind the whole thing” lines 4x from 4 different characters (Ben, The Captain, Tom, Helicopter Pilot)?
It seems like
1) that information should be more confidential and not told so casually to ‘just anyone’ (ie. The Captain to Sayid, Helicopter Pilot to Michael) and
2) the writers are beating it to death
which makes me think there may be more to the story. Maybe I’m thinking about it way too much but it’s a little fishy. I’m not convinced that the file Tom showed Michael is concrete proof that the plane at the bottom of the ocean was all Widmore’s idea. Ben fits in there somewhere.

Also, I did find Tom’s ‘outing’ a little indulgent on the writer’s part and pretty pointless in the whole scheme of LOST. Just me

And about Sayid turning Michael in so quickly? There’s got to be more to that. Sayid has made some rash decisions in the past but come on. I like the theory he’s already working for Ben - or Widmore…hehe.

I wouldn’t be heartbroken to see Carl die but agree Rousseau has more to come on the show. She’s not dead. Could it be the smoke monster attacking?? Okay I know this is a long-long-longshot but the writers did say there was more smoke-monster to come and it would be able to do something new…anyone? Okay, nevermind.

thekidflash: funny comment about Naomi’s jeans…I too noticed that plumber butt!

Don’t want to wait a month but it’ll be a lot easier than the last break

I gotta blow the whistle on myself and say I was wrong in my guess…. Ben was not the supplier of the bodies to Widmore at a price of $3.2 million…Just a coincidence.

Damn…..Oh well…..onward and upward.

I think Ryan & Jen are right in that Libby was in the hospital the 1st time Michael got hit by the car and not the time he crashed himself last night. Based on the 2 different rooms and the 2 different patients next to him. I also thought it was neat how when Libby appears with blankets and startles him from sleep it was almost the same pose she is in when he shoots her in the future.

I thought this was a good episode because we now know more about Walt as well. I was thinking he was probably on the island still…and that he was manifesting himself or something. It is clear that he is home….unless he has stowed himself away on the frieghter ( which would be impossible because we know how super tight the security on the frieghter has been..ha! ).

I wanted to point out that conversation between the pilot and Michael. If I remember it is the pilot who claims to have been over that manifest 1000 times and knows everyone on that plane. I can’t remember if they had studied the faces of everyone, but based on how prepared everyone on the rescue team has been including knowing Ben’s face, Miles knowing who Kate was, etc. I think it is reasonable to think he probably knew who Michael was. I think if Widmore is powerful enough he may have known of the attempt by Ben to put a spy on the boat, but thought it was best to let it play out until he thought it would hinder his plans.

I want to talk about what I consider to be one of the biggest mysteries going on. I think it has to do with “The Lists” and who are “Like Us” as I think Ben put it. I want to know more about Cindy & the kids and the people sent to the cages that were “there to observe”. For some reason this sticks out in my head as having some heavy significance and I believe it ties to the people on the lists and is a clue as to who we may see at “The Temple”.

The Temple could have anything hidden there. Including a spare sub, plane, whatever. It’s obviously a place even some of the Others don’t know about or are not “ready” to know about, but Ben does.

Thanks - Nuckinfuts - Atlanta, GA

When we see Michael on the ship in Fiji there is one helicopter. When Naomi travels to the Island, her chopper crashes.

Then the other crew (the scientists) get to the Island they have a helicopter.

So either Naomi’s crash was faked (and why???), there is another ship out there, or the writers had better sharpen their pencils.

The gun fire which hits Karl and Danielle sounded more like a semi-automatic sniper rifle type fire than fully-automatic fire and seemed like it was definitely more targetted than just random spray of fire. Keany was shown with the fully automatic so I’m thinking it isn’t him firing. I’m thinking it might be the Temple people and firing specifically upon Ben’s orders or possibly an additional security system that protects the Temple. Okay, maybe I’ve been playing too much Half-Life.

i gaurantee you rousseau is not dead.

Linus (previous commentor): yours is the best explanation for the Oceanic 6 I’ve ever read. Thank you. Also, I think it’s funny what a big deal everyone is making of who they are or aren’t. “The Oceanic 6″ is obviously a comment on modern media coverage. Everything’s got a title, whether it reflects reality or not.

This brings me to the writers and the writing on the show. Too many viewers are too quick to bash the writing and call it sloppy when something seems off. In my mind, the writers come through every time. People question this or that detail or apparent discrepancy — and then, voila, somewhere down the line, the writers answer questions, reconcile descrepancies, show us who’s in control of this story line. It’s great writing!

I have a few comments.

Ben seems to know a great deal about Charles Widmore. Does he know who Desmond is and about his relationship with Penelope Widmore?

Why Michael? Ben has (had?) the resources to send anyone more qualified as a spy on that boat. Why bother with Michael? Does the future hold something for Michael? Is that why he can’t kill himself? I’m so looking forward to the day when the show explains course-correction. On a related note, does Ben know the future? Is that why he chose Michael?

I’m sure they have an explanation, but Tom leaving the island and Ben communicating with the boat, after “the sky turned purple” and the submarine was blown up? How is that?

I don’t think it was Ben who ordered the shooting. After all, I don’t think the Others have any good shooters left after the Losties killed the remaining few on the beach. And it did seem the work of pro shooters… like the ones we saw practizing on the deck of the freighter.

At first the “outing” of Tom seem contrived to me too, but after thinking about the big picture I can see it being useful to the story. Over time we have leared a lot about the backstories of the others, including their personal lives: Danny & Colleen Pickett, Ethan & his late wife, Goodwin/Harper/Juliet, etc. This closes off the story of Tom’s personal life and we already knew a peice when he said that Kate was not his type. I think that the other important peice is that with all of the talk about the other’s “lists” and “our people” and “the good people” we now have enough examples to know that even though it is not clear what the criteria is to be a good person in the eyes of the others, it is clear that it is not about race, lifestyle, age, or the other individual facts that we know about specific others.

The biggest surprise was how impulsively Sayid acted at the end of the episode. In some cases hs is very smart and methodical but in this instance he just hauled Michael to the captain without even talking to Desmond or considering another way to deal with the information.

With how easily Alex, Karl, and Danielle left the barracks it makes me wonder what sort of security Locke has set up there. We know that either some frieghter-raiders or others are going to eventually get there and it would not be smart to rely just on the old Dharma sonic fence. If he has it well guarded then you would have to be shocked at how easily those 3 people just left on some suspicious instructions from someone that is not that trustworthy.

It is going to be a painful haitus, but the next 5 promise to be very action packed due to the way the season has played out, I can’t wait.

Why would Hurley make that long ass solo trip (dressed in that suit) to pay tribute to a memorial with an incorrect date of death? No proof Jin’s buried there, no proof he died, no blood, no DNA. No proof that Rouseau and Karl are dead.

Yes, Sun was sad, but she misses him and is uncertain of his safety. My money says Jin’s stuck with the others (well, maybe not the OTHERS… but castaways) on the island.

Michael mother mentioned that he had been gone for over two months and just wanted to know how it all fit.

Also Tom made it back to the island in time to get killed in season 3’s final.

anyway

peace

I had some timeline questions, though - Michael’s mom says that he was gone “for two months” which syncs with how long Michael and Walt were on the island, right? So time is moving at the same pace off the island and on the island, at least in this instance? Otherwise, wouldn’t she have said, “You were gone 3 years?” (or whatever the theory of island time vs. “real” time is)

But then, we have the Kate and Aaron flash forward. The boy is clearly not 4 months old, which means that if island time is on par with mainland time (like for Walt/Michael), then her waiting for trial has drawn out for 2 years??? Or that the actual rescue doesn’t take place until about 2 years from now???

Harold Perrineau wanted out of the series, so they wrote him off. He and Walt had run their courses anyway — so long, farewell, auf weidersehen goodbye. Now, THEY’RE back, and just when I think there’s way too many characters on this show anyway. Jeez-zz.

I didn’t need Tom’s smooch with his bitch. …not that there’s anything wrong with it… but let’s hope the gay buck stops here.

Frank (the helicopter pilot) would have never compromised information about Charles Whidmore to a “deckhand” Michael (Kevin). Frank’s too tough a guy to be that insecure.

I didn’t need to see Rouseau and Karl get zapped. They are great characters. Would hate to see them exit, especially at the expense of making room for Walt and Michael. Of course, Ben set them up to be ambushed.

Sayid a tattletailer — Never.

I’m thinking (hoping) that it’s Michael in the coffin. Jack’s newspaper clipping made a mention about New York or Manhattan in the article. Now we know that’s where Michael is living.

Q: When Naomi parachuted, didn’t her helicopter crash in the ocean? Who was flying it? Did they have 2 helicopters on the freighter?

As for Tom being gay, that was not only hinted at his comment about Kate not being his type, but the way he threw the football to Jack.

The most interesting aspect of this episode was that Michael couldn’t kill himself. The powers of time course-correcting was much more blatant than before, because it actually prevented things from happening rather than make changes later to get back on the timeline.

I was shocked at Sayid turning in Michael without even thinking, and I can’t wait to see how that plays out.

I actually thought this was a very good episode, but I think it signals a turn for the plot and I hope it isn’t going to metaphysical.

If the “Island” is manipulating people with magic or something, there goes any scientific explanation to what’s going on.

If the Smoke Monster is just “fate” manifesting itself, I don’t like that.

If all the flashback coincidences, the numbers, the people cheating death, are all just “time” trying to correct itself — that means no one on the island has free will, because everything is predestined. You can’t even kill yourself if time doesn’t want you to? What happened to choice?

It is starting to look like the whispers, ghosts and Mrs. Hawking are time, fate, god, take your pick, and have no scientific explanation. To me this is as much a cheat as “they are in purgatory” or “It’s all a dream.”

The science fiction ending the producers promised has gone off the rails into fantasy land. Not that this is a bad thing, but I wish they would have just started the show on Fantasy Island and kept the scientific out of it all together.

I could be wrong, and I hope the last shot of the show isn’t some kid holding an Island Snow globe

I kinda think that Ben is behind the shootings as well. The way he stared at Alex and almost going out of his way to send them to the Temple…

Another confusing point though: Ben says his people are at the Temple…but where were they when the gas was being neutralized? Would they not have tried to stop them?

Didn’t Alex look great in this episode. Perfect makeup and camera work lovingly watching her revealed her to be a real beatifil girl. Then, wammo, let’s kill your boyfriend. Wasn’t there a line right before that scene where someone said “Ben always gets his way…”

Break till April!

“Michael tries to kill himself. Michael tries to kill himself. Michael tries to kill himself. The Island won’t let him. Michael tries to kill himself and everyone on the freighter. Ben won’t let him. Make no subtlety of the fact that Michael’s actions are driven by GUILT. The end.”

Also, it seemed blindingly obvious to me that Ben was lying his pants off. He doesn’t harm the innocent? Oh, right; the **entire population** of the Dharma initiative must have been real meanies, then. And Goodwin? Ana-Lucia killed him, not Ben! Yeah, he’s a good guy, alright…

And we have still not seen a shred of evidence that Widmore’s folk have any intention of murdering everyone on the Island. We have Ben’s word for it, and that is just not good enough for me.

Finally, if Danielle is dead, I will be deeply upset. She does NOT deserve a death like that. (I’m none too happy with Karl’s death, but I saw it coming. That’s one less romance to root for…)

I was also hoping that Michael’s backstory would end up being about more than just his guilt over his actions. It seemed like it wasn’t tied into the mythology enough–other than through the “island won’t let you kill yourself” idea, which, wasn’t really made to be all that relevant to why he was willing, ultimately, to go back.

-We were left with some good stuff too though:
1. Michael’s “I’m sorry” just before he drives his car into the container mirrors what Jack said to himself just as he was going to jump off the bridge. So, I think it is safe to say that the island is preventing Jack in the same way.
2. The end was quite unexpected as far as Rousseau’ s death (?) went. I have a hunch it was Ben’s doing.

“. . . don’t expect a definitive answer about the Six from Team Darlton. Carlton Cuse tells me they’re ‘not going public with any further clarifications right now.’ And what of the ABC promo that promised viewers they’d know the identity of the Six by the end of last week’s episode? ‘We don’t determine how ABC promotes the show,’ says Cuse. ‘But Damon and I will say you have now seen all of the Oceanic Six in this season’s episodes.’”

Did anyone else catch whispers when Libby appeared to Michael on the freighter? We only get TV by antenna and our ABC reception is really bad so I wasn’t sure if I was hearing whispers or interference