Wow, tonight’s episode of LOST was quite something. We learned a number of things that are really important [SPOILER ALERT].
First, Jack learned something about himself, and abour Richard Alpert, that is crucial. If Jacob touches you, you don’t age and cannot kill yourself. You would have to be killed by someone else. Presumably this gift from Jacob was also before that a gift that Jacob himself received from someone else – but from whom? Perhaps this suggests that Jacob and the smoke monster are one and the same reality in some important sense, like two sides of a coin, and that is why the smoke monster cannot kill Jacob – because that would essentially mean Jacob (or the smoke monster) killing himself. Does it also indicate why Ben Linus couldn’t kill Charles Widmore? Did Jacob touch him at some point? Another interesting question – if Ben knew that about Widmore, did he know it about Locke, and is that why he killed him – because he knew that he wouldn’t be able to kill himself?
I am not entirely certain whether my current impression of Ben fits that line of reasoning. Then again, the mirror universe is supposed to parallel and yet differ from the original one in important ways. When Widmore was exiled, it was because he allegedly engaged in an inappropriate relationship with an outsider. Presumably Dr. Linus’ power play to become principal was supposed to be comparable to what Ben in fact did on the island. He knew what the benefits of leadership could mean – and expected that one day Jacob would touch him as he had touched Widmore. And he grew increasingly distressed that so much time passed and it never happened – and he even developed cancer, which is in effect being killed by yourself. His anger grew – and yet in the mirror universe he managed to make a different choice regarding power for the sake of a person he sacrificed to try to keep his power in the original universe.
But even more powerful than this, more explosive than dynamite on the Black Rock, was a simple phrase from Ilana. When Ben said he was going to Locke because he’s the only one that will have him, Ilana said “I’ll have you” and didn’t kill him. And even though Locke offered Ben the power he has craved for so long, Ben chose to return with Ilana. The power of forgiveness of an enemy – in a show that has woven much religious symbolism into the fabric of its plots, this still represents a high point.
I am still uncertain about what will happen next on LOST, in a real sense every bit as uncertain as during every episode of every season thus far. The show is giving us answers, but not in a way that undermines the need to keep watching, or the enjoyment of watching. We’re getting answers, but there is story left to tell. And the more we are told, the more exciting it is to see what happens next.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In