Again there seemed to be something off or blah about this penultimate episode, just like last week's backstory. It seemed rushed, as Lindelof and Cuse had run out of time. (Lucky they have an additional half hour for the finale on Sunday.) There were some high points, however, despite the off-kilter pacing.
Jacob has a successor. Widmore and Jungle Liz Lemon are gone, and more than likely, Richard. Ben is back on the dark side.
Or is he? Ben Linus' decision to join up with Smokey was rather abrupt, after being on a path to redemption. Unless he is like Severus Snape, the wizard in the Harry Potter series who perfectly feigned allegiance to Lord Voldemort while actually always being loyal to Dumbledore. It is possible that Ben is still helping the castaways by using a lifetime of carefully honed slyness and manipulation. The Ben in Sideways L.A. ironically is labeled "the nicest guy I know" by Alex Rousseau, and he is now pondering deeper things after getting a beating from Desmond and seeing himself in the Island timeline.
Jack is the new Island Guardian, having participated in the communion-like ritual with Jacob that the latter shared with his Mommie Dearest last week in "Across the Sea." In the earliest season, Jack Shephard lived up to his name as he took on first major duty of a shepherd -- guide the "flock." He led the Losties to establish a camp and secure basic supplies. Along with that duty, he now takes on the shepherd's second major task -- protection of that flock, and additionally shield the Island itself.
In Sideways Los Angeles, Desmond is tirelessly forcing the Oceanic 815 alumni together. With a little help from his friends -- Hurley and Ana Lucia Cortez -- he engineers a nifty little escape from police custody. People will be congregating at David Shephard's concert, which appears to be at Pierre Chang's museum (and still maybe the hospital?).
A classic Lost image -- an eyeball closeup -- opens the episode, and it is Jack in Sideways L.A. He has that mysterious cut on his neck, and he looks at it in the mirror, yet another image for characters in this split-worlds Season 6. He enjoys cereal with David and assures him that he'll be at his concert. David's mom will be there too (more than likely it is Juliet, taking time off from fighting reptile aliens in NYC.) Claire joins them, but the morning meal is interrupted by a phone call from "Oceanic Airlines," which is really Desmond pretending to contact Jack about the company finally finding Christian's casket.
His next stop is the high school, where Locke is returning to work for the first time after the hit and run. Ben sees Desmond parked nearby and confronts him. Desmond says he doesn't plan to run John over again. Ben wants to know who he is and tries to make a citizen's arrest.
"You want to know who I am?" Desmond says, and starts to punch Ben in the face over and over, causing Dr. Linus to flash Desmond trashing him in the Season 4 episode "Dead Is Dead." He tells Ben he wasn't trying to hurt Locke, but for him to start to "let go."
Ben goes to the school infirmary for patching up by the school nurse. After his treatment, he is the second character of the night to look into a mirror. Locke wheels in and asks him what happened. Locke insists they call the police, which Ben says he probably should not do. "The man told me he wasn't trying to hurt you. He was trying to get you to let go, and for some reason I believed him. ... Does that mean something to you?"
Locke gives up his call, which is to the very precinct where James and Miles are detectives. Miles is putting on a tie and tells James that he is going to a benefit concert for his dad's museum, with Charlotte as his date (and I am sure David Shephard will be tickling the ivories there too, along with proud papa Jack in the audience). James gladly tells Miles he can have that redhead.
Desmond strolls in and turns himself for the Locke hit and run and the Ben assault. James puts him in the lockup, where his cellmate is Sayid, and their neighbor is Kate. "Thanks for saving the taxpayers the trouble of hunting you down," James tells him.
At the end of the school day, Ben struggles with his things, because his arm is in a sling. Alex comes to his aid and insists that her mother give him a ride home. It is a normal, mellow Danielle Rousseau who pulls up, who decides not only will she give Ben a ride, but she is going to cook him dinner.
Danielle is happy she can cook for someone else than just Alex, who is being studious in the living room. She adds that Ben is "the closest thing to a father Alex ever had," because her biological dad died when she was very young. Ben starts to mist up, obviously moved by this comment, and in fumbling manner tells Danielle that the onions must be causing his eyes to water.
Locke goes to Jack's office for the consultation he was promised back on "LA X." He recounts all the coincidental things that have piled up -- the hit and run, the resulting surgery, Jack's pleas to "fix" Locke, the attack on Ben and Desmond's claim that he wasn't trying to hurt anyone but to get Locke to "let go." The same thing that Jack told him. He assures Jack he doesn't think he sent Desmond to hurt him.
"Maybe this happened for a reason," Locke says. "May you're supposed to fix me."
"You're mistaking coincidence for fate," Jack says, repeating a Lost catch phrase.
"I think I'm ready to get out of this chair."
At the police station, James goes to the jail cells with the announcement that Sayid, Desmond and Kate are headed for the county. "Vaya con dios and the best of luck," he says, as a guard opens their cells.
Kate begs James once more to help her escape, reminding him that she said she was innocent. He says he can't do that because he is a cop and has to do his job.
While riding in the paddy wagon to the county jail, Desmond states that it is now time to leave. Sayid says Desmond is a crazy person, and Kate wants to know if he is just going to tell the driver to stop and let them out. He gets both of them to promise they will do what he says, and the van abruptly comes to a stop.
Ana-Lucia (Michelle Rodriguez in a cameo) is the driver, and she has pulled the van up to what looks like the same shoreline where Charlie and Desmond went Car Diving earlier in the season. A Hummer pulls up, and it's Hurley, who hands off a $125,000 payoff to Ana Lucia. "Do I know you, tubby?" she asks, as so many of these Oceanic people in Sideways World keep asking.
Hurley turns his vehicle over to Sayid. He offers the pride and joy of his youth, his early 1970s red Camaro, to Desmond.
He says that Kate is with him and hands her a hanger with the classic little black dress on it. "We are going to a concert." And 10 to 1 that this concert is at a museum. Headed by Dr. Pierre Chang. And attended by some people named Shephard. (Also recall in Season 3 Ben gave her a nice dress and insisted Kate wear it for a beachfront brunch.)
On the Island, war is definitely coming, and Smokey is gearing up to destroy the Island and leave. Jack, Kate, Hurley and Sawyer are on the beach, still feeling blue and regrouping after the sub explosion. Jack fixes Kate's shoulder wound, noting that the bullet went clean through, and he has to clean it out to avoid infection. (Reflects the pilot episode, where she has to clean and sew up Jack's wound.) She muses that Ji-Yeon is young and alone now, and Jin never even met her.
"Locke did this to them. We have to kill him, Jack," she says.
"I know."
As flotsam from the submarine drifts toward the shore, Sawyer looks out to sea. An empty life jacket is among the debris, suggesting no more survivors. Jack says it is time to head out in the jungle to the well where Desmond is located.
Miles, Ben and Richard go to the abandoned New Otherton, and Miles asks Ben if he is sure that his short cut will work. Ben says he lived in the barracks for a long time, and Miles reminds him he lived there 30 years before that, "otherwise known as last week."
Ben tells Richard he has enough C4 to "more than destroy it 10 times over and keep it from ever leaving this Island."
Miles asks about where he put the explosives. "Let me guess -- a cookie jar."
"Don't be ridiculous. It's in a secret room behind my bookcase."
As they enter New Otherton, Miles hears hissing and rushing sounds and tells them he gets "wonky around dead stuff." Richard says that after Alex was shot, he buried her in what could be called the town square. Ben thanks Richard for that kindness.
In Ben's house, they go into the secret room, and Miles spots the opening in the wall for calling to Smokey.
"What's that, a 'secreter' room?"
"It's where I was told I could summon the monster," Ben says. "That's before I learned that it was the one summoning me."
After deciding they were going to blow the plane to hell, they take all the explosives, and discover Jungle Liz Lemon in the kitchen. Widmore quickly joins her. Ben is furious to see his old adversary, but Widmore says if Ben shoots him, his last chance for survival is gone. He says Jacob came to him and told him he needed to come to the Island to save it from Smokey.
After Ben says they were going to blow up the plane, Widmore says he already rigged the jet with explosives. "I'm always three steps ahead of you, Ben."
Jungle Liz Lemon tells them that Smokey has pulled up to the dock, where he sees Widmore's outrigger. Miles decides to run away, and he's out of there quickly. Richard will try talking to the Smoke Man, claiming that he knows him well enough and might be able to divert his attention. Ben tells Jungle Liz and Widmore their best bet is to hide in his special secret room.
Ben and Richard go outside and look about very cautiously. Richard is suddenly knocked across the entire length of New Otherton and into the jungle by a cantankerous Smokey. Chances are that that Guyliner is permanently out of the picture.
Ben sits on his front porch and is approached by the creature, now back in John Locke's form. "Welcome to the colony," Ben says. "Can I get you a glass of lemonade?"
Smokey tells Ben that if he helps him defeat Widmore and kill some people, he can be in charge of the Island after he leaves.
Ben takes the monster to Widmore and Zoe, and Smokey says, "What a pleasant surprise! How nice to talk without these fences between us."
He asks Jungle Liz who she is, and Widmore tells her not to say a thing. She starts to talk, and Smokey slits her throat from ear to ear, and this unlikeable character is GONE. (Proving that indeed she was merely a geophysicist, and not a mercenary/soldier, and wasn't of much use to Charles.)
When Ben asks why he did that, the Smoke Man says Widmore told her not to talk, and she was pointless after that. He promises Charles that the first thing he'll do when he leaves the Island is kill Penny, unless he tells him why he brought Desmond back.
Assuring Charles that he won't hurt Penny, Widmore tells Smokey that Desmond has electromagnetic resistance, and, not trusting Ben, whispers into the creature's ear that Des is the "failsafe" in protecting the Island.
Ben pumps three bullets into Widmore, who crumples to the ground. "He doesn't get to save his daughter," he says sneeringly.
As they leave Ben's old place, he asks Smokey, "Did you say there were some other people to kill?"
As Jack and Sawyer walk through the jungle, the latter asks about the location of Desmond's well. Jack thinks it is about an hour from the original Smokey camp. Sawyer, calling him "Flocke" -- a tip to the fans? -- asks if he wanted Des dead, why didn't he just kill him. Might be one of his rules, Jack says.
Sawyer is still feeling guilty over the sub disaster. "I killed them, didn't I?"
"No, he killed them," Jack says.
Hurley sees Junior Jacob in the jungle. The teen approaches Hurley and demands the ashes he took from Ilana's stuff. He grabs the bag from Hurley's hand and takes off.
Hurley pursues the kid, until he comes to a clearing, where Jacob has not taken his adult form and has a fire going.
"You getter get your friends," Jacob says. "We're very close to the end, you know."
Hurley gets everyone to Jacob, who greets Jack, Kate and Sawyer as they enter the site. Hurley is about to interpret, until he finds out that everyone can now see Jacob.
Kate confirms that Jacob is the one who wrote everyone's names on the cave walls, and she wants his assurance that their deaths were not in vain.
"I'll tell you what they died for," Jacob says. "I'll tell you why I chose them, and why I chose you., and I'll tell you everything you need to know to protect this Island. Because by the time the fire burns out, one of you is going to have to start doing it."
He tells the quartet that they were made candidates because of his mistake depicted in "Across the Sea," the accidental creation of Smokey. He also says that the time was coming for someone to replace him.
Sawyer is angry and demands to know why he would be punished for Jacob's screwup.
Jacob counters, "I didn't pluck any of you out of a happy existence. You were all flawed. I chose you because you were like me. You were all alone. You were looking for something you couldn't find out there. I chose you because you needed this place as much as it needed you."
He adds that Kate's name was crossed off after she took the responsibilities of motherhood, but it was "just a line of chalk in a cave," and the job was still open if she wanted it.
He tells them that the job is protecting the Island from Smokey, and Jack quickly figures out that part of that "protection" is to kill the monster. Jacob said he did not select any particular person, because he wanted them to have what he never did -- a choice. Free will, one of the things he has debated for centuries with his brother.
Jack steps forward and says he will be the replacement. "That is why I'm here. This is what I was supposed to do."
"Is that a question, Jack?" Jacob says.
"No."
"Good. Then it's time."
Jacob takes the candidates inland and tells them that the heart of the Island (the Cave of Wonders Full of Life, the Universe 'n' Everything) is just beyond the bamboo field where Jack regained consciousness in the show's very first scene. Jack says there is nothing there, but becoming Guardian will make it visible to him.
This is what they must protect from the monster. Sawyer mutters about if Jack "had a god complex before..." and Hurley is just relieved that he's not the successor.
Jack offers Jacob a cup, he scoops up water, over which he says his prayer or incantation, just as his mom did in "Across the Sea," and puts it into the cup for Jack.
"How long am I going to have to do this job?"
"As long as you can."
Jack drinks the water, and an awed look comes over his face, as if all that is known is now revealed.
"Now you're like me," Jacob says.
Smokey and Ben walk in the jungle toward Desmond's well. "If you can turn yourself into smoke whenever you want, why do you bother walking?"
"I like the feel of my feet on the ground. It reminds me that I was human."
As they approach the well, Ben says, "Are you thirsty?"
Smokey says this is the well where Desmond was, and Sayid obviously did not kill our favorite Scot. "It looks like someone helped him out," Ben says."No, Ben," the Smoke man says, "Someone helped me out."
He explains that Widmore was going to use Desmond as the "failsafe," Jacob's last resort if he succeeded in killing all the "beloved" candidates, one final way to make sure he never leaves.
"Then why are you happy that he's still alive?"
"Because I'm gonna find Desmond, and when I do, he's going to do the one thing that I could never do myself. ... I'm gonna destroy the Island."
Fade out, and then Linda Hunt's voice reminds us to tune in "The End" this Sunday night, 23 May 2010. That's this Sunday night, starting at 7 p.m./6 Central.
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