LOST: Episode 5.15

Follow the Leader

Ah, but which one do you follow? John Locke? Jack Shepard? Ben Linus? Richard Alpert? Jacob? Charles Widmore? Eloise Hawking? Who's good? Who's evil? Who's right? Who's wrong? It boggles the mind that this show is still so good despite having not answered any of those questions in any satisfactory way. Yet.

You know, looking at that list of leaders, it really highlights the fact that the writers for this show don't know how to write strong women (and some would argue that they don't know how to write for women at all). That's a shame because if they did, this show would have been as close to perfect as any TV show can get.

Anyhoo, some thoughts.

• I think Daniel was right when he said "whatever happened, happened", and his change of heart when he came back from Ann Arbor was really just wishful thinking on his part (although I suppose something, or someone, in Ann Arbor could have changed his mind).  I think he wanted his theory of The Variable to be true because that would mean he could save Charlotte.  I think Jack's plan (nee Daniel's) will not work and that whatever he does will actually cause the incident that leads to the pushing of the button in the Swan, which when not pushed will cause their plane to crash.  Whatever happened, happened, and you if you try to change it, the universe will course correct.  That's my position and I'm sticking to it.
• Speaking of 'The Incident' (which is the title of the finale, BTW), I was mistakenly assuming all this time that this was the same incident referred to on Radzinsky's blast door map;  but he calls it "The Incident of 1985", and this is all happening in 1977.  He also writes about an "accident" on the map.  Is it the same thing?  I think it might be time to re-visit the map (click image for larger version).

• I was irritated with both Jack and Kate last night.  I guess I was hoping for some character development from them, but they seem to be up to their old tricks again.  Granted, Jack is more of a Locke-style believer now, but he's still retained his most defining (and boring) characteristic: The need to fix everything - even if he has no idea WTF he is doing and it involves a bloody hydrogen bomb.  I give props to Kate for walking away from all that, but she just HAD to go and ruin the Sawyer/Juliet happy ending, didn't she?  Juliet's face when Kate was brought down into the sub was just crushing:

• I almost yelled "SAYID!" out loud when they revealed him as the shooter.  I had forgotten all about him!  Yay, Sayid! I wonder what he's been doing since he shot Ben?  It's only been a couple of days, right?  I also like how he had to fix his ponytail when he got out of the water.
• So, Locke wants to kill Jacob??  To what end?  And who knew Jacob could even BE killed?  Is the Island instructing Locke to kill him?  Or is John now a manifestation of the Island (or smoke monster) ? This makes me wonder just exactly who - or what - John Locke is, or has become.
• I loved the compass scene and how gobsmacked Richard and Ben were while watching the whole thing go down.
• Who or what is Richard Alpert? (He's a wee man, isn't he?)  Was the ship-in-a-bottle scene a hint as to his origins?  The Black Rock, anyone?
• I am so glad that Miles told his father who he really was, and he got to see why his father sent them away.
• One minor nitpick: It would have been nice to see Jack - or Sayid - refer somehow to the weirdness of those ancient tunnels with Egyptian carvings.  It was like the Mines of Moria down there and they don't ask?
• Lastly, I am still amazed at how paranoid and violent these Dharma people - and the Others - are.  The only thing the prevents me from shooting the TV when Radzinsky is on it is the knowledge that he will one day blow his own brains out.
• Actually, one more thing: Sawyer is totally going to kill Phil next week!

So, what did you think?