Journey to The End, Chapter 2

Here is the next section in my on going series of posts about each season, or Chapter of LOST. In this post I cover Season Two and how the events and main ideas of it were directly reflected in The End.

Chapter Two - The Swan Station

Once again, I know you all are going be like "The Swan, it imploded! How could it be important in The End?" That's a decent point, and maybe i'll be able to convince you. Now, before I get into the main idea here I'd like to say that I think had Lost had a known end date at this time I think the entire season would not focus as much on the Swan. With that said, I can't see how the events of "Live Together, Die Alone" could have occurred earlier than the finale so who knows.

Season two was about discovery, just as the whole series was. This time we started getting a lot more information about the history of the Island. The Dharma Initiative being the biggest revelation from the Island's long and mysterious past would not explained until Season five. The time spent in the hatch would also continue to increase the tension between Jack and Locke. They would fight over destiny, faith, a man named Henry Gale who was from Minnesota, and their roles on the Island. The introduction of Ben in "One of Them" is one of the most important moments of the series, and is the launching off point to several story lines, some of which never ended. I'm still amazed that Jack was the one defending Ben early on, and then later was the one who probably hated him the most. Sayid early on hated Ben and blamed him for the death of Shannon, but in season four we would see him working for Ben. He would become the great villain, then a sort of pathetic character, and finally in the end, he's loved by the fans and the Losties just as much as anyone else.

The other major character introduction in season two was Desmond. Originally, he was just the crazy guy in the hatch who spent one night in a stadium with Jack. However, by season 4 he would be given some of the best episodes of the series, and his quest to be with Penny again would become the best shipper story of the entire series. Desmond quickly became a fan favorite, and at the end, he played a pivotal role in bringing the Losties together in the flashsideways.

While Ben and Desmond are amazing, they still don't answer why I think season two was all about the Swan Station, and what that means for the end of the series. The Swan Station represented something vital to the series. An Answer, and it was a big one. For us yes, but more so for Locke. Season one Locke was driven to open the Hatch because he thought "hope" was inside. He thought finding that hatch and opening it was his destiny, and that everything that had happened had been leading him to that moment. When it was opened though and he found out what was inside, he was let down. He didn't show this, and tried as hard as be could to "believe". As the season went on, and he discovered the Pearl Station he was even more disappointed. Season Two Locke is very different from Season One Locke. Was the death of Boone worth this? Could Locke really be special if all he's supposed to do is sit in a station entering numbers into a computer? I feel that Season Two is about the loss of faith. Faith in the Island, faith in ones self, faith in other people.

The Tailes are clear representation of this. They are an example of a group that had no doctor, no boar catcher, no fish catcher, and a group that was tormented by the Others from very early on. None of them had a belief that the Island was special, and none of them were all that positive. They had no "Live Together, Die Alone" Speech, so they were marked by infighting and paranoia. They never found the cockpit, or Rousseau's transmission. This left them totally in the dark. This was a group that had lost all faith, except for Mr. Eko who had taken a vow of silence. In Season two see what the Others are capable of, but learn almost nothing about them. Where Season One had been about learning who the Losties were and why they were here, Season Two became much more dark, and showed us what happens when you stop believing in yourself, and in others.

Season one had uplifted us and shown us the magic of the Island. Even in times of great pain, the Losties came together. Season Two had torn that all down and showed that simply believing in something is not enough. Jack was right, they needed each other more than anything else. More than the Dharma food, more than a gun with one bullet, and more than a computer that can save the world. This shift in view would be felt all the way to the series finale. It was one thing for Jack to believe he was destined to protect the Island, but it was a much bigger revelation that he needed to sacrifice himself for the greater good. Locke believed blindly in the power and mystery of the Island, and in the end that is what left him open to be duped by the Man in Black.

So in the final analysis in season two the Losties did in fact learn that if they didn't live together, they would all die alone.

If you guys still don't agree, you don't have me to contend with cause here's JACK!!

The End, Part 2

Hey Lost Fans. Time for part two of my Post-Lost wrap up. We're now more than a week removed from the finale, and the buzz is starting to fade. I don't think that's a bad thing. It's obviously a good thing. I'm sure it'll kick back in once the DVDs are released and various rewatches begin. I for one am going to follow Jay and Jack as they rewatch the series. We however are not going to do a full on rewatch. Why you ask? Well several reasons, but mainly it's that neither Amanda nor I really want to. We are still a bit unsure of the future, but there will be episodes coming, and it'll be a fun and exciting summer on the Lost Flashbacks Podcast.

So with that said, I'm ready to move on to the main idea of this post. Last week I talked about the things about the finale that shocked me. This week, I think I'll talk about a more series related idea. The idea of Chapters. Now, a different show that will remain nameless named it's seasons and episodes "Volumes" and "Chapters". Lost obviously(and thankfully) did not do this. But there were clear differences in each season as a different idea, motif and device was used. I hear people saying that since the show didn't answer various questions, the on island mysteries and conflicts didn't matter so much. I disagree and I wanted to try and discuss each "chapter", and go briefly into why it all mattered so much in the end.Originally, I had all the chapters in the same post, but it became VERY long and I was holding back. So I've decided to release them separately but much more often.

Chapter One - The Losties

I know I know, the whole series was about the Losties. But the 1st Chapter was the one where they were the main focus every week, and we learned the most important things about who they were. It's not a surprise that every episode that season is amazing. It was Lost at it's best. We learned important things later, but if you want to know who someone was when they arrived? Then you watch their season one episode. In "What They Died For" Jacob says he brought them all to the Island because they were flawed. Just like J.J. Abrams' famous statement "They are not only Lost in the world, they are Lost in their lives." The conflicts, and issues we see these characters go through both on island and in their flashbacks reverberates all the way until the end. Jack's need to fix and save everyone leads him to understand that it's his destiny to sacrifice himself for his friends, and the Island. Sawyer, shackled his whole life by hate and a need for vengeance becomes a great leader once he rids himself of Cooper. Locke, always being told what he can't do, being made a fool of, and tormented by Anthony Cooper finds peace, and a true destiny on the Island that eventually leads Jack to do what he does. As promised, I'll have more about the characters later on.



Season one also introduced almost all the major mysteries, some of which would not be resolved until season six. These mysteries include The Smoke Monster, the Whispers, Adam and Eve, the Sickness, Polar Bears, the Others, the Hatch, and even the cable leading into the ocean gave us the Underwater Station theory from Jack from Jay and Jack! With all these mysteries, and no answers though it could not be about those mysteries. It was all about the characters, and how they were just as dumbfounded as us. We were all discovering the Island together. Its secrets, its mysteries, its wonders and it was INSANE. We wanted to get in that hatch just as much as Locke, I'm still terrified of William Mapother(Ethan), and we felt so much hope(and then terror) when the raft was launched. The penultimate sequence of season one, featuring our Losties boarding Flight 815 remains one of the most moving in the entire series, and perfectly highlights how far we had come in our relationship with these people, and their relationships with one another. There are literally whole books about season one of Lost so I'll stop there, but one last thing. Many people thought that season six would have a very season one type feel. It did at times, but in my opinion we could not get that feeling back again. We could not get that feeling of total mystery back because we knew the characters so well. The true mystery of the first chapter of Lost was the mystery of these castaways, and why they were all LOST

The End, Part 1

Hey everybody! This is the first of many posts about the series finale. I'm not sure how many there will be, but I do know that this will be my soap box to get out everything i've been thinking about. Since the finale, I've been on the line of 3 different Lost Podcasts, for a total of about 16 hours. Granted 10 hours of that was The Lost Flashbacks, but that's still a lot. My point I guess is I still have more to say, and this way people can choose to read it or not, and won't be forced to listen to my voice. I'm even getting sick of it.

So, this first part will be about the things that shocked me. Not necessarily the shocking or surprising moments of the episode, but more things that shocked me about myself. I've always considered myself a mythology junkie. I loved everything about the history of the Island, and the crazy science experiments DHARMA was doing. I couldn't get enough of Locke and his journey to learn the secrets of the Island. That's probably why he became my favorite character early on. I am not a religious person at all, so I was very excited that Locke's quest was not based on any religion, but his faith in the Island. The faith that lead him to be an early mentor to Jack in his time of need in White Rabbit. The faith that lead him to the hatch, and then drove him to discover its secrets. I wanted to know what was in that hatch just as much as him! His faith lead to Boone's death, and that lead to the beginning of the Jack vs. Locke battle that would continue all the way to season 5. And that faith is what drove Jack back to the Island, and gave him faith that it was his destiny to drop Jughead down the Swan Station. It was that same faith that lead Jack to believe it was his destiny to be the Island's protector, and in doing so defeat the Man in Black, and save the ones who were left.

That's an interesting paragraph, maybe to long, but I've never been a grammar guy. I start out by saying I'm into the mythology and science, and finish by saying it's all about faith. Faith? This from an agnostic. Well friends, that's one of the things that really shocked me. I thought I was watching for science fictiony coolness, and mythology filled revelations. Turns out I wasn't watching for that at all. I was watching because I connected with these characters, and their journey became my journey. As I said in the previous post, the show was never about getting answers to questions. I don't know about anyone else, but as season six wound down, I found myself wanting answers less and less. I didn't care how the glowing light worked, or who built it and why. I didn't care about the timeline of events that connected the temple to the statue. I'm not saying they aren't amazing mysteries, but I firmly believe that that was not the point of the series.

I'm reminded of Jack in A Tale of Two Cities. Being taunted almost by Juliet when she has a huge file all about Jack's life. She knows he wants to know about Sarah's new life, and it caused him great pain in the past. In this moment, Jack doesn't ask for specific details about Sarah's life, nor does he try and get answers to the personal mysteries that have tortured him for years. He simply asks if she is happy. Juliet says that Sarah is indeed very happy, and unlike old Jack who craved to know everything about her life, this Jack is satisfied with that, and it brings him peace.

I bring this up because it's similar to Lost fans. Asking who Sarah is with and where they are living, is like asking about the Egyptian era on the Island. Yeah, it would be good to know for our obsessive brains, but it serves no purpose knowing it. Same thing with the Smoke Monster. The exact nature of the Smoke Monster is probably beyond comprehension, and would only serve to annoy or bewilder. I'm not even sure I want to know what it was. This way Big-O can have his nano-bots!

These thoughts were very shocking to me. The idea that I could confidently say the answers were not important, story was important would have totally pissed off the Josh that was in the middle of season two. In the end, Lost was about these people who came together as total strangers. They fixed each other, loved each other, fought each other, and saved each other. That's what life is all about. You don't have to live every day to the fullest, or treat everyone amazing all the time. Carpe Diem is a great way to live, but it's exhausting. That is not the point of Lost. For me, the point is simply that life is about your interactions with other people. They can be good, they can be bad, but every person you come in contact with is touched by you, and you by them. The group in the church at the end, they didn't love each other all the time. Hell, sometimes they were trying to kill each other. But their struggles, and their conflicts built the bond between them just as much as their love for each other.



I'll save my character discussion for a different post, because there is a lot to say there. We invested six years in them, and the lessons they learned in the end really were meant for us. So really, in the final analysis, the thing that shocked me the most was that all this time I thought I was watching a TV show. In reality, I was getting a lesson on how to live my life.

What We Watched For

Howdy all. This is a pretty sobering post. This is the last time I will be updating the blog while Lost is still on the air. The amount that I love you guys, and want to thank you for listening is beyond words. We would not still be doing the podcast without you guys. Originally we had planned to simply do a hiatus rewatch just to keep our sanity following the season three finale. All that changed once we started hearing from you folks. We knew we had to keep going, and every week had so much fun chatting about the show, and even more fun hearing from everyone in the chat and on the blog. Lost is an amazing show, but I firmly believe it's the fan community that made it what it is. We've been on a wild ride, and it's almost over. For the rest of my life I'll be able to look back on my time watching Lost, and while I'll remember all the great moments, I'll remember the friends I've made and the great moments with those friends even more.

I really hope everyone in the East and Central time zone can make it to the chat on Finale Night, and I really hope everyone can make it to the show on Monday night. It's going to be quite an experience. We are going to talk about the episode, but really guys, it will be mainly about you all, and the fun we've had together. We're gonna reminisce about old episodes, and theories, and all the fun we had.

The title of this post really gets to me because this is what we all watched for. It wasn't simply to get an ending. In a way, part of me thinks Lost is a story that can never end, and with us fans introducing Lost to friends it never will. The reason we watched was to get caught up in an amazing journey and then talk endlessly about it with people who share our passion. I've never in my life seen a show that leads to the type of theorizing and debate and discussion that Lost does. BSG comes close, but that's more so about the reading between the lines. On Lost, every episode was a new adventure opening the door to new possibilities and even better, new theories. And yeah, almost all my theories turned out to be totally wrong. But that's ok, it makes it more fun.

I started this post expecting to talk about the episode, but I really don't have anything to say beyond what was in the podcast. It was like 3 hours long. Instead, I'd really like to open this up and have you guys post your favorite memories from both the podcast, and of course Lost. When did you start listening? What moment stands out? What's your favorite in-joke(we have MANY?

In case you don't already know, our plans have changed. We will NOT be attending Big-O's finalecast on Sunday because he's not doing a finalecast on Sunday. He is doing one on Tuesday. So, here's the plan. The chat will open at 8:00 PM ET, and i'll leave it open until we are done for the night. I will be called in so that the chat doesn't close, but I will not start the show. This will allow us all to be together to chat and experience Lost together. After Lost we're gonna watch Kimmel, and then possibly start the show around 12:30. Don't know exactly what that show will be. It might simply be us choking back tears and going on and on about the show we all love. We are STILL doing a Monday night show. We are not 100% sure when that show will start, could be as early as 8:00 PM ET. Trust me, that show will be LONG, so I hope everyone can make it. West Coasters, people from around the world, everyone. If you've ever listened to the podcast, you really need to be there, or at least call in. I will be unmuting people like it's a bodily function. This event will be epic!

There's nothing more to say, except hope to see you guys on Sunday and Monday and STAY LOST!!

As promised here is trailer for the new Lost Podcaster's Documentary "Audibly Lost" It really looks amazing! If you look closely you can easily see Josh and Amanda chatting about LOST!

"Audibly Lost" The Movie Trailer from Audibly Lost on Vimeo.

Across the Sea, Somewhere, Waiting for Me!

I know, I know, the Bobby Darrin song is Beyond the Sea, but it's close enough.

This post will be in two parts. The first part will basically a speech on what I think it not a good trend among Lost fans, and how I was reborn during Jay and Jack's 30 Hour Podcast. The second part will be me explaining why I now support the theory proposed on the podcast.

So, there was a lot of negativity about this episode. A lot more than I expected when I was done watching it. On DarkUFO's poll it's rated much lower than I thought it would be, and hearing several podcasters, and friends comment on it I have really had enough. Before I start, I want to point out I in no way am saying people HAD to love, or even like this episode. If you hated it, then that's up to you. Personally, I liked it a lot. Is it the best episode of the season? No way! Scroll down a few posts if you want to see which one I think that is. I don't want this to be a rant, so I'll make it more of a speech. There was a time this season where I was pretty negative, and angry at the series. I wasn't getting what I wanted, and it wasn't blowing me away every week like I expected it should, and would. Then something amazing happened. I was asked by Jay and Jack to appear on their 30 hour podcast. Which wasn't that nuts, a lot of people were there including The Joshmeister(whom I appeared with) What was nuts was that the guy on directly after me was Damon Lindeloff!

What happened would really change the way I viewed the show. For those who didn't hear it, I'll summarize. Josh and I were asked our opinions on various things, and to discuss the show. Sounds pretty standard right? But I found myself being particularly negative. Specifically about the Flashsideways, and the happenings of episodes like What Kate Does. Because Jay and Jack are awesome guys they didn't yell at me, or tell me I was wrong. They simply said that they agreed things were moving a little slow at times, but they had faith, and were just going to enjoy the ride. That hit me pretty hard. I don't think they even meant it this way, but they basically said to me, "Hey, if you want to be negative that's fine, but you'll ruin it for yourself". I continued discussing the show with them for a few moments until it was time for Damon.

When Damon came on I was blown away, listening to him live was amazing. Jay and Jack have released this interview on their feed, and I definitely recommend it. I don't recall his exact words, but he basically said the same thing J&J did. That it's been about the journey. After that, I really was changed. Why be negative about small things? Why get annoyed or frustrated if I don't like what's happening in the story? Why focus on things I don't like? Since then i've tried to simply enjoy the journey because as Jacob says, "It only ends once."

This is where this turns to you guys. Again, you can think what you want, but just try and consider what I'm going to say. Does it really matter that the knife wasn't magnetized in the well? I mean really? Try not to focus on that, focus on what was being said in that scene. Does it really matter that the CGI of the light cave wasn't perfect or that it looked a little cheesy? So what? It's not about CGI, it's about the impact that that discovery has on the characters. Does it matter that the kids were not Oscar caliber actors? Does it really? Listen to what they are saying, and what the writers are trying to tell us in those scenes.

Stop focusing on the production aspect of the show, and start focusing on the content of the show. Just enjoy what the writers have created for us. Remember, the show is for US, but what is created is what they wanted. Do you think they don't think it matters or that they don't care? They worked extremely hard on this, and they gave us exactly what they wanted. If you don't like it, then that's fine, but what's the use in complaining? It won't change, and you'll just make yourself miserable. I'm not saying you should love it unconditionally. I definitely have issues with it and I talked about them on the show. All I am saying is, just try to focus on the positive, and just try to have fun.

I hope that didn't sound like a lecture, I certainly didn't mean it to be one.

Ok, on to the theory. For those that missed it, one of Amanda's friends said he had a theory that the Smoke Monster has actually trapped down in the cave, and MIB freed him by going down there. I really like this theory a lot. I'm actually starting to think it may be true. Here is some evidence. Jacob and MIB are told by CJ(not-mom), that they need to protect this place, and she tells Jacob that he can never go down there. Well, I think floating MIB's dead body down there did in fact release the Smoke Monster from captivity. After escaping Smokey threw MIB's body to the side, just like he did with Locke's body. Smokey does in fact want to leave the Island more than anything. MIB wanted to leave too, but Smokey wants to escape. I also think that MIB and Jacob could both leave whenever they wanted to, but simply were prevented to by CJ. If MIB had the ability to leave, then why did CJ attack him before completion of the Donkey Wheel? Wouldn't she let him attempt to leave, and fail? No, she needed to stop him so that he wouldn't leave. Smokey however had all this time to activate the wheel, but he hasn't. He really can't leave until Jacob and his Candidates are dead.

Another thing about this theory that I love is that it does what Lost has done for years. Which is it takes someone we thought knew everything, and turns them into someone who is just being played. From Locke, to Ben, to Richard, and now both Jacob and MIB. Both of them were simply played by the Smoke Monster. It makes sense too. For me, it makes much more sense that in the center of the Island since the beginning of time, there has existed a darkness and it finally was allowed to escape. Smokey took on the personality and traits of MIB, just as he is doing so now, but for Locke. This also may explain how MIB knew about the donkey wheel being able to get them off the Island. However, I'm not totally convinced on that last part. I do like to think he simply knew it could be done because he was special. Just as Walt was special and had certain powers, and Hurley has certain powers. This theory also gets rid of the needs to learn how MIB changed into Smokey. It's much easier to learn what Smokey is. Personally, I'd be pleased if it's simply "darkness". I mean, somethings in real life don't have describable answers in current science, such as Dark Energy. Finally, I also think this doesn't hurt my Vincent Theory at all. In fact, it strengthens it in my opinion.

Well that's that.

Don't forget to join us directly after the episode next week on Talkshoe. It will be the final Initial Reaction Lost Flashbacks ever!! So we really would love to have a big group. And, just like this week we would love for folks to call in.

And then for the Finale, we'll be doing Big-O's show, but then on Monday the 24th, don't forget we will be doing our very own show. One major highlight will be of me eating my very old, and hopefully tasty Apollo Bar live on Ustream.

Have a good week all, and Namaste

P.S. Sorry for no pictures this week, I may edit it later to add some. There are some errors, and it's not allowing me to add them properly. Sorry for the inconvenience.

P.P.S. Due to recent bot and spam attacks on the blog I am now reviewing all comments. Don't worry, if you're a real person I'll allow all comments though, but just know they won't show up right away.

Rest In Peace Candidates

Hey folks,

Sorry for the lateness of this post. This has not been an easy week for me. I'll fill ya'll in on the podcast.

I love The Candidate, but I'm not sure how long this post will be. I just wanted to post a few thoughts. To be honest, when I sat down to write this I started thinking about how many more blog posts about Lost I'll be doing. At least how many posts after new episodes. Including this one it's only 4! This last bit will be very tough, but also very exciting, and I'm so happy to have all of you along with me for the ride.

Ok, on to the episode. I'm finding it tough to think about anything other than the three MAJOR characters from the pilot who died in this episode. Going further, from the original survivors, the only ones left are Jack, Sawyer, Hurley, Kate, and Claire I would have taken those odds for the first four early on since they really were the major major characters. Always on all the treks, always getting in on every discussion. I'm assuming btw that Jin, Sun, and Sayid are dead. I've heard theories and comments that Jin could have survived, and that we never saw Sayid blow up. Both of those are true, but honestly, if they appeared, I would not be happy. After that emotional scene where we all were brought to tears? It would be a big mistake to bring Jin back I think.

I'm also interested in the theories out there about the Candidates. People now think there is, and always has been one Candidate. This would appear in direct conflict with my own theory concerning Kate. I stand by that theory, so I'm going to say that they all are Candidates, and can't be killed by MIB. They can however kill themselves. I wonder what would have happened had they let the bomb count down to zero without Sawyer trying to disarm it. I mean MIB clearly thought it would work, and was surprised with it didn't. If they needed to try to disarm it to make it go off then how did he know they would find it? MIB also seems to be a master of the con. I mean his long cons are longer and more more elaborate than anything i'm sure Sawyer ever thought up.

In the off Island storyline I loved how they explained Locke's relationship with his father. On Jay and Jack they said it seems like Cooper was a good guy in this reality, but I disagree. If that's the case, then who conned young James Ford's parents? Maybe it was someone else and Anthony Cooper was some how blamed, or set-up by someone. If it was him though, then he's not that good of a guy. I'd have to really check in the episode, but I don't think they said if they met earlier then they did in the regular reality. Perhaps in this reality the plane crash was just a part of the con. Instead of hunting, Anthony Cooper went along with Locke's flying lessons, and due to the accident, he never got to complete the con, and destroy Locke's life again and again.

The "I wish you believed me" stuff was amazing, but really, Jack was such a stalker. I mean I get that he's interested in this guy, and intrigued by their connection. But really, he crosses the line in my opinion.

There's so much more to say, but I really feel i'm done with this post.

A couple cool things to remember:

We will be recording our thoughts, and hopefully yours too directly after every episode airs in the eastern time zone. You can join us on Talkshoe. Links are on the right hand side.

We will NOT be doing this though after the finale. We will be joining Big-O's Cranky Fanatic Podcast directly following the Lost Finale on May 23rd. Again, this will be in the eastern time zone.

HOWEVER, for you west coasters, we will be recording our own finale podcast on Monday, May 24th. On this show, I will eat by very old Apollo Bar live on ustream! I will try very hard to record it, but I can't promise I'll get it right. So you don't want to miss this.


Ok folks, talk to yah all later.

Taking the Week off.

Hey Lost Flashbacks Fans.

Amanda and I are going to take this week without Lost off. If you really are craving a LOST podcast, check Talkshoe Tuesday night cause I think there will be some good ones.

Also, as you can see, there was not a special Blogpost about The Last Recruit. This is mainly because I had nothing really to say about it beyond what was said in the podcast.

See you all after the next episode!

The Great Lost Flashbacks Meet-Up of 2010

THURSDAY 2:19 AM -- Last LiveBlog entry. I am home in Jersey. What a trip, lots of great memories! From meeting frigging awesome people to seeing that Cleveland is a real nice city filled with nice peeps to finally going mad in the car. Not getting mad, going mad. An important distinction because we all go a little mad sometimes. So once again thank you so much to Amanda, Amanda's Mom, Ryan, Dude whose house it was where we watched Lost, dude who drove by and told us NYers that C-Town rocks, and finally Congested! This journey would not have occurred without him. He knows how much it meant to us, and I want everyone to know as well. As I close out this liveblog let me say this, an armed one-armed four-eyed man would be quite dangerous. Namaste and Byeeeeee.

11:07 PM -- Still driving. Still in PA. We are at a McDonalds and one of the people here looks like Katee Sackoff.

7:41 PM -- Some accident on I-80 has left us at a dead stop somewhere in PA. This could take awhile.

4:00 PM -- Stopped off at a Holiday Inn so we could download some LOST podcasts. Don't want to name names, but just know that it'll be a fun drive home.

3:02 PM -- Getting ready to leave Cleveland. What a great few days, everyone was so nice! Kinda sad that it's time to go.

12:57 PM -- We are out and about, and no doubt we'll have something to talk about.

WEDNESDAY 9:22 AM -- Waking up for our final day here in Cleveland. We soon will meetup with Amanda and get a semi-tour of the wonderful sights. Sights may include the both the buildings, the Lebron poster, and the Free Stamp.

12:58 PM -- Podcast is over. It was truly epic!! I wish we could do it this way every week.

10:31 PM -- Starting the epic joint Josh/Amanda in the same room Podcast!

9:02 PM -- SYSTEM FAILURE... SYSTEM FAILURE! We need to find some other place to watch LOST!

7:30 PM -- Eating some awesome wings with awesome people while watching hockey!! This is pure joy!

6:30 PM -- Done with filming. Amanda's mom got interviewed too!! This docu is going to rock, and Congested made it so I look like Harrison Ford!!

4:30 PM -- Taking a break from filming. It's been a lot of fun reminicing about the show. It is a little strange to be filmed, but I'm seriously having a blast.

3:06 PM -- Getting ready to film.

2:18 PM -- Congested is setting up for our interview. Lack of three pronged outlets is causing issues.

1:54 PM -- At Amanda's house for some filming and I just met Amanda's Mom!! She's a big part of the podcast so that was awesome.

12:15 PM -- Going in Jersey Style. That means breakfast for lunch. Yum yum.

TUESDAY. 10:54 AM -- We both over slept a bit and Congested is now on a mission for some shampoo. Wow, why do like half the things I write here sound dirty? Actual shampoo folks, there's none in the room. Then I imagine we will get ready and give Amanda a call to begin a wild day in a wild town.

10:40 PM -- JUST MET AMANDA!! What a great moment! Now time for food, but not at a place called Damon's Grill. Booo!

10:15 PM -- After much searching we finally have arrived at a motel. About to be filmed by Congested. Amanda will be here soon.

9:00 PM -- Looking for a motel that is not scary. Gonna meet Amanda soon. Can't wait!!

7:14 PM -- "I used to get it in Ohio" by Cam-Ron is the music that welcomes us to the Buckeye State.

7:00 PM -- Entering Ohio.

6:21 PM -- After a delay in a dead zone(you lied to me Owen Luke Wilson) it's back to live blogging. Somewhere in western PA., and listening to the awesome band "Previously on Lost".

3:34 PM -- Had some lunch at Pizza Hut. Very yummy but I wish it was Mr. Clucks. We are in a place called Zion. If I see Neo I'll say "hi".

2:25 PM -- We just passed Jersey Shore. No, we are not horribly off course there apparantly is a town in PA called Jersey Shore. I got a picture of the sign.

2:00 PM -- Stopped for gas. Still an amazing day, but I wish it was a few degrees warmer. The sun heats up the car but it's cold when we go outside. Congested's iPhone, like Dogen doesn't like the taste of English on it's...speaker.

12:51 -- Stopped for a pit-stop. Not in Pittsburgh, but somewhere in PA. This state is larger than you'd think. Also it's a beautiful day, you don't get views like this in NJ. Mainly because of the pollution, both air and light. Congested and I had a good discussion about politics, and World War Two. Also other things that will remain a secret.

11:42 -- Ok guys, Congested and I were just talking about road kill(don't ask), and no sooner do we see a frakking dead bear on the side of the road. We havnt even left Jersey yet, and already it has been wild.

11:15 -- Stop off at McDonalds. Bacon, egg, cheese mcgriddle for me. Congested got some sandwich, and I stole some fries. Now trying to figure out what to do about our drinks since there are no cup holders. Love road trips.

9:52 AM -- After a slight delay we are on our way. Hope there isn't a lot of traffic. So far so good.

12:25 AM -- Hey folks! I've made a pretty wild decision regarding the meet-up. I will attempt to LIVE BLOG the journey. From when Congested and I leave the great state of NJ, to when we meet Amanda, and the journey back! Since It's going to be three days this may wind up being the longest Blog post in LFB history. Updates won't be coming every few minutes, but probably every few hours, with breaks for sleep and dead zones.

Hope y'all enjoy!!

I LOVED Everybody Loves Hugo

Ok, I think I've decided. This is my favorite episode of the season. Over the course of this blogpost I will attempt to explain why. If by the end you are not yet convinced, and still think I'm crazy feel free to call me all sorts of names in the comments.

Until now, my favorite episodes of the season have been, The Substitute, Lighthouse, and Ab Aeterno. I know they were great cause I followed them with three fraking amazing blog posts. Many people have told me Ab Aeterno is their favorite of the season, and some have said it's their favorite of the series. So, I know I'm going against a lot of you here, but hold on for a moment. Just because I think this episode is my favorite doesn't mean it is the BEST episode, and certainly doesn't mean it has to be your favorite. Also, I know many people have favorites that I didn't even mention, such as Happily Ever After, and LA X. I didn't want to go into why I like it more than each episode because that would get repetitive pretty quickly. With that in mind, if you think another episode is better, then by all means tell me. Maybe you can change my mind.

On to the episode.

Why is this my favorite? Well, for me that's a simple, and a complex answer. First, the simple answer. This episode had everything! Very well done and moving shipper stuff, HUGE answers to age old questions, big reveals about what is happening both on and off island, and finally lots of explosions.

On to the complex answer. The shipper story was amazing. Two characters that we love and have cared about for years. A ship that got cut short in a very unfair and tragic way. The ship in Ab Aeterno and Happily Ever After was great too. However, not as big for me. In Ab Aeterno, we just met Isabella, so the impact of the relationship, and reunion of her and Richard affected me a lot less. A few hints or briefs mentions earlier in the series may have helped, but without those I had no history with these characters, so I could not share in their feelings. Desmond and Penny however, do not have that problem. They have probably the best shipper story on the entire show. But again, it didn't affect me as much because they already got together. One of my favorite moments in the season 4 finale, is when Desmond and Penny are reunited. I didn't have that reaction this time. The reason is that in the flashsideways Desmond and Penny may get together, but in the universe that we all know they've been together for three years and have a son. There in lies the big deal for me. In our main universe Libby is dead and buried so it was not possible for her and Hugo to be together. I always saw that as so sad. Not only will he never be with the woman he loved, but added to that is that she died for nothing. The result of an accident. Hugo finally gets to be with Libby in the flashsideways, and he also has a flash to our universe similar to the one Desmond and Charlie had. I'll get more into the implications of this later, but I'm left wondering what it means for people like Hurley who are better off in the flashsideways. The second thing I'll talk about is the HUGE ANSWER.

From listening to other podcasts I'm getting the impression that not everyone was as blown away by the Whispers reveal. This I don't get. I mean I know we all already kinda knew they were dead people, but how can you ask for answers, and then when you get them be unhappy? It was a great answer I thought. Not only is it more complex than, "they are ghosts", but it works almost all the time. Maybe everytime, I'm not sure. It also expands the story of MIB. He's trapped on the Island too! Maybe whatever is keeping him there, is also keeping these ghosts there. Maybe that is why Michael wants Hurley's help. Another complaint I've heard about this reveal was that, it was delivered in such a simple and straight forward manner. When I heard that, my head spun around. People are actually unhappy that they gave us a straight forward answer, and didn't hide it behind metaphor and doubt. I'm sorry folks, but they did this is the best way possible. The Whispers were one of the BIG questions I had. It was something that I was so clueless about, and so interested in I needed a flat out answer. Like I said, I already considered it was dead folks, but I never added the part about them being trapped on the Island. We've wanted stuff like this for a long time, and no other episode has given us a straight answer like this since LA X. Genius, pure Genius.

That's not the only bit of genius in this episode. Small comments ring Huge for me. When Ben says Ilana died because the Island was done with her he basically explains why people seem to die pretty fast, but our main cast stays around. Clearly I'm talking about the reality within the show and not the obvious reasons of why a main cast member would live and a guest star would die. It doesn't work for everyone, but almost all the people who have died that we were lead to think were important all died after they did something. Boone died, and pushed Locke over the edge making him more obsessed about getting in the Hatch. There are other examples, but that's for a different day. Another big line was Illana saying she "trained for this her whole life".
First, she didn't listen to that training much since she was treating that dynamite like it was a sack of potatoes. But second, who trained her? When was she trained? Why was she picked? I fear we may never know. Not that I care that much about her, but I find it interesting that Jacob knew this was going to happen long before it did. If that is the case, why did he do nothing to stop the events leading to the current predicament. Still another HUGE line, was Locke's talk with Desmond. First, explaining that a long time ago people dug the wells with their bare hands. I wonder if that's why the polar bears were there. To dig holes with their Bear Hands. ZIIING!! (send all hate mail to lostflashbacks@gmail.com). But yeah, seriously...that's pretty cool. They had compasses like Webelows, and wanted to find out why they would spin. Locke also says they didn't find what they were looking for. Was he referring to all the wells? They didn't find anything anywhere? Clearly someone found the place where the frozen donkey wheel is. Who the frak built all that? Other episodes may have gone deeper and shown us more. But only Ab Aeterno comes close in both quantity and quality. This season anyway. Although, Ab Aeterno opens up a ton of questions, but they are all pretty much focused on one thing. This episode had such a wide range of areas it focused on it was very hard to remember it all even in the initial reaction show.

Finally, all the explosions. Sundown and LA X had nice smokey scenes, and Lighthouse had some great Crazy Jack Vs. Mirrors. But none of them come anywhere close to the explosions in this episode. They weren't just nice to see, but they were totally unexpected! I did not at all expect Ilana to explode Arzt style, and most definitely did not expect the fraking Black Rock to explode! This is much more simple than the other ones, but who doesn't love a huge explosion?

Well, that's Everybody Loves Hugo. Did I convince you? Am I crazy? Should I never talk about Lost again?

Comments are welcome!

About the BIG LOST FLASHBACKS MEET-UP EVENT!! If you have questions are attending, e-mail us at lostflashbacks@gmail.com. There will be more info on this site this weekend.

P.S. I realize I didn't mention Locke getting hit by Desmond's car! Mainly because I don't know what to think about it. However, he is in the same boat as Hugo. Both of them are better off in the Flashsideways.

Love Will Keep Us Together?

Wow, what an amazing episode of LOST. A lot of people are saying "Happily Ever After"is the best of the season, and some are saying it's even the best of the series! I don't know if I would go that far, but it's hard to deny that it was really impressive. Desmond episodes always are.

For pretty much the whole season people have wondered and even complained about the Flashsideways. I have done this from time to time myself. What do they mean? What's the point? Why show us this if it will never be resolved? Perhaps the answers to those questions lay in this episode. Consider this, almost everyone is better off in the Flashsideways, or so they appear to be better off.

Sawyer, instead of a conman, is a successful and respected police detective. Jack has a son whom he cares deeply about. Locke is still with Helen, and appears to have had a better relationship with his father. Hurley is now the luckiest man in the world. And so on. My point is that if Desmond's job is to convince people to experience what he did, wouldn't some want to stay where they are? I mean yes some of them might be better off in the Island universe. Kate, and Desmond maybe. But Charlie is dead, Dan is dead, Jack is alone, for Sayid, Nadia is dead, Hurley isn't doing as well.

Perhaps the point of the Flashsideways is to show us this other life and wonder what we would do. If you were Sawyer, and could choose one of these, which would you pick? He's clearly more at peace in the Island universe since he's killed Cooper, but he has more of a life in the Flash Universe. He has more friends, and respect. Also, on the Island, he lost Juliet, something that caused him intense pain.

I really don't know what Desmond's plan is going to be. I mean is he going to bring all these people to the brink of death so they can experience what he and Charlie did? We know that Daniel experienced something without almost dying. So who knows what brings on this event. One constant though was LOVE. As I said on the podcast, I'm not to keen on the idea that love is the answer to every problem. In the Flash, Locke and Jack have love that they didn't have before. What could they possibly experience that would make them want to go to the Island Universe? But like I also said, if it turns out that the thing you need isn't love, but a constant, then I'll be cool and very pleased.

Another decently sized revelation was Daniel saying that the universe they were in wasn't real and was the result of him detonating a hydrogen bomb. He also seemed to indicate that he thought that was a mistake. He was right with his theory. The Variable is people and they can change things. But I suppose the question now becomes, should we do that? If you can change history, even if it's for the better, is that really a good idea? Most of these people are better off and alive. But the same event some how lead to the Island being underwater. What effect does that have on the world?

Well, like most Desmond episodes I feel like we got information in this episode that will define a majority of the mythology for the remainder of the season. Can't wait to see what happens next!

Sorry for a shorter blogpost, I really couldn't think of much else to write. One thing to be sure, I really loved this episode and I have full confidence in the writers that have something unbelievable planned for the finale.

Did you see his Package?

Another good episode of Lost! Some are saying it's the best Jin/Sun episode ever. I don't know if I'd go that far, but I liked it a lot. The only thing that I still don't like is Sun's sudden inability to speak English, and I can't really find anyone that didn't think that was dumb. LOL I really hope for the writers' sake that it's important, and not just a horrid excuse for drama. I've always liked Sun and Jin, but for the past two seasons they haven't really done much, and I wonder if that has made me care less about them.

Beyond that though, there was a great episode, filled with answers. YES, Answers. And here you thought only Ab Aeterno was gonna give you straight answers. I'll go over, the ones I think are most important.

1)Smokey cannot fly over to Hydra Island. When asked by Sawyer why he doesn't just turn to smoke and fly over to the other island, NotLocke explains, "Don't you think I would if I could?". Well, that seems pretty definitive to me. Now, we know that he is trapped on the Island and it then seems logical that he can't fly over there. But why can he go by boat? From this we can gather that he's allowed on the Island, but is incapable of flying over the water as the smoke monster. A great point is being brought up about this. If Smokey cannot travel over water, how did Christian appear to Michael on the freighter. Well, some think that this shows that Christian is not Smokey, but only a ghost, or is just infected and has been roaming the Island all this time. I disagree, I'm sticking to my guns that Christian has been the Smoke Monster all along. Exactly the same as Yemi. How did he appear on the freighter then? Well, I think this goes back to what Ilana said. "He's stuck this way." We've clearly seen him transform into the Smoke Monster, so we know he can do that, but I'm betting he no longer can become anyone else, or show people visions. I've always thought they were two different things. Sometimes he's the person them self, like with Yemi, or Alex Other times though I think he can make people see things. Like Isabella, or CHRISTIAN. Sometimes he is Christian, and sometimes he's just putting the vision in their mind. According to Lost, dead people can speak to the living. Hurley is proof of that. So what Smokey does is take that image, and speak through it as a puppet master, but not as a costume. I hope that makes sense. So, with that in mind, Christian, and even Libby on the Freighter was Smokey using the image of the dead person to speak. However, since killing Jacob, and taking Locke's form he no longer has this ability.

You may wonder, if I'm saying that the Smoke Monster cannot travel over water at all? Yes, I think that is true. We've seen several indications that he can't just fly over stuff. Case in point the pylons. It's very possible, that when off the Island, he loses all Smoke abilities all together, and can even be killed. I don't think this is true however, since he went over to Hydra with no protection. So that's one answer, and then several new questions, but that's why we love Lost.

2)MIB needs all the Candidates to come with him. This was speculated for a long time, and we finally got the answer. I think he was telling the truth here because I can't think of a reason for him to lie. It's not like anyone he's telling will catch him in a lie, they don't know anything. He says he only needs 3 more. This further suggests that he only needs the Candidates, because if he needed everyone equally to leave the Island then that statement would be incorrect. The three most likely are Jack, Hurley, and Sun. It also seems clear that he needs them to agree to come with him under their own free will. If not, then he's pretty dumb. Sun was knocked out, and I'm sure MIB can carry her a few miles. He did not do this though, which does indicate it's all about free will. About why he needs them to leave, I think it's relatively obvious. Jacob said, even if MIB were to kill him, someone else would take his place, and MIB still would be trapped. With that rule, comes a loop-hole. If Jacob is dead, and all the Candidates leave, then there is NO Jacob, and thus MIB can leave.

The one problem in all this is the issue of MIB wanting to leave Ben in charge. I'm under the belief that for MIB to be able to leave, someone must be in charge. As the one who killed Jacob, Ben is in an interesting circumstance. However, all that may have just been to get Ben on his side so he would have another soldier.

3)My Kate theory is looking better and better isn't it? For reference to that, go back a few blog posts, it's there somewhere. In the Lighthouse post I think. I and sticking to this theory that she's important. MIB tells Claire that she is not on the wall, but her wants to come anyway. Claire then asks about Kate, clearly feeling a little jealously, and MIB says the same thing. That Kate is not on the wall. But she was most definitely in the Lighthouse and was not crossed off. How genius a plan is that for Jacob? MIB thinks he has all the Candidates, Shephard, Jarrah, Ford, Kwon, and Reyes all are on board and they leave. MIB tries to leave too, but is thwarted and maybe even turned back into weaker Smokey when it's revealed that Kate is the new Jacob on the Island. Perhaps, MIB would even cease to be. Like in that Star Trek:TNG episode where the hologram thinks he's real, steps out of the holodeck and vanishes. BYE BYE Smokey! Honestly, how many people would be pissed if KATE turned out to be the most important Lostie of them all. LOL

4)Finally Desmond is the Package. Or we can assume he is. Many people(including me) are saying maybe something else was in that locked door. Why lock a drugged up Desmond into a room with two padlocks? Possibly to keep people out, as much as in. I'm sure by this point Widmore is very aware of spies, and moles.

This Desmond issue is my favorite from this episode. I can't think of anything that he can do that makes sense. With no button, he's as good as useless to the Island. One theory out there that I like is that maybe Widmore needed Desmond to find the Island. We all know once you're on it, it's not happy when people leave. Maybe the only way to find it(unless you're not looking for it) is to have someone who has been there before. The freighter has Michael, Charlotte, and Miles. All three had spent time on the Island. And of course the Ajira flight had numerous AWOL Island dwellers.

I hope there's more to Desmond than that, but cheers to Lost for another great episode. Can't wait for next week.

OH YEAH, Baseball starts this weekend, and the Yankees will be playing the Red Sox. I think there's a game on Tuesday, so everyone should be ready for some cursing and cheering from Josh.

Since the Beginning of Time

WHOA, what an episode!

We have wanted Richard's backstory since he showed up with young Ben in The Man Behind The Curtain. All of us at the same time said, "This guy doesn't age!!!!!!" And now, we have an ANSWER. That's right folks, answers. To all the people saying "They aren't answering questions" or "they are wasting time!". Well, this better stop all that talk. And not just answers about Richard, but about the Island as a whole. We got more information in this episode about the nature of the Island than we got in the entire run of the series. Sure, their have been clues, and theories, and jokes on the Island. But Jacob clearly says the Island is keeping EVIL or Darkness locked away from the rest of the world.

So whoever predicted the Island was a lock on Pandora's box, or a cork on the bottle of Evil Wine, you win a cookie.


I really have no complaints about this episode beyond the things I mentioned on the podcast. With all those things, I can look past them pretty easily. I was however, slightly put off that on another Podcast the idea that the ship seen in The Incident is seen in daylight with perfectly calm seas, and in this episode The Black Rock was in a massive storm was somehow a stupid thing to wonder about. According to this person(not the host of the show), the ship was a ways away and easily could have taken several hours to sail towards the Island and the massive storm is the barrier between the outside and inside. It's a nice theory and I can accept that. But that's what it is, a theory. They have no proof that the ship in The Incident was the Black Rock, and to put down any theories that say the other ship was an older ship from maybe 100 or 200 years before is just rude.

Ok, rant of the week is done.


NOW, on to my theories.

I don't really have new theories, one thing about an episode with so much real info and answers is it's hard to create a new theory. I mean we knew nothing about Richard before this, and most people had come to the conclusion that he arrived on the Black Rock. So most of this was enjoying the story. And hearing the explanations.

One BIG theory I have, and it's really building on a old one, is about Jacob and MIB's body. MIB says to Richard that Jacob took his body. Lets take him at his word since lying about that seems odd. If it's not true why say it? It's not really the kind of info that will make Richard believe him more. If anything, it's a deeper emotional wound that he let slip. Like when he tell Sawyer he was once a regular man, or when he tells Kate his mom was crazy.

I think that many many years ago, Jacob took MIB's human form as a punishment. Punishment for what? I'll get to that in a bit. After this, he is now trapped on the Island, and is a slave to Jacob and whoever is else has power over him. His form is that of the Smoke Monster. He's like a genie. Genie's have incredible power over the universe but are bound to their master.(source: Disney's Aladdin). This means every time we've seen MIB he is simply assuming that form. Sort of like the T1000 in T2. His natural form is not Robert Patrick, it's a liquid metal terminator. But to exist and communicate in our world he needed to assume human form. As I said, Smokey needs to protect the Island. In this regard, he was a security system. Also explains why he was so pissed about Jacob saying the Island needs protecting.

The disagreement between them is also finally answered. Jacob thinks people are generally good, and can live together peacefully. Smokey believes that people are generally bad, and will do nothing but fight and kill each other. Jacob puts Richard in charge of spreading his word, and trying to prove him correct. This doesn't seem to work out well though. We know the Island dwellers killed off the US Army folks who brought Jughead. That doesn't exactly sound like the actions of a group who thinks all humans are good. The hostiles as they would be called, become a force that will attack and kill anyone who arrives on their island. They try and wipe out DHARMA, but can't so they form a truce. Until, young Ben joins them and they commit The Purge. They also kidnap a child and almost kill it as you recall Widmore wanted to kill Alex and Danielle. They then attack, kidnap, and kill the Losties until they finally fight back and win, more or less.

Now, one could say that Richard was just an observer, doing what Jacob said which is don't interfere, let them realize the right path without being shown. But wasn't Richard's job to bring the anti-Smokey message? Richard also according to Ben, brought him list from Jacob. What of these lists? Were they lists of Candidates? Cause Richard had no idea what a Candidate was. Were they lists of good and bad people? The Good would be taken to live with them, and the bad would be left to their own devices? But this also doesn't make sense. Jacob believes that all people are good. Therefore he wouldn't label anyone as good or bad. There has to be a way they decided who would be including in the Hostiles and who would not. Why Ben and Ethan? Cause they were young perhaps? We know the Others have trouble with birth, at least in the time of Ben. Where did Friendly come from? Where did Mikhal come from? These are important questions because some of these people are NOT good people. Pickett was a violent person, and Friendly, while very friendly, kidnapped children and didn't mind trying to kill a bunch of Losties.

I promised I'd get to MIB's punishment, and here it is. I think MANY MANY years ago, Jacob and MIB ruled this place together. The Island is a place of unspeakable power, and I think they were the guards of that power, maybe since the beginning of time. One day, people arrived from off Island. Maybe this is the mythical Lost Island of Atlantis. The built the statue and the temple. But as they often do, the people started fighting. Fighting over which god was better, or who curried favor from the gods more. Jacob and MIB watched as these people fought and died. Maybe they all died. I also think that at this time, MIB and Jacob were pretty much people like us. They simply could harness the power of the Island. So with that in mind I think that MIB fell in love with one of the people who died, and this left him angry and hateful of humankind. The events though left both MIB and Jacob feeling quite horrified. Had they caused this, or was it simply the nature of man to kill. MIB believed that it was the nature of man to behave this way, and didn't want Jacob to bring new people to the Island. Jacob however, did. To stop him, MIB attempted to kill Jacob. He failed, and was punished by a greater force. The Child we see perhaps, think of him as the Personification of the Island's Power.

He was transformed into the Smoke Monster and was tasked with protecting the Island and judging those that arrive. We all know humans are capable of evil, and also good. As Smokey, he had the power to look into people's souls, and see what they really were. Since he was obsessed with killing Jacob and also proving that man is evil, he became more and more angry and bitter. He grew to the point where he would kill anyone that he didn't think could help him complete his task of killing Jacob and getting off the Island. This went on without luck or change until Richard arrived. MIB tries his old trick with him, kill Jacob he's the Devil. Usually, maybe they would chicken out(and be killed by MIB), or they would try to kill Jacob and would be unsuccessful as Richard was, but they wouldn't react like him. Jacob would simply send them back out and have them killed by MIB. This time though, things change. Richard becomes the emissary for Jacob. This doesn't make MIB happy obviously, but he does notice it as a change. He tells Richard, if you ever change your mind, the offer still stands. Over the next 140 years the Hostiles/Others cause much death and destruction. As does everyone else that comes to the Island, until MIB meets a man named John Locke. Locke likes it on the Island, doesn't want to leave, believes it's a magical place, and most important, wants more than anything to be important and have purpose. MIB gives him that purpose, plays on this faith in the Island, tricks him, and taunts him, until eventually Locke in trying to save the Island, gets himself killed, giving MIB the opening he needed. And the rest as they say is history.

Well folks, that's quite a theory. I guess I was wrong of sorts about no new theories, but a lot of this is older theories just brought together clearer.

I really would like to hear some feedback on my wild, and pretty expansive theory.

TRIVIA CONTEST QUESTION

Ok all, this is it!

I haven't exactly decided on the deadline for this to be answered. Most likely it will be Tuesday, but if we don't get many responses I may extend it. But think of Tuesday, 10:00 PM as the deadline.

Remember, the winners will get a promo code to use for Big-O's Lost Answers iPhone App. I love this app, and I know any Lost fan will. And since it's made by Big-O, you know it's like the coolest thing ever.

Ok then. Here is your question!
Sawyer is famous for giving our characters nicknames. Your question is, which nicknames were "Star Trek" references, and to whom did he give them?

There are a few ways to enter:

1)Message me on Facebook. Put "Lost Trivia Contest" as the heading
2)Private Message me on Twitter, I'm JoSpiv there, or Josh Spivack.
3)Send an e-mail with the answer to lostflashbacks@gmail.com again remember to put "Lost Trivia Contest" in the heading.

Two winners will be selected, and then another question will be asked on the in the talkshoe chatroom directly following the episode this Tuesday. One person will win that prize.

GOOD LUCK

Total Recon

Well, I hope you all enjoyed our show this week. I felt a little off my game, and found it very difficult to find things to discuss. Well, difficult to find things that showed that I liked the episode that is.

I don't really have any new theories this week, but I'm sticking to all the ones I've talked about last week. I'm trying to decide if Locke's interactions with Kate help, or hurt my theory concerning her. I keep going back and forth. On the one hand, Locke defends Kate from Claire's attack. He doesn't only tell Claire not to hurt Kate, but he slaps her, and yells at her. I love Claire's face in that scene, and I wonder how she will view Locke now that she knows he lied to her about Aaron, and also that he would seemingly choose Kate over her. This behavior suggests that he knows Kate is a Candidate, and important, thus he needs to gain her trust just as he did with Sayid and Sawyer. What I love about Kate in this episode is that she's not falling for it. Also, what could Locke give her? She's already taken care of her legal issues, and I'm sure Jack would have her again if they ever got off Island. The question then becomes, what does Kate want? I don't know the answer to that, other than reunite Claire and Aaron there really is nothing driving her. Perhaps, she'll mess up Sawyer's plan by saying she is not leaving without Claire. I won't get into the whole "Sawyer/Sub" issue again, cause it'll ruin this pretty positive post about the episode.

The evidence against Locke knowing Kate is a Candidate is shown in that he doesn't seem to care what she knows. It seems like she now knows more about him, his previous life, and his motivations than anyone else! Why her? Why tell her all that about his mother and his childhood. I don't think he was lying in that scene, and it didn't seem to affect Kate that much. Kate though, as I said on the show, is acting different. She no longer seems to care about anything. Which doesn't exactly make for an interesting character, but it could lead to some interesting choices from her. Hopefully, she will turn out to be important, cause if not, I don't see why Claire couldn't have killed her. We know in this season dead is not dead. Infected Kate would be quite interesting imo.

Like I said on the show, I loved the Flashsideways, it was a great story and Detective James Ford is definitely a guy I want to know more about. And therein lies the problem. We won't learn more about him. We won't see him find Cooper, we won't see him hook up with Charlotte again, we won't see what happens when he runs into Kate. To tell the truth, I'm not even sure I want to see those things. I have huge confidence in the writers, and have faith that we will learn why these flashes matter. However, until then I have a pit in my stomach that is filling with dread that the flashsideways will not become as important as we all theorize they are.

I guess that's about all I have to say on that episode.



Here are some links to what we talked about on the show.

The Lost Podcast with Jay and Jack

Big-O's iPhone App: Lost Answers

Hulu's Best in Show

The Trivia Contest question will be posted later tonight.

Special Thursday Episode!!

Hey folks,

Due to the power outage issues I described in the post below this one we didn't do our initial reaction so on Tuesday. It felt strange not to have a show and not talk about the episode.

SO, we will be recording LIVE on talkshoe Thursday Night, March 18th, at 10:00 PM ET.

We used to record there a lot so hope you all can make it. I hope the west coasters can make it, haven't talked to you all live in a while.

We also will continue our discussion of Hulu's Best in Show! Some interesting results and new match-ups.

ALSO, there will be two exciting announcements. One of which will include possible prizes for a few special fans!!

Hope to see you there!

OH, the official blogpost for Recon should be up sometime tomorrow.

Namaste

NO SHOW...Maybe

Hey guys, I hate that I'm forced to put you guys through this again, but there is a possibility of no show again this week.

This time it's mother nature's fault. For those outside of the NJ/NY/CT area, i'll fill you all in. On Saturday we were hit with a massive Nor'easter. Bascially it's a tropical storm force event that occurs in the spring and fall around here. This one was one the biggest I've ever seen. It rained from Friday morning to...well it's still raining here on Monday afternoon. And on Saturday, in my town we had sustained winds of 35-40 mph and gusts up to 60 mph. For those of you in hurricane land, that may seem like nothing, but it's very strong for us.

So how does this affect the show? Well, I'm left with out power in my house. It might be back by Tuesday night, but we just are not sure. There are so many downed trees and power lines it might be a while. So since I may be unable to watch Lost, and since Talkshoe forbids anyone else to start the show, we will not be able to record our initial reactions.

However, I invite all of you guys to show up in the off chance that all will be good, and the show is ago. Even if we don't do the show, the chat will be opened automatically at 10:05, so I welcome all of you to go and discuss the episode. Failing that, definitely pop over to Big-O's show. I don't know the talkcast ID, but just type in Cranky Fanatic and you'll find it.

Here's hoping everything works out, and if anyone spoils Lost for me, I'll be angry lol.

This is Josh, reporting live from the State of Emergency(formerly known as New Jersey)

Dr. Linus, paging Dr. Linus.

I'm so happy I was able to watch this episode with everyone else and join in on the discussion! So much juicy goodness. And mainly focusing on one of my favorite characters on the show! Not only is Ben Linus a favorite among fans, but he's played by the AMAZING Michael Emerson. Why he doesn't have like 3 Emmy Awards is beyond me. But, on to the EPISODE.

So, I've got a couple theories based off of this episode. Like most of my theories I'm assuming right off the bat that they are wrong, but I'm sticking to them!! I'll get into them right away since last week I think I annoyed people with my rant about the tv issue. So here we go. I've given them titles now, so I don't refer to them like "My Kate Theory" or "My Smokey/Vincent/Locke/Christian theory". Those makes sense to me, but my mind is a maze of Simpsons, Seinfeld, Baseball and Star Trek, so there's little room for much else.

Josh's theory: Jacob's Touch and Everlasting Life!

Ok, so we know Richard has been around a long long time, and according to him it was a gift or even a curse. The way he described it, I immediately thought of the situation with Michael. He tried to kill himself over and over, but couldn't. The Island needed something from him. Now, we never saw Jacob touch him, but it's possible MIB touched him and has the same power, but who knows. Whatever caused it, we know the results. We also now know that Jack is the same way. According to him, since Jacob touched him, he cannot die either. HOWEVER, Richard seems to think he can die, but only if someone else kills him. I'm not sure if this is a new development, or if he's been around for over 200 years and no one has killed him. I suppose it's not crazy to think he could have been killed this whole time. I mean whenever a gun was on him he would put his arms up and ask them to put it down. If he could not be killed, why would he care?

So, I'm going with the theory that Richard, and Jack cannot die by their own hand, but they can be killed. So, here's the theory part! I think EVERYONE who is a Candidate goes by this rule. Richard may or may not have been a Candidate, but I think he was given this power anyway so that he could act as a go between for Jacob. Almost like a slave really. Forced to serve Jacob forever. So yeah, none of the Candidates can die by their own hand. I also think this includes actions they take that could or would lead to their death. Like what you ask? Like getting on a plane that tears apart mid-air in a fashion that would have killed all on board. I think everyone that survived was a Candidate. But so many people died after that! I know I know, but hear me out. Once their names are crossed out, they no longer are protected and can die like anyone else.

This explains a lot of stuff. One of the biggest questions of season one was, how did all these people survive that crash, most of them without any real injuries? The answer is they couldn't die! Then one by one Jacob and/or Smokey studied them(through Vincent perhaps!!) and started crossing off names. Crossing off, Boone, Shannon, Random Red Shirt, and on and on. Maybe this is how Charlie survived all those death encounters early on. Once his name was crossed off he could then die. Perhaps Desmond's flash gave him some kind of Island insight that told him Charlie now could die.

The only situation that makes this not work is Locke. Locke did die I think briefly when he fell from the building, but Jacob saved him. He also should have died when Ben shot him, then he tried to hang himself. He was interrupted by Ben and couldn't finish, so all good so far. But then Ben DOES kill him. I have two theories about this, either one works for me. First, if you turn the Frozen Donkey Wheel the gift Jacob gives you is gone. Off Island Locke again lost use of his legs, and then was killed by Ben. The other is simply what Richard says, he can be killed by someone else. I like the first one better cause it's more deep. But both work fine.

So there you go, I love that theory. Explains so much for the entire series!



Josh's Theory: MIB Can't Leave Without a Replacement

Ok, this one will be shorter, and sweeter. Well, maybe not sweeter, but definitely shorter. So, MIB tells Ben that himself and his followers are soon going to be leaving and Ben is welcome to join them on the Hydra Island. He also tells him that when they leave, Ben will get to be in charge on the Island. Maybe I'm slow, but I never realized what Ben craved more than anything was power. So, this is quite tempting to Ben I'm sure. Ben however doesn't take the offer and stays with Ilana and the Light Side. This got me thinking though. Why did MIB do this? Does he really need more people? Would having Ben on his side really change anything? Then it came to me. He needs someone to take over the Island. MIB is still trapped! Much like Kelvin, he needs a sucker to stay and press the button after he leaves. However, this time it's not a button, it's being whatever the frak he and Jacob are on the Island.

Now, we know Jacob had Candidates, and there are now SIX left according to Ilana. Linus was crossed out of the cave wall so he's no longer valid. Perhaps, MIB has Candidates too. I don't think Sawyer, Sayid or Claire are right. They hate the Island and want to leave, he's using them to help him defeat Jacob's forces, and leave the Island. But BEN, he loves the Island. He was once leader of the Others. Therefore, maybe MIB thinks Ben doesn't want to leave, just like when he said Locke didn't want to leave. So that's my theory. MIB needs someone to take over. If Ben will not do it, then I think MIB will be quite angry. Perhaps he'll use his ability to deceive and coerce his followers to force Ben to join them and stay. Whatever happens, I can tell you that I don't think MIB can simply leave the Island now that he has Locke's body. I'll finish with this. If Ben won't stay, and be the new Evil-Jacob, maybe this man will...

On-Going Josh theories will now go by the names
-Kate is Actually Important After All
-Vincent is SMOKEY
-The Cave was a Fake-Out
-Sickness doesn't make you Evil, it show who you really are.

That last one is kinda long, any suggestions for a shorter one?

Any people who agree or disagree with these are welcome to post.

Namaste, and Byyyyyeeeeee

The Oscars save the day!!!

HOORAY, I have ABC! It did go off for about 20 hours, but it came back for the Oscars! I don't know who gave in, but whoever did, thank you!!

Now, I watched some of the Oscars and it was a big night for LOST.

Michael Giacchino won for UP. Even though I love his Star Trek score far better, GOOD JOB!! Lost is now scored by an Academy Award winner!!

Fisher Stevens(Minkowski from the Freighter) was among those that won Best Documentary for The Cove.

JJ Abrams' GEM Star Trek won for Best Make-up. Star Trek even being mentioned at the Oscars is an improvement! Somewhere I hope Gene Roddenberry is smiling.

Evangaline Lilly's performance in The Hurt Locker clearly catapulted it past Avatar to win multiple awards.(Even though Ana Lulu was in Avatar)


So, this means there will definitely be an amazing episode of The Lost Flashbacks immediately following Episode 6x07, Dr. Linus! Be there or be square! Ways to join are located on the panel on the right!

This is just AMAZING!!

Hey guys,

I had to post this video cause it's to amazing not to post.

On the last show, Amanda and I asked for someone to make a BSG style prologue, but for LOST. Well guess what? Friend of the show, Tristan did just that!

Enjoy.



The video is so small cause otherwise it would expand past the posts section. Here's a link to the video on youtube for a nice big view!

LOST: The Plan

Cablevision and ABC to meet at SUNDOWN

Hello everybody. Expect at least one more blog post before the next episode of Lost. That post will either be filled with "hooray, the billionaires have a deal" or "Those #$&($#%&#$*%#$&*^(^#$ Billionaires" Sorry, but youngins do listen to the show. If you are not aware I'll briefly explain(I rant about it on the podcast...you know the thing this blog is based off of...yeah).

ABC's parent company DISNEY is fighting with Cablevision. I don't know if Cablevision is well known outside of my area, but they are kings around here. I don't want to write anything wrong here since they would SUE me lol. But yeah, they are very powerful. So, it's not like the big evil mouse is trying to take money from the mom and pop cable company. What is happening is that Disney(through ABC) wants $40 million more for its contract with Cablevision. If they do not get a deal by March 7(BEFORE THE NEXT EPISODE OF LOST!!) they will cut all ABC programming.

Honestly, I could not care less if any other network was in this mess. I can wait to see The Office or Fringe. BUT NOT LOST!! I have a plan set up in case this does not work out well, and a secondary plan that makes me sad, but would at least makes you guys our amazing listeners happy(hopefully not tooo happy hehe). But yeah, more on this as it develops.


OH also, If you haven't already checked Amanda's post and you're not afraid of a mysterious spoiler about the finale(even I looked so y'all should be ok) you definitely should. Hopefully we'll get a good discussion going on there. It's right below this post. So, GO WATCH IT...or read it.

ON TO THE EPISODE

This episode left me with such a rush of excitement and hope for the future. This season is delivering more so than I thought was possible. Some people I know put this episode as their favorite of the season!! Well, while I don't go that far, it most certainly is not even close to a disappointment in my eyes. Every episode cannot be exposition about Jacob or the history of the Island. Every episode cannot simply be a character driven emotional story. This episode was one of those that prepares us for the journey ahead. Personally, I love all three, mythology is my favorite of course, but those would get boring one after the other. And it would be to much to process. I wouldn't exactly call this one a breather and definitely not "filler", but it's not deeply mythology based, and we didn't exactly learn a lot about Sayid. But did we need to? I mean I liked the Flashsideways fine. It had a coherent storyline that maybe needs some more explaining(Jin's appearance, and what caused Sayid to be different), but i'm 100% sure we will get the answer to what has caused these changes in due time. The on island storyline on the other hand...oh man! I LOVED IT. I got chills so many times. I don't have a ton of theories about it, so I'm just going to mention a few things that I loved more than anything, and see if they turn into theories. If you guys have any please please post them!! It'll make me happy while I'm crying on Tuesday as I stare at static on ABC.

1)My KATE theory is still gold. I am sticking to this!! Kate is important to Jacob somehow, and her importance was kept from MIB. Did you see how he looked at her? Almost like, "wait, you survived?" I'm not going to go into the other 3 names on the wheel who were not crossed off, mainly cause we have no idea who they are. Thus, theories would be insane, and methinks they may be a red herring. Although my mouth did hit the floor when I was informed of their existence. Destruction of my Kate theory is welcome, but it must be based on more of an argument than "Kate sucks" lol.


2)Smokey and Sayid. Oh man!! First, Sayid lets MIB talk to him(a no-no according to Dogen), then he stabs him. "Now, why would you want to go and do that?" One of my favorite Locke lines since "enjoy your breakfast". Then his little convo with Sayid. The Joshmeister pointed out that it was very very close to the way the Devil tried to tempt Jesus. This is not something I'm an expert in, but I'm with Josh on this one, and it's pretty friggin cool. Dogen did call MIB "Evil Incarnate" after all. He promises to give Sayid whatever he wants in the World, and when Sayid says all he ever wanted was Nadia...well MIB can get that for him too. That idea has so many people theorizing that the flashsideways are going to become important here. That Sayid will be transported to the other universe and live out his days happy and with Nadia(after stealing her from his gutless brother). I'm not the biggest supporter of this theory, but it certainly could happen and is the first legit theory that ties the two timelines together.(you guys like that alliteration?)

3)Sayid...Evil? Dogen said that Sayid's scale was off and now was unbalanced towards the bad side. I wish he had said "Dark Side" hehe. So, this would make us think the sickness has made Sayid evil. But wait, Sayid himself said he didn't think he was going to the good place after he died. Perhaps the sickness doesn't make you evil, nor does it make you Smokey's pet. Maybe it simply brings out your true form. Claire isn't evil. She's just a mom who lost her kid. Any mom who thinks someone took their child would flip out and after three years I would bet they would start killing folks with axes. Maybe Claire is good, based in pure love for her child, and Smokey is simply taking advantage of that. Rousseau could be seen in the same light. She wasn't evil at all, the opposite actually. She saved Claire from the Others, and even when she took Aaron she did it with the hope of seeing Alex again. Remember, she thought the Others were coming for him anyway. When Sayid finds her, did she fight and yell? No, she gives him right back to them and weeps about the loss of Alex. Ever since Lost started we've seen people whom are neither good nor evil, they are in the middle, like real humans are. Perhaps this sickness disrupts that scale that Dogen was talking about and gets rid of the weaker side.

So is Sayid evil? Perhaps he is...now.

4)The Others in the Temple are really really really STUPID. Let me quickly list off the things they allowed to occur in this episode alone.
- They let Claire just walk in. They know her to be a bit nutty and that Jacob is dead. So yeah, let's let in the infected crazy lady and hope she's not working with the guy we are trying to keep out of here.
- They let Kate in without any discussion of where she was, who she spoke to, what happened to the two Others that she was with, what happened to Jin, if she saw Jack and Hurley, if she saw anything strange, and so on. These people were asked by their leader Jacob, to make sure these people are safe. Good job folks, good job.
- They let Sayid back in without any questions or worries with the full knowledge that he just spoke to their mortal enemy whom they think is EVIL INCARNATE. Let me ask you, if someone you know had just spoken to your worst enemy, an enemy of near infinite power would you let them back into the fort without even a question? What kind of frakking special safe Temple is this? Anyone can just stroll in at anytime?
-NOT ONLY do they let Sayid in, they let him in the the main area and sit next to the one person that can keep MIB out. So, lets make sure we understand this. The guy who just spent 20 min with EVIL INCARNATE is now going to sit and have a conversation with the ONE PERSON protecting you from EVIL INCARNATE! If the Temple were a night club, and the Others were bouncers, they would let a guy in who says to them "I have brought many guns with me and I really want to kill lots of people".
-Finally, OK. Ilana who has been on the Island for what? A few days, knows about this secret passage. Hurley knows about the passage. But none of the Others know there is a little door they can run out of and Smokey will be like "where did they go?" MORONS!!

Ok, enough of that rant. Oh, caption for the above picture..."Oh welcome back Sayid. How is Evil Incarnate? Hope he's well. Would you like to go sit with me next to the place we drowned you earlier?"

5)Final comment, BEST FIGHT EVER! Oh man, that fight between Sayid and Dogen was amazing. I was a little pissed that Sayid lost, but he was dead like the day before, and he won in the end so it's all good.

So, comments are welcome! and don't forget to rate us on iTunes!