The Incident

This is a heck of a jam-packed episode, with multiple timelines. But what a finale...

We start off with a scene of a man working on a loom, from behind, in a hieroglyphics ladened room. There is a tapestry that he seems to be creating, that has possibly Greek letters at the top, and beneath them what look like to bird's wings spread out, with the Eye of Horus in the middle, with rays coming out of that eye.

I did some looking up on various Lost sites, and the Greek letters translate to a verse from The Odyssey: "may the gods grant thee all that thy heart desires". Note - later on in the episode, we will get to see the full complete tapestry. There is another line there: "Only the dead have seen the end of war."

Each of the rays is a hand, reaching out for nine individuals. There are two lords in the corners, observing. Hmmm...

This man then is seen out on the beach, cleaning a fish, and there is a ship coming towards the island - The Black Rock!!!

A man comes and sits down next to the first man. The first man is dressed in white, this one in black. The man in black insinuates that Jacob brought the people on the boat here, in order to prove the man in black wrong.

Black: They come, fight, destroy, they corrupt, it's always the same."

White: It only ends once. Anything that happens before that - just progress.

Black: You have any idea how badly I want to kill you?

White: Yes.

Black: One of these days, sooner or later, I'm going to find a loophole, my friend.

White: Well, when you do - I'll be right here.

Black: Always nice talking to you Jacob.

White: Nice talking to you too.

IT'S JACOB!! We finally get to see him. But - who is this man in black? Plus - we now get to see the full statue. It is Tawaret, the Egyptian goddess.

Cut to Kate as a kid, with her friend Tommy, stealing the same New Kids on the Block lunch box that they would later bury as a time capsule. Many years later, they would dig it up. Jacob appears, pays for the lunchbox, and tells Kate not to steal in the future. He enables Kate to have the lunchbox and the memories of childhood, which help her to set out upon her destiny.

Back to the sub. Kate tells Sawyer and Juliet that Jack is going to detonate the bomb, and that they have to stop him. Why? What the heck is Kate's deal? Why does she want to screw everything up for everyone? Why didn't she recruit other people to help her? Why get captured, and screw up Sawyer and Juliet's shot at a normal life? Oh, Kate...

Apparently, Farraday had instructions in his book for removing the core. Why? Because for plot purposes, continuity they can't physically shlep the massive bomb, so this is how they are going to do it.

Thirty years later, Ben tells Sun that the leader - now John - answers to Jacob, and tells her that he has never met him.

Richard asks Locke about how he was able to overcome death. He says, " I have been here for a long time, and I have seen things on this island I could barely describe, but I have never seen someone come back to life."

- Well, what exactly did he do with Ben? Ben was shot, and barely alive. He then was taken by Richard into the Temple, and then Ben is re-born, with little memory of his being shot, etc.

Locke says "I've never seen someone who doesn't age." Alpert replies - "I'm this way because of Jacob."

Locke tells Richard that he's doing this (going to the Temple) so he can thank Jacob. It is not like Locke to be so bold and thinking so strategically as to be able to prepare different stories for Sun, Ben, and Richard.

The Ajira people pull up with their canoe and a crate from the plane, with Frank Lapidus in tow.

Bram: Why did we even bring this yahoo?

Ilana: Because, we might need him.

Bram: For what? He didn't know that answer to the question.

Ilana: That doesn't mean he's not important.

Bram: What, you think he's a candidate?

Note - 1) the question is 'what lies under the statue? This is the same question they asked Myles off the island. 2) important - that's the way Richard, et al, refer to Locke.

They show him what is in the crate. He takes a peek, and says - terrific. What is it?

Cut to a double funeral - that of (James) Sawyer's parents. Low and behold, there's Jacob. He gives Sawyer a pen which he uses to write his letter to Mr. Sawyer. He enables him to establish his destiny.

Back on the sub, Sawyer, Juliet, and Kate commandeer the ship and surface the ship. They head back to the island in a raft. Why not just shlep the sub back, which would only take a few minutes? Hmm...

Locke speaks to Ben, and asks him why he hasn't told Richard about Locke's plan to kill Jacob. Ben reveals to Locke that his dead daughter instructed him in the Temple to do everything that Locke said. Locke then reveals to Ben that Ben is going to kill Jacob. Wow.

A busy street - Sayid and Nadia cross the street. Jacob stops Sayid and asks him for directions, thus saving him from getting hit by the suv that slams into Nadia. Jacob could have easily saved Nadia as well, but he didn't. This enabled Sayid to then work for Ben, which indirectly enabled him to return to the island.

Back in the tunnels, they bust through a wall, and low and behold - it's a Dharma house. Eloise goes first, but then Richard hits her in the head, and says that he's protecting their leader - confirming that Eloise is the leader. Jack and Sayid will go on alone.

But - Richard Linus recognizes Sayid as the guy who shot his son, and shoots him (how many times has Sayid been shot now, anyway?). They are pretty much pinned down until Hurley shows up with the van (and Jin and Myles) and saves the day, again.

(More to come)

Follow the Leader

After a long absence...I'm back! Finishing up season 5 reviews in advance of the season 6 premiere. We start with Farraday pointing the gun at Richard. Kate and Jack are captured by Charles Widmore. Eloise shoots Daniel. She picks up his book, and truly realizes what she has done. From the way she is acting and giving orders, it is clear that Eloise is 'the leader'.

Cut to thirty years earlier. John Locke arrives at the beach with a boar he's killed. He greets Richard. Richard immediately notices something different about Locke. Ben reveals to Sun that Richard Alpert is a kind of adviser to the leader, now John Locke, and that Richard has held the position for a very very long time. Could this be because he was on the "Black Rock"?

Sun queries Richard about the people in the picture, i.e. Jack, Kate, & Hugo, so she can find out about her husband. He says that he remembers them from 1977, because he watched them all die.

From the interactions between Locke and Ben, we can clearly see that the roles have somewhat reversed. Locke seems to be in charge or at least strategizing three steps ahead, while Ben is reactive.

Back to the tent: Jack convinces Eloise that if they detonate the bomb, her son will never have come back and she will (would) never have shot him. Eloise drops the bomb (forgive me) that the bomb is buried under neath Dharmaville/New Otherton/The Kibbutz.

Sawyer and Juliet get interrogated and beat up. Dr. Chang follows Hurley and meets up with Hurley, Myles, and Jin.

Dr. Chang: Your friend Farraday said that you were from the future. I need to know if he was telling the truth.

Hurley: Dude, that's ridiculous.

Dr. Chang: What year were you born?

Hurley: Uh...1931.

Dr. Chang: You're 46?

Hurley: Yeah...yes I am.

Dr. Chang: So you fought in the Korean War...?

Hurley: There's...no such thing...

Dr. Chang: Who's the President of the United States?

Hurley: Allright dude, we're from the future.

Dr. Chang then confirms that Myles is his son.

Eloise tells Richard that he is coming with her. The fact that she is giving orders to Richard only confirms that she is the leader.

Back to the future...Locke tells Richard he wants to go see Jacob. Seems to be pretty insistent. They go over to where the plane is. Richard and Ben seem to have no idea about it.

John then instructs Richard to tell Locke that he has to get everyone back to the island, and in order to do that, he is going to have to die. So - Locke is masterminding his own death!

Locke confronts Ben and insinuates that he has never seen Jacob. Hmm...

Eloise and her people have Jack and Kate at gunpoint, then Sayid comes and saves the day. They talk it out, and Kate correctly points out that Jack is starting to sound a lot like Locke. She bails and heads back to the Kibbutz. Sawyer and Juliet get into the sub. There's no way that this is the last they'll see of the island.

Back to Jack - he, Richard, and Eloise head into the pond and into teh tunnel that will take them to the bomb. They are back in the Temple. Lots of hieroglyphs. Sayid joins them. They get started in moving Jughead.

Jon tells the group that he is going to see Jacob, and he wants everyone to come with him. It's interesting that we don't see any of the 815 passengers among the group. Also - and this is just an aside - we have not seen anything of a young Bea Klugh.

The sub - Kate is brought down, handcuffed. Can anyone say - third wheel? Prediction - Kate will, with all the best intentions, screw something up.

Walking to Jacob's - and...Locke reveals to Ben that he is going to kill Jacob. AND - boom goes the dynamite!

Why would Locke want to kill Jacob? What is Jacob? Can he be 'killed'?

Stay tuned...