I’ve had a few days to think about it and I still am on the fence over this episode. The flashforward/flashback was genius (although I know there are those of you out there who feel duped - as if Jin was just put in to throw us off the scent) and now we don’t know whether Jin is alive or dead - another mystery to add to the list. I guess I’m just old fashioned in the respect that I wanted Jin there for the birth of his baby.

Click here for my initial thoughts.

1. Regina’s book is Survivors of the Chancellor. I don’t want to read too much into the literature they sprinkle throughout the show (no, I would never read too much into something on Lost, right) but I’m like a kid in the sense that I can’t just *not* look it up, just in case it’s important.
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2. I was thinking that Frank was trying to sneak food to Sayid and Desmond, but he tells Regina that the Captain told him to bring them some grub. I still think it’s weird, however, that he brings it in the paper sack.

3. Lucky freighties don’t have to eat the Dharma brand.
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4. How do I say this gently? Lima Beans? I wouldn’t want to be holed up in that small room with Sayid tonight! “Hey Desmond, pull my finger.”

5. Props to Jenny from my last blog. She caught that this was Nikki Barbie. Kind of surprised and disappointed that the writers had to bring her up. Please no! Not again! I don’t have the strength for another campaign.
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6. Don’t trust the captain? More like don’t trust Michael. Let’s not forget that this guy has an island rap sheet. It’s been more than well established that this guy will do anything for his son. I’m thinking that there is another friend on this boat and he’s not carrying around a mop. If it’s someone we’ve met, my bet is on Frank. However, Sayid is the human lie detector so I’ve got my fingers crossed he’s aware of this.
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7. Jin tells Jack that he understands English better than he speaks it. I would say this goes as the understatement of the week.

8. Wow, Charlotte really did a number on Juliet’s face. Glad that in *real* life we don’t get our butt kicked like this over every disagreement/misunderstanding that we have.
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9. Geez Jin, calm down! Maybe he was a good choice to for work for Sun’s dad. I think this demonstrates why we saw his flashback - to highlight just how much Jin has changed since being on the island. When we saw him first on the mainland he was a controlling, overbearing husband that Sun was ready to change her identity to escape. So why would we believe that she missed him as much as she did (does?) if we didn’t see how far he had come?
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10. Check out the shadow of the camera person (this is right as Jin throws down his broken phone).
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11. I was wondering if Mr Paik’s “underground,” “gangster,” or whatever you want to call it symbol was something to do with a Panda. So it had to be a panda that Jin brought to the new baby’s room. To give the Ambassador a signal from him.

12. Juliet is becoming the Sawyer of this season… getting beat up by everyone. Sawyer versus Juliet - Death Match!
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13. Come to think of it, Jin is wearing the red shirt of death. Not a good sign for him … and he was arrested for drunk driving and we know that hasn’t gone so well for the other actors with the same conviction. Every one of them, so far, has been killed off of the show.
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14. Boy, talk about bad timing Bernard. (see photo above)

15. This is a huge boat and could certainly carry more than 6 survivors. I’m sticking with my submarine theory. I think that only 6 are going to be able to go because they aren’t going to be able to fit more than that. And due to certain extreme circumstances, these 6 will be the ones.
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16. So, about that freighter name. “Kahana,” as far as I could find, means “belonging to the surf” in Hawaiian. Regina’s book is about a boat that sinks. Not a good omen for this boat.

17. I think that the banging in the boat was Morse Code and I think that Sayid knows what it means.

18. Hey look! It’s Michael in the middle and we didn’t even know it at the time. Once you watch the sneak peek from next week you’ll see Mikey walks around with his hood up.
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19. Desmond finds out that the love of his life’s father owns the freighter and this is his reaction? I don’t get it. Why isn’t he freaking out? Why isn’t he asking more questions? Why is this it?
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20. Well hello Captain! Gotta love a man that just tells it like it is.
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21. Not only do we wonder where all the dead bodies came from, I want to know how it was explained that ALL the passengers were killed on the plane yet shazam! here come 6 survivors? If those six supposedly died in the fuselage, then how do you explain that they are alive? Seems like Dateline NBC or 20/20 would have picked up on this story.

22. The infamous black box recorder. Mr Widmore certainly *does* have some resources to get his hands on this thing. Aren’t there federal organizations around the world that would kind of want this? Unless, of course, a fake one was turned in and this one was spirited away. It’s obvious that Widmore wants it for the flight pattern information.
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23. Read the caption on this picture. Sorry to say, doc, but natural childbirth is difficult “without” the medication. I was wondering if this guy was even a doctor the way he was acting. I still think that if Sun would have went to a C-section the “bad guys” would have done something with the baby (switched perhaps?). Maybe being conceived on the island makes Ji Yeon special in the same way as Aaron and Walt.
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24. Heeeeeere’s Michael! Sayid looks more surprised to see Michael than Desmond was to find out Widmore owned the boat.  Sayid was probably more surprised than us though, right?
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25. Hurley, looking good!
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26. Is Sun supposed to get the other side of this tombstone? Is she really supposed to have been born in 1980? I still think that Jin is dead. She isn’t talking to the tombstone like he’s on the island but more like to a deceased loved one. And Hurley says, “Let’s go see him…” I hope, I hope that I’m wrong. I didn’t really care about their love story or think they had much chemistry until this episode. To see how much he had changed was very touching.

27.  He must die on the island, however, because the date is the same as the date of the plane crash.
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I have to start by saying I hated the ending. I usually hate happy-sappy endings but I wanted to see the excited dad come to see the new baby! I suspected that Jin might die but I guess now that I saw this week I was really bummed. How sad and another tear jerker!

1. Flash forward and flash back in the same episode. *That* was genius.

2. Some bad things are happening on the freighter. Regina’s book is upside down and she doesn’t even realize it? This put me in mind of things that are backwards on the island (whispers, Little Dipper). Then she kills herself. Frank says that they are having a “little problem” in the kitchen and what was up with the banging? Oh yeah, and the blood in Sayid and Desmond’s new cabin.

3. I had a couple of moments in the show tonight and I found myself saying, “I can’t believe that I didn’t think of that!” One was questioning where they came up with all those dead bodies to stage the wreckage. The other was that Ben staged it. Usually I’m wondering what took them so long to ask questions but tonight I was wondering why I wasn’t the one asking them.

4. Lots of three’s in tonight’s episode. Sayid and Desmond left three days ago. Sun has three weeks to get off the island.

5. I loved that Sun just flat out asked Daniel if they were going to rescue them. I was thinking, “Finally, someone just asks and waits for a straight answer.” Maybe Daniel didn’t answer straight, but Sun could read him loud and clear.

6. I thought that maybe Juliet had indeed found a cure for whatever was killing the pregnant women on the island but that Ben was sabotaging her work to keep her there. Now, seeing that Sun lives through her pregnancy and childbirth I’m even more convinced. Yes, I know she got off the island but seeing what’s happening to people who aren’t on the island but are under it’s influence (the freighter crew) I think that Ben didn’t want Juliet to succeed.

7. I was worried for Sun when the strange doctor came into the room that he was going to be a bad guy since she didn’t know that her regular doctor wasn’t going to be around. I kept thinking of creepy eyed man and wondering if the doctor was someone from his group.

8. Jin only understands English in small pieces, but he understood Juliet just fine when she explained Sun’s affair. Hmmm. Bad writing or more going on?

9. Are Jin and Bernard fishing off of Karl’s boat? And why was Bernard giving Jin advice to reel in the fish when Jin is the son of a fisherman.
10. Frank was running an errand with the helicopter? Very interesting. No Walmart nearby so I wonder what they’ve got him up to?
11. I’m interested to know what data is on the black box recorder. Obvioulsy it had info that clued them in that there were survivors but Widmore and his people had this info and chose not to disclose to the families that thought that their loved ones were dead. I guess they couldn’t if they wanted to keep the island all to himself. And I guess there goes Ben’s theory that Widmore wants to exploit the island and turn it into some sort of healing theme park. And I loved that the black box was red.

12. So Widmore wants them to move the boat to safer waters but Michael/Kevin is sabotaging the equipment. Why does Widmore want them to move? Why is Michael keeping the boat there? Walt must not be in the boat or Ben wants them to stay or I doubt he would care to stay by the island any longer than he has to.

13. Sun’s birth scene was the most unrealistic portrayal I have ever seen. I was even thinking she might be dreaming it because it was just that bad. Imagine if having a baby was really that easy. And there wasn’t an umbilical cord to cut.
14. Sayid says to Ray, “But the ship isn’t moving” and Ray responds, “If you say so.” Huh?

15. My daughter made a good point - they were showing (in our market) Carnival Cruise commercials. Happy people looking out to the islands and riding horses on the beach. Yeah, great idea during a show about people who crash landed and are now stuck on an island and some of their people are on a boat with all sorts of creepy people.

16. The date on the tombstone was 2004 so my guess is Jin dies saving Sun and the baby.

17. Anyone surprised to see Michael? At least he got his hair cut.

Not sure what to think here gang. We are either going to have two of the most *unshocking* shocking episodes or we can hope for major twists.

This week: Hm, we know that the last two survivors are going to be revealed this week and it’s a Jin and Sun flashies AND the title of the episode is the name of their *future* baby. Guess who survives? Ooo, nail biter. The only redeeming factor could be that a main character dies. Not that I want any more of them to die, but if Jin dies that leaves us open for a surprise Oceanic 6th. *fingers crossed*

Next week; “Meet Kevin Johnson.” Here is how I envision it… Desmond and Sayid go to meet the captain. While chatting in walks Michael and the captain says, “Meet Kevin Johnson.” Do they pretend not to know Michael at this point to go along with the charade? I’m trying to envision how there can be a twist here and the only hope I have for this one is that the writers have done a good job the past 6 episodes blindsiding us, so maybe they can still make this shocker, shocking.

(NOTE: Word Press is acting wonky and won’t let me upload pix.  They are coming as soon as I can!)

I don’t want to say that this episode stunk because it really was OK, but certainly not in my top favorites. Even if it didn’t follow the amazing episode last week, I think that this one would still be just mediocre at best. Still not a stinker yet this season though.

Click here for my initial thoughts. 

1. OMG! It’s a black rock in the Zen garden! It must mean something! (sacrasm people!)
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2. Juliet is going to die. We know about Ben’s obsession with her and I doubt he would ever let her leave the island. BUT… what if she dies helping Aaron leave the island? She obviously cares about children (she asked Ben about Zach and Emma not to mention she’s a baby doctor) and that would also explain why future Jack can’t bear to see Aaron off of the island.

3. Way to go Harper! Not only does she have a Certificate of Recognition from the Hanso Foundation, she also belongs to the Experimental Social Psychology Society. She is obviously well qualified to be counseling people on *this* island.
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4. Wow, Harper, jealous much? I can understand the animosity once she finds out that Juliet is a home wrecking ho sleeping with her man, but in their first meeting she’s already cutting her down (”You’re not a celebrity…. you’ll find out soon enough that you’re no different than anyone here.”). Claws are out!

5. Yeah Tom! They really should have kept him. I would have loved to have seen his flash back story.
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6. I’m thinking that Juliet is of so much interest to everyone not only because she is the baby doctor, but also because Ben has obsessed about her for some time and I would guess they’ve all heard or know about it. “So, this is the woman he’s been so infatuated with.” Sounds like Ben did quite a lot of research and work to get her to the island.

7. AND, we’ve finally found Ben’s Achilles Heel. Juliet.

8. I’m wondering if Juliet somehow did figure out why the women keep dying but that Ben has sabotaged her research because it will keep her on the island. He knows how passionate she is about her work and if she can’t solve the puzzle it will keep her there until she does.  Juliet probably has no clue that she has solved the mystery because Ben is a very sneaky little man.
9. Those are pretty amazing torches that can stay lit in the rain.
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10. If you heard scary whispers in the jungle wouldn’t you be like “What the hell was that!?” Juliet and Jack never discuss, at least that we see.

11. Of course Ben would send Harper as an unspoken reminder to Juliet that she still *belongs* to him.

12. It was pretty good timing that Harper showed up during the whispers then vanished. It reminded me of the old Walt apparitions.

13. Why is it safer for Jack not to know about The Tempest? He’s not prone to freaking out over new information, so why not at least give this guy a clue about the gas? If I were Matthew Fox I would not be pleased with how naive they make Jack all the time. You can’t just chalk it up to trust.  At some point doesn’t he want answers?

14. I really like Kate’s new, darker hair. She must have gotten a touch up from Claire while she was at the barracks.
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15. Michael Emmerson is truly an amazing actor. He goes from a love sick little puppy in this scene to the crazy mad man who practically drags her to the dead, rotting corpse of Goodwin. I thought the scenes where Ben is doting on Juliet were great. He is practically skipping around his house getting ready for their dinner together.
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16. There must be a lot of (ahem) *coupling* going on here at the island for all these pregnant women to be running around. They have to conceive on the island in order to be part of the experiment. I’m just saying that they can’t all be using in vitro fertilization.

17. I miss the old crazy, jungle running, knife throwing, sneaking around Locke. This domesticated version isn’t nearly as interesting.
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18. I found it interesting that the writers hinted that Ben had something to do with the plane crash. I thought that it was settled that Desmond’s error caused the crash. But Goodwin asks what Ben is going to do then they flash to the plane breaking apart mid air.

19. This is definitely a new tape of Widmore. Ben just showed Jack the Red Sox game a few weeks back in island time.

20. Does the tape of Widmore really prove anything to Locke? I think I would have had a heck of a lot more questions for a man that had just shot me and left me for dead days ago.
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21. When Locke asks Ben what Widmore wants, Ben goes into the story about the mold. I’m thinking that is our answer why Widmore wants to find the island - for the healing powers.

22. Locke wants to keep this island to himself just like Ben wants to keep Juliet. They do have this obsessive side to their personality in common. I think that Locke will help Ben keep Widmore away so he can keep the island secret.

23. Ben’s man on the boat. We all think it’s going to be Michael, but it just seems so obvious. It’s torture because on one hand we know Michael is coming back and it makes sense. But on the other hand it seems to go along with the show to have a twist. Maybe have Michael as his man but Christian Shepherd be the captain? I would love it to be Charlie but that is just asking too much. Any wild and crazy theories out there?

24. Cool new hatch.
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25. Notice the painting over Ben’s shoulder. I think that this is the “her” that Harper was referring to that Juliet resembles. I think that it’s Annie. Annie probably got preggers, died, lost the baby and that is what fueled Ben’s fire to fix whatever is killing the women. Then he found Juliet and kind-of, sort-of started to forget about Annie.
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26. Daniel sure can type fast in those heavy rubber gloves!
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27. Here are a bunch of screenshots from the computer:

28. I forgot to mention the map that Faraday is looking at to find The Tempest. My guess is the original was taken out of the Black Rock log but since they are using it to find the hatch (that could not have been there in the 1800’s) then someone who has been to the island would have had to give them the location. Michael perhaps? Maybe that is why they were holding off going to the island because they needed the one last piece to be sure they wouldn’t be killed when they stormed the island. I know that Charlie had to flip the switch to get them there, but they needed to be able to find The Tempest and the Losties on the island didn’t know about this hatch.
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29. They have to be either purposely filming where these red flowers on the island are, the red flowers do mean something, or there are just a whole bunch of these around Hawaii. Anyone from Hawaii know?
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30. If Juliet was so in love with Goodwin, then why is she so hot and bothered for Jack (outside of the fact that he’s a hottie)?

31. Awesome camera shot.
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32. Oops, here are some shots of inside the new hatch:

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33. Hurley is darned good at horeshoes. But remember how good Walt was at throwing that knife? They both apparently have some special *abilities.* Either that, or they’ve spent some serious time in the Southern US learning these skills.
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34. First we have Hurley questioning Locke out in the jungle on the way to the barracks. Then Claire wants to talk to Miles. Now Sawyer sees Ben just wandering around. Yes friends, I think we are going to see a revolution just as Ben predicted, against Locke.

35.  Now we know what Daniel’s purpose was in being chosen to come to the island. Didn’t see that one coming. Now it will be interesting to see what Miles and Charlotte’s uses are. I’m not so convinced that they are good guys or really care what happens to the Losties. Well, Daniel and Frank seem to care, but Miles and Charlotte are certainly more self centered.

36. Could Smokey be the by-product of a gas leak from The Tempest? I think there is more to it than just gas (like it cloaks something solid) but it appears that this gas is deadly and could certainly kill people.

1. What does Eggtown mean anyway? Usually the meaning behind the title is much more obvious. But nooooo, they have to go and make us think even more.

* Idea one: “Egg-town is a pejorative term that refers to the days of bartering. A traveling salesman would have to barter his candy or tobacco or shoelaces for different commodities. A poor exchange would be for eggs, a relatively common item that is also highly perishable. Nobody wants to trade for eggs from a traveling salesman because they have their own, so the salesman who accepted an egg in exchange was forced to accept a bad deal. Salesmen would use the term like “If I were you I would stay away from Bogart. That’s an egg-town.” Of course, the lack of trust among salesman was also high, and it was likely that one salesman would lie to another about the quality of a town’s customers to keep them for himself. Invariably, the second salesman ventures into to Bogart only to find it is truly an egg-town. He is either persuaded to not visit a town that has good customers or is tricked into visiting a town that can only offer eggs. The term “egg-town” represents a deal with undesirable outcomes in either case. Source; Lostpedia

* Idea two; “Don’t put your eggs all in one basket.” Seems to apply to Kate’s agenda. And many others (Sawyer, Locke, Hurley, Juliet, etc…). Plus Kate is totally playing Sawyer and Jack off of each other.

* Idea three: Ben eggs on Locke. Nothing new there really.

*Idea four (and my least favorite): It’s a fertility reference. Where is “Eggtown” exactly? This is just too cheesy to believe though.

2. Why open with Locke’s eye when it wasn’t a Locke-centric episode?
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3. Here’s the book that Locke chooses for Ben. Check out my other post for a link that will run down the books in this episode.
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4. Locke is taking this power tripping this a little too far. I think he’s trying to recreate the commune that he was so happy in back home but he fails to see that he’s working with far different conditions - for instance, the people that are there aren’t there because the chose to drop out of society to live on a pot farm. Locke is cooking up a big meal for everyone to get together and sing Kumbayah, but when your personality is like Sawyer and the two prisoners being held (not to mention Old Smokey is lurking somewhere out there) it’s not exactly the perfect ingredients for a happy community.

5. Is it just me or is it weird that Ben’s house is built on a basement thats primary function appears to be a jail. If the peace loving Dharma gang lived there before, what did they need the basement for? The hostiles? Did they take them prisoner here? It’s very Silence of the Lambs to me. Like a secret underground Gitmo.
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6. Locke gives Ben the last two eggs and then kills the chicken. Yeah, really smart. Almost as smart as blowing up Patchy’s communication station. Are there more chickens around somewhere that we haven’t seen? It is Eggtown after all. (That was a joke).

7. Is Ben right? Is Locke more LOST than he ever was? Seems to me Locke was doing just fine for himself before he came to this commune he set up. I would probably chose his side just for the idea of ice cubes and showers, but he doesn’t seem to have it all figured out like he did before. We need Charlie here to make some smart remark or add on a new nickname for Locke. (Remember the Great White Hunter?) But I was glad John walked away from Ben when he did.
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8. Ben lived in this house (presumably) for most of his life. I would bet that he also knows a way out of the underground prison. I think he’s staying there to toy with Locke for awhile. If Ben really thinks he’s in danger from the freighter people he will surely disappear.

9. Wow. the Dharma folks shop at WalMart. They sell the Mainstays brand around these parts at least.
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10. Here’s a screencap of the guy yelling at Kate when she walks into the courtroom. One site went as far as to play it backwards and you can hear, “We hate you!” Interesting little twist.
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11. Kate’s lawyer. I think that this is just to get us talking, but check this out about the actor:

Her lawyer, played by Shawn Doyle, previously acted alongside Elizabeth Mitchell, Juliette, in the film Frequency. In the film, he plays a serial killer named Jack Shepard who kills Mitchell’s character after she saves him because her son messes with time travel. Source: Wikipedia

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12. Interesting choice of cities for Jin. Especially considering Kate robbed a bank there and Sawyer’s baby’s momma (Cassie) lives there.
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13. I want to go on the record (again) saying that Jin and Sun are the remaining two of the Oceanic Six. I know that some of you will argue that Aaron was number five, but I don’t know that he’ll count necessarily. And on an aside, if Kate wasn’t preggers when she was taken into custody by the Marshall, then how does she explain the baby (assuming she’s telling everyone back home that it’s hers) when they were only on the island for a few months? She would have to be bringing him back with her from the island in order to claim him as her own. You can’t shove a 6 month old baby up your dress and *pretend* to give birth. Not around where I live, at least. People might get suspicious of that.

14. Why does Sun want to raise her baby back in Korea? Yes, she was running from Jin that day in the airport but she was also running from her father. If she goes back it will be more of the same and Jin will be working again for her dad. Gosh, maybe there is another reason we don’t know yet! Do you think?

15. Creepy boathouse. Looks so much like Jacob’s shack, too.
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16. Oh boy, I hate seeing Kate in a red jumpsuit. Red has not been a good color for anyone on the island. What started out as a joke (the red shirts) has turned into a harbinger of doom and death.
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17. The DA decides to try the case herself. Momma decides she doesn’t want to testify against Kate. Hm, seems like someone might be pulling some strings here…. with the bazillion counts against her and all she gets is probation? And let’s talk again about why the DA is so set with her staying in California? Must be someone or something outside the state that Kate could connect with and make trouble with (fill in the blank for whoever is pulling the strings). Could be Ben. He is very rich.

18. I don’t think that Kate stole baby Aaron. Remember on the island she really didn’t want to hold him. Back home she won’t take a deal for prison time even knowing the charges she faces. I think this is because she made a promise to Claire to take care of him and she knows therefore that she can’t go to prison.

19. Remember that Aaron is also a very special child. The Others kept trying to nab him. The psychic didn’t want her to adopt the baby out. It has been hinted all along he is special. I think Kate knows this. I think that she *has* to pass the baby off as hers because if the *bad guys* found out who the baby really was they would probably try to take him. I think that is also why she was so dead set against bringing him into the courtroom - she knew the media coverage around and wants to keep him out of the spotlight. Not to mention he is still a very young child and I’m not sure what he could possibly do to help build her character in court. Outside of the cute factor of course.

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21. OK so according the Jack they crashed on an island in the South Pacific yet the *airplane* was found off the coast if Indonesia. That is one hell of a swim. I guess really is a hero.

22. I think that whoever the two additional survivors Jack mentions (he says 8 survived but we know only 6 make it back) are survivors that must get killed in whatever dramatic events are about to happen to get these six off of the island. Sawyer? Michael & Walt? Locke?

23. Foffman mentions in the comments that scenes are remniscent of prior scenes in the show. Here’s one - the DA asks Jack if he loves Kate. Just like when (I forgot his name from last season) asks Kate when they are in the cages if she loves Sawyer as he’s about to kill him. She says yes to save Sawyer. I know Jack says no, but later tells Kate he was lying.

24. Why does Kate keep wearing dirty clothes? There are clothes around her size and a washer and dryer.
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25. So Miles can *arrange* to *amend* Ben’s current situation (being held hostage)? And Miles knows that Ben has access to millions of dollars in cash. And Miles suggests to Kate she’s better off on the island (something he’s not telling her?) and that “Who knows, maybe you didn’t survive the crash.” Miles may be a creep, but he has *some* conscience (he gave some of the money back to the grandma). Maybe he’s trying to warn Kate in a subtle way not to go back. Kate wanted more in this scene than to just know if they knew she was a fugitive. That wrap wouldn’t just go away. I think we’ll see more going on with these two.

26. Is it just me or does Kate’s mom bear a striking resemblance to Gwenyth Paltrow?
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27. Remember that Ben *healed* Juliet’s sister Rachel when he wanted to keep Juliet on the island. I’m thinking that Ben has something to do with Kate’s mom living so far past what the doctor’s had expected. Maybe he can’t save her but he can keep her alive. But it won’t come without a price.

28. Dan’s memory is getting better. Maybe he’s not perfect, but it’s better. I think that it’s the healing powers of the island. I think this also tells us why Dan was crying when he saw the plane crash on tv. He couldn’t remember why, but something he knew at one point touched him. What if he has some type of electric shock therapy and it fried his memory? He kind of needs it though if he is going to get them back to the boat (they need the coordinates). I’m sure it will also come into play for scenes we haven’t seen yet.

29. The card that Dan remembers is also in a picture on Aaron’s wall back home. Wonder why this is going to be significant? Unless *gasp* it’s just another meaningless connection that drives us obsessed Lost fans crazy!
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30.  The phones the “Freighties” have sure to have long lasting batteries don’t they?

31.  Kate has a really nice house which I’m sure Oceanic paid for.  But she has those awful red flowers that appear everywhere on the island in front.
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32.  For the record, this is not Juliet’s sister Rachel.  Not even the same actress.
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33.  I would guess that Aaron is at least 2 to 3 years old here.
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1. Eye opening… at the opening. But you knew that. It was Locke’s eye.

2. Ben in the room that the “real” Sawyer was being held. Remember last season when Locke first encounters him all tied up?

3. Loved Locke’s line about the book he gives Ben. “Maybe you’ll catch something you missed the second time around.” Not that I, *ahem,* would watch anything a second time for things I missed….

4. Locke should have know Ben was playing him when Ben asks about the other prisoner, “Miles, is it?” Duh, Ben is the one that told Locke all about the four that came from the freighter and all about Charlotte’s background. So he obviously would know Miles’ name.

5. Do you see the bearded guy yelling at Kate when she was walking through the paparazzi into the courtroom? He really stuck out to me but I couldn’t make out what he was saying. Will for sure have to screen cap him.

6. Katheryn ANNE Austin. We had talked before about Kate possibly being the Annie from Ben’s childhood on the island.

7. Wow, Jin learned English pretty quickly didn’t he? If they’ve only been there 100 days and Jin only found out about Sun’s secret approximately half way, that means he had somewhere in the neighborhood of a month or more to learn the language. Impressive.

8. Interesting that when Jack came to the beach and told Sun and the others that Dan and Charlotte were there to save them, Dan looks down. Yeah, not their primary objective.

9. Creepy when Locke’s hands were all bloody from killing the chicken.

10. Loved it when Hurley asks Kate if she Scooby Doo’d him when she found out where Miles was.

11. Didn’t the boat house look like Jacob’s cabin?

12. Miles wanted to be in the boathouse? I think there was more to this than just wanting to get to Ben. There is a bigger plan at work.

13. The numbers again. Duncan (Kate’s lawyer) tells her to plead down to 15 years. Prosecutor offers four initially.

14. Charges against Kate (I think we’ve seen them all happen). Fraud, Arson, Assault of a Federal Officer, Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Grand Larceny, Grand Theft Auto, and Murder in the First Degree. And 15 years for all this! She’s crazy not to take it unless (here we go again) she knows something. Maybe made a deal with Creepy Eyed Man and his people? They could have swayed the mom and the prosecuting attorney.

15. Of course the “him” is her son but how much time had to have passed since this epi and when Kate meets up with Jack (in the scene at the end of last season)? She says “he” will worry where she is. In the middle of the night why would her kid know she was gone unless it was much later and he was older. And why would the attorney consider bringing in this small child to a courtroom?

16. Busy signal on the phone to the boat? Why? What have they done with Sayid and Desmond? Guess we’ll find out before the first eight end.

17. Wow! Was Jack smoking hot in that courtroom or what? Guess Kate wasn’t the only one that cleaned up nicely.

18. Jack says that there were eight survivors. Maybe…. Michael and Walt make it back to land before the other six? Otherwise there would have to be two that die trying to get back and only the other six of the eight make it.

19. Whatever happens to get the six off of the island must be very dramatic. It must be something that really compromises their morals and feeds all of the post-island guilt. Jack and Kate couldn’t even look at each other in the courtroom when he was telling what happened. I WANT TO KNOW!

20. Loved the movies that Hurley has to choose from. “Xanadu” or “Satan’s Doom.” And, they looked to be VHS tapes. Again with the old school technology.

21. The only words I could hear during the Xanadu song was “Open your eyes…” ironically.

22. OK so Kate uses Sawyer for more than just getting Ben to Miles. So what, Miles knew she was a fugitive. What did she really want to know from him? I think there is more here.

23. So Ben is rich. And Miles knows who he is and “what he can do.” I can’t believe I’m going to say this… but can he somehow time travel? I don’t think he has a machine or anything but perhaps he’s found a way to get off and on the island through some sort of time rip. If I could do that I would get some winning lottery numbers and get rich but perhaps Mr. Fenry used it for evil. OK not evil but something very bad that makes someone off the island spend lots of money to find him.

24. I’m very curious to find out what the $3.2 million is for. Charlotte is already in on it. I’m sure that Miles and Charlotte had a plan before Miles let himself get caught.

25. Daniel has a terrible memory. Remember that. It will be important later.

26. It sounds like Charlotte tells Regina on the phone that Cassie wasn’t answering the other line. Remember that Sawyer’s baby’s momma was Cassie. Coincidence (or fate)?

27. Can I just say that this season has rocked!!

28. Locke is a FREAK putting the grenade in Miles’ mouth. Either he really knows something huge or how could the Six possibly leave everyone else behind with him?

29. Kate can’t get pregnant. Eggtown. Was there some kind of X-Files-esque conspiracy to steal her eggs? Falopian tubes removed and cannot get the eggs to hatch?

30. Red flowers in front of Kate’s house. Those things are everywhere!

31. Aaron. I didn’t see that one coming. I can see why Jack didn’t want to come and see the baby. Guilty conscience. Just another reason to head back to the island. Claire must have given Kate the baby just in case they didn’t get back to rescue them. Not sure why Claire wouldn’t have gone instead of Kate. But, if Desmond saw Claire and Aaron getting lifted into the helicopter I would say that is a sure sign that we will see a rescue of the others by the end of the show. Eeek! I don’t even want to think about the end of the show.

32. I agree. Who cares if Kate leaves the state? I think after this she’s going to have to leave the state to find Penny to get back to the island and save the others left behind. Who really wants her to stick around?

33. Next week looks really cool as they are flying into the electrical storm. If they left in the helicopter at least one day before Jack radioed the boat can it be possible that time moves differently going to and from the island? We know they make it to the boat because the other freighter people are in the preview. I also saw a chalkboard….then again…. it is a Desmond flashie. He has short hair in the preview too. And…. per NBC the flight to the boat causes some unexpected side effects.  Another weird Desmond time/head trip?

See my last post for initial thoughts.

1. Why is the center of the signal going out on North America? Look at the bottom of the phone. At the very least, if they had headed out from Australia, wouldn’t the center of the signal be more in to the West?
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2. As I said in my last post, someone gave the *Christian One* these coordinates so that the plane would be found, not for sunken treasure.
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3. Why is Dan so upset when he hears about Oceanic 815 being found? On one hand, I thought that he is just kind-of a nutty, sensitive guy. But, after seeing all four of the flashbacks, I think that each of them knew something about the plane AND he’s a nutty, sensitive guy. I was really digging the morning hair too.
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4. Daniel Faraday. Apparently, a “faraday” is an electrical unit. If you click on the link, also check out Michael Faraday, a physicist who established the basis for the magnetic field concept in physics.

5. Ben doesn’t seem very pleased but Locke looks happy or amused that Hurley knows about Jacob’s shack.
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6. Colonel Kurtz. Yeah, I see the resemblance. And, I missed hearing Sawyer’s nicknames for everybody!
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7. There is some serious biohazard gear in Daniel’s pack, besides the gas mask. Maybe Ben was actually telling the truth when he warned them that the people on the boat would kill every living creature on the island.
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8. I found it odd that Daniel wore a tie. He’s going to a potentially dangerous island where they are wearing bullet proof vests, packing gas masks and carrying guns and Daniel found it appropriate to wear a tie. I love this guy!
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9. Here is a shot of the boy in the picture at the grandma’s house. I don’t think that we’ve seen him before but, he could become someone from the Lostie’s flashbacks. I was thinking they were showing the pictures more to show that Miles had a conscience, even if it were only there for a moment.
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10. Miles Strohm. Like “maelstrom?” Another Edgar Allen Poe reference.

11. Posters for “Battle Royale” and a large number 15 on the wall. Battle Royale is a novel about a group of children who are gassed on a bus and taken to a deserted island to fight each other to the death.
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12. I really liked the lighting they used in this scene while Miles is talking to the dead grandson.
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13. Daniel says that the light doesn’t scatter right. Interesting because scatter has to do with reflection. I still think that mirrors or some type of reflection is being used here on the island (in the past, I’ve speculated that the use of reflections could be how to explain Walt appearing but talking backwards, the big dipper in the sky being backwards, the mirrors in Desmond’s hatch, and even why the whispers were backwards). It could explain why Hurley saw the cabin in two different spots. Scatter was also the name of a monkey owned by Elvis. Maybe he’s on the island.

13. When Jack tells Miles to put the gun down it reminded me of when Jack & company met up with Mr. Friendly in the woods when the Others had kidnapped Kate. Mr. Friendly warned them that they were surrounded and then the torches lit up. Here, Jack warns Miles then there are gunshots from Sayid & others to show that they are surrounded. The Losties have become The Others to the boat people.

14. I’ve been thinking about the idea that time moves differently off the island, faster perhaps (would explain how Walt has grown so much). But I haven’t been able to establish a real time line off of the island. When the plane is discovered could be a month after it crashed but then when the four boat people arrive it could be a year after the crash, only the Losties think it’s only been 92 days. Maybe we will know when Michael reappears and thinks he’s been gone a very long time when in fact on the island it only seems like weeks.
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15. I still think that as remote of an area that this dig is at, this could have been another one of Dharma’s experimental sites. Maybe there weren’t any people at the time, only animals. Maybe it’s been such a well kept secret that Charlotte is excited to find out it’s real.
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16. This dog always means trouble is around.
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17. More red flowers just in the middle of nowhere.
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18. I’m sure there are those of you out there who remember Kate’s toy airplane and wonder if they will ever resolve that story line. Probably not. And there was a huge reminder in this one for those of you out there who wonder if this and other side stories will ever have a resolution.
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19. Back to the timeframe that the plane went down and then it was “found.” Frank was supposed to be the pilot on Flight 815 but for whatever reason (drinking, it sounds like) he didn’t fly that day and since then has lost his job. But, he had enough time to open a vacation shop? Could he have reasonably done that in just 90 days? Too much time couldn’t have passed or the pilot’s body would not be as intact either.
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20. OK, so why is Locke so po’d that Ben shot Charlotte? Locke threw a knife in Naomi’s back and he’s mad at Ben?

21. I’m assuming here that Naomi is meeting up with Creepy Eyed Man in the former Oceanic offices (big empty room).
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22. After watching this scene again it makes me wonder where Naomi thinks she’s going because she asks several times about possible survivors of Flight 815. But, what does Oceanic have to do with Ben since that is their primary goal. What background must Naomi have as it seems she must be quite the bad ass going in as the 4 boat people’s protector. And what is the specific purpose of each of the four? And…. what is Naomi doing with Desmond’s picture? And not just Desmond, Desmond with Penny!

23. And what does Naomi mean by “A mission like this?”

24. Number on helicopter: N842M. I think that Sayid can fly this thing. Could explain how there are only going to be six getting off the island (there is a panic and Sayid flies them out of there). AND also explains what *them* Creepy Eyed Man asks Hurley about (four boaties plus Naomi).
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25. When Miles calls back to the boat why does Regina tell him that Mankowski can’t come to the phone right now? Has Patchy found the boat? What has happened to them? Is Regina the mole for Ben and she has done something to Mankowski? Drama on the boat!

26. I think that Jack is going to bargain a trade to make sure Juliet gets rescued. There is no way he would agree to leave her behind. I think he’s going to give up where Ben is in order to get Juliet rescued.
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27.  Whoa!  Ben - old school!  So we know some things just from this picture.  Ben has been off of the island since he was a young boy.  But, it appears it either has been a *very* long time (check out the hair and clothes) or he has been hiding since the 70’s.  I think perhaps he infiltrated the DeGroots (remember the video and how they were students in Michigan looking to create a better society) and back on land they know what Ben did with the Others to the Dharma group. He must have found a way to create a “cloak” around the island using the magnetics to prevent others from finding him.
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1. I’m loving Daniel. I think they need to keep him.

2. This reminds me of the group they put together to go back to the island in the 2nd Jurassic Park movie (The Lost World). So far we have the genius physicist (Daniel), the psychic soil sampler (Miles), the anthropologist Charlotte and the drunk pilot. In Jurrasic Park:The Lost World they also send four people back to island *B* to explore the island. And lo and behold, they find another sinister group of people.

3. Jack may be the doctor but it is obvious that Sawyer has the street smarts. Dan admits that saving them is not their primary objective and then because of a distraction Jack lets him walk away before telling them what their objective is. Flash to the other side of the island and Sawyer is questioning Locke up one side and down the other. YES! Finally, somebody asking questions and not backing down.

4. Sawyer probably has it exactly right, that Ben will get them. He probably does have it all planned out. We haven’t seen the Others in awhile. Will they come to save Ben? Why do the boat people want him? They obviously know about the flight, so what does that have to do with Ben and why do they care?

5. Rain as helicopter was trying to land = electrical storm = security system.

6. Daniel & friends may have gas masks for whatever, but back at the barracks they have gas masks too.

7. Notice that the salvage vehicle was called the “Christian One?” (Jack’s dad is Christian). Also, they were searching for remains of sunken trading ships. Like the Black Rock perhaps? Even though they found the plane in the Indonesian Ocean, there is no reason to believe that is anywhere even near where they crashed.

8. The ROV’s were searching in an area of coordinates that they pulled off the guys map. Perhaps they were given that map by someone who wanted them to find the fake plane wreckage site.

9. I don’t know that I can speculate why the four crew members know about Oceanic back at home except that Hanso has something on all of them and that is how they convince them to find the island. But, they have to be told before they go that there are survivors there. Like Sayid said, they didn’t seem really surprised to find them living there.

10. We obviously know now that Mr Creepy Eyes isn’t a lawyer for Oceanic and if he is, well he plays more than one fiddle in that band.

11. Tunisia - remote enough that Hanso could have had another facility there. Why else would there have been a polar bear with a Dharma symbol on it’s collar?

12. Daniel was terribly nervous when he landed. They all have guns. What were they expecting?

13. Vincent! Damn dog! Where has he been?

14. I like how Locke tells Sawyer that Walt is telling him what to do. Locke explains that yes, it’s Walt, only taller. Uh huh, have to explain that growth when he comes back. I wonder if Walt died on the boat with Michael? Maybe Jacob has inhabited the body to talk to Locke?

15. I thought for sure they were going to find Kelvin’s bones in the sandy area where Miles landed. Where the drunken pilot was pulling himself up the cliff also looked like where Jack almost fell off in Season One and Locke came along to save him.

16. Miles is not a nice person. I don’t like how he kept the money from the grieving grandma, but he did give her some of it back. And what was up with the handy Dirt Devil? Reminded me of the goofy contraptions from Ghostbusters. I think he just carried it to cover noise anyway. Need to get screenshots of the grandson.

17. Interesting how Daniel says the light on the island is strange.

18. If Miles is a psychic, won’t it be interesting to see a Miles and Jacob showdown?

19. Dialing the phone can hurt them? Remember that Michael was warned not to try to contact the outside world from the computer in the hatch?

20. Oceanic Hotline 888-548-0034, the number works! It’s just a recording about the flight being found. Yes, of course I called it.

21. Why was Charlotte wearing the bullet proof vest? They really were expecting trouble.

22. Anyone catch the numbers on the helicopter?

23. Ben doesn’t know what the black smoke it? Not sure I’m buying that. I think it’s all part of his plan to only tell what goes along with what he wants them to know to trust him.

24. So Ben has a spy on the boat? How the heck have they been communicating?

More to come! Must screencap. Not obsessed here, no way!

The best one yet. No shoes? Very interesting.

The Looking Glass was the portal to another world. I think this is figurative, like the magic box on the island. *WE* the viewers got to step through the looking glass to see the future. Those crazy writers!

1. We have a major answer this episode. Yes, they are rescued.

2. Now the major new question… who was the newspaper article about? My knee jerk reaction was Michael. But there are so many other really good possibilities:

A) Sawyer. No one likes him. No one liked him before. Why would anyone come to his funeral? Maybe the Sawyer we saw on the island is the Sawyer that went home. Bitter. Pushes Kate away. Why would she go to the funeral? Maybe the *him* that is at home waiting is her baby. Sawyer is the dad so Jack thinks she would go, but Sawyer pushed and Kate didn’t come back.

B) Juliet. Did she have any friends at home? Being the dedicated scientist that she was I would assume that she didn’t get out much. Maybe her sister was dead. Lots of things could have broken Jack and Juliet up back on land (like his incessant need to ride on airplanes) and he feels remorse for abandoning Juliet. He handles the relationship much like he did with his wife. Maybe Juliet killed herself. Why would Kate go to her funeral?

C) Locke. Maybe Jack forces a rescue even though Locke wants to stay. Locke jumps out of a window (this time not making it out alive) and Jack feels guilty for *saving* him from the island only for Locke die.

D) Same for Ben. He wanted to stay on the island but Jack thinks he knows what they need and forces Ben to go back to land.

E) Bernard. They are rescued. Rose’s cancer comes back and she dies. He kills himself with grief.

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On the plane:

3. Whoever it is would have to make such an impact on an already depressed Jack that he decides he doesn’t want to live anymore by jumping off the bridge. Could it be that only Kate and Jack got off of the island (and whoever is in the coffin) and that is why Jack is so distraught?

4. Bernard is not Rambo. He’s a blabbermouth! However…. do the writers want us mad at Bernard so we will forgive them for keeping he and Rose off the show for so long? Does the tactic of telling all to prevent your highjacker from killing someone ever work anyway? And will Rose go Rambo on Bernard when she finds out he ratted them out?
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5. We are getting things in threes again.
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6. Naomi sure healed quickly.

7. I still think that Juliet is evil. How can she not know about the “people” who are trying to get on the island (per Ben)? Of course she gently walks away when Naomi shows Jack how to use the phone. She wants these people to come and destroy the Others. She is po’d especially at Ben. So she lets the Losties in on the Others plan so they end up killing many of the Others (maybe she’s hoping for Ben) and she lets Jack contact the boat.
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8. So what does it mean when Bonnie says about Charlie, “He’s one of them.” Them who? The hostiles? Mikhail shoots before from his house thinking they are hostiles. Or, could she think that Charlie is one of these boat people that Ben is so afraid of? She doesn’t have information on the Losties, seemingly, like the other Others do and from the other info we learn, it seems that these two girls are out of the loop on what is happening above the surface. And where do they sleep? It just looks like two rooms.
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9. Ben’s journal. This is the best picture I could make. Not very high res I guess.
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10. Bonnie is breaking radio silence? Hm, what else is Ben not telling his people?

11. This is not a gun that she’s carrying. It almost looks like one of the immunization guns. What would they be intending to inject them with?
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12. Would they really have been able to ignite the dynamite with a bullet? Check out this article, which also answered my question about the grenade under water.
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13. This really has nothing to do with anything, I just thought it was a cool shot. I guess it does bring back the question… what was up with the smoke signals that Danielle was sending to the Others when she kidnapped Aaron? Wasn’t Claire a little freaked back on the beach when Danielle was standing there staring at her baby? Have the Others lost interest in Aaron now and just want the pregnant mothers? And how about this, if the ship is only 80 kilometers off of the shore (about 50 miles by my math) would they be able to see this smoke? Instead of a huge SOS sign or a carrier pigeon, how about keep HUGE fires going and send out smoke for help?
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14. I’m wondering in the flash forwards how far in the future this is. Sara asks Jack if he has been drinking “again.” I don’t recall Jack being a drunk in the flash backs. His dad was. Jack called out his dad for the drinking. So that means the heavy drinking started after the rescue. That means that Sara has had other contact with Jack since the rescue and my guess would be that the drinking caused some sort of problem already in the relationship. That would also explain why it is *inappropriate* for her to give him a ride home. See kids what drinking will do to your life.

15. I also wonder if we have a starting point for flash forwards and over the next several seasons they will work their way backwards to the day of rescue. Then the flashbacks will continue to work forward and in the finale, the flashbacks, flash forwards and the current events will all meet in the middle.

16. Yes, Sara is very pregnant and very married. Reminds me of the movie Cast Away and when Tom Hanks comes back his love has moved on with her life. How do you find your place in a world that has moved on without you? Talk about L-O-S-T. Seems that Jack is more lost in his life now than before the crash.
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17. “If you say Live Together Die Alone I’m going to punch you in the face.” Hilarious! Why did they put her character on ice for so long?!
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18. Oh Dominic, you so deserve an Emmy for this episode alone. “So if this station floods, what happens to you?” “I die.”
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19. The Others are going to the temple as planned. Can’t wait to see this place. Remember this lady? Maybe she’s there too.
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20. It’s odd that Sawyer has been so shut down considering he found his *redemption* by killing the real Sawyer. But I guess it must not have been the redemption that he was really seeking. Has the guilt of this past caught up with him? He is still hanging on to that anger but why?

21. There is speculation that the woman from the crash *could be* Juliet’s sister. But you just can’t tell from these shots and the little boy would be so much older from when Ben showed him to Juliet back on the island that you really can’t tell from that either.
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22. The new Chief of Surgery is not the same person as Locke’s physical therapist. Two different actors.
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23. Dr. Hammil says that Jack is a hero, twice over. Twice meaning bringing everyone home and then saving the lady from the crash or twice meaning two people in the car? I vote from the crash to the … crash.

24. You can tell by this look that Sawyer really does care about Kate. Of course he doesn’t want her to go, she is pregnant! He cares! But he sure does have a funny way of showing it.
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25. Of course Juliet has to go with Sawyer. She needs to make sure the job is finished. Plus she knows that she still has trust to earn with the Losties. The comment about the UFO seemed like a shout out to us if you ask me. I remember back in season one after they showed the outer space page in Walt’s comic there was talk that the Losties were actually out in space. That is a pretty interesting theory that still is out there.

26. Desmond said before that by his count the Losties had killed more of them then the Other had killed of them (in which Charlie responded that they started it). This is true, the Losties have killed more. But by my count Ben sure is giving a lot of orders to kill people - Jin, Bernard, Sayid, Charlie, Greta, Bonnie - and he’ll probably want Juliet dead at this point. He’s the Charles Manson of the island! He doesn’t want his hands dirty. The only person that Ben has killed, that we’ve seen, is his father and he justifies that as for the island.

27. Why would Greta and Bonnie be on *assignment* in Canada? Recruiters perhaps?

28. Ben let Alex come because he is delivering her to her new family. Ouch. Then he says he kept Karl away because he didn’t want her to get pregnant. *That* actually makes sense, only I don’t think that as a parent I would be using such drastic measures, but I guess you can never say never. hee hee!

29. Alex asks the best question to date, why won’t Ben just let them leave the island. He says he can’t. Why? If the island is as well protected from the outside world how would anyone ever find it again? Who would believe them anyway if they told about this mysterious island with it’s black smoke monster and Others that do crazy experiments? Why not let a few go, the *bad* ones? Why not let the men go and keep the women? Is he keeping them there as hostages purely because he is afraid that they will tell, or is there more going on that we don’t know about yet?
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30. A popular shot.

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31. Whispers again and then whoa! Walt! I’m glad Walt showed up but I’m thinking it solidifies that Jacob, the black smoke and the whispers are all working together. I don’t think that Walt is really there but it is just a manifestation of him. Jacob needs Locke. Whoever is whispering is connected to Jacob. The black smoke can somehow bring forth these visions. I’ve read that Michael and Walt will be back next season too.
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****** SECOND HOUR AND PART TWO IS BELOW!! *********