Showing posts with label Rewatch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rewatch. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 4, 2023

The LOST Rewatch Project: June 2009-Jan 2010

As you know, we have a rather long hiatus before the final season of Lost. So I was excited to be asked to join Lostpedia, DocArzt and a few other sites to participate in a 7-month long/5 season Lost Rewatch project! I am honored to be one of the official Lost Rewatch bloggers. Personally, I feel that this is quite an ambitious project but one that I am ready and more than willing to participate in. During this time, when life, work or travel interferes with my ability to provide episode analysis, I am thrilled that the above folks will be covering it as well so that those of you who are following along will always have an outlet for discussion. See further details on Lostpedia. Doc has kindly provided the viewing schedule below. If you've already started re-watching on your own or are unable to watch with the same frequency, feel free to simply read along and leave comments! June 1-7 1.01 Pilot 1.02 Pilot, Part 2 1.03 Tabula Rasa 1.04 Walkabout June 8-14 1.05 White Rabbit 1.06 House of the Rising Sun 1.07 The Moth 1.08 Confidence Man June 15-21 1.09 Solitary 1.10 Raised by Another 1.11 All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues 1.12 Whatever the Case May Be June 22-28 1.13 Hearts and Minds 1.14 Special 1.15 Homecoming 1.16 Outlaws June 29-July 5 1.17 ...In Translation 1.18 Numbers 1.19 Deus Ex Machina July 6-July 12 1.20 Do No Harm 1.21 The Greater Good 1.22 Born to Run July 13-July 19 1.23 Exodus, Part 1 1.24/1.25 Exodus, Part 2 2.01 Man of Science, Man of Faith 2.02 Adrift July 20-July26 2.03 Orientation 2.04 Everybody Hates Hugo 2.05 ...And Found 2.06 Abandonded July 27-Aug 2 2.07 The Other 48 Days 2.08 Collison 2.09 What Kate Did 2.10 The 23rd Psalm Aug 3-Aug 9 2.11 The Hunting Party 2.12 Fire + Water 2.13 The Long Con 2.14 One of Them Aug 10-Aug 16 2.15 Maternity Leave 2.16 The Whole Truth 2.17 Lockdown 2.18 Dave Aug 17-Aug 23 2.19 S.O.S. 2.20 Two For the Road 2.21 ? Aug 24-Aug 30 2.22 Three Minutes 2.23/2.24 Live Together, Die Alone 3.01 A Tale of Two Cities 3.02 The Glass Ballerina Aug 31-Sept 6 3.03 Further Instructions 3.04 Every Man for Himself 3.05 The Cost of Living 3.06 I Do Sept 7-Sept 13 3.07 Not in Portland 3.08 Flashes Before Your Eyes 3.09 Stranger in a Strange Land 3.10 Tricia Tanaka is Dead Sept 14-Sept 20 3.11 Enter 77 3.12 Par Avion 3.13 The Man from Tallahassee 3.14 Expose Sept 21-Sept 27 3.15 Left Behind 3.16 One of Us 3.17 Catch 22 Sept 28-Oct 4 3.18 D.O.C. 3.19 The Brig 3.20 The Man Behind the Curtain Oct 5-Oct 11 3.21 Greatest Hits 3.22/3.23 Through the Looking Glass 4.01 The Beginning of the End Oct 12-Oct 18 4.02 Confirmed Dead 4.03 The Economist 4.04 Eggtown Oct 19-Oct 25 4.05 The Constant 4.06 The Other Woman 4.07 Ji Yeon Oct 26-Nov 1 4.08 Meet Kevin Johnson 4.09 The Shape of Things to Come 4.10 Something Nice Back Home Nov 2-Nov 8 4.11 Cabin Fever 4.12 There's No Place Like Home, Part 1 4.13 There's No Place Like Home, Part 2 Nov 9-Nov 15 5.01 Because You Left 5.02 The Lie 5.03 Jughead Nov 16-22 Thanksgiving break! Nov 23-Nov 29 5.04 The Little Prince 5.05 This Place is Death Nov 30-Dec 6 5.06 316 5.07 The Life and Death of Jeremy Benthamm 5.08 LaFleur Dec 7-Dec 13 5.09 Namaste 5.10 He's Our You 5.11 Whatever Happened, Happened Dec 14-Dec 20 5.12 Dead is Dead 5.13 Some Like it Hoth 5.14 The Variable Dec 21-Dec 27 Christmas break! Dec 28-Jan 3 5.15 Follow the Leader 5.16/5.17 The Incident Stay tuned for more details, as we get started next week!

Frequent Dire: Lost ReWatch, Activate!

The Lost ReWatch project begins today! Blogging in the Shadow of a Lamp Post I have created my own little hatch in the house for the six month experience. It is more of a corner, but you get the idea. Given the amount of hours we are about to dedicate to this endeavor, I have dubbed my particular locale The Espresso Station (thus, the modified Dharma logo above).
Espresso Station Essentials:
  • Comfy chair & ottoman
  • Laptop
  • Leakproof, micro point pen
  • Lost DVDs
  • Lucky Lost hat
  • Noise-canceling headphones
  • Notebook w/5 tabs 5 Seasons
  • Water
(sidenote: Lindelof is often seen sporting this very hat)
You All Everybody
As you know, anyone can participate! You are welcome to view the episodes using our schedule, or watch at your own pace. 

Watch Together, Write Alone My personal style and preference is to watch and then post my thoughts and theories here (rather than live-tweet while revisiting episodes or share epiphanies on message boards). That being said, I have the utmost respect for those who choose to do so. If you're interested, Lostpedia has an official Rewatch Forum! The Shape of Posts to Come I plan to write and post 1-2 ReWatch entries per week, and stick to my usual Lost blog format; analyzing episodes by character, posing questions to my readers and offering up potentially preposterous theories. Let's Do This; See You in Another Life My invisible hieroglyphic countdown clock has been set for 217 days. I am ready to revisit Flight 815, the island, the Others and Smokey with a tabula rasa and a leap of faith. I am exactly where I want to be, but I have work to do. See you on the other side. -Jo

Lost ReWatch Week #2: White Rabbit, House of the Rising Sun, The Moth & Confidence Man

(Thanks to my friend and fellow Lost fan Hillary P for designing a new Rewatch logo!)
Welcome to round two! My Weekly ReWatch Caveat There are 8 other sites participating in this project. In order to provide the most fresh and honest perspective here, I do not read the recaps and anaysis posted on my fellow ReWatch friends' sites until after I post my own. We all have different writing styles and are bound to experience similar epiphanies throughout this process. So if you come across any, please keep in mind that we've all seen these episodes multiple times and have analyzed them under relatively kindred microscopes for five years. Also...I am not perfect, nor is my memory; there are bound to be small mistakes here and there as I revisit and discuss all five seasons. So please excuse any errors in advance. Just a reminder that this is a strictly Spoiler-Free site; I consider casting news to be spoiler information, so please refrain from referring to what you've heard or read if you leave comments. Thank you! Without further ado, let's re-examine episodes 5-8 of Lost, Season 1... Compared to the first few episodes, I did not find as many hidden gems and relevant chunks of dialogue. We've been spoiled by the heightened intensity and pace of Lost since Season 4, and that has never been more obvious as I'm rewatching from the beginning. Relationships & Foreshadowing White Rabbit
  • Claire bonds with Kate while folding and sorting clothes on the beach. The two would later bond (S4, Eggtown) while hanging laundry in New Otherton, when Claire asks Kate to hold Aaron but Kate admits to not being great with children.
House of the Rising Sun
  • Regarding Charlie's guitar, Locke tells Charlie that "you'll see it again. Because I have faith." Locke already knew where the guitar case was when they crashed the first time, but we have yet to discover the significance and contents of his guitar case when it returns the second time (with Hurley on Ajira 316). That Jacob was the one who gave Hurley the case makes it all the more intriguing.
  • When Locke finally decides to show Charlie where his guitar was, he simply said "look up." Shades of the inscription on Eko's Jesus stick that Locke later uses as a virtual compass, "lift up your eyes and look north, John 3:05."
  • Locke tells Charlie that "this island might just give you what you're looking for, but you have to give the island something." In the future, all Charlie wanted was for Claire and Aaron to get off of the island, and he sacrificed his life because he thought it would result in their rescue. So if Locke's words are true, we just might see mother and child get on that helicopter before the end of S6.
  • I had to laugh at Michael's exasperated assertion that "time doesn't matter on a damn island." As we later learn, that is far from the truth.
The Moth
  • Locke explains to Charlie that "butterflies get all the attention, but moths...they spin silk, they're stronger, faster." I instantly recalled the first scene in the S5 finale, where Jacob was spinning thread in the foot of the statue. So would that make Jacob the moth and Mystery Man the butterfly?
  • Jack dislocates his shoulder and has Charlie put it back in. In S3 (Left Behind), Juliet dislocates her shoulder and has Kate put it back in. Which reminds me...we never found out how the hell Juliet had dislocated her shoulder three times prior to that. That was one talented and mysterious fertility doc.
Confidence Man
  • After watching Jack calm Shannon down when she's having an asthmatic panic attack, Hurley dubs it a "Jedi moment." Our first hint that the big man is a Star Wars fanboy comes long before S5 (Some Like it Hoth).
  • We see Sawyer reading the letter that he wrote to the real Sawyer, the very letter that we now know he finished writing using a pen provided by Jacob. He kept that letter for years, and his pursuit of the real Sawyer is the reason that he wound up on Flight 815. This gives credence to the theory that Jacob brought James 'Sawyer' Ford to the island.
Adam & Eve Skeletons In House of the Rising Sun, Kate discovers a male and female skeleton couple in the cave, whom Locke refers to as "our very own Adam and Eve." Jack finds a pouch on them containing a black stone and a white stone, and visually I return to the scene in the Pilot with Locke showing the black and white backgammon pieces to Walt. {Add these stones to the black and white theory that permeates the entire series; my count is now two after last week's shoe symbolism} The popular theory is that Bernard and Rose will wind up as Adam and Eve. Given that Jack's estimate in 2004 was that the skeletons had been there for 40-50 years, and that Rose and Bernard had time shifted back to 1954, I can see why many are on board with that thought. I am still not convinced (unless an alternate reality is introduced in S6), and to me, the stones are not necessarily an indication that the couple would have been interracial. CHRISTIAN SHEPHARD When we get a glimpse of Ghost Christian in his suit and white tennis shoes in White Rabbit, it is only natural to now question WHO he is at that moment. Mystery Man/NotLocke? Jacob? Smokey? There are arguments in favor of each. JACK I love that White Rabbit begins with Jack making a choice; he chooses to take a beating and fight for his friend in the schoolyard. We've seen him struggle and waver with difficult choices throughout the entire series thus far, from hesitant hero in the Pilot to resolute ringleader in the S5 finale. In this episode, Jack chooses to save Boone in the ocean rather than the woman who was drowning. We will see very soon in an upcoming flashback that Jack chose to save his future wife Sarah rather than Shannon's father when the two were in a car accident. It is when Jack is unable to 'fix' someone, when fate intervenes and choice/control is removed, that his life begins to unravel. He saved Boone...this time. He will not be able to do so in the near future after Boone's fatal fall in the yellow Beechcraft plane. It is shortly after Jack failed to save the Marshal that he started to follow his ghost father Christian in the jungle. Consider Christian's relevant and rather cruel advice to his young son during a flashback:
Don't choose, Jack. Don't decide. You don't want to be a hero. You don't try and save everyone. Because when you fail, you just don't have what it takes.
Later, Jack's mom demands that he find his father in Sydney:
I want you to bring him back. Bring your father home, Jack.
Though Jack is talking about Boone here, this statement could just as easily refer to his father (whom he sees standing in the ocean immediately after saying the following):
I thought I could bring him back and still have the time. I was there. I didn't try.
LOCKE In White Rabbit, I had to pause after Locke's prescient statement that "a leader can't lead until he knows where he's going" and reflect back on the last few episodes of S5. Many believe that after Ajira 316 landed on the island, Mystery Man used Locke's deceased shell to gain eventual access to Jacob (thus, the loophole). But Richard Alpert's instincts were correct - Locke was never meant to be the true leader of the island. Even after taking on Locke's form, Mystery Man/NotLocke did not know where to find Jacob; Alpert was the one who led him, Ben and the Others to the foot of the statue. I realize that reconsidering exactly who Locke was in the earlier episodes of the series is a very hotly contested debate right now. Personally, I am leaning toward Locke being Locke up until Ben kills him in S5. That being said, I am now viewing him in a different light as I rewatch S1...
It is not mere coincidence that when the beach contingent ran out of water, Locke voluntered to go into the jungle alone to retrieve some, and the very next time we see him he is saving Jack over the ledge. Locke had said "I know where to look," referring to both the water and Jack's exact locale. This event is immediately followed by one of the most significant conversations to ever take place on the island:
Locke: I live in the real world. I'm not a big believer in magic. But this place is different. It's special. The others don't want to talk about it because it scares them. But we all know it. We feel it. Is your white rabbit a hallucination? Probably. But what if everything that happened here happened for a reason? What if this person that you're chasing is really here?
Jack: That's impossible. Locke: Even if it is, let's say it's not. Jack: Then what happens when I catch him? Locke: I don't know. But I've looked into the eye of this island, and what I saw was beautiful.
[Considering that Jack said 'when I catch him' and not 'if,' I am hoping that we will be treated to a father and son reunion in the final season.] By the way, it merits discussion that up until he meets Benjamin Linus in S2, Locke walks around that island with an alarming overconfidence, quite sure of himself; there are definite shades of future Mystery Man/NotLocke. As soon as Ben begins to target his weaknesses and push those buttons, Locke acquiesces into an insecure and emotionally unstable man. It seems as if the tables have turned at the end of S5, with Mystery Man/NotLocke in control and Ben in a new and vulnerable position after Jacob dismissed and exposed his value as a pawn. SAWYER Watching the amazing transformation of Sawyer over the course of five seasons, I have a new appreciation for Confidence Man. After reading his letter, Kate tells Sawyer that he wants to be hated by everyone, and is the first to realize that his tough-guy facade is a fraud. This episode is the first that offers us a peek at the softer side of James Ford, as he calls off one of his cons when he sees that the couple he's scamming have a young son.
p.s. I am not a huge fan of Kate, but I will say this...that first kiss that she begrudgingly gave Sawyer in Confidence Man when she thought it would result in him handing over Shannon's inhaler? Way hotter than all of the makeout sessions and sex between any of the characters we've seen since (including the now infamous cage match). That is my $.02 assessment. SUN Even though I have yet to read it, I thought about the title of the book that Jacob was reading in the S5 finale ("Everything That RISES Must Converge") while watching House of the RISING Sun. There is probably not a correlation, but worth a mention anyway. S7? In The Moth, when I saw Charlie's hand emerge out of the dirt, I laughed out loud and thought of Darlton: zombie season? So there you have it. I appreciate your time and eyes, and look forward to your minds. Bring on the comments, but please be constructive if you have vehement disagreement with anything I've speculated or stated.  

Saturday, January 16, 2010

LOST Rewatch Week #27 (The End!): The Variable, Follow the Leader & The Incident




Welcome to the FINAL installment of the Lost Rewatch! It is hard to believe that we embarked upon this journey together over eight months ago, and that Season 6 begins in a few weeks. This project has certainly made the time fly, and I hope that you've enjoyed it as much as I have. 


When it comes to these final episodes, I have mixed emotions. I am particularly fond of The Variable, not only because it was the 100th episode of Lost, but because we were there for live filming on the day they had the shootout in the Dharmaville motorpool! Here is a recap of our tour and experience, if you're interested. But as most you know, I find the S5 finale to be very emotional and gut-wrenching primarily because of the Juliet scene. I can't quite describe how or why I have such a strong connection to that character, but I cry like I've lost a real friend every time I watch The Incident


So let's tap into a massive pocket of energy and enjoy one last ride together... 


Bad Twin/Brother's Keeper


I admit to wasting a few hours of my life reading The Bad Twin by Gary Troup (fake name and an anagram: purgatory) three years ago. Although I have brushed it off as a non-canon marketing piece, the title alone seems rather applicable now in light of the conversation and relationship between Jacob and his nemesis, the Mystery Man in black. 





I have been reflecting back to the Pilot, which Damon and Carlton have always asserted is key to the entire series. One of the most significant moments in five seasons thus far was Locke illuminating the prescient black and white theme while explaining backgammon to Walt: "Two players, two sides; one is light, one is dark."





Many people think that Mystery Man represents Esau, the biblical brother of Jacob. I would counter that the two may be more analogous with Cain and Abel, the first sons of Adam and Eve; one son blonde and good (light), the other one is bearded and evil (dark). Cain winds up murdering Abel out of lingering jealousy. You have to take into consideration the black and white stones discovered on the Adam and Eve skeletons on the island. 


It is also worth noting that in Beowulf, Grendel the monster is a descendant of Cain. Hello, Smokey...


Building a Mystery (Man)


When the man in black strolls up to Jacob on the beach, I started to wonder where he lives. The cabin was not built until the 70's, at which time I believe Jacob somehow trapped Mystery Man inside.  The ash surrounding the cabin is from the fire in Jacob's statue abode, and he mixed in salt from the sea to form a protective line (a mixture of BLACK and WHITE) that keeps evil spirits at bay.  [sidenote: this is an ancient ghost hunter ritual.] 





When Locke first went to Jacob's cabin, he actually encountered and then heard Mystery Man's plea, "help me." That is why the ash line was broken in the S5 finale - Locke's body had returned, allowing Mystery Man to finally emerge from the cabin and go after Jacob in revenge and because of the loophole. Ilana and her crew then burned the cabin down to cleanse it from that spirit, and so that he would not be able to return.


I'm also curious why, when he became NotLocke, he asked Ben to lead him to Jacob. Presumably, he was pretending not to know that Jacob resided at the bottom of the statue...


Can't Touch This


It is quite striking how Jacob goes out of his way to visit some of the future 815 passengers and makes sure to subtly touch each of them, yet wears gloves when he goes to see Ilana in the hospital. By touching Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley, Sayid, Locke, Jin and Sun, it is as if Jacob simultaneously alters and programs their destiny. I have to question whether he went out of his way to avoid making contact with Ilana because she had been to the island before...


Chances Are


Before his own younger mother shot him, Faraday said that she knew how to get them all back to where they belong. So of course I have to ponder the logistics of what Ellie knew at that point in time. Was she aware of the Frozen Donkey Wheel? It did not take her long to warm to the idea that Jack and Kate were from the future, especially after recalling Faraday's first appearance in the 50's. 


THE Conversation


I think many of you will agree that the conversation between Jacob and Mystery Man is quite possibly the most symbolic and noteworthy of the entire series. 





Jacob: "I take it you're here because of the ship."
MM: "I am. How did they find the island?"
Jacob: "You'll have to ask them when they get here."
MM: "I don't have to ask - you brought them here. Still trying to prove me wrong, aren't you?"
Jacob: "You are wrong."
MM: "Am I? They come, they fight, they destroy, they corrupt. It always ends the same."
Jacob: "It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress."
MM: "Do you have any idea how badly I want to kill you?"
Jacob: "Yes."
MM: "One of these days, sooner or later - I'm going to find a loophole, my friend."
Jacob: "Well when you do, I'll be right here."
MM: "Always nice talking to you, Jacob."
Jacob: "Nice talking to you too."


Foreshadowing Dialogue


THE VARIABLE


Faraday: "Who told you to get on a plane?"
Jack: "As a matter of fact, it was your mother."
Faraday: "And how did she convince you - did she tell you it was your destiny?"
Jack: "That's exactly what she said."
Faraday: "I've got some bad news for you...she was wrong. You don't belong here at all."





Eloise Hawking: "Do you know what destiny means?"
Young Faraday: "No."
EH: "Destiny means that if one has a special gift, then it must be nurtured. Your gift is your mind; a mind that is meant for science and mathematics. And it's my job to keep you on your path. So unfortunately, there is no more time for distractions."
YF: "I want to keep playing the piano. I can do both. I can make time."
EH: "If only you could."


Faraday: "I need you to order the evacuation of every man, woman and child on this island."
Pierre Chang: "And why would I do that?"
Faraday: "A man is on a stretcher as a consequence of the electromagnetic activity that your drilling unleashed down there."
PC: "Which is now contained."
Faraday: "It's contained down here. But in about six hours, the same thing is going to happen  at the site for the Swan station, only the energy there is about 30,000 times more powerful. And the accident - it's going to be catastrophic."
PC: "That is utterly absurd. What could possibly qualify you to make such a prediction?"
Faraday: "I'm from the future."


Faraday: "Dr. Chang, Miles is your son."
Miles: "Are you out of your mind? What are you doing?"
Faraday: "I'm just making sure that your father does what he is supposed to."
Miles: "What's that?"
Faraday: "You'll see."


Eloise, to Faraday: "The women in your life will only be terribly hurt. Your work will always come first."


Faraday, to Jack: "Do you know where I can find the Hostiles? One of them is my mother, and she's the only person on this island who can get us back to where we belong."


Widmore: "What if I told you that they're not dead? What if I told you the plane was a fake; an elaborate, expensive fake?
Faraday: "How would you know that?"
Widmore: "Because I put it there."
Faraday: "Why would you tell me that?"
Widmore: "Because come tomorrow, you won't remember that did. The real Oceanic flight 815 crashed on an island, a special island with unique scientific properties. I want to send you to the island. It will further your research, show you things you'd never dream of. It will heal you - your mind, your memory."
Faraday: "Why are you doing all of this for me?"
Widmore: "Because you're a man of tremendous gifts, and it would be a shame to see them go to waste." 
Faraday: "You sound like my mother."
Widmore: "That's because we're old friends."


Sawyer, to Faraday: "Your mother is an Other?"





Faraday, to young Charlotte: "You're going to have to leave. In case what I do doesn't work, you cannot be here. You have to leave. I tried to avoid telling you this. I didn't think I can change things...but maybe I can."


Eloise, to Faraday: "I came here to tell you that it is very important that you say yes to Mr. Widmore, that you accept this opportunity. This place he mentioned to you, this island - did he tell you that it will make you better? What if it's true? Then you could go on with your work. Just think of all you could accomplish."


Jack: "I thought you said whatever happened, happened."
Faraday: "THIS is our present. We can't be so naive as to think that nothing can happen to us. Any one of us can die."


Jack: "You need a gun to talk to your mother?"
Faraday: "You don't know my mother."


Faraday: "In about 4 hours, the Dharma folks at the Swan work site are going to drill into the ground and accidentally tap a massive pocket of energy. The result of the release of this energy would be catastrophic. So in order to contain it, they're going to have to cement the entire area in like Chernobyl. And this containment, the place they built over it - I believe you called it the Hatch. Because of this one accident, these people are going to spend the next 20 years keeping that energy at bay by pressing a button; a button that your friend Desmond will one day fail to push. That will cause your plane, Oceanic 815, to crash on this island. And because your plane crashed, a freighter will be sent to this island; a freighter I was on and Charlotte was on and so forth. This entire chain of events, it's going to start happening this afternoon. But we can change that. I studied relativistic physics my entire life. One thing emerged over and over - we can't change the past, we can't do it. Whatever happened, happened. But then I finally realized, I had been spending so much time focused on the constants, I forgot about the variables. We're the variables - people. We think, we reason, we make choices, we have free will, we can change our destiny. I think I can negate that energy under the Swan; I think I can destroy it. If I can, then that hatch will never be built, and your plane will land, just like it's supposed to, in Los Angeles. I'm going to detonate a hydrogen bomb."





Widmore: "My relationship with Penelope was one of the things I had to sacrifice."
Eloise: "Don't you talk to me about sacrifice. I had to send my son back to the island, knowing full well that..."
Widmore: "He's my son too."





Faraday: "You knew, you always knew. You knew this was going to happen, you sent me anyway."
Eloise: "Who are you?"
Faraday: "Your son."


FOLLOW THE LEADER


Kate: "He's crazy."
Jack: "Is he? What if this is why we're here -what if this is our one chance to put things back the way they're supposed to be?" 


Alpert: "Something's different about you."
NotLocke: "I have a purpose now."


Ben: "When I left the island, John stepped in. He's the leader now."


Ben: "His name is Richard Alpert. He's kind of an adviser, and he has had that job for a very, very long time."


Sun: "These people, they were here with my husband. Were you here? Do you remember them?"
Alpert: "Yes, I was here 30 years ago. And I do; I remember these people. I remember meeting them very clearly because I watched them all die."  


Sun: "Do you think it's true, they're all dead?"
NotLocke: "I don't think we went through all of this for nothing."


NotLocke: "I'm not afraid of anything you can do anymore, Ben."


Kate: "You said that we needed to put things back the way they were supposed to be. What did you mean by that?"
Jack: "If we can do what Faraday said, our plane never crashes. Flight 815 lands in Los Angeles. And everyone we lost since we got here - they'd all be alive."
Kate: "What about us? We just go on living our life because we've never met?"
Jack: "All the misery that we've been through, we'd just wipe it clean. Never happened."
Kate: "It wasn't all misery."
Jack: "Enough of it was."


Jack: "Your son came back here because he had figured out a way to change things. He doesn't have to be dead. You don't have to have killed him. If we do what's written in that journal, none of this will have happened."


Pierre Chang: "Your friend Faraday said that you were from the future. I need to know if he was telling the truth. He also told me to evacuate everyone I could off the island. He told me there was going to be a massive accident at the Swan. Is that true?"
Miles: "He's been right about everything so far." 


Charles Widmore in 1977, re: Faraday: "Why is it that this man looks so familiar to me?" 





Jack: "Who is he?"
Alpert: "The man you're asking about is Charles Widmore. He and Eloise are, well, let's just say love can be complicated."





NotLocke: "I'd like you to take me to see Jacob."
Alpert: "That's not how it works."
NotLocke: "Is that true, is this going to be a problem? I am the leader right now, right?"
Alpert: "Yes, that's right."
NotLocke: "Then I would like you to take me to Jacob."


Ben: "This must be quite the out-of-body experience."
NotLocke: "Something like that."


Alpert: "You seemed pretty convinced, especially when I said you were going to die. I'm certainly glad that didn't have to happen."
NotLocke: "Actually it did."


Sayid: "So you're telling me you're going to erase the last three years of our lives?"
Jack: "We can change things."
Sayid: "I don't know if you're aware of this, but I've already changed things. I killed Benjamin Linus and we're all still here."
Kate: "It's because you didn't kill him."
Jack: "The three of us disappeared off that plane and ended up here, ended up now - because this is our chance to change things."
Kate: "If you're wrong, everyone on the island dies."
Jack: "I'm not wrong. This is it, this is why we're here; it's our destiny."
Kate: "Do you know who you sound like? Because he was crazy too - you said so yourself."


Sayid: "If this works, then you might just save us all."


Alpert: "I'm starting to think John Locke is going to be trouble."
Ben: "Why do you think I tried to kill him?"





Ben: "Richard has some concerns. The pilgrimage to Jacob makes him uncomfortable. He's expressed reservations about whether or not you know what the hell you're doing."
NotLocke: "I appreciate you bringing that to my attention."
Ben: "I know we've had our differences in the past, but I'm here to follow you now. So if you need Jacob to help you reunite with your people..."
NotLocke: "That's not why we're going to Jacob."
Ben: "Then why are we going to Jacob?"
NotLocke: "So I can kill him."


THE INCIDENT





Jacob, to young Kate: "You're not going to steal anymore, are you?"


Sub captain: "Have a nice rest - we'll see you on the other side."


Radzinsky: "Designing a station that will be able to manipulate electromagnetic energy in ways we'd only dreamed of..."
Pierre Chang: "Have you thought about the consequences of drilling into that pocket?"
Radzinsky: "I came to this island to change the world - that's exactly what I intend to do."


Sun: "Who's Jacob?"
Ben: "He's in charge of this island."
Sun: "You said John was in charge."
Ben: "No, I said he was a leader - a title that I've discovered is incredibly temporary. But everyone answers to someone, and the leader answers to Jacob."
Sun: "What is he like?"
Ben: "I don't know, I've never met him."


NotLocke: "Is there something you'd like to ask me?"
Alpert: "Ben told me that he strangled you."
NotLocke: "That is my recollection, yes."
Alpert: "He said he was sure you were dead, that he saw your coffin loaded onto that plane that you came back on. How are you alive?"
NotLocke: "You've been on this island much longer than I have. If anyone should have an explanation, I'd think it would be you."
Alpert: "I have been here a long time, and I've seen things on this island that I could barely describe...but I've never seen someone come back to life."
NotLocke: "And I've never seen someone who doesn't age - doesn't mean it can't happen."
Alpert: "I'm this way because of Jacob, and if I had to guess...he's the reason you're not in that coffin anymore."
NotLocke: "I agree completely. That is why I'm doing this, so I can thank him. Once I've done that, we're going to have to deal with the other passengers from the Ajira flight that brought me here."
Alpert: "What do you mean, deal with?"
NotLocke: "You know what I mean."





Bram: "Why did we even bring this yahoo?"
Ilana: "Because we might need him."
Bram: "For what? He didn't know the answer to the question."
Ilana: "That doesn't mean he's not important."
Bram: "You think he's a candidate?"





Sawyer's Uncle: "What's done is done. Now promise me you're not going to finish that letter."
Young Sawyer: "I promise."


Alpert: "Over 20 years ago, a man named John Locke - he walked right into our camp. He told me that he was going to be our leader. Now I've gone off the island three times to visit him, but he never seemed particularly special to me. You know him?"
Jack: "Yes, I know him. And if I were you, I wouldn't give up on him."


NotLocke: "You're willing to do whatever I say, no matter what it is?"
Ben: "Yes."
NotLocke: "Well then, I guess I won't have to convince you after all."
Ben: "Convince me to do what?"
NotLocke: "I'm not going to kill Jacob...you are."





Lapidus: "I wish you never showed me what was in this damn box. What the hell are you going to do with it anyway?"
Ilana: "We need to show it to somebody so they'll know exactly what we're up against."
Lapidus: "What exactly are they up against?"
Bram: "Something a hell of a lot scarier than what's in this box. Don't worry - as long as you're with us, you're fine."
Lapidus: "That would be reassuring if I knew who you were."
Bram: "We're the good guys."
Lapidus: "In my experience, the people who go out of their way to tell you they're the good guys are the bad guys."


Ben: "Why do you want me to kill Jacob?"
NotLocke: "Because despite your loyal service to this island, you got cancer. You had to watch your own daughter gunned down right in front of you. And your reward for those sacrifices - you were banished. You did all this in the name of a man you'd never even met. Why the hell wouldn't you want to kill Jacob?"




Jacob, to Jin and Sun at their wedding: "I'd like to offer you my blessing. Your love is a very special thing - never take it for granted."  


Sayid: "I need to modify the bomb; I can make it so it detonates on impact. We need to be there at the moment of the Incident, or this will all be there for nothing."


Sawyer: "What's done is done."
Jack: "It doesn't have to be that way."


Jack: "Three years ago, Locke told me that all this was happening for a reason, that us being here was our destiny."
Sawyer: "I don't speak destiny. What I do understand is a man does what he does because he wants something for himself."


Sawyer: "If what you're doing even works, you and Kate will be strangers and she'll be in damn handcuffs."
Jack: "If it's meant to be, it's meant to be."





Sawyer: "I've got a right to know why you changed your mind."
Juliet: "I changed my mind when I saw you look at her."
Sawyer: "I don't care who I looked at, I'm with you."
Juliet: "And you would stay with me forever if I let you, and that is why I will always love you. What we had, it was just for a little while. And just because we love each other...it doesn't mean that we're meant to be together. Maybe we were never supposed to be together. So if Jack can make it that none of you ever come here, then he should."
Sawyer: "Why are you doing this?"
Juliet: "If I never meet you, then I never have to lose you."


Jack: "If this works, Claire will never come to the island and they'll always be together, just the way they're meant to be."
Kate: "She was going to give him up for adoption."
Jack: "You don't know what she would do. Whatever it is, it will be her choice. If you want to save Claire, this is the only way to do it. Nothing in my life has ever felt so right, and I just need you to believe that. It's about to happen - are you with me on this?"
Kate: "Yes."
Jack: "Then let's go."





Jacob: "What if you weren't cursed - what if you were blessed? You get to talk to people you've lost. Seems like a pretty wonderful thing to me."
Hurley: "Except for the part where I'm crazy."
Jacob: "I've got some news for you, and you're just going to have to take my word on this - you are not crazy."
Hurley: "Who are you, dude?"
Jacob: "All you have to do is get on that plane. It's your choice. You don't have to do anything you don't want to."





Jack: "This is going to work, and it will save you."
Sayid: "Nothing can save me."
Jack: "See you in Los Angeles."


Ben: "John wants me to join him."
Alpert: "You can't bring him in."
NotLocke: "Why not?"
Alpert: "Because only our leader can request an audience with Jacob, and there can only be one leader on the island at a time."
NotLocke: "I'm beginning to think you just make these rules up as you go along. Ben is coming in with me and if that's a problem, I'm sure Jacob and I can work it out."


NotLocke: "Will you be able to do this, Ben? I know it won't be easy but things will change...once he's gone, I promise."


Miles: "Has it occurred to any of you that your buddy is actually going to cause the thing he says he's trying to prevent? Perhaps that little nuke IS the incident. So maybe the best thing to do is nothing?"


Juliet: "Live together, die alone."





Richard: "Where did you find him?"
Ilana: "In the cargo hold of the plane we came on - in a coffin."
Sun: "I don't understand...if this is Locke, who's in there?"





NotLocke: "Hello Jacob."
Jacob: "You found your loophole."
NotLocke: "Indeed I did. And you have no idea what I've gone through to be here."
Ben: "Have you met before?"
NotLocke: "In a manner of speaking. Do what I asked you to, Ben"
Jacob: "Whatever he's told you, I want you to understand one thing - you have a choice."
Ben: "What choice?"
Jacob: "You can do what he asked, or you can go...leave us to discuss our issues."
Ben: "So now, after all this time, you've decided to stop ignoring me. Thirty five years I lived on this island, and I all I ever heard was your name, over and over. Richard would bring me your instructions - all those slips of paper, all those lists - and I never questioned anything. I did as I was told. But when I dared to ask to see you myself,  I was told 'you have to wait, you have to be patient.' But when he asked to see you, he gets marched straight up here as if he were Moses. So why him? What was it that was so wrong with me? What about me?"
Jacob: "What ABOUT you?"





Jacob: "They're coming."


Frank J. Lapidus, Island Candidate


Ilana is considering Lapidus to be a candidate for...something. That alone convinces me that Bram was telling the truth when he said that they're "the good guys." Ilana is clearly on Team Jacob and if I had to guess...Mystery Man-as-Smokey killed 815 pilot Seth Norris because he was supposed to be/thought it was Frank Lapidus. I have a feeling that Frank will be instrumental in the pending war; that he will lead the fight and eventual victory over Mystery Man/NotLocke on the island.


The Ghost Whisperer


I have no idea whether or not Miles will still be on the island, post-Incident, but...I would be curious to find out if he can communicate with the deceased if their souls were currently being occupied by another. Because I would love to see Miles attempt to find out what happened to the real Locke on the beach, only to discover that it is an empty shell of a man. 


Good Vibrations





Watching Faraday play piano in The Variable, I am reminded of a theory I posted last year - that Faraday himself programmed the Looking Glass station security code at some point when he had traveled back in time...specifically for Charlie. Click here for a more detailed look, and here to see Jeff Jensen's perspective on my theory.


I'm in Love with Your Ghost [minor spoiler alert; skip ahead to be safe]


I caught something that Hurley said in The Incident that failed to register the first time around. He told Jacob that his friends Libby and Charlie died and "now THEY visit me." We've seen him chat with Ghost Charlie, but not with Ghost Libby. Given that they just announced that we'll see Cynthia Watros again in S6, I look forward to how and when she finally reappears (i.e. in ghost form, in an alternate reality/timeline, in Santa Rosa with Hurley, etc.). 


Juliet, The Dice Were Loaded From the Start


There are certain points in the final few episodes of S5, leading up to her demise, that are simply heartbreaking for Juliet (and for the audience as well). 



  • When Sawyer refered to Kate as Freckles in front of her, it felt like a kick to the stomach. 
  • When Juliet then gave Kate the sonic fence code and said "it's over for us here anyway" while looking at Sawyer, we shared her pain as the reality of the situation started to sink in. 
  • When Kate joined Juliet and Sawyer on the sub, the look on Juliet's face was tremendously sad.
  • When Sawer looked at Kate rather than Juliet as Rose explained that "we just care about being together; that's all that matters in the end," I wanted to smack him. 
  • When Juliet agreed with Jack's plan rather than Sawyer, because "if I never met you, then I'd never have to lose you," the first tears started to flow.  
  • When she said "live together, die alone." Because that is exactly what happened to her.
By the way, I am baffled as to why they inserted a random Juliet flashback to show that she came from a broken home. Considering that all other flashbacks in the finale involved an appearance by Jacob, it still seems out of place. 


Mamma Mia


When Eloise tells her son Faraday that it's her JOB to keep him on his path, two thoughts crossed my mind. First, it seemed like her job to also keep Desmond on his path. And second, it was as if she was working for the island...and therefore Jacob or Mystery Man. Clearly, Eloise was connected enough to the island to convince her son to return, knowing that he was going to be a sacrifice that the island demanded.   


Parallels


Half-sibling alert! Just as we discovered that Claire is Jack's half-sister, we found out that Faraday is Penny's half-brother. 





This may be a coincidence more than a parallel, but Faraday's science experiment girlfriend Theresa shares that name with Boone's nanny. Recall Boone's story about how she broke her neck when he was a child (and that in Locke's vision, a bloody Boone said "Theresa falls up the stairs, Theresa falls down the stairs").  For such a show that illustrates a meticulous attention to detail, I am always surprised when a character name repeats. Of course my inner conspiracy theorist believes that they're all related somehow, or represent versions of one another. In fact, there is a third Theresa - Teresa Cortez, Ana Lucia's mother. 


Ben and Charles Widmore appear to share the same rules of engagement that Jacob has with Mystery Man; that they are not allowed to kill one another. We know that MM finally finds his loophole in order to sidestep the rules, and I wonder if Widmore will do the same to Ben in S6...


When Jacob visits young Kate, her childhood boyfriend Tom has the toy airplane that Kate later breaks into the bank to get out of the safe deposit box. 


Just as Sayid shot young Ben Linus, Roger Linus shoots Sayid. 






Rose, Bernard and Vincent finally reappear. They have been living peacefully on the other side of the island for three years after getting stuck in the 70's.


THE Red Shirt





When I first saw Juliet in a red shirt in The Variable, I thought she would be fine because Hurley had been sporting one under his Dharma jumpsuit for a few days. It seemed too obvious and I doubted that they would give such an obvious hint about a major character. So when I watched it again a few days ago, my heart sank upon first glimpse of that damn blouse...and every moment toward her end.





Significant Moments/Firsts





Eloise Hawking meets Penny Widmore and reveals to her that Daniel Faraday is her son. 


Charles Widmore reveals that Daniel Faraday is his son.


After leaving Dharmaville in 1974 to do research in Ann Arbor, Faraday returns to the island.


Faraday tells Pierre Chang that Miles is his son.


Faraday tells his mother that his research grant is funded by Charles Widmore, but he has no idea that CW is his father. 


Widmore visits Faraday and admits to staging the fake 815 wreckage.





In 1977, Faraday does wind up warning young Charlotte to leave the island. She and her mother later leave on a sub when evacuated. As do baby Miles and his mother Lara.





Young Eloise Hawking shoots and kills her son Daniel Faraday, with no knowledge that he is her son at that time. 






We find out that Jughead was hidden under Dharmaville and that there is a system of tunnels beneath the island. 


Alpert reveals that Ellie Hawking is pregnant in 1977. 


We see that NotLocke instructed Alpert in 1977 to remove the bullet from Locke's leg and tell him he's going to have to die in order to bring everyone back to the island. 


We finally meet Jacob, who resides in the foot of the four toed statue. We also meet his nemesis, a Mystery Man in black.





We see a ship in the distance that is more than likely the Black Rock. 


We discover that Jacob had visited some of the 815 passengers off island at various points in their lives; young Kate stealing from a liquor store, young Sawyer at his parents' funeral, Jack on the day of his Pilot story about counting to five, Jin and Sun at their wedding reception, Sayid when he is happily married to Nadia after getting off the island, and Hurley after getting out of jail and trying to avoid going back to the island. 


We see Sayid's wife Nadia killed in a hit and run accident.





Jacob was present when Locke was pushed out of the eight story window, and appears to revive him from the dead.





Sun finds Charlie's DriveShaft ring in Aaron's old crib. 


Faraday informs Jack that detonating Jughead would negate the energy beneath the Swan and send them back where they belonged. 





Sayid rigs the bomb and Jack drops it down the shaft of the Swan.


Pierre Chang's arm is crushed when metallic objects start to fly down the shaft because the drill hit the pocket of electromagnetic energy. 


Juliet is pulled down by chains that wrapped around her, and Sawyer and Kate are unable to save her. She drops down to her death. She wakes up briefly to see that Jughead had not detonated, and takes a rock to deliver the final blow.


Ilana and co. arrive at the statue and Richard answers her "what lies in the shadow of the statue" question in Latin. 


They open the crate to reveal that Locke's dead body was inside...even though he also appears to be with Ben and Jacob. 





Ben stabs Jacob and NotLocke kicks him into the fire.


Stain on the Ceiling





Regardless of when and where Jack & co. are when S6 resumes, I do hope we find out get to see Radzinsky's eventual death in the Swan. That he was the one who both designed the station and drew the blast door map makes me think that they're not done with his character just yet. 


The Visual and The Visceral





Representing one of my favorite 'easter egg' moments on Lost, there is a white rabbit literally through the (looking) glass of Eloise Hawking. 





I love the shot of Alpert working on the tiny ship in the bottle, especially given the opening scene of the S5 finale (Jacob & Mystery Man looking out at what is probably the Black Rock) and the speculation that Alpert actually arrived on the island via that ship.





As I pointed out a few posts ago, NotLocke emerges from the jungle with a dead boar in Follow the Leader, just as Miles did in The Lie earlier this season.


Locke leading his people across the island en masse was very reminiscent of Jack doing the same at the end of S3.





As much as I dread even mentioning it and posting this photo...bloodied Juliet at the bottom of the Swan reminded me of her book club selection - Carrie





Who's Your Daddy?


Like many of you, I have to wonder who Charlotte's father was, especially because he stayed behind when his family was evacuated off of the island. 






You Dropped a Bomb on Me


When Alpert told Sun that he saw Jack, Kate, Hurley and Jin die 30 years ago, my first thought was that Alpert is not only ageless, he's impenetrable. He not only witnessed Jughead's detonation, he survived it. What I want to know is why he thought the others perished as a result; if Faraday was right, the universe would have course corrected and I assumed that their bodies would disappear rather than remain on the island.


You're Special, So Special


There has to be more to the fact that Faraday told Desmond he is "uniquely and miraculously special," especially because "the rules don't apply" to him.  


In the S5 premiere (Because You Left), Dr. Chang scolded a Dharma worker beneath the Orchid for making fun of time travel possibilities: "There are rules; rules that can't be broken."  


It seems to me that Desmond is both a Variable and a Loophole, and therefore a key element to how the entire series unfolds and ends. And yet, Eloise Hawking refers to Desmond as "a casualty in a conflict that's bigger than him, that's bigger than any of us."I assume she's talking about the war between Jacob and Mystery Man/NotLocke.  


And for what it's worth, the only other person to whom certain rules do not apply is Juliet. In the much maligned S3 episode Stranger in a Strange Land, Ben sent the Sheriff a note that the rules do not apply to Juliet; thus, her life was spared. If you ask me, the island had far more to do with that particular order than Ben. Unfortunately, we've now seen just why it kept Juliet around. [sidenote: do I think that the rules for Des and Juliet were the same? no.]



Crazy Last Theory of the Rewatch


I have yet to truly sit down and formulate my predictions for the final season, but a crazy thought crossed my mind while watching the finale. 


When 815 lands in LA as originally planned, Claire will be pregnant. She will be in LA until she gives birth and her doctor will be Juliet...who works at Jack's hospital. That will be one of the many ways that they will introduce the characters to one another for the first time, given that they'll be strangers upon arrival. 


---
In addition to the Rewatch facts that I recently posted, I wanted to point out that I never re-read any of my posts from previous seasons; I wrote fresh notes while revisiting every single episode, and chose not to be influenced by previous analysis. I'm certain that there are similarities, but I only provided links to a few prior points and lists in order to save time. 


Thank you SO much for taking this journey with me over the last nine months. It was one of the most time-consuming yet rewarding experiences I've ever had. I sound like a broken record, but believe me when I say that I am extremely grateful to all of you who took the time to read my Rewatch posts and leave comments on occasion. You continue to fuel my creative fire, and I look forward to an amazing final season with you.


Now that my Rewatch has officially ended, I am shifting gears and focusing my energy on S6, because two weeks from right now...we will be on the beach awaiting the premiere screening in Waikiki! Stay tuned for details about a Meet-Up I am hosting on the eve of the premiere, as well as comprehensive coverage of the screening on Twitter and TVOvermind


Namaste, fellow fans and friends.


-Jo