Wow.  That was… wow.

I…

We’re gonna need to watch that again.

Do you agree, John Locke?

Yeah. We're gonna need to watch that again.

So.  This week’s episode started with the births of Jacob and his twin brother What’s-His-Name.

Question 1 (a silly question): Was I the only one screaming “Tell us his name, you bastards!” at the TV last night?  Gah.  And if the Man in Black really doesn’t have a name, how did he introduce himself to the shipwrecked fellas?  He must have at least had a nickname, no?

I know people get annoyed when I refer to the Man in Black as “Esau,” but wasn’t it interesting how the Jacob-Esau myth was flipped on its head this episode?  In some ways, the myth went as planned: the Man in Black/Esau was the hairy, angry one, and Jacob was the shy/naive one.  But this story was different from the Biblical tale in major, major ways.  First, Jacob was born first–no heel-holding this time.  Second, Mommy Dearest loved the Man in Black better (unlike the Biblical Rebekah who clearly preferred Jacob).  Third, Lost’s Jacob would not be described as a deceptive supplanter.  In fact, according to Mommy Dearest, Jacob doesn’t even know how to lie.  Four, Jacob didn’t steal the Man in Black’s birthright as the Biblical Jacob stole Esau’s.  Here, the Man in Black rejected his birthright, and Jacob had to be convinced that he wanted it.

Question 2 (a serious, overthinky question): What are we to make of Darlton’s retelling of the Jacob-Esau myth?  Clearly they were riffing on the same themes as the original Bible story, so… why?  And why did they change up the story in so many different ways?

Speaking of Jacob and the Man in Black, we got some interesting characterization of those two this week.  This episode really hit hard on the science vs. faith themes, even though (for once!) those words weren’t actually spoken aloud.  The Man in Black is shown to be the scientific one: he doesn’t have blind faith in his mother; he bases his points of view re: humanity on empirical evidence and study; he and his ancient Roman buddies go out of their way to explore the Island’s weird electromagnetic phenomena (and, if I’m reading this right, even built the frozen donkey wheel); and he wants to explore “across the sea” just because it’s there.  Meanwhile, Jacob blindly accepts everything his mother says, except, of course, that humanity is evil.  That’s apparently because Jacob’s blind faith in his mother can only be topped by his blind faith in human society, which is interesting seeing as Jacob has never lived in human society.

Question 3 (serious, overthinky): Is there any chance in hell that science, curiosity, and a belief in empirical study will win the day over faith?  I know that science and skepticism and so on are now associated with Smokey, and Smokey Is Bad, but…

I mean, think about that scene with the frozen donkey wheel.  The Man in Black is trying to open a portal that will take him off the Island.  Mommy Dearest says, in so many words, “No, Man in Black, don’t do science!  Your curiosity will be the death of us all!”  (This seems to be the theme Lost has been pushing over the past few weeks through the character of Jack.)  And what does the Man in Black say?  He says the thing that totally won me back over to his side.  In so many words, he says to his mother (and to Jacob, and to God, and to Lost’s writers, too), “I’m only doing this because you never told me anything!”    If that’s not a cry that we Lost fans can rally behind, I don’t know what is.  Answers!  Answers!  We want answers!  And it’s science and reason, not faith, that’s going to get us those answers!  You go, Man in Black!  I’ll be right here on the other side of the TV set, cheering you on.

Some less overthinky questions.

Question 4: Who’s Mommy Dearest?  Just another victim of a shipwreck who got roped into being the Island’s Jacob by the Island’s previous protector?  Or something more mythological?  (Also: Allison Janney!  With her, Katey Sagal, and Kim Dickens, Lost has finally hit the awesome-red-headed-character-actress trifecta!  Sweet!)

Question 5: Why did Mommy Dearest think the Man in Black was so special?  The moment she saw him as an infant she clearly thought there was something about him.  What could it be?  And would things have been better or worse if he had been her replacement instead of Jacob?

See you next week.

And we’re back!  Wow, that episode was fun.  I haven’t felt so close to the edge of my seat during a Lost episode since… actually, I can’t remember when.  Lost, you’re back, baby!  I’m sorry I ever doubted you.

And now it’s question time.

This episode focused a lot on the idea of “fixing” people.  We recently learned that Real-Jack has given up trying to fix the world, yet Alt-Jack works the whole episode to convince Alt-Locke to let him fix him.

Question 1: Is there any chance that Real-Jack can fix Fake Locke in the Island Universe (whatever you interpret the word “fix” to mean)?  If so, how?

While Alt-Jack is working to fix Alt-Locke, Real-Jack is stuck on a submarine with all of his friends and a ticking time bomb.  Jack realizes that fixing this bomb isn’t going to work–the best thing to do is let the bomb run out on its own.

Question 2: Is it possible that the moral of this entire story isn’t just “whatever happened, happened,” but “whatever happens, happens”?  After all is said and done, is Lost just a story meant to teach us to “go with the flow, man”?  (If so, what do we make of the character of Jacob, who liked to think of himself as a “hands-off” guy but is clearly more “hands-on” than any other character in the show?)

Hmm, what else happened in this episode?  Oh, yeah.  Three major characters DIED.  (And one more maybe-died, but let’s save Lapidus-talk until we know his true fate.)

Question 3: True or false: In the end, Lost will turn out to be a “Ten Little Indians” plot.  In other words, do we expect everyone except Jack (and perhaps Kate) to die on the Island, whereupon Jack somehow uses his Jacob powers to make the Sideways Universe real?  (Whereupon Jack and Kate become the Adam and Eve in the caves?)

And… Question 4: What did you think of these deaths, anyway?  The first death I felt nothing, and the second two kinda-sorta made me feel bad.  Personally, I felt much sadder while watching the final Alt-Jack/Alt-Locke scene.  Matthew Fox and Terry O’Quinn acted the hell outta that.  To me, the emotions in that scene felt realer and more earned than the somewhat forced melodrama in any of the death scenes.

Or maybe I’m just sad that they killed off one of my favorite female characters after giving her nothing to do for two seasons.

Welp, see you next time!

Hmm.  Another “moving the pieces around” episode, I see.  Lost writers, you’re not making this easy for me.  What am I supposed to overthink here?  More Jesus-related symbolism, please!

In lieu of real overthinking, here are some questions designed to get our mental juices flowing:

First, let’s talk Sayid.  In Sideways-land, Alt-Sawyer said of Alt-Sayid, “That’s our bad guy.”  But as Hurley said, “You can always bring people back from the Dark Side.”  It seems clear to me that Sayid has started his ascent into “redemption paradise,” what with him not killing Desmond and all.  Well, not on-screen, anyway.  But as I always say about Lost, if you don’t see a body, they’re not dead.  (Actually, even if you do see a body, they’re probably not dead.)

Question 1: If Sayid didn’t kill Des, what did he do?  And what will he do next?  Is Sayid really our “Anakin,” and, if so, is he going to be the one to bring down Smokey in the end?

A lot of other things happened in Sideways-land this week: Claire met Des and Ilana, Jack met Claire, Kate’s in custody, Sun and baby are okay, Sayid’s in big trouble…

Question 2: It looks like we’re going to have a situation in Alt-World where half the characters are in the hospital (Jack, Locke, Sun, Jin, possibly Claire) and half are in the police station (James, Miles, Kate, Sayid).  Do you think this is symbolic in any way?  Perhaps one group wants to be healed and the other group wants to be punished?  And maybe those are the two sides of the Island: the Island that heals (represented by Jacob) and the Island that judges (represented by Smokey)?  Or am I reading too much into things?

Question 3: Speaking of the Alt-World, was Alt-Sun’s “It’s him!  It’s him!” proof that Alt-Locke is actually Smokey in disguise?  And, if so, what are the implications?

Back on the Island, a whole lot of stuff happened, but it actually seemed like nothing happened at all.  Sun and Jin finally got back together, and it wasn’t as heartwarming as the show wanted it to be.  Sun got her voice back out of nowhere, proving that this particular subplot was all for naught.   Jack got on a boat and then got off a boat, and Widmore for no apparent reason reneged on his deal with Sawyer–a deal he made like two episodes ago!  And they call women fickle…

Hey, Lost: You and me, we’re buds, right?  You know we tight.  But, to tell you the truth, I’m getting a little frustrated with you.  Remember how back in the middle of season five I was annoyed because I didn’t know what the characters’ goals were?  I’m kind of feeling like that now.  So let me ask you a question.

Question 4: This is the Big Question.  If Lost is a game of backgammon, what’s the goal of the game?  How do the Losties “win”?  Jack said it: the Losties were brought to the Island for a reason.  They were brought there to do something.  There are four episodes to go.  So, tell me: What is the reason? What did Jacob bring them there to do? And–hi–why don’t I know the answers to these questions four episodes before the finale?

Sorry if I seem a little grumbly, folks.  It’s because I am a little grumbly.  But don’t worry.  I’ll see you back here next week.  And I promise I’ll try to say nice things about you, Lost.  I can’t stay mad at you long.

Man.  This episode.  If “Happily Ever After” brought tears to my eyes, “Everybody Loves Hugo” did something just as good: it made me laugh.  And not only because it was funny–although, at times, yes, it was.  I’m not sure what I liked best: the return of Hugo’s overbearing mother, the way Sawyer said “sonofabitch” when he saw Hurley in the woods, or the way Hurley said “um…hey” to Un-Locke right after.

But “Everybody Loves Hugo” didn’t just have good jokes.  It was one of those Lost episodes that makes you laugh just because it was so damn audacious.  It was one of those episodes that gives you no other option but to laugh, shake your head, and say, “Did they really just do that?”

Well, yes.  Yes, they did.

So let’s talk about what made me laugh, in order of events.  First, at the beginning of the episode, a certain someone got blown up.  No, no, “blown up” isn’t strong enough.  How about, “got a’sploded”?  Yeah, that’s better.  Oh, I laughed–nay, guffawed–when old Dr. Arzt got himself a’sploded back in season one, but this!  In comparison, this made Dr. Artz’s a’splosion a mere prologue.

Questions, discussions, and spoilers all after the jump.