Wednesday, April 07, 2010

LOST: Season 6 Episode 11 - Happily Ever After

Hello LOSTIES!!!  WOW....just WOW!!!  I still don't understand how people can be hating this season.  That episode just blew me away again.  Granted, it was the long awaited Desmond episode, and his episodes are always thought provokingly awesome!  Maybe people are going to start coming around on the sideways story now that we see it is going somewhere.  In fact, we spent a majority of the episode there.  But the difference is, it was initiated from the ISLAND timeline.  And there seems to be a LOT more going on there than originally had met the eye.  Did we get the answer to the Flash Sideways?  No, of course not.  But we got a lot more to chew on.  And as Damon Lindelof, Co-Creator/Executive producer tweeted last week "In one week, the conversations will change," I think he was absolutely correct!

Happily Ever After - an expression that we never thought we would associate with LOST until this season.     But with a lot of the Flash Sideways scenarios in the first half of this final season, we saw all of our LOSTIES seemingly living better lives than they had previously.  And it would certainly seem like this is something that Widmore is striving for with his Island mission.  There really is only one storyline to follow in this one.  We join Desmond on the Island where he is just coming around on the fact that he has been returned to the Island.  And then, the experimentations begin.  Desmond's consciousness was sent to the sideways world. Based on Island Desmond's behavior when he "woke up" it was almost like he experienced and saw everything that happened even though the sideways version of him was still slowly coming to the realization.  Lots of character crosses in the Sideways world and some very interesting reveals.  We'll get to all of it below.  I have a feeling there will be some energetic discussions this week.  Let's get to it!      

Hydra Island
Infirmary

Prior to last week's cliffhanger, the last time we saw Desmond was in the hospital after getting shot by Benjamin Linus.  We also saw Charles and Eloise have a conversation outside that very hospital.  Charles claimed that Daniel Faraday was also his son which led to us speculating that Charles and Eloise had fathered a child once too.  I'm getting ahead of myself.  We now rejoin Desmond on the Island, whom Charles Widmore has referred to as "THE PACKAGE".   Let's see what goes down.
  • Desmond wakes up in the infirmary on the Island still unaware of his surroundings.  Zoe tells him that he's been unconscious for 3 days.  Hmm, not sure if this fact is important.  Probably not, but are they suggesting that it's only been 3 days since the Ajira flight crashed on the Island?  There is absolutely no way, right?  But Ben definitely shot Desmond on the day that he, Jack and crew left for the Island.  And Widmore goes into a whole explanation of Desmond getting shot and asking if he remembers (which he does).  So, it might be me nitpicking, but I was just curious to if Desmond ever woke up in the hospital prior to Widmore and his crew sedating him and getting him on a sub.  It may have been a 3 day journey to the Island for all we know.  
  • Des is clearly disoriented and doesn't know why Widmore is there.   All he wants to do is see Penny.  Charles explains to Desmond that both Penny and his son Charlie are safe.  But, as for Desmond, he apologizes for taking him back to the Island.  Charles is extremely apologetic and knows how Desmond must be feeling.  Oh, but it doesn't matter.  Just as we expected, he is not one happy camper to be back there!  He went to town on Charles and beat the living daylights out of him and giving him a nice gash on the head in the process.  Desmond was restrained by some Widmore goons.


  • Charles tells Desmond the same thing Eloise told him at the Lamp Post.  "The Island isn't done with you yet!"
  • Meanwhile, Jin wants answers from Widmore on why Desmond is here.  Widmore claims it will be easier to show him.  Then orders them to take Desmond to the "generator" room.  Apparently, Zoe is not thrilled with the change in schedule.  Probably because the machine is not ready.  But it is interesting that they have an entire schedule of events to happen.  This is the 2nd reference to the "schedule" that has been made.  Wouldn't anyone else like to sneak a peak at the last page of it? 
The Generator Room

We follow Jin and Zoe to this generator room.  A room that we have never seen before.  There is also a chamber located outside of this big room with huge cables attached.  It seems as though some of this stuff has been around since DHARMA times, but I'm not sure if maybe Widmore's crew brought more stuff with them in the sub?  Hmmm, pylons and an Electro Magnetic Generator?  Not so sure about that.

  • So Mr. Intimidator turns out to be a scientist as well.  Thank God!  He didn't really fit the bill for a GOON!   So apparently, they need to get this Electro-Magnetic field ready for Desmond pronto, but they don't want to kill him in the process, so they're going to test it on Captain Solo first Oops, I mean, a Bunny named Ångström.  Now, we all know how the DHARMA Initiative loved their White Rabbits.  And this one is certainly ironic because Desmond is about to travel down yet another Rabbit hole.  But, the naming of this one seems to be named after Andres Jonas Ångström who was very interested in terrestrial magnetism.  He even proved that the Sun contained HYDROGEN!  (hmmm, magnetism, hydrogen.  where have I heard these words before? Ahhh yes, the Swan Site!)   


  • The first test of generating the magnetic field didn't work.  There was a bad breaker on the generator.  Then a guy went into the chamber to check on it.  And that didn't go so well!  Because they started up the generator again before he cleared out (by accident of course).  This was all to show us how a normal person could not survive exposure to intense amounts of electro-magnetism.  It did the job pretty well! 







  • Naturally, Charles thinks this means that they're ready to try the machine on Desmond!  Desmond wasn't going in willfully.  They had to beat him and drag him into a chair and strap him down.  
  • Charles apologizes for forcing this upon him but is hoping that when it's over that Desmond will agree to make a sacrifice.  What kind of sacrifice you ask?  Oh, I have no idea.  But the scariest projection would be that he would have to die!  
  • Desmond naturally asks Charles what he knows about sacrifice.   Charles says his son died on the island (just like that, we get confirmation that Daniel was indeed Charles's son), his daughter hates him and he has never met his grandchild.   He says that if Desmond doesn't help him it will all be for nothing.  Penny, Charlie, everyone will be gone.  Again, he refers to the Man in Black leaving the island causing everyone to cease to exist.  Now, I'm all confused.  Is Charles Widmore trying to get all of these LOSTIES' consciousness "TO" the Sideways world including his own?  It certainly doesn't seem like he's trying to stop it from happening now.  I'm sure I'll be asking more questions like this as we delve further into the show.  And I'm sure I'll contradict myself 42 times, so be prepared!
  • We should note that Desmond was asked if he had any metal on him.  Charles accused the people of being idiots when they asked him suggesting that of course he doesn't.  I guess metal exposed to the electromagnetic field wouldn't be too bright!      
  • Charles also says that he was "told" about Desmond surviving a catastrophic electromagnetic event.  And he is the only man that he knows that has ever done so.  I guess Widmore did his research, but how would he know that?  Maybe Jacob told him?  Charles needs to know that he can do it again or they all die.  Why?  I have no idea, but it certainly seems Sideways related! 
  • All systems are go, Desmond is in the chamber by himself.  Mr. Intimidator is scared to pull the lever to "full power" so Widmore does it himself.  Yikes

  • The generator starts, Desmond breaks free from the chair but is locked in.  It starts getting really bright and powerful and Desmond steps into the Quantum Leap Accelerator and VANISHED.   (just kidding, but come on, I had to make the reference right?!)   No, apparently, Desmond was only unconscious for seconds in Island Time, but he was taken to Sideways Time for a majority of the episode! 












Flash Sideways - Desmond
LA X

  • Right off the bat, we see an Oceanic Arrival Information board, and Desmond staring at his reflection.  COINCIDENCE?  Naaa, can't be right?  We should note that we see both Guam and Sydney on the board.  Both locations involved in flights that end up on the Island.   And of course, lots of NUMBERS stuff going on with Flight 815 landing at 10:42am at Gate 8 (and I believe it departed Sydney from Gate 23)  Hurley walks by and tells Desmond that the bags are at baggage carousel 4.  Hurley recognized him from the Sydney flight.   That was very nice of good ol' Hugo wasn't it?



  • So, I guess we should point out the obvious:  Desmond didn't VANISH from flight 815.  Why he disappeared, I have no idea.  There was lots of speculation that Desmond could be going back and forth through the sideways reality (well, based on what we see at the end, maybe so).  But it doesn't look like his body would just vanish.  Something tells me we won't ever find out where he went.  But that's okay!  Maybe he just went back to his seat. 
  • Did Desmond seem disoriented when he was staring into the reflection?   It seemed to take Hurley to snap him out of it.  Here's a crazy thought.  Maybe each time we see one of the LOSTIES look at their reflection, this is the initial point where they were given a glimpse of their sideways life?  Not TOO much of a stretch right?   We'll see!
  • So at baggage claim, Desmond runs into Claire.  He helps the pregnant Aussie get her luggage.  What a nice guy!   Desmond asks Claire if she's carrying a boy or a girl.  He says she's brave for not knowing and he's not a big fan of surprises.  As we learned before, her ride never shows up (the potential adoptive parents).  She'll end up getting stuck in a car with Kate.  But we learn here that Desmond offered her a ride first.  


(just nice to see Non-Crazy Claire for a sec, right?)
  • While she does reject, Desmond does predict that she's having a boy.  Was it just a gut feeling, or did he somehow remember from the Island timeline?  Probably could be interpreted either way.  But we gotta love how Desmond is seeing everyone in another life, right brotha?? 
  • Next up: George Minkowski from the freighter!  He is Desmond's driver!  As we saw in easily one of the top 2 best LOST episodes "THE CONSTANT" Desmond and George both shared the fact that they both experienced consciousness time travel.  Of course, Desmond found his CONSTANT in Penny where Minkowski did not and died.  But here, he is alive and well! 
  • We find out that Desmond was closing a deal for his boss in Sydney.  George offers his services to Desmond.  Anything he needs, he can get it for him.  Good eats, even good "company."  Oh my.  I guess the whole point of this was to let us know that Desmond wasn't married nor was he with Penny in this timeline (yet).  Of course, it may also have something to do with the fact that we DID see Desmond with a wedding ring on in the season premiere LA X.  When he was sitting next to Jack on the plane, I am pretty sure he was wearing a ring!  What on earth does that mean?  Damon Lindelof retweeted someone asking about the same thing.  That person's suggestion is "Bleed through of the 2 universes??"   Did Damon retweet that for a reason?  That, my friends, is very confusing!   In case you think I'm going crazy, here's a picture of Desmond's ring on the plane.

  • George gets in the driver's seat and takes Desmond to the office.  So, it doesn't take us long to find out Desmond's employer in this Sideways Land.
Widmore Industries
  • That's right!  Charles Widmore and Desmond are FRIENDS!  And Desmond works for the man he despises the most! 



  • So this brings up a lot of things we were pondering.  Such as, was Widmore even alive in this timeline?  If he had previously been to the Island, would he have died when the Island was submerged?  Well, he certainly is alive and we have no idea if he was on the Island before.  But based on information from Eloise later, we'll have to revisit.  And we'll have to revisit Jughead when we get to Daniel.  Yikes, this episode's crossovers was nuts.  But, for now, we have to digest that Charles respects Desmond.  
  • Before we get into the craziest, most ironic part let's talk about the scenery in the office.  There is still a sailboat just like in his UK office (Island timeline).  Widmore discusses with Desmond about his Solo Race Around the World in that timeline.  If he still sponsors an event like that, we don't find out. 

  • We also see a painting of a Scale with Black Rocks on one end and White Rocks on the other end.  Of course, we have seen this scale before in the Jacob/MIB Cave, and we heard Dogen refer to the scale of good and evil in every person.  Not sure if this picture being in Widmore's office is supposed to imply anything about Charles Widmore himself, the sideways timeline, or just be a nod to the observant fans. 
     




  • Well we find out why Charlie was going to Los Angeles in this timeline too.  Apparently, Charles's son is a musician. We all speculated he would be a piano player and never pushed into learning science.  Widmore's wife was putting a charity event together and Daniel had the idea to combine classical music with modern rock.   And the band Driveshaft was brought up, whom Desmond had never heard of.  So, it looks like Charles is going to bail him out to save the fundraiser and Desmond has to babysit ol' Charlie until it's time for the performance.  NICE! 
  • Charles, ironically, tells Desmond he has "THE LIFE" since he has no family, no commitment and how great it would be to be free of attachments.  Ironic because on the Island, Charles just told Desmond how he sacrificed those things for the Island.  
  • But the MOST ironic twist of all of this was that Charles pours his Macutcheon's 60 Year Scotch into 2 glasses and gives one to Desmond.  Desmond objects.  And then Charles says "Nothing is too good for you."  Wow.  The one thing Desmond always wanted to hear from Charles Widmore.  "Ah Have to get MAH Honah BAAACK!"  He has Charles' approval.  

Sideways Desmond?  Meet Sideways Charlie
  • So apparently, Charlie is being released at the "Airport Courthouse".  Not sure how significant this is because the last we saw, Liam was looking for him at a Los Angeles Police Department where Sawyer works.  We also see Desmond's reflection again as he's walking towards the courthouse.   Also not sure how coincidental/intentional it all was, but the woman with Charlie was using her phone and the noise on the phone sounded very much like the beeping from the Hatch Clock.  Desmond's phone sounded very similar too.  
  • Anyway, Charlie isn't very excited to see Desmond as he is released.  He walks right into traffic, as if he has a death wish and straight into JAX Bar.  Significant to Jack?  Significant to LAX?   Eh, I'm not going to try and figure it out! 
  • Desmond follows Charlie into the bar and the 2 of them have a drink.  Charlie buts on Desmond a little bit calling him Widmore's babysitter.  He then asks if Desmond is happy and can tell that he  isn't.  Desmond talks about making lots of money, having a good job and traveling the world.   Charlie asks if he's ever really been in love.  Of course he calls it "Consciousness Altering" love.  Of course, we didn't know how literal he was being when he said it.  I just thought it was funny due to all of Desmond's trippy consciousness traveling over the seasons.  
  
  • Charlie and Desmond discover they were both on the same flight back from Sydney.  Charlie talks about how he experienced his "consciousness altering" love on the flight.  He describes Kate in handcuffs 2 rows in front of him.  He described the Air Marshal knowing that Charlie had a stash of drugs on him.  So he went to the bathroom to eliminate the evidence and (swallow his stash).   At the exact moment he did this, they hit turbulence.  The same turbulence that Jack felt in the beginning of LA X I'm guessing.  The turbulence that made us think the plane was going to crash again but didn't.  And they just happened to be flying over the submerged Island as well.   Where am I going with this?  No Idea as always! 
  • Charlie talks about choking and it was going to be over.  Everything starts to go dark, he's slipping into the abyss.  And then he sees "HER".  A blonde rapturously beautiful blonde.  He knows her, they're together.  It was like they were always together, they always will be.  It felt like LOVE.  And just as he was about to be engulfed by it all, some idiot is standing there asking if he was okay.   (this would explain why he was so mad when Jack saved him)  Clearly, Charlie saw Claire in his vision.  He must have seen a flash to the Island when they were together.  So, is there a connection to almost dying and seeing the Island timeline?  Does it work both ways?  When Juliet was dying she saw her and Sawyer going dutch on coffee.  What is GOING ON?!?  
  • Desmond, naturally, doesn't believe Charlie.  But he does tell him to write a song about it!  Nice.  Desmond then gives Charlie a CHOICE.  A big theme in these final episodes.  The Losties having to make choices.  (Free Will)  Charlie's choice?  Stay at the bar and your musical career is over.  Go with Desmond, get put up in a fancy hotel right on the harbor front, and Charles Widmore (one of the most powerful men in the town) will owe him a favor.   I still find it really curious that ALL of these people from the LOST verse are established so well for themselves in Los Angeles. Maybe it was convenience writing, but after tonight's episode it seems like there is a bit more to it.  
  • Anyway, Charlie doesn't see the choice in that at all (or at least appears not to) and goes with Desmond.  Desmond, continuing the choice argument says that "There is always a choice brothaaa".  I think this is just the writers continuing the "CHOICE" theme more than anything.  It's not like this version of Desmond has any inkling to what's going on yet. 
The Car Crash
  • So Des and Charlie are in the car listening to "You All Everybody".  Charlie talks about his 1st single as being the beginning of everything great.  Desmond kind of shrugs it off saying he likes it for what it is.  Charlie feels sorry for Desmond for him thinking that he has it all.  Desmond inquires if Charlie thinks that none if it is real.  Charlie then offers Desmond a choice.  He can show Desmond what he's talking about or he can get out of the car.  And before Desmond can decide, Charlie takes control of the wheel and drives the car right into the marina.  

  • The water is filling into the car really quickly.  Desmond can't get Charlie loose and gets himself out of the car and goes for air.  Then he quickly dives back in for Charlie.  Once he gets down to Charlie's window, Charlie looks unconscious but then he wakes up and is clearly in control.  Naturally this was bringing back memories of Charlie drowning in The Looking Glass Station with Desmond on the outside looking in.   And before we know it, Charlie puts his hand on the glass and Desmond has a Flash seeing a vision from Another Life Brothah!!  Yep, it's Charlie with his "Not Penny's Boat" written on the hand.  WHAAAAT?!?!?! 

  • Of course, in this case, we cannot ignore that WATER was involved.  Neither of them seemed to be facing any life threatening situations just yet.  But was Charlie trying to put them in one of those situations?  He clearly looked like he was trying to get hit by one of those cars.  The reason I bring up water because it seemed to be involved for a majority of Desmond's flashes back and forth in "THE CONSTANT".  For example, remember when Charles Widmore intentionally left the water running in the bathroom?  I don't think Charlie really remembered that he drowned in the Island timeline because he's so anxious to get back to it.  Which confuses me to why he put his hand on the window.  But let's go with it and move on.  
  • Desmond gets Charlie out of the car and they are both taken to the hospital.   
Hospital
  • A doctor is checking out Desmond and asking him about nausea and all sorts of stuff.  Desmond is only concerned with finding Charlie at this point.  He needs to find out what he saw.  
  • The doctor then asks if he suffered from any hallucinations to which Desmond is caught in his tracks and wasn't sure how to answer.  The Doc signs him up for an MRI.  Oh boy, more magnets!   
  • Once again Desmond is asked if he has any keys or any metal on him prior to being put into the MRI machine.  And he is told about "pushing the button."  Loved that reference.  They were talking about the MRI Panic button, but it definitely was a reference to the ol' EXECUTE button in the hatch.  Good times!   
  • I thought this thing might actually send his consciousness back to the Island Timeline in the present day.  But instead he sees more flashes from his other life.   We pretty much see the journey of him meeting Penny, being rescued from the Island by Penny, and then them having their first baby together.  And we even see the shot of Desmond and little Charlie talking as they arrived to London.  Desmond didn't see them in any particular order, but I put the pictures in order for dramatic effect! 
  







  • Desmond begins hitting the panic button and now is even more determined to find Charlie.  When he gets to the reception desk he actually runs into Jack Shephard whom he remembers from Flight 815.  This would seem to confirm that it is the same timeline that we've been seeing all season.  So, I'm still not sure what to make of the wedding ring and Desmond's disappearance from flight 815.  Jack does recognize Desmond from the flight.  And Desmond is asking if he has seen Charlie from the flight.  Ironically, Jack had a hand in saving Charlie but I'm not sure if he ever made the connection.  Instead Jack is curious that there was another person from their flight who is now in that hospital.  Don't mistake coincidence for fate? (ahh we miss you Mr. Eko!) 
  • And before we know it we see Charlie in a hospital gown running.  He is being chased but weirdly enough, Desmond seems to be the only one chasing him in the end!  When Desmond catches up to him he wants to see Charlie's hand.  Charlie realizes that Desmond saw something too now.  Charlie tells Desmond that he wasn't trying to kill him, he was trying to show him something to which it seems he was successful.  Desmond asks who Penny is to which Charlie doesn't have an answer, but he realizes that Desmond "felt it".   Charlie now thinks that everything in this world they're living is meaningless.  He doesn't even see the point of playing at the Charity Event.   None of it matters.  All that matters is that they felt it.  
  • Charlie tells Desmond to stop worrying about him and start looking for Penny.  This is just getting nuts!  And that is the last we see of Charlie this episode.  I gotta say I was pretty excited he had such a lengthy role in this episode.  Of course with Desmond meeting Claire and Charlie looking for Claire, it would have been nice for the 2 of them to run into each other in sideways land.  Maybe it's still going to happen.
  • Desmond calls Charles Widmore to tell him that he lost the Rock Star.  Widmore is not too happy. We begin to see his evil side again.  But even so, it seemed more sarcastic in tone with Desmond than it was in the Island timeline.  But he still was not happy and is making Desmond go and tell Widmore's wife himself that Charlie will not be making it. 
The Widmore Residence
  • Minkowski takes Desmond to the Widmore home where the charity event is being held.  George offers Desmond LUCK with dealing with Mrs. Widmore. 
  • Did anyone spot Daniel sitting at the piano when we first got a shot of the tent?   He was there rocking out some classical jams on the ebony and ivory! 
  • I don't think it took a rocket scientist to figure out who Charles Widmore's wife would be.  It's none other than Eloise Hawking! But in this timeline she is Eloise Widmore.   And of course Daniel is Daniel Widmore.   Why on earth they all had different last names in the Island timeline, I couldn't tell you.  Did anyone catch Eloise's reaction to when she first sees Desmond?  It is of complete and utter shock. 
  • Once Desmond introduces himself as working for Charles, then Eloise falls into the role and talks about how it's a travesty they haven't "met" before.  But clearly, she knows that they did.   Desmond tries to apologize for Driveshaft not being able to perform.  Eloise tells him not to worry about it.  And that it comes with the territory when hiring Rock Stars.  Then she has to go and refer to time travel stuff and say "What Happened Happened."  Was it a hint?  Was it just a nod to observant fans again?  I don't know! 





  • But then Eloise parts ways with Desmond and while Desmond is on his way out he hears some of the staff reading names of attendees.  And Penny's name was mentioned (not sure if we ever heard her last name before but it is Milton).  And we find out she is coming alone.   Desmond asks to see the list once he hears her name.  And Eloise comes in to disrupt Desmond's "awakening" telling him that he may not see the list.

  • Eloise asks Desmond to walk with him and they have a chat very reminiscent to their chat when Desmond was time traveling in season 3's Flashes Before Your Eyes.  But this time instead of Eloise having knowledge of future events, she has knowledge of Desmond's Island and current existence.  (Note: Daniel overheard the scene where Desmond was looking for Penny)
  • Eloise tells Desmond that she wants him to "STOP" and that someone has affected the way he sees things.  She calls it a problem.  She calls it a VIOLATION.   WHAT!?!   A Violation?  What on earth does that mean?  Is this some new set of "RULES" for the Sideways Land?  Clearly, Eloise has an inkling to what is going on.  Does Charles too?   Eloise tells Desmond whatever he thinks he is looking for that he needs to stop looking for it. 
  • Desmond realizes that Eloise knows what he's looking for.  And then she says she doesn't know why he'd be looking citing his perfect life and how he finally has what he as always wanted more than anything.  Charles Widmore's approval.  Yes, maybe he did want Charles's approval PRE-ISLAND, but after the Island he was content living with Penny and Charlie!   Desmond asks how Eloise knows what he wants, and she says "because I bloody do!"   
  • Eloise then tells Desmond that he is "Not Ready 'YET'" which is why he can't see the list.  What?  What does YET mean?  Does that mean at some point he WILL be ready?  In fact, I share Desmond's question.  Ready for WHAT?  Does Eloise or Charles have a plan to expose things to the LOSTIES in Sideways land?  What would it accomplish?   I guess we still just have more questions than answers, but it certainly ties these 2 worlds together more than ever!  
Desmond and Daniel
  • Desmond leaves for the car more confused than ever.  He asks George for some alcohol.  
  • Before they leave though, Daniel knocks on the door!  Nice, I miss this guy.  He says that they need to talk.  And first, let me just say, that I love they have him dressed the same way as he was on the island.  The tie loosened and the untucked shirt.  Good times! 
  • Daniel asks Desmond if he believes in Love at First Sight.   Daniel shares a story similar to Desmond's where he sees a woman that he fell in love with the minute he met her.  Why?  Well, because it was Charlotte folks!  He talks about the first time he met her she was in a museum a few weeks ago.  (oh boy, Daniel probably doesn't know that Sawyer had his way with her after that!)   Anyway, he said she works at the museum and was on her lunch break.  (As we learned in "RECON" Charlotte works for Miles' father Pierre Chang)   Daniel cites that she was eating a chocolate bar.  Remember her dying words "I'm not allowed to have chocolate before dinner" which was also the first thing she said as a child to Daniel when he returned to the Island in 1977 ("The Variable")     
  • He said as soon as he saw her, right in that moment, it was like he already loved her.   Then he said that's when things got weird.  He pulled out a book that looks very similar to his time travel journal.  He said the night that he met that woman, he went to sleep and when he woke up he wrote a bunch of equations and all sorts of stuff.  I couldn't tell you what it all means, but I see words on there like SPACE TIME INTERVAL, REAL SPACE, IMAGINARY TIME.  Hmmmmm


  • Daniel says he is a musician and had no idea what it was.  He showed the sketches to a friend at Cal Tech and he told Daniel that this is Quantum Mechanics and it would take someone who has dedicated their entire life to physics could come up with those equations.  As we know, Eloise pushed Daniel to dedicate his life to science instead of following his true love of Piano in the Island timeline.  All in the name of sending Daniel to the island to die at the hands of a younger Eloise.  But not before giving Jack the mission of detonating Jughead. 
  • So Desmond asks what the formulas mean.  Daniel says to imagine something terrible is about to happen, something catastrophic.  And the only way to stop it from happening is by releasing a huge amount of energy, like setting off a nuclear bomb.  Hmmmm.  Before he mentioned the Nuke, I thought he was referring to Desmond blowing the hatch.  Island Charles referred to Desmond surviving a catastrophic electromagnetic event.   And he did so by releasing a huge amount of energy when turning that safe key.  But, that doesn't seem to be where Daniel is going.   Desmond laughs at Daniel and asks if he wants to set off a Nuclear bomb.  
  • Daniel then asks Desmond what if all of this wasn't supposed to be their life.  What if they had some other life and for some reason, they changed things.  He then says he doesn't want to set off a nuclear bomb, but he thinks he already did.   WOA...did they just clarify that the Sideways Timeline was caused by Jughead?  Or just that Daniel thinks it was? Why would the producers go out of their way to tell us that it might not have been jughead that caused the sideways timeline if it actually was?  To get us speculating about other options?  But, if it was jughead, it would seem like this isn't the end state of things.  Tie this into Eloise saying that Desmond isn't ready YET and I'm not sure where this is going.  But I like it! 
  • Desmond asks what this has to do with him.   Daniel asked why Desmond asked Eloise about a woman named Penny.  Just like Charlie he asks if Desmond FELT IT.  Charlie, Daniel and Desmond all felt love.   Desmond says it's impossible, he doesn't know anything about the woman or even if she exists.   Well, Daniel is here to save the day.  He reveals to Desmond that Penny is his half sister.  
  • Not that this is a shocking revelation.  We discussed it at length after "THE VARIABLE" last year.  But, what confuses me is why Charles and Eloise are still together in this timeline and why they separated in the Island timeline.  And how Penny and the "off island" mother fit into this whole equation.  Also, were Eloise and Charles ever on the Island in this timeline? (I may have already asked his question above, but that was awhile ago!)  So was Charles just destined to have 2 children in either timeline?  Are we ever going to meet Penny's mother?  Probably very unlikely at this point and probably not important. 
  • Anyway, Daniel tells Desmond that he knows the exact location and time where he can meet Penny. 
Back to the Stadium in Another Life Brotha
  • Yes, where Desmond and Jack meet for the first time in the Island timeline.  Where they both are running a Tour de Stad around the stadium steps.  And where Penny finds Desmond after he is released from Military prison.....this is where Desmond meets Penny for the first time in the Sideways timeline.  Except this time SHE is running the Tour de Stad!  

  • Desmond goes up and asks if she is Penny.  She acknowledges and he is so excited to meet her and extends his hand.  (another running theme in this season). Penny says hi and takes his hand. And with that, Desmond wakes up back on the Island.  Significance to the hands touching?  Maybe.          






Desmond's New Outlook on his "Lives"
Island Timeline
  • Desmond wakes up and Mr. Intimidator guy is shocked that Desmond is okay.  And Charles is pleased that he is.  Desmond acknowledges that he is okay.  He wonders how long he was unconscious.  Charles tells him that it was no more than a few seconds.  
  • Charles apologizes again for doing this to him but that Desmond's talent is vital to the mission.  And right when he's about to explain what that mission is, Desmond tells him he is fully onboard and that he understands!  Wait....we don't understand Desmond! Let him talk!  Desmond knows he was brought to the Island to do something very important and asks when they start.  
  • Okay, so Desmond clearly experienced this sideways vision.  Is he happy with what he saw and wants to live that life?  Does he think that whatever he does on the Island will lead to living that life?  Will he still have his child Charlie?  And beyond all of that, what did Eloise mean by telling Desmond that he isn't "Ready Yet?"  Is the Sideways Timeline even a permanent existence? 
  • In any case, Charles is quite happy that Desmond was such a quick convert! 
  • After that scene, Desmond and Zoe are walking with a few other goons behind them.  She wants to know what happened to Desmond.  20 minutes before he was beating Widmore over the head with an IV Stand and now he's being cooperative.  Desmond says that a lot can happen in 20 minutes.  Zoe said that the thing must have fried his brain.  Desmond smiles asking "Did it?"  
  • Before Zoe can say anything else, Sayid is there snapping people's necks and stuff.  He spares Zoe (not sure why), pointing his gun he tells her to run.  Zoe complies! 



  • Sayid tells Desmond that he doesn't have time to explain but that these people are extremely dangerous and that they need to leave now.  Desmond just smiles and says "of course!"  Hmmm, does he think that whatever happens on this Island is going to happen and that it will all lead to him living in the Sideways World?  Sure seems that way doesn't it?  He doesn't care if he follows Widmore's plan or follows Zombie Sayid.   Are they going to pick up Jin in the process?  I guess we'll find out. 
  • As Desmond is following Sayid, we hear the transition to the Flash Sideways which we didn't hear the first time.   Does that mean that Island Desmond isn't experiencing this next Sideways scene? Not quite sure.  


Sideways Timeline

  • We rejoin Sideways Desmond at the stadium and he is collapsed on the ground.  Penny says that Desmond fainted right after they shook hands.  Well, that's kind of strange isn't it?  Does it remind anyone else of THE CONSTANT when 1996 Desmond was traveling back and forth from 1996 to 2004?  He was only conscious in one of the 2 times.  Is that what is going on here to some extent?   I don't think we are to assume that Island Desmond is unconscious when Sideways Desmond wakes up.   It all is very interesting, but I'm sure we'll get more information on it. 
  • Penny is already joking with Desmond saying that she must have a certain effect on him.  If she only knew!  She then gets the same feeling that they have met before.  Desmond dismisses it saying that they would have remembered if they had.  Desmond then gets some courage and asks Penny to go out for coffee.   They have another one of their classic scenes.  She says she is a sweaty mess. He says he just fainted in front of her and they can call it even.  She accepts the invitation and tells her that she'll meet him at the coffee shop in an hour.  Awwwww
  • Desmond then returns to the car and tells Minkowski where to go.  But he also wants to cash in on George's constant offers of getting him anything he wants.  He wants the flight manifest from Oceanic 815.  George says he definitely can get it.  And when he asks what Desmond wants it for,  he says "I just want to show THEM something."  



BOOM LOST!!!!!!

Loved it folks!  Just absolutely loved it!  So now is Island Desmond trying to get to the Sideways world and is Sideways Desmond trying to get to the Island world?  OR, does he just want to make all of the LOSTIES aware of the other timeline's existence so that they can find their "HAPPILY EVER AFTER" in Sideways land?  Perhaps Jack or Sawyer realize their affections for Kate.  Charlie will get with Claire.  Sayid with Nadia or Shannon?  Libby with Hugo?  Oh duh, Sawyer with Juliet.  That means Jack with Kate!  I'm sure all of the big mythology buffs would just love a happy LOVEY DOVEY ending for all of the LOSTIES.  I'm sure it won't be that simple.  Especially when you throw in Eloise's "You're not ready yet" and whatever they're trying to accomplish on the Island.   But Carlton Cuse, the other executive producer, tweeted last night that with this episode "a new chapter of the season begins".  I totally can see that.  I would think the Sideways Timeline, as many of us predicted, will continue to get a little more interesting!   And I can't wait until next week! 

That's all I have for today folks.  Well, until we get into the many comments that I'm sure we'll all have.  I encourage you all to share your thoughts!  Hope you enjoyed my ramblings as always and I'll see you next week.  NAMASTE! 

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245 comments:

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Mike V. said...

Yup good call on the sneaker in the tree David and Florin. Not sure if there is any significance or not. Remember the last mobisode where white shoes
christian sends Vincent after Jack saying "he has work to do"? Who else said that? Taller ghost walt. I'm sure others. Not sure where I'm going with that.

Anyway, one thing I DO know is the first time we see Christian in the new attire is near the end of season 4 when he is cradling Aaron and Claire leaves the group.

I'm not one that needs a lot of answers but the whole Christian thing is definitely one I want an answer to! I still think there needs to be a scene between ghost Christian and Jack in the finale. So we will see!

Candidate said...

Mikev Just checked that link AWESOME!!! and again thank you to all helpinh shed light on Christians shoes. Looking forward to tommorow!!

Mike V. said...

No prob! Glad you liked the link. I enjoyed finding all of that stuff too!

Floreen said...

@Mike V - I did pointed that out after I re-watched the episodes and I refreshed my memory. So many things I forgot ever since the first episode and I sure I am still missing a few. You go the deluxe issues, I just got the regular series I think. Anyhow, for the show to put that in, was a nice touch to say it at least, meaning that they had that planned for a long time.

As I said, Christian’s ghost did appeared to Jack from the get go and except for the mobisode, it lead Jack to the caves and the much need it water supply, so at that point I was thinking that Christian was in the good camp, that is until he shows up with Claire. So yeah, we would need some answers to that, cause I don’t know what to do about it, except that MiB/Smokey tried to claim/posses Jack instead of John, but failed and turned to John for having ‘faith’ or made a commitment as Ben said. I would like to know how the island takes on human traits and plays a role.

What did you thought about my take on the possibility that Michael couldn’t kill himself in NY because of living in the false time line?

Good take on the Ben and Locke. As contrite as Ben appeared, it is very possible that for one more time, the evil Ben won the day and killed John. That been said, it leaves me with a couple questions at least.
- Why would Ben insist to bring Locke’s dead body back, with the shoes for Christian? I could answer my own here that the show recreated the Christian thing from the prior, but with Sayid and Des not wanting to come back and one of them, Des, almost succeeded in Not coming back, would have made that pointless.
- More important, lets’ say for a moment that John would have said nothing of Eloise and the meeting. Ben already looked like he’s out of the loop. John had Jin’s wedding ring who gave it to John if my memory holds, to prove Sun that John will bring them back together. John disclosed that to Ben and Ben looked like he caught on a good thing, which he used later to get Sun to go along. That ring looked like an unexpected break for him and than he killed John.

So what would Ben do if none of those two major developments, the ring and the meeting with Eloise would’ve been brought to his attention? How would Ben get back to the island? Killing John out of envy is a good explanation. But it looked to me that he would’ve still need John. After all killing him really made matters worse, not better.

Mike V. said...

Yeah Florin, I don't think everyone has seen the mobi-sode...but they do consider them "CANON" to the show just not ESSENTIAL viewing. The only reason I brought it up is because we do see Christian on the island in the suit and white shoes and it essentially happened right before Jack's eye opened. There is no argument from me that we seem to have 2 different versions of Christian Shephard. And I have 100% faith that we will get some kind of resolution on his character(s) in these final episodes!

It's an interesting theory about Michael not being able to kill himself but I think Michael's inability to kill himself is very similar to Jack's inability to kill himself or even Richard's inability to kill himself. and of course, LOCKE's inability (TWICE) to kill himself. They still had "work to do" so "FATE" (or something else) intervened. I don't want to get into the idea that everything we saw after people left the island is a FALSE TIMELINE. That is the real world...with the same people they left when they ended up on the island. life went on without them...and then some of them returned. We saw the fake flight 815 footage in Michael's story....and in freighter crew's story to know what was going on in the events after flight 815 crashed...to certifiably prove that this is the same timeline where Jack and crew end up on the Island. I think one "FALSE" (or DIFFERENT) timeline is enough...and the first time we have seen it...I still firmly believe, is Season 6, episode 1 - LA X. I still think Flashes Before Your eyes was Dez timetraveling back within the same timeline. And it has to be because Dez and Penny knew each other prior to 2004 in that timeline.

I'm on a tangent I know, but when I get on a roll I have to keep going!

Ben insisted on bringing Locke back because we found out the Eloise Hawking told him he had to! Remember though, Ben got pretty jealous when Jack got to "stay after school" with Mrs. Hawking. Ben never knew that Jack put Christian's shoes on Locke's body.

Not sure I understood the paragraph with the ring...but I'm 100% positive that Ben killed Locke after hearing the name Eloise Hawking. But yes, the ring didn't hurt either.

Hey for all we know, maybe Ben had already encountered Hawking (doubt it but who knows?) and she told him that Locke needed to die. They needed that PROXY after all. They needed the corpse on the plane.

Again, not sure where I'm going...but I don't know about all of these "WHAT IF" scenarios lol It's a TV show, so "What if" goes out the window. It DID happen in order to move the plot forward! LOL

Not even sure what I'm talking about anymore, so I'm gonna stop while I'm behind! :-)

Mike V. said...

Hey guys, a sidebar. I thank everyone that has been clicking on the gather.com link to help me register some page views on the LOST stuff. As mentioned, it just a small monetary contribution I get for posting there and getting page views.

If anyone wants to help further, I actually need some assistance with the latest recap. I'm falling under the mark for the next milestone. Shooting for 750 unique views if anyone wants to lend a hand! (I say unique meaning, you don't have to keep clicking the link...it won't count multiple times) Thanks for any help you all can give!

My LOST Recap on Gather.com (please click to support!)

Anonymous said...

I'm confused now (ok more confused, if that's possibly)...

If MIB was Christian at the donkey wheel, why would he have chastized Locke becuase HE did not move the island the first time as he told him in the Cabin.

Jacob said move the island, and Jacob is directly responsible for Hurly and Sayid coming back. Perhaps then Christian was speaking for Jacob once again at the donkey wheel and stated they all have to come back--becuase he needed the candidates to return. Of course they both want all of the candidates there for different reasons.

Eloise may be in cahoots with MIB, becuase she insist Locke needs to return with something from Christian on--MIB counter move to Jacob.

The whole white shoes, black shoes is just another coincidence to drive us crazy...


To quoute a famous Lost line,
Help me..

V

Mike V. said...

V - remember Ilana's line about the CABIN and Jacob "He is not here and has not used this place for a long time" (paraphrasing) But the "LONG" time can't be ignored. It would seem that MIB may have been calling the shots from at least season 4 onward when it came to Locke. (maybe even season 3 in the cabin) claire was with Christian in that cabin....and she also has a "FRIEND" in the Man in Black....there is a chance that Christian was MIB once again here. And that MIB and Christian were the same in this case. Don't know for sure. But it seems to make sense that this would be the case. Especially when Flocke says to Jacob in the statue "you have no idea what i have had to go through to be here" My point here is that...Jacob may have never instructed Locke to move the Island. It may have been MIB.

Hope this helps add to your confusion! :-)

And as for the "HELP ME" line....we don't know if that was Jacob or MIB either. But we do know that the cabin was surrounded by ash in that season 3 episode. Coincidence???


Okay....done for now!

MJ said...

Maybe Jacob's touch isn't what brought them to the island but maybe it's what enables them to eventually see the other reality ?


Were a bunch of comments with this being a love story and Des maybe now having to sacrifice his future to get the others to see their other choices - so maybe now that points to Des and Pen being Adam and Eve ?? Des agress to stay and in that bargain get Pen ?

Mike V. said...

MJ - Take your Desmond/Penny are Adam and Eve somehow living on the island in the past and throw little Charlie on the island with them and add on top of that my disgusting prediction from Jughead last season that Des and Penny's son Charlie would grow up to be Charles Widmore and you have one crazy twisty show! LOL Albeit...one that comes full circle!

Jacob's touch making them see the other timeline is interesting. But then we'd still need an answer for how they came to the Island and how they survived with superficial injuries. I dunno...I think I still need it proven to me if Jacob even exists in this Sideways Land!

David Salako said...

If Charlie Hume ends up being Charlie Widmore....then that means Daniel Faraday is both his son and half-uncle and Eloise is both his on and off lover and step-grandmother and he is his own grandfather!

The ULTIMATE paradox! Take that "General Hospital/Dynasty/Dallas"!

Mike V. said...

Yeah lol it would be too bizarre for words but it's always a good time to throw that one out there again. For old times' sake!

Mike V. said...

For the uber dorky among us, you may be interested to know that movie theaters are going to broadcast that times talk with darlton on may 20th (I had tried to get tix but they sold out in minutes!) there are tons of theaters participating, and it seems like an essential precursor to the series finale!!

That all being said, I got my tickets!! Yes, it may be the same day as the flashforward finale but I just can't miss this. Here is doc artz's site with more details.

http://bit.ly/d7mjWo

David Salako said...

Thanks fo r the tip Mike V., we managed to get tickets to the movie theater event.

Floreen said...

@Mike V - I always wondered why those mobisodes, isn’t that something? The body of dead Christian Shepard is up and running before Jack Shepard even woke-up. Yeah, the what if? might not be a good one but it could work either way.

True, that much of the happenings are to move the plot forward, that’s why I take liberties with my thinking along Fictional Characters and Plots. But as I was told during a production in my college theatre class; ‘the rules of gravity applies even to sci-fi.’ I think that the teach is still right about it.

Michael tried that suicide thing twice as well. So while I agree with you on the generality at least and the fake Oceanic crash definitely adds to your argument, even the spiritually prophetic, mystery shrouded ‘island not done with you’ so on and so forth can’t bring me down to earth.

As I was saying and compare it to Fringe, two parallel timelines can exist simultaneously and have an independent life of their own, that’s not the issue. The problem is that one can not occupy a place in both of them in the same time, and when they intersect, sparks will fly. I am sure that until the end we will have a hard time reconciling them. But... scientifically speaking, that’s the best explanation I can find to the mechanics as to why those guys couldn’t do it.

I will bring in support of my theory the fact that Michael crashed in a wall on the dock with the car and survived. That one could be fudged as why wasn’t he dead, but a gun to his head (and Mr Friendly says did the bullet bounced off his skull?...haha) and one type of gun that is known it can’t jam? Keamy pulls the trigger and the gun doesn’t go off either? The captain said there was nothing wrong with the gun. Jack pulled the trigger on John and the gun didn’t go off. That’s way over the top. Even if considered that the ‘island’ has something to do with it, there’s got to be a mechanical explanation to all those.

Let’s say and philosophically speaking, I was to die and did so in 2004 (Charlie), how can I die again in 2007 in a traffic accident? Which reality is real in this case? I was alive in 2007 in one timeline, how can I kill myself and die again in 2004 in another timeline? Reconciliation here would be impossible.

With the ring and just to refresh memories here, at the donkey wheel moment before John went down the rope in the fountain, ( the funny Milles line to Sawyer: You can let go of that now) Jin wanted Locke to find Sun and the question was how can John convince her that Jin is alive after she saw the freighter explode. So Jin gave John the ring as a irrefutable proof to Sun to believe. Since she knew John was not on the freighter, only a living Jin could had provided the ring.
So the way I see it is that until that moment, Ben considered John to be an inconvenience, maybe even a good one; Ben is the smart one while John is the stupid sidekick. But when Ben saw the ring on the desk, been told how and why and John on the top of that mentioning the meeting with Eloise who’s going to tell him how to get back to island - Ben seemed unable to find that answer himself, Ben went; OMG, this dude is on to something now. That’s when I think, Ben elevated John from a stupid sidekick who does not know and understand to a threat to be dealt with.

Now, do you rememeber that Ben took the coffin to a meat shop to a freezer? Ben had a quite a few connections to rely on just like Widmore. Any thoughts?

Floreen said...

@Anonymous - You’re right with the ambivalent role Christian plays. The parabola with changing shoes is a good one and significant for all we know.

@Mike V & davidsalako - Thank you for seeing it now with the cabin/s. The ‘help me line’ could’ve been Jacob or Ricardo, whom ever could’ve been held for captives. MiB/Smokey was not asking for help, he was already roaming the territory. But the fact that someone else other than Jacob was calling the shots was the only plausible explanation I could find and I developed the what if Flichard theory.
So you and davidsalako created the ultimate twisted paradox of timelines and connections? That will either work, or collapse on its own, but they are interesting theories.

juan said...

hi !so before todays new episode, i wanted ti share something with you all! maybe im pushing it to far but,,, have anyone of you seen some freemasonry references in the show? for example on"the package" when jin is taken to room#23, after he pulls the lever and the video of sublimnal messaging starts, if u pause it and see it frame by frame u can see a compass and the some keyboards piled up that looked like squares rulers, the keys give the impression on the centimeters, also im now watching season 1 again, and they say some freemason stuff like when sayid takes jack the hacth and locke said that he told sayid not to say anything to jack because he wanted him to come with an "open mind" "the eyes" of the character eyes means the all seeing eye, in the hatch episodes the are at some point "searching for the light"....
im just guessing with this and wanted to share if any one who has read about this topics has seen any symbolism like this before in the show??

Floreen said...

@juan -
Freemasonary stuff permeates all cultures nowadays, but Hollywood is full of it.
Heck, the whole design of Washington DC is full of such symbols. If you go to certain sites or google or whatever search engine you prefer and look it up, you'll come up with a more than you can handle. There's radio talk shows that talk about it, sites on internet, and they used to be more of them. So yeah, we noticed those references.

Mike V. said...

@david - No problem! I'm pretty excited about it and I don't care how much of a nerd that makes me! It will be interesting to see how crowded the theater is and what type of people it attracts lol Eh, for all I know, some local fellow blog readers may be in the theater I'm in!

@Florin - saw your Gather post. Sorry you aren't able to see the show. If I have time, I'll try to post something about the Q&A with Darlton. But it will be the Thursday before the finale airs (on Sunday) and I'll also have FlashForward to recap (could be a 2 hour finale episode lol) I'll see what I can do! But knowing me, I'm sure I wouldn't let the big event go by without at least putting some comments down. But I'm certainly not taking notes in the movie theater!

BTW, I finally caught up on Fringe last night! This 2nd season is really delivering the goods! If possible, Fringe may be my next LOST after LOST ends. It's been that good. BUT, that doesn't mean I'm going to blog about it lol Anyway, yeah there definitely are certain similarities between the OTHER WORLDS and they keep reiterating on Fringe that one can not occupy a place in both universes. I also have heard of a certain cameo that might be showing up on LOST soon, but I won't say anything. I still think that we're going to find distinct differences between LOST and Fringe in the end and the "2 Worlds" concept. (of course, Fringe is tackling Time Travel next week LOL)

Good point on Keamy with Michael...the gun wouldn't work there either. There are other scenarios like Sawyer getting shot by a 70's Other in season 5 and it seemed to go right past him. Could be attributed to Storm Trooper Aim but it seemed like fate/island was intervening here too. Of course, then why was Sawyer able to get shot and almost die at the end of season 1/beginning of season 2?

I think we're way past the point of trying to explain all of this stuff scientifically. Yeah they strung us along with that for 4 seasons, but now with their "Midichlorian" approach to answering questions, they seem to prefer to keep some of the questions more mysteriously ambiguous than to actually answer them. They did say at one point that everything would be able to be answered with some kind of science-based fiction that you'd read in a Michael Crichton novel. But I just don't know how you explain Ghosts, Smoke Monsters, and you know, Supernatural Beings in Jacob. Oh right, and healing islands. I guess we can hold onto hope that they will answer some of this stuff in the final episodes....but I think I'm subscribing to the "Midichlorian" approach. Sometimes not knowing is better!

I think you said it yourself with Ben/Locke and the whole killing conspiracy. Locke had knowledge, Ben got it and then didn't need Locke anymore. And you know, I thought more about it. Remember when Ben shot John on the Island? Why did he do it? "because you HEARD him" At the time, Ben and Locke thought that was Jacob (still not sure)....but he got extremely jealous. Same thing with Locke getting marched right in to see Jacob at the end of season 5....his anger pushed him to kill Jacob (also the sacrifice of his pseudo-daughter helped naturally). Anyway, just wanted to mention that.

Mike V. said...

Yeah, the Ben/Widmore connections and money off Island. I still don't know what that's all about. Maybe being leader of the Others somehow lends yourself to money and connections. I dunno. I sure would love answers to that stuff, but we just don't know how much we're going to get!

BTW - I'm still not seeing how RICHARD could be the cabin guy...and you don't need to explain it again! LOL But I have kept saying that it has been left pretty ambiguous to whether it was Jacob or MIB. There are problems with both theories. Like you said MIB was roaming around the island. How could he be trapped too? No idea. But we learned about what the ASH does. So doesn't that sound like someone was TRAPPED in the cabin with a circle of ash around them? and saying "HELP ME"??? I guess it still could have been Jacob. We have to think the cabin scene in "Cabin Fever" is MIB related if not MIB himself portraying Christian. The fact that Claire is there and we see where Claire is NOW, that we can pretty much deduce that. But that season 3 scene is still wide open on possibilities. Maybe an MIB/Jacob backstory could clear that one right up! LOL We'll see.

@juan - Ahh the Free Masons....well I will say that the Room 23 video was shown way back in season 3 when Karl was in there getting "brainwashed/subliminal messaged" We learned this season that it was the DHARMA Initiative's room to test subliminal messaging. It seemed that the OTHERS may have tampered with the video and threw some JACOB messaging in there.

My suggestion is to read Dan Brown's THE LOST SYMBOL (ahhh "LOST") and you'll get your Free Mason fix lol Like Florin said, it might be in the subtext of LOST, but I don't think we'll be tracing any answers back to it. Of coures, Doc Jensen sure tried to make a tie between this show and The LOST Symbol just because both had "LOST" in the title. That was.....um....interesting! All of his stuff can be found on ew.com I guess it could be all intentional, but I have never looked or heard much discussion besides the above about it on the show!

Whew...oh and to all readers...HAPPY LOST DAY!!!!

Mike V. said...

Thanks everyone for your help with the Gather link! Finally hit that 750 mark. Not sure why it struggled this week to find an audience, but such is life! lol

BTW - be on the look out at ew.com for a TOTALLY LOST and Doc Jensen "Countdown to LOST" column. I haven't seen anything yet. I'm busy this morning, but if they're up in the afternoon, I'll post the links!

I'm going to miss LOST Day Rituals :-(

MJ said...

Mike - jsut want to say thanks for that answer to my very long post on the 8th ! I have read it - but only just. Work has been a beeotch this and last week ! I am hopelessly behind the blog now. LOL You're just too darned popular this season to keep up with. ;-D

I'm too cheap to buy that ABC party pack - but i found some pdf's on the web where you can print dharma wine or cracker labels, etc - so plan to do that for the finale. We'll just have faux dharma snacks. LOL

Any one else planning Lost parties for the finale ??

David Salako said...

Just watched the Des episode where there was a flashback to his visit with Ruth, his former fiancee that he ran out on one week to the wedding.
His line: "I woke up in the middle of the road and a man was standing over me with an outstretched hand, and I knew, I knew I was supposed to follow him and leave everything behind and sacrifice it all for a greater good", all seems to take on greater meaning now. I guess that is kind of how Des' flashbacks work to!

Mike V. said...

@MJ - no problem. I'm having the same issues with work being busy. But, I try to keep up with the blog peeps! It's getting tougher and tougher though. But yeah, can't complain about how popular the blog has been this season. Every season has topped the previous one. Really amazing thing to watch unfold! And of course, then it will all be over :-(

As for LOST Parties...well, I'm sure it will just be the Mrs. and I as I mentioned in a previous post. That's how I prefer it! But I may actually just sit back and enjoy the episode. NO NOTES! I'll have all day the next day to go back through and analyze and then post a recap lol But we still have our DHARMA Party Pack from ABC for the premiere. Which is pretty much the same thing...the labels that you mention below. Here's a fun thing though...a friend of mine and I actually brewed our own beer a few weeks back and we were allowed to design our own labels. Can anyone guess where I'm going with this? YOU GOT IT.....DHARMA BEER!!! WOO HOO!!!! Can't wait to bottle it this Sunday! Maybe I'll tweet a picture and put it here too.

@David - Sounds like you watched CATCH 22, right? wow...i remember thinking about that scene when I rewatched this past year....but the whole "outstretched hand" part. Definitely takes on greater meaning. And of course "Sacrifice it all for a greater good"....maybe he pieced stuff together and remembered that particular event too. I just checked my blog from that episode and it seemed he referenced some lapse in time. Like he looked up asking if he was doing the right thing...then the next thing he remembers he is lying on his back. Very crazy stuff. I always forget about that Desmond stories (not forget, but don't hold as much weight when thinking about Live Together Die Alone, Flashes, Constant, Jughead, Happily) Which is crazy because it was also an awesome episode! Oh well, looks like I gotta watch that one again, or at least that scene again! Thanks for bringing it back up David!

David Salako said...

Yes, it was season 3's Catch-22, the episode where Des and Penny first met while carrying crates of Moriah wine. Mount Moriah being the place of Abraham's intended sacrifice of Isaac. Yikes!
I am worried for the Hume family!

MJ said...

LOL - I'm too lazy to 'brew' any thing ! I'll jsut buy it - then tape my fake labels over it.

Have a meeting now - but was hoping Totally Lost would be up ! Damn them.

Tommorrow then ! Enjoy tonight all.

Mike V. said...

Oh i was going to brew the beer anyway....there was no plan to do DHARMA labels lol My friend put me in charge of labels...so this is what he gets! LOL

I was hoping Totally LOST would be up too. DRAT!

David - yeah i remember all of that stuff too...and got a refresher when I went back to my blog. Good times!

Mike V. said...

Countdown to LOST with Doc Jensen is up. Totally LOST is at bottom of the column!! One stop shop.


Countdown to LOST/Totally LOST

Bryan said...

Explosivo!

Mike V. said...

Indeed!!! Lol

EJ said...

Mike -- Another couple thoughts to add to your eventual poll on how LOST ends... (1) not only are Jack and Flocke mirroring the Black Rock approach scene with Jacob and MIB, but those who decide to remain on the island when the two timelines converge are the new Others, inhabiting the Temple. (2) Somehow, Desmond will say, "See you in another life, Brutha!" -- either we see him say it, or it's a voiceover as everything fades.

Glenn R. said...

@Florin
You stated: "MiB/Smokey was not asking for help, he was already roaming the territory."

I'm not ready to make such a definitive statement myself. There have been two theories posted in here which give alternate explanations for how it could have been MIB in the cabin AND roaming the island.

1. There might be a specific set of rules that define when MIB could leave, or under what circumstances. Seems to me that if MIB could roam at will, what would stop him from scanning every single person who arrived on the Oceanic flight, and perhaps even killing them in the same way as he did during the Black Rock's arrival? But regardless of whether that is true or not, I don't think you can definitely say that there weren't rules in place which could explain why MIB was both trapped and roaming at the same time.

2. Recently, the possibility of bi-location came up -- after we saw Isabella interact with Richard at the same time that we heard his sound in the background. In theory, MIB could have been trapped in his human form in the cabin, but only allowed to roam as Smokey.

Just sayin... ;-)

Glenn R. said...

Mike -- awesome on the homebrew called Dharma Beer! I'm jealous -- I want to try one (and see your labels, of course!) ;-)

Floreen said...

@Mike V - Just secs before the next episode. I agree with you on Fringe and Ben and John, actually you did refreshed y memory with John been shot at the Dharma-grave, which supports your position even better.

As with Sawyer, that either by mistake or not, supports my theory. In 1977 Sawyer was not on the island so no harm like that could’ve come to him. As in the season 1, again, he was living in the real time he was supposed to according with all the laws of the universe, which might give even more support to my theory.

Of course we could be both wrong, right, half and half, you name it. But according with my teach in college, one always has to obey the mechanics - Fringe does a good job so far, because since we’re living in a material world, even spiritual laws gets in effect by material means in terms of cause and effect.

We could look for he unanswered in Fringe, the Bible, ancient religions etc.

Floreen said...

@Glenn R -

You could be absolutely right Glenn, actually the way you put it, you make perfect sense with the logic behind it. That's exactly what I am trying, but not successfully so, not all the time in everything. As you saw from the prior posting from Mike V with respect to the ash, one can easily poke a lot of holes in my theories, and that's good. One remember one thing like EJ did about the conversation of Des and former fiancee, I remember something else, you bring something up and in this way the conversation goes on, putting as many pieces together and keep the debate hot. That's how we got the answers, or we hope so.
Trust me, I am not afraid lo lose an argument, a debate, a point or two or more, and when I do I bow to the winner.
So I give everybody kudos my friend, to all who had a good argument, a better one then mine. ;-)

LostFamily said...

Wow, things are accelerating to the finish. Still so many unanswered questions, which I know we won't get the answers to. Loved this episode - Desmond/Penny encounters are so sweet. When they were meeting at the stadium - it doesn't get any better than that. So Eloise seems to be the puppet master - we better find out why she has knowledge of both timelines! Great seeing Charlie again and Daniel too. Fantastic recap and the comments certainly are getting lengthy (especially by a certain poster!) Can't wait for the next episode with our other favorite character, Hurley. Hope he stays true to form and asks those questions that we are shouting at the TV! LOL We might have a finale party also - why not? Pass the Dharma Beer! :)

Mike V. said...

@LOST Family - You're progressing right along. This one was right up there with Ab Aeterno as Season 6's best eps. Of course, I love the entire build-up to the finale so you're in for a nice ride. I'm guessing by the DHARMA BEER comment you saw that I brewed my own bottles of DHARMA beer? lol If not, you should see that soon. I still have some left but am afraid to drink them. Surely they've gone bad by now! :-) Then again, Sawyer still drank that stuff 30 years after expiration! I have no idea what "POSTER" you're referring to :-) lol Everyone was really into commenting on the show's final season so I can't blame anyone for getting a little in-depth with their analysis! In the coming episdoes you may see a couple or FEW posters that share a few thoughts. Thanks for the props on the recap as always and YES you should have a FINALE PARTY!! Can I come? lol j/k I am starting to get the itch to watch it all again. I tried a month or so ago and just wasn't ready. But I may be soon. :-) I also just got the LOST Encyclopedia so that is helping with the inspiration. Enjoy the next episode!

Miles Balzard said...

Really fascinating episode and one of the best of the season, for sure! The show's objectives are slowly becoming clearer as the Sideways Timeline stories begin to acknowledge the existence of a different life, but I still don't know what that means to the big picture! The scenes with Charlie and Desmond crashing into the marina were intense and Desmond having a flashback during his flash sideways was remarkable.

I also loved Daniel coming back and having the talk with Desmond about love at first sight and Charlotte and the quantum mechanics drawing. By this time, Desmond is clearly convinced that Charlie and Daniel are on to something, though he may not be sure what, so he meets Penny at the stadium and makes a coffee date. All sorts of juicy Island stuff was going on, too, but one of the questions Mike asked in his recap sort of slapped me in the face and made me think.

The question Mike asked: "Is the Sideways Timeline even a permanent existence?" But if the Sideways Timeline is a permanent existence, it means that the characters have also led completely different lives than the lives they led before they reached the Island. Jack had a kid. Kate didn't kill her dad. Sawyer became a cop. Ben didn't raise Alex as a daughter. These are all basically corrections of mistakes or lost opportunities.

For the most part, the characters seem to be better off in the sideways universe, so I would presume it is also a desired existence for them. Yet they still get in trouble and have problems and arguments, so it's not a perfect existence (namely, heaven). In fact, it's far from perfect.

But suppose the characters could "get a new lease on life" in the real world that would reset everything. The sideways lives they're having still look like the kind of lives they would probably have no matter what, given the nature of their personalities. Their "new lease on life" wouldn't be perfect either, but it would still be better because they had a chance to start over.

So are the sideways flashes showing what the characters' lives would be like if they were reborn? Literally reborn in the years of their individual births, and somehow carrying a little bit of the wisdom that Island life had given them? And do the characters have a choice to be reborn if they want it? Do they have to earn the chance to be reborn by redeeming themselves on the Island?

And if they were reborn, did the Jughead explosion (or time flash or whatever) drop them into their new lives at the point where they were flying back to Los Angeles on Oceanic 815 in 2004? So, for example, Sawyer didn't have to actually relive the 35 years he lived before crashing on the island, but just pick up where he left off in his newly refashioned existence. Everything in the 35 years of his new life actually happened, but he didn't have to relive it in order to go back to being a cop in L.A. and having dates with hot redheads. He would never remember his non-existent life as a con man because it never happened.

This "Rebirth Theory" would work with all the flash sideways stories we've seen so far. But there's a big problem with this theory. If it were true, then why are they still on the Island in 2007 fighting off smoke monsters and evil billionaires? Why would that have to happen at all? Is it because the Island isn't done with them? They have to finish their destiny on the Island before they can achieve their new life in the real world?

I could see the show managing to work out these kinks in the Rebirth Theory. And thinking of this Rebirth Theory actually gives me the idea for another Sideways Theory called the "Rewrite Theory," but I want to go back to Netflix and watch the next episode!

Mike V. said...

Just reading your comments reminds me how much I loved this episode. It certainly was a revealing episode for the sideways story. Time for things to start moving towards something over there!

As for your theories, once again, very interesting stuff! I'm too scared to comment to make you lean one way or another. There will be plenty to discuss AFTERWARDS! :-)

I still envy you. One last big mystery the show gave us to crack and you still have the opportunity to theorize. But, the biggest legacy the show gave us was that things can still be discussed to this day. I found plenty to talk about on my rewatch last summer.

Anyway, I'm rambling just for the sake of rambling. Keep on watching! Savor the final minutes. And, stock up on tissues! (I can at least spoil that lol)

Leta said...

Desmond, Charlie and Daniel in one episode. There was no way I wouldn't love it! Of course, all Desmond-centric episodes are nuts, and this was no exception. I'm back to being confused again. But it's a natural state while watching Lost, so everything's fine :)

Finally this Sideways story seems to be moving somewhere. Might this be what our Losties get if they complete their mission on the island? Like some sort of "reward"? Very interesting.

And on top of all this, we saw Desmond meet Penny again! Now, I'm not a big romantic, I don't usually even like love stories. But these two are something else. I just can't get enough of them.

Mike V. said...

Okay Leta, I responded to all of your comments!

Glad that you're confused! We all were, but this is when the sideways started getting more interesting! (and of course, previous eps better on rewatch)

I forget if it was around now or a little later when I made my theory in the comments that ended up being partially right. No one even responded to it. I just threw it out there as some crazy off the wall theory at the time and then backtracked. But, turns out I was on to something! :-)

Yeah...nothing beats a good Desmond/Penny scene. They are awesome together!

See you in the upcoming episodes!

Anonymous said...

Mike,

I just finished watching this episode (twice in a row). I am pleased that you too are a big Desmond (and Penny) fan. This episode and The Constant are two of my favorites. The storylines with Desmond are so philosophical and thought provoking. I think the dialogues and messages are more profound yet more simple than the other episodes--at least at this point in the series (remember, I have already watched the series once). These episodes are somewhat easy to follow but leave me with the basic question, "What is our purpose?"

As I stated before, I read the blog after each episode and try to read most of the comments. There are some really intelligent and detailed people out there (including you), and I sure "see" more because of their insight.

Mike V. said...

Hi again Anonymous!

Glad you're enjoying season 6 as much as I did. And yeah, I don't know how you can't fall for the Des/Penny story. They made great use of the limited screen time they had.

That's great that you're taking the time to read the recap and comments after each episode. We did it because we had to wait for the next episode. But, I'm always glad to hear people still find it entertaining/useful in the era of binge watching! :)

Enjoy the rest of the series!

Simon Sandiford said...

Great stuff again... Another great episode... Finally read all the comments... Is too late for the next episode tonight as early work tomorrow, so looks like it will be a Friday night Lost night tomorrow.

Mike V. said...

I do love those Desmond episodes and this one was a good one. You’re getting there!

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