Anyway, so that's two pretty meaningful episodes back-to-back. And two episodes that seem to point to something funny with time. And two episodes that give us different ways of looking at the show and the island.
So like Des, when we see other flashbacks, so you think they have the ability to change their actions, but they just are not aware of it? Maybe the flashbacks aren't really flashbacks and the people are experiencing important segments of their past, given a second (or one billionth, in Jack's case) chance to change a decision that they made that brought them to the island. Whenever any major character on the island dies (except for Libby, I suppose) we are treated to a flashback where they receive some amount of closure. What if originally, that never actually happened? We are seeing them change the course of their history and somewhere in the world, Ana Lucia and Mr. Eko have woken up from a really weird dream in which they died.
Maybe Dharma/Hanso was doing experiments with time travel in an attempt to change the course of the world's history. Maybe that 26 year old with a 70 year old's body actually is 70 years old (in real-world time). One of Hanso/Dharma's research projects were about life extension. In conjunction with that, perhaps they have found a way to partially increase one's life span. And maybe they cannot reproduce because for whatever reason, their reproductive organs age at a real-world rate. They have created this ‘utopia,' where they can live for exponentially longer than the rest of the world, but they cannot reproduce, so when they eventually die, their utopia will die too.
So that's my updated theory on Lost. Forgive me if it's confusing or incoherent, my head is a bit foggy today.
On to other things I liked about last night ep:
- The reminders in Desmond's "flashbacks" that he was on the island. From the microwave beeping, to the 815 reference, to the clock showing 1:08, to the music in the bar - I love those things.
- Charlie singing ‘Wonderwall' on the street. That just made me laugh.
- The idea that Charlie might die (though I seriously doubt that that will come to pass anytime soon). Last night reminded me why since his almost death in season one, I haven't really liked Charlie. For my money, the most unattractive trait in any person, real or fictional, is jealousy. I don't know what color eyes Charlie has, but they should be green. I do still like Dominic Monaghan though.
- No Jack, Kate or Sawyer. I have always really liked Sawyer, but it was nice to have an episode without all three of them.
- The creepy white haired lady. I thought she looked familiar, so I looked her up on IMDb, and guess what movie she's in? The Others! That's gotta be a coincidence, right?
- Henry Ian Cusick being able to act and not just brood or run around wide eyed.
- Sonya Walger (the actress who played Penny) was as welcome as she was last time I saw her. I would happily sit through a season of Juliet, Desmond and Benry flashbacks.
- And as much as I don't really care for Charlie as a character, I applaud him for actually questioning stuff. Not like Locke and his "The Island killed Mr. Eko. Bwahahahaha!" (Though if my theory is right and Eko found closure because of the island, then I guess Locke is right.)
- Funny bit on continuity I just came across in regard to the Sawyer porn (the quote is from the very beginning of season one): Jack: "What's in the bag?" Sawyer: "Booze, smokes, couple of Playboys. What's in yours?" Jack: "Medicine." Sawyer: "Well, that about sums it up, don't it?"
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Ok, let me be a little clearer: I don't have a problem with postulating that
aliens exist (because whether they are green-skinned or not, they probably
do and it's very self-centered of humans to think that they don't). I just
don't want the explanation of why the island exists to be The Aliens Did It!
That's all.
And while I don't think time travel is possible, there are scientific
theories out there that postulate that it is, so if time travel would be
involved, so long as there is a thought-out explanation, I'm cool with that.
The way I think of it is straight out of Donnie Darko, and if you analyze
that movie, I think it is a pretty plausible argument for time travel in
that world. But I don't think that world has to be our world, and neither
does the world of Lost. It can be strikingly similar, but I also think it's
clearly different and I have never expected a "real world" explanation of
the series. I mean, if you are willing to believe that a plane that split in
half allowed for ANY survivors at all, let alone the number that are on the
island, I don't really think that alternate realities are that much of a
stretch, especially when based in some theory.
And while I don't aim to change your opinion of the episode as a whole, I
heartily disagree that it was just a filler ep. I think that it was intended
to be one of the more, if not most, important episodes of the season. (And I
have a read a number of interviews with the producers that hint to that.)
Yeah, next week we find out why Jack got his tattoos and maybe some other
stuff (though I don't know if I believe them when they promise 3 big answers
– Jack's tattoos aren't a BIG answer anyway), but what is that going to tell
us about the show as a whole? Unless reading his arm is the secret to
getting off the island, I don't think it's gonna help anyone that much.
And I am certainly curious as to why Locke was in his wheelchair, but is
that really going to tell us anything about the island? We'll be lucky if it
gives us some insight into Locke's character.
I would argue that while some fans of the show would say that the origin of
Jack's tattoos and Locke's reason for paralysis are more important than last
night's episode, in the end, last night will be much more important to
understanding the series as a whole.
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