Ranking Episodes, Season Five (top half)

8. 316 (5x6, Jack)
Episode highlight: Jack visits his grandfather
#2: Jack and Kate, if you like that sort of thing

7. Jughead (5x3, Desmond)
Episode highlight: Charles Widmore was an Other?
#2: There's a hydrogen bomb on the Island...hmm, I wonder if that might be important later.

6. Follow the Leader (5x15, Alpert)
Episode highlight: Locke intends to kill Jacob.
#2: Locke tells Richard to tell him that he needs to die.

5. Whatever Happened, Happened (5x11, Kate)
Episode highlight: Hurley and Miles debate the rules of time travel.
#2: Richard takes Ben to the Temple

4. The Variable (5x14, Faraday)
Episode highlight: Faraday is shot in the back by his own mother.
#2: Widmore admits that it was he who fakes the wreckage.

3. Dead is Dead (5x12, Ben)
Episode highlight: Ben meets the Monster in a tunnel under the Temple in the form of Alex. Yeah.
#2: Flashbacks to key moments in Ben's life.
#3: The introduction of the question "What lies in the shadow of the statue?"

2. This Place is Death (5x5, none)
Episode highlight: We finally see what happened to Montand's arm...and the rest of the travails of Rousseau's team.
#2: Locke meets Christian again as he turns the wheel.

1. The Incident (5x16, Jacob)
Episode highlight: Jacob has a fish breakfast and a terse conversation with Black Robe
#2: Locke's body tumbles out of the box and fake Locke and Ben confront Jacob.
#3: Jacob visits (and touches) various Lostaways throughout their lives.
#4: The familiar end card we all know is inverted from black to white.

Ranking Episodes, Season Five (bottom half)

16. Some Like it Hoth (5x13, Miles)
Episode highlight: Bram abducts Miles and tells him about the pending war
#2: Faraday steps off the sub

15. Namaste (5x9, none)
Episode highlight: Christian tells Sun she has a long journey ahead of her
#2: Radzinsky and the Swan model

14. He's Our You (5x10, Sayid)
Episode highlight: Sayid shoots young Ben
#2: Sayid's drug-induced tale of the future

13. Because You Left (5x1, various)
Episode highlight: The opening scene
#2: Faraday talks to hatch-dwelling Desmond

12. The Little Prince (5x4, Kate)
Episode highlight: Jin is alive, and rescued by Rousseau and her team
#2: The (still-to-be-seen from the opposite perspective?) shootout between the Ajira group and the Lostaways

11. The Lie (5x2, Hurley)
Episode highlight: Hurley lays it all on the table for mom
#2: Eloise and Ben in the Lamp Post
#3: Flaming arrows!

10. LaFleur (5x8, Sawyer)
Episode highlight: The statue from behind
#2: Sawyer blows Richard Alpert's mind

9. The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham (5x7, Locke)
Episode highlight: Ben saves Locke from suicide, then murders him
#2: Locke talks to Walt (hopefully not the end of Walt on LOST)

Mr. Monk and the End

In a fragment: a satisfying finale. I was very happy that Monk survived, as his death would not have fit the tenor of the series at all. The only angle that would have worked at all is that he would finally be reunited with Trudy. Was it a little disappointing that there hadn't been more hints about the identity of Trudy's killer dropped in previous episodes ("the judge" was mentioned in the season six finale, "Mr. Monk is On the Run", but outside of that there was nothing to help you reach that conclusion)? Sure, but that's no big deal in the big picture.

It was great to see a happy ending for all of the characters, it was great that Monk and Natalie did not hook up, and while it probably won't ever happen, it was great that the door was left open for a TV movie or something. I'd like to see a case that stumps new police chief Disher and his men in New Jersey, so he calls in his old friend Adrian Monk and the San Francisco gang to help him out.

As a retrospective of the entire series, I'll pick one favorite episode (not necessarily my absolute favorite, but the one that comes to mind right now) from each season:

Season 1--"Mr. Monk Goes to the Asylum"--He meets some quirky asylum residents, including Manny, who is obsessed with Santa Claus, and a wily, murderous director.

Season 2--"Mr. Monk Goes to the Ballgame"--How can you not like a baseball episode of Monk, with Scott Gregorio chasing the single season home run record, causing Rainn Wilson (Dwight from The Office) to take measures to distract him--because he caught the record-breaking ball hit by Darryl Grant, the current record holder?

Season 3--"Mr. Monk Gets Stuck in Traffic"--The fourth Natalie episode, I think it's the one in which their bond really clicks. Monk makes friend with an ambulance chasing lawyer, who later appears after Monk is accused of shooting Santa Claus.

Season 4--"Mr. Monk and the Astronaut"--Perhaps my favorite episode of all-time, as Monk matches wits with a killer astronaut, the always awesome Jeffrey Donovan (Michael Westen from Burn Notice). The case pops up again in...

Season 5--"Mr. Monk and the Actor"--...as a movie is being made about the case. A method actor gets too close to the essence of Monk, and the result is not good. The scenes in which he mimics Monk and the way the movie has sexed things up with a, um, different Lt. Disher, are priceless.

Season 6--"Mr. Monk and His Biggest Fan"--The show always did great meta-episodes; this is the best as Sarah Silverman reprises her role as Marci from "Mr. Monk and the T.V. Star". Her diorama of "Mr. Monk and the Three Pies" (and Monk's incredulous "Where do you come up with these names?" reaction) is a playful but serious rebuke to fanboys like me.

Season 7--"Mr. Monk Gets Lotto Fever"--Maybe it's just the fact that Natalie gets to dress up pretty as the lotto girl, but I love this episode. A close second choice here would be "Mr. Monk's 100th Case", a faux-Frontline episode with great callbacks to previous cases.

Season 8--"Mr. Monk and the UFO"--People always referenced the fact that it seemed Monk was from another planet. In this episode, some freaks actually believe it to be true.

Maybe It's Time

Not that it matters, as no one reads this anyway, but I have neglected this blog for sometime now. As I start to get ramped up for the season at the middle to end of this month I'll be checking in with some thoughts.

But for now, I'm thinking about my second favorite TV show: Monk, which will be airing its own series finale "Mr. Monk And the End, Part II" this Friday. I am not really a frequent viewer of scripted TV shows--most of my viewing consists of sports and news. There are a handful of shows that I am a huge fan of--LOST, Monk, Burn Notice, The Office, Psych. And there are a few more that I try to catch--24, FlashForward. Outside of those shows, though, I really don't watch any TV shows.

Monk will be the first show that I have been a huge fan of to bow out, and as such watching the series finale on Friday will be a new and interesting experience for me. And a little bit of a test run for the LOST finale.

I am actually more sad about the end of Monk than I will be for LOST, even though I like LOST more. The reason is the nature of the shows--LOST is a puzzle that you want to unwrap and get to the bottom of; Monk is a familiar face you watch every Friday night to make you laugh at the end of the week. The end of LOST is bittersweet, to be sure, but it is also exciting, as the answers that we've been waiting for will either be revealed or be crystallized as mysteries to ponder forever. I will miss the Thursday morning theorizing (LOST will always be a Wednesday show to me, no matter when it actually airs), but it should feel good to actually understand what the heck has been going on over the last five years (even if that understanding is incomplete and limited).

But in the case of Monk, it is losing a friend. Just a TV friend (which is to say an imaginary one with no real emotional attachment), and one you have over 120 episodes to catch on re-runs, but it's just a little different. Sure, there's the puzzle of Trudy's murder, which has lurked just under the surface throughout the series, but that is nothing compared to the massive, all-encompassing mystery that is LOST.

So farewell, Monk. We'll thank you later? No, we'll thank you now.

Ranking Episodes, Season Four (top half)

Ranking Episodes, Season Four (top half)

6. The Economist (4x3, Sayid)
Episode highlight: Sayid is working for Ben in the future, and Ben is off the Island
#2: Faraday's rocket experiment confirms time weirdness

5. Confirmed Dead (4x2, Freighter Folk)
Episode highlight: The freighter folk are compelling additions to the cast
#2: Abaddon organizing their team

4. Cabin Fever (4x11, Locke)
Episode highlight: Alpert tests young Locke
#2: "We have to move the Island"

3. The Constant (4x5, Desmond)
Episode highlight: Desmond and Penny finally connect, via telephone
#2: Widmore bids on a journal by a crew member of the Black Rock named Hanso

2. The Shape of Things to Come (4x9, Ben)
Episode highlight: Ben and Charles chat in London
#2: Ben summons the Monster?

1. There's No Place Like Home (4x12 and 4x13, Oceanic Six)
Episode highlight: Frozen donkey wheel
#2: Locke's in the coffin

Ranking Episodes, Season Four (bottom half)

12. Eggtown (4x4, Kate)
Episode highlight: Kate is raising Aaron in the future
#2: Ben and Miles' chat
Episode lowlight: Kate's trial

11. The Other Woman (4x6, Juliet)
Episode highlight: Whispers
#2: Ben lies through his teeth to Locke about Widmore

10. Ji Yeon (4x7, Jin/Sun)
Episode highlight: The reveal of Jin's tombstone and the simultaneous flashback and forward ploy
#2: We meet the captain

9. Meet Kevin Johnson (4x8, Michael)
Episode highlight: Rousseau and Karl are killed
#2: The story of Michael's life off the Island (not as good as it might have been, but still fairly compelling)

8. The Beginning of the End (4x1, Hurley)
Episode highlight: Hurley sees Jacob's cabin
#2: Jack tries to kill Locke

7. Something Nice Back Home (4x10, Jack)
Episode highlight: Christian appears to Claire
#2: Christian (and Hurley's chats with Charlie) haunts Jack in the future

Ranking Episodes, Season Three (top half)

11. Catch-22 (3x17, Desmond)
Episode highlight: The helicopter crashes
#2: Jin's ghost story

10. A Tale of Two Cities (3x1, Jack)
Episode highlight: The opening five minutes
#2: Confirmation that the Others and DHARMA are not the same group (already suspected, of course)

9. The Brig (3x19, Locke)
Episode highlight: Sawyer kills Cooper
#2: Richard Alpert's chat with Locke

8. Enter 77 (3x11, Sayid)
Episode highlight: Mikhail's chat with Locke, Kate, and Sayid
#2: The Flame blows up

7. One of Us (3x16, Juliet)
Episode highlight: Juliet's flashbacks
#2: Juliet dresses down Sawyer and Sayid

6. Greatest Hits (3x21, Charlie)
Episode highlight: Charlie emerges in the Looking Glass only to be met by Bonnie, Greta, and their guns
#2: Karl arrives and ratchets up the urgency

5. Not in Portland (3x7, Juliet)
Episode highlight: Room 23
#2: Juliet's ex gets hit by a bus

4. Flashes Before Your Eyes (3x8, Desmond)
Episode highlight: We meet Ms. Hawking
#2: Desmond and his professor friend discuss time travel

3. The Man From Tallahassee (3x13, Locke)
Episode highlight: Cooper is revealed
#2: We finally see how Locke was paralyzed

2. The Man Behind the Curtain (3x20, Ben)
Episode highlight: Jacob's cabin, of course
#2: The Purge

1. Through the Looking Glass (3x22, Jack)
Episode highlight: We see the future
#2: Penny's call to Charlie

Ranking Episodes, Season Three (bottom half)

22. Further Instructions (3x3, Locke)
Episode highlight: Desmond's first flash
#2: Locke's creepy Boone airport dream
Episode lowlight: Locke saving Eko from a polar bear...c'mon

21. Expose (3x14, Nikki/Paulo)
Episode highlight: Paulo finds the Pearl
#2: They're dead
Episode lowlight: Their ridiculous murder of the producer (and yes, I'm fully aware of the meta-nature of this episode and appreciate it...but it doesn't fully fit in a serious show like LOST)

20. Tricia Tanaka is Dead (3x10, Hurley)
Episode highlight: Roger Workman
Episode lowlight: Starting a car as a metaphor for redemption and renewed purpose...it's a stretch

19. Stranger in a Strange Land (3x9, Jack)
Episode highlight: Cindy and the kids
Episode lowlight: Bai Ling

18. Every Man for Himself (3x4, Hurley)
Episode highlight: Bunnies!
#2: A second island

17. The Cost of Living (3x5, Eko)
Episode highlight: "You speak to me as if I was your brother"
#2: Juliet's video

16. The Glass Ballerina (3x2, Jin & Sun)
Episode highlight: The Red Sox win the World Series
#2: Ben's talk with Jack

15. I Do (3x6, Kate)
Episode highlight: Jacob is mentioned for the first time
#2: Jack springs his plan

14. Par Avion (3x12, Claire)
Episode highlight: Jack catches Tom's pass (no, not like that)
#2: Claire is confirmed as Christian's daughter

13. D.O.C. (3x18, Sun)
Episode highlight: Naomi tells Hurley that all the Oceanic passengers are dead
#2: Hurley, Desmond, Jin, and Charlie encounter Mikhail

12. Left Behind (3x15, Kate)
Episode highlight: The monster has three heads
#2: The "worst con in the history of cons"

Ranking Episodes, Season Two (top half)

12. ?(2x21, Eko)
Episode highlight: finding the Pearl
#2: Morbid, but I jumped in my chair when Libby coughed up blood

11. The Hunting Party (2x11, Jack)
Episode highlight: Tom's talk with Locke, Jack, and Sawyer
#2: Alex is alive

10. Lockdown (2x17, Locke)
Episode highlight: The blast door map
#2: Jack and Kate discover the pallet

9. Maternity Leave (2x15, Claire)
Episode highlight: Claire's on-island flashback, the first full-length on in LOST history (not counting The Other 48 Days)
#2: Exploring the staff

8. Three Minutes (2x22, Michael)
Episode highlight: Sun spots Desmond's boat at the funeral
#2: Ms. Klugh and her interactions with Michael

7. The Other 48 Days (2x7, Tailies)
Episode highlight: The fist time we see the Others attack the camp, barefoot around the fire
#2: Ana-Lucia confronts and kills Goodwin

6. The 23rd Psalm (2x10, Eko)
Episode highlight: Eko stares down the Monster
#2: Eko's backstory, one of the most compelling on the show

5. One of Them (2x14, Sayid)
Episode highlight: We meet LOST's most complicated and fascinating character
#2: Hieroglyphics on the countdown clock as it reaches zero

4. Two for the Road (2x20, Ana-Lucia)
Episode highlight: Michael murders Ana-Lucia and Libby, one of the most shocking endings of any episode
#2: Jack, Kate, Locke, and Sawyer have it dawn on them that Ana-Lucia has the gun

3. Man of Science, Man of Faith (2x1, Jack)
Episode highlight: Make Your Own Kind of Music...the first scene is amazing
#2: Desmond and Jack at the stadium

2. Orientation (2x3, Locke)
Episode highlight: Mythological overload...DHARMA, Hanso, the Incident, the button...
#2: Did I mention Marvin Candle, electromagnetism, missing segments, ...?

1. Live Together, Die Alone (2x23, Desmond)
Episode highlight: They reach the capsule dump, which ties both major plot points together--the hatch and the trek to fight the Others
#2: "Ms. Widmore, I think we found it"

Takeaways from Comic-Con

Watching Damon and Carlton's panel at Comic-Con on YouTube, these are the items that stood out to me. Obviously they are spoilery, so if you don't like that sort of thing, don't read it:

* Season 6 will feature some characters we haven't seen since Season 1
* Faraday and Juliet will appear in Season 6
* Season 6 will not be pure flashbacks, flashforwards, or time travel--it will be something different
* In faux commercials, Hurley has won the lottery and owns Mr. Cluck's, introducing an Australian Outback chicken dinner after having a dream. Oceanic Airlines has cute flight attendants touting its perfect safety record.
* We will see Alpert's backstory
* We will learn about the DHARMA supply drops (as in 2x17, Lockdown)
* But there will not be a whole lot about DHARMA--they feel it was sufficiently addressed in Season 5

Just for Fun

Just for fun, here's a guess at the episode titles and centricity for Season Five. I have assumed one centric episode per character, the likelihood of which is just about zero. Obviously the likelihood of any of these coming to fruition is nil, although I hold out hope for an episode called "Our Mutual Friend" featuring Jack, Claire, and Christian:

Season Premiere: They're Here (Ilana)
#2: Time Out of Mind (Desmond)
#3: Across the Universe (Jin/Sun)
#4: Graceland (Claire)
#5: Sympathy for the Devil (Locke)
#6: Pilot, pt. 3 (Lapidus)
#7: The Eye (The Monster)
#8: Eternal Sunshine (Alpert)
#9: Whispers (Miles)
#10: Destiny's Child (Ben)
#11: Checkmate (Black Robe)
#12: Great Expectations (Hurley)
#13: Sidney (Sawyer)
#14: The Once and Future King (Jacob)
#15: All About Eve (Kate)
Series Finale: Our Mutual Friend (Jack)

DarkUFO's Prediction League

DarkUFO has a Lost prediction contest, in which you predict certain miscellany about the show. I'm not good at this kind of thing, but I went ahead and entered anyway. Here were my predictions.

1) What will be the first word spoken in the Season 6 Premiere? (60 Points)
What
2) What will be the last word spoken in the Season 6 Final? (60 Points)
You ("I love you")
3) How many letters will the Season 6 Premiere title have? (50 Points)
10
4) How many letters will the Season 6 Finale title have? (50 Points)
15
5) What will be the first letter of the Season 6 Premiere title? (40 Points)
T--the title will be "They're Here"
6) What will be the first letter of the Season 6 Finale title? (40 Points)
O--the title will be "Our Mutual Friend"
7) In what Episode will we first see Rose and Bernard together? (40 Points)
1
8) Where will the last scene of the series take place? (40 Points)
None of the above--either in the temple or in the caves
9) Who will be the last character on screen for the series? (40 Points)
Jack
10) In What episode will Claire first appear in? (30 Points)
3
11) In which episode will Ben die? (30 Points)
12
12) In which episode will Hurley die? (30 Points)
won't happen
13) In which episode will Jack die? (30 Points)
17
14) In which episode will Jin die? (30 Points)
won't happen
15) In which episode will Kate die? (30 Points)
17--her and Jack together
16) In which episode will Sawyer die? (30 Points)
16
17) In which episode will Sun die? (30 Points)
won't happen
18) In which episode will we first hear the phrase "Son of a Bitch"? (30 Points)
1
19) In which episode will we learn the true name of the man in black/flocke/anti-jacob?
(30 Points)
1
20) In which episode will we first see the Black Rock crash on the island? (30 Points)
won't happen
21) In which episode will Kate first kiss someone? (30 Points)
5
22) In which episode will we see Smokey again? (30 Points)
4
23) In which episode will the next death occur? (30 Points)
1
24) In which episode will we first see Marvin Candle or one of his aliases? (30 Points)
1
25) In which episode will Hurley first say "dude"? (30 Points)
2
26) In which episode will we see the 4 toed statue again? (30 Points)
1
27) In which episode will we first see the Oceanic Logo? (30 Points)
1
28) In which episode will we first see Vincent? (30 Points)
10
29) In which episode will we first see Jacob? (30 Points)
1
30) In which episode will we first see The Black Rock? (30 Points)
13
31) In which episode will we see a Dharma Logo? (30 Points)
3
32) How many episodes will Bram AND Ilana appear in? (25 Points)
3
33) How many episodes will both Rose and Bernard be in? (25 Points)
4
34) How many episodes will we see Vincent in? (25 Points)
2
35) How many episodes will we see Charles Widmore in? (25 Points)
3
36) How many episodes will we see Penny in? (25 Points)
2
37) How many people will Sayid kill this season? (25 Points)
0
38) How Many Episodes will we see Aaron in? (25 Points)
2
39) How Many Episodes will we see Claire in? (25 Points)
14
40) Who will be the first to get punched by someone else? (20 Points)
Jack
41) Who will be the first to punch someone else? (20 Points)
Sawyer
42) Who will Smokey first approach? (20 Points)
Ilana
43) Which person will Sawyer give the first nickname to? (20 Points)
Bram
44) Who will be the first person that Kate kisses in Season 6? (20 Points)
Sayid, as he dies
45) Which former, original cast member will we see first? (20 Points)
Shannon
46) Whose eye will get the first close up? (20 Points)
Jack
47) Will we see Ms Hawking again this Season? (10 Points)
Yes
48) Will we see any new Dharma Stations this Season? (10 Points)
No
49) Will we see the DeGroots this Season? (10 Points)
No
50) Will we see any new Dharma Films/Videos? (10 Points)
No
51) Will we find out about the REAL Henry Gale? (10 Points)
No
52) Will we see a Richard Alpert flashback? (10 Points)
Yes
53) Will Claire see Aaron again this season? (10 Points)
No
54) Will we see all the numbers on the screen together again? (10 Points)
Yes
55) Will we see the 4 toed Statue this season? (10 Points)
Yes
56) Will any of the losties get off island again? (10 Points)
Yes
57) Will we see Aaron again this season? (10 Points)
Yes
58) Will we see Adam and Eve again? (10 Points)
Yes
59) Will we see Alvar Hanso this season? (10 Points)
No
60) Will we see Annie again this season? (10 Points)
Yes
61) Will we see Christian again this season? (10 Points)
Yes
62) Will we see Desmond again this season? (10 Points)
Yes
63) Will we see Ji Yeon again this season? (10 Points)
Yes
64) Will we see Juliet again this season? (10 Points)
Yes
65) Will we see Richard Malkin (Claire's psychic) again this season? (10 Points)
No
66) Will we see Walt again this season? (10 Points)
No

Ranking Episodes, Season Two (bottom half)

23. Fire + Water (2x12, Charlie)
Episode highlight: The Widmore Industries sign in Charlie's flashback (first mention of Widmore)?
Episode lowlight: Charlie
22. Dave (2x18, Hurley)
Episode highlight: Libby in the mental institution, although this seems unlikely to ever be explained
Episode lowlight: Cheesy last scene with Hurley and Libby on the rocks
21. Everybody Hates Hugo (2x4, Hurley)
Episode highlight: Bernard learns that Rose is alive and well
Episode lowlight: Hurley's going to blow up the hatch because he thinks everyone will hate him for doling out food? I know he was in a mental institution, but c'mon
20. ...And Found (2x5, Jin & Sun)
Episode highlight: The Others walk by barefoot and silent, teddy bear in tow
Episode lowlight: Hurley and Sun watching Vincent waiting for him to have a bowel movement (even the presence of Sun can't redeem this scene)
19. The Long Con (2x13, Sawyer)
Episode highlight: It starts raining right before Sun gets snatched
#2: Hurley: "...it could be from any time" in regards to the short wave transmission
18. What Kate Did (2x9, Kate)
Episode highlight: Michael IMs with Walt
#2: I'm not a relationship fan, but it was about time that Jack and Kate made out
17. S.O.S. (2x19, Rose & Bernard)
Episode highlight: Michael stumbles out of the jungle
#2: Jack and Kate get caught in a net (Kate was smoking)
16. Collision (2x8, Ana Lucia)
Episode highlight: Eko emerges from the jungle as Jack prepares to hit his ball out of the rough
#2: Rose and Bernard reunite
15. Abandoned (2x6, Shannon)
Episode highlight: Cindy is taken
#2: Walt appears in Shannon's ten
14. Adrift (2x2, Michael)
Episode highlight: "What did one snowman say to the other?"
#2: Kate crawls through the...eh, let's keep it focused on the show--the Tailies approach Jin, Michael, and Sawyer menacingly
13. The Whole Truth (2x16, Sun)
Episode highlight: "Henry's" speech to Jack and Locke over cereal
#2: The speech is so awesome, it deserves to be mentioned twice

Ranking Episodes, Season One (top half)

11. House of the Rising Sun (1x6, Sun)
Episode highlight: The discovery of Adam and Eve and their white and black stones
#2: The reveal that Sun speaks English
10. The Greater Good (1x21, Sayid)
Episode highlight: Locke's admission that he was the one who knocked Sayid out
#2: Everything else about Sayid and Locke's conversation
9. Numbers (1x18, Hurley)
Episode highlight: the reveal of the numbers on the side of the hatch
#2: Hurley's conversation with Rousseau
8. Raised by Another (1x10, Claire)
Episode highlight: The chaotic scene at the caves as the picture comes together--Sayid declaring they are not alone and Hurley's discovery that Ethan was not on the plane
#2: The creepiness of Malkin's prophecy
7. All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues (1x11, Jack)
Episode highlight: Jack brings Charlie back from the brink of deah
#2: The Jack/Christian backstory
6. Solitary (1x9, Sayid)
Episode highlight: We meet Rousseau and hear her tale, introducing so much mythology (Black Rock, Others, science team, Alex, whispers, Alex, etc.) that it's hard to imagine the show prior to this episode
#2: Sayid hears the whispers
5. White Rabbit (1x5, Jack)
Episode highlight: Jack and Locke's chat about destiny and the Island--really the first true classic Jack/Locke showdown
#2: Jack's pursuit of Christian ends with an empty coffin
4. Walkabout (1x4, Locke)
Episode highlight: We discover that Locke was paralyzed before coming to the Island, and we should have seen it all along
#2: Locke stares down the Monster
3. Deus Ex Machina (1x18, Locke)
Episode highlight: The light turns on in the hatch as Locke pounds on it
#2: Boone hears "WE'RE the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815" on the Beechcraft radio
2. Exodus (1x23 and 1x24, Various)
Episode highlight: The taking of Walt is a great twist
#2: So many to choose from, but the reveal of the Black Rock as a slave ship is pretty awesome
1. Pilot (1x1 and 1x2, Various)
Episode highlight: The plane crash itself
#2: Between the Monster and the French Transmission..."Guys, where are we?"

DarkUFO's Lost Fantasy League

DarkUFO sponsors a Lost Fantasy League--I have entered a team and thought that discussing which characters I chose would be a useful way to touch on Season 6 expectations. I have not spent too much time analyzing the scoring rules and attempting to choose the best team in that manner--I have just chosen characters that I feel will play important roles in Season 6, and hopefully that will translate into a lot of points.

Group 7: Ana Lucia, Arzt, Boone, Charlie, Charlotte, Daniel, Eko, Libby, Michael, Naomi, Shannon

This group is tough as obviously it is filled with dead characters. We've seen guest spots from Ana Lucia, Boone, Charlie, Libby, and Naomi since their demise, and so they are good candidates. Some actors did not leave on the best of terms and are not likely to be back. But I chose Daniel here as is relationship with Hawking may make him a top flashback candidate, and perhaps will see his child self again.

Group 6: Cindy, Ethan, Horace, Pierre, Radzinsky, Roger, Danielle, the Monster, Tom

I chose the Monster here, but injuring a character can cause a big points deduction so this may not be the safest choice. My hope is that we'll learn enough about the Monster and see it acting (relatively) peacefully so as to still be a positive. Among the other choices, I think Pierre, Horace, and Radzinsky are the best as I am very interested in seeing how DHARMA responded to the Incident. Cindy could show up again with the group of Others from the Temple. The others are longer shots, but you never know.

Group 5: Aaron, Bernard, Carole, Charlie Hume, Ji Yeon, Rose, Vincent, Walt

Do you think that the children born or conceived on the Island will be important? Then Aaron and Ji Yeon are your guys. Between Rose and Bernard, I'd choose Rose, as she is the Season 1 original, but I really don't think they'll be major players. If I wanted to choose Carole, I'd go with Aaron. I'd assume we see Desmond's son, and who knows, maybe their sailboat will crash into the Island, but I'm not holding my breath. I chose Walt, as this is one mystery that everyone (the actor included) would like to see resolution for, and one that if not addressed will be a disappointment.

Group 4: Widmore, Christian, Claire, Frank, Hawking, Jacob, Juliet, Penny

These are all enticing choices, except for Juliet and Penny. Juliet is dead, IMO, and while I expect to see her in some capacity it won't be enough to score a lot of points. Penny and Desmond don't have a clearly defined role at this point, and the actress is on a another show, so...Widmore at one time seemed like the big bad of the show, but now it seems as if his war with Ben is just a sideshow to the conflict between Jacob and Black Robe, and while I fully expect to see him I don't think it'll be enough. Christian is intriguing as a Christian/Jack island faceoff is years in the making, and he's appeared to enough other Lostaways to be a viable option. Claire should be back as a regular, with an interesting story to tell, and since I think she's cute as heck, I'll make her my choice. Frank potentially became more than just a pilot when Ilana wondered whether he was a candidate. Hawking remains a player who knows a lot. Is Jacob really dead? Can he be resurrected?

Group 3: Bram, Desmond, Ilana, Locke, Richard

I went with Ilana as her past interaction with Jacob and leadership role portend bigger things to come. I'm not sure why you'd pick Bram over her, but some thought Ilana was the distraction for Caesar, so you may be a genius. Desmond could very well be a key to the whole show, but the difficulty of figuring out exactly what he's going to be doing makes me reluctant to choose him. While I expect that the real Locke is dead and gone, he may well reappear, but I don't think it'll be enough. Richard is the safest pick, as he should appear in backstories and be involved in any important trecks.

Group 2: Jin, Black Robe, Miles, Sayid, Sun

These are all good potential choices. I shied away from Black Robe and Sayid because they have the potential for inflicting harm on others, which reduce their value, and they are also prime candidates to die. Between Jin and Sun, I chose Sun, because she's my favorite female character on the show, and she showed a lot more initiative in Season 5 than in the past. Miles should be allowed to explore some good places, but it's tough to pick against a Season 1 coupling.

Group 1: Ben, Hurley, Jack, Kate, Sawyer

I went with Jack, as I really believe that he will be the last Lostaway we ever see on the screen. LOST may be an ensemble show, but Jack is the titular main character and I think he deserves to end as a hero, even if it may be a tragic one. Ben has to get what's coming to him sometime, doesn't he? Hurley could be a Cobra-like influence, but I don't see it, and he's not involved enough in the action stuff to be a top fantasy choice. Kate is a good candidate to get points for her romantic flings, but since I think she'll be doing them with Jack, he'll get those same points. Sawyer was a major player in Season 5 and is a solid selection, but it's tough to go against Jack.

Ranking Episodes, Season One (bottom half)

These rankings are of course intensely personal, and forcing them all into a ranked countdown isn't particularly helpful. It should also be pointed out that evaluating episodes at any given point in the LOST saga could be misleading. The real importance of certain things cannot be grasped until the whole story can be seen. As an example, "Flashes Before Your Eyes" became a lot more importance once time travel went from being a one-time anomaly to a consistent theme on the show, and as Eloise Hawking emerged as a key character. From the current, post-season 5 perspective, this is how I see it. All centric-episodes are conventional flashbacks unless otherwise noted:

22. Whatever the Case May Be (1x12, Kate)
Episode highlight: Kate as a bank robber is kind of hot.
Episode lowlight: Love triangle...blech.
21. Outlaws (1x16, Sawyer)
Episode highlight: Locke has a chat over coffee with Kate and Sawyer.
Episode lowlight: Love triangle...blech.
20. Born to Run (1x22, Kate)
Episode highlight: Walt warns Locke not to open the hatch.
Episode lowlight: Love triangle...blech.
Honestly, I like Kate. She's my third-favorite character among the original Lostaways (behind Jack and Sun). But her centric-episodes generally fall flat as the flashbacks involve endless variations on the fugitive theme, and the "real-time" portions often center on her love life. It is very much possible to love a character and hate her flashbacks.
19. The Moth (1x7, Charlie)
Episode highlight: Sayid gets knocked out as he attempts to triangulate the French transmission
Episode lowlight: The second cave-in
18. Hearts and Minds (1x13, Boone)
Episode highlight: The introduction of the idea of electromagnetic anomalies via Locke's compass
Episode lowlight: The hallucination-fakeout death of Shannon
17. Confidence Man (1x8, Sawyer)
Episode highlight: The reveal of Sawyer's backstory
Episode lowlight: Love triangle...blech
16. Tabula Rasa (1x3, Kate)
Episode highlight: The conversation between the party that heard Rousseau's transmission
15. ...In Translation (1x17, Jin)
Episode highlight: Locke confronts Walt about burning the raft
#2: Sun screams "Stop" in English...we knew, as did Kate and Michael, but it's still quite a bombshell
14. Special (1x14, Michael)
Episode highlight: Walt displays his abilities as the bird crashes into the window
#2: Claire stumbles out of the jungle
Episode lowlight: The CGI polar bear
13. Homecoming (1x15, Charlie)
Episode highlight: Claire and Jack have a chat that resonates more when we realize they are siblings
#2: Ethan confronts Charlie, again, creepily
12. Do No Harm (1x20, Jack)
Episode highlight: Aaron's birth
#2: Jack's determination to hunt down Locke at the end

DarkUFO's Episode Cup

The great LOST blog DarkUFO is running their annual Episode Cup, a bracket setup to pick the best LOST episode out of 64 choices (some are pre-polled, although next year there should be close enough to 128 episodes to just give a few byes and have every episode in the field). Anyway, they also have a contest where you can endeavor to predict the outcome of the voting and win a Season 5 DVD, or you can just vote in the daily polls when they start up.

As a way to give you an idea about my thoughts on the merits of various episodes, this is how the bracket would play out if I was the only vote. This is not my attempt to predict what the fanbase as a whole would vote for--it is just my personal opinion on which episode wins each particular matchup:

Taking Stock

Before the season I posted a list of 50 questions yet to be answered. I didn't intend it to be a comprehensive list, just 50 things that came to mind. Some of them are important and some of them are not. With another season in the books, let me break those original questions into three categories: answered by season 5, addressed by season 5, and unaddressed by season 5. Down the line I will post a list of questions raised during season 5, as well as those that I overlooked in compiling the original list.

Questions Answered by Season 5

3. Where and when did the island move to?
4. Was Jeremy Bentham murdered?
5. What was the incident?
6. What is the sickness? Is it the phenomenon described by Faraday and experienced by Desmond?
17. Who actually staged the wreckage?
21. Who does Abaddon work for?
22. Who are the “they” he refers to? Are they the Oceanic survivors, the Others, the freighter people?
24. How did Marvin Candle lose his arm?
26. Who was Radzinsky?
29. Is the white tennis shoe significant? Is it Christian’s?
35. Who is Ms. Hawking?
40. Why did Miles choose $3.2 million?
50. What the heck happened to Montand’s arm?

Questions addressed by Season 5

1. What is the monster?
2. Who is Jacob?
7. Does Christian really speak for Jacob, or for some other entity?
8. What is the true nature of the island? Where is it? Does it have a name?
9. What are “the rules”?
10. Why do pregnant women die on the island?
11. What and where is the temple?
12. Who built the four-toed statue, and why does it have four toes?
19. What does Widmore want with the island?
23. What was Rousseau’s team’s mission?
25. Is Richard Alpert really ageless?
30. Why can some people see or hear Jacob?
32. What is the ash around the cabin?
46. How did Ben summon the monster, and how much control does he have over it?
48. Did Widmore’s man really kill Nadia? Or was it Ben?
49. What is the history between Ben and Widmore?

Questions (largely) unaddressed by Season 5

13. Who does the glass eye belong to?
14. What happened to Annie?
15. Who are Adam and Eve?
16. Are Walt and Aaron actually special, and if so, why?
18. Who is the Economist?
20. Who carries out the supply drops, and how?
27. What is the relationship between Hanso, Widmore, and Paik?
28. Why was Libby in the mental institution?
31. Will anyone ever find the diamonds?
33. What is the Book of Laws, and what was Locke supposed to pick?
34. What is the significance of the 305 and 325 bearings?
36. Why was Ms. Klugh so adamant about being shot?
37. Who was Eko referring to (“you’re next”)?
38. How was Cindy flipped to the Others?
39. Did anyone find the message on the gull?
41. What are the whispers?
42. How was Ben able to communicate with Harper?
43. Why did Walt appear to Shannon?
44. What did Locke see when he saw the monster for the first time?
45. Why does Tom quote Alvar Hanso?
47. Why does Widmore have nightmares?

Viewed in this context, I'd say Season 5 was about as satisfying as possible from a mythological standpoint. We learned a lot about Jacob, the Monster, DHARMA, Rousseau, the sickness...most of the questions that were not addressed at all are insignificant and were included here on my own whimsy. The crucial questions that weren't touched on are those involving Annie, Adam and Eve, Walt/Aaron, and the whispers. Everything else of import got at least a little screen time.

5x16 and 5x17: "The Incident, pts. 1 & 2"

Amazing, although I have to say the first hour was better than the second hour. First some quick comments on ancillary aspects of the episode, and then on the amazing Jacob stuff...a Jacob-centric episode. Unreal.

We learn that Eloise is in fact the leader of the Hostiles circa 1977.

How about Rose, Bernard, and Vincent as a happy family, not wanting to be found, happy to have each other even in the face of death, and completely divorced from the internal politics of the rest of the group?

The Jack/Sawyer smackdown was years in the making, but I don't really care. I think both men are acting out of selfishness (Jack admits it openly at Sawyer's prodding, but Sawyer's real motivation is Juliet).

The most important scene in the history of LOST was the opening scene of this episode. It calls back a scene from "Pilot", a scene that perceptive people have been reminding us about since it aired:
LOCKE: Backgammon is the oldest game in the world. Archeologists found sets when they excavated the ruins of ancient Mesopotamia. Five thousand years old. That's older than Jesus Christ.
WALT: Did they have dice and stuff?
LOCKE: [nods] Mhhm. But theirs weren't made of plastic. Their dice were made of bones.
WALT: Cool.
LOCKE: Two players. Two sides. One is light … one is dark. Walt, do you want to know a secret?
In this scene, we see a man in white robe that we learn to be Jacob going about his day, preparing fish, and watching as the Black Rock sails towards the Island. A man in a black robe talks to him, wondering how they found the Island. Jacob says "We brought them here". The two engage in a conversation that will be analyzed a thousand ways to Sunday over the next nine months. Black Robe says, "Do you know how much I want to kill you?", but there is a loop of events that plays out over and over again, and he can only truly defeat Jacob by finding a loophole ("It only ends once...one time, I'll find a loophole"). It also always ends with mortal sin and corruption.

We then see Jacob appear to various Lostaways throughout their lives, sometimes nudging them towards their destiny on the Island, sometimes with seemingly innocuous messages.

1. He bails Kate out of trouble as she and Tom steal the lunch box for their time capsule, telling her not to steal anymore.

2. He gives Sawyer a pen so that he can continue writing his letter to the real Sawyer. But Sawyer's uncle comes and makes Sawyer stop. So is Jacob pure good? No, I don't think so. Jacob is prodding little Sawyer along on his journey that will lead him to the Island.

3. Jacob is the cause of Nadia's death, asking Sayid for directions as Nadia crosses the street alone. Again, not exactly good (nor evil).

4. We see early on that Ilana works for Jacob too. Her team really might be the good guys, despite Frank's comment that "People who are quick to tell you they're the good guys usually aren't". And what exactly is Frank a "candidate" for? Anyway, Ilana is heavily bandaged as if she had radiation burns or something when Jacob visits her in the hospital.

5. He is sitting on a bench as Cooper throws Locke from the window, and may in fact have resurrected him the first time. Interestingly, he is reading a book called Whatever Rises Must Converge.

6. He drops in on Jin and Sun's wedding, telling them not to take their love for granted.

7. He comes to Jack just after the fateful count to five operation, and we learn that it was Christian who taught him that technique. Jacob retrieves Jack's candy bar (Apollo, FWIW), telling him that it just needed a little push...just as Jacob has been doing to all of their lives.

8. He shares a cab with Hurley as he is released from jail, telling him about Ajira 316 and asking him to go back to the Island, while emphasizing that it's his choice. He also tells Hurley that he's not crazy and he's not cursed--in fact, he's blessed. And he gives him the mysterious guitar case, the contents of which we will need to wait until Season 6 to see I guess.

I thought that perhaps the first hour would show Jacob appearing to people and the second might show Black Robe (or "Esau" as some people are naturally calling him) visiting others, and we would see sides drawn up as such. But that didn't happen. It is interesting to consider which Lostaways Jacob never appeared to: Juliet, Miles, Claire, Faraday, Charlotte, Michael, Libby, Desmond, Nikki, Paolo, Boone, Shannon...now obviously many of those folks are no longer on the show and I wouldn't expect to see them back, but for those that still are, it may be noteworthy.

Ilana is clearly freaked out that the circle of ash around the cabin has been disturbed. "Someone else has been using it", and that someone else is up to no good. Specifically, it would seem, that somebody is pseudo Christian speaking on behalf of Black Robe, who it appears is also related to the Monster. And this entity set into action the course of events that would lead to Locke's ascension to the leadership, his death, and the accompanying loophole that eventually enabled him to kill Jacob.

I suppose we are to assume that the statue (Anubis?) is related to Jacob, as the knife sticks the parchment with his image to the wall of the cabin in the manner that someone might throw darts at a picture of their mortal enemy. And the cabin is torched.

Ben and Locke have a revealing chat at the former Lostaway camp (where someone (Sun) finally finds Charlie's ring in Aaron's crib), with Ben admitting that he faked talking to Jacob because he was ashamed, yet was as surprised as Locke when all hell broke loose. Locke goads Ben into killing Jacob by rehashing all of the trauma that he has gone through, and the seeming lack of gratitude he has received from Jacob for it.

It was great to see the Lostaways (and Dr. Chang, somewhat unwittingly although opposed to Radzinsky) all put their differences aside and band together to help Jack. Apparently the "rig to explode on impact" effort didn't work though, and it took Juliet to detonate Jughead. It was a heartwrenching scene as she was entangled and pulled down to her death(?) Also touching was Miles cry of "Dad!" as he saved Dr. Chang (although his hand isn't going to make it as we know). The Incident in general was awesome, and it did truly seem to be caused by the electromagnetism. In other words, Jack's efforts with Jughead may indeed have changed things.

The ending was epic. Ben claims not to know how the statue was destroyed, but neither us nor Sun know whether to believe that or not. We see that Ilana and Co. are not enemies to the Hostiles--while they may not know of each other, both she and Richard Alpert seem to be truly devoted to Jacob. He successfully answers the riddle of what lies in the shadow of the statue, and apparently his Latin translates to "The one who will guard us". But the contents of the crate are John Locke, the real, dead John Locke. And as I suspected, the current Locke is apparently posessed by the Monster/Black Robe.

He continues to goad Ben, telling him that "Things will change once [Jacob's] gone. I promise." Ben doesn't really know what's up as he admires Jacob's hand-woven artwork and listens to Jacob acknowledge that Black Robe has found his loophole. Jacob listens to Ben's sob story, but simply asks "What about you?" and reminds Ben that he has a choice. (People have always pointed out the importance of WANTING to do something on LOST, and Jacob tacitly confirms this. You always have a choice.)

The question about whether Ben is good or evil is finally answered for good. Faced with the choice of sacrificing himself on Jacob's behalf (knowing that if he does not do as Locke says, the Monster will "destroy" him) or casting his lot squarely on the side of evil, he chooses the latter. Ben's actions were always evil, but he had never fully committed to one side or the other until this moment.

As Jacob dies, he tells Black Robe "they're coming". But who are they? Ilana and her people, or the Lostaways who have just changed the story with the detonation of Jughead, erasing Black Robe's loophole? Black Robe kicks Jacob into the fire, Juliet detonates the bomb, and then the title card is inverted. The side of dark has taken control, at least for the moment.

I won't try to analyze everything right now--there's nine months for that. But I will say that "The Incident" has topped "Through the Looking Glass" as the top episode of all-time, and Season 5 has topped Season 4 as the best season of LOST. Let's see if they can do it one more time.

Finally, what was the fork in the outlet? My guess is that it may have been the first scene of the episode.

And in honor of Juliet:

When you're alone and life is making you lonely you can always go...downtown.
When you've got worries all the noise and the hurries seem to help I know....downtown.
Just listen to the rhythm of the traffic in the city, linger on the sidewalk...

Season Finale Pre-Thoughts

Spoiler Alert: If you don't want to know the title of the season finale, or the codename for the secret scene, don't read this post.

First, a couple miscellaneous comments:

Rewatching 1x14: "Special", it is a very good episode, but there's not a lot to comment on in retrospect. At the time, it appeared as if Walt would be a big piece of the puzzle, but now it seems as if he is on the backburner. Maybe he will make another finale drop-in. One throwaway that's a little more interesting now: Walt is studying birds of Australia in school, and he says something like "We're in Australia. Shouldn't we be studying birds of Egypt or something?" Maybe you really should be studying religious customs and practices of Egypt.

Rewatching 1x15: "Homecoming", another episode in the vein of "Special"...good, but plot-driven and so not a whole lot that resonates deeply four seasons later.

Season finales are always exciting, but sad as well, with another long hiatus ahead. And this time it's even worse, since this is the last time we'll ever go into the summer with a ton of things to analyze and ponder.

Yet here we are, so we may as well enjoy it. I'm going to try to take a stab on what will happen in the finale below, but first, it's always good to review previous finales for guidance. The summaries are not in precise on-screen order as I'm doing them from memory:

Season 1: "Exodus"--Unlike later finales, the frentic action has not already been set up prior to the start of the episode. The raft is on the verge of leaving and Boone has just died, but other than that, things are as peachy as they ever get for the Lostaways. Then Rousseau arrives and drops the bombshell that the Others are coming, and the creepy-awesome black smoke appears, and all hell breaks loose. The raft is launched and the trek to the Black Rock begins. The Monster strikes scaring the crap out of Arzt. We see that the Black Rock is a slave ship! Rousseau slinks off to kidnap Aaron. Arzt blows himself up. The Monster strikes again, attempting to pull Locke into a hole (would he have ended up at the altar?). Rousseau kidnaps Aaron, and as Sayid and Charlie catch up with her, we see that the black smoke may have been nothing more than a rouse. But then she tells us "They're coming for the boy". And sure enough, on the raft we see our first non-Ethan Other as Tom kidnaps Walt.

The secret scene: "The Bagel" is the scene in which Walt is taken...A+ twist.

Best moment of the finale: I think the reveal of the Black Rock as a beached ship is unbelievable. I didn't see that coming.

My episode grade: A- (you'll see, I really love finales). The only disappointment was that we didn't see what was in the Hatch, but seriously, did you expect to? What a perfect summer cliffhanger.

Season 2: "Live Together, Die Alone"--The dramatic return of Desmond aboard the Elizabeth enables Sayid, Jin, and Sun to comprise the most unlikely B-team of all-time, as Michael's handpicked A-team of Kate, Jack, Sawyer, and Hurley set out to kill the Others (I still can't believe Kate and Jack didn't deduce they were being played, but whatever. Sure, Jack knew through Sayid that Michael was a double agent of sorts, but even with Sayid's backup plan, they never would have been able to take the Others). Locke is obsessed with NOT pushing the button, and enlists Desmond's help to lock out Mr. Eko. Who tries to blast his way in with dynamite and only screws himself up, never to fully recover. We learn about Desmond and Penny's lost love in his flashbacks and we meet a certain Mr. Widmore for the very first time, while we also learn that the Elizabeth was named for Libby...which never is mentioned again, but oh well. Sayid, Jin, and Sun spot the four-toed statue, but are powerless to help as Sayid realizes they've been conned. Michael leads his A-team into a trap at the capsule dump, and they all get shot with tazer arrows. Desmond realizes that his failure to push the button on September 22 crashed 815, but Locke is beyond reason and insists on letting the countdown expire, which unleashes a massive amount of electromagnetic energy. Desmond turns the failsafe and the sky turns purple. The Others let Michael go as we realize that "Henry Gale" is their leader, and he declares "We're the good guys". They also let Hurley go to warn the other Lostaways not to come after Jack, Kate, and Sawyer.

The secret scene: "The Challah" is the Portuguese guys in the tent, which seemed like a non-sequitur at first. They detect and electromagnetic anomaly and phone...Penny. "Ms. Widmore, I think we found it." This gets a B- from me, as it was not particularly surprising that Penny was trying to find Desmond (as she told him earlier, "With enough money and determination you can find anybody.") But it is important as we for the first time are off-island, post-crash. The world still exists out there.

Best moment of the finale: I have to go with a tie here. The four-toed statue creeps even Sayid out and reveals the existence of ancient civilization. But equally creepy is the capsule dump, as you realize that the Pearl was the experiment and the Swan was real.

My episode grade: A. Season Two may have been weaker than Season One, but they brought it in the finale.

Season 3: "Through the Looking Glass"--Most of the camp sets out for the radio tower as Jin, Bernard, and Sayid stay back to shoot dynamite and blow up the Others. Charlie is being interrogated by Greta and Bonnie in the Looking Glass while Desmond sits knocked out in the boat. Bernard and Sayid hit their marks, but Jin misses and the few surviving Others capture them. Jack keeps everyone moving towards the radio tower as Sawyer and Juliet return in a rescue attempt and Ben sets out with Alex to intercept the larger group. He orders a mock execution of the captives which only sends Jack into a rage and intensifies his resolve. Walt appears to a suicidal Locke, telling him he still has work to do. Desmond is forced to swim down to the Looking Glass by Mikhail's rifle, and Ben orders Mikhail to kill the women. He does so, but also appears to be killed himself, and not before Bonnie can spill the fact that the jamming code is "Good Vibrations". Hurley saves the day at the beach by taking a DHARMA van and running down Others. Charlie turns off the jamming equipment and makes contact with Penny, who tells him that the freighter is not hers. But Mikhail was not dead after all, and he sets off a grenade, flooding the radio room. Charlie drowns and writes "Not Penny's Boat" on his hand as Desmond watches helplessly. The jamming equipment off, Naomi attempts to call the freighter, but Locke knifes her in the back before she can. Jack goes through with it, despite Locke's threat to kill him too, and rescue seems imminent.

Oh yeah, Jack's flashbacks seem off. He's split from his wife, torn up by a newspaper obituary, pondering suicide, and downing copious amounts of booze and pills. When on earth did this happen in his life? Then he has a clandestine meeting at the airport with...Kate? Wait a second, this isn't a flashback. It's a flashforward.

The secret scene/Best moment of the finale: They're one in the same here..."The [Rattle]snake in the Mailbox", as it finally is fully revealed that the episode was a flashforward, is the greatest moment in LOST history...A+. I knew there was something off about the flashbacks, as I couldn't place when in Jack's life all of this would have happened, but I have to admit that it wasn't until the final installment that I figured it out. It didn't take Kate coming out of the shadows for me to realize it, at least; it was when I saw that Jack had maps of the Pacific strewn all over his floor. Suddenly it was clear to me that he was trying to find the Island.

Episode grade: A+. The greatest LOST episode of all-time. The on-island action didn't expose a lot of mythology, but it marked an explosive end to the Lostaways v. Others as the primary conflict of the show, and it was satisfying to see the Others finally get their heads handed to them. But what really puts this episode over the top was the flashforward, which changed LOST forever. No longer was it primarily a story about a group of survivors trying to escape an island; it was a story of a group of people inexplicably and inescapably drawn to The Island.

Season 4: "There's No Place Like Home"--This post is long enough as is, so I'll limit this to the events of Parts 2 and 3 (Part 1 aired two weeks earlier as a standalone episode).

Faraday is ferrying people from the beach to the freighter, but Charlotte and Miles want to stay behind. Kate and Sayid are forced by the Others to help spring Ben, which works as they apparently kill all of the mercenaries. Ben allows them to leave the Island on the chopper, much to Kate's amazement. Jack and Sawyer arrive at the Orchid, where they find Hurley safe and sound, but Locke has been unable to find the elevator to go down to the station. Jack and Locke have a typical Jack/Locke chat, with Locke talking about destiny and Jack looking at him like he's a fool (he is). Locke says the Island is a "place where miracles happen" and that those who leave the Island are going to have to lie.

Meanwhile, Frank, Sayid, Kate, Jack, Sawyer, and Hurley take off in the helicopter. Jin, Desmond, and Michael desperately try to stave off the dynamite explosion on the freighter by freezing the firing mechanism with liquid nitrogen. Locke and Ben descend deep into the bowels of the Island to the Orchid, and to stop Locke's obnoxious questions, Ben has him watch the orientation video for the station in which Dr. Chang (or whatever pseudonym he's using) talks about the station being built near a pocket of "negatively charged exotic matter" and time travel. But the elevator eerily ascends back up and when it returns, a not-dead (thanks to some amazing body armor) Keamy is on it. Ben loses it and stabs him, and as Keamy's heart stops, the light on the bomb turns red.

The helicopter's fuel tank had been damaged in the shootout with Keamy's crew, so Sawyer jumps to save fuel and swims back to the Island. As the helicopter lands, Desmond warns about the dynamite and everyone scrambles to get the chopper ready to fly and collect Lostaways from the freighter. In all the chaos, Jin gets caught on the deck below, and the helicopter takes off without him, but now with Desmond, Sun, and Aaron. Christian Shepherd appears to Michael, telling him "you can go now", and the bomb explodes, killing Michael and (presumably) Jin, sinking the freighter, and causing poor Sun to shriek like a banshee.

Down in the Orchid, Ben blows a hole in the time travel chamber and puts on a parka. He instructs Locke on where to find the Others, of whom he is now leader. Ben enters an icy chamber with hieroglyphics and a donkey wheel. Struggling to turn the wheel, he looks up and says "I hope you're happy now, Jacob". As the wheel turns, the familiar purple sky and electromagnetic hum return, except this time, the Island vanishes. The helicopter has nowhere to land, so they crash in the ocean. Everyone survives and they float until nightfall, when they see a boat. As the boat approaches, Jack realizes that Locke was right and says they need to lie. The boat is called "Searcher", and Portugese men are aboard and...holy crap, it's Penny's boat. Everyone's favorite couple gets their happy reunion. A week later, the Oceanic 6 disembarks from the boat in a raft to make their way to the island of Membata, with cover story in place.

In flashforwards, we see all of the Oceanic 6 talk about "Jeremy Bentham" at some point or another. We see Walt visit Hurley; Sayid subsequently kill a man outside Santa Rosa and whisk Hurley away (from his chess game with Mr. Eko); Kate have a dream in which Claire says "Don't you dare bring him back"; and Jack go back to the funeral home, where Ben is waiting for him with a plan to get back to the Island. And they peak in the casket to see that Jeremy Bentham is John Locke.

The secret scene: "The Frozen Donkey Wheel" is not the actual frozen donkey wheel scene earlier in the episode, but the reveal of John Locke in the coffin. I give this a B...the name Bentham was a huge hint towards Locke, but I thought Ben's fake passports as seen in "The Economist" and "The Shape of Things to Come" set up a nice headfake, leaving me to believe that it was Ben in the coffin. Prior to the episode, I thought the three candidates were Michael, Ben, and Locke. However, once Michael got blown up and Ben showed up at the funeral home, it was no longer much of a mystery to me, although it was jarring to see Locke lying there.

Best moment of the finale: Relationship fans will always love the Desmond/Penny reunion. I prefer the Island moving, but no one scene stands out. This episode is gold from start to finish.

Episode grade: A. A very good episode, with the mythological meat (the Orchid, the frozen donkey wheel) that "Through the Looking Glass" lacked.

So, if history is any guide, we can expect:

1. An awesome episode
2. A solid secret scene
3. A generally negative outcome for the Lostaways (I would file only the events of "Through the Looking Glass" as positive on the whole)

Leaving history aside, we know that this episode will be steeped in mythology, as both Locke's quest to kill Jacob and the Incident are in play. The episode title, in fact, is "The Incident". We first heard Marvin Candle talk about this in 2x03, and now we will actually get to see it go down through the eyes of our characters. We also know that the secret scene will be called the "fork in the outlet", a name that we can probably assume is not particularly meaningful on its own as it was chosen by fans on the podcast. It does however conjure up images of electromagnetic disasters, which is probably the point.

I am going to take a wild stab at guessing how the finale will play out. Don't worry, the only spoilers that have gone into this are the episode title and secret scene codename. This prediction will likely be surely off-base, but here goes:

Richard will convince Eloise to consult with Jacob, or get Charles to stage a coup to prevent the detonation of Jughead. Eloise will leave the Island in some way. Perhaps she will be exiled, perhaps she will be made to turn the donkey wheel (perhaps after learning of the sub evacuation, the Hostiles will take this as an opportunity to throw DHARMA for a loop; with a large number of their people gone, the time it will take to re-find the Island will cripple the DHARMA society left behind). This will explain how Daniel had never previously been to the Island. Jack and Sayid will be somehow subdued.

Miles, Jin, and Hurley will work with Dr. Chang to attempt to prevent the Incident. That group will go to Horace and explain the truth to him, leading to Horace calling the sub and ordering Sawyer, Juliet and Kate returned to the Island. They will be dropped off and the sub will continue on its merry way. Radzinsky will be sent to his precious Swan and made to be on hand personally when the Incident occurs. However, the Incident will not occur due to any sort of DHARMA drilling accident.

The Incident will in fact be triggered by the actions of John Locke in 2007. His group will reach Jacob, but they will be intercepted by the Ilana/Bram group, who in fact work for Jacob. They will have arrived from Hydra Island in one of the outriggers (as seen in "The Little Prince"). There will be a showdown between these two groups, and somehow the fabric of space-time will be ruptured. This will manifest itself in another purple sky event, which will result in all of the Lostaways currently in 1977 (and perhaps, inexplicably, a few DHARMA folks--Amy, perhaps) being flashed back to the future. At this point, Claire will emerge, seemingly unscathed, from Jacob's cabin. The DHARMA folk left behind will attribute this to the electromagnetic energy (which does in fact exist, just not in the exact form of the Incident) and set up the button pushing system. The secret scene will be a meeting between Jacob and the leader of his group (Ilana? Bram? Some other person) in which at first his voice will be heard as he plots his war strategy against the Hostiles/Others. The camera will pan back to reveal that Jacob is Desmond, the "miraculously special" character who has a propensity for becoming unstuck in time. LOST

Alternatively, Jacob is Ray Shepherd, which will explain why Christian speaks on his behalf and why Claire was of particular interest.

Will a main character die? Yes. Sayid will die, possibly sacrificing himself. He was always motivated to leave the Island and find Nadia. He did, but now she's dead and he's broken. He was brought back against his will and is cool with the Jughead plan because "at least it would put us out of our misery". Not healthy.

Will we see the Monster? No.

Will we see Jacob? "See" is a relative term with Jacob, but yes, in some respect.

Will we see the statue? Yes.

Will we hear whispers? Yes.

Will somebody say "don't tell me what I can't do"? Yes.

Will we see Walt? No.

I look forward to seeing how wrong I was about all of this in just a few hours. "Dreadfully" is the optimistic estimate. My comments on the episode will be a lot sparser than usual as I am not going to sully my finale viewing experience with notetaking--I'm gonna enjoy this for all it's worth. See you on the other side.

5x15: "Follow the Leader"

A quintessential set-up episode, with three key plot strings being wound together, and so that is how I will give my thoughts on the episode.

The least interesting is the DHARMA action:

Did we know that Radzinsky's name is Stuart? Anyway, we already knew he was unhinged, but then he goes so far as to declare a coup against Horace, who seems to be a genuinely nice guy but is a pushover (it seems even Ben feels the same way as he treats his body with respect after the Purge). What about the research at the Swan is so important to him that he snaps at Horace, Chang, and everybody else? Is he just a zealous scientist or is there something more personal about it? What do you want to bet he ends up on Swan duty as a pseudo-prison, and one that he built himself? Kind of mirrors the past Losties creating some of their own torment.

Phil hit the girl. See, I told you he was trouble. Sawyer and Juliet sell out the Hostiles location for a ticket on the sub, with Sawyer hilariously saying they'll buy Microsoft and bet on the Cowboys in the Super Bowl.

Luckily, only Dr. Chang spied Hurley stealing food, although he was surprisingly amenable to believing they were time travelers (I always expected him to believe, just not so easily after reacting so harshly to Faraday last week). I love that he asked Hurley who the president was--Hurley asked that same question when they first arrived. Good transition between Miles saying Faraday's been right about everything so far and dead Faraday.

So Kate ends up on the sub with Sawyer and Juliet. Oy. Will they be flashed off the sub? Go back to Ann Arbor and meet the DeGroots? I would ask if the sub turns around, but we know that baby Miles and Charlotte leave the Island. And as many suspected, we see that Chang kicked his wife and baby out in order to save them from the imminent calamity.

On to the Hostiles (1977):

Jack certainly was energized by Daniel's speech, and now believes that this is the destiny he was brought back to achieve. He goes on to break Kate's heart by saying that enough of their experience was misery. Seriously, Kate, how many people died? How many times did you get captured by the Others? All that so that you could dump Jack because neither of you could ever get over Sawyer? Then Kate twists the knife back on him by saying "He thinks he knows [what he's doing]". Oh well, these crazy kids will end up together in the end, regardless.

Eloise is a believer, though, and her love interest (complicated, as Richard tells Jack) Charles is not. And she seems pretty tender in observing her son's dead body, despite the cold manipulation that she will commence in order to bring him to this point.

Nice, well-timed reentrance by Sayid in order to save doubting Kate from being shot by the Hostiles. So Jughead is buried under New Otherton, and their is an entrance to the tunnels through the river. I can roll with that. First, though, the Jack/Kate/Sawyer summit is some classic Season 1 type stuff, with Kate spoiling the boys fun, wondering when it became okay to kill kids and set off hydrogen bombs. Who would have ever thought, when we saw a similar showdown between these three over torturing Sawyer, that one day they'd be doing the same re: time travel, and that the show would still resonate?

I had to root for Kate, though, as she told Jack that he sounded just like Locke and that Locke was crazy. Hearing Jack say that maybe he was wrong was inevitable but disappointing. My prediction: Jack's gone too far in the faith direction. As the Season 2 premiere title said, "Man of Science, Man of Faith". Jack's full potential will be reached when he properly combines the two.

So DHARMA built New Otherton on top of Jughead. Oops. And the bomb is in catacombs similar to those inhabited by the Monster. I guess these are the "Cerberus vents" on the blast door map. I love Sayid's straightforward reasoning in joining Jack's crusade: "if you're right, you'll save us all and if not, at least you'll put us all out of our misery" Methinks that just as Sun wants a reunion with Jin at all costs, Eloise wants to take back shooting Faraday at all costs, etc. so too does Sayid want to try to save Nadia. But I'm afraid that all of these folks are letting their desire to change the past cloud their judgment in their present.

At least Sayid is still analyzing every situation, pointing out that Ellie's desire to detonate Jughead may just be in order to wipe out DHARMA. But Jack trusts her because she sent them there thirty years later. If she'll use her own son, Jack, what makes you think she won't use you?

So how did they get the bomb down there? Can the Monster carry a bomb?

Finally, the most interesting portion of the episode: Locke and the Others circa 2007:

Richard doesn't look particularly thrilled to see Locke, and that only continues to intensify throughout the episode. When I learned this was a Richard-centric episode, I was hopeful we'd see some true Richard flashbacks. Alas, if that ever happened it would have to be a Season 6 episode, as it would be mythological overload.

We get confirmation from Ben that Richard serves as something of an advisor to the leader of the Others, and throughout the episode it seems clear that he does just that and no more, not able to stop Locke's actions, which he clearly fears.

Unfortunately, Richard tells Sun that he watched them all die in 1977. Suddenly, "whatever happened, happened" doesn't sound so good, much to my disappointment.

What an amazing reveal that it was Locke who told Alpert to expect him wandering near the Beechcraft, and told him what to say, including the "bring them back" plea. So apparently Locke himself is the genesis of bringing the Oceanic Six back, and it remains a mystery as to why he did. Certainly, Ajira 316 involved some non-Locke forces wanting the O6 back as well, so it's an open issue.

What is really wild about this scene, though, is that Richard chuckles that at least Locke didn't have to die, when in fact, he did. Ben and Richard share a look that can only be described as dread.

Ben truly looks shaken up by all this, to an even greater extent than he did when he saw Locke alive. When Locke tells him the Island told him the time to be there, Ben is stunned that the Island spoke so clearly. And then Locke drops the bomb...Ben has never seen Jacob.

We were certainly led to believe in the "Man Behind the Curtain" that Ben could hear Jacob. But seeing apparently wasn't part of the deal.

Locke addresses the Others and tells them that they are all going to go see Jacob, whom none of them has ever seen. This causes him to be greeted warmly by his people, as Richard confides in Ben that "John Locke is going to be trouble". And we are reminded that there is still a group of Others at the temple. Hmmm.

Finally the scene to end all scenes, as the Others set out on their trek. And how could there be a season finale without a trek? Ben shares with Locke Richard's concerns about his plan, offers his help to bring the Lostaways back together (as Locke bald-faced lied to Sun was something Jacob could facilitate for them), and says (with apparent conviction, although this is Benjamin freaking Linus) that his purpose now is to serve John. And the bomb is dropped: Locke intends to kill Jacob.

Is Locke seeking revenge for his own death? Is Jacob in opposition to the will of the Island, and if so, who does represent the will of the Island? The Monster? Can Jacob even be killed?

I'll try to sketch out some thoughts on how the Finale will go down in my pre-post next week, but I have no clue, and I like it that way. It should be a wild ride.

Also, an appropriate episode title this week, as we see people struggle with the decisions of the leader in each of the three plot threads. Radzinsky launching a coup met with no resistance, Kate abandoning Jack's leadership, Locke asserting his own over the Others despite Richard's hesitancy. I'm sure the writers of LOST do not share my political beliefs, but I think questioning leadership is as timely a topic as it has been in the United States in seventy years.

5x15 Pre-Thoughts

Here we are, at the penultimate episode of the penultimate season. Some disjointed thoughts:

After Faraday's comments about undoing the chain of events that lead to Flight 815 crashing on the Island, it has become a popular theory that either the season finale or the series finale will see the plane landing safely at LAX. I don't buy this, for a number of reasons. One is that from a story perspective, it would wipe out five years of the show, and what would the fun be in that.

But within the logic of the LOST universe, I don't buy it either. Why? One reason is that all of Faraday's efforts to change the past failed. The Lostaways may well attempt to go through with his plan or some variant thereof, but I think they will end up in the same place--in fact, I think they will likely do something that will only make things worse when they inevitably return to the present, and help set up one of the major conflicts of Season 6.

I mentioned in my comments on "The Variable" that it was nice to see a token amount of concern for Desmond's well-being out of Widmore. While Widmore seems to detest Desmond in "Live Together, Die Alone" and "Flashes Before Your Eyes", this episode and "The Constant" both see him displaying a more magnanimous attitude.

Perhaps Widmore's actions towards Desmond can be explained in the same way that Eloise's towards her own son can: necessary steps to take in order to ensure that what is supposed to happen happens. And Daniel's journal may provide them with the requisite information to orchestrate those schemes.

I don't have a comprehensive theory to go along with this, but I have a cool name for a theory of why Widmore and Hawking act as they do: the "Hey Jealousy" theory, after the great Gin Blossoms song: "The past is gone but something might be found to take its place"

Suppose that somehow the past has not just been changed, it has been erased. And thus the Lostaways are needed to go back in time and undertake actions to recreate a different past that nonetheless will produce similar outcomes. Under this half-baked theory, something always happened in 1977 to cause Ben to be taken to the Temple, but it wasn't Sayid shooting him. The lives of people have been manipulated in such a manner so that they will engage in actions similar to those that occurred in the now-erased past.

Inane? Of course. But I liked the "Hey Jealousy" tie-in so much that I had to come up with something.

I wonder if Jack and Richard are going to have a chat in this episode. I don't believe they have ever met--Richard has met Locke, Kate, Sawyer, Faraday, etc. but I don't believe we've ever seen him and Jack on the screen at the same time. I could be wrong though.

Rewatching 1x12 "Whatever the Case May Be"...yeah, not much of value here. No mythology, a convuluted Kate backstory...it is the weakest episode of Season 1. The biggest takeaway for me was the introduction of the iconic waterfall (where the Ajira 316 flashees show up). Oh yeah, and Shannon being hot.

Since that rewatch was so stimulating, I also watched 1x13: "Hearts and Minds". I'm sure many people hated this episode because of the hallucinogenic fakeout death of Shannon, but it's a very good episode regardless. It features some comedy (a number of great Jin/Hurley scenes), the first hint of electomagnetic weirdness (Locke's compass, which Sayid rights off as "obviously defective"), some character stuff (Kate discovers that Sun speaks English), the first flashback crossover (Boone and Sawyer are in a Sydney police station at the same time), our first clear look at the Hatch, and Locke at his finest (in tune with the Island and creepy as hell). A couple of interesting takeaways--the paste that Locke puts on Boone's head (triggering his hallucination that convinces him to let go of Shannon and become a full-fledged Locke acolyte) also makes him see Locke as a deranged creep. Now perhaps that was just what he was already thinking (Locke did knock him out and tie him up, after all), but interesting nonetheless. The other is that Locke startles Sayid in the jungle, with Sayid saying he did not hear him. While the silent jungle walkers aspect of the Others has been toned down a little (arguably being revived a bit in Season Five), Locke certainly fits with his new tribe in this regard.

When looking at a key episode of a season (I would include the premiere, the penultimate episode, and the finale in this category), I have always found it helpful to consider similar episodes from previous seasons. So, for penultimate episodes (I am not including first parts of the finale, even if they aired on a different night as in the case of "Exodus, pt. 1" and "There's No Place Like Home, pt. 1":

1x22 "Born to Run"--the worst penultimate ever, IMO, it did very little to set up the finale, other than to finalize who would go on the raft as Kate's attempt to pin Michael's poisoning on Sawyer rather than herself and Sun backfired. Quite frankly, this was one of the weaker episodes of Season 1, despite the fact that I like Kate.

2x22 "Three Minutes"--we see Michael's time with the Others, which was really the first upclose look we ever got at the Others (although it was their B team of Tom, Klugh, and Pickett that got the most screen time, and they were conning Michael with the hillbilly survivalist act). This episode was very strong, and sets up the finale with the finalization of the attack plan, Hurley's decision to tagalong, Sayid's conclusion that Michael was betraying the group, and the arrival of Desmond and the Elizabeth at the end (it's still a shame no one ever told Libby that there was a Scottish guy named Desmond in the Hatch).

3x21 "Greatest Hits"--the best and last Charlie episode was a perfect setup for the finale, with Jack unveiling his "blow 'em all to hell" plan, Karl arriving to warn of the imminent Others attack, Charlie and Desmond setting out for the Looking Glass, and of course Charlie arriving at the Looking Glass to be promptly held at gunpoint by Greta and Bonnie.

4x11 "Cabin Fever"--more in the vein of "Three Minutes" than "Greatest Hits", this episode puts in place the essential action of the finale without doing as much to commence it. Most of the time is spent with Locke, Ben, and Hurley, with Richard Alpert's (and Widmore, too?) contact with Locke throughout his life (prompted by the events of "Jughead") making for an awesome flashback. Christian tells Locke to move the Island, and Frank tosses out the phone to track the helicopter.

What can we conclude from this? With the exception of "Born to Run", all of these episodes are quite strong, which is good news. In what could be considered a surprise, what with the plot threads coming to a head on the Island, the flashbacks (again, "Born to Run" excluded) were excellent. I learned a bit more detail about this week's episode than I had wanted to, but I'd say it sounds like the trends will hold.

5x14: "The Variable"

A great, great episode, (#3 for me this season behind "This Place is Death" and "Dead is Dead") although a very sad ending as Faraday was one of my favorite characters. But I guess if he is indeed dead and someone had to go, better him than one of our few remaining original characters.

We get confirmation that Eloise hates Linus, as Penny's assumption that Ben is her son revolts her.

Dan seems to be bitter about the destiny thing as he's chatting with Jack--that certainly becomes more fleshed out as the episode proceeds, but how much more would he be with the ending?

Along those lines, it is ironic that Eloise uses words like "destiny" when forcing young Daniel into math and science. The duality of the man of science and man of faith is once again on display, and suggests that LOST walks a middle ground between the two. He is also, by my count, at least the fourth main character to play the piano, joining Charlie (no surprise), Jack, and Ben.

Also interesting is young Daniel's assertion that "I can make time [for playing the piano]". More than you know, Danny.

We see the opening scene of the season, as the DHARMA workers excavate the donkey wheel. But then we see that Daniel attempts to tell Chang that the electromagnetism at the Swan is 30,000 times greater than that at the Orchid (but then why is the wheel there? The wheel seems pretty flipping powerful). Oh yeah, and that he's from the future and Miles is Chang's son. All to make sure that Chang would do what he was supposed to do.

At first I found the meeting of the Lostaways in Sawyer's house a little jarring--that there were so few of them left. But then you remember that Locke, Sun, Sayid, and Claire are all still kicking around somewhere and it makes more sense. And I certainly hope that they plugged Phil's ears or something, because otherwise he's going to have a heckuva story to tell.

Although perhaps that will be the saving grace for our Lostaways. I still believe that Chang will heed the warnings from the future.

I was surprised to see that Daniel got a personal recruiting visit from Widmore, who tells him that the island could heal his memory loss. This scene is great, as we also learn that it was in fact Widmore who faked the wreckage.

Daniel can't help himself and warns Charlotte, telling him that Chang will order an evacuation. What will convince Chang to do this in the four hours before the Incident?

The shootout between Jack and Kate and Radzinsky and company was really anti-climactic; but I guess they needed to throw some action in there somewhere.

Daniel offers his new grand theory of time, which is that people are variables and they can change the course of events. He believes that they can stop the Incident by detonating Jughead and destroying the pocket of energy. But how will they evacuate an entire island in that time period? Oh well, he also heavy-handedly foreshadows that this is their present and any one of them can die at any time. He also thinks that his mother can help them get to where they need to go in time…and where is that exactly? I assume it's 2007, but perhaps it is somewhere else.

Is that really what the Lostaways would want, though? Kate's expression seemed to betray that she was thinking this--"So I'd still be a prisoner?" We know Locke would hate it. And I believe that it can't happen. They may try and try, but they will fail, as losing 95% of what we've seen on LOST would be tough to swallow.

How awful is the scene in which Eloise convinces Daniel to go to the Island knowing what we know now? "It'll make me proud" makes Eloise the coldest character in LOST annals…colder than Ben, colder than Keamy, colder than Michael's ex-girlfriend (I've always had a personal animus for her, although certainly one of those things is not like the others).

Her relationship with Daniel best parallels the relationship between Christian and Jack. Heavy guilt-tripping in an attempt to manipulate their children, while using the bait of the approval they never gave out in even the tiniest doses.

So how about the last scenes off and on island? We learn that Desmond is okay, which is no surprise, although it remains to be seen how he will fit into the rest of this story. Eloise tells Penny that "For the first time in a long time, I don't know what's going to happen next".

It really sizzles in the encounter between Eloise and Charles, though. We learn that they are the parents of Daniel, and we see Eloise bellow "Don't talk to me about sacrifice!" Both of those comments from Eloise make sense when we see Faraday get shot in the back by his own mother on the Island.

So it appears as if Eloise knew that Faraday was her son, and manipulated his whole life (perhaps even conceived him in the first place) in order to manipulate him to come to the Island. Because that's what had to happen, and Eloise is nothing if not devoted to policing time, as we learned when we first met her in "Flashes Before Your Eyes".

A couple of lingering questions, though:

1) What of the Comic-Con video? Obviously, those things are non-canon, but the Season Four Comic-Con tease in the form of the Orchid orientation video did play out in the show, so it's hardly outlandish to wonder if the Season Five tease would as well. I would not in anyway be upset if it proves to be completely non-canon, but I've already seen people ripping others on the net for even mentioning it's existence. Anyone who gets uptight and defensive about theories on a TV show is a grade-A jackass.

2) It's odd that Richard doesn't seem to recognize Faraday, as they did meet back in 1954. However, it is quite possible that he does and simply doesn't do anything to demonstrate it. It is nice to see that he is a little upset that Eloise plugged Daniel. And what would have happened had Daniel shot at him?

3) It was also nice to see that Widmore had at least token concern for Desmond's well-being. The auction house/bathroom (boy, that sounds kind of dirty out of context) scene in "The Constant" seems to indicate that Widmore's true emotion towards Des is something less than contempt.

My takeaway: whatever happened, happened. Faraday comes bouncing back with a brand new theory about variables, and he gets shot by his own mother. You can't change the past. But you may well be able to land yourself in a big pickle by trying to do so.

5x13: "Some Like It Hoth"

After the brilliance that was both "Whatever Happened, Happened" and "Dead is Dead", a character-focused episode had to be expected, and was likely necessary. And the good news is that it focused on Miles, giving him his first solo spot in the limelight. A warning for the bottom of the post: if you consider material like the Comic-Con video to be spoilers, don't read it, because I'll discuss that video and how I think it fits in to the end game of Season Five.

Obviously the big news right off the bat is that Miles is indeed Dr. Chang's son, and that he possessed his abilities from a young age--freaking out an already hesitant prospective landlord. What is interesting is that I believe this makes Miles the first chrachter to actually confirmed, on screen, in the same time and place as his past self. We have seen other occasions in which someone was in the same place (like Sawyer and Locke in "The Little Prince", but never have actually seen a character look at himself in the past).

I love the Sports Illustrated with Tommy Lasorda as the new manager of the Dodgers. Baseball + LOST = awesome.

The secrecy about grid 334 and the Swan station throughout the episode is funny, as they have a massive construction project going on there. How would the Hostiles not notice this blatant truce violation? And since the station had to be built at that site, it does lend credence to the idea that Jughead may be buried in the vicinity.

At first I thought the dead guy looked like Gerald DeGroot, and Horace knows that electromagnetism may be involved which is why the body is sent to Chang for inspection. Of course, Miles is able to tell us that this was "Alvarez" and that he was killed when his filling shot into his brain. I think Desmond circa "Live Together, Die Alone" is glad the button mechanism for releasing the charge was implemented.

"It'll help with global warming, which hasn't happened yet...so maybe we can prevent it". Funny. But as much as all longtime fans of the show have to love him, Hurley was being a jackass in the episode with his transparent attempts to get Miles and Chang to chat. Sure, he had noble aims, and it sort of worked, but he did it with no regard as to the delicate nature of their situation.

"It Never Rains in Southern California"...another nice music selection.

Kate's joining Hurley in the acting suspicious crowd, going from people worrying about whether there was a romantic subtext in her interactions with Roger and people probably wondering whether he's gonna take out his anger on her. Go look for Claire or something, Kate.

Chang's threat to Hurley about shoveling and weighing polar bear feces for ridiculous experiments are awesome. And he seems genuinely bemused at Hurley's "polar bear poop, right" affirmation that he understands the consequences of blabbing.

Felix, the man that Naomi hires Miles to communicate with, was delivering pictures of empty graves and the purchase order for a plane to Widmore. But was it the originals or the copies? It seems as if the hint is originals, which would indicate that Chuck faked the wreckage. But far from a confirmation as Tom had his own copies. The question of why "$3.2 million" is answered--apparently Miles will cross Widmore for twice the price.

Nice to know that the DHARMA Initiative has ridiculous posters in their classrooms as all low grades do. Perhaps we can even blame this scourge on DHARMA.

So "Hoth" refers to Star Wars. Star Wars + LOST = not awesome, but I'm sure there's a large portion of the audience that loves it. And here I was looking up Norse mythology on Wikipedia.

Phil...told you he'd be a problem. Now just how far is Sawyer willing to go?

So Chang is reading to baby Miles and generally being a good father. Cute. And Chang did seem interested in getting to know Miles a bit better, so at least Hurley did something positive.

Now, the big stuff. First, let me discuss the arrival of Faraday with respect to the end game of Season Five. I believe that at some point, Faraday is going to go to Chang and lay it all out (and Miles could play into this as well). The Incident, the Purge, time traveling, everything. This will be where the Comic-Con video comes into play, as Chang explained that he had intelligence from the future, that they knew they were doomed, and urging a reconstitution of DHARMA in order to save them. This event, and the associated events, will be the centerpiece of the season finale, I would think, just as the Comic-Con video of the Orchid station paid off in the Season 4 finale. Somehow, the Lostaways will escape back to present time, but in doing so will cause some breach in the space-time continuum, this being referred to by DHARMA folk as "the Incident".

Additionally, I think we will see Chang evacuate Miles and his wife out of concern, not disinterest, but that Momma Straume doesn't take well to it, or lies to Miles in an effort to keep him away from the Island. The question of how he got his abilities may or may not be answered by these events.

Finally, Miles' abduction by Bram (otherwise known as Ilana's meathead muscle) raises some big issues about the sides in the upcoming war. Bram (what a perfect name for a meathead) tells Miles that if he doesn't know what lies in the shadow of the statue, he's not fit for the Island. It would appear as if that riddle has greater significance than simply a password. Bram also asserts that he's on the team that's going to win.

So who is this team? It's certainly not Widmore, unless Miles' abduction is some sort of rouse. I don't believe it's the Others. I say this because while he and Ilana are pleasant enough when they talk, there doesn't seem to be any recognition, certainly not on Ilana's end at least. Nor did Ilana seem to have any idea about who Locke was, and if she were with the Others, she should have been briefed on Locke and Ben at the very least.

A third party would fit, as I believe that the Widmore/Ben schism may be more of a civil war than a fundamental disagreement over the Island. It's all about personal power and who's in charge. Of course, there are a lot of reasons to believe that Widmore/Ben is the real battle, too. This is something that should become clear in Season Six.

If there is a third party, who would it be? Hawking seems to fall with Widmore, albeit as quite an enigma. I don’t have an answer, but if there's a compelling reason to believe that Bram is with either Widmore or Ben, I'm waiting to hear it.