SPOILERS: Do not enter. Pay no atention to the man behind the curtain unless you’ve already seen the May 9 episode of LOST.
So, Ben is the Wizard. And there’s no one behind the curtain, no Jacob, unless Jacob is an invisible poltergeist. I agree with Locke. Ben’s the Wizard of the Island, manipulating the curtain, producing his own special effects. And Ben, as I’ve said all along, ia a liar. However, just as there is in The Wizard of Oz, there is “magic” or something supernatural that supersedes Ben’s machinations. He was surprised that “Jacob” spoke to Locke, and now Ben realizes, if he didn’t already, that there are forces or personalities on this island that he doesn’t understand or control.
Jack, on the other hand, thinks he’s still in control. He finally has a plan that he deigns to share with the other Losties. They’re going to have a big battle, and Jack’s the general. Sayid couldn’t be trusted to take part in Jack’s wonderful planning process even though he’s the only one they’ve got who know anything about fighting battles. And no one else could be told until now either. (Can you hear the sarcasm in my writing?) I don’t know who Jack thinks he is, but we don’t have time to argue about it now. Live together, die alone—whatever that means. It’s time to circle the wagons and fight off the Others who are appaarently not Dharma folks, but rather “Hostiles.” Hostiles kidnap pregnant women. I think we’d better put a guard around Sun. And would somebody (Sun) please clue Jin in on what’s going on ASAP? They’re going to need all hands on deck. (I mix metaphors and cliches just as well as LOST mixes symbols and allusions.)
Symbols and stuff in this episode that I don’t really understand completely:
White rabbit: Why is Ben so fond of white rabbits? White Rabbit was the title of the episode in Season 1 when Jack kept seeing his dad —his dad who was already dead. In this episode, young Ben sees his mom —who is also supposed to be dead. Is this island a place where dead people who have unresolved issues with their kids re-appear as ghosts? Alice followed the White Rabbit in Wonderland. Ben sort of followed the White Rabbit into Hostile Land. Ben also used a white rabbit to con Sawyer into thinking that he had a pacemaker implant that would kill him if he got excited.
The empty rocking chair: Jacob is supposed to be in the rocking chair, but it reminds me of Psycho. I think Ben’s psychologically disturbed, probably as a result of his dead mom and verbally abusive dad.
Skeletons: Skeletons abound on this island. There are skeletons in the slave ship, skeletons fall out of airplanes and a VW van, and now we have skeletons in a pit. Is this the Island of Death? Are the skeletons meant to imply that the Losties are already dead, too, or that they will be soon? Doomed.
The pit: People die or sometimes live in pits on this island. Anna Lucia had Other Goodwin down in a pit. Nikki and Paolo died in a large grave/pit. Now Locke’s dying or dead in the pit along with a bunch of Dharma skeletons. Of course, the hatch which preoccupied all of us first season was just big pit which became a death trap. Only no one died? Didn’t Rousseau live in a large underground room or pit?
Alice in Wonderland. The Wizard of Oz. The Pit and the Pendulum. Psycho.
I think those stories about summarize tonight’s episode.
Next week: Apocalypse Now?
Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer: They Don’t Call it LOST for Nuthin’.
Jacob’s real. We saw him for a split second. You did catch that, right?
Yes, we “saw” Jack’s dad, too. I think there’s something there, but I think Ben was faking. And he was surprised that Locke actually heard from Jacob.
I’m so glad you brought up the Wizard of Oz again. I kept thinking of that but forgot to write about it. Remember Ben was “Henry Gale” when we first met him in the balloon. I still don’t know what I think about Ben being the “leader” or not. I think they just need a NON-native. Oh, I could talk in circles about it.
But oh! The white rabbit. I had forgotten about that. Regardless Ben is a freak!
I just want to know where Bernard and Rose are and nothing else matters to me. 🙂 Well okay, I *do* care about the other stuff but the whole B & R thing has me wondering…..
Lindsey, I’ve read that the actors who portray Bernard and Rose had other work that prevented them from doing LOST.
Mrs. Happy, where did you see Jacob??? I think he is real too. Did you see that look on Ben’s face when Locke told him what he said? And is Locke dead or will he heal again?
LOL about cluing Jin in!
Love the symbols that you mentioned: the white rabbits, pits/hatches/underground stations, and the lovely skeletons that are dotted all over the island.
I can’t even begin to think about Jacob and who/what he is. Great recap!
One of the links on Shannon’s (Rocks In My Dryer) post that you’ve linked to has screencaps where someone went slow-mo and aught images of Jacob. So there really was someone in that chair. Before that I thought Ben was lying and it was all a show — or that Ben was really disturbed (which he is anyway to have killed all those people).