Lost was back with bang, although it was only a 58 minute bang thanks to the Grey’s Anatomy overrun. The Shape of Things To Come was a perfectly titled episode as it setup the rest of season 4 leading up to the promised big game changer in the season finale.
Random Thoughts:
Time Travel Part I – Ben wakes up in Tunisia with a Parka on. Hmmmm. Have to think he knows where he is headed and that it’s warm there so my guess is the island time machine ( possibly in the Orchid Station) must have an area that is VERY cold. I’m guessing the time travel starting point must need cold weather to help facilitate the jump. Would make sense to use an animal that is accustomed to cold weather , the polar bear, as your test subject.
Time Travel Part II – I’ve got an idea of how you leave the island, but how do you get back? Can you even time travel back to the island and your starting point? Check out the photo above. Is this a weapon? Or perhaps a device to either locate or help you get back to the island. Hmmm Double hmmm
Time Travel Part III – Ben popped up in Tunisia with a cut on his arm. Did he get shot? Injured during the time travel or just before? It will be interesting to see how that plays out. For the ultra conspiracy theorists ponder this…
“He Changed The Rules” - Quite possibly the most important line in Lost to this point in the series. But what rules changed and how? Ben made this comment after Keamy killed Alex as it seemed Ben knew for certain his bluff would not get Alex killed. But it did? Let’s look at the possible rules I could come up with and how they could be changed.
1. You can’t kill family.
2. You can’t go back and change events that have already occurred – only attempt to change future events.
3. You can’t kill certain people ( possibly on a list)
My second “rule” follows the idea that both Ben and Widmore have seen the endgame and are at odds to continually “change” the future. This rule spins off the idea of what Ms. Hawking told Desmond. “ The universe has a way of "course correcting" and that death cannot be avoided. So if the rule is you can’t change the past then Widmore has gone and done just that ( Assuming as I stated that both Ben and Widmore know the endgame). If Ben has seen the endgame he knows when and where Alex was supposed to die and it was not now and not at the hands of Keamy.
The Doc Is Dead – Depending on “when” you are Doc Ray is either lying on the beach with his throat slit or alive back on the boat. 1 + 1 says in the past ( which seems to be the islands future) Doc Ray opposes the killing team leaving the freighter and becomes a casualty. Guessing our resident killing machine Keamy most likely did the throat cutting and tossed Doc Ray overboard. Worth noting though is the fact that the freighter is close enough to the island for Doc Ray to wash up on shore.
Sayid In Iraq – We now know Sayid gets off the island, finds Nadia, is married to Nadia, Nadia dies and because of her death Sayid , seeking vengeance, becomes the hired gun for Ben. Will Sayid have the "stones" to kill Penelope Widmore? One has to think she was added to Ben’s hit list when Charles Widmore “changed the rules” by killing Alex. I loved Ben’s sly grin as he walked away realizing he had successfully recruited Sayid. Was Nadia really killed by Widmore’s goons? Or was it just part of Ben’s bigger plan? Either way, as usual, Ben knew exactly what button to push to get Sayid to work for him. However, at some point in the future Sayid must question the partnership because we know Ben threw out the “protecting your friends” card and not just the avenging Nadia’s death ploy to keep Sayid has his “hired” gun.
Smokey On Call? – We got a great look at Smokey tonight. Still seems like some sort of glorified defense system. Perhaps Smokey is a Dharma creation? Ben went into his secret room and came out covered in soot so it seems obvious he triggered Smokey’s release. Did Ben let Smokey out or "awake" Smokey from a state of rest? How did Ben program Smokey where to go and to bypass the Lost crew and only attack the killing squad? If Smokey is for hire then this means every time we saw Smokey in the past Ben or someone else with access to Smokey has been behind the movements? Hmmmmmm Speaking of movements – Smokey’s movements have always reminded me of a rollercoaster for some reason. I found it curious ( thanks to next weeks previews ) that Smokey didn’t appear to kill anyone as it seems Keamy and team were just engulfed and detained long enough to let Ben and crew escape. Without throwing too much science at you Smokey is starting to remind me a lot of the central idea behind Michael Crichton’s book Prey. The short version of the book = nanotechnology and the creation of robots at the molecular level. Meaning lots of tiny nanobots combine to make one big “working” object. For those keeping score Lindelof has said it's not nanobots, but it still reminds me of the idea behind them. Sounds like Smokey will be more "magic" and less "science" when its true workings are revealed.
Daniel And Charlotte? They continue to lie and prolong revealing that they are not there to rescue the Losties. Which begs the question – What’s in it for them? Even after seeing Doc Ray wash up on the beach they are still staying the course and not, at this point anyway, thinking they are in danger. Daniel reluctantly tells Jack that the freighter is not there on a rescue mission, but only after Bernard reveals what the true Morse Code message entailed. What pot of gold awaits Charlotte and Daniel at the end of all of this that has them more concerned and consumed with the mission then they are for their own lives and the lives of our Losties? My guess is they have been paid with “science”. To understand, explore and gain the “science” of the island they are willing to risk everything…..Including their lives.
The Word Of The Night Is Risk – Locke, Sawyer and Hurley are playing Risk as the episode starts and Hurley makes a comment about Australia being the key to the game. ( Just how old was that Risk board anyway? ) Charlotte and Daniel seem willing to risk everything to learn from the island. Ben takes a calculated risk that Keamy won’t shoot Alex. Daniel takes a risk in lying to the Losties not knowing Bernard would know Morse Code. Sawyer risks his life to make sure Claire is safe. Hurley takes a risk by bashing out the window to let Claire and Sawyer back into the house. Alex takes a risk by inputting the security code that would alert the camp.
Oh, I Am So Confused – It seems we have a chess like battle for the island between, hmmmm – well it could be evil vs. evil? It could be good vs. evil? And even the hard to imagine at this point, but possible good vs. good depending on their rationale and ultimate “need” for the island. I’m guessing both Widmore and Ben have spent extensive time on the island. But wait!!!!!! Isn’t that Widmore’s boat just offshore? Isn’t that Widmore’s team? How can Ben tell Widmore he will never find the island? Hasn’t he found it? Isn't "he" on it right now (in island time)? Aren’t Charlotte, Daniel, Miles and Frank there because of Widmore? Does Ben mean you’ll never find it again? Hinting at some sort of future catastrophe wiping out Widmore’s crew? hmmmmmmmmmmm
The Science Is About To Hit The Fan – You can just feel that crucial point in the mythology of Lost about to hit us square in the jaw. As we wind down the series a HUGE piece of the puzzle is about to be set into place. Soon it will be revealed how much of Lost is Science and how much of our beloved show is in fact Science Fiction. The fanatics are about to bust waiting to find out. Casual viewers, however, are on the edge of their seats pleading for team Lost to keep the science fiction as close to science as the Lost rules allow. Time and mind travel sure. Even the island being part of a Lost civilization with far reaching advance technologies we’ll buy. But little green men – not so much.
Midnight Call To Widmore – First off how about Ben’s Jedi mind trick on the doorman!!!!! We know at least one billionaire lives in the building yet Ben just Obi Wan Kenobi’s the door man and jumps right in the elevator. AWESOME. My favorite and most telling line was when Ben said “ when did you start sleeping with a bottle of scotch next to the bed” letting this viewer know the two have a past. A shared past where Ben would know that Widmore didn’t sleep with a bottle of scotch all of his life. Just how far back does their past go? Far enough back that Ben and Widmore could be each others constant? Hmmmmmmm. I loved the scene between the two of them and how it was filmed. Ben in the doorway filmed in a half light half dark kind of way. You could see half of everything. Half the door, half a painting. It was perfect. Ben = the light or the dark or both or neither. Digging the idea of them not being able to kill each other because they are each others constant. Your constant dies and so do you. Cool little security blanket for both of them if my Ben/Widmore constant theory holds up.
Until next week.
