It was the best of episodes, it was the worst of episodes. A tale of two LOSTs came to us tonight, and the chasm between fans who liked it and fans who didn’t will probably never be wider. Perhaps “Ab Aeterno” was a breathtaking, deep, and daring voyage into the heart of a man and, therein, the heart of the whole series. Or, perhaps it was merely an extended flashback for a secondary character that ended with absolutely no forward momentum on the island.
We choose the former. We loved this episode.
If only for tonight, we forgot about numbers and vaccines and time travel, and immersed ourselves in the story of Ricardus — the rich Spanish settings, the lingering moments of terror and despair aboard the Black Rock, the eternal chess game between the Man in Black and Jacob, and throughout, Nestor Carbonell’s fantastic performance. When Richard is visited by the form of Isabelle, we were enthralled. We couldn’t believe this eerie scene was part of the same show that started with a plane crash five years ago.
Before we even thought about where the pieces fit, “Ab Aeterno” reaffirmed our love of the picture being painted. In the end, will it be incomplete, fragmented, and confounding? We have no doubt. But six seasons in, “LOST” is still taking chances, posing big questions, and for that, we still think it’s the best show on television.
Nonetheless, the puzzle pieces demand some study.
No, the island is not hell, nor purgatory… yet it is the closest thing to it, in both the corporeal and metaphysical sense. Indeed, Alpert’s early declaration that they’re all dead is not entirely untrue. Souls come to the island to be tested, and have so far unanimously failed. Sounds like hell to us. We also learn that the island is a “cork” that keeps malevolence and evil contained, and that our survivors are pawns in an epic battle between darkness and its captor.
So: Before the Man In Black escapes, can the last of the candidates prove Jacob’s case? Can they demonstrate that people can choose the right path?
That seems to be “LOST” in a nutshell. The players and stories are simply human. Jack, Kate, Hurley, a Kwon… Their pasts don’t matter, yet obviously inform their future. But stakes are huge. Biblical, global, and universal. It seems impossible for “LOST” to satisfactorily resolve these grand themes in the next seven episodes, let alone a million other frayed threads. We’re afraid vindication may only come after re-watching the series from the beginning, after seeing everything through Season Six eyes.
Interestingly, we saw a distinct parallel between Richard’s failed attempt on Jacob’s life and Sayid’s failure to kill the Man in Black. The fact that both sides may be intent on murder certainly muddies the “good versus evil” waters. Also, even though we still don’t know what rules are in force (and thus what “loophole” Ben stepped through to finally stab Jacob), I was surprised by the suggestion that Alpert was the first to try. Coming to the island in the 1800s, his story already began much more recently than I’d assumed. Which means that the conflict has only recently turned ugly, maybe as Jacob’s candidates have started to run out.
On the questions checklist, meanwhile, we can cross out both “what destroyed the statue” and “how did the Black Rock end up in the jungle” with the same stroke. The physics seem a little iffy, but then again, there’s also a smoke monster on this show. Speaking of which, it’s now clear that said smoke monster “scans” people to find their motivations and weaknesses, if not also their usefulness. Conjuring dead wives, or daughters (Alex), or brothers (Yemi) is a useful power to get people to do things for you, and it’s a power that Jacob explicitly admits tonight that he lacks.
He can, however, grant immortality. And I’m curious why Alpert became Jacob’s ageless intermediary, when all who came before and after him were merely candidates to test. I’m guessing Alpert was a candidate himself, explaining why was he the only person on the Black Rock that the smoke monster didn’t kill. But did he end up extra special because he was the first to come at Jacob with a dagger, demonstrating to Jacob that he needed a helper?
And now, decades later, Richard is weak and tries to join the Man In Black. His dead wife, through Hurley, puts him back on track. Like Ben, he’s nearly led astray, but sticks with Jacob’s team. But also like Ben, I now wonder what else is left for him to do. I don’t know who’s going to be the last man standing against the Man In Black, but I’m pretty sure it’s not either of them.
We’re glad “LOST” took us on a ride into the past this week. But next week, we better rack up some serious mileage on the island.
Notes and Notions:
- Jen’s now fixated on Anthony Cooper. The man who appeared mysteriously on the island, and whom Ben prodded Locke to murder. With a knife. Quickly, before he had a chance to think. Was that whole scenario yet another “move” between Jacob and the Man in Black? And if so, who’s side did Anthony Cooper represent?
- Alpert’s backstory was almost flawless. But the ease with which the greedy doctor was killed was a bit silly. Coupled with Kelvin’s noggin knock at Desmond’s hands, it seems skulls on “LOST” are especially fragile.
- Now that we see even more significance and history to Alpert’s character, it’s hard not to think about some of the things he’s done in seasons past. The fact that he was merely a thug for Ben in “The Brig” seems ridiculous, as does his apparently pivotal role in “The Purge.” Was he acting in Jacob’s interests then? And how does that jive with his efforts to sustain a truce further back in 1977?
- Richard’s devotion to Isabella was well acted, but I couldn’t help but think it was an interesting choice to motivate him with his love for a spouse, rather than for a parent or especially a child. With all the generational issues explored on “LOST,” hanging things on a husband and wife bond seemed almost quaint.
- Some great, lighter moments: Richard’s almost girlish giggle when he’s asked what to do. Hurley telling Jack it’s not about him. And the look on the Man in Black’s face when Alpert hands him the white stone.
- The captain of the Black Rock was one Magnus Hanso. Presumably related to Alvar Hanso of the nearly forgotten Hanso Foundation, which funded the DHARMA Initiative. I wonder if this one mention of the Hanso name will be all we’ll see in the show from the Season 2 ARG? Or will the arrival of Charles Widmore open the door to a little more Hanso/DHARMA backstory?
- Lots of overtly Christian elements this week. God, the devil, a bible, a cross, sin, absolution and forgiveness, penitence… There was a lingering shot of Luke 4:24-29, in which Jesus asserts that prophets are often rejected in their own neighborhoods, and angers the people of Nazareth by telling them not to expect any special treatment even though he’s from their town. I’ll leave it to more qualified scholars to tease out how the passage applies to “LOST.” I’m also sure the nail Richard found on the Black Rock was symbolic, but don’t know how.
- At the end of Season 5, Jacob and the Man In Black see a ship sailing on calm seas in the middle of a bright, sunny day. Yet we now know the Black Rock arrived on a stormy night… delivered by a huge wave, no less. Presumably the first ship wasn’t the Black Rock, but one of many other vessels that Jacob has summoned.
What did you think? We’d love your feedback! Share your thoughts, theories, and reactions to “Ab Aeterno” via a comment below, e-mail us at lost@hawaiiup.com, or call the LOSTLine at (815) 310-0808.
wait, so you’re saying that Jack’s dad was a candidate….and then that would mean that Aaron is a candidate…..so then Aaron could be candidate 108….and he is coming to the island
My theory is that Jack is the father of Jacob & MiB.
The story from the Bible is that Isaak had two sons (tweens),Jacob & Esau…The blonde one,Jacob,was blased and loved by his mother but the dark one was cursed and hated by her…
So,maybe Jack will go back in time and finds Jacob who tells him what he have to do!I ‘m sure that we ‘re not finished with the wheel yet…I bet Juliet will be the mother and as an outsider Kate is my second choise…
Now that we met Jacob better I believe it is very strange that he died so easily…I meen,he was so very prepared for everything…maybe he wanted to die…if he ‘s dead…
Possibly Aaron is coming to the island but I dont know who wants that since Jack is not supposed to raise him…
Isaak I aggree about John…he shouldn’t be dead!But remember when he was a kid and Richard visited him?He already had a picture of the smoke monster on the wall and he chose the knife,the one that Ben used to kill Jacob…
Dialogue from Episode 7:
Jack: Where did you come from?
Richard: You wouldn’t believe me if i told you
Jack: try me
Richard:
Dialogue from Episode 7:
Jack: Where did you come from?
Richard: You wouldn’t believe me if i told you
Jack: try me
Richard: not yet
was that ever explained or did Richard ever tell them? was he traveling through time? did he travel off the island? is the island even an island?
You just gotta love Wikipedia, don’t ya?
Here’s a couple of interesting tidbits that could be Mc Guffin’s or the strange entanglements of String Theory and Parallel Universes. On Tenerife Island there are pyramids. The Black Pyramids of Tenerife are one of the island’s many mysteries and resemble similar structures in both Mexico and Peru. The man who discovered these pyramids believes that the Canarian pyramids formed a temporal and geographic stopping point on voyages between ancient Egypt and the Maya civilization. He believed that at one time the pyramid-building peoples of the world travelled the seas on rafts and he himself sailed from Morocco to Barbados on a papyrus raft to prove that this sort of thing could be done.
In Canarian Lore there is a mysterious eighth island called “San Borondon.” The legend claims that the island was named after an Irish monk (St. Brendon) who lived on the island for awhile with other monks until the island began to move, prompting them to set sail again. “They watched in amazement how the island moved in the water much like a whale and disappeared.” As far as the locals go, people firmly believed in its existence, and “there were even detailed accounts from sailors who swore to have landed on the island and explored it before the land would sink back into the ocean or move.”
@Isaac – a candidate can’t kill himself. Locke was killed by Ben. Note he didn’t have the chance to kill himself. Jack lit the dynamite, it blowing up would mean he killed himself. Richard said you can’t kill yourself so he had faith that Richard was right and the dynamite wouldn’t go off. He was fated to be on the island for a reason. The island isn’t done with Jack yet. Had Locke tried to kill himself, it wouldn’t have worked anyway.
re: the conversation between Jack and Richard. Do you think Richard thought Jack meant where did her originally come from years ago, or where was he recently?
Interesting comment from Nestor about Jacob bringing people to him. He only brings people with damaged pasts and gives them a chance to redeem themselves. This certainly applies to all the losties.
@mimi -Fascinating stuff about San Borondon, and the Canarian pyramids. Makes you wonder how much of this went into the thinking in writing this show, and how much coincidentally touches on real life mysteries that the writers may have been unaware of! Very cool info -thanks for sharing!
Hi guy’s, It’s my first post although I’ve been following for ages.
I loved this episode – (It’s shown on a Friday in the UK) I would love to have seen some of Richard’s various interactions throughout the years – but that’s a small gripe. I wish we could have more of the original MIB – he’s very compelling to watch. I hope we get to see how he was originally trapped &lots more Jacob & MIB please.
@Isaac: Ben could not kill Widmore (he thought) I think Candidates can’t kill each others. Yet Ben killed Locke and Jacob (while Sayid could not kill MiB). And we had a whole conversation about “finding a loophole”. Ben is the Loophole, only him can kill MiB.
Funny how redemption can only be brought by someone else: Kate through Claire, Locke through Hurley/ROSE/Helene, Jack through his son, Ben through Ilana… And now Richard through Hurley/Isabella.
I keep saying it: “Live together die alone”
Had a dream last night about LOST concerning Richard and Ben. (I am so hooked!)
Some have suggested Ben could’ve been doing MiB’s bidding for quite sometime and this is possible because Richard seemed to not be given all the information Ben had. Ben, like the petulant child he proved to be, constantly tried to thwart Richard’s guidance (living in New Otherton with luxuries, etc). Ben’s line about how Juliet was “his” – wonder if it was MiB who promised this. Maybe Linus was crossed off because Jacob gave him ever greater tests like these and he failed them. Ben’s opportunity to kill Jacob was Jacob’s final test of Ben, which he failed. It was who MiB that crossed Linus off the list.
Hi Ryan and Jen, thanks so much for your podcast. A few thoughts:
1) So the Rousseau who was the candidate was Alex. In saying that “You broke the rules”, I wonder if Ben was referring to the fact that candidates cannot be killed by MIB or Whidmore in this case?
2) Where did the Others money come from? It seems they are always wealthy and well connected. Does this tell us something or just there for more intrigue from the writers?
I loved this episode, best yet of Season 6.
BUT (you knew there had to be a “but”)… do you think that the remaining “answers” we get are all going to be as simplistic as this explanation of how the statue got broken and the Black Rock ended up somewhere inland? I mean, look how fans have theorized so many elaborate explanations for each of those events, and then the actual “answer” is so fantastic and unrealistic? I’m preparing for most of the remaining explanations we get to elicit not “Aha!”, but just .
When Smoke Monster “scans” people what is he looking for? I”m still not clear on why he lets some people live and invests time in trying to corrupt others. Why not kill the innocent and save the corrupt? They’d be easier to manipulate into killing, wouldn’t they?
Whitfield was clearly plenty corrupt — why did SM kill him instead of using him to kill Jacob? Why use Richard, who was only damaged, not yet corrupt, thus a much bigger risk? There must be more at stake than just killing Jacob.
Just stumble by accident on the connection between John Locke (the philosopher) and Anthony Cooper! He met Lord Anthony Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, who had come to Oxford seeking treatment for a liver infection and Locke was his physician! Impressed by him he employed him after that.
This is the touchstone, the place to come to meet with others fascinated and fixated. Not dreaming it yet, but probably would were it volitional. Keep it up, y’all everybody!
Team Dark
@Bonita- Unfair, a dream about lost, it is like you got a whole extra episode! lol I’m jealous.
@yann- my 14 year old son watched the Lost pilot and was amazed when he came across John Locke in his text book. He read the information about him even though he didn’t need to, so if anything else Lost adds to our education. He was impressed there was a real John Locke.
@Madtown – Most people on the transmission board feel that SMokey is scanning people to see if they will be of use to him in the future. Is there something he can manipulate later to his advantage. Maybe to use a person they must be a candidate.
Wow, where do I start? Ryan and Jen, thank you SO MUCH for providing a place for us LOST freaks to convene and exchange intelligent conversation, and a podcast that I look forward to every week – as a displaced kama’aina, I love hearing about the locations… after the fact, of course. I’m happily spoiler free!
So. For some reason, I keep thinking about Matthew Abaddon. Matthew is a Hebrew name meaning “gift of God†and Abaddon is Hebrew for “Destroyerâ€. Abaddon is the name of a biblical figure often described as the “guardian of the Abyss†who plays a prominent role in the end of days.
“Gift of God Destroyerâ€. Does that mean the LOST character Matthew Abaddon is a gift of the one who seeks to destroy God? Or is he a gift of God that is a destroyer? Or does it mean nothing at all, and is just an example of LOST’s clever writing?
Let’s delve more deeply. According to Bible passages quoted at various websites (and alas, unverified by myself) the Abyss is a spirit prison where fallen angels are bound. There is someone restraining the lawlessness, and that someone will do so “until he is taken out of the way.†Later, when the prison does open, a shaft of smoke rises from a bottomless pit and Abaddon the Destroyer rules for 42 months. Yup, 42.
Other interpretations of who/what Abaddon represents are out there, as well. Many questions are asked like, “Was Abaddon thrown into the Abyss by Satan, and then turned on his jailer?†and “Was he imprisoned by God for past sins and released to redeem himself?†and much musing about whether Abaddon is hero, villain, avenger, rogue, vigilante, chaos, entropy, father, teacher… you get the idea.
Interesting (and very random) thoughts:
1) Darlton has always claimed that the island isn’t heaven, hell or purgatory. Could it be “the abyss†as described above – a spirit prison for fallen angels?
2) I think it’s Walt in the sub. 🙂
3) Has anyone ever done research on the “whoosh†sounds? This has bugged me from Season One, but I don’t have TiVo or the time to re-watch everything, although I have tried. Even in Season One, the “whoosh†did not sound every single time there was a flashback! Has anyone else noticed that? I would love to re-watch every episode and make note of the beginning/end of every single flash back/forward/sideways, noting what the sound was and what was happening at that time. I think it’s very significant.
Mahalo nui loa for all you do!
One more comment on “The Knife” As far as I can tell, we have only been speaking of one knife, but doesn’t everyone wonder just WHAT the man in black is afraid or? Sayid shoving that knife into chest didn’t phase him and I think I know why; … there’s another knife; the black knife; the MIB knife as you might say. If its not a knife, then something the “opposite” of a knife, but what would that be? Hmmmm.
Regarding the idea of Jacob being “good” BUT…..manipulative in how he goes about accomplishing his goals. If he was responsible for getting the Oceanic 815 candidates, the deaths of the other 300+ passengers on the plane were just “collateral damage”, an acceptable sacrifice to get the 6 here? His attitude isn’t so far from Ben – willing to kill everyone on the freighter so he could have his revenge.
I agree that Jacob can be seen as a Robspierre type. His goals may be admirable, but don’t be in the way of his plans.
@Nana The knife appears to be a Roman Gladius. A Gladius us about 22 inches, and that looks right to me. In specific, (potentially significantly for Richard) it resembled the “Gladius Hispaniensis,” a sword the Roman copied from a Celtic enemy from Spain. A quick check indicated that something called the gladius was still used by the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire. But it had been adopted by the Romans in the days of the republic.
Perhaps that’s a sign of of one more group of people who came to the island. But perhaps its a sign of the specific time and place Jacob and the Smoke Monster came from.
BTW, I wonder if Jacob and the Smoke monster were the first to hold their respective roles or if others held those roles before them.
@YAE
Amazing stuff, notably Mimi up there. I echo my adversary, docjkm, in salutation of you all everybody. But the amorphous promise of darkness can claim anyone. Defend the island.
@Bonita
You set me off on a tangent with your dream (the gateway to understanding.) X may have been crossed off the the list. But then the amazing grace promo came to mind: “I was lost but now I’m found.” Nothing is irresversible. Can someone who has been written off find redemption and reestablish eligibility? I think this best applies to Locke. What did Jack say to Richard? “I woundn’t count him out.”
@Yann
I’m so with you on the significance of “Live Together, Die Alone.” Someone above posted on the original title of our saga being “The Circle.” This immediately implies the notion of the loop. But I still feel there is some heroic task that must be accomplished by the reamining fellowship of the ring. It was no accident that those who didn’t follow MIB gathered in a circle around the fire.
@ Rich in Cleveland
Even though a circle does suggest a loop, Jacob’s statement about things only ending once and everything else being progress could mean that people have been stuck in a circle but might find a way out of it.
GAH! What does it take to convince the audience that MIB is evil?
He kills a temple full of innocent people.
He lies and deceives constantly.
He hit a woman.
He tells Jacob that he’ll just kill kill kill until he gets off the island.
This does not sound non-evil in anyway.
It is the definition of evil.
His calm, cool, connectedness about the whole thing makes him MORE evil. Anyone/thing that can stay that calm when they kill so much or lie so much is beyond evil. They are evil itself.
@Ben Mc: The Others are “innocent”? I clearly remember Sawyer shooting Tom while he had surrender! “That’s for taking the boy”.
He lied to crazy Claire but seems to give answer to the rest of them.
Well… attempting murder is a long time jail sentence in our system, a slap seems very “nice” compared to that.
How many people died during “Prison Break” (stupid one season worth show) or in Oz (great tv show)? When a hero wants to get out of prison how many people can he kill on his way… Remember Austin Power when he jokes about that.
Yin and Yang and they curvy form would let you know that defining evil is very hard to do. And even in pure evil you might found a trace of good.
I think it has been clearly established by Dogen that MIB is an angry man. He told Kate that he had mum issues…. I think it is quite clear that he is more angry than connected. Jacob is the one connected.
I think Cristian is not MiB.Why to send John Lock to bring Losties?And why he send Vincent to find his son cause he had work to do?On the other hand Cristian in the cabin was strange and Claire was with him loockin already crazy but not angry like in season 6.She is crazy but calm and looks like she under stands what is happening…Dogen said same thing happened to Sayid happened to Claire so maybe she is dead and claimed by MIB like Sayid or she lost her constant (Aaron) and lost her mind?
@BenMc – I don’t have a problem with seeing Esau/MIB as “evil”. His actions can lead to that conclusion. We can also see the actions of Ben in the same light – is he “the embodiment of evil”? Even Ben is not beyond taking stock of his life and regretting/atoning for what he’s done. No character of LOST is a complete cartoon Snidely Whiplash villain.
What I have a problem with is that even when something on LOST is a cliche (i.e. the “epileptic tree” theory), it is a pretty darned original take on the tried and true. I as disappointed when I see LOST sharing a cliche (“sealed evil in a can”) that you can find on every other episode of The Power Rangers. LOST has set the bar higher for itself.
Goodmorn’ all : wow, its Sunday morning and I am obviously the last to chime in, although I did give some commentary at the very top of the blog right after seeing the episode, unfortunately work had to once again interfere with my Lost life… hmmm.
I did however manage to read a very big portion of the comments but not all. Very Interesting stuff guys. Although I had been listening to the podcast for many seasons, it is the first season where I thought I would chime in on the blog comments. And before this experience comes to an end in a few months let me hug you all (Ryan and Jen included of course) for making these last moments of Lost really fun for me.
Enough with the sentiment and on with the show … 🙂
On random comments :
@ Laura in NY : you made me laugh so hard at the image of Richard “sashay -ing” over to our Losties …”Hi, I’m Richard..”
@ Mimi : re Dogen’s son dying and Jacob bringing him to life, He never explicitly said his son died, he only mentions that it was very bad. I take that perhaps the son had not yet died.
@ greenberry : i’m with you in regards the show using Heaven, Hell, Devil etc as metaphors. I believe them to be representations of “things” that are good or bad.
@ all who were angered at the Priest : That a priest would not deny absolution etc. – The way I saw that scene was that the priest was clearly on the take. He got paid by Whitfield a small pouch of money. The “priest” also walked away with Richard’s bible, why deny that to a condemned man. This did not represent the priesthood nor Catholicism, it was simiply showing that there was corruption. Was the “priest” even really a priest? Simply put the man posing as a priest wanted to have Richard rethink his options and going to the New World with Whitfield was better than going to Hell.
@ Yann and Rich in cleveland : Live together or die alone, from the very moment Jack first mentioned that iconic phrase – I told myself that it sounded like the premise of the show… and it may yet be uttered again before the end.
TO ALL who would be interested in hearing Damon and Carlton speak and answer interesting questions on the process of writing the show and other insights about the show – the dynamic duo did a one hour Q and A at the Apple Store in Santa Monica last week. So very recent stuff. There is a recording of that session on iTunes. There are NO SPOILERS, for those that are worried. I’m in the spoiler free camp.
You can find it by searching “Meet the Filmmaker” in podcast section. The title is Lost Creators, dated march 24th, lenght 59 minutes 10 seconds.
Very entertaining and informative – I encourage all to listen.
Please,somebody answer me,
Why Ben lied to Lock that he didn’t press the numbers back on the hatch?
He told him that he didn’t press the numbers and nothing happened.Why to say that if not to break John’s faith?
@Man in Green – I think Ben did it to spite Locke. My memory is fuzzy, but he knew Locke wasn’t able to walk before the island and assumed the island healed Locke and Ben himself got a tumor on an island where no one gets sick. Also I think Ben knew that Locke was destined to become the leader of the Others, usurping Ben’s command.
Sounds like typical Ben anyways. When asked, what about all those people on the freighter? What about all those other people in 316? Ben says, “Who cares? So What?
Who knows if season 6 Ben will be fully redeemed? For me Mr. Genocidal has got a long way to go in that respect.
Season 4 Episode 9 “The shape of things to come” – the doctor from the freighter is found on the shore but a person on the freighter says the doctor is fine….so i guess in terms of time zone the island is “ahead in time” of the freighter….Daniel Faraday also does experiments with time on the island.
Does that kind of explain why it was sunny and calm in the ocean when Jacob and MIB see the Black Rock and then its dark and stormy when the Black Rock crashes on the island?
Maybe that is also a clue into how the two timelines in this season are tied together?
“If this isn’t hell, friend, then where are we?” – Anthony Cooper (Ep. 3×19 The Brig)
Lost season 1 episode 2:
Locke: “Walt, do you want to know a secret?”
i think the secret is, “I am the MIB and i am the one that brought you to this island”
I basically agree that MIB is probably evil and I’m hoping Jacob is good (Mark Pellegrino is so damned–pardon the pun– cute, after all! :-). However, I remain hung up on Yann’s correct observation that when Faust makes a pact with the devil, the devil promises him wealth, knowledge, wisdom and IMMORTALITY, in exchange for his body and soul. Jacob EXPLICITLY saying he can grant immortality but NOT forgive sins (as Christ, for example, can do), seems like a major statement by the writers…
Any thoughts?
P.S. Does anyone know what happened to Ilana at the point that Jacob asked her to protect the candidates? i.e., why was she beat up and in the hospital?
Richard is kissing Isabella’s cross while in chains when his chain-mate tells him he sees the devil guarding the island. Next scene they wake in the middle of the jungle, but the cross is gone from Richard’s neck. I think that is a sign that smokie/MIB has already been to the ship and begun to corrupt and foment paranoia in the officers. When they set upon the sailors in chains, smokie arrives to save the day for one person. He then scans the person to figure out how to motivate him.
He finds it most effective to use the form of loved ones to manipulate a person into action. He has Sayid tell everyone in the temple about the coice they ahve to make because “it will mean much more coming from you”.
He returns the cross to Richard saying he must have dropped it – we then understand the cross was their in one scene and gone the next, and also that MIB’s statement is impossible because Richard was in chains when he last had the cross, not walking about dropping things.
MIB gets everyone to join him or kills them because he doesn’t want them to take Jacob’s place. Jacob tells MIB that if he is killed someone else will take his place. so the solution for MIB then, is to kill everyone that is not loyal to him.
I haven’t read through all the comments, but I’m also a bit confused about the calm waters/ship/Jacob and MIB on the beach thing.
If it was the Black Rock they were looking at (and I think it was) my theory is that, at that point the ship could not see the island even though they could see the ship, due to the time/space wierd stuff. And that Jacob’s “way” of bringing the ship to the island was to cause the storm, assuming he has that power (?), bringing them in on the proper bearing after which time they could see the island.
Thinking back to one of the freighter episodes – correct me if I’m wrong – didn’t the crew of the frieghter fail to see the island even though it was close enough to be easily visible??
I also get that the writers have to wrap things up now, so if smaller stuff doesn’t quite make sense, I forgive them 😉
For those who find it hard that a wooden ship and a wave knocked down the statue, Popular Mechanics, a magazine for McGyver types has an explanation from professors working at the tsunami site at Chile. Of all magazines, I’d never expect Popular Mechanics to write about a mythological TV show.
Anyways, here is the explanation if you’re interested.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/air_space/4350239.html
So Ben can kill John Locke and Jacob but he cant kill Widmore?
oh boy…..
Will there be a lost rule book published later? Because I still don’t understand them. Leaders can’t kill each other?
lol, someone should publish a rule book cuz im getting confused with all these rules and loopholes, who can kill each other, who cant kill each other….apparently a young blonde kid told Jacob that he broke the rules….there are only 8 episodes left to explain alota things…..and there will still be questions remaining after the series finale…..
its not a surprise that the fan base decreases with each season….only the loyal and intellectual fans have remained….
some people will look back on this series and ask themselves, “was it really worth it?”
i will say that the acting is incredible tho…..
Isaac– it’s worth it, it’s worth it! 🙂
Man In Black’s conversation with Richard brings us back to the “Hell” situation. I will say here and now that the island is NOT Hell. The reason Man In Black tells Richard that it’s Hell (both as himself, and as Isabella) is because he judged/scanned Richard and learned that it is his biggest fear following the discussion with the priest earlier, and learning that he was going to Hell. What better way to motivate someone than to tell them they’re living their biggest fear?
More Lost ramblings in my blog as usual.
@Issac – I find that my friends that don’t listen to podcasts are very confused and frustrated and just want Lost to end. Listening to Ryan and Jen and this board has really helped me to understand this show a lot more. I don’t know how people go it alone and keep up with the show.
@Aaron – I totally agree and I also felt that by telling Richard he was the devil was the only way MIB could get Richard to kill someone.
@ Carol from Boston – totally agree, I’d be well Lost without these podcasts and I am so grateful for all of the hard work that goes into them! So not a homework kinda of person except when it comes to Lost.
@Shanny- You crack me up about the homework, so true. I find everyone’s theories and insights really enlightening. I can’t believe the memories of some of the people on this board, they can remember so many details (yann, you know I am talking about you :))
Plus if my theories are wrong, people can steer me in the right direction. Well gotta get to work.
I wonder if we’ll hit 400 comments before tonight. Probably 50 of these are mine. Yes I have a commenting on this board problem, I admit it. If that drives anyone crazy let me know, I’ll reduce my comments.
@Carol ~~ I love your passion and commitment! Carry on!! Wish I had more insightful things to say…. LOST is sooo complex — reading these discussions on this board has been life-enhancing! And I’m glad that a (mere) few of us are holding out hope for a fitting and elevating Kate ending.
Tuesday is my new favorite day of the week!!!
As for following LOST to the end and following along with the podcasts and trying to understand it all, it has been like playing Myst, an influence of the show I think. Except that we’re not in control of the game, but rather, watching the game, from above.
Was it worth it? It’s been a fun ride. If the finale goes badly like Battlestar Galactica, or goes well, either way, up to now, the storytelling and character development has been awesome, though a couple of spotty places here and there. We got to live vicariously on a beautiful island during the dark winters, gotten some laughs, some amazing plot twists a la THUMP, and seen some what I think was groundbreaking teevee.
If you followed very closely, perhaps you read a couple of the books referenced in the show, read up on mythology and/or religion and participated in an ongoing debate of determinism vs destiny.
@ Carol from Boston : marching towards 400. you could be the one to hit it.