Eko “must” be alive!
I was reading back in “LOST, The Official Magazine” Issue 4, a Q & A with Damon (I’m not even going to tell you who that is because you should know by now!). Here is one of the questions that when I first read it I didn’t take much note but the season finale had not yet aired. Now it seems to have much more meaning.

Q. “On the Internet, I saw that someone with TiVo saw 10 different images in the ‘monster’s’ smoke. I went home to my old-fashioned VCR and, going frame by frame, I could see a very fuzzy image of a man and another of a lady. Are the images important for us to freeze frame and debate meaning of, or are they just some interesting little things that you’ve added for people who have more sophisticated equipment?
A. …. To answer your question … The images in the smoke are ALL very relevant. Some make sense to you now (like the church from Eko’s flashback), some will make sense to you LATER (like the woman with the headdress)…but all of them are there for you guys, so debate away!!!