Across the Sea, Part 2

If you missed my initial reaction to Across the Sea, scroll down just a little bit.

Here are my updated thoughts:

I still didn't like the episode, but I'm starting to not hate it as much. I really need to re-watch it.

There are a lot of new theories swirling around about the Smoke Monster, the Mother, "the Source," and what the Island is. Unfortunately, 99% of those theories are in vain. The writers are done explaining the mythology of the show. They got one chance, one episode to do it, and for better or worse, we saw that effort on Tuesday.

Next week they have to go back to the whole Jack-Sawyer-Hurley plot, while also bringing Ben-Richard-Miles back into the show, and also Desmond and Widmore, not to mention wrapping up the flash-sideways somehow. I don't think we're going to quite have time for any more trips back in time to learn more about 'Mother.'

And just because Adam and Eve and the frozen wheel were explained, there's still a lot of mystery left to be answered. ie. who built the statue? where did the Others come from?

We didn't learn anything about what year it was in Across the Sea, but according to lostpedia it was 23 AD, which means Jacob and MIB have been on the island for 2,000 years.

A lot of people are speculating as to whether Smokie is its own seperate entity, or whether the MAN in black (Jacob's brother) became possessed by Smokie, or whether he just became Smokey.

There is some pretty good evidence for any of those scenarios, but based on the MiB's demeanor, and various things that he said in Ab Aeterno (Jacob's stole my body, for example) as well as things he has said as Flocke, (I'm not a what, I'm a who) I think the Smoke Monster (evil) inhabited the body of the Man (who, by the way, DOESN'T HAVE A FREAKING NAME AND NEVER WILL) in Black, but still withholds the spirit of the Man in Black and his personna and his memories and his "self" in the most vaguely philosophical sense possible.

The Monster is the Man in Black, but the Man in Black is dead.

He's been laying there dead for 2,000 years, and yet he's alive.

Because Mother said that anyone who entered the cave wouldn't die, but it would be worse than death.

So MiB's body died, but his soul didn't. Instead, his soul became invested with evil.

Okay, that sounds good to me, enough on that topic. My head is starting to hurt and I'm thinking about smashing my computer with my shoe just thinking about this moronic episode.

A lot of people are also speculating that Mother was the Smoke Monster all along. That's why she's so creepy, and how she managed to kill that whole village of people.

My thoughts ... nice try, but no, that's ridiculous.

Most of the talk among LOST fans is about "the light," also called "the source," and "the heart of the island." Mother says it's "Life, death, rebirth." We don't really have any idea WHAT specifically it is, nor will we ever, so for now, let's just call it "the light" and begrudge the fact that the key to everything is a stupid mystery that we'll never understand.

First, a sidenote ...

Mother said if the light goes out here, it goes out everywhere. But earlier, she said "There is nowhere else. The island is all there is." How can there be an everywhere if 5 minutes ago there is no where else? Again, this episode was simply not well thought out. I'm so dissappointed.
Anyway.

So what IS the deal with the light? There are literally a hundred different theories about it, but frankly I don't like any of them, so I'm just gonna post the conversation verbatum ..... and then offer a few thoughts......

BOY IN BLACK: What is this place?
MOTHER: This is the reason you're here.
[They approach the tunnel]
MOTHER: Don't go in there.
BOY IN BLACK: What's down there?
MOTHER: Light. The warmest, brightest light you've ever seen or felt. And we must make sure that no one ever finds it.
BOY IN BLACK: It's beautiful...
MOTHER: Yes it is. And that's why they want it. Because a little bit of this very same light is inside of every man. But they always want more.
JACOB: Can they take it?
MOTHER: No. But they would try. And if they tried they could put it out. And if the light goes out here... it goes out everywhere. And so I've protected this place. But I can't protect it forever.
BOY IN BLACK: Then who will?
MOTHER: It will have to be one of you.


First of all, this whole conversation is just WAAY to vague and leads my believing that the writers don't have a clue what they're doing. But let's give them the benefit of the doubt for a second ...

So they (meaning people, i.e. Widmore??) could try to take the light, and if they did, it would "put it out," and by doing so, they would "put it out everywhere," which I assume is some sort of apocolyptic reference to the end of the world.

There are numerous references to the end of the world if Smokie ever leaves the island, so we have to assume there's a connection with Smokie (who may be the physical manifestation of the light) leaving the island and the light going out everywhere. That doesn't make sense really ... if the light leaves the island, it goes out? If the light goes everywhere, it goes out everywhere? Huh? It's not that my brain can't comprehend such advanced logic, it's that there is no logic, just muddled nonsense that the writers hope will be misconstued into some kind of stupid sci-fi logic if enough fans take hold of this stupid episode and run with in. Sorry...

So Jacob obviously became the one who has to protect the island, protect the source, and his job is to keep it (ie the monster) from leaving the island. When Mother kills the MiB (but he doesn't really die) she knows he's gonna kill her, and she knows it's time for Jacob to replace her. She says these words:

"It has to be you, Jacob"

Pretty similar to Sayid's final words: "It's going to be you, Jack."

So when Jacob drinks the wine, the immortality and protectorship of the island is passed from her to him, and she becomes killable. And promptly, her unnamed son kills her, and her dying words are "thank you." As in, I've been alive for SOOO long and I'm so relieved to finally die. Probably the same way Jacob felt when Ben killed him. Probably why he let Ben kill him.

Further proof that she knew she was gonna die, and this is a small detail ...

In the next scene, she tells Jacob to go gather some firewood. He says "See you back home" and she doesn't respond. Because she knows she won't see him again.

What she probably didn't anticipate (although maybe she did) was that Jacob would go nuts with anger when he finds MiB has killed Mother, and that Jacob would toss him into the "light," thus turning him into the infamous smoke monster.

"Life. Death. Rebirth. Worse than dying...much worse."






Okay that's all I have time for now... but as far as the next two episodes are concerned, I think (actually I'm 99% sure) that the thing that Widmore is looking for, using Jin's topographical maps to find, is the "source" and he wants to use Desmond to "put the light out" or whatever. But since Desmond doesn't react normally to electromagnetism, Des won't become a smoke monster.

Or maybe Des will become a GOOD smoke monster - wouldn't that be the coolest thing ever?

Remember, Widmore told Des he would ask him to make a sacrifice.

And Flocke wants to stop Des no matter what the cost.

So Des must have an important connection with the source. Perhaps if he enters the source, he will die but also effectively kill the Monster.

I don't think we've heard about the Source for the last time. I certainly freaking hope not.