Endless Mind#$@%$#, Indeed.

So, a riveting Lost, and I was just thinking I had some stuff figured out when .....
Desmond does the unexpected.  Oh my, oh my.

What was I thinking before that?  Well, if love will bring us together (time for some Captain and Tennille--Cuse is old enough even if Lindelof is not), then Desmond could be Cupid or at least a Cupid-like force.  He has the passenger manifest and is chasing the passengers (which is why he was not interested in Ben Linus--only John Locke), leading them into love and thus into the realization of the alternative reality (perhaps Desmond is the anti Wil Wheaton a la Big Bang Theory).  

But why does he want to kill John Locke?  Isn't a dead Locke bad and a live one good?  Oh, I am sooooo confused.  So, let me focus on the other stuff and get back to Desmond later.

This was the episode, that until the last minute, was giving the audience what it had been demanding: Libby and Answers!!!  And satisfying ones at that.  And a frustrating hint of an answer.....

The Hurley-Libby romance was just incredible--moving, sweet, and also pushed the plot a long a bit.  Again, love, soul-mates, when in close contact, break the wall between the two realities--the wacko alternative reality as Hurley put it.
I love how she introduces herself--"you will think I am crazy but do you believe in soul-mates?"  Single folks out there, try it out and let me know how it works.  Quite the come on to the stood up Hurley. 

• But he is willing to use his cash not just for the greater good, but for himself (shades of the debates about the needs of the many versus the needs of the one in Star Trek 2 and 3, thus pre-empting Doc Jensen's references tomorrow at ew.com).  
• Notices the rec room is "gnarly," bribes the director (who also appeared in the earlier episode "Dave" that took place at Santa Rosa) to get access.  And access Hurley gets.  
• She is voluntarily committed, so away they go to the picnic they never had.  She likes him because ... she is delusional!  Perfect.  
• And her smooch has some kick, as we could have predicted.  He sees the "bizarro alternative reality."  His response: "Whoa! Dude!"  So, she isn't crazy.  Or maybe she is but this is not the evidence for it, as she was in Santa Rosa in the other reality, where she was not imaging an alternative reality. Or was she?  

So, that part of the show was super-sweet and super-satisfying.  And yes, if you didn't know it by now, I am super sappy, as my wife just found out while watching Glee.

Anyhow, onto the other plots, and we do mean plots. 

Continuing the parallels from the first season, the loudmouth, this time Ilana, gets killed by the unstable dynamite.  And my wife's comment was--just as she starts to get interesting.  Which is the theme this year--interesting new characters die.  Dogen died as soon as we knew something about him and now Ilana.  Are the Lost producers imitating JK Rowling--killing lots of folks as the end nears to raise the stakes for all?  Lots of talk tonight about people getting killed or not.  Anyhow, her stay on the Island was cut short, sparking an interesting set of observations by Ben--what happens when the Island is done with us?  Foreshadow much, guys?


Island Hurley was just as confused as LA Hurley, following a ghost or a delusion rather than following someone who was delusional.  This time, the person who killed his love--Michael.  Now, Michael is the one providing the instructions--where is Jacob?   Not where Hurley says he is going to be. 
Now, Hurley's behavior and beliefs matter because Jack trusts him and the others are following him, even after he blows up the dynamite in a particularly risky away. 

Richard is right, Jacob is not there, so Hurley is lying, but he does almost reveal a super-secret: What is the Island?  Oh, so close.  These producers tease us yet again.  But since Richard knows, I think we will eventually know.  I would hope so.  Cuse and Lindelof could have ignored this question, focusing instead just on character development, but by raising it now, they pretty much have to answer or else the Soprano last episode backlash will minor, like just the explosion of a science teacher as opposed to the blowing up of an entire slave ship. 

So, in Hurley we trust. Well, not Richard, Miles or Ben.  Another reference to season one's of splitting of the good guys (Locke vs Jack, Beach vs. Caves).  The Richard/Miles/Ben dynamic should be entertaining.



The moments with Michael were great--that Hurley is angry for Libby's murder and he calls it exactly that--not just dead or killed but murdered.  "I am here to stop everyone from getting killed."  Indeed. 
And then he appears again.  Now, Hurley knows what the whispers are--the folks who died and cannot move on.  Given the number of folks who died after committing serious crimes on the Island, it is not surprising that the Whispers are pretty damned loud.  Anyway, we can now official check off of our mystery list the whispers.  Not a surprise, but thanks for the clarification.  And Michael's remorse is palpable.  And Hurley essentially lets his anger go, for anger is of the dark side. 

Hurley confesses to Jack, and then Jack finally admits what has driven him--the need to fix.  And now he must let go.  Hurley, always as the voice of the audience, asks--is this a good idea now? So, the Lost guys are making Jack likable again.  Does that mean he is going to die?  "This is me trusting you."

Lapidis and Jin have a nice exchange here: Did we make a mistake?  Probably.  And Lapidus is still around--to fly the plane?  Or just for comic relief?  I am good with either.

Desmond and Locke have a great extended conversation: You're Locke!  And Flocke is very, very confused and upset that Desmond is not afraid.  Why is Desmond not afraid?  Well, for one thing, he knows there is another reality where he gets what he wants in the end.  Anyhow, if Flocke was not pissed enough, Desmond can (like Sawyer but unlike Richard) see the boy.  The Peter Pan troublemaker in the woods.  Or does that make him Robin Hood?  Yet more confusion. 

And so they go to the well.  By the way, notice how everything on the Island is much closer to each other than before?  Moving from place to place takes much less time now that there are only five episodes left.  I am now seriously confused about how much time has passed since the Ajira plane landed and since the bomb blew up.  But the producers don't care about that now, just moving to the end. 

Anyhow, at the well, Flocke is upset that Desmond is not scared.  Flocke tries to persuade Desmond that Widmore is just seeking power and that Desmond should be scared of Flocke.  So, he goes down the well, as we all saw coming. 

But turnabout is fair play, so in LA, Desmond runs Locke over.  Again, the motivation for this is entirely unclear.  Locke has not seen the Island or had memories even though he is with this soulmate.  So, what does running him over accomplish? 

As Sawyer says when he sees Hurley, Sun, and Jack, "Son of a bitch."



Fun grace notes:

• A palentology wing--wing, get it!  And T Rex's used to be birds, so the Mr. Cluck references continue. 
• Desmond was, of course, #42.
• Best line of the night: "Dead people are more reliable than live people."  So true.  When was the last time a dead person lied to you or betrayed you?  Hurley is on to something.
• "The Island has it in for all of us."  True, but reminds us even more--we need to know what the damn Island is. 
• "You can come with me or keep blowing stuff up."

 Remaining Questions:

• Who is slated to appear in the next five?  Anna Lucia?  Almost certainly.  Eko?  Probably not.  Rose and Bernard?  I hope so, but maybe not.  Boone?
• What is the Island?
• What is Desmond's plan?
• How does Desmond get out of the well?  We know from the teaser he is not dead.  Sayid will not shoot him.  If he tries, then Desmond/Magneto will be protected by the magnetism of the spot.
• What is it about the magnetism?  Is that what Widmore wants for profit or can it be harnessed against Flocke?  I think the latter, which is why Flocke tries to kill him, but does not really try that hard.  Given that Desmond is not a candidate but can see the island boy, I am not sure if Flocke can kill him at all.
• Are their limits to Sayid's willingness to kill?  I think, like Peter Pettigrew, he will find himself unable to kill certain people--the candidates.  But he can kill Lapidus, Miles, Richard, Claire, the flight attendant and her kids, and pretty much everyone else.  I suspect he will die saving people.  For a show that is an endless mind@#$#$, there are some things that are predictable.  Let's see if I am right on this one.

Ok, that is enough rambling for now.  I'd love to get some of your thoughts on it.  And I will be reading Doc Jensen, Alan Sepinwall and others for some clarification.  Obviously, we will only understand it all or as much as we can in five or weeks.  But the ride is moving faster and faster, so keep your arms inside the car and be prepared.