I Wish You Believed Me

So…are you angry? Surprised? Sad?

A combination of all three?

I was surprised. Probably shouldn’t have been, but I was.

I think we all knew characters were going to start dying. What I didn’t expect, though, was to lose three regulars in such a short time. When Sayid went Kablooey!, I didn’t expect Sun and Jin to be right behind him.

And I’ll get to all of that, because I’m sure that’s what stuck with you most from “The Candidate,” but first, let’s recap Sideways World.

Jack Finds the Pieces
I felt like the Sideways storyline was lacking this week. There wasn’t a real punch. Maybe I was expecting the writers to take a bold step with the sideways plot, and instead it felt like they were just shuffling their feet.

Sure, Jack started realizing that everyone he’s encountering was on Flight 815 with him: John, Claire, Dr. Bernard Nadler (Rose’s husband and John Locke’s dentist). Plus, he’s already met Desmond (and Desmond, in the hospital, was looking for Charlie and he told Jack he was on Oceanic 815).

So I have to think Jack is going to start putting those pieces together (with a little help from Desmond, maybe?).

And we saw that John Locke’s dad, Anthony Cooper, is the same guy we saw in the original reality—only now, he’s a vegetable because Locke convinced him to fly with him on his first flight after receiving his pilot’s license…and he crashed. If he’s the same “Anthony Cooper” Sawyer is looking for, just like he was in the original reality, then I assume Sideways Sawyer will never get his revenge. Because what kind of satisfaction could Sawyer possibly get from that?

The only other notable event in Sideways world was Jack offering to let Claire stay with him:

Claire: Stay with you? We’re strangers.
Jack: No, we’re not strangers. We’re family.

Now on to the island…

Locke Monster and Widmore: Working Together
I said it weeks ago, then I changed my mind…and now I’m saying it again. Widmore and Locke Monster are in cahoots.

They’re working together…and pretending like they aren’t.

The goal: Confuse the candidates…and eventually get them to kill each other.

Sure, you can believe Widmore really locked them in the cages for their own good. Sawyer doesn’t believe it, and neither do I.

Locke Monster set this all up. He allowed Sawyer and friends to hijack his boat, knowing they’d run to Widmore. Widmore, though, locked them in cages. Locke Monster comes to break them out of the cages, and during this time, Widmore just so happened to be MIA.

Then Locke Monster is all like: “Hey, Widmore wanted us to blow up on this plane. It’s not safe…let’s take the sub.”

Maybe Widmore and Locke Monster aren’t working together, and Locke Monster is just manipulating Widmore’s efforts to his own advantage. But I think Widmore wants the candidates dead just as badly as Locke Monster does.

I think Widmore has his own motivations concerning the pockets of electromagnetism and one Desmond Hume, and I think Locke Monster might want to hinder those endeavors, but I think they all want the candidates to die.

Where Was Widmore?
When Locke Monster was killing all of Widmore’s men, where was the boss man? Hiding in one of the Hydra Island buildings? Or…maybe he took The Elizabeth (Desmond’s old ship, which Sawyer and friends used to commute over to Hydra Island) back to the main island. Why, you ask?

I have an idea…

Operation: Retrieve Desmond
Sayid’s last words were:

Sayid: Listen carefully. There’s a well on the main island…Desmond’s inside it. Locke wants him dead. Which means you’re going to need him, do you understand me?
Jack: Why are you telling me this?
Sayid: Because it’s going to be you, Jack!

So you can bet that Jack’s next course of action will be to fetch Desmond. Except, I have a feeling someone’s already beaten him to it.

That’s right, I think Widmore (and his sidekick Zoe) might have already retrieved Desmond. How, you ask? Well, remember when they showed Zoe and her team spying on Locke Monster’s camp during that scene when Kate and Sawyer were talking around the campfire?

If they have that capability, then don’t you think they could have used the same surveillance to watch Locke Monster throw Desmond into the well? Or to watch Sayid not kill Desmond?

I think Widmore was waiting for Locke Monster to come to Hydra Island so it would be safe for him to fetch Desmond.

Sawyer’s Plan Goes Terribly Wrong…Again

Really? THIS was your plan?

Effective immediately, I think Sawyer should be banned from ever coming up with a new plan. After all, Sawyer’s plans always seem to coincide with what Locke Monster wants. First, he stole the boat and led the group into Widmore’s custody.

Then, he came up with the brilliant “Jack is going to push Locke into the water” plan. Which Jack carried out to perfection. The only problem, however, is that it accomplished nothing. Pushing a smoke monster into the water? Really?

And then, when Jack was right on, Sawyer didn’t listen:

Jack: Locke can’t kill us.
Hurley: Uh, what?
Jack: This is what he wanted all along. He wanted to get us here. He wanted to get us all in the same place at the same time. An enclosed space that we can’t get out of.
Jin: I don’t understand.
Jack: Locke said he can’t leave the island without us. I think he can’t leave until we’re all dead. He said he could kill any one of us whenever he wanted. So what if he hasn’t because he’s…he’s not allowed to.
What if he’s trying to get us to kill each other?
Sawyer: Stay out of my way, Doc.
Jack: If he wanted to kill us, why put a timer on it? Why not just throw it inside?
Sawyer: I don’t know.
Jack: He can’t kill us. Nothing is going to happen.
Sawyer: I’m not going to stand here and do nothing!
Jack: James, we’re going to be okay. You just have to trust me.
Sawyer: Sorry, Doc, I don’t.

I don’t necessarily blame Sawyer for not trusting Jack. After all, it was Jack’s nuclear bomb plan that led to Juliet’s death. And Sawyer wasn’t present for the dynamite scene with Richard and Jack in The Black Rock, either. So I understand why he didn’t have such blind faith in Jack.

But I’m just saying, this should be strike 3 for Sawyer, and he should be reduced to a grunt—not a general—from now on.

What I’m really afraid of is that Sawyer will wake up and realize his “pull all the wires as fast as I can” plan led to the deaths of Sayid, Sun, and Jin (and maybe Lapidus?), and after that, he’s going to turn into mopey, sorry-for-myself Sawyer again.

Either that, or he’ll start trusting Jack. I’m hoping for the latter.

Sayid’s Heroic Exit

Man with a bomb coming through!

It’s great that his life ended on a positive note: he told Jack about Desmond in the well (so we know for certain Sayid didn’t kill Desmond, which is also a good thing), and then he ran away with the bomb, saving (at least temporarily) the rest of the group.

But was it even necessary? I rewound that explosion like 3 times, and Sayid didn’t latch a door behind him or do anything to contain the blast area. He just ran away with the bomb and it blew up…killing him. But if he hadn’t taken the time to talk about Desmond, he could have run away with the bomb, thrown it to that same explosion point, and he would have had time to run back…sure it still explodes, but then they have Sayid there to help rescue Sun (and save Jin).

Just saying, if the writers wanted to make it look like this was the only option, they could have done a better job.

I liked Sayid, and I think his death showed that redemption for him was still possible. I would have liked to see him live a little longer, but if he had to go, it was a good way to do it.

Sun and Jin Die…Together
Much like Sayid, if Sun and Jin had to go, this was a good way to do it:

Sun: Jin, you have to go.
Jin: No, I can do this.
Sun: No, no you can’t. Please go.
Jin: I won’t leave you.

Jin submerges again…

Jin: I’m going to get you out of here.
Sun: Please, go!
Jin: I won’t leave you.
Jin (in Korean): I will never leave you again.
Jin: I love you, Sun.
Sun: I love you.

They kiss.

We see their hands holding on under water…until their hands separate.

As sad as that scene was, it was the exchange right before that one that touched me most. When Jack was trying to give Jin the last breathing tube:

Sun: Jin, go!
Jin: No!

Jin to Jack: Go, I’ll get her free!
Jack: No, we can do this!
Jin: No, save Sawyer!

Jack: Take this. I can get him out without it.
Jin: No, you can’t, Jack. Just go.

Jin’s words might have been, “No, you can’t, Jack. Just go.” but what he was communicating to Jack was, “I know that it’s hopeless, but I have to keep trying. There’s no point in giving me that breathing tube, and we both know it.”

Though I’ve rarely thought about it, Jack and Jin aren’t so different. They’re both strong-willed, stubborn. And once they make up their mind, it’s not going to change. And in that look between Jack and Jin, I think Jack understood perfectly. After all, in the Sideways portion of this episode, Jack admitted that he’s not good at letting go. Though it was hard for him to let Jin and Sun go, he knew Sawyer needed to be saved. And I think he understood exactly what Jin was thinking. If Jack didn’t have to save Sawyer, I don’t think Jack would have left either.

Sad stuff. But powerful.

Kate’s Not on The List
Well, it’s time for my weekly attempt to convince everyone that Kate is important after all. Basically, Sawyer thinks Kate’s expendable because he saw her name on the cave ceiling, and it was crossed out…and Widmore reinforces that belief by saying that he had a list of names and Kate wasn’t on it.

Kate tries to tell Sawyer that Widmore wasn’t going to shoot her, but Sawyer doesn’t buy it.

I think we can go two ways with this (disclaimer: both options are heavily shaded by my belief that Kate is relevant):

1) Locke Monster and Widmore know that Sawyer can be manipulated by his loyalty to Kate. So that’s why Locke Monster let Sawyer see Kate’s name crossed out on the cave wall. And it’s why they’re perpetuating the myth that Kate isn’t important. To keep Sawyer in line.

2) Maybe they genuinely believe she isn’t a candidate…but, wait for it…she still is! I like this theory, but maybe that’s just because I’ve been holding on to the belief that Kate’s important for a long time. But maybe, just maybe, it all goes back to what Kate did or didn’t do involving that explosion that killed her dad/step-dad.

I know I’m on an island here, being the only one who still cares about Kate’s character, but I still think it’s interesting that, in her flashback, Jacob said to her, “Be good, Katie.” Assuming that had significance, then maybe if she wasn’t “good,” it would disqualify her from being a candidate….and maybe that’s why Locke Monster and Widmore think her name should be crossed out… I don’t know. I’ll quit talking about Kate now, but I just hope I’m right so I can say “Ha!” (Because I’m petty like that.)

Screwball Theory I hope is Incorrect
In Sideways reality, we learn that Locke got his pilot’s license. Well, on the island, the sub blew up, but the plane is still intact. Only we don’t know if Lapidus is still living. So if they’re going to get off the island, and if Frank is dead, someone’s going to have to fly the plane.

I hope it doesn’t involve Locke’s consciousness transferring to Smoke Monster (I don’t even think this is possible, because Locke’s real body is buried on the beach) so he can fly the plane. But I do think it’s odd that we learned in Sideways world that Locke has his pilot’s license. Just seemed like a strange (and potentially relevant) inclusion.

More likely, Jack will fly the plane. Way back in “The Pilot,” he says he took flying lessons, but it “wasn’t for me.” And Jacob says Jack has something he’s supposed to do. It could be that…I don’t think so, but it could be.

Though why anyone needs to leave on the plane, I don’t know. The characters who had the best reason to leave the island (Sun and Jin) just died. Sayid was also determined to leave, and he’s dead.

Snippets

I laughed out loud when Bernard accused Jack of flirting with Rose while he was in the bathroom on Oceanic 815. It wasn’t all that funny, but it caught me off-guard. It was a weird thing to say.

In fact, I think Bernard seemed odd throughout his scene with Jack. Why would he remember Anthony Cooper’s name?

I liked this exchange:
Locke: If we move right now, we can break your people out, run for the plane and be off this island before Widmore knows what happened.
Jack: They’re not my people. And I’m not leaving the island.

I still find it odd that Jack and the others are willing to work with a thing that can turn into a deadly smoke monster…I realize they’re trying to outwit him, but still, they run around with him as if it’s no big thing.

Loved this:

We hear smoke monster noises.
Hurley: And we’re dead…

Paging Ben Linus, Myles Straume, and Richard Alpert…Paging Ben Linus, Myles Straume, and Richard Alpert…Please come rejoin the plot as soon as possible.

That’s twice the Losties have abandoned Claire. I wonder if there will be any fallout from that…

One of the best lines of the season:

Locke: You sure you won’t reconsider, Jack? Whoever told you you needed to stay had no idea what they were talking about.
Jack: John Locke told me I needed to stay.

Then Jack pushes Locke Monster into the water.

Questions:

1) Any significance to the music box Christian left for Claire? Maybe a way of encouraging her to keep the baby? Any other ideas?

2) Is Lapidus dead? I’m assuming yes, but who knows?

3) If Jack’s right, and Locke Monster can’t kill them…then shouldn’t Sayid be alive? Because the bomb was created by Locke Monster, right? Or is it because Sawyer was the one who pulled the wires, which means that Sawyer was responsible, which is what made them vulnerable?

4) Sayid’s last words to Jack were: “Because it’s going to be you.” What does that mean exactly? Is it just me, or does that sound significant?

5) When Claire asked if everyone on the sub was dead, Locke Monster said, “Not all of them.” Does he know this because he knows he still isn’t free? The cork is still in place, so to speak?

6) What are the rules preventing Locke Monster from killing? He killed the Temple People. He killed Widmore’s people. But if Jack is right, he can’t kill them. But it’s not just the “candidates” he can’t kill, because he couldn’t kill Desmond either. So who can he kill and who can’t he? And why?

7) The three characters (excluding Sawyer for the moment) who seemed to be most interested in leaving the island just died in this episode. Jack already said he wasn’t leaving. But what about Kate, Hurley, and Sawyer? Will they keep trying to leave? Or did their plans just change? (I’m betting their plans changed when they learned Desmond was on the island. Sawyer might still want to leave, but as I said above, I think his decision-making rights should have been revoked a long time ago.)

8 ) I’m assuming Kate lives, even though she got shot. Is she just going to shrug it off, or will it factor into the storyline somehow? Will the island heal it? Will she need to be carried to the Temple’s Healing Spring (which, last we checked, wasn’t functioning properly)?

9) Did anyone else love the preview for next week’s episode? (It ties in very nicely with the theme for this blog, don’t you think?) If there are only “two sides, light and dark,” is it more likely, assuming Locke Monster is the dark side (Star Wars pun not intended), that Widmore is on the light side, or also on the dark side?