5 stars from me as well! Definitely one of the top episodes!
Ilona, spot on with Richard looking the same in the young Ben flashback and now. That totally blew up the Lost forums! What in the world is going on there? You think this episode is good, just wait until you get to see Richard's episode! Not for another season or two, if I remember correctly, but holy crap, that was amazing television!
But back to this episode. First of all, fun fact. The woman playing Ben's mother is Michael Emerson's wife in real life. Kinda funny that she's playing the mother of her husband. XD
It was great seeing Dr. Marvin Candle or Edgar Halliwax or Mark Wickmund... whatever candle related name he happens to have in this particular orientation video! It's like a flashback to one of the first moments that the show really blew your mind by going in directions you'd never imagined! Who knew a little show about plane crash survivors would end up here?
And Roger Workman skeleton from the van is Ben's father! Who knew Skeletor would turn out to be someone prominent? And the song playing in the van is the same song that played when Hurley took the van for a joy ride. Obviously the same tape is in the radio still.
I agree, Michael Emerson is such an amazing actor. He was filled with so much hatred toward his dad. Who could blame him though? His dad's version of saying Happy Birthday seemed to be to remind him that it's the day Ben killed his mom. What a despicable human being.
Ha! Poor Mikhail. Locke kicked his ass but good. That's one way to ensure you get to do your thing first, lol! Take out the competition. It looks like the Others are starting to turn on their leader. They seem to be looking to Locke rather than Ben. Obviously, Ben didn't like that. He knows what he needs to do to make sure he doesn't end up in that pit.... like Locke did.
It looks like the only person Ben had cared about in the Dharma Initiative had been Horace Goodspeed. He was the only one that Ben looked sorry to see dead. The hostiles, or natives, are pretty ruthless. They casually caused the Purge, wiping out all the Dharma members, acting like it was just something that needed to be done.
Richard had seemed like he saw something important in young Ben. He didn't question at all when Ben said he saw his dead mother. Instead, Richard looked as if he'd just found the chosen one or something. Like the island or Smokey (are they the same?) had reached out to him. Remember, Smokey had taken on the image of several deceased people in the past to a few people. Jack's dad, Mr. Eko's brother, Hurley's mental ward friend, Kate's horse even...
That cabin scene was freakin' amazing! I totally didn't think Ben was crazy. I thought he was just mindfucking Locke, as Ben likes to do to people. But then Locke turned on the flashlight and shit hit the fan. Obviously, Jacob does NOT like technology.
Did you see that flash of a moment WHERE WE SAW SOMEONE SITTING IN THE CHAIR?
!!!! HOLY CRAP! That was a freeze frame moment that sent fans into a frenzy, lol!
Ben was obviously not happy that Locke had heard Jacob. He was pissed off enough to shoot Locke over it and leave him for dead. So I do wonder if Ben was pretending the whole time or if Jacob really was talking to him. Or I wonder if he was making it up and if he was, if there was a time when Ben COULD hear Jacob but had lost that privilege or ability because he'd gone off his path and angered Jacob or the island or whatever is going on.
They've mentioned Jacob before. I do recall an earlier episode where they had that list of the few names of people they wanted Michael to lead to them. I remember Ben having a discussion with Bea Klugh, I think it was, where she was asking why Jack was on the list because he's not one of the names Jacob had given them. Ben had apparently added Jack to the list out of selfish reasons since Jack was a spinal surgeon.
Finally, Jack seems to be getting back on track to the Jack we know and trust. He seemed to be off his usual self lately, hanging out with only Juliet and being short and distant to the other survivors.
So questions this ep raised. Is Locke dead? Why did the hostiles kill all the Dharma Initiative members? Why does Richard look the same? Why did the natives/hostiles do the purge?
So many more questions but I gotta stop somewhere! XD
Favorite moments: The whole cabin scene, Ben/Locke scene at the mass grave.
Whoa, but I didn't see coming, that he would punch Mikael! The whole episode actually had a lot of WHOA moments!
So crazy!!
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!!!! HOLY CRAP! That was a freeze frame moment that sent fans into a frenzy, lol!