THE PACKAGE

Shhhh, we're watching LOST~

I'm not sure about anyone else, but this had to be the most enjoyable episode to watch. Of course, it may have had something to do with the company I was keeping at the time. For the first time ever, I got to watch LOST with a fellow LOSTaholic!

I must explain, for those of you who don't know, that I have many beloved friends whom I have never met. We were brought together by our love and our obsessions with a simple TV show. First we met on the ABC LOST boards, then added each other on Facebook. It was wonderful to have a face and name to go with the screen personnas. We have found that despite sharing the LOST connection we also share so much more. Like many others around the world, we have created our own "cyber family and circle of friends" that has evolved into life long friendships. I'm not sure how to thank ABC, JJ Abrams and LOST for giving us all such a beautiful gift. Nor do I know how to explain how our "cyber family" has come to be. It just has and I am forever grateful.

This past week two "cyber" friends become "real life" friends. True and dear, my friend will be with me forever and although we are separated by distance (and an international boarder) we are close enough that we can visit on long weekends and school holidays. Oh! Before I forget, we've both managed to introduce LOST to our children and create second generation fans.

AND WE GOT TO WATCH LOST TOGETHER!

It was the most amazing and gratifying experience, and one I will treasure for the rest of my life.

SIDE TIME

Once again, we ALL know what transpired, so I'm just going to give you my thoughts on it.

Don't you think that both Keamy and Paik KNEW that it was illegal to carry that much cash into the country? Just a thought, but I'm pretty sure Paik slipped that cash in so that it would be taken away and Sun would be required to visit the bank to get some of HER "not-so-secret" money only to find that her father had emptied and closed the account. It was old lop-sided face Paik's way to tell her he was in control of her life. The fact that he was having Jin deliver the cash to Keamy, and that the money WAS intended as a fee for killing Jin, is both a sign of Paik's bent and twistedly vicious mind and ironic. Very much ironic. But even in the "slightly changed side time" Paik loses, Keamy gets his and, hopefully Jack can save Sun and the baby so Jin and Sun can start a new life in the US.

Now wouldn't that be a proverbial kick in the pants for Paik? Tee hee, I find myself liking that thought.

The fact that Jin and Sun are NOT married (as most of you predicted) at that time also leads me to believe that the "differences" between the original time and the side time go way back since they were for four years prior to boarding Oceanic 815. I'm just not sure how far back. Possibly to the time of The Incident? Did the explosion of the hydrogen bomb, coupled with the release of electromagnetic energy cause a sort of reboot for all our islanders? I'm still not sure, but it's making things pretty interesting.

Let's see what other differences there are:

Jack is divorced with a pre-teen son and is trying to maintain a relationship with him that does not resemble the relationship he had with his still dead father. Jacob touched Jack at the time of his first ever solo surgery on the girl. Kate is still wanted for killing her father and is still on the run. Jacob touched her when she was approximately 10 or 11 years old. James doesn't go by the name of Sayer, is a cop and is using his position to hunt down the man who caused his parents' deaths. He still plans to kill Anthony Cooper.

Miles is a cop as well, and has a girlfriend. I'm not sure if he has the "gift" of talking with the dead. His father works at a museum with Charlotte, so we know that he grew up with both parents now. There was no mention of Charlotte or Miles being born on the island, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen. Ben has a doctorate in European History and teaches at an LA high school alongside Dr. Leslie Arzt and the substitute teacher named John Locke, who lost his job at the box factory after using company funds to try to take a "walkabout" in Australia instead of attending conferences. Roger Linus was not killed by Ben in the purge and Alex Rousseau grew up in LA with her mother working three jobs just to make ends meet.

Are you still with me?

Helen is still alive. But her date of death is a few years away. Remember, this is 2004 in side time and she supposedly died in 2006.

Patchy has TWO eyes, well, HAD two eyes until Jin took aim, and works for Keamy. Still not doing "good" things, since Omar and Keamy are still sort of like "mercenaries for hire" and to what ever the highest bidder is willing to pay. As an aside, Patchy used to be somewhat good looking, don't you think? Claire arrives in LA to find that the people who were supposed to adopt her baby have split and didn't have the decency to call or write of their change of plans. Ethan is a doctor off island, but appears to be obsessed with NOT poking people with needles.

Sayid was still a torturer during the Gulf War, and is still consumed by guilt for his actions. His brother is married to the love of his life, and he is still stepping up and cleaning up Omer's (not Omar, Keamy's lackey) messes and killing people. Hurley still won the lottery and still owns many companies, some of which some of our Lostaways actually work for. He also believes he is the luckies guy in the world.

Who have I forgotten? Let me know.

Another thing that was pointed out to me by a friend is the use of reflections in the side times. Each character who is a candidate is seen looking in the mirror (or in Ben's case reflected in the door of the microwave), as if examining the events of their lives. I'm sure this is significant, but haven't decided yet how.

Original time, 2007

I have to tell you that I am finding this point in the island time a bit dark, yet completely absorbing. Our crash survivors are clearly divided, and on has been kidnapped by Widmore's people. Speaking of kidnapping, as soon as I saw that tranquilizing dart that hit Jin, I immediately thought of when the Other's ambushed Hurley, Jack, Kate and Sawyer at the end of Season Two. Almost the same method, don't you think?

Flocke, Smocke or MIB. What ever you call him, it was revealed that he NEEDS all the candidates together and with him in order to leave the island. He already has James and Kate, who's name apparently appeared on the cave wall but is no longer there, but has lost Jin and has to go try to get him back.

The little chat between Chuckie and Smocke was interesting. That Widmore had erected the pylons that keeps the Smoke Monster at bay is telling. He certainly knows a lot more than what's been revealed to us and than what he's told Smocke. And he certainly has no intention of allowing MIB to leave the island. Ironic that he's the one who sent John Locke on the quest to take the Oceanic 6 back to the island and provided MIB with the "means" of possibly escaping his paradise prison. Another interesting thought is that both he and Ben, despite being adversaries, may actually end up fighting on the same side in the end. Just a thought.

Wasn't it heart warming to watch Jin seeing pictures of his daughter for the first time? This is important as it gives him a motive to want to leave the island by any means possible. So that leaves us wondering what he would do if it's revealed that he is the one to take Jacob's place as guardian of the island (although I don't think that is the case).

Smocke tried to get Sun to cross over to his side, but she is one strong woman who relies heavily on her intuition. The only thing Sun wants is to reunite with her husband, return to Korea to their daughter and live life's roller coaster ever after. Her heart's desire notwithsatanding, she followed her intuition and ran from Smocke, falling and hitting her head in the process. The loss of her spoken English was the result, and this has already caused her frustration while trying to communicate with everyone else. Are you thinking that MIB took that ability away from her so that she would go searching for Jin, thus placing her into his camp?

Richard is back! And he is on a mission. It's almost like the knowledge that his beloved Isabella is by his side in spirit was a catalyst for him. He knows what needs to be done now. Stop the Man In Black from leaving the island by all means possible. First of all, destroy the plane, which appears to be the survivor's only way off the island. Not that Sun appreciates his efforts.

Jack helps Sun to understand why they must do what they must do and gives her Charlie's Sharpie Pen and a pad of paper to express her voice. I guess he couldn't find a pencil, because what if the Sharpie runs out of ink? And she could erase things and reuse the paper if it takes her a long time to get her "English" back. With a pen, that kind of can't happen.

According to Widmore, should MIB escape the island, everyone associated with it will cease to exist. I'm not sure if he means that they all die (because MIB will likely kill them once he doesn't need them) or if they just go poof as if they had never been born. But if that happens, what about the rest of humanity? What about the people the LOSTaways knew and loved in the outside world? Widmore has his own idea of how to stop MIB from leaving the island and I think it has something to do with those pockets of electromagnetism that Zoe was asking Jin about.

And he has an ace up his sleeve as well. I'm not sure why or how he did it, but he has Desmond (the package) back on the island. Like Paik, Widmore's actions could have serious consequences for his relationship with his daughter. I hope the side time Widmore isn't such a cruel SOB and allows his daughter to marry Desmond. He could be a great grandfather.

As an aside, do you think Widmore and Eloise Hawking are together? Penny and Daniel could have grown up together!

My friend pointed out something glaringly obvious. Each time Smocke tries to convince one of the candidates to "cross over" to his camp, he holds out his hand. He did it with Sayid. He did with James. He tried it with Kate, but she didn't take it. I can't recall if he did it with Jin. He tried it with Sun, and she didn't take it. When Claire was upset about her name not being on the wall, he held out his hand for her to take. There is meaning in this, but I can't quite find a way to figure it out yet.

Interestingly, when Jack was talking to Sun on the beach and had given her the pen and paper, he too held out his hand for her to touch. It can be interpreted as a comforting touch, but I get the feeling, as does my friend, that it is significant. Does Jack's touching Sun make her immune to Smocke's touch?

The battle lines are almost drawn and soon we will find ourselves observing the war that is coming. Who will win? Who will survive? Who will take Jacob's place and keep the cork in the bottle?

I have had a thought about the two times that is a sort of loose interpretation of the book title, "All That Rises Must Converge". I think that in each time line our characters will be brought together to the same place. Possibly at the hospital in the 2004 time, where Jack will be required to choose which patient to assist (maybe?). In 2007, they may meet on the Hydra (since the plane seems to be the destination for both camps). When both times are together, the survivors will find the power they need to do what ever it is that each needs to do.

In no way am I looking forward to the end of this series. I am very aware that characters whom I have invested six seasons in (and countless hours of intense thought and speculation), can be killed off at the drop of a banana leaf or coconut to the noggin. I have no idea, after all this time, who will choose to do what. I thought I knew, but now not so much. This season is all out chaos and there is no way to predict which way our beloved LOSTaways will turn.
DID YOU NOTICE?

Ilana finally changed her clothes.

This is the first time that all the cast who are full time credited cast members have appeared in the one episode. The last time we saw them all was in LA X.

The only living character who has bee a part of the main cast and has left the island and not returned is Walt.

The map Zoe showed Jin really didn't resemble any map of the island we have seen before.

Locke said "Whatever happens, happens".

Keamy said "Happily Ever After", which it the name of the next episode.

Widmore called Flocke evil and said must he be stopped, yet Ben and the other characters once referred to Widmore the same way.

Miles is annoyed that Hurley brought Richard back, while Ilana is happy he did.

Jin's room number was 842.

QUESTIONS:

Why does Widmore need to find the pockets of electromagnetic energy?

How did Widmore manage to kidnap Desmond?

Why does Smocke need all the candidates in order to leave the island?

Why can't Smocke swoosh across water?

If Dharma knew that Smokey couldn't travel over water, why didn't they just stay on Hydra and eliminate the threat of his possible attacks?

Where did all those people that Widmore brought to the island in the sub sleep? That's an awfully small sub. And where did he store all the equipment, in a tow along tube?

QUOTES:

LOCKE: Well Jin, I'm not sure. But what it does mean is that the only way we can leave the island is if all the names that haven't been crossed off go together.

SAYID: I don't feel anything.

LOCKE: Excuse me?

SAYID: Anger. Happiness. Pain. I don't feel it anymore.

LOCKE: Maybe that's best, Sayid. It'll help you get through what's coming.

MILES: Unless Alpert's covered in bacon grease, I'm not sure Hurley can track anything...

FRANK: Hey, don't talk about bacon.

LOCKE: I promised you I would reunite you two... took me a little longer than I thought it would... but he's with my people, back at my camp across the island. I can take you to him right now.

SUN: I don't believe you. You killed those people at the temple...

LOCKE: Those people were confused. They were lied to. I didn't want to hurt them. Any one of them could have chosen to come with me. And I'm giving you that choice, Sun... right now. I would never make you do anything against your will. I'm asking you. Please. Come with me. Jin's waiting.

[Sun runs away]

ZOE: It's called Room 23. The Dharma Initiative was doing experiments on subliminal messaging in here. But... you know all about the Dharma Initiative... don't you, Mr. Kwon?

BEN: What? Oh, for the fourth time, I was gathering mangoes and she was already unconcious when I found her. Why won't you believe me?

ILANA: Because you're speaking.

MILES: This is your fault isn't it?

HURLEY: Sorta.

So, what did you think? Am I way off with some of my ideas?

Next week brings us Happily Ever After, and for some reason, I think it's a myth. I don't think, in the world of LOST, there is such a thing. We will have to see, yes?