Lost Creators Go Into Radio Silence

After each season finale, Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, the Lost showrunners go into radio silence so the audience can flesh out the season finale for themselves. This year is no different, but that radio silence will be a lot longer (at least until the DVDs are released this fall.

Damon posted his final Lost tweet after "The End" aired. It said simply, "Remember. Let go. Move on. I will miss it more than I can ever say." We will too, Mr. Lindelof.

Damon and Carlton pre-taped their final interview as well for Good Morning America. You can watch it below where they give their favorite scenes from the finale:




And for those of you who are most focused on answers, here's the ultimate list of unanswered questions:

The End

It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress. - Jacob

Well, last night, it ended brilliantly. After six great seasons, Lost ended its run as only Lost could, on its own terms. There was laughter and crying, fights and reunions. The finale had it all. Sure the ending will be what people remember, but the 2 1/2 hour finale captured the essence of the series and thankfully transformed the sideways world into one of the most meaningful aspects of the show.

On first glance, I loved 2 hours and 15 minutes and then only liked the end, but didn't love it. But I went back and watched it again (starting when Jack enters the church), and I don't think it could have ended any better.

I'm going to miss Lost, but I'm glad that it went out on its own terms. Not many shows get to do that. The creators got to share their vision for the show from beginning to end, and it was a heck of a ride. Sure there are some questions left unanswered and still some mysteries out there, but does it really matter? The island is a mysterious place, who wants to know everything about it and ruin our chance to speculate?

The Ending
The thing that most everyone will focus on is how it ended. The first 2 hours and 15 minutes built up to that church scene. Jack was clueless up until the end, sort of like the audience. I'll admit that while it was happening, I wasn't even sure what was happening. I started to worry that the end would be too vague, and we'd have no clue what just took place.

A lot of people are jumping on the "It was purgatory all along" bandwagon, but it was so much more than purgatory. Sure if you want to label it, purgatory is an easy classification, but I thought Michael's explanation for the whispers was a better justification of the purgatory theory than the sideways world was.

Lost is and always has been Jack's story. It began with Jack's eye opening in the "Pilot" and ended with his eye closing. Many had guessed that the final scene would be Jack's eye closing (even me) and when you think about it, that's the only real scene that it could be.

For years the show's creators have hinted at knowing the final scene of Lost, and fans have had a field day speculating what it would be, but as with most things Lost, fans over analyzed it to the max. Turned out it was the most simple, most logical final scene the show could have used. They even went further by having Vincent there to bring everything full circle from the "Pilot," as much of "The End" mirrored season 1.

In the sideways world, I like how the characters got enlightened at different points. I liked how some toyed with those not enlightened yet. It was like a big inside joke that they wanted each other to be in on, but each had to find out in their own way. I like how satisfied they were once they became enlightened. No one freaked out about being dead. They were happier than we've ever seen them on the show and they all created this together for each other, which is hard to understand. Us as Lost fans want to see everything happen on screen. How did they create this place for each other so they would all be together one last time before they moved on? Really, it doesn't matter. This place was created, and they were all able to share a happy moment together before moving on.

I thought that they'd be moving on back to the island. It just seemed that they were going somewhere, and the way every said I'll see you there, I thought there would be the island. It wasn't. It was the special place they created for themselves to meet up. Christian Sheppard (enjoyed Kate questioning and laughing at that name) set the record straight and helped Jack to realize what was going on (even when Christian opened the church doors, I thought outside would be the island instead of light).

The entire scene with his father was awesome. Of course the coffin would be empty. Its been empty for as long as we've known these characters (since they crashed). Ever since "White Rabbit," we've waited for Jack and Christian to have this kind of talk, and it was well worth the wait.

Other Tidbits:
Two Star Wars references in the first 10 minutes. What more could you ask for?

I was surprised that Smokey was disposed of so early in the finale, but that let the ending be more about the main characters. Once he became "mortal" was he even a threat anymore anyway? Why did he want to leave so badly? What would have really happened to the world if he did leave? As much as season 6 played up his desires, all we have is Jacob's word to go by as to what would happen if he got his wish.

I'm still not clear on why the island was at the bottom of the ocean in the sideways world. Is the island dead too? Was this just a red herring for us to think MIB had succeeded? Or was this part of the plan that they put together?

Jack's "mystery" wounds turned out to both be courtesy of MIB. His ever bleeding neck wound was from the tip of his knife and what Jack's mom had told him was an appendix scar turned out to be a stab wound.

I was surprised that Hurley took over for Jack. Many people were speculating that would happen based on Hurley's comment last week about at least it doesn't have to be him. I figured Jack's tenure would be a short one, but I guess I thought that he would be the last island protector. I'd love to see more of Hurley with his #2 Ben running the island and bringing people there.

Did Hurley get Desmond off the island and back home (remember the sailboat is still at Hydra Island)? That was the first order of business for the Reyes/Linus run of the island. I wonder what Hurley's "rules" for the island would be? Ben was catching onto the island's game and realized that just because Jacob ran things one way (with it almost impossible to leave the island), that didn't mean that was the only way to run things.

When Jack turned the island over to Hurley, he didn't do any special chants. He just had him drink and said now you're like me. I guess the leader does things his own way or maybe the ceremony doesn't matter as much as the next person's belief in being the leader.

Where exactly did Frank land Flight 316 and how do they explain where they've been? I know its not important to the series, but still an interesting question. Also, how much C-4 was wired on the plane? Surely Widmore wired it with more than just the one stack that MIB used to make his bomb in "The Candidate"?

I loved everyone's reaction to when they became enlightened. As tough as it had been to watch the sideways world all season, once they became enlightened they became the Lost characters that we've known and loved all these years.

I found the group inside the church somewhat disappointing. I expected more characters or for the church to be full of everyone who was involved in Jack's life. I know this isn't possible with the large cast, but it would have been cool to see everyone. I guess not everyone was "in" on the meet up in the afterlife or not everyone was eligible.

I'm glad that Christian confirmed that it was all real. If they would have alluded to the island time line have never happened or that the sideways world would be the ending time line (as many fans were upset about all year), I wouldn't have been happy. I also liked his explanation on the "now." It had a Doctor Who timey-wimey feel to it. I like that they didn't all die at once (some may have died 50 years after Jack), but they all were there together. It did have a Titanic feel to it though. What if Kate got off the island and live a happy life with someone else (like Rose in Titanic), but when she died, instead of spending eternity with her new husband and family, she went back with Jack.

I loved the Claire/Charlie enlightenment scene the best. Sure, I might have teared up a bit for that one. Surprisingly, I didn't at the end. That was the most emotionally touching of the night for me.

At what point did Rose and Bernard become enlightened? Seemed like they were in on it from the beginning of the sideways story on Flight 815. Throughout the sideways they played a part similar to Desmond in helping people along.

When and how did Boone become enlightened? I also find it a little odd that Shannon was the one who jarred Sayid as his true love, but it fit the story. It was just a bit off since he only knew her for such a short time, where he loved Nadia his whole life.

Ben didn't go into the church because he's not ready to move on. Now that he's enlightened, he wants to spend more time with Alex and her mother, Rousseau. Who would have thought that Ben would have made it to the end of Lost? I figured he'd see his demise sooner rather than later, but it was good to see him make it until the end.

What does it mean to not be ready yet? And what will happen to the characters who aren't ready or choose to stay in the in-between, specifically a character like Eloise Widmore? She seems to be fully aware of what's going on but isn't moving on.

When they first showed Jack outside the cave after we all thought he was a goner down there, I thought he was the next smoke monster. I'm glad they didn't go that route.

What are we to think of the changes in people's lives before they got enlightened now? Things like Jack having a son, being divorced from Juliette, Sawyer as a cop, Locke being paralyzed in a plane crash, Sun and Jin not married, etc.? Were these just things to keep them in the in-between or obstacles for them to overcome to enlightenment? What happens to David since he didn't exist in the real time line? Or did he? Was he someone else in the other time line?

What is up with the writers infatuation with drains? First Ben uses a dirty drain to summon Smokey, then the heart of the island is just a drain, and Desmond pulls the plug? That whole heart of the island cave is tough to comprehend, but this is Lost, so just go with it.

With all the earthquakes after the plug was pulled, I was thinking that we'd finally get to see the island volcano. Some of those scenes were a little too obvious that the actors were reacting to the camera shaking. Its tough to pull off real feeling tremors, but they showed these so much, they started feeling a little "B" movie-like. The foam boulders were a little unrealistic too.

Everyone was wrong about what would happen with the heart of the island. Locke thought the island would be destroyed (and it looked that that was going to happen if Jack didn't plug it up), but it made him mortal. Jack was wrong, but it allowed him (with Kate's help) to kill MIB. And Desmond was wrong because he thought he would leave the island and be with Penny in the sideways world. He had knowledge of the other time line, but did he realize everyone was dead over there?

The sideways had nothing to do with MIB winning the war or destroying the island. It didn't have anything to do with Jughead either, so I guess we got the definitive answer on Jughead not working. But why did Juliette say it did work? She clearly see the in-between world?

I'm curious to see how the finale holds up on subsequent viewings. There was so much tension and excitement built up leading to the ultimate end, but now that we've seen that ending, will we view the 2 1/2 hours differently?

There are tons more to discuss, but the good and bad news is, we now have nothing but time to discuss them. There's no more Lost. It's time to move on and let go.

Other Recaps and Analysis:

• Lostpedia "The End"
• Doc Jensen's Instant Reaction; Doc Jensen's full recap, Part 2
  
• Zap2It Guide to Lost
  
• LongLiveLocke
• The Watcher; Further Thoughts
  
• Washington Post Dueling Analysis
• What's Alan Watching?
• Nik at Nite
• JOpinionated's Final Analysis
  
• Things I Noticed by vozzek; Afterthoughts
  
• Geronimo Jack's Beard
  

Saints Sign LB Clint Ingram

With a move to shore up their linebacking corps, the Saints have signed former Jacksonville Jaguar Clint Ingram. Ingram will help fill the void left by former Saint LB Scott Fujita.

With the Saints not selecting a LB in this year's draft, many fans were worried about the position. But the team looked to be content with their group of young linebackers like Jonathan Casillas, Jo-Lonn Dunbar and Anthony Waters but with Gregg Williams' familiarity with Ingram, the team decided to bring him into the mix as well. It should be an interesting battle in training camp, as the Saints have a lot of young linebackers on the team and they won't be able to keep them all.

What They Died For

Episodes before season finales typically don't disappoint. They are action packed and set everything up for the finale itself. From "Born to Run" in season 1 to "Follow the Leader" last year, these episodes prep the audience for what's to come. Perhaps the best episode before the finale was "Greatest Hits" in season 3, but "What They Died For" has certainly moved into contention.

After the subpar and perhaps poorly timed "Across the Sea," "What They Died For" returned us to the story that's important, and the one that will get resolved on Sunday (Yes, the series finale is Sunday night, not next Tuesday). Team Darlton have always said that this is a character show, even though it includes juicy mysteries, so look for the finale to provide resolution on our characters, not necessarily on the island's many remaining mysteries.

Flash Sideways Story
We still aren't clear on how the flash sideways time line will get resolved or how/if it will converge with the island story, but it certainly has gotten more interesting in recent weeks, all thanks to one Desmond Hume. Desmond somehow has knowledge of both time lines and is working his magic to have the Losties gain that knowledge as well.

After Jack wakes up and notices his neck is bleeding (just like it was on Flight 815), he receives a phone call from "Oceanic Airlines" while he's eating breakfast with his son and Claire (I'd almost forgot that Claire had come to stay with him. I was like, who else is there?). "Oceanic" tells Jack that they've located his father's coffin, but its really Desmond calling. How does Desmond even know that the coffin is missing? Is this some part of the knowledge he has about the island? Is he aware of future events in both time lines, and why even is he calling to tell this to Jack? Is this part of Jack becoming enlightened?

Jack is pleased to hear that they've located the coffin, and he finally sees closure coming with his father. Its clear that his relationship with David has grown over the past few days, and David reminds him of the concert tonight. David's mom (Juliette? Sarah, aka Claire Dunphey on Modern Family? Someone else?) will be there and he asks Jack not to act weird around her. Later, we learn that this concert may be more important.

Next, we see Locke back at school, but who's there to perhaps run him down again? The one and only Desmond Hume. Good thing Dr. Benjamin Linus spots Desmond and attempts to hilariously make a citizens' arrest. Desmond says he's not there to hurt Locke but to help him let go. Does he mean let go of the guilt over his father and let Jack do the surgery (probably the best guess, and likely what leads to Locke being enlightened) or maybe let go of this fake life and remember his island life (but he's dead in that story). Ben wants to know who Desmond is, so Desmond shows him by doing what most people do to Ben Linus, beating him to a pulp. During the beat down, Ben see flashes of Desmond punching him in the other time line.

Locke meets up with Ben in the nurses office, and Ben passes along what Desmond told him, which leads to Locke visiting Dr. Jack Sheppard's office. Locke thinks this is all happening for a reason (typical Locke speak there). He points out everything that happened recently, and Jack tells him not to mistake coincidence with fate, sounding very Eko like. Locke just wants to get out of that chair, so it looks like the surgery will happen soon. Man, Jack's going to be a busy man in the finale. He's got a concert to attend and now a long surgery with Mr. Locke.

In another part of the city, Desmond is working his magic with some more of the Losties, mainly Sayid and Kate. He turns himself in for his hit and run with Locke and gets thrown in the pen by Sawyer. He didn't really do much to jar Sawyer's memories, but he was acting so oddly with Kate and Sayid, they thought he was insane. Perhaps, Kate was the one who was jarring Sawyer's memory because he seemed to consider letting her go, but alas, he didn't and sent them all away to county.

But Desmond has a plan and after getting Kate and Sayid to promise they'll help him, the plan comes into action. The driver stops the paddy wagon, and it turns out to be Ana Lucia, who's getting paid off to let them go by Hurley. Hurley instantly recognizes her, but she doesn't know him. Desmond says that she isn't ready yet (just like Hawking, aka Mrs. Widmore, told Desmond in "Happily Ever After"). How does Desmond know who's ready and who's not and what does being ready actually even mean, especially with Ana Lucia being dead on the other side?

Sayid leaves with Hurley, and Desmond brings Kate with him. He has a little black dress for her, and they're going to a concert ... the same concert that Jack will be at that evening? Remember back in "LA_X" and "What Kate Does" when Kate and Jack shared knowing stares on the plane and outside the airport? Desmond must know that Kate is the key to getting Jack to remember the other side. So far, building a relationship with his son, meeting his sister Claire and the many encounters with John Locke haven't jarred loose the memory of the island, but perhaps another run in with Kate will do the trick.

With Hurley immediately recognizing Ana Lucia, I wonder how much of their island memory is downloaded and how quickly? Did Hurley immediately get all his past memories when he and Libby kissed (if so, then he must realize that Libby died in the other time line) or does he only get select memories? This also becomes relevant with the turn that Dr. Linus' life took in this episode.

Alex invited him over for dinner, and it seems a love connection might be brewing with Ben and Alex's mom, still Danielle Rousseau. If Ben is gaining his island memories back, then he knows why he has such a strong connection to Alex, but he'll also know what he did to Rousseau by stealing baby Alex from her.

We Are Very Close to the End
After we pick up where "The Candidate" left off, the Losties that are left (Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Hurley) make for the well where Desmond is being kept. On their way though, they are intercepted by Jacob. Actually, boy Jacob (the same mystery boy who's been tormenting Fake Locke) stops Hurley and wants the ashes Hurley took from Ilana's things. Hurley chases after the boy and finds Jacob sitting by a fire. Jacob says his ashes are in the fire and that when it burns out, Hurley won't be able to see him again. So is this how the dead are freed on the island, do their ashes need to burn out? Or is that just the case with Jacob? Jacob tells Hurley to get his friends because they're very close to the end. Yep, only 2 1/2 hours left. The candidate needs to be chosen soon. Speaking of...

The Lowdown on Being a Candidate
Once day turns into night (a common occurrence this season), Hurley returns to Jacob with Sawyer, Kate and Jack. We finally get a scene that fans have been waiting for. Our main Losties get to speak with Jacob, and it was awesome.

Hurley is surprised that they can all see Jacob. Kate immediately confronts him about the names on the wall, the names of his potential candidates. Seems like we get confirmation that Jacob wrote the names in the cave (some had speculated that the cave was Man in Black's, while the lighthouse was Jacob's). Kate wants to be sure that Sayid, Sun and Jin (so is it also confirmed that both Kwons were candidates?), didn't die for nothing. Jacob apologizes for their deaths and offers to explain everything -- what they died for, why he chose them all and everything they need to know about protecting the island. But he also lets them know that once the fire burns out, the job belongs to one of them.

Jacob tells them about his mistake, creating the smoke monster. He says that his mistake could result in them and everyone they care about dieing. He tells them about the monster figuring out a way to kill him and that when that happened he needed a replacement. Sawyer confronts him about why he has to be punished for his mistake. And Jacob nails them with the truth. He chose them because they were flawed (Didn't Mikhail tell them they weren't on Jacob's list because they were flawed? I guess The Others had is backwards). He tells them they needed the island as much as it needed them. And there you have it folks, that's how/why the candidates were chosen. They were all alone, looking for something they couldn't find in the real world, so Jacob chose them for a fresh start on the island.

Kate keeps the questions coming (finally the Losties have someone who can provide them answers, and they actually ask him questions). Kate asks him why her name was crossed off (no mention of the #51 though). Jacob says she's crossed off because she became a mother, but in a clear shout out to Lost fans who over analyze everything, Jacob tells her that it's just a line of chalk in a cave, and the job's hers if she wants it. Classic. Reminds me of when team Darlton had to come out and say that sometimes a bracelet is just a bracelet in regards to the fuss that fans made over Naomi's bracelet engraving (being a similar engraving to the one that Elsa had in "The Economist").

Jack Takes Jacob's Place
Jack continues the questioning and wants to know what the job is that Jacob is asking them to do. Jacob tells them all about the light at the center of the island and that they have to protect it from him, do what Jacob couldn't. Jack figures out right away that Jacob wants them to kill Smokey, but he isn't sure if its even possible.

Jacob gives them a choice on who should take his place. He's always been a man of free will, especially since he didn't have a choice. Jack steps up and accepts the position. He says its why he's there, it's what he's supposed to do. Ever since Jack went back on Flight 316, he's been trying to figure out his purpose. He thought it was detonating Jughead, but it's really this, it's really taking Jacob's place.

Jacob brings him for his "initiation." He tells him where the heart of the island is and says that's where Smokey is trying to go. Jack says there's nothing out there, and Jacob tells him now he'll be able to get there. Jacob chants over the water and takes Jack's cup. Once Jack drinks, they are the same, just like when Mother did the ritual with Jacob in "Across the Sea." Jack wants to know how long he'll have to do the job, and Jacob says as long as you can. You're loooking at 2,000 years Mr. Sheppard. You up for it?

Lots of stuff to take away from this scene. So Smokey has been saying he wants to go home and wants to get off the island, but does he really just want to go back to the source, back to the heart of the island? Only the candidates can see the source's location, so once all the candidates are dead, Smokey would be able to find its location. Also, I guess the wine wasn't the important part from Mother's ritual. It didn't matter what liquid they drank. Its the chant that seals the deal. Now I guess the only issue is, how do you kill a smoke monster?

Bad Bad Benry Brown
The other part of the island story finally picked up with Ben, Richard and Miles going back to DHARMAville. Man, it sure did take them a long time to get there. After they passed over Alex's grave (thanks to Miles freaking out about it, and Richard noting that he buried her after Ben left), they make it to Ben's house.

After getting the C-4, they catch Zoe in the house, then Widmore comes in. Finally, we get resolution to the Ben/Widmore conflict. First being reminded of Alex, then seeing Widmore sends Ben back to his old self. His redemption seems to be all for naught.

Once they learn that Locke is on his way, Zoe and Widmore hide in the closet, while Miles runs for it. Ben and Richard go outside to meet the monster. Richard gets impaled by Smokey (Is he dead? Surely the show could confirm if Smokey killed Richard), and Ben just sits patiently on the porch. Locke makes the same offer to Ben as before, that once he leaves, Ben can have the island to himself. Ben rats out where Widmore is hiding and looks to have rejoined the darkside.

Inside the closet, fans got a few things they've been wishing for. First, Locke kills the pointless Zoe and then we get Locke and Widmore's conversation, one free of pylon fences. Locke gets what he wants by telling Charles he'll kill his daughter. Just as Charles is telling Smokey everything, Ben shoots him and says he doesn't get to save his daughter. Ben then asks about the other people that need to be killed.

WOW! Old Ben is back and better than ever. I guess Charles Widmore brings out the worst in Ben. But could all that redemption stuff with him really have been for nothing, or is Ben playing Smokey? Will Ben help the monster to kill the remaining Candidates? What does that mean for Sawyer, Kate and Hurley, since Jack has now taken Jacob's place? Can Smokey kill them, or will Jack be able to make the rules now?

Empty Well
Locke and Ben find the well that Desmond was trapped in (looked deeper this week and was filled with water) but someone has let him out. There's a rope hanging over the side of the well where he climbed out. Who could have let him out? Sayid told Jack he left Desmond in there. Is there anyone else on the island who could have saved him? Cindy and the kids perhaps?

Locke then reveals what Widmore told him, what's Desmond's purpose for being back on the island. Turns out he was a fail safe, Jacob's last resort (parallels to the Swan Hatch fail safe key and donkey wheel. Desmond called the key a measure of last resort, and Ben said the same about turning the Frozen Donkey Wheel). Desmond was the last resort if all the candidates were killed. Since he can withstand electromagnetism, Desmond would be able to withstand going into the heart of the island, I guess. What he would there, I'm not sure, but Locke seems to think he can help him destroy the island.

This is a contradiction from what I mentioned before. My thinking was the Smokey wanted to go home, wanted to go back to the source. But now he wants to destroy the island. Hmm. What does this mean for his promise that Ben can rule the island once he leaves. Many people are speculating what's going to happen at the end of Lost. Since Jacob now has a replacement in Jack, is Man in Black planning his own replacement in the form of Ben? This leave numerous possibilities for the finale. Will the island be destroyed? Can Smokey be killed? Will Smokey get to leave? Will he finally find the source? What are Ben's true motivations now? How does all this tie together? Good thing we'll get a resolution in only a few short days!

Other Tidbits:
Besides Jack noticing in neck wound, Ben also got a mirror shot this week, when he looked at himself in the mirror in the nurses office.

In the sideways time line, when is Desmond going to have time to take Penny on their date or has that already happened?

Widmore admits that he wired the plane with explosives. How did Smokey know about the explosives though? He grabbed the watch before he boarded the plane and went right to the C-4. I guess he had visited it already.

Are we to believe Widmore? Did Jacob really come to see him?

Danielle tells Ben that he's coming over for dinner, even if they have to kidnap him. Interesting choice of words since Ben kidnapped baby Alex on the island.

When Jack drank the water, Jacob said now we are the same (same thing Mother told him in "Across the Sea"). I wonder if Jack had an immediate download of the island backstory and mysteries. Does he immediately become enlightened or will it take him 2,000 years to figure everything out?

Ben said realizes that he thought he was summoning the monster, but the monster was really summoning him. Well, why is Ben back on its side then?

Where's Miles going? Did he stumble upon Desmond and let him out?

Other Recaps and Analysis of "What they Died For:"

• Lostpedia "What They Died For"
• Doc Jensen's Instant Reaction; Doc Jensen's Full Recap
• Zap2It Guide to Lost
• Washington Post Dueling Analysis
• What's Alan Watching
• JOpinionated's initial thoughts & theories
• The Watcher
• Nik at Nite
• Things I Noticed by vozzek
• LongLiveLocke Recap
• Geronimo Jack's Beard

Next on Lost: "The End" (Don't forget it airs Sunday, not Tuesday!)

To get ready for the finale, watch the Lost cast say goodbye (don't tear up, its just a TV show):


*Photos from Lost-Media.com

Hornets to pick 11th

The Hornets had a slim chance (0.8 percent) of landing the #1 pick in the NBA Draft Lottery last night, but the ping-pong balls didn't bounce their way and the team will instead pick at #11. So who might the team target at that spot? Here's a look at a few early mock drafts:

• HoopsHype: Patrick Patterson, PF, Kentucky
• Walter Football: Cole Aldrich, C, Kansas
• NBA Draft Room: Ed Davis, PF, UNC
• Draft Express: Patrick Patterson, PF, Kentucky
• Draftology: Ekpe Udoh, PF, Baylor
• NBADraft.net: Donatas Motiejunas, PF, Lituania
• Draft Tek: Jan Vesely, SF, Partizan Belgrade
• MyNBADraft.com: Patrick Patterson, PF, Kentucky
• SpoonHoops.com: Patrick Patterson, PF, Kentucky
• Football Fan Spot: Devin Ebanks, SF, W. Virginia
• SI.com: Cole Aldrich, C, Kansas

One less thing to watch after Lost

Sure, it hasn't been a great show, but I was hoping it would improve after its first season, but Flashforward won't get a chance. It has been canceled by ABC. I'm losing two of my shows now with Lost finishing up. Hopefully, Heroes gets canceled too so I don't feel like I need to keep watching it to see if they can recapture their early season 1 magic.

Across the Sea

Sometimes knowing the answer isn't as exciting as speculating the hundreds of possibilities. That's the lesson from "Across the Sea." Sure some answers were satisfying and island history always rocks, but Damon Lindelof has repeatedly used the Star Wars midiclorian example as caution for fans wanting too much information and getting it. Well, Mr. Lindelof, I think Lost just had its midiclorian moment with the cave light/the heart of the island.

On the surface this episode provided a lot of information, but after thinking about it more, it also brings up a ton more questions. When it ended, I was ready for "Across the Sea Part 2 - Electric Boogaloo," but with only two episodes left, we know we aren't getting that. "Across the Sea" may be looked at differently once it can be viewed in the context of the finished series, but it left me asking for and wanting more.

Mother mother
The episode opened with a pregnant woman being washed ashore after a shipwreck. Another woman soon finds her and takes care of her. We learn that the pregnant woman is named Claudia and turns out she's Jacob's mom ... and Man in Black's too. It's twins, but she only picked out one name. How convenient. The other woman, who we only know as Mother for the rest of the episode, is pleased to see the baby boys but soon disposes of their real mother. Wow!

So we get confirmation that Jacob and Man in Black are brothers, but there's more to the Man in Black's tale to come. Mother is looking for her replacement and needs someone pure and uncorrupted to take over for her, which is why she goes for the babies. By killing their real mother right after their birth, Mother is the only influence they'll ever have, and she can mold them to be her replacement. My thinking is that Mother caused the shipwreck and brought the people to the island (this probably isn't the first time she's done so), specifically because Claudia was on board.

Young Jacob and Young Man in Black
The next part of the episode showed the boys at around 13 years old. Man in Black found a game on the beach, and it turns out Mother left it for him. She thinks he's special, and it becomes clear that he's her choice to eventually take over her role. She tells him he's different than Jacob and that Jacob could never tell a lie. Another interesting point is that Mother has planted in the twins' heads that the island is all that exists. She tells them that there's nothing else out there, nothing "across the sea."

Man in Black is oblivious to a lot of things, including death. When she brings up that her mother is dead, he asks what's that? Later, we learn that he doesn't know what a ship is either. It seems that like the show Lost itself, Mother is only telling them the things she wants them to know about. I wonder how long she's been on the island and what her origins really are. She said that she came from her mother. Was she born on the island as well or brought there for the purpose of protecting it?

Here for a Reason
After the boys encounter other survivors of the shipwreck (The Others?), Mother confesses that she knew about the other people, but that they are different than them. She tells the twins that they are there for a reason and proceeds to show them that reason.

On the way, she explains why other people are dangerous, and it sounds familiar: they come, they fight, they destroy, they corrupt and it always ends the same. This is the same thing Man in Black told Jacob in the beginning of "The Incident." Mother also starts to lay out the rules that we've come to know. She made it so that Jacob and Man in Black can't hurt each other. No further explanation is given as to how she granted this or what this means exactly. As we see later, Jacob is able to hurt Man in Black, so is it more of a subconscious thing? If they think they can't kill each other, than they can't?

She then brings them to see the briefcase from Pulp Fiction, I mean, she brings them to a cave with a bright, golden light coming from it. Clearly, Man in Black is mesmerized by the light. She says that this is the reason they are on the island, to protect this light, which she later calls the heart of the island (I got a Dr. Who TARDIS vibe when she said that).

A little bit of the light is inside every man, but they always want more. The light is ... cheesy. I didn't love this scene, and it was so vague yet told way too much at the same time. So is this the one thing that will explain everything about the island (electromagnetic properties? island moving through time and space? healing properties? etc.)? How did mother learn about the source and why is it so hard to find? Like I said earlier, way more questions.

I See Dead People
While Man in Black and Jacob are playing the game, their real mother Claudia appears to them. Only Man in Black can see her, and she's says that's because she's dead. So Jacob can't see dead people, only Man in Black can? What does that say for Hurley who can also see dead people?

Claudia brings him to the campsite that the other people on the island have set up, and she explains to him what Mother did. Man in Black wakes up Jacob and plans to leave. He tells Jacob everything but Jacob gets mad and starts to beat him up. Mother show up and stops them. With Jacob being the supposed good one, how/why can he beat up his brother, especially since Mother said they couldn't hurt each other?

Man in Black is leaving, but Jacob won't go. Man in Black wants to leave the island and go home, but Mother says that he'll never be able to leave. He vows to find a way. Why can't he leave? Is Mother preventing him from being able to leave or is it just the simple issue of only being able to leave if you take the correct bearing?

Jacob and Mother talk on the beach, and she confesses to what she did to their real mother. Jacob realizes that she loves Man in Black more, but he stays with her anyway. This episode went a long way in painting Man in Black in a more sympathetic light, but it diminished Jacob quit a bit. Jacob was the #1 powerful being on the island for all these years. There was so much mystery behind him and even after we learned more about him, he was still this mysterious island ruler. But now, he's second choice, clueless to what's going on, clueless to everything about the island and instead of rocking the apple cart, he stays by his fake Mother. It also blurred the line of good and evil even more with Man in Black and Jacob.

Man in Black's Plan to Leave
Jacob kept in touch with his brother after he left. Jacob would often go to watch Man in Black work with the other villagers. Turns out they were digging wells (Just as Fake Locke told Desmond in "Everybody Loves Hugo") and had found something. There are places on the island where metal acts funny. He thinks this will be a way off the island. Once again, Jacob doesn't want to leave with him.

After Jacob the snitch told Mother that Man in Black found a way to leave, Mother pays a visit to him in the well. Man in Black had been searching the the light cave (remember how mesmerized he was by it?), but hasn't been able to find it. So he came up with another plan and figured he can find the source another way, so they dug all the wells. His plan includes the donkey wheel (not sure how the execution will work in getting him off the island ... something about the wheel and water and harnessing the light. I thought building a boat might work better). Mother puts a stop to his plan by smashing his head into the wall.

So what does Man in Black know about the light? Have other dead people from the island's past talked to him and explained it better than Mother had? What were the other villages planning to do with the light?

The Replacement
Mother brings Jacob back to the cave and tells him that he's going to be the one to protect it. She tells him that inside is life, death, rebirth. It's the source, the heart of the island. She tells him going down there would lead to something worse than death. Does she know about the Smoke Monster (more on this in a minute) and it being unleashed if someone goes down there? Was that really what she was protecting (keeping the monster trapped)?

Jacob knows that Man in Black was her first choice for the job of protector, but Mother tries to convince him that he's always been the right choice. Jacob is reluctant and doesn't care to be the protector. This is way different that I envisioned. I always thought Jacob was chosen for a reason, but he's second choice and got the gig by default. He didn't even want the job, but he would do whatever his "mother" told him to do.

She has a bottle of wine (the same bottle Jacob shows Richard when explaining the island to him) and for Jacob to accept the position, he must drink from the cup. When he drinks he becomes just like Mother. I took this to mean that before he drank, he was mortal ... just a regular guy. Once he drank, he became ageless and gained powers.

Lots of questions remain from this scene. Jacob got no explanation about what he needed to do to protect the island or to find a successor. How does he find out about his powers and what gave him those powers? How does he find out about everything on the island like the lighthouse, the Temple, the healing pool, or how to bring people to the island?

I guess he has a lot of time to figure things out on his own, but that's some major stuff to figure out. Stuff like figuring out your immortal, you don't age and how to find a successor. As we know, Jacob left the island and touched the candidates, but in this episode, he says he never wants to leave, and Mother makes it sound like they can't leave anyway. When and how did Jacob learn that he can leave the island? When did he start looking for candidates?

Adam and Eve
Man in Black wakes up and sees that the well has been covered up and the village destroyed. He knows exactly who's responsible and heads for the caves. Mother arrives back at the caves first and finds things scattered about the caves, including Man in Black's game. As soon as she opened it and pulled out the black and white stones, I knew where this was headed.

Man in Black stabs her in the back without letting her speak a word (the dagger he used is the same one that he offered to Richard in "Ab Aeterno" and the same one that Dogen gave to Sayid to kill Smokey). Was not letting her speak the key? As she's dying he ask why she wouldn't let him leave and she says because I love you and thanks him for killing her. Did she know something would happen to him if he left or did she know what was going to happen to him now? Or was she just being selfish and didn't want him to leave?

We may never know because Jacob finds him with blood on his hands (remember the first appearance of the mystery boy in "The Substitute" with blood on his hands? Was that in reference to this moment?). Jacob again attacks his brother, even though they can't hurt each other according to Mother and brings him to the light cave. He can't kill him but throws him down on a rock, knocking him unconscious and sends him into the light cave.

After a brief moment, we hear the familiar clicking noises, and the Smoke Monster roars from the cave. The light appears to have gone out as well. More on Smokey in a bit, but Jacob leaves and finds his brother's body. He brings him back to the caves, and we get the scene that alienated two groups of Lost fans. Hard core Lost fans were upset to have the "House of the Rising Sun" season 1 flashback intertwined with scenes of Jacob laying his mother and brother to rest. Casual Lost fans needed the flashbacks to remind them about the Adam and Eve mystery. I didn't love having the flashback on first viewing, but after watching it again, feel that it works. At first I felt like we were being spoon fed an answer. Now, I can live with it.

The bigger challenge is forgetting that in season 1 the two skeletons weren't side by side. This is the mystery that Darlton have long said will prove that they had a plan all along and weren't making it up as they went, but to have a major plot hole and retrofit that the skeletons were side-by-side hurts their case. See the scene from season 1 below:



Jacob and the Smoke Monster
Now onto the best part of the night, the origin of Smokey. While it was cool to see more about Jacob and Man in Black, at this point in Lost's story, Smokey is the main player so seeing where he came from was cool, but left the most questions remaining.

The one thing that we can take away from this episode is that the Man in Black, aka Smoke Monster/Fake Locke, is not Jacob's brother. Jacob's brother was put to rest in the caves, much like real Locke was buried. The Smoke Monster only used Man in Black's form from this point onward. But as we have seen with Fake Locke, Smokey retained Man in Black's memories and goals. Man in Black wanted off the island and to go home, so that's Smokey's goal. But I wonder, does Smokey really want off the island to go home or does he want to be reunited with the light source?

Even though there's only two episodes left, I think we'll get a lot more to Jacob and Smokey's story. There's a big gap of information from when Jacob takes the role as protector and unleashes Smokey to when we next see them on the beach talking in "The Incident" or when Richard makes it onto the island in "Ab Aeterno."

I wonder how their "game" evolved and the rules set in place. Remember young Man in Black told young Jacob that one day he could make up a game and set the rules. Looks like Smokey is a part of that now. Jacob is trying to prove to Smokey that man is good, they can't kill each other (same rule that Mother set) without a loophole, Smokey can't leave the island as long as t here is a protector and they have a black and white inside joke. I wonder how all that was established.

I also think we'll see Smokey confront Jacob as his brother. How will Jacob react? He knows that his brother is dead, but he has to live with seeing this thing take his brother's form. Does Smokey flat out explain what he is to Jacob? I also find it odd that Jacob is the one who brings people to the island and Smokey kills them. With the way Mother operated, seems like it might be the opposite. Man in Black lived amongst the people even though they were corrupt. Mother had more of a Smoke Monster way of doing things than what we've seen from Jacob. I also think we need to learn more about the circle of ash and the cabin as they pertain to Smokey.

Lastly, I think we may also have gotten an answer to why the Others weren't able to have babies on the island. I believe its Smokey's way of limiting Jac ob's chances of finding a replacement. Mother found her replacement by taking the twins and raising them on her own so they wouldn't be corrupted. If Jacob can't find someone pure (i.e. a baby) on the island, then Smokey believes that he won't be able to find a successor. Lucky for Jacob, he was able to find flawed individuals and bring them to the island to be redeemed as his candidates.

Other Tidbits:

Why did Mother start talking to Claudia in another language (Latin?) and then all of a sudden switch to English? The transition was weird and they never addressed it or asked if Claudia spoke English. She just started speaking in English.

Man in Black told Jacob that Mother was right about the other people on the island being bad. Is this the beginnings of their contest over man being good or not?

I'm guessing that the burning of Man in Black's village wasn't the first purge on the island. We know it wasn't the last.

Who finished the donkey wheel? Did Smokey go back and finish the job that original Man in Black started? Or did some future island inhabitants go down that same road, perhaps with Smokey's guidance?

It's a minor detail, but I did wonder when Jacob moved into the base of the statue. I wonder if the statue was even built at the time of this episode.

It's crazy that Mother and the twins lived in the caves and that's where Smokey, posed as Christian, led the Losties in season 1. I guess Jacob didn't stay there since that's where he lay his Mother and brother to rest.

Fake Locke told Kate that he had a crazy mother, but he meant Mother.

Now that we've seen Jacob as a kid, we can conclude that the mystery boy who's been taunting Fake Locke in a couple of earlier episodes is young Jacob, but as far as how and why, I'm not sure. I'm also not sure why he had brown hair the last time we saw him.

Other recaps and analysis of "Across the Sea":

• Lostpedia Across the Sea
• Doc Jensen's Instant Reaction; Doc Jensen's Recap
• LongLiveLocke Recap
• Zap2It Guide to Lost
• Washington Post Dueling Analysis
• Nik at Nite
• The Watcher
• JOpinionated Initial Thoughts & Theories
• What's Alan Watching
• Things I Noticed by vozzek
• Geronimo Jack's Beard
  

Next on Lost: "What They Died For"

*Photos from Lost-Media.com