Lost Episode 5.05: This Place is Death

I know only about 5 of you will care about this post, and I'm really sorry about that. I read other sites and blogs and try to give my input there but it's just not cutting it for me. I need to spill my thoughts and its my blog so I'm going to do it here. So there! {Said with hand on hip and pouty look} Those of you who could care less about LOST, I have another post planned in my head that I'll write up latter tonight or tomorrow.

Note to Kevin, Brandy and Tommi or anyone else who is trying to catch up to the current episode: Stop Reading NOW!!!

After last week's much needed breath catching episode, this week's was everyone on deck-- warp speed. And everyone was on deck, with the exception of Hurley, who is currently in a bright orange jumpsuit in county lock up. No worries though, our intriguing lawyer, Dan Norton, will be springing Hurley in the morning.

The episode began with Sun talking on the phone to the illusive Ji Yeon. There was much speculation over the last week as to the whereabouts Sun and Jin's daughter, some of which centered on the suspicion that she might be dead. They sited the fact that Sun showed Kate a baby picture of her now 3 year old daughter. What mother carries around baby pictures of her 3 year old daughter? Uh, me. I rarely carry recent pictures of my children. But sweet little Ji Yeon's face proved the theory wrong and also offered Sun and I vindication. We don't need to carry recent pictures of our children to prove our love of them, we carry their images in our hearts.

Let me pause to grab a tissue.

But this is where our similarities end. Unlike Sun, I don't have a gun stashed inside a box of chocolate, although a box of chocolate does sound good right now. But I digress. Sun got off the phone and went straight for Bad Boy Ben to make him pay for Jin's death. Ben, however, told Sun that Jin is alive and he has proof.

Now right there, the whole world is thinking, does he have some communication with people on the island? How does he know? But Ben being Ben, doesn't produce the evidence and says he has to take Sun to see his person. And another question, how does Sun know that Ben is responsible? Only 3 people know that Ben killed Keamy with his cool bomb bracelet, and 2 of them are dead.

Sayid, being his new bad self, told Ben and Jack that if he met them again "it would be unpleasant for all of us." Coming from a guy who can break necks with his legs and take 3 tranquilizer darts and live, I'd steer clear boys. Of course it does pose a problem getting Sayid back to the island. Oh yeah, Kate also took off with Aaron. Bye. Bye.

And then there were two.
Back at the island, Jin is realizing that he is with a pregnant Danielle Rousseau and that it is currently 1988. He seems to go with the flow though and soon they are on their way to the radio tower, which is currently broadcasting the numbers.

As the Merry Band of Frenchmen plus Jin make their way through the forest, Nadine who is bringing up the rear, goes missing. That's always a bad sign. Sure enough, deja vu Oceanic Airline copilot style (but I guess it can't be deja vu if it actually happened before the plane crash), Nadine's crushed body is thrown down in the forest by none other then Smokey, himself. A short run later, Montand is face to face with the smoke monster. And then he's being drug by the smoke monster. Sure he lost his arm, but he got to see the underbelly of the temple!

Now I have to say, Montand was a butt head back in 1988 too, so safe to say a tug-of-war with his arm between Smokey and his friends didn't give him an attitude. But what I found interesting is that after the entire gang decided to go down into the hole to save Montand, Danielle was going to go too, only Jin stopped her. Danielle doesn't seem to recognize Jin in the future but obviously if Jin hadn't stopped her she would have gone down and got the "sickness" too, so something or someone must have stopped her before. Something to ponder that I haven't seen anyone address yet.

Another flash and Jin is gone and left only with a decaying arm. He heads back to the beach and sees black smoke in the distance, which is never a good sign in this show.

After he arrives, he finds an empty camp. As he looks around he finds this: Danielle's music box that Sayid fixed in season one. It's obviously the French crew's camp. He also finds something else. Two dead bodies with bullet holes.

Action happens fast on the island and immediately after Jin finds the bodies, Robert and Danielle burst onto the beach, both carrying guns aimed at each other. Too bad Jin didn't understand French because he would have discovered that Smokey is a defense system for the temple. Danielle accused Robert of not being himself after going into the temple. But Robert won her heart, declaring his love for her and the baby. When she lowered her gun, he raised his and shot, only the gun didn't go off.

But Danielle's did. She was obviously an excellent shot before she even spent 18 years alone and paranoid on the island-- she nails him right in the forehead. Jin, who cried out in warning, was now Danielle's target. He disappeared right in front of her at the temple before, so she presumes he has "the sickness." (Or would it actually be assume since she was wrong? You know the "ASS out of U and ME? Oh, well, never mind.) Jin takes off into the forest and I knew he'd be fine because, Hello! He was being chased by a 7 month pregnant woman! At seven months, I had a hard enough time walking let alone running. He started to fall down a hill and FLASH!

When he stood up and heard the gun cocking sound, I thought "Now what?" And then I heard Sawyer's voice. Reunited and it feels so good! Sawyer was pretty excited to see Jin. Sawyer is definitely a changed man. A few months earlier he would have played it cool, but he's actually becoming a human being. Who's wearing a shirt. Oh well, you can't win them all.

As Sawyer struggled to tell Jin that they were time traveling, Jin in frustration asked Charlotte to translate into Korean. Sawyer thinking Jin was talking to Miles told him to translate. Miles answers in his deadpan way "He's Korean. I'm from Encino." I really like Miles. He's a Sawyer contender.

They all start making their way to the Orchid so John Locke can do his thang and the flashes become more frequent. This proves very bad for Charlotte, who collapses and begins to relive her childhood right before every one's eyes as well as bleeding from another orifice. Only now Sawyer has a bloody nose too. Oh no! Not Sawyer!!!!! (I admit to audibly crying that out while watching the episode. Oh, and I also can't call him James. Just doesn't feel right.)

Locke insists that they have to keep moving so Daniel stays behind with Charlotte as the others move on. Charlotte tells Daniel that she grew up on the island and moved away with her mother, leaving her father behind. She said her mother told her the island didn't exist and she spent her entire life trying to get back to prove her mother wrong. Now we know why she got so excited when she found the polar bear's collar with the Dharma Initiative emblem on it's collar. But she told Daniel something else: A scary man told her to never come back to the island or she would die and she thinks it was Daniel! From the look on Daniel's face, I think it's safe to assume he hasn't warned her yet. And if he had that tie on, which I suspect he did, I can see why she thought he was scary.

Charlotte is then tempted by chocolate and dies. That will surely keep you on a diet! Daniel, even in his grief, was still wearing his tie.

Locke, Sawyer, Juliet and Miles find the Orchid and Juliet expresses her amazement that they are there when it is. FLASH! And its gone. But Charlotte had told them to go to the well, and there it is, inside a mini Stonehedge. Locke starts to climb his way down, none of that sissy being lowered down as Sawyer suggested, but before he does, Jin makes him promise to not bring Sun back. He gives Locke his wedding ring as "proof" of his death.

As Locke is making his way down the well, a light starts coming up from the bottom. It makes sense that the source of the flashes would come from the donkey wheel, but was still kind of surprising to see. Locke falls and suffers a compound fracture to his leg. Hey, he's suffered one already as well as being shot in the gut by Ben, so it's all in a day's work on the island. But after the flash, Sawyer who is holding the rope, is shocked to see there is no longer a well there and starts dig. Miles and Juliet convince him that there's no point. Poor Sawyer, just when he starts to make attachments to people, they disappear. Literally.

Locke, who is in considerable pain, is greeted by Christian. The afterlife has really ruined Christian's fashion sense-- plaid shirt, buttoned to the top. Really??? There's no dimension that that ensemble looks good. But instead of being ashamed of his attire, Christian chastises Locke for not turning wheel himself. Ben said he knew how to do it, was Locke's answer.

"Since when has listening to him get you anywhere worth a damn?" Christian responded.

Touche. Which begs the question: Why did Ben do it? If Locke had left, he would still be leader.

Locke gets up without assistance from Christian and he rounds the corner.

Holy jumping frozen donkey wheel! Ben turned it but he screwed it up. Did he do that on purpose too? All it needs is a little push, there's a flash and as the flash starts Christian says "Say hello to my son."

Locke asks "Who's your son?" but then he's gone. Christian's timing sucks.

Back in L.A. Ben's driving Sun and Jack to see "his person" and they become a couple of haters. Finally, Ben jerks the van to the side of the road and gives them his own version of "if I have to pull this car over" speech. He told them that if they only knew what he did to keep them all safe, which begs the question: What exactly did he do to keep them safe? Could it have involved our favorite bad ass Iraqi, Sayid???

They arrive at Our Lady of Perpetual Hope and Ben hands over the ring to Sun. Jin's proof that he is dead has become Ben's proof that he's alive. And Locke still kept his word. He didn't tell Sun that Jin was alive. But Ben's still talking out of the side of his mouth. "I thought you said John didn't come to you." Jack tells Ben.

"He didn't. I went to him." replies Ben. Same old Ben. Only even he seems surprised at who comes walking up to them. Desmond. Brotha! I would presume by the look on Ben's face that even he didn't know that Mrs. Eloise Hawking is Daniel Faraday's mother. How unBen like.

They go into the church and there she is, Ice Queen Eloise Hawking, who now doesn't seemed concerned by the low turnout by the Oceanic 6. They can go later. Say what?

Will Desmond go too? What about Ji Yeon, doesn't she have to go? How will Sayid change his mind, or is that the whole purpose of the men with the tranquilizer guns?

But one more thing before I wrap this up: The time traveling seems to mostly take the Losties to significant periods of time. 1954- The nuclear weapon. 1988- Danielle's crew arrives Date??? When the drug smuggler's plane crashes. 2004-- When Locke beats on the hatch and the light comes on/Aaron is born. Are they purposely moving to these significant island events or is it just coincidence?

But when was the last time you saw a coincidence on LOST?