So one question to ponder is whether the smoke monster has been killing sinners in an effort to cleanse the island or claim them into hell?

And I also found it interesting that though Jacob seemingly baptized Richard by plunging him into the sea, he went on to say that he could not absolve him of his sins- which would be the point in baptism. I think the scene was added as a red herring to reinforce the false black versus white, good versus evil portrayal of the two.

The relay conversation scene with Hurley, Richard, and Isabella was getting to me as it went on. One of the best scenes from this season.

In a sneak peek for 6x10, Sayid cannot feel anything, then Locke tells him it will help for whats coming. Wonder how many bullets he can take.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tOREkj8RZ8

DUDE SAWYER!
YOU SHOW UP WITH A FLOWER AND A 6 PACK???!!!
CLASSY MOTHERFUCKER!

And I've always thought that the island represented purgatory, and that they have all been dead the whole time. They hinted at this in Season 2 when Locke was reading the book "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and Other Stories" by Ambrose Pierce. When asked what he was reading, he went on to say, "Oh nothing."

http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/An_Occu ... eek_Bridge

I really hope I'm wrong here, as the story has been aped to death, a la The Sixth Sense, Mulholand Drive, Jacob's Ladder, The Others, etc, etc..

I definitely noticed that as well. I'm not sure what to make of it but that's one of the reasons I still feel unsure if Jacob is all good. I want him to be, I don't know why. haha. I feel pretty confident that it will not end with a Disney/Jesus ending. I think there will be a lot of good/evil type stuff but not necessarily Christian type things. I'll be pissed too, don't you worry. I honestly believe this show is cooler than that and have high hopes for how it all pans out.

Jacob is a bad bad man.

The LOST podcast just messed my brain up. Go listen!

just1nj, agreed about that scene, it was great. In general it was cool to see Nestor Carbonell get a chance to really act in this episode. Who knew? Until this season "Richard Alpert" has always been fairly reserved, but in Ricardo we got to see the passionate man he was in his original life.

I've missed all of these so far this season! Need to play catch up!

I just got one of those boxed dvd sets on ebay (dvd special edition) last weekend and believe it or not I've watched 4 seasons in a week. I started watching Lost when it first came on in 2004 but midway through season 2- I became infuriated with the pace. So my joke to myself is I had the "lost foresight" to stop watching completely and resume now as I'm watching the final season. It's like watching 6 years in 1 and quite a trip!

What's up with Michael? As far as I know he was caught in the explosion. Did I miss something? Is there a body?

???????

I guess if we're asking questions, what happened to all the snacks from the plane crash in season 1? did they cover that already?!?

seriously, I think michael is the furthest thing from the writer's minds right now...maybe I'm wrong, but I think he's finito.

i <3 sun

+1

He died end of season 4. I'm pretty sure when the freighter exploded. Last thing he saw was Jack's dad telling him he was finally done. I think it was his redemption for selling out the rest of the survivors. The island would not let him die no matter how many times he tried to kill himself but I think he finally did that day, but who knows?

I didn't like the last episode. The side flashes were good but it seems the last 3-4 episodes has the two camps just parked waiting for the finally show down. Something needs to happen already, quit chatting inthe jungle/ beach!

I'm sure it would have been covered if it was one of Hurley's several questions at the SDCC panel last year. He asked what happened to Shannon's inhaler, and that was answered a few episodes ago.

--

I was hoping Room 23 was going to get some action, not some on/off switching with Jin.

Does Sayid dislike Desmond, hence why he didn't rescue him at the end of the episode? Or should that scene pick up next episode?

I think it will pick back up. Plus I'm pretty sure Sayid did not expect to see ol' Desmond. Of course Desmond couldn't say anything because he was drugged or beat up or whatever the hell Whitmore did to him. I think Sayid will save him and Not-Locke will want Desmond, even though he's not on the list (?).

I'd be interested in knowing what's up with Michael's son Walt. Walt was one of the Losties who had psi gifts, and also appeared as an older version of himself to the survivors after he'd gone missing. Do those things add up to anything related to the show's resolution? I'm thinking he just got abandoned by the writers when the Oceanic 6 returned to the island, but there are a lot of unresolved questions around him.

Darth, I listened to that podcast. The title of the final episode is definitely food for thought!

I hope you're wrong, too. Yes, it appears that they've been trying to distance those characters, even though they were central to the storyline and important enough for a flashback and a flash forward. This loose end is important in the overall view of the show. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I think what's left unresolved will be just as interesting (if not MORE interesting) than what's resolved. I'm really looking forward to thinking about everything I still have questions about and discussing those things with friends.

When I listened to this podcast regarding the title of the final episode, it got me thinking if there was some sort of significance on why the finale was airing on a Sunday 5/23 rather than Tuesday.

Good call, Nate. The scheduling may be partially because the finale is two hours long, but the presence of the good old signifying number 23 is definitely there. I'll keep my speculation about that to myself for now.

For those hoping for more action, the podcasts have indicated that there will be plenty to come. Boom!

Sun is possibly the most emotionally sympathetic character, Jin and Hurley being a close second for me. I think Hurley has some even more significant part to play in all this, although the hints have been pretty subtle. It's interesting to see Jack's character returning to the "reassuring leader" role that he played in the first season. After his demise back in the "real world," I thought he was damaged goods for good, but he appears to have regained moral fortitude and conviction.

Desmond and flash back/forward/sideway episodes=

In the time it took Sayid to snap some necks and rescue Desmond in Happily Ever After.. it could have been done last week in the last minute.

I think love is bringing the two timelines together. Hurley's episode is only going get deeper (Libby next week?), but not as deep as Richard's.

Yeah but they needed to give Desmond time to find his way or else he might not gone as willingly with Sayid, just saying lets go without question.