May 27, 2009

Wondering what to do without Lost?

Looking for something to do during the long hiatus until Lost season 6? Well, a few fans sites have gotten together to develop the Lost Rewatch.

Basically, each week fans will rewatch the same episodes (usually 3-4 per week), then on the weekend, you can check out the participating Web sites for new analysis, Easter eggs, and reveals based on what we know from the present form of the show. I'll try to keep up with some of the discussion here as well.

I know a lot of people rewatch the episodes in the offseason (Zap2It did a "We have to go back" rewatch blog last year), so why not join in and see what other fans notice/point out while watching the same episodes?

Here's a look at some of the details and participating Web sites for the Lost Rewatch:

May 26, 2009

Elizabeth Mitchell Lands on "V"

Want to know what happened after Juliette detonated the hydrogen bomb? Well, check this out. Elizabeth Mitchell (aka Juliette on Lost) has landed a role on ABC's remake of "V":



Check out more about the 1984, original "V" series on Wikipedia.

May 22, 2009

Lost Statue: Taweret

I may be a little behind with this news, but it looks like its been confirmed by both ABC and one of Lost's creators, JJ Abrams, that the four-toed statue depicts Taweret, the Egyptian goddess of birth, rebirth and the northern sky.

I still think it looks like the crocodile god Sobek, but I'll go with this. I hate when major Lost mysteries are solved like this though. It was the same thing when Ms. Hawking's first name, Eloise, was first shown on the enhanced version of a rerun episode or when the clip show confirmed that Charles Widmore had staged the Flight 815 wreckage.

New Orleans, Perfect 10th Superbowl

Here's the video that the city of New Orleans put together for the NFL Owners Meeting to get the 2013 Superbowl:

May 20, 2009

New Orleans Gets 2013 Superbowl

The city of New Orleans was award the 2013 Superbowl yesterday at the NFL owner's meetings. The city was in the running along with Phoenix and South Florida. With the state of Louisiana and the Saints recently coming to terms on a lease deal that keeps the team in New Orleans through the next 15 years, the league was eager to get the game back in the "Big Easy."

This is great news for Louisiana. It will be the first Superbowl in New Orleans since Katrina and will go one step further in showing the world that New Orleans is back on the map. With NBA All-Star games, Final Fours, BCS Championship Games, etc., New Orleans has become one of the top U.S. cities for staging the biggest events in sports.

Here's a look at what the sports world is saying about the Superbowl decision:

May 19, 2009

Hornets Draft Projections

While not as heavily promoted as the NFL Draft, the NBA Draft is a fun event as well. With only two rounds, the draft takes place in prime time for a few hours. Teams are more eager to trade players and picks in the NBA Draft and with the rookie salary scale, there aren't the holdouts or issues with having a top-5 pick that come with the NFL Draft.

With the NBA season nearing its conclusion, all of the teams who either didn't make the playoffs or have been eliminated are turning their focus to the college draft. The Hornets have the 21st pick in the first round. I would personally like to see them get some size, but other needs include a backup point guard and a shooting guard.

Here's an early look at who a few sites have the Hornets selecting with the 21st pick:

May 15, 2009

The Incident

What can I say that hasn't already been said by Lost fans and bloggers? It's been a couple of days since the season 5 finale, and I'm still not sure if I loved it or not. It had great moments and had some dragged out plot elements. But overall, it was a satisfying ending to one of the best seasons of Lost.

The Opening Scene
The first scene of "The Incident" may be one of, if not the, most important scenes shown on the show. This scene, while very vague in its presentation, basically gives the answer that fans have been longing for ... what is the island?

While we don't necessarily get a clear answer, we are given a good idea of what's been going on for thousands of years. We are finally introduced to Jacob, the most mysterious character in the history of the show. He looks like an average guy. He's making string, catching fish for lunch, just hanging out on the beach. Then we see the Black Rock in the distance and things get interesting.

Another guy walks up dressed in black. Jacob is wearing white. The guy in black is agitated that people are coming to island. It seems that Jacob brought them. He says that it always ends the same with destruction and corruption. To this Jacob replies (a very important line), "it only ends once and anything before that is just progress."

The guy in black tells Jacob how badly he wants to kill him and that one day he'll find a loophole. So they can't kill each other. This reminded me, and a lot of other fans, of Ben and Widmore's relationship and the rules, where it looks like they can't kill each other. We learned more about the loophole later in the finale.

Upon first viewing of this scene, I was like, OK this is cool. Jacob's like Richard, he's been on the island a long time. But after watching the entire finale, there's a lot more to it.

There's rampant speculation among fans about who/what Jacob and the other guy are. The two are clearly taking differing opinions. Whether its a good vs. evil, free will or a humanity issue, they are opposites with their point of views. Fans are are debating whether they are Egyptian gods, angels, or Jacob and his bother Esau from the Old Testament. I'm sure we'll get a clearer picture of their relationship early next season.

Back to what is the island? Let's assume that Jacob and "Esau" have been running things for many, many years on the island. Jacob continues to bring people to it to prove "Esau" wrong and show him that humanity is good. The island is a magical place, sort of like their Garden of Eden, and it serves as a testing ground for this debate. What if we bring humans here and give them all these endless scientific miracles. How will they react? How will they use it? "Esau" believes that it will always end the same, with the people fighting each other and causing problems. Jacob agrees that this happens, but calls it progress. He says it only has to end once.

That's a loaded line, and I can't wait to see how it ends. What does Jacob know? Is he talking about the 815 survivors? They have caused quite a bit of death and destruction on the island, so we'll see.

The Statue and its shadow
The opening scene ended with a spectacular shot of the four-toed statue, in all of its glory. The statue looks to be Sobek, with its crocodile head. They keep showing only the backside of the statue, so fans continue to debate exactly which Egyptian deity it represents, but Sobek is starting to win out. I'm not up on my ancient Egyptian gods, so if you'd like to know more about Sobek, check out the link above.

For a few weeks now, we've been wondering about the "Shadow of the Statue" group. They've been asking people, "what lies in the shadow of the statue?" Some questioned whether this was just a question used to identify someone in the know, like Desmond's question to Locke to see if he was his replacement, "what did one snowman say to the other snowman?"

It turns out the answer is Jacob himself. Richard gives the correct answer when Ilana asks him toward the end of the episode, but he answers in Latin. Fans were quick with their translation, and Richard actually told her, "He who will protect/save us all."

Traveling Man
Staying on the topic of Jacob, in the flashbacks of this episode, we see him visit Kate and Sawyer when they were children, Sayid just before Nadia is killed, Ilana while she is heavily bandaged, Locke just after he is pushed out the window by his father, Jin/Sun at their wedding, Jack just after the surgery that he told Kate about in the pilot episode (where he had to count to 5 to let the fear go) and Hurley where he tells him about Flight 316 and leaves a guitar case. Each of these visits were at an important moment in their lives. The only other flashback in the episode was when Juliette found out her parents were getting divorced.

The Ilana flashback was interesting because she was all bandaged up. Had she just been in an accident or did she change the way she looked for some reason? Unlike the other flashbacks, she knew who Jacob was. He asks her to help him and she says she will.

With the flashbacks with the 815 survivors, all take place before Flight 815 except Sayid and Hurley. In each instance, Jacob physically touches them, and that's probably an important point. Why would they go out of their way to show that he touches them? It's most obvious with Locke, as it looks like Jacob saves his life when he touched him.

Has Jacob always known that they would come to the island or was this how he chose the people he would bring there? Seeing how Hurley ended up on the flight was payoff for one of the season's lingering questions. But we are still left to wonder what's in the guitar case.

So that's where they've been
Back in 1977, Kate convinces Sawyer and Juliette that they need to stop Jack. They get off the sub, and who do they run into but Vincent, Rose and Bernard. I thought this part was pretty cheesy, seeing Bernard with a beard and long hair, but they had to fill in the audience on what's been going on with them.

We can assume that they experienced the flashes through time that the rest of the group went through, just on a different part of the island. They were separated from Sawyer's group during the flaming arrow battle and didn't meet up with them at the creek later. Rose and Bernard are "retired" and enjoying the life they've made for themselves. They sort of call out the rest of the group for always wanted to pick up a gun and try to stop somebody. While this scene played out like they were just updating us on Rose and Bernard, I think Rose's comments will play a larger role in the end game of if humanity is ultimately good.

A fight, 5 seasons in the making
After Jack and Sayid have the core of Jughead that they need to blow up the Swan, a gun battle ensues at the DHARMA barracks and Sayid is shot. I thought for sure that he would die, as there's been rumors of a major character dying in the finale. They teased us throughout with Sayid's condition. Hurley, Miles and Jin rescue them, and they make their way to the Swan, only to be stopped by Sawyer, Kate and Juliette.

Sawyer asks for five minutes of Jack's time, and the two have a heart-to-heart about destiny, Kate and what Jack's about to do. They end up in a fist fight that's been building up for more than three years for the characters. These guys have been friends and enemies for so long, a fight like this was believable and one that fans knew would happen one day, but it's eventually stopped by Juliette, who says that Jack needs to do this.

Turns out, the way Sawyer looks at Kate has Juliette questioning their relationship. She loves Sawyer, but sometimes people in love just aren't meant to be with each other, as Juliette learned from her flashback.

The Incident
This leads to the incident that we've been hearing about since the first Swan orientation film. Everyone ends up joining forces to help Jack complete his mission of throwing the hydrogen bomb core down the Swan shaft. All heck breaks loose after Phil and the security team arrives. Jack drops the bomb down the shaft, but it doesn't go off. Then, just like when the counter wasn't reset after 108 minutes in the Swan, metal items begin being pulled to the electromagnetic source.

Jack gets knocked out, Pierre Chang's arm gets smashed and Phil gets killed. Fans were happy to see closure on the Chang arm situation and to see a jerk like Phil get his due. But the joy was soon short-lived as Juliette was pulled into the shaft. Sawyer and Kate tried to save her, but they couldn't, and she fell in. This scene was a heartbreaking one for many reasons.

Juliette has slowly become a fan favorite. Many fans didn't know what to think of her double-agent role in her early seasons, but seeing her with Sawyer this year made everyone grow to like her. It was also heartbreaking to see Sawyer lose her. This is right up there with Sun watching the freighter blow up. A great scene by all involved.

Man in the Box
All the 1977 stuff was interesting and fun, but I was more excited about the present day trek to Jacob. Come to find out, there were two groups making the trek: the Others and the Ilana led "shadow of the statue" group. Ilana's group dragged Frank along and filled him in on some of the details of their trip after Ilana called him a candidate. A candidate for what? They even showed him the contents of the crate, which had to be mind-blowing (it was for the audience later in the episode).

First they made their way to Jacob's cabin. After seeing that the ash around it had a path cut through it (some fans have speculated that Hurley made the path in the ash when he visited the cabin, so what did Hurley unleash?). Ilana doesn't find anyone inside, but we do see the strange dog painting again. She finds a cloth picture of the statue stuck on the wall by a knife. She says that someone else has been using the cabin and they torch it and leave.

A few questions here. We've seen Christian and Claire inside before. Are they the other people that Ilana mentioned? Also, the cabin looks a lot like Rose/Bernard's cabin, so is it? We've been lead to believe that Horace built the cabin. Lastly, what is its purpose? If Jacob lives at the statue, then was he trapped in the cabin, as we previously thought? or was "Esau" trapped there and is he the one who has been manipulating all the visitors to the cabin? Remember, someone said "help me" to Locke the first time he visited the cabin. We thought it was Jacob, but perhaps it wasn't.

When Ilana's group gets to the statue, she asks for Ricardo and asks him the shadow of the statue question. Richard answers correctly, and she shows him what's in the crate. Turns out, it's Locke's body from the cargo hold of the plane. WHOA! Locke is dead after all. So who's with Ben inside the statue?

Business Time
Locke had been pretty convincing and told Ben that he would kill Jacob. Ben had admitted that he'd never seen or spoken to Jacob and lied about it to not be embarrassed. He'd been a willing servant to someone he'd never seen and what did he get for his service? Cancer, a dead daughter and banishment from the island. Nice reward.

Inside the statue, the two confront Jacob, and the muddy water starts to clear up. Locke turns out to be "Esau"/black shirt guy from the opening scene. He'd found his loophole. Ben asked Jacob, "what about me?" Jacob says, "what about you?" and gets stabbed by Ben. Just before he dies, Jacob says "They're coming." Locke then kicks Jacob's body into the fire.

Killer scene. Crazy that after all these years of waiting to know more about Jacob, they give us so much in one episode, then kill him off. A few questions linger after he's killed. What happens next? Did Jacob know that Ben would kill him? Is that why he never had any interaction with him? Did Jacob know that his enemy would find a loophole? Who is he referring to when he says they're coming? Does he mean Jack and company or Richard and Ilana outside?

What will Ben and Locke do now? Everyone outside knows that it's not the real Locke, but they don't know how that's possible, unless Ilana's group knows even more about Jacob. Is Ilana like Richard (ageless, a confidant of Jacob)? Remember that Walt had a dream where everyone on the beach was trying to kill Locke. Is Walt's vision about to come true?

Bram had been saying that his group was the good guys and the side that will win. It looks like they've been working for Jacob all this time, but the Others claim to be the good guys too. So who's really good? Lastly, how does Widmore play into all of this? He said a war was coming and Locke had to be on the island.

So many questions to ponder while we wait for season 6. But wait, there's one more thing to get to.

It's over
The final scene of the finale shoots back to the shaft, and Juliette is conscious at the bottom. She is badly injured, but sees the bomb lying there. She beats it with a rock and gets it to go off and BOOM! White screen, black letters: LOST. Season 5 is over.

Now the offseason question will be what happened to them? Did they change things or was this how the incident always played out? Miles brought up a great point that no one seemed to think about. Was Jack really working to prevent the future from occurring or was he actually causing things to unfold? We are left with 8-9 months to ponder these questions.

Other Tidbits
Was that really the Black Rock in the opening? Was Richard a part of the crew or aboard the ship? If that was Black Rock, then how does it end up so far inland? If Jacob brought them there, did he move the boat to the island or move the island toward the boat?

Kate tries to steal a New Kids on the Block lunchbox. Jacob buys it for her. Her and her childhood friend Tom later buried their time capsule in the New Kids lunch box.

Sawyer started writing the letter to Mr. Sawyer just after his parents funeral. The guy (his uncle maybe) that comes to bring him to the cemetery makes him promise not to finish the letter. I got a weird feeling about his uncle. Is he somehow tied into all of this or was he there just to provide Sawyer with the what's done is done line?

The DHARMA barracks are built right up against the tunnels. Richard busts through the wall, and they come out in Horace's basement.

We learned that Eloise was pregnant in 1977 and she, not Widmore, was the leader of the Hostiles. So was she pregnant with Daniel at this time or is she Penny's mom as well? From what we've seen, it's probably Daniel, but I'm just throwing the Penny possibility out there.

We saw Ilana's group in the outrigger, but didn't see them shoot at Sawyer, Juliette and company. Maybe that scene's still to come.

Richard said that he's the way that he is because of Jacob. Why did Jacob chose him to be ageless? What made him pick Richard for this?

It was cool that Sun found Charlie's Drive Shaft ring. Are they reminding us of Charlie/Claire because one or both will be back?

If Richard saw them all die in 1977, where was Richard with Jughead blew up? Did he mean he just figures they died because of Jack's mission?

Does "Esau" = Smokey? I'm saying yes.


Next on Lost: Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof will go into radio silence and not do any interviews until giving fans a sneak-peak at season 6 during Comic Con. We've learned that those appearance/videos aren't canon, but it's still the first chance to find out details on the upcoming season.

*Photos from GetLostPodcastMedia.com


May 14, 2009

First Impressions of "The Incident"

The Lost season finale, "The Incident," provided a lot of information for us to ponder for the next eight months or so until the start of season 6. "The Incident" was packed with stuff that fans have been longing to know more about: Jacob, Illana/Bram's crate, the incident, how Hurley got to Flight 316, etc. So was it a satisfying ending for you?

I'm still not sure what I think. There were parts that I loved seeing and parts that I'm still so-so about. Now that we are getting the answers we've always wanted, are they really the answers we always wanted?

I'll post my recap in the next day or so, but in the meantime, here's a look at what others are saying about the finale:

May 13, 2009

Lost Finale Tonight

Are you ready? Lost season 5 will come to an end tonight with a 3-hour event. First, there will be a clip/recap show at 7 p.m. (CT), "Lost: A Journey Through Time." Then the 2-hour season finale, "The Incident" at 8 p.m.

The Lost finale buzz is all over the Internet today. Watch out for spoilers. Here are a few articles/interviews to get you ready for tonight (warning: the interviews, although vague, may provide hints at what's coming up):
It's been a great season that has set us up for an even great final season in 2010. Wow, that seems so far away, but don't worry, it's only about eight months from now. In the meantime, you can check out how season 5 has brought us to "The Incident." Here's a look at all 15 episodes season 5 episodes with links to my recaps:
  • "Because You Left"/"The Lie" - These two aired together. From the opening scene with Pierre Chang and Faraday at The Orchid to the time skipping on the island and from Etahn to Ana Lucia to Ms. Hawking, these two espisodes set us up for a great season 5 ride.
  • "Jughead" - Perhaps season 5's best. The group jumps to 1954, meets up with Richard and the Others, including a young Charles Widmore and an interesting girl named Ellie. Throw in a hydrogen bomb, Jacob name-dropping Locke and everything with Desmond ... this is certainly a fan favorite.
  • "The Little Prince" - We relived some season 1 scenes, the time jumping heats up as noses bleed and two characters return: Danielle Rousseau and Jin.
  • "This Place is Death" - More time jumping, Montand loses an arm, Charlotte bites the dust ... and Locke turns the wheel.
  • "316" - The tale of the Oceanic 6's journey back to the island.
  • "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" - Locke does a terrible job at convincing everyone to go back. Ben finishes him off.
  • "LaFleur" - After Locke stops them from jumping through time, Sawyer, Juliette and company end up in 1974 DHARMA times. Statue shot FTW.
  • "Namaste" - Jack, Kate and Hurley get introduced to 1977 DHARMA
  • "He's Our You" - Sayid shoots 12-year-old Ben, thinking that he's changed the future
  • "Whatever Happened Happened" - Kate and Sawyer save Ben by giving him to the Others, and ultimately are responsible for what Ben becomes
  • "Dead is Dead" - a very much alive John Locke leads Ben to get judged by Smokey
  • "Some Like it Hoth" - we see the hatch being constructed and Hurley tries to help Miles and his father's relationship
  • "The Variable" - Daniel Faraday is convinced he can change things, only to find himself shot in the back by his own mother
  • "Follow the Leader" - John Locke returns to his role as leader of the Others. Jack takes on Locke's role as island destiny follower.
Enjoy the finale! The Locke vs. Jacob poster can be found here. You can download a hi-res version there as well.

May 12, 2009

Lost Podcast Clears Up Mysteries

This week's official Lost podcast with Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse touched on the now infamous comic con video. You know the one. This one with Pierre Chang and Daniel Faraday.

They said that once Faraday was shot, this video has become of the things that they are asked about the most. Basically here's their take on the video.

They said that they come up with Comic Con material before they start writing the season. They had an idea, but it wasn't followed through. They partially blamed it on the ARG for being canceled. The ARG was going to flesh out more of the story and the video would fit in with the context of season 5.

With the ARG, they said they were going to tell more story of Faraday trying to convince Pierre Chang that he was from the future and the original plot idea didn't involve Faraday going to Ann Arbour. They also confirmed that it was indeed Faraday on the video.

They once again noted that they only consider things that air on the actual show to be canon, so while these videos provide insight into the upcoming season, they are meant to just be teasers and aren't canon to the show.

I know a lot of fans won't like their answer, but we do have to realize that the show is a work in progress. They said it themselves. They know all the mythical milestones, but the path to get to those is a work in progress. I would like for everything to fit in continuity-wise, but if changes were made for a better story, then I can live with that. It's just that their Comic Con appearances are so publicized throughout the Lost community, these videos become "canon" for fans.

They said that the Comic Con video is the second most subject that they are asked about, with the first being Richard/Locke's compass. This compass has been passed from Richard to Locke just after Locke was shot by Ethan, then from Locke to Richard in 1954, then Richard tried to give it back to Locke when he tested Locke as a boy, then this past week's "Follow the Leader" Locke asked Richard for the compass again and then told Richard to give it to himself after he was shot by Ethan. So basically, the compass has no origin.

Things got more cloudy when Richard mentioned that the compass was rusty. Was it rusty in 1954 when Locke gave it to Richard, shortly after receiving it from future Richard? My head hurts.

They basically related the compass to the question of what came first, chicken or the egg. They said what they've done with the compass is intentional and likened it to some of the mathematical theorems that have no solution. They said that it's an infinite loop, or mobius loop.

I still question how this compass is able to point north, when the electromagnetic properties on the island have rendered other compasses to be obsolete.

So while fans may not like those answers, let's just wait for the show to play out and see how these fit into the grand scheme of the show.

May 11, 2009

Saints Sign Three Try-Out Rookies

The Saints signed three of the undrafted rookies they brought in for try outs: WR Matthew Simon, OG Shawn Flanagan and DT Earl Heyman. The team also released OG Cedric Dockery and OT Sam McNaulty.

The Times Picayune is reporting that the team will also sign OT Michael Brown, but the Saints haven't announced anything about him yet.

Ace of Cakes Visits Lost

Ace of Cakes made the cake to celebrate the 100th episode of Lost. The episode aired this past weekend on the Food Network, but the Ace of Cakes Web site had some cool footage of Jorge Garcia (Hurley) taking the crew on a tour of the Lost set. Check it out here.

May 8, 2009

First Look at Saints Rookies

Rookie mini camp opened today for the Saints. There's not much news coming out of the camp yet, but the Times-Picayune has some info. Check out their site for first impressions and a mini camp roster. They also have pictures from the camp, here.

Early news from the Picayune, LBs Stanley Arnoux and Jonathan Casillas are nursing injuries. Arnoux suffered his injury today and Casillas' one is pre-existing. WR John Halman tore his Achilles tendon.

Here's a first look at some of the team's rookies from Getty Images:

Malcolm Jenkins:

Chip Vaughn:

Thomas Morstead:

Hornets to Keep Byron Scott

The Hornets have decided to keep coach Byron Scott for at least one more season. That's how long he has left on his contract, so the move makes sense.

Fans were split on whether Scott should come back or not. A year ago, he led the team to the division championship and the second round of the playoffs. But injuries and a lack of depth hurt the Hornets in this year's playoffs, and they were embarrassed in the first round by Denver.

It's obvious that changes need to be made but the Hornets have decided that Scott will not be one of them. Some fans were hoping for Louisiana's own Avery Johnson to get the job, but with the Hornets already set to have to pay the luxury tax, they wouldn't want to have to pay two head coaches salaries as well.

So what changes will we see with the Hornets next year? There are rumors that David West could be traded, but the Hornets denied that yesterday when they announced Scott was staying. West could still be moved, if the right offer is presented. I'm sure the team would still like to pawn off Tyson Chandler to someone else, but with his injuries, it'll be tough. Peja Stojakovic is another big name that the team would like to move, but his salary and age make it difficult.

There are a few rumors floating around about trades involving the Hornets and teams like Chicago, Detroit and Phoenix, but this time of the year you never know what will really happen. I look for it to be quiet leading up to the draft, and if anything is to change, those moves could be made draft day.

In other news, Chris Paul has been selected to the NBA All-Defensice First Team. Congratulations to him.

May 7, 2009

Follow the Leader

Lost fans know that season finales always deliver, but the episodes before the finales have been good over the years as well. These episodes have a hard time standing out because they have to set up everything in the finale, but in the past Lost has hit is out of the park with "Greatest Hits" and "Cabin Fever." Add "Follow the Leader" to that list. It was an entertaining hour that set everything up for next week's two hour finale, "The Incident."

Richard Alpert
I'd like to start with one of the most interesting characters on the show, Richard Alpert. Here's what we know about Richard, and it's not much. He's part of the Others, is very old/has been on the island a long time and doesn't seem to age. This week, Ben called him an adviser and said that he's had that job for a very long time.

All along we've thought that Richard was running the show, and he somehow knew everything that was going to happen. Well, come to find out, he's just as in the dark as fans are. The only reason Richard knows what he knows is because John Locke told him and basically, the only reason Richard helped Locke become leader of the Others is because Locke himself told him he would be their leader. Richard's been following Locke a lot longer than we thought he'd been.

So what is Richard really? There's been speculation that he's Egyptian, maybe even an Egyptian god. One of the first scenes of "Follow the Leader" shows him working on a ship in a bottle, and the ship looks a lot like the Black Rock. The other fan speculation about Richard is that he was part of Black Rock's crew. So was this first scene a hint about him or just something to throw us off?

He's Here
John Locke comes back to the Others camp after disappearing three years ago. Remember, Locke was flashing through time. From Richard's perspective, he just disappeared. Richard has no idea (or at least says he doesn't) where Locke's been all this time. But he does sense a change in John. John said that he has a purpose now.

I'm still not sure what to think of the "rebooted" John Locke. He's definitely different. Is he really alive? I think that's the main question we're to ask ourselves. The new Locke is on a mission and seems more in tune with the island. He knew exactly when his time-jumping self would appear at the beach craft, and he told Richard exactly what to tell himself. It was an interesting perspective on the scene from "Because You Left," especially the Richard's line about how he knew Locke was shot. Richard said because you told me, or you will. Now we know why he said it that way.

Back to the Cabin
Locke told Richard that he had a purpose now. So what's that purpose? He led Ben to be judge by Smokey and now has resumed his leadership position with the Others. He's leading Sun to believe that he's going to help her find Jin, but at the end of the episode it becomes clear that's not his true intention. His real intention is to kill Jacob ... Say wha?

Remember, old Locke doubted the existence of Jacob, until he spoke to him and briefly saw him in "Man Behind the Curtain." New Locke wants to bring all of the Others to see Jacob. He questions whether Ben has ever seen him and wants to clear up who this long time mysterious person really is. The rest of the Others are thankful that John wants to bring them to Jacob. Who do these people think he is? What is Jacob's relationship with Richard, as Richard is taken aback by John's request to go find Jacob? Lastly, why does Locke all of a sudden want to kill Jacob? He doesn't want to wait until the next day because he's "eager."

We've seen both Ben and Locke use Jacob as their trump card to convince others of their place on the island. With John supposedly being so in tune with the island, is the island telling him to knock off Jacob?

So who is Jacob anyway? Will he turn out to be a character we've already seen? Christian Sheppard said that he can speak for Jacob. Some fans think that Jacob will turn out to be Jack. I'm not sure how that would work, but the tie in with Christian would make sense. Other speculation points to Faraday. Since he was killed in 1977, was he able to push his consciousness into this Jacob being? Or will Jacob turn out to be a whole new character?

I watched them all die
Richard told Sun that he knew all of her friends because he watched them all die. We know the incident is coming soon, so what's going to happen to Jack, Kate, Hurley and Jin?

Just after Faraday's death, Jack convinces Eloise to help him execute Faraday's plan. Kate wants nothing of it. She doesn't want to erase the last three years of her life, her time with Jack and especially her time with Aaron. But is her true motivation not wanting to go back to being a fugitive who was captured and on her way to jail?

In the meantime, Sawyer and Juliette are being tortured by the DHARMA folks (man, I hate Radzinksky) about where Sawyer and Kate brought Ben. Miles, Hurley and Jin are leaving the barracks and are confronted by Pierre Chang. Hurley once again provides the lines of the night when Chang asks them if they're from the future. They admit that Faraday was telling the truth and that they're from the future. This leads Miles to reveal that he is indeed his son.

Chang has to then start the evacuation that Faraday said he needed to do. This gives Sawyer his out. He agrees to tell Radzinsky where the Hostiles are if he puts him and Juliette on the sub too. Sawyer wants the life he had with Juliette back and sells-out all of his "friends" to get it. When Sawyer enters the sub, he says good riddance to the island, but was he talking to more than the island? Did he mean Kate too? Well, it doesn't really matter, since Kate was captured (her specialty) and is thrown in with Juliette and Sawyer...awkward.

We also saw Charlotte and her mother get on the sub, and Chang arguing with his wife. She doesn't want to leave, so he has to be mean to her to convince her to leave with baby Miles. Grown up Miles watches from the distance, so he knows of his dad's true motivation.

Seeing the sub leave was surreal. We've always only seen it docked and some fans question if it really was used to travel to and from the island. We know that people were knocked out for the intense trip, but Kate, Sawyer and Juliette were awake. I hope we see how that ride really goes down.

Jack's Back on a Mission
Jack is no longer just going with the flow. He's assumed the Locke role of thinking its their destiny to stop the incident. This is why they were brought back to 1977. He convinces Eloise to take him to Jughead to complete Dan's plan. Eloise is motivated by thinking that she can change things so that she doesn't ultimately shoot her son.

After a surprise appearance by Sayid and Kate's departure, Richard and Eloise take Jack to Jughead, which is stored under the DHARMA village. They swim to the underground tunnels, which look a lot like the Temple/Smokey's lair. Richard doesn't look pleased when Sayid follows them into the tunnels. My first thinking was that they were going to see Smokey, and Sayid would be toast for his recent actions of shooting Ben and the Hostile who threatened Kate.

They take them to Jughead, which is just sitting in the tunnels covered with a tarp. So this is where they buried it safely? What happened to Faraday's advice about pouring cement over it? Jack questioned how they got the bomb down there and how they'd get it out. It wasn't through the pool, so is there another entrance? Or did smokey help them bring the 12 foot long, 40,000 pound hydrogen bomb underground.

Other Tidbits:
Eloise and Widmore are together but as Richard says, love can be complicated. From the hushed conversation they have together, is it safe to conclude that Eloise was pregnant with Dan in 1977? Widmore puts his hand on her stomach as they are talking. Also, Widmore looks over Dan's body and says that he looks familiar. Is this because he remembers seeing Dan in 1954 or because Dan is is son?

Richard says that the compass Locke gave him is a little rusty, but she can still find north. We've seen compasses not work on the island before. Why does Richard's work?

Sayid still thought that he had changed things by killing Ben, but wondered why they were still in 1977. He wasn't too pleased when Kate told him that they saved Ben.

Jack has made a complete 180. He's now admitting that he was wrong with his thinking before and has embraced Locke's way of thinking about the island.

I kept looking for Cindy and the kids with the Others on the beach, but Richard said another group was at the Temple. So they're likely with that group.

Richard says that John Locke's going to be trouble. It looks like Richard and Ben may end up working together against Locke. Is this the war that's coming? We still don't know anything about the Shadow of the Statue group, so how do they play into all of this?

Seeing Locke lead the Others to go find Jacob brought back memories of previous end of the season episode where we've seen the group trek down the beach. It always gives off that calm before the storm vibe.

Next on Lost: "The Incident"

*Photos from GetLostPodcastMedia.com & lost-media.com