Home Planning

Hello Lost fans,

Spoilers below.

"How many times do I have to tell you?... I always have a plan."
The writers of the show promise this to us over and over again. They know what happens next, even if we don't. They don't tell us about their design or how they get there. But along the way, they reveal little bits of information of their grand scheme and the role that each of these characters play in that scheme. At times, Ben, who also always has a plan, seems to represent the show, as well as anyone can, by being knowingly deceptive while still offering up hope. You never know whether to trust what he says or what he does. And each action or word seems to have an ulterior motive. Sound like Lost? Or sound like the Man Behind the Curtain in Oz?

In fact, the show is so much like Ben in those particular ways, that it has clouded the minds of great Lost interpreters and scholars. And like religious or philosophical texts, the show can be overinterpreted and thus misinterpreted. Jeff Jensen, formerly referred to herein as "Doc" seems to have fallen prey to this brand of overanalysis. In the latest noteworthy incarnation of Lost babble (of which I proudly partake), he is now espousing that the show has taken a political stance and is supporting a party in the upcoming election, which is really not a far cry from espousing that a religion or a philosophy is on your side. No, Jesus would not vote Republican, and no Lost would not vote Democrat (that's not to say that the creators, writers, directors, actors, etc. don't have pronounced, respectable, and respectful views; just that the show has not taken that turn... yet and hopefully won't go there. To extrapolate that there is an espoused party affiliation or even issue-based lobbying within the show, one would have to have quite a few tokes of the red bull, if you know what I mean, or one would have to have his own agenda that said person is pushing forth. You could make an intelligible, tangible, and strong political argument in any number of ways given the tenets, fictional facts, and ideas behind the show, and the point is... that that's not the point. So, says the Mysterious Sphynx. It's entirely possible that Doc Jensen has jumped the shark, though I doubt it and I hope not. But for the time being, I am left to rely on melanism.com for my Lost truths.)

Leaving the weekly entertainment portion of my blog, and returning to the meat of the episode: we now know who got off the island and how, kindof...
We don't know who helped them off. Was it Ben or Widmore that made a deal with, to got them off the island, and presumably protect/save those who are still there? Were those photographs of the 6 arriving at the second island real? Did they follow the same path that Michael followed to get rescued? Really, we know nothing about how they get off the island, and the Oceanic 6 are still totally separate (although we've been teased quite a few times with Kate, Jack, Hurley, and Sayid going towards the Orchid (of which we know nothing about except it might move the island in space or time and is probably guarded by Ben's hostiles).

What about these Oceanic 6? Was there reason in their choosing? Why did the two richest people get off the island: is that part of the deal? Did Hurley and Sun get off the island to use their money to benefit Ben in his war against Widmore and protect those left behind? (And that's aside from the Oceanic settlement for all of them). The fact that Sayid could be used as a ruthless killer would come in handy for Ben/Widmore as long as you play the right strings. I guess, Jin, Michael, and Sawyer could be used as killing pawns by Ben too, but not with the precision that Sayid could muster (Jin missed the tent bombs with his gunfire, Michael is quickly losing his cool, and Sawyer is unpredictable). Since these three characters all trust Jack, the mastermind would need him to get off the island to organize them. He can get them off the island with a sufficiently strong story and keep them sticking to the story (at least longer than anyone else could), and if need be, eventually bring them all back. Jack's George Washington-esque stature could get them all to follow because they know that even though he makes mistakes, he's the noble hero of the story. And if he's convinced something is the right thing to do, he might still be wrong, but there is at least a basis for that belief. Of course, he's not leaving without Kate. And none of them could afford to leave a baby behind on the island (probably without a mother and additionally, which could be used as a sympathy tool for Kate, to keep her out of jail). It isn't beyond the realm of possibility that these people were chosen for how they could benefit Ben/Widmore.

Speaking of Ben as Obi Wan Kenobe (Jensen's still got plenty of goods), and Alpert as Robinhood, and Jack as Superman, and Sawyer as Batman, and Locke as... (maybe I'll think of someone next week,) how about adding a gigantic villain? Keamy is not only a bloodthirsty mercenary, who indiscriminantly kills children, commits mass murder, starts forest fires, kills allies, shoots skeet, (I could go on), he is also a willing bomber, who planted a radio detection device to his body that would blow up the ship if the ship received the signal (whether it's a button or a pulse stoppage is unclear.) But, now, the villains are settling in nicely, with Widmore as a Luthor-type villain: very rich, out in the open, corporate, and in his greed and self interest is probably the most dangerous to the world. Ben, as the Joker type villain: you can never quite figure out his motivations, but he's always out there doing things that seem crazy and may or may not be part of some truly grand plan and may or may not be good for the world in what may or may not be his warped view of the world. But, he knows he's valued alive and he knows which buttons he can push. And then, he pushes them. Abbadon??? Keamy- resident badass. What about Mrs. Harper, the person who appeared to Desmond, preventing him from getting engaged and telling us all about coure correcting. Is she Jacob? No.

(Speaking of Michael Rosenbaum as Lex Luthor, as he's leaving the show Smallville's regular cast, I just wanted to celebrate his exceptional performance over the last seven (?) years and the fact that in his last episode as a series regular, he truly physically grew into the role. As he stood in front of Jimmy Olsen, he towered over him physically; and as he put in his hand on Jimmy Olsen's shoulder, it was one of those TV moments that played out exactly right. It was a nice moment. Of course, Luthor was lying to the naive young optimist, and we the audience strongly suspected he was lying (because of his character, not his acting,) and the listener he thought this was Lex's few good deeds (how Benjamin Linus of him). So Rosenbaum played the role perfectly throughout the series, and for the first time, in this episode, he no longer looked like the whiny little rich kid (his role through most of the show), but finally looked transformed into the strong, independant, and fully developed criminal mastermind he's actually been for the past several years. Kudos to his acting, the casting, and for that special moment in villainy history. Perfect way to go out.)

Speaking of Jack's badassery, how about this guy who is so committed to saving lives that he runs into the jungle days after a major surgery to try to save two of his flock. The blood begins pouring from his opened stitches, and Jack replies, 'tis but a fleshwound'. It's just your common infection; don't worry about it Kate. But you, the audience, pay attention. This guy is a glutton for punishment, and it's going to haunt him for a long time. It might even cost him a happy family life down the road. Just, you watch.

So, Jack lies to Kate about the blood. Isn't that very Ben-like? The twist is Jack lies to try to do good things, while Ben (probably) isn't lying to do good things. The other twist is Jack only looks you square in the eye when he's lying. Actually, I've noticed that Jack is always distracted and rarely looks these islanders in the eye at all. Not sure if it is a directorial/acting technique to make Jack seem preoccupied, distracted, busy, and concerned about everyone and not just the person he is talking to, or perhaps to demonstrate Jack's major failing, which is the interpersonal relationship. He's great in a crowd, but when he's talking to you, he's really only thinking about you peripherally, to make sure you're healthy. When he's looking at you (and not surveying the island, his other flock members, and his surroundings), he's really looking through you for problems to fix. And if you don't have current problems, he's looking directly through you, because someone behind you does. So, it is entirely plausible that Jack only does look people squarely in the eye when he's lying. So, it's not a politician thing, because they have good poker faces and look you square in the eye whether they are lying or not, it's a Jack thing.

But, the best scene of the episode was Jack meeting Claire's mom. We knew exactly what was coming, the truth that was about to be revealed, but we (I) did not imagine the devastating impact it would have on the still grieving (and still in shock) Jack. Jack was crushed. He was even more crushed because he seemed to be the only person who bought into the idea (and may have been the proponent) that they stick to the lie. Everyone else seemed mildly against the lie, or at least uncomfortable with the idea of lying to the world about the fate of their comrades. But, Jack, in his willingness to lie in general (to do good things: see above and see perjury for Kate) and his heroism, must have been convinced that he was doing the right thing. He was convinced that getting off the island and lying about it, straight in the face of the media and the world, was the right thing to do. And, he did not appear to have second thoughts about it, the way the other 4 did (the baby seemed fine with it too).

For a moment, this truth that Claire was his half-sister (which couldn't have possibly made a difference in his prior actions had he found out days before) along with the lies which he advocated, were more than he could handle. And eventually these small powerful truths, along with the intermixed lies (throw in a dash of his own self-destructiveness and some supernatural influences) would ultimately bring his world crumbling down. There he stood. He couldn't muster the courage to admit that he knew Claire, that he bonded with Claire, that he took care of her, or that Claire's child, this woman's grandchild was in Kate's arms. He couldn't hug her and say, we share our pain, Ms. Claire's mom. He couldn't say these things, but his face said it all. Anguish. (That is not to say the run of the mill despair and shock, that all of the Oceanic 6 felt on the plane back to civilization. That was something to behold as well.) But, Jack finally had his moment of doubt, and it was absolutely crushing for him, and crushing for a viewer who has come to know him and respect him over the past 4 years (few months). Well done.

Another great moment was when Jack and Sawyer had their verbal duel. As they duked it out in jests and mockery, right before they again majestically united like we were all back in the first season, I was left thinking about what their situation reminds me of. It's a pretty strong comparison too. Dawson's Creek. Jack is this straight laced guy who is destined for great achievement, but he is entangled by this desperate longing, teen angst for an on/off relationship with a strong independant female who has feelings for him. Along comes this guy, (in Dawson's Creek, it was Dawson's best friend, Pacey), who is a misfit, not destined for any great things, but who seems to be totally impacted and tranformed by the feelings that he shares with the same woman. This third guy is a better person in her presence, and with her, his prospects brighten. And she, who would have blossomed on her own regardless of who she chose, must make a life decision (over a period of several years). But, because of the nature of television, and the fact that they were stuck in high school, and often the same town, these two rivals (former friends) constantly had to unite to accomplish a task like putting together a dance or whatever. Spoiler alert for Dawson's Creek people. Joey chose Pacey, and while I totally disliked the choice because Pacey, who was a better character (and a far superior actor) didn't deserve the grace of her love, even though, he was better for having it.

Despite having seen the future, which has a Jack and Kate engagement, we still don't know the fate of Sawyer, and I suspect the three of them will meet again. And, my guess is that Jack goes off and works on movies with Spielberg, his lifelong idol, or accomplishes his ultimate goal of being a hero and getting all of these people off the island. Meanwhile, Sawyer, who becomes a decent human being with Joey in his life, needs her to stay above his old misfitty ways, and she adores being thus needed. So, while Jack and Kate might be soul mates, Sawyer and Kate are more compatible. And I will hate that decision too, despite it's rationality, with each of them being mildly satisfied in the end result.

Now, that I have appropriately embarassed myself by my intimate knowledge of Dawson's Creek, I can let you go home.

Yours,
PB#ME

PS: Why didn't the guy in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, drink from the wet cup, the cup that looked like Old Man River's been drinking out of it for the last few hundred years?