There's a cynical way to look at the big fat answer we got in the middle of this episode-- The Island is basically Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, and Jacob handed out a bunch of golden tickets to a bunch of people, and Jack is the winner. But come on, we've come too far for that. Jacob's explanation to the last remaining 815 survivors was touching and appropriate, as was just about everything in this lightning-fast, race-to-the-finish-episode. A lot of the best moments hit emotional notes at a pace I wish had been around all season, like Ben's brief flashback to Alex's death, or Richard's decision to sacrifice himself to the monster. A lot of the other best moments slowed things down and gave us room to breathe, like Locke and Jack's conversation in Jack's office, or Ben's slow decision to betray Widmore. Really, this is all just a way of saying it was great. And boy, what a load of questions we got answered!
Note: this is by no means my last word on Lost before this Sunday's finale. Consider this the initial reactions leading into a lot of conversations about how it all ties together and what to expect from Lost's final hours.
Questions Answered
Why did Jacob touch everyone as children and bring them to the island? The show has been dancing around this answer ever since we were introduced to the concept of candidates, but now it's spelled out-- he picked them to replace him as caretakers of the island, guardians of that glowing gold light we were introduced to last week. He picked everyone because "you were like me. You were all alone. You were all looking for something that you couldn't find out there. I chose you because you needed this place as much as I needed you." Pardon me while the combination of earnest Mark Pellegrino and Michael Giacchino's eternally great score makes me a little verklempt.
Why was Kate's name crossed out in the cave? Because she became a mother. Even Jacob, child of one of the craziest mothers in TV history, recognized that motherhood is a more powerful impulse than protecting some island. Still, Kate has a choice-- "It's just a line of chalk in a cave. The job is yours if you want it Kate." There is fate, but there is also free will. Man I love this show.
Who will be Jacob's replacement? Another answer we've already known for a while now, but the confirmation is sweet-- it's Jack. Jack, the doubting hero transformed into the island's faithful servant, volunteers for the job, sparing Kate, Sawyer and Hurley what he must recognize as a lonely future. He drinks from water that Jacob blessed in the same way Jacob's mother did, and as Jacob tells him at the end of the episode, "now you're like me."
Can the Smoke Monster be killed? This question didn't so much get answered as marked in the "permanently unknowable" slot-- even Jacob doesn't know. But he sure wants the remaining Losties to give it a shot.
Is Rousseau going to show up in the alternate timeline as Alex's mother? Yes! It's remarkable, looking back, that they fit this tender scene into such a jam-packed episode, but Danielle and Alex invite Dr. Linus home for dinner, and Rousseau tells Ben that he's the closest thing Alex has ever had to a dad, which causes Ben to well up. All this comes after Ben flashes back to island life-- or at least the island timeline-- when Desmond beats the hell out of him. You can bet his connection to Alex is going to be yet another thread that helps him pull the whole thing together.
How exactly does Desmond plan to get all these guys together in the alternate universe with just one episode left? Simple-- he's taking 'em all to a show! With the creepy clairvoyant powers he's been showing off lately, Desmond gets himself thrown in the slammer simply so he can get Kate and Sayid in on the scheme, enlists Hurley to help him out-- along with an easily bribed, and wonderful to see Ana Lucia-- and hands Kate a dress so she can join him at a concert. Likely the same concert at his father's museum that Miles was telling Sawyer about. And the same one where Jack's son will be performing. I'm rooting for a scene like the one in The Man Who Knew Too Much, where somehow a climactic cymbal crash is what sends them all flashing back.
Is Desmond still alive on the island? Yeah, of course he is. And someone-- maybe Sayid, maybe Claire, hell maybe Vincent-- threw down a rope so Desmond could get the hell out of that well and hopefully start executing his master plan.
Why did Widmore bring Desmond back to the island? It had to do with the electromagnetism, sure, but it had more to do with SmokeLocke-- the last thing Widmore does before he's shot by Ben (more on that later) is tell SmokeLocke that Desmond is the failsafe, the last thing standing between Smokey and his escape form the island, and also the only person capable of destroying the island. Whoah!
New Questions
How exactly is Desmond capable of blowing up the island? Desmond has more knowledge than any other character at this point, SmokeLocke included-- but how does SmokeLocke know that? Desmond is seemingly capable of handling anything the Island throws at him, but it's never been suggested that he has power over the Island itself. Maybe it'll all come down to pushing the button once again.
Really, where the hell is Desmond? Hopefully his escape has given him more time to figure shit out on the island and make SmokeLocke pay for, well, everything.
What's up with the spot of blood on Jack's neck? The wound Jack mysteriously wakes up with at the beginning of the episode seems to point to more interference between the two universes, a wound he got when the sub crashed that transfers over into the other world. What does this mean for what will happen to AU-Jack when Island-Jack goes all immortal Jacob style?
What is Ben after? Ben's betrayal of Widmore and Zoe, and his puppydogish following behind SmokeLocke for the rest of the episode, is the most puzzling late season development thus far. Ben's entire motivation ever since killing Jacob has been to stop Widmore, and when SmokeLocke provided him the chance, Ben went for it. But now what does he want? His mixed feelings about Jacob and his entire service to the island might suggest he's willing to follow SmokeLocke, especially since SmokeLocke promised Ben entire control of the island-- that is, right before he said he'd blow the thing up. But Ben's entire character arc has been one toward redemption, and it's hard to imagine that at this late hour, he'd switch back over to the dark side once and for all. Expect one more great heroic act out of this guy.
What is the true relationship between Ben and the Smoke Monster? It never would have occurred to me to bring back this question given all we know about the Smoke Monster now, except for Ben's mention back in his closet that it was the place where he could summon the Monster, "before I realized that it was the one summoning me." Pair that with Ben's current position as second-in-command to SmokeLocke, and you have to wonder... is the director Ben's been following all these years Smokey, not Jacob? It explains Jacob's antipathy toward Ben and Ben's efforts to kill off all the people who arrived at the island (a.k.a. Jacob's candidates). As SmokeLocke and Ben tramp off into the jungle together, I look forward to this among the many reveals to come.
Is Richard dead? When anyone else gets blasted into the air by the Smoke Monster, we call them a goner. But Richard is special. I'm not buying it until I see the corpse.
Is Locke really going to be fixed by Jack in the alternate universe? It doesn't really seem like we'll have the time, what with everyone converging on a concert that's apparently happening that night. It seems more like the thought that counts here-- though how awesome would it be to see a rehash of Jack's surgery on Ben's spine, with Locke, and with SmokeLocke somehow getting involved and...awesome!
Where We Go From Here
Bring back everyone we haven't gotten to yet in the alternate universe. Yes, I realize this is mostly a matter of casting and schedules, but if Boone, Shannon, Michael and especially Juliet (who is almost definitely Jack's wife) don't show up at the concert, the whole reunion will feel a little incomplete.
Let Jack's on-island sacrifice-- and everyone's on-island sacrifice--matter. It seems likely that Desmond's efforts in the alternate universe will act as another kind of failsafe for the island, helping repair some of the damage that's happened there lately, probably defeating the Smoke Monster once and for all. I'm totally excited to see how that works, but they'll have to be careful not to negate everything we've seen on the island these past six years. Charlie and Boone and Jin and Sun and everyone else still need to be dead; Jack still needs to be locked into his commitment to protect the island. We've believed Locke all these years when he's promised the Island mattered; now carry that home.
Be good to Locke. Really, be good to everyone. I've realized over and over in these past few weeks that Lost's ultimate goal for its characters has been for them to find redemption. With a few brutal exceptions, namely in the earlier seasons, every character has had a heroic death, or has seen the error of their ways or committed some great act. John Locke could still turn out to be the grand exception to the rule, a beloved character put through hell over and over again and deprived his chance for redemption by the selfish, terrified Ben and the diabolical Smoke Monster. Just as I don't want the alternate universe to negate everything we've seen on the island, I also want it to give Locke a shot at redemption-- and Ben, and Hurley, and everyone who's still troubled. Who says I can't have it both ways?
In the next few days I'll be coming up with lots more predictions about what's to come, ideas about which mysteries will be answered and which won't, and frantic hopes for the last two and a half hours of this remarkable, ridiculous show. In the comments let me know what your biggest burning questions are, and if you think you can see into Ben's complicated head, do let me know.
