Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Episode 10 - The Package

Oh Sun and Jin! Will they ever find each other on the island?! I enjoyed this weeks episode, not very answer heavy but still entertaining with plenty of Jack and scary Smokey/MiB/Flocke.


SUMMARY

Flash-Sideways
After being released from customs, Sun and Jin check into the hotel separately under their respective last names. They begin to argue inside Sun's hotel room regarding the lost money when she begins to undo her blouse. When they wake in the morning there is a knock on the door. Keamy enters Sun's room looking for Jin. They find him hiding in the bathroom and after handing over the watch Keamy demands his money. Sun confesses that she has a secret account and can give him the money. Keamy sends Sun with the translator (Patchy!) and while at the bank learns that her father has emptied and closed the account. Meanwhile Keamy brings Jin to a restaurant and ties him up in a closet. While inside he hears shouting and a gunfight. Sayid opens the door and hands him a box cutter the get himself out. Sun and Patchy return to find everyone dead except Keamy. Jin approaches behind Patchy and holds him at gunpoint. A fight ensues and Jin shoots Patchy in the eye. Sun is shot in the cross fire and Jin picks her up.

Island
Richard Alpert returns to the island after Ilana has assured the group that he would return because Jacob has never lied to her. Richard tells them they need to go destroy the plane to prevent Smokey from escaping the island. She retreats to her garden when she is approached by Locke. He assures her he will take her to Jin and when she doesn't believe him she tries to run away but runs into a tree instead. Ben finds her and brings her back to the camp. Sun has lost her ability to speak English but can still comprehend. She freaks out on Richard Alpert by saying she didn't come to the island to save the world, she came for her husband. When she calms down, Jack approaches her and gives her a notepad. She discovers she can still write in English. Jack asks Sun if he trusts her and asks her to go along with him and Sun reluctantly agrees.
Back in camp Smokey, Jin is patching up his leg and plans his escape from the camp. He tells Sawyer he plans on looking for Sun back at the Temple and the beach. Smokey leaves the camp to go get Sun and after he's gone, the camp is under attack and everyone is hit with a poison dart. Jin wakes up in room 23 on Hydra island and Zoe comes in to question him. Jin demands to speak to Whidmore. Getting Jin this early wasn't according to Whidmore's plan but he agrees to speak to Jin. He tells Jin that if Smokey gets off the island everyone in the world will cease to exist. He then gives Jin a digital camera so he can see his daughter. When Smokey returns from unsuccessfully getting Sun, he finds everyone passed out. He asks Sayid to come with him on a mission to rescue Jin. He assures Claire that he needs her to help him get off the island and asks her not to harm Kate until after they get on the plane. Sayid and Smokey go to Hydra island where he finds that Whidmore has set up pylons to keep him away. Whidmore comes out to tell him that he doesn't have Jin and Smokey declares war. Sayid swims to the submarine to see what they have been guarding and it is Desmond, all groggy from the ride. They both recognize each other.

Wow, that was a long and complex summary. Bravo to those who actually read it!

1. The return of Patchy! I love love this character and while he was small in the tale of LOST I loved that they brought him back. He's just so awesomely creepy and its just goes to show that even the smallest of the Others connected with the island are creeping into each others lives in the flash sideways universe! Also so poetic that Jin shot him in the eye!

2. I was surprised to see that they weren't married in the flash sideways! But it was so tender to see that they do love each other and their relationship seems to be just as special - but this one seems to also have its treacherous moments. Her father still doesn't approve and he sends them both on this fools errand. It was horribly mean, but clever for Sun's father to send them to America together knowing full well that Sun thought she could run away with Jin. It was so horrible when Sun realized her account was empty and that Jin was delivering the payment for his own death.

3. So Whidmore tells us that if Smokey/MiB manages to leave the island, then the rest of the people left in the world will cease to exist. I'm just not sure how much of that I can buy. If he escapes and wreaks havoc among the rest of the world - fine, but if his escape causes the world as we know it to stop existing, then why is Smokey even trying to escape? So if he leaves the island and goes to ohhh say NYC and presumable destroys everyone, what is he going to do then? Walk around Soho, swim in the Hudson alone? For me, if I was the last person around after destroying everyone, I'd probably just want to chill on a beach. I think we're going to have to wait to get more from Smokey before we make a final judgement call on this one.

4. The return of Desmond! It was inevitable but I'm glad to see that Whidmore brought him. Maybe the reason he was trying to keep him away from Penny the whole time is so that he would end up on the island. Either he was acting in the interest of the island in trying to get Desmond there or he was trying to avoid Penny's heartache when he eventually left (maybe gives up his life?) for the island. So what exactly is Desmond's role? I'm speculating its something big, big in the way of saving the world kind of stuff!

5. Sawyer is truly starting to annoy me - how can he be so mislead into believing that Smokey actually doesn't know Sawyer is trying to double cross him! I think this is leading to Sawyer's demise ... but I'm okay with it so long as Kate can be with Jack, and Sawyer dies shirtless!

6. I want them to tell us why Claire is so crazy! We still don't know if she's been claimed like Sayid because we never saw her die! Here's to hoping she can be rehabilitated and reunited with Aaron in the end. After all, that crazy psychic said that she had to raise her baby and no one else!

7. Who is this Zoe woman and why is LOST trying to give me another eccentric scientist?! I want Farraday back! She is a Geo-physicist, big woop. Why is Whidmore still trying to figure out what the island is when clearly there is a war that is about to erupt? She needs to find the electromagnetic pockets on the island and thinks Jin's involvement with the Dharma Inititative will help. Didn't the losties destroy all of the when the blew up the yet to be built Swan station? What's left to investigate?

8. Keamy is such a creepy guy! Why won't he just die! Jin should have finished him off - but he was too busy with Sun. Here's my beef with Sun getting shot. She wasn't going to be able to help the situation and she clearly had enough time to run and hide, so she should have been able to run away and avoid the whole getting shot thing. But maybe it hit her spine and she'll have to go visit our favorite spinal surgeon Dr. Jack Shepherd!

9. I truly thought Jin and Sun would re-unite on last night's episode, seriously how long are they going to keep that going? I think they can't kill Jin or Sun off but I think Sun will be the candidate that Jacob speaks of since we've seen her character grow the most in the series. I'm also not sure that they can both still exist since we'll need one of them to die so we can know which one is Jacob's candidate. Although I would hate for either of them to die so let's hope I'm wrong.

10. So Smokey has officially declared war on Whidmore. It will be interesting to see who is really on who's side and who will ultimately be the victor. I think LOST has to end in a happy way but also a mysterious "we'll let the audience decide what happens" kind of thing. I'm not sure which way I'll prefer, all I know is I expect a lot of death and a lot of Jack and Kate love!

So that's it folks! I'm hearing some rumblings from my abc source that they're scheduling a repeat one week which is unacceptable but I'll see you all next week!

xo
B

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Episode 9 - Ab Aeterno

Okay so this episode totally redeemed itself and made me remember why I love this show!! I want to do a quick recap so I can talk about all the ramifications and awesomeness that is Richard Alpert!

Flashback
Richard Alpert lives in the Canary Islands with his wife Isabella who is dying. He rushes to the doctor and when the doctor refuses to help him he offers medicine. Richard can't afford the medicine and in a fit of rage he pushes the doctor who hits his head and dies on impact. He rushes back to give his wife the medicine but it is too late. The officials come for him and he is put in jail. While awaiting his fate, a priest comes in to tell him he cannot forgive him for what he has done. While on his way to be hanged for his crime, the captain Hanso asks if he can speak English and when he does Richard is put in chains on a ship to the New World. While on board the ship, it crashes in a storm on the island. The boat crashes into the statue. When they wake the captain comes down and tells them that there are only a few survivors and very little supplies so he begins to kill the prisoners. Right before he gets to Richard, Smokey attacks them killing all of the sailors and the captain. He surveys Richard and leaves him. Richard tries to escape from his chains when in exhaustion he is visited by Isabella. She leaves to get help but is killed by the Smoke Monster. The Man in Black appears to Richard and tells him he will help him get his wife back if he helps him. Smokey asks Richard to take a dagger and kill a man on the island before he can speak. Richard agrees and goes off to find Jacob. He attempts to fight him but Jacob wins. Jacob proves to Richard that he is still alive by attempting to drown him. When things settle they discuss what the island is and Jacob compares it to wine in a bottle, and that he is the cork holding it in. And then he tells Richard that the island is the gateway to Hell, and he is the protector keeping it all in. When Jacob asks Richard to help him by being his main contact, Richard asks if he can have his wife back. When Jacob can't do that he asks for eternal life, which Jacob grants to him. Richard returns to the Man in Black and it is clear that Jacob has persuaded him to join his side.

Island
The gang is on the island wondering what they have to do next. Ilana tells the groups that they are candidates and she has to protect them. As for what to do next they have to turn to Richard Alpert. He tells them he doesn't know what to do and runs off in the jungle. Jack sees Hurley talking to someone in Spanish and asks him what Jacob is telling Hurley. Hurley insists it isn't Jacob. Richard is wandering through the jungle when he gets to the place where he buried his wife's necklace. He digs it up and screams that he's changed his mind and wants to join back up with Smokey. Hurley finds Richard and tells him that his wife is with him. Hurley translates Isabella's wishes and Richard is brought back to Jacob's side.

Wow, that ended up being long and I'm pretty sure I forgot a few things. But then again I'm sure most of you don't even read it!

1. Ok GREAT episode. We finally got the super awesome back story to Richard Alpert, a man of many secrets apparently. His story fit perfectly, he had nothing left to lose and everything to gain by helping Jacob on his quest. I loved how his story explained the Black Rock, the statue, and what the purpose of the island is. All huge mysteries resolved with an awesome character. And might I say that was some mighty acting!

2. So now that we know the island is the Hellmouth (hello Buffy fans shout out!) and Jacob is the slayer, I mean protector, then is Smokey pure Evil? I don't think so but that's what he makes it seem like. The island is a Pandora's Box of sorts and all that stands in the way of total chaos is Jacob. So Jacob is dead but he has been for a while now, so why hasn't Smokey escaped like he wanted to?

3. The conversation between Smokey and Jacob was really informative. I liked how Jacob is on the side of good and wants to prove to Smokey that man isn't inherently evil and adept to sin. While Smokey on the other hand seems fit to believe that he can corrupt anyone. I can't tell you the last time I read the Bible but I'm pretty sure this is very Adam and Eve stuff with the Devil as their temptress. Losties are A+E (also alluded to with the dead bodies in the caves from season 1 and more recent episodes), Jacob is God, and Man in Black is the Devil. Well if nothing else that tree that Richard was standing under at the end seemed like the tree of life, although my roommate told me it was a pickle tree so who knows.

4. So the LOST island really is, according to Jacob, a big experiment to see if people, with their free will intact, can make the right choices and live a good, moral life. Well, we've definitely seen the losties tested in a number of ways. Some have passed (Jack and Kate just being in love) and some have failed (Michael shooting Libby and Ana Lucia). But this was also probably part of the process of weeding out his potential replacements.

5. There were a ton of religious undertones in this episode but what I thought was most interesting was why Richard made the deal for eternal life with Jacob. He did it out of fear of damnation which is a pretty driving force. But did he really understand what eternal life is? I mean vampires have it and they are never happy! Do you think Richard forgot to watch Twilight? Because if he did maybe he would have asked for something else.

6. Okay so my question with Jacob has mostly to do with him dying. Jacob at first wanted to bring people to the island to test them, to see if they could make good choices on their own. He even hired Richard to help be his intermediary to remain distant from the masses. However, he brought this set of losties to find his replacement and chose to die the moment Ben wanted to kill him. So his mission, whatever it truly is, seems to have changed in this moment. What is the reason for him wanting a replacement and is that really what he wants? Did he sense that the Man in Black was never going to give up and had a back up plan just in case he succeeded? Maybe the reason he is looking for a replacement is because he knew he was going to die so that was his back up plan?

7. Hurley's talent of being able to talk to dead people is really coming in handy. But I think a big question to ask ourselves is, is the ghost really Isabella or is it Smokey? I want to say it's Isabella, because I want to believe that Hurley does actually talk to dead people, just like Miles has a similar talent. So maybe Smokey was being her when she "died" on the island but I think it was really her at the end when Hurley was translating to Richard.

8. I'm sort of glad we got spared the off-island universe this episode. It's starting to annoy me and I kind of want them to just have more episodes like this which explain everything!

9. I also want them to give Smokey/Man in Black a name! Why is he remaining so mysterious?!

10. Jacob and the Man in Black, for being enemies, play well off each other. They seem so calm when talking about how they want to destroy each other. Jacob gave Smokey back the white rock to show him that he still has power over him, and Smokey destroyed the bottle of wine to show Jacob that he is going to crush his plan. Ohhh I like what this brings to the table, although if I was stuck on an island I probably wouldn't be wasting wine like that.

Okay that's all folks! Sorry for the late post but feel free to post any comments!

xo
B



Thursday, March 18, 2010

Episode 8 - Recon

Hi Friends! Well I apologize for the post coming a day late but to be honest, I thought this was one of the worst episodes of the season. Also I have a job that demands my attention. So this week I promise a short summary!





SUMMARY

On-Island
Sawyer is told by Smokey to return to Hydra Island to do some recon for his team. Sawyer agrees and Smokey admits to Sawyer, who knows he isn't Locke, that he is the "smoke thing". While Sawyer is over on Hydra, he finds the plane that landed there and a pile of dead bodies. He comes across a woman named Zoe who claims to be the last survivor. She asks to come with him and Sawyer knows that she's lying. She shows him the submarine with Whidmore on board. Sawyer promises Whidmore that he will bring Smokey to him. Sawyer returns to Smokey and tells him that he saw Whidmore and that he promised to bring Smokey to him. Sawyer then reassures Kate that he's getting them off the island.
While Sawyer was on the other side of the island, Kate is approached by Claire who seems to have warmed to her momentarily, until she tries to attack Kate. Kate pleads with Sayid to help her but he does not. Kate is approached by Smokey after the incident and she tells him she knows he isn't Locke.

Off-Island
Sawyer is a police officer who goes undercover. His partner Miles tries to set him up with someone his father works with. Sawyer goes to meet Charlotte and they hit it off. Sawyer gets angry with Charlotte when she snoops around his apartment and he kicks her out when he realizes she's discovered his past secret where his parents were killed in the murder suicide plot. He returns to work and apologizes to Miles for messing things up. Sawyer even tries to apologize to Charlotte but she denies him. Miles confronts him about his recent trip to Australia when he said he was in Palm Springs. Sawyer confesses what he was up to, tracking down Anthony Cooper, the man responsible for his parents death. While he confesses to Miles, their car is hit in a car chase and they take off after it. Sawyer catches up to the fugitive on foot and it turns out to be Kate.

Wow so I didn't think I would remember all that. Not a very interesting episode.

1. So yes now with only 8 episodes left I am really starting to fear for the series. This was a very uneventful episode and not 1 secret was even confirmed! And to top it all off, they introduced new characters. Great, that's exactly what I wanted.

2. I was a little bit foolish to believe this Zoe person. So does that mean she and Whidmore's team killed the rest of the survivors? Seems a little unnecessary. Couldn't he, like Hurley, have bought out the rest of the flight so they didn't have to land there? Makes me think Whidmore really is the bad guy.

3. Sawyer as a cop I guess was a good twist to his off-island persona. People may have asked why he didn't arrest Kate when he saw her at the airport. Well the answer is my friends as we find out later, that he wasn't in Palm Springs like he said he was and arresting a fugitive would have exposed him. So looks like whatever he did in this life he still has to carry the burden of what happened to his parents. And he's still hell bent on avenging their deaths. Wonder if he'll cross paths with Locke and find out who his father really is! And is Locke's dad truly good as we expected since Locke and him are friends or did he make good on past wrong doings?

4. Claire is starting to become one of my faves just because she is so creepy! Although I'll forever detest her as Tess from Roswell, and the new movie Remember Me. Yeah, I saw it. But her way to just befriend Kate with the creepy hug only to attack her with a knife was pretty intense. And I LOVED how Said didn't move to help. I think that Kate will begin to notice the off behavior and run away to the protective arms of Jack!

5. I honestly didn't see Charlotte coming as his love interest. I saw maybe Juliet, maybe fellow cop Ana Lucia. But I do think there is a parallel between her and Juliet because he brought Charlotte a sunflower to apologize which is something he did for Juliet in Othersville. Ugh. The only thing I think that mattered from all of that interaction was how Miles mentioned she worked with his father, in some sort of sciencey lab. So I wonder if Dr. Pierre Chang is still working with Dharma. Also worthy of noting is that Miles' last name on his desk was Straume, his mother's last name so maybe the same plot happened where they left the island and Dr. Chang stayed but maybe somehow in this life they reunited and are good terms. Or it's a step-father.

6. So its becoming Clear that Whidmore and Jacob = same team and its everyone versus Smokey. So is that what the finale is preparing us for? An all out battle between the two? Snore - I hope they mix it up which usually LOST does and throw in something magical haha.

7. Oh Sawyer, is he really that naive that he thinks this plan will work? Tricking Team Smokey and Team Jacob/Whidmore into fighting each other while he escapes on the sub with Kate? And while we're at it, was THAT really the cliffhanger for this episode? Announcing he's going to escape? Weak LOST, very weak.

8. I loved seeing Charlie's brother Liam at the police station! Looks like poor old Charlie couldn't kick his drug habit! But it appears that Liam was clean ... I doubt we'll get the back story but at least its something!

9. So Sawyer returns to the infamous cages and finds Kate's old dress. How lovely. How many times does Kate have to prove to you that she loves Jack!

10. So before I stated that Jacob and Whidmore are on the same team but there is compelling evidence to make that untrue. I'm pretty sure Jacob via Ben got him kicked off the island in the first place. I think if Jacob wanted him there he could have brought him back. So maybe the man that Sawyer thinks Whidmore wants isn't who he thinks he is. Hahah that's confusing ... but it seemed like Smokey at the end knew that Whidmore wanted him so at this point in the game I don't even know what to speculate.

Alright so it set us up for next week, not exactly dying with anticipation but I'm pumped. Again sorry for the late post!

xo

B

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Episode 7 - Dr. Linus

Normally I'm bursting at the seams to write about a Ben-centric episode but it fell a little flat for me. Ah well, here's my short short summary.




SUMMARY

Off-Island
Ben is the history teacher at a public school that lacks funds. We find out he truly cares for his students, one in particular Alex Rousseau. He has to cancel his history club meeting because the principal forces him to watch detention. Alex shows up at his home where Ben is taking care of his father and asks to meet early in the morning for tutoring. During their tutoring session Alex lets it slip that she needs a recommendation from someone who went to Yale and the only person she knows is the principal. She doesn't want to ask him since she witnessed him and the school nurse getting it on one time. With encouragement from Locke, Ben decided to enlist Dr. Arzt's help by checking his email correspondence with the nurse. When Ben approaches the principal with the ultimatum to give Ben his job, the principal threatens to destroy Alex's future. Ben backs down and Alex receives a shining recommendation from the principal.

On-Island
Ben rejoins Ilana's group and they head to the beach. She confronts Ben about how Jacob died revealing he was like a father to her and Miles confesses that Ben killed Jacob by listening to his ashes. Once at the beach Ilana takes Ben prisoner and forces him to dig his own grave. Smokey appears and tells Ben that he will help Ben by setting him free and has placed a rifle in the jungle for him to use against Ilana. Ben makes a run for it and when he has Ilana at gunpoint, he explains why he killed Jacob, to protect his power which was the only thing he had after he gave up everything for the island. Ilana tells him that Ben can join her group and Ben follows. Meanwhile Jack and Hurley head back to the temple but find Richard Alpert en route. He tells them he will lead them to the Temple but instead they end up at the Black Rock. Richard tells them he needs to die and Jack follows him inside. Richard explains to Jack that he can't kill himself because Jacob touched him and gave him a gift. He asks Jack to light the end of the fuse and let him blow up but Jack lights the fuse and stays with him. He explains that Jacob brought him here for a reason and that he wouldn't have come this far just to blow himself up. The fuse dies at the end and they both live. They travel back to the beach to find out their destiny and are reunited with the Losties.

Actually writing the recap made me rethink that I actually liked this episode a lot.

1. I think the most interesting thing that happened this whole episode was Ben's conversation with his father in the off-island world. He confirms that they had been to the island and that the Dharma Initiative existed. So this proves that the gang blew up the island with the nuke and the Dharma folk left the island safely. It's funny how Ben's father thinks Ben really could have made something of himself if they stayed on the island but I guess it's a matter of perspective really because technically Ben did make something of himself on the island - he was a leader of all the Others, but in reality it meant nothing whereas in the off-island reality he's actually helping people's lives for the better. Bit of irony I suppose.

2. I loved that we got to see Richard Alpert again! Oh how I missed him! And it was confirmed that he came over on the Black Rock so are we to assume that Smokey did as well or did Smokey just release him from the chains? (Alluding to his statement a few episodes back that Smokey said it was nice to see him out of his chains which could be actual chains for a metaphor for Jacob's chains). So Richard seemed to be annoyed with Jacob's death because after hundreds of years he never found out Jacob's plan for him. Interesting to find out that he too was held back by free will as it seems he has given up his and can only rely on Jack's compassion to kill him, or to rather not kill him.

3. Not only was Jack very handsome in tonight's episode, he started to finally realize his role on the island. Only took ohhh 5 seasons but the lighthouse seems to have made an impression on why he was brought here. I guess he did find his purpose for coming back to the island, even if he isn't 100% sure what it is exactly. And yay he's being redeemed and becoming the leader he's always been since season 1!

4. Was anyone else creeped out by Alex and Dr. Linus' relationship? Never ever ever would I show up at a teacher's house ever, or then gossip like a 7 year old school girl about the principal and the nurse at our private tutoring session. I mean come on lost, I know we suspend reality for the show but couldn't we have thought of a better way to convey their close relationship?

5. So I was pleased at the end when Ben chose the well being of Alex over himself because it sort of redeemed his choice of the island over Alex. And I almost teared up at the end when he was explaining to Ilana how he made the wrong choice and in the end the island left him with nothing. God those big bug eyes can do it to me sometimes!

6. It was so fun to see Dr. Arzt again! And also that they returned to where he got blown up outside the Black Rock, still a great and shocking event in Lost history. He was still as annoying as ever but so eager to commit e-mail fraud once Ben bribed him with a nicer parking spot and lab coats. Seems like even in the off-island world Ben is still manipulative, but this time he has a little heart.

7. So we found out Ilana's role, Jacob and the candidates' bodyguard, but really, did we need all the tears? I don't know, she just annoys me. I was kinda rooting for old Ben to pop up and just shoot her. But I guess she does have more information so let's see what they'll squeeze out of her.

8. So here's one of my problems with the Losties. They show up on this island jungle of mystery and EVERY time they capture an Other or anyone who knows anything about the island they don't ask a million questions. If Ben was looking for answers, it seems like Ilana maybe had them, and if Jack wanted to know more about the origin of the island it seems like he had Richard Alpert right where he wanted him. Come on Losties! Get with it!

9. Did we all see Jack's face when Richard told him that everyone at the Temple was dead?! He was SO thinking about Kate. They are going to rule the island together forever. The end.

10. So when Richard Alpert mentioned that Jacob touched him and gave him a gift, does that mean he gave the same gift to all the Losties we saw him touch? Can Jack, Sawyer, Kate, etc not kill themselves? Could explain why they were able to escape some hairy situations! But I don't think so because they seem to still have their free will in tact, unlike Richard. And it seems like Richard wasn't too please with said "gift" given to him by Jacob, but also if he died and didn't give me any answers I would also be very angry.

I'm actually pumped for next week's episode for the return of Sawyer and who knows, maybe some answers. Also, maybe after 3 years Sun and Jin will be reunited!

Until next week folks :)

xo
B

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Episode 6 - Sundown

So I didn't care much for this episode. As a result, my summary will be short.


SUMMARY

On-Island
Claire and Smokey stand outside the Temple and Claire decides to enter. She is received by guns and is put in a hole where she can't hurt anyone. Sayid decides to leave the temple after some kung fu fighting with Dogen. Miles tells him that he was dead for 2 hours before he came back to life and that they tried to save him so whoever brought him back to life it wasn't the Others. Sayid decides to leave the Temple but before he goes he speaks to Dogen. Dogen tells him once outside he will encounter someone who he thinks is dead. He asks him to stab him before he speaks. Sayid leaves the temple and runs into Locke/Smokey. He stabs him in the chest and Smokey pulls it out. Smokey convinces him that he is on the wrong side and when he promises him anything in the world, Sayid agrees to deliver Smokey's message. Sayid returns to the temple and tells the camp that Jacob is dead and anyone who wants to live needs to leave the temple and join Smokey. He then proceeds to find Dogen. Dogen tells him that Jacob recruited him to the island in exchange for his son's life. He realizes that Sayid has taken a similar offer from Smokey and Sayid drowns Dogen in the water and kills the John Lennon look-a-like guy after he tells him that Dogen was the only one preventing Smokey from entering the Temple. Chaos ensues and the losties hide with Ilana in the wall. Ben tries to save Sayid and realizes he has become evil. Kate shows up to find Claire in the hole and confesses to her that she took Aaron and came back to find her to reunite them. Claire tells Kate to hide in the hole to avoid the wrath of Smokey. Outside Smokey and his new followers unite.

Off-Island
Sayid appears with flowers to Nadia's house. Nadia is married to Sayid's brother and has two children. There is still an obvious flirtation between Nadia and Sayid. Sayid's brother, Omar, comes to Sayid asking him to help him with some loan sharks. Sayid refuses saying he isn't that man anymore. Omar is mugged outside of his business and Nadia asks Sayid to go home and protect the children. Sayid agrees and when Nadia returns she asks him why Sayid pushed her towards his brother. Sayid tells her its because he didn't deserve her. Sayid is then abducted by a group of men and brought to a kitchen of a restaurant. Inside Keamy is waiting for him and tells Sayid to help his brother pay off his debt. Sayid refuses and kills all of the guards and then shoots Keamy.

Okay so I lied, it ended up being long again. Don't act surprised.

1. Okay I clearly wasn't happy with this episode because I feel like nothing happened that we didn't expect. We knew Sayid was going to turn evil and we knew somehow in his off-island life he would be reunited with Nadia. It was an interesting twist that she ended up with his brother but come one, seriously you aren't together because you don't deserve her? Puh-lease. It's even worse that they're flirting while she's married! But it's tender that he's willing to do anything to bring her back on the island, even if it means annihilating all of the Others at the temple. Somehow his vow to make up for his past deeds really aren't making any sense, but then again he did turn evil.

2. I'm really concerned for Kate with Claire. Why did she tell her about Aaron ... she's totally going to try to kill her. I'm hoping for Jack to have to chose between his sister and Kate and he's totally going to save Kate. This episode lacked Jack, although we did catch a little glimpse of him at the hospital so that was nice.

3. So I know the debate is still there, is Smokey good or evil? This episode favors him to be evil. He basically wiped out the Others without thinking twice. Did he really expect them to abandon Jacob so quickly? Then again, he is promising them the one thing Jacob wouldn't allow, leaving the island. Maybe they got bored of playing with sticks and decided to return to a place where they could shower.

4. So Dogen met his end swiftly - only four episodes. Eh, there have been worse causalities, hello Nikki and Paulo. But we learned he was brought here because it was the only way his son could live. So Jacob manipulated him to come and protect the island with him. He was also the last thing keeping Smokey out of the temple. So somehow he is more than just a man, and me thinks we haven't seen the last of him. I think it's significant that he died in the water, but then again so did Sayid. So will he wake up evil or will Jacob try to save him?

5. Claire was awesomely creepy in this episode. Acting like everything going on around her was normal. Here's my question regarding the darkness inside her. Is it like everyone else's possession and she's truly evil, or is she just being manipulated by Smokey? We never actually saw her die on screen and that seems to be a key factor in this whole being "claimed" theory. Maybe we can save her and re-unite her with Aaron. Seems unlikely.

6. The return of Keamy was awesome! He so got what he deserved but he creeps me out to the core. One thing I will never understand about the mob world since I myself have a severe lack of experience in anything illegal, is that these people always seem to know everything about everyone! How does everyone know Sayid was a torturer in Iraq! Seems to me that governments try to keep these sort of things under wraps - especially from small time money launderers. Sayid must have some reputation!

7. Oh so Jin in the closet! That was a shock! So now I'm assuming that Keamy isn't just a small time money launderer and he works for one of the big guys in this world too. Most likely he works for Whidmore which I was hoping we would see more of his involvement in the off-island world. If he isn't searching for the island as his main goal in life then what is he up to?

8. So Sayid stabbed Smokey and clearly it wasn't going to work since we know Smokey is not human. But how did he survive this attack when Jacob didn't survive Ben's attack? I'm getting frustrated not knowing how these two relate to one another!

9. So now we have to assume that Sayid has been claimed. So if he is no longer Sayid, then will he even want his reward for a job well done? Although it looks like Nadia would have to be resurrected as well and what body will she inhabit? Maybe she will inhabit Shannon's body!!

10. What will happen now that Smokey has his recruits? What is his master plan for getting off the island? Maybe once Jacob carries out his quest to find his new leader, the Others, losties, etc. will start to follow him again and they can take back over Smokey.

At this point I don't even know what to speculate which is a good thing, because if we knew the plot for the last 10 episodes I don't think I would tune in. Haha just kidding! Leave your thoughts!

xo
B