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By: Alex Solak
In this episode we don’t see half the killing from Sayid’s episode last week. But we do get a deep look at Ben Linus as a character. It seems he’s not quite as heartless and power-hungry without whatever happened to him on the island.
Also we get a few more sketchy details about Richard, someone I’ve been dying to hear more about. Turns out he’s not only really old, but he can’t even off himself.
And Jack was seriously changed by his adventure at Jacob’s Lighthouse. He now walks around with that mad-faith Locke used to have when he was… well… alive. He even plays a game of cosmic russian roulette with a stick of dynamite to prove he’s untouchable.
Boring reality
- Linus is teaching a high school class about an island where Napoleon was exiled
- “They allowed him keep the title of emperor, but without any power it was meaningless. He might just have well have been dead.” Ooooo foreshadowing.
- The principal of the school, Reynolds, is a bit of a dick. He tells Ben he can’t teach the gifted history students, and he has to monitor detention.
- Ben has lunch with a chem teacher. They complain about budget cutbacks. Linus insists on taking care of the kids, and not just worrying about bottom lines.
- Substitute teacher Locke suggest Linus becomes the principal. “It sounds like you care about this place. If the man in charge doesn’t, it’s time for a change.” Clearly a reference to the island reality.
- Back at Ben’s home, he’s taking care of his father, who is on an oxygen tank. Ben tries to take care of things at home. Ben’s dad feel bad for him.
- !Dharma still existed in this timeline! Ben’s dad took him to the island when the was young, but they left. ”Who knows what you would have become,” he says to Ben. I think we have a vague idea.
- Alex (Ben’s daughter on the island, she died at the hands of an assassin hunting Ben) shows up at the door. She’s one of Ben’s gifted students who he tutors. Apparently they have no other relationship in this timeline.
- Ben is tutoring Alex in the library the next morning. She’s terrified about paying for/making it into university. Ben assures her she will get in.
- Alex mentions that principal Reynolds is a pervert. Ben demands to know what she means. Alex reveals that Reynolds was doing a nurse in the clinic not to long ago.
- Ben talks to the Chem teacher about breaking into the nurse’s email account. He’s got that sketchy island look. The Chem teacher agrees to hack the account for a good parking spot, and some new lab equipment. He’s shocked at Ben’s new attitude. “Linus, you’re a real killer.” Dude, you have no idea.
- Ben goes to see principal Reynolds. ”Those are 30 emails that cover a three month period”. They talk about the principal and the nurse’s affair that took place on school property. Sketchy Ben is back! He tells principal Reynolds to resign, and suggest Ben as his replacement.
- Reynolds says if he’s forced out, he will ensure Alex never gets into the school she wants. It’s a similar situation to when Ben let Alex die on the island at the hands of the assassin sent to kill Ben. Ben chose himself over her that time.
- Turns out Ben chose Alex over the job. He didn’t get the promotion, but he got out of detention duty, and Alex got a glowing recommendation letter for university.
Island reality
- Hurley and Jack are going back to the temple. Hurley is intentionally stalling.
- Richard appears from the bushes. Won’t say where he came from. He offers to lead them to the temple.
- Hurley wants to know why Richard won’t age. Apparently it was a gift Jacob gave him.
- Richard brings them to the shipwreck of the Black Rock. This was the ship that came to the island ages and ages ago (from before 1867) as seen in the final episodes of the last season. Richard can’t take them to the temple because everyone there is dead. They talk for a bit, then Richard stalks off and explains he needs to go die.
- Richard says this is the first time he’s ever come back to the ship in all his time on the island. (Did he come on the Black Rock years ago?)
- “I can’t kill myself. Even if I wanted to.” He needs Jack to kill him. This must be one of the rules of the island, kinda like no one else really being allowed to kill candidates.
- “When Jacob touches you, it’s considered a gift.” says Richard. Well Jacob touched all the candidates. Do they have powers to?
- Jack lights the dynamite fuse, then sits down for a leisurely talk. Hurley books it. Jack has a crazy confidence about him. He doesn’t think either of them is going to die, because he thinks he has a purpose on the island. He’s really turned around since the first couple seasons. Now he has that Locke-like insane faith.
- The dynamite doesn’t go off, it just fizzles out. Jack was right.
- They all head for the beach.
- Meanwhile, back around the temple, on the night that the temple fell….
- Linus runs from the temple and joins the followers of Jacob.
- Miles is asked to commune with Jacob through the ashes Ilana saved. Ben is freaked out because everyone will know he killed Jacob. Miles does his thing, rats out Ben Linus. They don’t immediately fillet Ben. Not sure why.
- Daylight breaks as they reach the beach. Ben tries to talk his way out of it, but no one is buying it.
- Frank and Ben are talking about the past. Frank mentions he was supposed to have been the pilot for Oceanic Flight 815, but he overslept that day. Ben mentions ‘the island still got you in the end.’
- Ilana comes over, pissed at Ben, and leads him at gunpoint to the graveyard.
- She secures Ben’s leg to a tree, and orders Ben to start digging his own grave as punishment for killing Jacob.
- Miles comes over to offer Ben some food. Ben has lost his appetite, with his death looming and all. Miles won’t even take a bribe to free Ben.
- Miles mentions that when he was listening to dead-Jacob’s thought’s, he learned that Jacob was hoping Ben wouldn’t kill him, right up until the moment Ben shoved a knife through his heart. Ouch.
- Ben gets back to digging.
- Ben gets interrupted from digging by Locke/Nemesis. Ben tells Locke that ‘one of Jacob’s bodyguards’ (first time we’ve heard them labelled that, as far as I know) is planning to kill Ben.
- Locke “I’m gathering a group to leave this place for good.” But he needs someone to rule the island while he’s gone. Locke wants Ben to become the new protector of the island. So the nemesis can have candidates too?
- Locke unlocks the chains holding Ben there, and leaves a rifle in the woods for Ben to use against Ilana. Ben makes a run for it.
- Ben grabs the gun and gets the jump on Ilana. But he doesn’t kill her. He tells her about why he did what he did. “I had a chance to save her, but I chose the island… All in the name of Jacob.” He explains he killed Jacob because he was angry and confused and lost. ”I’m sorry that I killed Jacob… I can never forgive myself.” He just asks to leave, so he can join Locke.
- He feels the need to join Locke because “He’s the only one that will have me.”
- Ilana says, “I’ll have you.” and she walks away.
- Ben chooses the ‘good guys’ and follows her back to the camp on the beach.
- Ben and Ilana get back, and then Hurley, Jack, and Richard reach the beach. Everyone is reunited over some sappy music.
- But… OH NOES. A submarine periscope appears out at sea, and is looking right at the them all. It’s a sub run by (dramatic music) Whitmore!
It’ll be interesting to see where Whitmore fits in the power struggle between Jacob’s band, and the army of the Nemesis. And wasn’t he banned from the island? Or is that over because Jacob’s gone. Maybe there were the people that ‘are coming’ Jacob mentioned before his death. And maybe the island needs a protector to keep people like Whitmore out. We’ll see how the alliances shift in the next episode.
Speaking of which, do you think the next episode will be a Kate one? A Jin one? And where the heck is Sawyer?
