S5E3 - Jughead

Not a bad episode. A few surprises and one unexpected answer to a question I didn’t even know I had. Though, of course, in typical LOST fashion it leads to more questions.

A jumbo sized H-bomb seemed to be the centerpiece of this episode so I shall recap the notable events countdown style:

10…

Ten people were “featured” in this episode. Daniel, Charlotte, Miles, Sawyer, Juliet, Locke, Desmond, Penny, Richard, and Widmore. (Sorry Oceanic Six plus Ben)

9…

They say a cat has nine lives. If that’s the case, it’s time to paint some whiskers on Richard Alpert because he’s been alive for who knows how long. I believe it was last season when we saw him attend the birth of John Locke and later on visit him as a young lad. The season before I believe featured young Ben in the Dharma camp visited by a same-looking Richard as well. My first theory was he is eternally young (or at least a very slow ager) due to some mystical effect of the island. But then of course they introduce time travel as if it’s as common as catching a cold and my thoughts went there. But last night when Locke asked, “Just how old is Richard, anyway?” Juliet answered, “Very old,” so that kind of puts me back on the fountain-of-youth train again. Not exactly an important point, but now it’s at least confirmed. That man is ancient.

8…

Also, is it just me, or is he sporting a heavy dose of “guy-liner” with a dash of “man-scara” for the eyelashes? He’s probably 88-years-old and just has a wicked awesome makeup crew. Maybe that’s who the “others” really are, Richard Alpert’s cosmetic team/security detail.

7…

Seven is the size of the leadership hat that Daniel reluctantly dons. Seriously, did you know that hat size is determined by your head circumference in inches measured ½ inch above your ears then divided by pi? Come on, admit it… you know you’re going to measure your head after you finish reading this.

Anyway, that leadership hat fits ol’ Danny quite nicely. He bluffs his way into Richard’s good graces and even claims his love for frigid, bloody-nosed Charlotte just before rushing off to defuse a bomb. I wonder, does the “time sickness” only affect certain people? Why her?

On the opposite side of the dashing hero coin is one Ms. Theresa Spencer, whom Desmond finds laid up in bed locked in a permanent state of brain time travel. Not cool, D-man… not cool.

6…

Big flash of light at the end and we’re somewhen else. The six non-others: Daniel, Charlotte, Miles, Sawyer, Juliet, and Locke are left standing in an open field, the make-shift military camp gone. Does anyone else think it’s funny that these six are supposed to be representative of at least twenty-ish other survivors like Rose and Bernard who are hanging out who knows where? I mean, I know it would cost a lot of money—plus get way crowded—to pay over two dozen actors to be in every shot, but it seems the only use for extras these days is to get killed. Sorry Frogurt. Sorry those two dudes that walked over the land mine tripwire. Miles did try to warn you.

5…

Five stands for fifty. “Fifty years from now, this island is still here and we’re all fine.” Okay, so that was crazy for Daniel to think the “other” chick would buy his logic, but either way, I’m a little disappointed in his recommended solution. BURY IT? I mean, you know the island is still around in 50 years, but who’s to say it isn’t leaking crazy amounts of radiation? And who’s to say that it won’t blow up in 50 years and two days? You’re a physicist for God’s sake… can’t you come up with a better idea than that? Anyway, I’m assuming that after the LOSTies all blipped off in time, it convinced Richard and gang that they were telling the truth so I bet they made like a bunny and hopped to it on burying that thing.

I don’t know why it struck me as so funny, but the best line of the night was when Sawyer “saved” Daniel and the girl asked, “Is he from the future, too?” and Sawyer said, “Ah man, you TOLD her?”

4…

Miles “senses” a freshly dug grave of four U.S. soldiers as he, Daniel, and Charlotte are marched back to the others camp. According to Richard, the US Army set up shop, Richard and his crew swooped in, asked them politely to leave, then killed them afterwards when they refused. This is very similar to what they do about a decade or so later when Dharma sets up their barracks and experiments. Infiltrate the camp, get Ben on their side, and then gas them to death. Geez, someone’s awfully territorial.

3…

Desmond plus Penny plus baby make three. Looks like they got down to business soon after their reunion because little “Charlie” looked to be maybe 2-ish. I assume he was named after the ex-rock star we all know and loved rather than his grandpa Charles.

It was touching how Desmond was willing to give up on finding Daniel’s mother so he could be free of the island for good and be with his family. Even more touching was Penny realizing he wouldn’t just “forget about it” and wanting to support him regardless. Lots of touching going on.

I’d say the Los Angeles address Widmore gave is further confirmation that the lady in the chapel speaking with Ben was, in fact, Mama Faraday.

2…

Two “military” people are captured and thanks to Juliet’s mad Latin skills, she confirms they are in fact, others. It’s interesting to me how the others seem to just scavenge and adapt to whatever comes their way. Everyone last night was wearing uniforms, carrying guns, and living in the abandoned army camp. Later when they push out Dharma, they start wearing nicer clothes and live in the barracks. Who knows what their living situation was before the army came. Many carried a bow and arrow when they captured D/C/M so one would think they were a little more savage until technology landed in their lap.

It’s fairly apparent that the others are the “hostiles” or “original inhabitants” that Marvin Candle has repeatedly referenced. However, my crazy theory is that Richard is one of the few “true” others. Everyone else just kind of seems along for the ride, as if maybe he recruited them at some point. Even Ben is a transplant, having come from off the island originally. And we know that he “recruited” a lot of people, such as Juliet, to join them albeit under shady pretenses.

I’m interested to know exactly how the leadership hierarchy of the island works. You’ve got Jacob, a ghost for all intents and purposes, presumably on top. Then you have Richard who seems to have some kind of contact or connection to Jacob, kind of like a VP. But instead of being the living-breathing representative of the island, he acts as a pseudo-liaison between Jacob and the “leader” who is selected through some bizarre process and doesn’t even need to be from the island. It’s more like the island chooses the leader and Richard just does the leg work. Makes about as much sense as the Electoral College.

1…

This brings me to the one question that was answered that I didn’t know I had. Charles Widmore was an other! To me, that was the biggest what-the-fo of the episode. I had always assumed that Widmore was just some rich dude that liked to fund experiments such as those orchestrated by the Dharma initiative and was super-pissed that Ben allowed them to be killed by the others, thus causing their mutual hate. But now that relationship is more complicated in my mind. If Widmore was an other, then perhaps he still was after Dharma was set up and then after Ben allowed the others to gas them all, Ben took over as leader of the others and thus was Widmore’s boss, so to speak.

0

KABOOM!! Any bets on if we’ll see that H-bomb again? My bet is it will show up next season, in a bad way. In an oh-crap-why-did-we-agree-to-bury-a-nuclear-warhead-in-our-backyard way.