Bad Moms Love Lost, And Locke, And Locke In Love, And Also Sawyer

This week's episode of Lost - which featured the sideways-world (OtherWorld? AlternaWorld?) story of John Locke - was awesome, but still. I'm a little bit worried about this whole alternate reality - if that is, in fact, what it is - thing. I mean, is this all going to turn out like that horrible Gwyneth Paltrow movie that had alternate parallel realities where she had different haircuts? They're not going to bring Gwyneth into this, are they? Because, seriously.

I'll reserve judgment for now, though, because holy Smoke Monster was this episode head-burstingly fantastic. Mock Locke and Sawyer, trading barbs! Creepy little kids! Richard with smeared eyeliner, scared out of his pants! BENJAMIN LINUS AS A HISTORY TEACHER!

Other highlights and questions and ruminations and WTFs:

1) "Well, I guess I better put some pants on." How many times have you wished that you could hear Sawyer say these words?

2) I'd thought that the Man In Black, aka Smoke Monster, aka Mock Locke, was totally inhabiting Dead Locke, and that the old Locke was long gone, but was I wrong? Is there still some Locke somewhere in MIB? When MIB hollered "don't tell me what I can't do!" at that creepy kid, chills went down my spine. CHILLS.

3) That creepy kid. I know, right?

(3) a) Is the creepy kid Future Aaron? Is it? *chills*)

4) "John Locke was a much better man than I'll ever be, and I'm very sorry that I murdered him." Best eulogy ever. Ben Linus wins everything.

5) THAT CAVE. The temptation here, obviously, is draw some parallels between Plato's Allegory of the Cave, but let me be the first to assure you, as a former political philosopher, that such an effort would be more or less fruitless. The Allegory of the Cave is just that, an allegory, and making allegories out of allegories would be too confusing, even for Lost. Or would it? The Allegory of the Cave describes humanity's condition of ignorance, and the philosopher's journey out of that condition, which could be argued to hold some parallel to the MIB's guiding of Sawyer toward greater understanding of the reality of the island, BUT: in the Allegory of the Cave, wisdom is reached by leaving the Cave, not entering it. Which might seem like a quibble, but still. Also? Just because there's a cave, doesn't mean that it's Plato's cave. Sometimes a cave is just a cave. I think.

6) Still, that cave was pretty cool. And the names? Signifying certain Losties as 'candidates'? Spooky-awesome. (Did anyone pay attention to whose names were missing? Kate's? Ben's? Who else?)

7) Was that supposed to be Walt that Locke wheeled by at the school?

8) Ben teaching European History. I'd take that class.

9) I love that Locke's sideways story is - or seems to be - a more or less happy one (as does Hurley's, for that matter). But what does this tell us about the sideways world? Is it a better reality? Is it an after-reality, that is, an afterlife? Heaven? Wouldn't Locke's heaven include keeping the love that he'd lost in real life? That said, I'd never thought that one would ever have to choose between fabric swatches in Heaven.

10) Sawyer. NOM.

What else do we need to discuss? Hit me in the comments.

(You can catch up on last week's discussion at last week's discussion. Alternate reality discussions can't be hyperlinked, sorry.)

Comments

[Lady Mama]

I also like the parallels between the way the characters connect with each other in the alternate universe and the island - as though the same people are destined to interact. Kate and Claire, for instance. And I'm guessing Jack is going to perform spinal surgery on Locke (before the wedding?).

Also, I was wondering if there was any significance of the numbers besides the names in the cave. Obviously they're THE numbers (4, 8, 15, etc.). But is there some other meaning? In the Lost Experience (the game) it was revealed the numbers are the Valenzetti Equation, but perhaps now they're alluding to something else...?

And Sawyer, yes, nom. Does he just keep getting hotter?

[Carrie]

Was it just me or did Sawyer look like he'd shat his pants in the scene just before he went off with Mock Locke? Much less Sawyer nom there ;)

The alternate reality is a little weird. Wouldn't ...damn what's her name... in the temp agency recognize Locke since they were both on the flight? I mean, he's a bald dude in a wheelchair. EVERYONE probably walked past him to get off...

And the fact we have Ethan and Ben in the outside world...so the ONLY reason they are on the island is cause the plane didn't crash...oh my head.

But still LOMGST!! Love love LOVE it!!

[Michelle]

So - every week, are they doing the rerun and then a new episode?

As with the cave - I think they were trying to place quite a significance on the white and black rock being in balance - and then not.

Love the summary!

[red pen mama]

1. *snort* I think Terry O'Neill was getting an eyefull of Josh Holloway in those loose white boxers. Great line, though.

2. I got freaked out by that too. I think Smokey/Not Locke takes on the characteristics of whomever he's borrowed.

4. Ben Linus only lied ONCE this whole episode.

6. Claire. Frank Lapidus. Miles. Bernard and Rose. Mr. Eko.

9. The Sideways story and the on-Island story are linked somehow, but not sure how yet. I think our characters are happier because they have a different past — Jacob hasn't touched them in the Sideways story.

I have some misgivings about Jacob.

10. I couldn't stop staring at Sawyer ass in those jeans. Nom indeed.

[Gwensarah]

1.) Am I the only one who is unmoved my Sawyer's "nomness"?
2.) Ben Linus the History teacher, Oh please SIGN ME UP!! I don't know why but I am moth to flame when it come's to Ben Linus.
3.) Red Pen Mama: Don't be swayed by Smoke Locke, Jacon is GOOD! And yummy, well before he turned into a creepy kid.
4.) We know Juliet sent the message, "It did work" and it's tied into the weird alternate reality, and maybe it is a "heaven" of sorts, we see John Locke finally accept that there are "things he can't do". He seems less weak to me somehow at the end of that episode.
5.) Back to Ben Linus, I want this alternate reality for him. Where the island never touched him, where he wasn't changed by whatever it was they did to save his life. I want Ben Linus the redeemed, dammit!
6.) Am I the only one who's just super glad that Kate didn't manage to suck Sawyer back into her little web?
7.) Sun and Jin, the alternate version..WTF?

[red pen mama]

@gwensarah, I am generally unmoved by Sawyer's nom-ness (I'm hot for Sayid), but his bum in those jeans... I don't know, maybe it was because I was ovulating, but I found it hard to look away. (TMI)

And, no, I'm glad that Sawyer seems immune to Kate, at last. Whew.

[Pearl]

i kind of took the cave scene as a reference to the cave of the spleen from the rape of the lock. there are just so many connections here, or maybe it is just me... sawyer's sadness & the cave of the spleen being metaphor for melancholoy... all of this Lost biblical-esque-ness the rape of the lock was written by alexander 'pope'.... john locke is bald and this poem is about losing hair (loosely speaking of course)... and hello rape of the "lock" or should that be "locke"???

okay, i hope someone appreciates my sense of humor.

as for saywer, i wish he would go drown his sorrows in some kate just so we can be done with this melancholy silliness and see some more of those dimples we all know and love.

[Sarah]

I love the parallels you've drawn between the cave and Plato's Allegory. Locke disturbing the "balance" of dark and light by throwing out the white rock -or the equivalent of "good" as I saw it- seemed symbolic to me obviously of his and Jacobs rivalry. As to say, "the dark side has won."

Very interesting questions you have brought up.

And now I am off to meditate and visualize Josh Halloway, standing pants-less in my bedroom, reciting those words about putting his pants on, over and over in my head. NOM motherfuckking NOM indeed, bitches.

[Janice - The Fitness Cheerleader]

Sawyer... Nom, nom, nom. That is all.