Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Extra Hour / Shannon might return


On Lostpedia and Aintitcoolnews.com today there's a couple of Lost news items that have surfaced. First is that the producers of Lost have asked ABC for an additional hour next year. Which I find odd. How would they know in advance that they need another hour to tell their full story, even before they begin shooting? I've guess they've got it more planned out than I imagined. But cool, nonetheless.


Second is that rumor has it that Maggie Grace has been hinting she may return in some capacity during Season 6. (She played whiny Shannon in season 1.) I don't think anyone has been begging for her return, however if it's true it would fit into my theory that Season 6 will open just like Season 1. After the jughead bomb detonates, Jack and his friends wake up back on the beach after the 815 crash and start living Season 1 over again, however things are slightly different this time and they slowly start to realize that they're stuck in a time loop that's been repeating for a while now. That's still my best guess for what's going to happen in Season 6.


On a side note, the other day I was thinking about the Time Loop theory and remembered the ending to the Lost: Via Domus video game. SPOILER ALERT, if you're planning on playing the game, skip this paragraph. (Also, if you're planning to play the game, prepare for a lot of frustratingly aimless walking around in dark caves, struggling to light a torch then accidentally falling into a hole.) Anyway, that game was about a photographer named Elliot who crashed on the island along with the 815 Losties. Over the course of the game, through flashbacks you learn how he got to the island, and see how off the island he witnessed the murder of his journalist colleague/love interest Lisa by the Hanso Foundation. But the ending of the game is what's really interesting (unless you like bartering with a video game version of Michael for mangos). At the end of the game, Elliot is about to escape the island in a boat when there's a flash (like when the hatch exploded) and he wakes up on the beach right after the crash, just like at the beginning of the game... except this time his friend Lisa appears and says "Oh my God, we made it, we're alive." So, he's experienced a time loop, except something's different this time around – this time, his friend was actually on the plane and survived. The producers later said the game was not canon, but I think this could have been a retraction because they realized they gave away too much...


One final crazy theory... I saw someone posted a theory on Lostpedia that a cool opening for Season 6 would be to see Jacob waiting on the beach for The Black Rock ship to set anchor, but when they do, Jack and Kate and the other Losties get off the boat. I'm not sure how that would be explained, but it would be cool. I guess maybe they could have gotten flashed back to the 1800s or whatever. Just an interesting thought.

Not sure what other Lost news is on the horizon. ComicCon 2009 happens in late July, so it will be interesting to find out what hints the producers give us towards Season 6 then. Stay tuned...

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Wired Magazine's LOST numbers puzzle SOLVED


Ok, so if you haven't seen last month's issue of Wired Magazine that was guest edited by J.J. Abrams, it's worth checking out. It was an issue all about mystery and it had secret codes hidden in it throughout the issue. Seriously hidden. Like, even some of the design elements were Morse code and Braille, and there was some cleverly hidden semaphore and binary messages, as well. All of the puzzles linked together to provide you with a message that led you to a website for another secret message. If you aren't planning to solve it yourself (which I would not recommend, because I think it's virtually IMPOSSIBLE), check out the insane solution here. It's really an amazing amount of effort put into one issue to make it cool. I can't believe anyone solved it.

But, more interesting to Lost followers, there was also a spread that featured a picture of Hurley's lottery ticket and had a bunch of numbers on it, obviously some kind of code. The solution for that is here. It's pretty amazing, basically one side of the puzzle told you to "Use the Letters Backward from end". For a while, folks had that solution on the web, but no one knew how to use it to translate the rest of the code.

Well, it turns out a clue to the solution was hidden in an episode of Lost. Remember when Widmore came to talk to Daniel in the episode The Variable? There was an issue of Wired magazine from the year 2003 on the chair that the camera showed briefly:


I thought that this was just a shout out to J.J.'s guest-editing gig, but apparently it was also a huge hint. There is an article in that issue on time travel, and if you go to the end of the article and count backward from the end using each number from the puzzle, you get this phrase:

The Four Toed Statue is Taweret.

Wow. Pretty crazy. So, now we have confirmation on which Egyptian God's foot Jacob chooses to reside in. Taweret is the hippo Goddess and is supposed to have something to do with fertility and protecting pregnancies, and may or may not be evil. Read up on her here. I have NO idea what on earth this could have to do with Jacob. Weird stuff.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

"The Incident" – The Time Loop Theory


"It only ends once. The rest is just progress." - Jacob.

"One day I'm going to find a loophole." – Jacob's enemy.

Ok, here's a theory. I think the island is stuck in a continual time loop.

Let's say that Juilet banging on the bomb really does reset everything. But instead of landing in LAX, the plane crashes on the island AGAIN. Desmond said that time has a way of correcting itself. So, if they're meant to be on the island, even if the hatch doesn't bring them there... maybe something else does. I don't know what, but it's still possible.

If I was a writer on Lost, that would actually be the most interesting angle to me. They've done stuff like this before. When we all thought, "There's no way they'll actually leave the island" they did – at the end of Season 3. After that, I'm sure it was like writing a whole new show for them. And then we thought, there's no way they'll bring Locke back, they did. Kind of. This show loves to go where you would think is unsafe. They love "Game-changing" finales. So, I think that it's a strong possibilty that Juliet's final sacrifice worked. But only to recrash them on the island, yet again.

So if there is a time loop going on, then I think the Losties have been on the island several times before, and that everything that has happened on the island has happened before. That's what Jacob was talking about when he said "It only ends once." I think life on the island keeps ending the same way. Jacob always gets stabbed, but then the Losties detonate the bomb and reset everything. And it all happens over again. Jacob keeps trying to change it by bringing people to the island but his nemesis thinks he's making it worse.

If I'm right (which I know is a long shot), then only Desmond can stop the loop now, because he's the only one that's truly special and doesn't answer to the rules of the time loop.

It's just a theory. But it explains a lot. It would explain how Jacob knew exactly what time to be waiting for Locke after his 8-story fall and even how he knew exactly when to be there to save Sayid from getting hit by the car that killed Nadia. It explains a lot of the fate-like things and coincidences we've seen all along. And it explains Jacob and his enemy's weird conversation and modern-sounding language.

Also, maybe things are slightly different everytime the loop resets. Like an alternate reality based on the one that came before. Maybe everyone who dies stays dead... and becomes part of the smoke monster consciousness? I dunno.

I'm still working this theory out, but what do you guys think?

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Lost Season 5 Finale – "The Incident"


Gadang. That's all I can say. That's like a dang, but with a Ga at the beginning. For more impact. That was a really amazing finale. There's a heck of a lot to talk about and a lot of new questions. Not the least of which is... why did Jacob give Jack a candy bar? If you had said to me a week ago, "In the season finale, I predict Jacob will give Jack a candy bar, because Jack's will get stuck in the machine" I would have told you that was a preposterous theory. But you would have been right, apparently. Maybe I should be reading start your blog. Ok, here goes.


JACOB MAKES A QUILT: So, we kicked the whole thing off with Jacob spinning yarn for a quilt. There's a shot of his foot, and I think he has five toes. Not four. But it's really hard to tell the way they shot it. What do you think? I'm guessing the four-toed statue is just four-toed because it's some weird Egyptian thing. But I just wanted you all to know I counted his toes, so, sleep easy.


DUDES ON A BEACH: Next, there was a confusing conversation in the past between Jacob and some other dude. It's maybe a little too early to tell, but I think this other dude is our official bad guy. We've waited a long time to meet him. I know he might really be the good guy, and Jacob could be bad, but I don't think so. Since we don't know his name, but will have to repeatedly refer to him as something, I propose we call him Anti-Jacob. My friend Zach suggested that his name might turn out to be Esau, which was Jacob's brother and enemy in the Bible. I think that's a good guess. And it looks to me as if this Anti-Jacob dude was the ghostly guy trapped inside the Cabin that we thought was Jacob before. My first clue towards that was that he had a really deep voice, like the "Help me..." that Locke heard in the Cabin back in the episode The Man Behind The Curtain. Because Jacob's voice wasn't that low. But we'll get into that more later. So Jacob and Anti-Jacob have a really interesting (and strangely modern-sounding) conversation as they watch what I assume is the Black Rock sail towards the island. Anti-Jacob accuses Jacob of bringing the people on the Black Rock to the island, and adds "Still trying to prove me wrong, aren't you?" Jacob says "You are wrong." Anti-Jacob says that people always come and fight and destroy, and it "always ends the same." Jacob replies: "It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress." Confused yet? I had to watch this part five times before I would even watch the rest of the episode. Anti-Jacob then ruins the conversation by saying, "Do you have any idea how badly I want to kill you?" He then says one day he will find a loophole. Jacob says, "When you do, I'll be right here." Which turns out to be true. What does all this mean? I have NO IDEA. I'm guessing that's what we'll be learning about in Season 6. But man, talk about shocking openings. And... pull out to reveal a giant statue with the face of Muttley.




YOUNG KATE LIKES THE NEW KIDS: Man, that New Kids lunchbox made me feel super old. I was in high school while 6 year old Kate was stealing lunchboxes. Anyway, that little actress did a dead-on Kate impersonation. Right down to the pained look of exasperated disdain. So, this is the first of a series of Jacob flashbacks where Jacob gets involved with our Losties. Here, he tries to tell Kate not to steal. But when does she ever listen?

RICHARD QUESTIONS JOHN: Richard wants to know how Locke came back from the dead. It turns out Richard was right to be suspicious of Locke, because he's apparently not really Locke. Remember when Richard said last episode "You look... different". He was a wolf in Locke's clothing the whole time, as we later learn he's possessed by Anti-Jacob, and apparently Evil. Evil Locke tells Richard that he wants to "thank" Jacob for bringing him back to life. He also says afterward they will have to "deal with" everyone from the Anjira flight. Does that include Sun?

ILANA, BRAM, AND FRANK: All ride across the water in one of the outrigger canoes. I was sure we were going to see them fire at another canoe in the distance, the one with Sawyer and Juilet in it from their time-jumping days, but we didn't. I'm actually really surprised by that. Maybe it was filmed but they took that scene out because it ruined the flow of the episode? Because I can't imagine them going back to explain that in Season 6. Especially since they tied up most of the other time travel loose ends this season. Anyway, Ilana thinks that Frank is a "candidate" to join their Jacob-loyal group. I like Frank, too; I'd let him join the club as well. For instance, when they open the casket to show Frank what we later learn is Locke's body, his response is: "Terrific". Followed later by "I really wish you hadn't shown me that." Ha.


YOUNG TOM SAWYER, HE'S A WRITING MAN: Next we see Sawyer as a kid writing his sad letter. Jacob, who seems like a pretty decent guy, really, hands him a pen. A REVENGE pen. Watching this, I wondered if Jacob also later told Richard to get Locke to lead Sawyer to the Black Rock to kill Locke's Dad in order to help him get his revenge?


JULIET ROCKS THE SUB ESCAPE: While Kate and Sawyer bicker, Juliet does some Kung Fu and gets them off the submarine. How Sawyer can still be looking at Kate when Juliet is around is beyond me. She's clearly the better of the two, which only makes what happens later more painful. And annoying. But we'll get to that in a bit.

JACK TELLS RICHARD TO TRUST LOCKE while Sayid disassembles his last bomb in the background. Well, I guess Jack was wrong, again. Evil Locke is not super trustworthy. Apparently, Jack has been played like a fiddle. Much like Locke was.


NADIA GETS HIT BY A CAR: This was a surprising scene, because it really looked like Jacob was making sure Nadia got killed. Is this because it was the only way he'd ever get Sayid back to the island? And who drove the car? Widmore's people? Ben? Jacob's people? So, Jacob wants Kate NOT to steal, Sawyer TO write a revenge letter, and Sayid to have no wife. I think in all cases his motivation is to get people where they need to be to go on Flight 815. Maybe bailing young Kate out of trouble and keeping her from going to the police as a child actually kept her from learning about consequences, and encouraged her on the road to blowin' up stepdads and robbing banks somehow. Interesting that we're seeing that Jacob was the one guiding everyone to be on Flight 815 (and Flight 316, in Ilana and Hurley's case.) If he's guiding people to be on Flight 316 then he must know of Anti-Jacob's plan, somewhat. Right? Because if Jacob knows he needs Ilana's help, then he knows that Evil Locke will be coming and Richard will need to see proof that he's an imposter Locke.


RICHARD HAS A SLEDGE HAMMER: I like how it took Richard a minute to remember which rock he should bust to knock a hole in the temple wall to get to the Dharma basement. It was the giant, lighter colored rock that you had to hit. It was like a Scooby Doo clue. Also, why didn't Dharma notice the temple ruins as they dug the basement? They're terrible scientists. Richard also demonstrates a unique form of submission as he conks his leader on the head with the butt of his gun. At least he didn't use the sledgehammer.

SAYID GETS SHOT! Well, I have to say my wife was really sad about this. Methinks she did protest a bit too loudly. Why do the hot ones die so soon? Sigh. Well, I guess his fate is still unknown, but Jin Paper-toweled up a lot of Sayid blood this episode (the Sawyer/Jack chat n' brawl must have cost Sayid about 12 pints alone), so we'll see. In 2010. Is that even a real year that's about to happen? Sheesh. Sounds so far away. Like, Rocketpack/Spaceship far. I did notice that Roger carefully shot Sayid in the same place that Sayid shot his son, Ben. Do you know what we call that? Dharma Karma.


ROSE AND BERNARD! Were lame the whole time. Seriously? They built a retirement home? Bernard even grew a Castaway beard. And, apparently they've stopped watching the show Lost. They don't care what happens anymore. But the question still remains... are they or are they not going to die in a cave as they play backgammon? At least they explained why they were never found by Jin. They were hiding. Also, what was up with Bernard's strangely poignant offer to Juilet to stay for tea? I guess this was supposed to show that Juliet realized that Rose and Bernard were living the life that she wanted to have with Sawyer.

BRAM EXPLAINS THE BODY: Frank and Bram have a moment where they talk about Locke's body, and Frank asks why they are carrying it with them. Bram claims they want to show everyone what they're "up against", and that whatever that is, is something "a hell of a lot scarier" than Locke's body. Bram also claims that they're the good guys. Frank is doubtful, but I think they're telling the truth.


GOODBYE, JACOB'S CABIN (OR NOT JACOB'S CABIN): So, Ilana goes into Jacob's cabin, obviously worried about something. Bram points out that the line of Ash has been broken. We've talked about this before, but a line of ash in movie clichés usually means you've trapped a spirit within the ash. Remember a few episodes ago in "Dead is Dead" when Locke went into the woods to do something, but we didn't know what? Maybe he went to find thia cabin and break the ash line to release the spirit. We see in a brief flashback that Ilana is in a hospital with what looks like a burn injury and Jacob comes in and apparently chats with her about getting back to the island. So, we know Ilana is loyal to Jacob. So what is she afraid of as she enters the cabin? I think the cabin is a place where a spirit has been imprisoned. The spirit can move the cabin around the island (like when it chased Hurley around). Christian Shephard is also a form that the spirit has taken. And I think Jacob trapped the evil Anti-Jacob in this cabin somehow. Ben found the weird cabin and didn't understand it, but pretended that it was Jacob to fool Locke, but was surprised when something actually happened as he was pretending. Since that time the evil spirit has been leading Locke and manipulating him. He appeared as Walt to trick him. He even appeared as Christian Shepard. Is this spirit the same thing as the smoke monster? I don't know for sure, but I do think it was the evil spirit that appeared to Ben in the form of Alex and told him to follow Locke. I think that's why Locke wasn't in the same room with Ben when it all happened. Also, the evil spirit likes paintings of dogs. Ilana comes out of the cabin and says "He isn't there. He hasn't been in a long time. Someone else is using it." Does that mean that Jacob used to use the cabin? Is the "someone else" Ben or the evil spirit of Anti-Jacob? Confusing. Then they burn the cabin to the ground, ignoring Frank's safety concerns.


JACOB HEALS LOCKE: So, Locke falling from the sky behind a calm Jacob was a very cool scene. And it also explains how Locke could survive the fall from the 30 gazillionth floor. Does this mean Jacob did want Locke to come to the island originally? But Anti-Jacob brought him back to life the second time?

LOCKE AND BEN HAVE A CHAT: So, this Evil Locke still has the memories of the old Locke, I guess. Because he asks Ben to explain what happened in Jacob's cabin long ago. Ben claims he made it all up because he was embarrassed that he had never seen Jacob. I think Evil Locke already knew all the answers to the this question, though. He just wanted the chance to manipulate Ben into killing Jacob, as he ends the conversation with a long speech about how Jacob made life hard for Ben. But was it true? Evil Locke says Ben's loyal service was betrayed by Jacob. But I would argue Ben never had loyalty to the island in mind. Jacob let him get cancer because he was leading the people with false intent. And then Alex got shot because Ben wasn't willing to leave the island, not because Ben was loyal to the island.


SUN AND JIN GET MARRIED: And Jacob is there to congratulate them. I'm not sure what this accomplishes for Jacob, but maybe he just wanted to encourage them to stick together. Also, he knew fluent Korean, as did Charlotte. Is there some connection between Charlotte and Jacob? Probably not, but who knows. Is Jacob the one who split Sun and Jin up, time-wise? Does he feel guilty about that, and that's why he's encouraging them to stay together, no matter what happens?


SAWYER AND JACK CHAT: Man, the next few scenes were kind of annoying. First off, Sawyer is right as usual and presents a really good case as to why Jack is a selfish jerk for blowing up the bomb. Jack admits he just wants to blow up the bomb to have another chance with Kate. I have to side with Sawyer. JUST GO TALK TO HER, JACK. Isn't saying I'm sorry I was drunk and stupid easier then blowing up a bomb while getting shot at? Also, on a side note, I'm really surprised Jin didn't realize that if they blow up the bomb and start time over, his daughter will never be born. Why was he helping them? Sawyer beats the crap out of Jack, and again, Jack deserves every last punch and groin kick.


JACK'S FLASHBACK: Ok, this one really gets me. During the Sawyer and Jack discussion we flash back to see Christian Shepard teaching his whiny son yet another life lesson. Then Jacob shows up... to deliver Jack his lost candy bar. Really? He brings Locke back to life, helps kill Nadia, helps Sawyer right his revenge letter, but Jacob only gives Jack a CANDY BAR? Maybe it's because he knows Jack is pretty ineffectual and doesn't really care if he comes back to the island or not. I mean, I know it's an Apollo Bar, which has some kind of weird relationship to the island, or at least Dharma, but still. Maybe if Jack didn't get that candy bar of encouragement, he would have gone home and started growing a pill-popping beard in another fit of depression. Man. I wish Jack had gotten sucked into the magnetic hatch hole.


JULIET CHANGES HER MIND: This part REALLY annoyed me. Why did Juliet change her mind about stopping Jack? It really didn't make any sense. Again, if you're mad at Sawyer, Juliet, just TALK TO HIM ABOUT IT. Don't blow up a bomb and start life over again. He's trying hard to be faithful, he can't help it that his ex-girlfriend won't stop weaseling her way into everything. I guess we're supposed to assume the divorce of her parents explains her inability to just work things out with Sawyer, but that part of the script was annoying to me.


JACOB GIVES HURLEY THE GUITAR: I guess there really is a guitar in that case. Charlie's guitar, I suppose, which maybe just helped with the whole historical accuracy thing of making sure that Flight 316 was as close to Flight 815 as possible. So, Jacob says that Hurley's ability to talk to dead people means that he's blessed. So, I guess that means the ghosts Hurley is seeing aren't evil ghosts like Evil Locke? Maybe some of the ghosts/spirits that appear on the show are supposed to be from Heaven and some from Hell? Is Jacob talking about being blessed a subtle reference to the biblical Jacob's blessing that he tricked his brother Esau into giving him?


JACK WEARS THE BOMB ON HIS BACK: And totally looks like a Ghostbuster. Just wanted to point that out. Bustin' makes me feel good!

MILES RELAYS MY THEORY TO EVERYONE: Miles suggests that the bomb causes the Incident. Is he right? I still think so. Which would mean Juliet is dead, Sayid is dying, the hatch gets built as always, and our Losties have flashed into another time period. Either the distant past, or, probably more likely, the present time of the island, where Sun and Richard are now. Or maybe they're still stuck in the 70s, but I doubt it. I guess there's also a chance they all died in the 70s with the blast and next Season will just be Sun, Richard and Frank plus all the other new people. But I doubt it.


THE HATCH GETS MAGNETIC: Phil gets stabbed with a metal rod. Pierre Chang loses his arm. Jack gets Toy Story-ed with a tool box to the back of the head. And, sadly, Juliet gets preposterously wrapped up in a plot-device-love-triangle-clearing up metal chain. I really didn't like that. I guess I'm a Suliet fan. Or Jawyer. Or whatever. Also, Kate's "I can't reach her..." Lame. She can reach a mango in the farthest branch of a tree she's scaling if she's hungry enough. If Sawyer doesn't turn anti-Jack after all this then I'll be surprised. And Anti-Kate. Farewell, Juliet.


RICHARD ANSWERS THE "WHAT LIES IN THE SHADOW" QUESTION: Or should I say "RICARDOS"? Apparently Richard answered the question in Latin, and according to Lospedia the translation is: "He who will protect/save us all". As far as the Ricardos goes, My guess is that Richard came to the island on the Black Rock, back when his name was Ricardos. Jacob healed him from something and gave him long life, asking in return that he act as his servant. Then eventually he got tired of being called Ricardos. Or, the island is Fantasy Island, and he's Ricardo Montalban. Ilana shows Richard Locke's body. So, Locke is really dead, I guess. That's sad news. If we really lost Locke, Juliet, Sayid and Daniel then that's a pretty rough end to Season 5. But I guess Sayid can still come back if they magically appear next to a blood bank in the Season 6 opening.


JACOB GETS KILLED: Jacob looks resigned to Evil Locke's "loophole". This whole scene had a lot of similarities to when Jesus was betrayed by Judas. First, Locke says to Ben: "Do what I asked you to". When Judas showed up with the Roman Guard, he first came up and kissed Jesus, but Jesus said "My friend, go ahead and do what you have come for". Which is kinda similar. Also, Jacob did not really resist Evil Locke's plan, which was Jesus-like of him. It's also interesting that Evil Locke needed a real human to do his stabbing for him. Like Satan would, I suppose. It will certainly be interesting to find out what all this stuff means, and what all is at stake with the death of Jacob. Does Richard instantly age to death once Jacob is dead? I hope not. Also, couldn't Jacob have said one kind word to Ben? Or is it more that he knows Ben is evil and won't have anything to do with him? Maybe because Ben went into the Temple and was healed as a child, which turned him evil? Could the temple with the smoke monster have something to do with Anti-Jacob and evilness? We also learn in this scene that Richard gave Ben Jacob's lists, which explains the lists that the Others had in Seasons One and Two which told them who was accepted by Jacob and who wasn't.

JACOB'S LAST WORDS: Jacob's final statement is "They're coming". What could that possibly refer to? Ilana and Bram? I'm guessing more than that. Nice tease for Season Six.


BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE JULIET: I certainly didn't expect to see Juliet again, and so soon. And still alive. I'm glad that they gave her the final shot of the season, though. And what a really great cliffhanger. She even got to use Sawyer's catch phrase before detonating the bomb, even though Bernard tried to steal it earlier in the episode.

So, that's it until next year What does it all mean? I have no idea. But here are some additional thoughts.

THE WAR? Apparently the "War" Widmore was referring to was Jacob vs. Anti-Jacob. Which I guess will still go on after Jacob's death, with Jacob's followers vs. Evil Locke and Ben. But what was Jacob up to? He was apparently continually bringing people to the island in an attempt to do something. But his enemy thwarted him and "found a loophole" in Jacob's continually recurring plan and put a stop to it. Except I'm thinking there's one person who can come back and cause more problems for Anti-Jacob, and that's Desmond. Desmond has the power to change the past, right? Or he's special or something. I dunno.

BEN LIES: Also, we now know that Ben was lying about a LOT in the past. He was lying about the cabin, and probably lying about having to kill your father and Jacob wanting to solve the infertility issues. But he was still getting orders from Jacob through Richard, so it's up in the air what was Ben and what was actually Jacob. I'm confused as to why Richard allowed Ben to be the leader for so long. If Richard was always able to talk to Jacob, why didn't Jacob just tell him Ben was lying about things? Or can Richard actually go in and see Jacob?


NO CLAIRE? I was surprised we didn't see Claire in the finale. The closest we got was a glimpse of Charlie's DriveShaft ring left in Aaron's old crib. I'm guessing next season we'll see Sun give that back to Claire?

One last theory:


JACOB'S BLESSING: I noticed that Jacob used the word "blessed" or "blessing" with Hurley and with Sun and Jin. And I think he placed his hand on just about everybody at some point. Is there some kind of biblical blessing/mark/birthright that he's placing on all his chosen people? Like a mark to protect them or guide them to the island? That would explain why he gave everybody something. It would also explain the candy bars, which I thought had no explanation. Maybe the candy bar scene was even a clue from the writers. Obviously the candy bars weren't important... so what was important about Jacob's interaction with Jack. Maybe his touch? Scroll back up and look at the pictures of Jacob's flashbacks and notice all the physical contact. It looks to me like pains were taken to show close ups of the pen and the candy bar changing hands. Maybe the touch is what allowed them to survive a plane crash in the first place?

I'm sure there are a ton more questions and theories to unearth, and there's plenty of time to think about them over the long break between seasons. I'll probably be posting thoughts and theories for the next week or so and then only randomly whenever there's news between Seasons. Let me know your thoughts and theories.

Friday, May 8, 2009

"Follow the Leader" – A few more things

Here's a few more thoughts about the last episode:


IS ELLIE PREGNANT WITH DANIEL RIGHT NOW? Folks over at DarkUfo are saying she is, based on this still from the episode. I think they're probably right, but this makes Daniel like 30 years old, which seems just a little young. But not unbelievable, I guess.


SAWYER DREW A MAP...FOR RADZINSKY: Jay of Jay and Jack's Lost Podcast (see side links) had an excellent theory that the map Sawyer draws for Radzinsky will be the foundation of the map that he later draws on the blast door of the hatch. Pretty cool.


THE HANDWRITING: Ok, this one really confuses me. So, one day Ellie will write a note to Daniel in his notebook. But when she gets the notebook from his dead body, it already has the note in it, because the older Ellie supposedly wrote it. So when she gives it to Daniel in the Indian restaurant after his graduation, the note is already there. So, when did she write it? Is this a time paradox? I don't think so. I think there two versions of the same notebook... kind of. Here's my explanation: Ellie knows that Daniel will use a notebook to take notes on the Dharma initiative, because she gets it after she shoots him. Sometime after she leaves the island and is raising a young Daniel alone, she sees the exact same notebook in a store – but it's blank. She picks it up, knowing it was meant for her and what she has to do. She writes her inscription in it, plus a few key pieces of information, like the time and date that Daniel will need to go to meet Pierre Chang at the Orchid station. She does this in order to ensure that Daniel will go back to start the chain of events that he started on the island in the 70s. So the notebook that Daniel gets in the restaurant is mostly BLANK. He takes it and begins to do his research on Dharma and fills it with what he learns. He has to keep referring to it because he will later lose his memory in the tests he performs on himself. And the notebook that came from his dead body and is full of his notes is still somewhere in Ms. Hawking's possession. It's the same notebook, just at a later time. So it kind of makes sense. If you followed me through all that, then you know that my irrevocable nerd status has just been fully confirmed.

ONE MORE THING: I started a Twitter account for Lostmindgrapes. You can join it on the box on the right. I'm not sure how I'll use it but probably to post random thoughts about Lost or to point people to this page. I might also try Twittering while I watch the finale, but it depends on whether or not I can figure out how to do that without seeing spoilers from other friends who watch it before me. Also, if there are any blog geniuses out there, I'm wondering if there's an app I can put on the right that just lets people write in random comments whenever they want. I've heard of such a thing but can't find it anywhere.

Season Finale Theory / Potential Spoiler?

Ok, driving to work this morning a thought occurred to me and I'm so convinced it's true I think it qualifies as a potential spoiler. So, read ahead with caution. I don't read spoilers on the web as a rule, so don't worry, this doesn't have any information in it besides what anybody could learn from watching the show, but it just sounds right to me. Here goes:

POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD? BUT I HAVE BEEN WRONG BEFORE...


I think that the Jughead bomb is a red herring, plot wise. The writers are making us think that there's a possibility that Jack can detonate the bomb and prevent the future from occuring. But,what if Daniel was wrong and you can't change the past? In fact, what if it's Daniel's very intervention that ALWAYS caused the Incident? Meaning, it's not Dharma's digging that causes the electromagnetic energy to be released. It's Jack, blowing up a bomb on the site of the hatch – that's what always caused the Incident. The writers are just trying to keep us intrigued by making us think there's a possibility the Losties can change the future. But, according to the show's own rules, only Desmond is in a position to do that. I think this season will end with a showdown at the site of the hatch. Richard and the Others will be there, as will Sawyer and Jack and the rest of the '77 Losties. Jack will detonate the bomb and electromagnetic "time energy" will be released, engulfing everyone and everything including the explosion. When the flash subsides, the Losties are gone, and Richard assumes he just watched them all die. The hatch is built as always, by Radzinsky, who lives inside it and pushes the button until he goes crazy and kills himself (as we know from Season 2). The season will end with a close up on Jack's eye after the blast. He wakes up and he doesn't know where he is. He runs towards the beach and we pull back to see he's in Ancient Egyptian times on the island, and there's a ton of crazy Egyptian stuff going on. Cut to Lost. Next season? We'll spend the majority of time in the distant past, learning about the original inhabitants of the island. And probably witness the Losties having a lot to do with the building of the temple and the well, and the statue.

That's my theory. I guess we'll see next week how wrong or right I was.

What do you think?

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Episode 5.15: "Follow the Leader"

I don't have much time tonight, so I'm just going to hit the biggest points of the night, then hopefully come back and get smaller ones later. Overall this episode was mostly a set up for the finale, and less about Richard than I had hoped. But still exciting. Here goes:


RICHARD WAS BUILDING A SHIP IN A BOTTLE: Maybe a reference to The Black Rock, which I expect we'll see more of in the final season. Could Richard have come to the island on the Black Rock? It's possible.


KATE HATES JACK'S PLAN: There was some debate in the room about this scene as we were watching here at home. I felt like Kate's anger towards Jack's plan was mostly around her love for little Aaron. She didn't want to erase her precious years with him, or risk dying if the plan didn't work. I don't think she really cares about Jack that much at all. Every one else in the room thought she was more mad that Jack was basically saying their time together when they first got off the island didn't mean anything to him. Which is also possible. Maybe both thoughts made her mad.


"I WATCHED THEM ALL DIE" Richard tells Sun that he watched all of the Losties die. Or was he just talking about the Dharma Initiative as a whole, during The Purge? Because I don't think he actually ever met Jin or Hurley. As far as we know he only met Sawyer, Jack, Kate, Sayid, Charlotte and Daniel. Not Miles or Jin or Hurley. Either way, this is one time when I'm pretty sure Locke or Sun would have asked for more details. How did they die? When? Why?


LOCKE IS THE ONE WHO TOLD LOCKE HE HAD TO DIE: Well, I guess hindsight is 20/20. It's kind of disappointing when time travel explains Locke's "purpose", but I think there's more to Locke's calling than just time travel paradoxes. Plus, the island had to tell Locke to go do this, so it's not a total time travel coincidence.


PIERRE CHANG HAD THE BEST SCENE: His grilling of Hurley was awesome. Also, he's redeemed his relationship with his son, which is nice. Too bad he's gonna have to lose an arm at some point, he had a fake one during the last of his Dharma videos.

LOCKE GUESSES BEN HAS NEVER SEEN JACOB: Interesting. I suppose this implies that Ben has been faking it to trick the Others.


SAWYER AND JULIET TRY TO LEAVE: Man, they keep trying to ditch Kate. Kate reappearing on the scene was just grown-worthy. How did she get captured by Dharma so fast? Why didn't she head to the beach where she thought Sawyer and the other Losties were headed? Also, poor Juliet. You know she just wants to Others-Judo Kate in the teeth but she doesn't want Sawyer to see her evil side. Meanwhile, you can bet Phil will be dead soon. Sawyer has not failed to follow through on a death threat yet.


LOCKE IS MARTIN LUTHER?: So, Locke wants everyone as a group to get to meet Jacob. Ben and Richard are skeptical. This is VERY similar to the concept of a high priest in the Old Testament of the Bible vs. the New Testament. In the Old Testament, only the High Priests could go into the throne room and enter the presence of God. But in the New Testament, when Jesus died as a sacrifice to make everyone holy in God's sight, the curtain that kept the common man out of the "special" part of the temple was torn in two. Symbolically, that means everyone was allowed in. I'm not sure where they're headed with this, but I thought it was an interesting parallel. Locke is not interested in abusing power through lies and false importance. Which is good. But, it was shocking to learn that...

LOCKE PLANS TO KILL JACOB: This line from Locke and Richard's "I watched them all die" were the two most shocking moments of tonight's episode. Why is Locke taking everyone to see him kill Jacob? Does he think that Jacob's not real? Or is it going to be a mercy killing? The only time we heard Jacob, he said "Help me." I think he's some kind of person that's trapped in some kind of painful time vortex and needs release. But who knows, at this point. Also, I have always assumed that Jacob and the island are one and the same, but this episode is the first time that it's clearly been implied otherwise. Locke claims that the island has been telling him to do things, but at the same time he has no idea where Jacob is and is challenging Jacob and even planning to kill him. So, at least in Locke's mind, the island is NOT Jacob. Right?

Ok, more later. What did you guys notice?

Also, there was a new post up earlier today from me about Daniel's Plan from last episode. Scroll down to check it out if you haven't already read it. There is only ONE more episode this season...(well, two if you count the two separate hours as two episodes.) It' called "The Incident".

Daniel's Plan - Pros and Cons...


So before Daniel got mom-sniped, he relayed to Jack & Kate his plan to detonate the hydrogen bomb, destroying the island before the hatch experiences the "Incident". The theory being that then Flight 815 would never have crashed landed there, and the plane would have landed in LA as planned. But would this be a good thing for everybody? Let's look and see who would benefit and who wouldn't...

DANIEL: Well, this plan would save Charlotte's life. So Daniel would like that. But, he would also never have met her because as far as we know he met her while working for Widmore. And, he would remain mentally unstable because the island is the thing that cured him. Although, I'm assuming he meant to save his mom before detonating the island, so would that mean she would have never given him the notebook and got him interested in time travel? So would he just have been a piano prodigy and married Theresa? END RESULT: BETTER OFF

JACK: Jack would have buried his dad, and gone on with his life. But really he would just have started popping pills for some reason, maybe because he stubbed his toe or saw a really sad movie or something lame like that. END RESULT: BETTER OFF OR THE SAME

KATE: Kate would have gone to jail. And never have been Aaron's mom for three years. So I'm sure she's not into the plan. END RESULT: WORSE OFF

SUN & JIN: Well, they wouldn't have had a kid together if the island hadn't cured Jin's impotency. And, they wouldn't have redeemed their marriage if Sun had gone through with her plan to dump Jin after arriving in LA. So they have a happy marriage and a kid with the crash, and nothing without it. END RESULT: WORSE OFF

JULIET: Here's where Daniel's plan gets a little foggy to me. Is he planning to blow up the hatch and prevent the built up energy problem from occurring? Or destroy the whole island? Let's assume he's just trying to get rid of the Hatch. So, Juliet would be worse off because she would still be a prisoner of the Others. Plus, she wouldn't have gotten her three precious years with Sawyer LaRose. END RESULT: WORSE OFF

SAWYER: Would have never gotten revenge on Anthony Cooper. And he would have never met Juliet. Or Kate, his other love. Plus, he might have gotten caught for killing that dude he thought was Anthony Cooper. So I'm gonna say END RESULT: WORSE OFF

BEN: Would be fine without the hatch, I assume. But, if 815 hadn't landed on the island than Jack wouldn't have landed there and Ben would have died from the cancer on his spine. END RESULT: WORSE OFF

MR. EKO: I can't remember why Mr. Eko was on the plane to begin with, but I'm guessing wherever he was headed was better than being beaten to death by a giant smoke hand. END RESULT: BETTER OFF

HURLEY: Hurley would have never heard about the numbers, because I think we're to assume the numbers came from the hatch. So he would have never won the lottery or been cursed by the money. Maybe it would have worked out with that record store clerk he liked. END RESULT: BETTER OFF

CHARLIE: Well, he wouldn't have met Claire and Aaron or invented his "adorable" invisible peanut butter gag. But he also wouldn't die a grisly underwater death. But, if the plane landed as planned, he would still be a cocaine addict. Hmm. At least he went out with dignity on the island. END RESULT: BETTER OFF DEAD

CLAIRE: Would have put her baby up for adoption. And she obviously changed her mind about that when living on the island (up until her weird exit anyway.) END RESULT: UNCLEAR, DEPENDS ON WHETHER SHE'S ACTUALLY DEAD OR NOT.

MICHAEL & WALT: Easy. END RESULT: BETTER OFF

SAYID: Well, he's had it pretty rough on the island. And, off the island he probably could have found Nadia sooner. And, I'm pretty sure Ben or Widmore had Nadia killed, so I'm going to say if the bomb goes off: END RESULT: BETTER IFF

DESMOND: This one's tricky. Because it looks like if the hatch wasn't there, he still would have crashed on the island. And, the arrival of 815 eventually led to him getting off the island, and reuniting with Penny and having little Charlie. So, I think he'd be against Daniel's plan. END RESULT: WORSE OFF

SHANNON, BOONE, ANA LUCIA, LIBBY, NIKKI, PAULO, CHARLOTTE: Still alive if bomb plan works. END RESULT: BETTER OFF. Except maybe Shannon.

MILES: Never would meet his dad, with whom it looks he's gotten some peace with after seeing him read a polar bear book to baby Miles. END RESULT: WORSE OFF

LOCKE: Still wheelchair bound. Still angry. No purpose in life. Methinks he will not like Daniel's plan too much. Uh-oh. END RESULT: KNIFE IN JACK'S BACK IF HE TRIES TO CARRY OUT THE PLAN

RICHARD ALPERT AND HORACE GOODSPEED: Cool with whatever happens.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Episode 5.14 "The Variable"


So, let's start with this. Daniel's mom shot Daniel and killed him. Oh, man. I hate to see Twitchy go. But I had a bad feeling when they basically started answering every remaining question we had about him. That's a sure sign in Lost that you're on the way out.

Ok, I think the best way to talk about this episode is to view it in terms of the shocking ending. With that in mind let's look at some details.


DANIEL CAN'T PLAY PIANO: So, we first see young Daniel's mom crying as she watches him play piano. I assume she's thinking one day I'm going to shoot that kid in the back. I'm guessing she's wondering what would happen if she would just encourage him to stick to piano and become a famous musician. I find it curious that she didn't even seem to be trying to avoid the future. I would be training him to catch bullets or give him a note that says what time and date to duck. But, instead, she's basically making sure that it happens, no matter what. She's forcing him to learn all the science he can so he can one day go to the island to die. Why? The only possible answer I can think of is that Jack and Kate will use the knowledge he gave them in his long speech to try and go through with Daniel's plan. And whatever happens as a result of this is something that Ellie wants to happen. Also, in one of the worst delivered lines in the show's history, young Daniel says "I can make time". Yes, we get it. Time.


DANIEL TELLS CHANG EVERYTHING: Including that Miles is his son. I guess at some point Chang believes Daniel and sends his wife and kid away. Daniel also tells Chang that the accident will happen at the swan station in four hours. I guess we've got four hours left until... the incident. Which Daniel just referred to as... the accident.

"...OR GOD HELP US ALL" This is a common line in Lost. It's almost as overused as "I've got a bad feeling about this" is in Star Wars. Chang says it referring to the Orchid's electromagnetic leak. And Ms. Hawking also said it in the "Previously on Lost" part of the show this episode, when it was flashing back to Ben asking what would happen if they couldn't get all of the Oceanic Six to go back to the island. Weird that she would say "God help us all" in response to that question, but then a couple days later be totally okay that he couldn't get everybody back. Is it because she already took matters into her own hands, like I suggested last post? She's definitely good at making sure the future that she knows is supposed to happen is going to happen. Is there any other meaning to the repeated "...or God help us all"? A subtle hint that they're in the Garden of Eden? Probably not. But it does seem deliberate.


DANIEL'S GRADUATION: Man, it wouldn't be Lost: Season 5 without some crazy hair. Daniel's rocking it like a Czech bass player from the Hair Metal 80s. More important, however, is that Daniel's mom gives him a gift of...his journal. But, is it empty or is it his notebook from the future? Because I really feel like the notebook he's been carrying around is from the future. It has to be, right? We see him in this very episode use the journal to learn the exact time that Chang will show up at the Orchid. And later, he claims (to young Charlotte) to know that Chang believes him and will start evacuating people from the island. So, if Daniel dies, how does he get this future Notebook? I always assumed an older Daniel would travel back in time after a while and give the notebook to a younger Daniel. But now that's he's dead, I dunno. Maybe Kate and Jack end up giving it to a young Daniel somehow? Hmm. Here I will admit, time travel is confusing. Also possible is that this is not the same notebook. It does have a leather strap around it, which I do not remember seeing before.


WIDMORE PLANTED THE PLANE: So I guess I was wrong (in last episode's post) about it being Ben who planted the plane. So, if Felix the dead body was actually the one who helped Widmore arrange the plane, and if he was also the one in the video of Widmore beating someone up, I'm guessing Widmore killed him to keep his cover up silent.

THE ISLAND WILL HEAL DANIEL: At least that's what everybody tells him. After Widmore and Ellie both told Daniel the island would heal him, why didn't he ask to bring Theresa with him? We know she's still alive and in a coma. I guess he wasn't allowed near her after experimenting on her, but still, would have been nice if he would have tried.

ANOTHER DANIEL AT THE PIANO SCENE: And this time he's trying to remember the song he used to play. Daniel's mom comes in again and tells him to go to the island, so he can fulfill his destiny of getting shot by her the back. Again, I have to think that for her to tell him to go would mean that something good comes of his death. This definitely has biblical parallels, what with God sending his own son to die for the benefit of everyone else. But at least Jesus knew what was going to happen. Although, he did say as he died, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me." Not unlike Daniel's last words to his mom. Hmm. Heavy.


SAWYER AND JULIET GET CAPTURED: And Juliet's still mad about the "Freckles" comment. If you're Juliet's boyfriend, I don't recommend you call your ex by a cute nickname in front of her. She will totally boil your bunny. Geez, did Glen Close really boil a bunny in Fatal Attraction? Ridiculous. Weirdest plot point ever. So, Radzinsky and Phil combine their ugly powers to trap the remaining cool, attractive people at gunpoint. Will Jin, Hurley, or Miles save them next episode? Maybe Hurley will crash another van through the wall?

DANIEL'S LONG SPEECH: So, we learn that Daniel's plan is to blow up the Jughead bomb and keep the incident from ever happening. Wouldn't that kill everyone on the island, including his mother? Preventing him from being born? Or was he planning to tell his mom to leave the island like he told Charlotte? I don't really like this plan. I don't want the show to end where nothing in it that happened ever happened. But I don't think it will end that way now, solely because we have another season left and they can't have a surprising conclusion to the show a year from now after already telling us what would happen. We also learn in this speech that the Incident causes Dharma to seal up the energy with concrete and create the Hatch's button to releases the energy, keeping the danger at bay... a theory you might have read here on my blog a while back. Except that a lot of what surrounds that theory is now wrong. But, the button being a regulation device: True.

WIDMORE IS DANIEL'S DAD: First of all, my friends and my wife were right. I thought for sure that Widmore was just Daniel's sponsor, but not also his dad. Hmm. Why is it so important for Daniel to go to the island for Widmore and for Ellie? Hopefully we'll learn more next episode. Also, this means Daniel is Penny's half-brother, and Desmond's brother-in-law. (Half Brother-in-Law?) Ms. Hawking gets mad because Widmore says that his relationship with Penny is one of sacrifice, and she feels like she's made more of a sacrifice than him. Which I guess she has. Does this comment from Widmore mean Widmore's good and trying to protect Penny somehow by pretending to be mean to her and Desmond? Because he generally seems to care about Desmond's fate now. I don't think so, I think Widmore's bad. Neck-snapping bad. But there is more to the story. On the second viewing I noticed Ellie says "I had to send my son back to the island knowing full well..." when Widmore interrupts her.


IS DANIEL DEAD? So, I guess there's a chance Daniel doesn't die and that Jack sews him up, but I think his story line is basically over. Plus he got a bullet through the heart. And he told his whole plan to Jack and Kate, another thing you should not do on Lost if you want to live. So goes the greatest character of season 4. And a lot of Season 5. Farewell, Daniel Faraday. I guess we'll never know why your last name wasn't Hawking or Widmore. Or even Chang, for that matter.


PREVIEW FOR NEXT WEEK'S EPISODE: (SPOILERS, BEWARE) Here's what I saw in the preview for next week's episode, which is posted above. Jack has a bloody nose and says "If we do everything that's written in that journal, our plane never crashes," as someone flips through the journal. I'm assuming that Richard and Ellie capture Jack and Kate (hence the bloody nose) and Jack wants to try to escape and steal the journal from them to learn how to blow up the Jughead bomb somehow? Next, we see an overhead shot of a beach with tents on it. An Others camp? Or, the beach in present time with the Flight 316ers? We see Locke walking on the beech with two people I've never seen before, one of them is carrying a rifle. Are the two people part of Bram and Ilana's group of Others? Sun looks longingly at her wedding ring. I'm assuming she'd also look longingly at a picture of her daughter she left behind, but she forgot to bring one. Radzinsky punches Sawyer while Juliet screams and Phil smiles in the background. Jack says "None of this will have ever happened." Some Dharma folks are walking down the pier to the submarine, and we hear Chang say "We need to evacuate the island". So I guess he does listen to Daniel. Are these the main people that are saved because of Faraday's return? Sawyer and Juliet are handcuffed and walking with a bunch of other Dharma folks. Juliet says "I love you." And Sawyer says something I can't understand. Either "I love you back" or "I won't be back" or "I already knew that", which would be rather Han Solo of him. Sayid and Ellie stand next to each other near a pond that Jack dives into. Jack swims underwater and then up into a temple with a fire lit in it. Sun looks at Locke. Locke says "If there's a way to save our people, I'll find it." I assume he's referring to the 70s Losties. Sayid and Jack walk explore the temple together. It looks like Ellie and Richard are with them. Also, something huge is covered in a tarp. Jughead? And the temple is lit by weird purple lights. Jack says "This is our chance to change things". Miles and Jin pull out their guns in the jungle. Sayid aims back at them. Kate says "If you're wrong, everyone dies." The next episode is entitled "Follow the Leader." And, the rumor is that it is an episode centered on... Richard Alpert. Awesome? Yes. Then there is one remaining episode... the two hour season finale. Exciting times.