Walt, The Vault, It's All Jack's Fault: LOST Season 4 Finale Theories

Before I get started with Round 2 of random thoughts about the spectacular season finale, I have to fill you in on my current location.

I am lost right now [pun intended], away for the weekend in every sense of the word. So here I sit in front of the Pacific Ocean, the perfect setting to ponder an episode that so involved the sea. And I'm happy to report that I am sipping on something far tastier than poor Juliet's aged Dharma rum.

Although I went to bed at 5am, I was wide awake by 9am and watched the finale again before heading out of town...so here are some additional thoughts and questions.

But first, here is the audio of the mysterious phone call that Kate received, in reverse. Thanks to Sara K & Kat M for the link!

RICHARD ALPERT

When Ben thanked him for rescuing him from Keamy, Alpert responded with 'my pleasure.' That struck me as an odd response. What exactly is the nature of Ben's relationship with him, and how will that change once Ben is gone from the island? Does Alpert's role remain the same for Locke now that he's assumed leadership?

BEN

When Kate asked if they were really allowed to leave the island on the helicopter, Ben did not hesitate to let them go...because he knew they'd be back eventually.

Locke did return his black baton, because he took out Keamy with it before stabbing him. Again though...that little thing sure enhances Ben's physical abilities. He only really kicks ass when he's wielding it.

Is Ben still interested in Walt and his special abilities? If so, is he helping him off island (i.e. flying him across the country to see Hurley)?

JEREMY BENTHAM/JOHN LOCKE

Why didn't Locke ever reveal to Jack that he was paralyzed before Flight 815 crashed on that island? I suppose the stubborn doc wouldn't believe that either.

Now that Ben is out of the picture on the island, how will Jacob interact with Locke and vice versa?

Did Locke create the new name, or was it assigned to him?

When Locke visited Walt as Bentham, did he tell him where to find Hurley?

Did Locke also visit Ben at any point after leaving the island?

How much time had passed since Locke left the island and supposedly took his own life?

If the island let him die because his work on its behalf was complete, was his purpose to merely inform the Oceanic 6 that they all had to return in order to save each others lives (as well as those remaining on the island)?

CHARLOTTE

Does she know where the island has relocated before? Is that why she knew she'd find a Dharma collar on the polar bear skeleton in Tunisia?


She doesn't want to leave the island because she's searching for the place where she was born. With all of the research and prior knowledge about the island before arriving there (this time), you'd think she'd know that no children have ever been born there and live to tell about it. Except Alex, allegedly.

She may not be Ben's childhood Dharma girlfriend Annie, but there certainly is a resemblance...

CLAIRE

She up and wandered off in the scary jungle by herself after sustaining a head injury, leaving her baby at the base of a tree. So why do Jack and Hurley think that Claire is still alive?

Even though it was (apparently) a dream, when Claire showed up in Kate's house, I was surprised to actually hear her. Other posthumous appearances have been pretty silent up until now (i.e. Christian Shephard).

Why was Claire still dressed in island clothes in Kate's dream? I only noticed because Charlie's makeover was so obvious upon his reappearance from beyond.

Has Claire appeared to her mother? If so, did she somehow communicate that her grandson Aaron is now in the care of Kate?

DESMOND

Before they parted ways on Penny's boat, Jack said "don't let HIM find you" to Desmond. Who? As far as we know, Jack isn't aware of Widmore or his relationship with Ben and the island, let alone that Penny is Widmore's daughter. So is Jack referring to Locke?

FROZEN DONKEY WHEEL

The elevator down to the frozen tundra and the island's wheel was located deep beneath the Orchid station. Is there an artificial refrigeration system maintaining that area, or is the Orchid situated directly above an icy locale directly beneath the island itself? If so, is that where the island moved to when it was sucked into the ocean?

Was that the first time that someone had activated the move using that very location? Is it a one-shot deal; is that why Ben had to destroy the Vault to even access the frozen cave?

Was this mechanism noted on the Swan hatch blast door map that Locke briefly viewed while trapped underneath it?

Is Juliet aware of the Orchid or the wheel/ability to move the island?

HOSTILES/OTHERS

First of all, are they two separate factions or are they intertwined? Why does this group still don the dirty rag ensembles? This can't be the same group that includes the Tail Section kids and leftover Others from abandoned New Otherton.

Obviously they didn't care whether or not Kate & co. left the island...they shot at and threw grenades toward a fueled helicopter without hesitation.

The whispers were heard right before the hostiles appeared. Is it actually them, or spirits?

What was that magnetic bullet/charge that they shot one of the mercenaries with? Where did they get it and why haven't we seen it used on the island before?

HURLEY

After the fact, now that he has returned to Santa Rosa Mental Institution in the future, does Hurley ever put two and two together and find out that Libby was a patient there as well (during one of his stints)?

There have been many instances of board games played on and off the island, but Hurley's participation now seems integral. Oh yeah, and he almost always wins...

• BACKGAMMON: Hurley played Walt on the beach, and confessed to have placed in a tournament once.

• BASKETBALL: Hurley played HORSE with Jack at the mental institution in a flash forward, and kicked the doc's tail.

• CHESS: Hurley plays against the deceased Mr. Eko in the institution, in a flash forward.
  

• CONNECT FOUR: Hurley played Leonard (the man who originally mumbled 'the numbers' at the mental institution).

• HORSESHOES: Hurley played with Sawyer in New Otherton, and commented about his new lucky streak.

• PING PONG: Hurley played Sawyer on the beach

• POKER: Hurley played with Jack, Kate and Sawyer on the beach. Jack won that time.

• RISK: Hurley played with Locke and Sawyer at Ben's house in New Otherton, and said that Australia was key to the entire game (and possibly series).

JACK

Why would Jack want to open the coffin anyway? To confirm Bentham's identity?

What 'bad things' happened on the island after Jack left? Does it involve Juliet, Sawyer or Rose and Bernard?

I can't WAIT for the episode where Jack starts to believe; the day that Jack not only trusts Locke, but desperately and finally wants to follow his lead and advice.

KATE

In her alleged dream, who called Kate at the exact time that Claire showed up? (Listen to the audio of that message at the top of this post). Abbadon? Ben? Bentham/Locke? Charlie?

KEAMY

Why was he pretending that he didn't know anything about Ben? Clearly the man knew everything about the island and he knew quite well how to push Ben's buttons.

I forgot to mention...I LOVED the Keamy/Sayid fight. Great choreography and tension. We were cheering at our Lost party. I'm sure we weren't alone.

How did he know that Alpert had shot him in the back? Was he conscious and playing dead the entire time, lying there with his eyes open until the helicopter and hostiles left?

Was the heart transmitter programmed specifically to Keamy's heart? Is that why Locke didn't even attempt to remove it and place it on his own arm?

FRANK LAPIDUS

I know they were pressed for time, but why didn't Frank inspect his helicopter for bullet holes after being fired upon?

When he was flying Desmond and the Oceanic 6 off of the island, why is it that the freighter was visible from the beach but it took him forever to locate it from the sky? Were the bearings he followed different from the ones that Daniel Faraday used to bring passengers back and forth on the Zodiac raft?

MILES

Did he know that Charlotte had been to the island before because of information he'd gleaned from one of his ghost-busting missions off island?

SAWYER

When he jumped out of the helicopter, did he not grab a life vest because he wanted to make sure that everyone else had one in case of crash landing? Given that it appeared to be a rash decision to bail, it's probably more likely that he didn't even think about taking one.

For those of you wondering why Sawyer would sacrifice his rescue to save the rest, the answer is in the photo above. The love triangle has just become a straight line.

SAYID

When he went to get Hurley at the institution, he told him that 'they' said Bentham had committed suicide two days ago. How was Sayid informed about Bentham's death, and by whom? Was he involved? Who is the 'they' that he referred to?

SUN

When she was screaming for Jin in the helicopter, it was absolutely heart-wrenching. Something tells me that the second person she blames for Jin's death (besides her father) is...Ben.

That is why she finds Widmore in London; she will wind up working as a double agent of sorts, helping keep Penny safe from Ben while pretending to be on the same side as the rest of the Oceanic 6. Given that she is the only one of the O6 living outside of the Los Angeles area, she can travel about and conduct business without the same scrutiny.

WALT

What does Walt's grandma know? It seems to me that she would be in danger if she knows about Michael and Walt's journey home, the island, Ben, etc.

If Hurley was being monitored (by Abbadon, Oceanic or Widmore), Walt has now blown his cover. I wonder if Sayid will come to take him to the 'safe' place as well...

As soon as he sat down across from Hurley, I half expected him to ask for the $83,000 that Hurley owed him from a game of backgammon on the beach way back in Season 1.

CHARLES WIDMORE

Keamy never said whether or not Widmore ordered Alex's execution, so did he take matters into his own hands or was he instructed to kill Ben's daughter?

PENNY WIDMORE

At what point, if ever, did Daddy take measures to hide her away in a location where Ben could never find her? Was Desmond with her?

THE VAULT

When Ben blew through the Vault to get to the frozen section below, did that render the actual time travel function useless? Is that the only wormhole for time travel on and off the island?

Dr. Halliwax experimented with a rabbit in the Orientation video, but the tape skipped forward and John never saw the result...but we have. Watch the original video again. Seems as if the rabbit duplicated itself rather than disappeared or merely traveled through time. What implications will this have for Lost in the future?

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS & QUESTIONS

• When Sawyer and Jack first approached the Orchid station, Sawyer asked Jack what the plan was...exactly as Locke had inquired with Ben.

• Now that the unnamed passengers from Flight 815 have died on the freighter, the only remaining survivors besides the rescued Oceanic 6 are Rose & Bernard and Sawyer (as well as the Tail Section kids and Flight Attendant Cindy, wherever the hell they are).

• There appear to be 2 posters on Aaron's door in the flash forward...of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

• Is the identity of the man that Sayid shot outside of Hurley's institution important, or was he simply another in a long line of Widmore cronies that Sayid was assassinating?

• Will the items discarded from the helicopter (in order to save fuel) be relevant down the line? I thought I saw the black box being tossed out...

• Who really went to the effort and expense of planting the fake wreckage of Flight 815? From a financial standpoint, both Widmore and Mr. Paik would be likely candidates. But what about motive?

• Band-aids: significant or no? Frank Lapidus has been sporting once since he first landed on the island, Claire was wearing one in Jacob's cabin after she (probably) died in the house explosion, and Jack had one on in that last flash forward when he met Kate at the airport.

• The 'live together, die alone' mantra has come full circle now that they all must return to the island together. And it's a bad sign for those left behind/alone...

• Ben: "Good command decisions get compromised by bad emotional responses." That, in a nutshell, describes the pasts and future of almost every single character on Lost.

• The title of this 3-part season finale really only applies to Locke: There's No Place Like Home. For him, it's the island, and until the coffin reveal...he seemed pretty content with his abode.

CRAZY THEORIES OF THE WEEK/SEASON 5 PREDICTIONS

1) When Locke leaves the island and dies, Walt becomes the new leader of the island. Ben and the hostiles/others were skeptical of Walt at first, just like they were of Locke...but Walt makes sense as the next in line to lead the crazy train. Think about it...young Ben first encountered the ageless Richard Alpert in the jungle at about the same age that Walt was when the Others kidnapped him for testing/brainwashing. Alpert had told Ben that he needed to be patient in order to lead, and Walt may have been primed for the same.

2) Widmore knew that whomever moved the island could never go back. So he arranged for Penny to go there after Ben visited him and threatened her life. Widmore somehow found out that Ben was responsible for the latest relocation (perhaps from Desmond), and that Ben himself could never get back. Thus, Penny would be safe there.

3) Jeremy Bentham was not John Locke. He was a clone of Locke that was created in the Vault below the Orchid station (like the rabbits). Whether this happens as an accident or was purposeful remains to be seen.

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So there you have it. I will more than likely view the finale for a third time this weekend now that iTunes has finally posted it for purchase. In the meantime, I'm off for some R&R and non-Lost writing.

I appreciate all of your comments...keep 'em coming!