Thursday LOST Roundtable: Dr. Linus

LOST spoilers below the image!

This week on LOST, Ilana learns that Ben killed Jacob and seeks out revenge, while Jack tests his new-found faith at the same moment that Richard Alpert has lost his own. Meanwhile, Sideways Ben has to choose between power and someone he cares about.

Check out the discussion after the jump, and leave your own reactions and theories in the comments (with no spoilers for upcoming episodes).

General thoughts on the episode?

JILL: Loved! I know I said that last week, but Season Six keeps getting better and better, especially after that stab-worthy Jack episode. I also do love me a good Ben episode. And I liked that this episode was so funny — Miles had some amazing moments.

CARA: I love a good Ben episode, too. Much as I usually hate Ben as a person, I love his character. I didn’t think the episode was jaw-dropping, but I loved how we got a whole lot of little tidbits along the way. That’s the kind of thing that keeps me happy. Also, Richard! And Arzt! (That last one was just for you, Sady.)

SADY: ARRRRRRRRRRRZT! They just keep going out of their way to make me happy, don’t they? MORE ARZT, I say! NOTHING BUT ARZT! Have Hurley ditch his conversations with Jacob and reconnect with the benevolent spirit of ARZT!

LAUREN: As usual, some of the storytelling here was heavy-handed, re: the burdens of power, but regardless Michael Emerson (Ben) is hands-down one of my new favorite actors. He sells the hell out of Ben’s story. And dudes, MILES GOT THE DIAMONDS!

CARA: Yes, I was thrilled to see a little bit more of Miles! Now if only they’d give Sun something to do … why they’re wasting Yunjin Kim’s talents so blatantly and disgracefully, I do not know.

SALLY: I also loved this episode – two thumbs up!

In Ben’s flash sideways, he works as a teacher, Alex is his student, and he’s also a caretaker for his dad. He seems to generally be a far more giving, selfless person. What do we make of the changes?

JILL: I was actually surprised by how different Ben is — my suspicion about the flashes-sideways was that they would reveal that everyone is fundamentally the same, even in different circumstances. I kept expecting Ben to gas his dad, or to sacrifice Alex for his own ambition. And he didn’t! (Even though he’s still a little bit ruthless, or “a killer” as that spider-man science teacher said). So perhaps Ben is more a product of his circumstances than an actual Bad Guy?

LAUREN: I feel like island Ben — kind of like schoolteacher Ben — went through the motions of his life for a greater purpose without really understanding why he was doing the things he did. There was a purpose of course, the magical mysterious island in one world and THE CHILDREN in the other, but Ben doesn’t act like he really gets why or how he fits in to the bigger picture. The kicker of this story is, like I mentioned above, the burden of power that he accepted on-island (an empty power, I’d argue, since he was kept in the dark by Jacob), and how that changed him as a person. It made him meaner, more calculated.

CARA: I actually read a really interesting theory by Ack that kind of has me convinced. She suggested that this is what Ben is like if he had never been healed by the Others’ magical swimming pool. Remember how Richard said that he would never be the same? And how Mini-Ben was kind of how adult Ben is in the flash sideways, genuine, caring, and prone to being walked all over?

LAUREN: Yes! And what’s funny is that with all his manipulations, Ben was still always kind of a doormat. At the same time, I always got the feeling that island Ben was really pragmatic about his role — he worked with what he had and accepted that there would be consequences due to his position of power, i.e. human collateral. One of the only ways that Ben could be truly redeemed is showing that he cared for Alex, and that she wasn’t just collateral for his over-arching fight with Widmore. He sacrifices himself for her in sideways world.

SALLY: I think that’s a rather solid theory. It makes more sense that way because most characters do have some redeeming quality, but we never really saw Ben’s.

SADY: I mean, I really hate to go negative here, but. WOW. I don’t expect LOST to be a subtle show, exactly, but this? “You’re the best, Doc Linus!” “Indeed, Alex, I feel toward you as though you were… MY DAUGHTER.” “Unfortunately, someone is poised to SHOOT ME IN THE HEAD! Metaphorically speaking. With grades or something.” “Oh, no! I can sacrifice EITHER MYSELF OR YOU in this situation. I choose… YOU? So that no-one SHOOTS YOU IN THE HEAD this time. Metaphorically, with grades. Perhaps if we were on a magic island, I would have chosen differently, and regretted my choice!” I mean, OUCH.

And yet I really loved Emerson’s acting here. Especially in the scene with his Dad! There are so many subtleties that let us know we’re dealing with a similarly controlling and passive-aggressive, yet somehow more decent and lovable man. I particularly loved the way he said “I made the turkey dinner, that YOU LIKE,” with the extra emphasis on the last two words which so clearly meant, “eat it, old man, or it’s Fancy Feast from here on out.” But in, like, this really loving and sweet families-take-care-of-each-other way. I like Teacher Ben so much! I would watch an entire show about Teacher Ben, and his power-plays! And you know what the good thing about that show would be: MORE ARZT.

A conversation between Roger and Ben reveals that the two did go to the island and join Dharma, though details about when and why they left are scarce. Does this information confirm or conflict with any of your theories about the meaning of the flash sideways?

LAUREN: I have absolutely no clue how the timeline is working now.

CARA: I’m still trying to get it straight in my head. But I think it’s further evidence that the bomb didn’t necessarily cause the split, or didn’t cause all of it. After all, on the island when the bomb went off, Mini-Ben was still with the Others, and couldn’t have possibly have been evacuated. Roger and Ben had to leave before that happened, for some other reason. Hell, in this alternate timeline, who knows that the bomb even went off at all?

LAUREN: Right. See, everyone was operating under the assumption that the bomb went off which is why the island was under water in the flash sideways (see also: Juliet’s statement that “it worked”), but in this ep we got the reveal that Ben and his father did go with Dharma to the island but didn’t stay for the duration. We know then that the island was destroyed sometime in the last thirty or so years. What sort of circumstances might have destroyed the island? Or were the island-destroying circumstances something that we’ve already seen? Or was it indeed Jughead? I’m confused again.

SALLY: Well my thought was that we don’t know why Roger and Ben didn’t stay on the island. Personally, I’m pretty much in the camp that something other than Jughead is causing the flash sideways, but I think they’re leaving this open-ended precisely so that it could go one way or the other. It could be that they somehow made it on to the sub (or perhaps another? maybe the sub came back after the bomb went off to get whoever else survived? weird stuff happens on Lost, I don’t know…) and then couldn’t go back because the Dharma initiative was no more. I don’t think this scenario is very likely, but it’s still a possibility.

On the island, Ilana lets some answers drop. Not only does she confirm that the Candidates are all possible replacements for Jacob, she also reveals that there are only six left, she’s not sure whether Sun or Jin is the Kwon listed, and the reason she’s on the island is to protect them. Thoughts?

CARA: It’s about time that we know anything about Ilana! Thank god. I’m really surprised that Smokey was telling the truth about the Candidates — as I said originally, I don’t trust him. I think her note that there were only six Candidates left also confirmed that Kate is one of them. There are six numbers in our famous sequence, but Locke is dead. That leaves one slot open, for Kate at 51 (as we saw at the lighthouse). Personally, I just love the idea that the person taking over for Jacob could be Sun, Jin, or both of them. That’s totally what I’m rooting for now — Sun and Jin ruling over the island together as equals.

LAUREN: KWON FTW! Though I wonder, could Locke still be a candidate in body? Like, Jacob’s final fuck you to Smokey/Flocke is making him lord over the island forever? Because that would be some just desserts for our MiB.

SADY: I think it’s interesting that EVERYONE (including me) is rooting for the Fightin’ Kwons at this point. I mean, I know why no-one is rooting for JACK, obvs. And Sawyer has gone Libertarian again, so I think we’ve lost him. But am I the only one still semi-pulling for a Hurley coup? That island would basically just become a Jimmy Buffet song once Reyes took over!

LAUREN: So my Kwon theory that I alluded to last time? It’s not as exciting anymore once I dusted it off and looked at it again. Anyhoo, my theory is that Sun going to be the chosen one because the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life is 42. Why Sun and not Jin? Because I say so. So yeah, not a great theory BUT IT IS MINE.

SADY: Oh heck yes! I am TOTALLY going to high-five you now! It’s better than my “it is Kate because 51 is the highest number” theory, by far. Also, Jin is being kind of a weasel lately. “Oh, I TOTALLY know where your baby is, heh heh! I just forgot about it before! Whooo, it’s a good thing I remembered before you totally murdered me, right? Anyway, bring your special Satan friend, and let’s head toward the place where all my friends and/or your baby are!” This is not the behavior of the Jin I know! Nor that of a leader.

SALLY: I am all about the Kwons taking over, though I still say Sun is a better candidate than Jin.

I think the most curious thing was Ilana being there to protect them. I was also a bit confused because she didn’t kill Lapidus initially because he “might be” a candidate, yet now she suddenly knows who the candidates are (or at least how many)? How, exactly? She’s been with Lapidus, Ben and Sun since they buried Locke and unless she’s started communicating with the dead, I’m confused about that…

The main story arc of the night involves Ilana wanting to avenge Jacob’s death by killing Ben. It resolves in Ben apologizing for the murder and Ilana inviting him back to the group. Do either of these actions surprise us? What are their motives?

CARA: I’ve always been the last person to trust Ben, and so I feel like I’m almost certainly just setting myself up here …. but when he apologized, I believed him. He’s a good liar, but he seemed incredibly sincere, especially when he said that Flocke is “the only one that’ll have me.” Ben has absolutely no one left, and for the only time since his character has been an adult, I actually feel bad for him. He also went with Ilana in spite of Flocke promising him leadership over the island, something Ben would have previously been jumping at the chance for. It’s entirely possible that he has an ulterior motive, but for the first time, I think that he actually doesn’t. Ilana, on the other hand, I have no idea.

LAUREN: I’ve always been sympathetic to Ben. Perhaps it’s understanding that people who are so corrupt in spirit are often covering up deep-seated fears and insecurities. I empathize with that. And since we learned that Ben killed everyone in Dharma, the writers on the show have been revealing him as far more human, more conflicted, about his role than settled in and happy with it. The guy lost everything — his family, his role in a community of peers, his self-respect — all in the name of a higher being that completely abandoned him.

Ilana, on the other hand. I don’t know. Jacob (JACOB!? Really?) was more like a father to her than anyone else in her life? The distant, cryptic semi-god who makes games of people’s lives for an unnamed purpose that had BETTER BE GOOD, damn it, for all the trouble it’s caused? That Jacob? That’s your daddy? Though I suppose I can’t get too irritated since it mirrors every other daddy issue on the show.

SADY: There are times, I think, when we forget how cheesy LOST can be, because of how good the acting sometimes is. Michael Emerson’s acting, especially. That whole scene with Ilana and Ben was really well-acted on his end, especially with him breaking down at the end, but seriously, look at the exchange here. It is, “My name is Ilana Somethingorother. You killed my father. Prepare to DIE! With DEATH!” And then he says, “but I murdered him because my feelings were hurt? Look at my sad faces!” And then she is like, “oh, okay. Let’s go grab a cup of Sanka together, new buddy.” Like…. WHAT?????

SALLY: I also thought Ben was being sincere, and I was really annoyed at the “he’s like a father to me” thing. Weird. But I think Ilana took Ben back because she’s feeling alone and if Jacob really was like a father to her and she really does know more about him and the island and all of that, she might understand how Ben is feeling and his desperation. It also seemed like one of those “I just want you to be honest with me” sort of scenarios. Ben was finally explaining what happened rather than trying to lie about it or make excuses.

Jack meets up with Richard and becomes convinced that Jacob won’t let him die. He proves it with a stick of dynamite. Can all of the Candidates not die, or is it just Jack? And can they not die, or can they only not kill themselves?

CARA: I have to say that I was totally bummed that Jack didn’t blow up, intrigued by the fact that he didn’t, and also relieved that Richard is still alive.

JILL: I honestly expected that the dynamite wouldn’t blow up, and that we’d all breathe a sigh of relief, and Jack and Richard would talk for a second and then right before Richard was going to say something really important, BOOM! DEAD! Sadly, no. Jack is still kicking.

SADY: This is the terrible price the writers exacted upon me (yes, ME SPECIFICALLY: I am that around which the entire LOST plot revolves, as does much of life, clearly) for fulfilling all my sexy Arzt fantasies (SPOILER: they were not that sexy). They have made it clear, now, that Jack is literally just never, ever going to die. That one point of hope I had has been eclipsed for all time.

ARZT: You know what gets Jack out? Nothing.

SADY: ARZT! You came back for me! Tell me more about your extremely detailed calculations as to which is the best parking space ARZT! ARZT I love youuuuuuuuuu.

CARA: Seriously, the last thing we need is Jack having even more of a complex about his importance and superiority. I have a feeling that he’s just going to get even douchier, now. I’m really interested, though, in the fact that Jacob can seemingly protect him even in death. I guess his touch has some kind of magical, lasting power that doesn’t die when he does? Maybe this means that Richard won’t start aging, as many had suspected.

LAUREN: Cara, were you happy with the pseudo-confirmation that Richard came in on the Black Rock? (I was wrong, I admit it.)

CARA: I was! I think that’s the strongest confirmation we’re going to get, and while I’d totally love a Richard-centric flashback episode (please, producers, pretty please?), I’m fine with him not giving a big speech about it. But yeah, that puts him at around 200 years old.

LAUREN: He’s bangin’ for a 200-year-old dude. And you know, I just realized we have another person who couldn’t kill himself thanks to Jacob’s touch: Michael Dawson!

SALLY: Hey, I had that thought too about Richard being from Black Rock. I shall take my bow.

LAUREN: *bows deferentially*

SALLY: In regards to the question or whether or not they can kill themselves, Richard implied that being touched by Jacob is what made it so that he couldn’t kill himself. We also know that Michael tried but couldn’t kill himself either. Mr. Friendly explained to him that no matter how hard he tried, he would never succeed. Oh, and we saw Locke try to kill himself and he failed too. Granted, that was because Ben walked in on him, but either way, he tried and failed.

This makes me wonder 1) was Michael once a candidate and at some point touched by Jacob? and 2) why is Jacob preventing these people from killing themselves? Is it as simple as he has chosen them as candidates and doesn’t want the possibility that they’ll cave under pressure?

Speaking of Richard, what do we make of his loss of faith?

CARA: I think it’s interesting, because Richard could just be in shock and mourning over Jacob’s death. But he could also be genuinely realizing for the first time that he was completely manipulated and used by Jacob, and just as easily be in mourning over that. This would of course tie into the “Jacob is actually kind of a douche, and not the Good Guy we were originally led to believe” theory.

LAUREN: I almost felt like this was an allegory for general loss of faith in God, but that doesn’t totally fit. That said, it’s clear Richard feels betrayed (or “forsaken,” even) by Jacob, and with good reason.

SALLY: I thought that was one of the saddest scenes we’ve had on the show in a long time. I think it was a combination of all the things you mention, Cara. He’s just lost Jacob, he thinks he’s been manipulated by somebody for his whole (whoa, so long) life, his life seemingly has no purpose, he just found everybody dead in the temple, it’s a shitty moment.

Charles Widmore has arrived at the island via submarine. Is he who Jacob said was coming? Where’s this headed?

LAUREN: DUDE. I don’t know but this doesn’t bode well for our crew.

CARA: First things first: ABC folks, please, for the love of god, can you just give LOST a decent CGI budget? These submarines are just embarrassing, to both you and me. It’ll be worth it, I promise.

JILL: AGREED! When that submarine popped out of the water, I actually said out loud, “I could have filmed this in my bathtub.” And I never talk during LOST! It was that offensive.

CARA: With that out of the way, my faith in the ways of Darlton have been officially restored. I admit, after last episode with no answers at all, and still no off-island characters making an appearance, I was starting to lose the faith just a little bit. How are they going to tie this all up?, I asked myself. Are they just entirely dropping Widmore, Desmond, and Eloise? Do they really have a plan here? While I still don’t know the answer to the first question, it happily seems that I was wrong to even ask the last two. I’ve recovered both my belief in a greater plan, and my conviction that Desmond has a big role to play here.

SALLY: I have to say that while my initial reaction was “shit, my first prediction was right – it’s Widmore coming to the island!” My next reaction was “shit, this sucks, I wanted Desmond to come back! Screw Widmore!” That said, I hope the gang’s all here to save the day. Or, because this is LOST, wreck the day considerably and then somehow magically fix it at the last possible moment.