LOST on Egyptian Culture

Alright, so I've had the hunch for the longest time, that Egyptian culture plays a big part in the storyline of LOST. In this interview from Alison Haislip of Attack of the Show she busts out the 'ole 'Word Association' trick. Of course, Damon Lindelof and Carton Cuse, are not ones to be easily fooled. Plus the fact that she flat out told them I'm wanting you to spill some beans didn't help. Anyways, we find something interesting about Egypt in that section of the video. Check it out.



Now, I do realize this was all done a few hours before the show, and that 'tapestry' may have just been about the tapestry that Jacob created. I like to think though, that with the hesitation and 'hmmm's, that Egypt has more to do with what is upcoming with LOST. It took them a second to make a decision on what word to associate exactly with Egypt in other words. Once again, I need to make time to do some research on this Egyptian stuff and how it can be associated with the LOST story.

Another thing were the comments on fathers. The man we saw in the beginning of the finale talking to Jacob, was he perhaps his son or vice versa? We know that Jack and his father have problems, Ben and his, John has problems with his as well, Hurley is another one, Charlie had problems trying to be the father of Claire's son, Ben with his daughter, and those are just some of the main ones. This I think is another large clue as to what may be coming.

The Incident, Parts 1 and 2

Well, the writers of Lost cooked up another great season finale, as is their wont.

To start us off, how major a paradigm shift was the revelation that Jacob is who Jacob is? On Tuesday, he was a shadowy figure on the fringe (haha) of the show that we know little to nothing about, someone that we scour screencaps for a glimpse of, someone probably trapped in the cabin, someone Ben had never seen. 

And now? He's a world-traveling, never-aging, healing-with-a-touch Cool Guy. 

Who saw that coming? Not me.

Long list of What We Learned today:

1. Jacob is corporeal. He eats, he touches, he can be stabbed and killed.

2. Jacob is free to roam about the world. 

3. Jacob has a nemesis, and we meet him. This nemesis cannot kill Jacob as of the late 1800's, though he desperately wants to.

4. The statue looks more like Sobek, another Egyptian deity, thanks to the crocodile head. 

Sobek (also called Sebek, Sochet, Sobk, Sobki, Soknopais, and in Greek,Suchos) was the deification of crocodiles, as crocodiles were deeply feared in the nation so dependent on the Nile River. Egyptians who worked or travelled on the Nile hoped that if they prayed to Sobek, the crocodile god, he would protect them from being attacked by crocodiles.^[1] The god Sobek, which was depicted as a crocodile or a man with the head of a crocodile was a powerful and frightening deity; in some Egyptian creation myths, it was Sobek who first came out of the waters of chaos to create the world.^[1] As a creator god, he was occasionally linked with the sun god Ra.^[1]

5. Jacob visited Sawyer, Sayid, Locke, Hurley, Kate, Jack, Sun and Jin at different stages in their lives and touched them. In Locke's case, Jacob's touch seemed to restore John to life. 

6. Rose and Bernard are fine, and living alone. They've become pretty laissez-faire in the last three years, and Vincent is with them.

7. Roger shoots Sayid, justice for Sayid shooting Ben.

8. Juliet is convinced to help Jack after realizing Sawyer loves Kate. This lends actual plot relevance to the whole stupid love square, so good work, writers.

9. Jack actually goes through with Faraday's plan to blow up the ocean-ahem-the Island, and restore the timeline. Whether the plan actually works or not we won't know for a while.

10. We see how Chang injured and lost his arm.

11. Sun finds Charlie's family "DS" ring in Aaron's crib. 

12. Locke convinces Ben to kill Jacob by telling him how wronged Ben has been. It was then that I became sure that this Locke was not Locke.

13. Locke's body is in the crate Ilana and Bram have.

14. Ilana and Bram, while unknown to Richard, are apparently followers of Jacob.

15. Richard Alpert responded to the question of "What lies in the shadow of the statue?" with "Ille qui nos omnes servabit" - “He who will protect/save us all.”

16. Ben stabs Jacob after essentially being told he was meaningless. "What about you?" is probably the harshest thing you could say to Ben at this point. 

17. If you want to get technical, Locke/Nemesis is the one who actually pushed Jacob into the fire. 

So much to tackle here. Just one note to end this post: 

The show has increased in scope every season. 

In Season 1, it's all about a small section of the Island. Then we move out to the fact that there are Others on the Island, and explore more. Then we discover the Hydra. And from there, the conflict between DHARMA and the Others on-Island, and then the conflict between Ben and Widmore off-Island.

And now all of that seems like the arguing of children compared to this conflict between Jacob and his Nemesis (some have taken to calling him Esau). The struggle between gods about the fate of man? For us, doesn't get much more epic than that. 

Theories tomorrow.

WIRED and LOST

Alright, so the other writers here have pretty much covered all of my theories as to what may come in the season finale. They just somehow found time to write it out before I did. Now the only thing I really have to input is this puzzle from last month's issue of WIRED Magazine. In case you're not a subscriber(like you should be), J.J. Abrams Co-edited this issue, and it was an amazing issue. About half-way through the issue, we find this little puzzle(Click for full-size):





If you take the first page of numbers, transfer them directly to their alphabetical counterparts(a=1, d=4, z=26, etc.), you get:

QAVPHFTKRRJNGGERVGEFXOLMAH

Plug that into a Vigenere Cipher, using the keyword WIREDMAGAZINE, and you get this:

USELETTERSBACKWARDSFROMEND

I came up with the keyword WIREDMAGAZINE because it has that at the bottom of the page after the page number. That's not like that anywhere else in the magazine. Now though, I'm stumped... The numbers on the next page obviously go over 26, the last letter in the English alphabet. I have yet to try wrapping and continuously counting them(27=a, 30=d, 52=z, etc.), I just haven't had a ton of time to mess around with this thing(School, grumble).

Why do I want to figure this out so bad? It obviously has a connection to LOST with the Lotto ticket on top. J.J. Abrams Co-edited this issue, and has a great article in it, which is also a puzzle in itself. Also, if you recall a few episodes back there was a WIRED magazine present. From August 2003, which has an article in it about the cure for cancer on page 108, which is as we know the total of the 'numbers'. This may not give anything as to what is to come tonight, or in the future, but so much is linking the two together that it would be awesome to figure it all out anyways. Also, at 'The End' of this issue, there is a piece of artwork, check it:



Remember, this show is a lot about Science vs. Faith. I wish I could have broken this before the finale tonight! Haha! I may be trying to see something here that isn't, but knowing J.J., WIRED, and LOST, I really don't think I am.

And that's my two cents I guess. I'm missing the finale right now, which is why this article has no real structure and is kinda' mumbo jumbo'd. So I'm going to wrap this up by asking you all one more time, to see if you can solve this puzzle. After the finale tonight of course. I think if we do crack it, we'll no doubt be rewarded in a fairly big way.

Season Finale Spectacular!

So tonight is the two-hour season 5 finale for Lost. Titled "The Incident," this should be a good look at what Chang was talking about in the Swan orientation film so long ago.

I'm going to tackle the ideas posted by the other blog authors, then go into what I think will go down.

-Amy's theory that someone will get super powers - "Will Jack be Island Radioactive Man?" is interesting, but the incident where Desmond turns the key is not exactly equivalent to a nuclear bomb going off. I actually think the bomb is largely inert after all these years... the leak caused the nuclear aspect of the bomb to fizzle, but the initial triggering explosion may still happen. Large enough to destroy the Dharma compound, but not Island-destroying.

I also have a feeling Smokey will make an appearance, something dramatic, like sucking up the hydrogen bomb blast or something. Or maybe eating Locke or Jack, seeing as they're both setting themselves up for some major island controversy. Mmmm Smokey food.

I like it. Smokey seems to act as the Island's protector and Judger of Souls. As we don't know the limits or extent of his technology, swallowing a hydrogen bomb blast certainly makes sense.

Also, I think maybe Sun and Frank might make everything right in the island before John has a chance to blow up the bomb, thus making everything course corrected. Aaaaand scene.

Sun and Frank... apparently following Christian's instructions, and as we don't know where Christian's allegiance lies, their actions are a mystery. 

I'm not on board with John's theory that Jacob doesn't exist. Locke has heard him speak ("Help me"), and Hurley saw him when he stumbled upon the cabin. Shoot, we've even seen him. Check it out:

If Jacob turns out to be nonexistent, it will be a major betrayal of trust by the writers, and I don't think they'll do that to us so late in the game. 

Here's what I think:

I think Jacob is a prisoner of Richard and subsequently, every leader the Others have had for a long time. Locke, being in tune with the Island (and therefore Jacob), knows this, and knows the only way to free him is to kill him. 

I'm still a proponent of "what happened, happened," so I don't think he'll succeed. I don't think Jack will succeed in setting off the bomb, unless the only effect is causing The Incident by releasing the electromagnetic energy through the explosion. 

Everything will tie together in the end, and we'll start seeing some of the tying tonight. 

Along those same lines, the show will not end with Flight 815 landing safely in Los Angeles. This would be a larger viewer betrayal than even making Jacob nonexistent... it'd be on par with what Life on Mars did. Everything we've seen in six seasons never happened? The character development, the storyline, the mysteries... none of it matters? J.J. Abrams is far too smart to go down that route. 

Here's to an awesome season finale!

John's LOST finale prediction - are you watching?

OK, so first off: here's to what I may call the finest season of LOST. Period. No season has done more than Season 5 to answer so many of the questions that we all had in the last ___ years. It also reminds me of why I love this show so much: the writing.

It astounds me that nearly all the questions I refer to as "biggies" have come answered (or partially, at least), in a way that progresses the story of the survivors while not being merely an addendum of the mythology. Sure the mythology of the island, et al. is cool, but without a gripping story with characters to care about, there's not much there.

Boo. Ya.

So without further adieu, my thoughts on the finale.

I think Jacob is non-existent (eek!). And John knows it. It could be some sort of cover up drawn up by Ben and Richard (one of my favorite characters in the show) to keep control over The Others. I'm not sure why, except that John's idea to "kill" Jacob means that he's going to show everyone that they've been duped by Ben and Richard. However, I don't think that Richard's participation in it would be nearly as sinister as Ben's; I think he would have a good reason for it, as he seems to be quite in tune with the island--though not to John's apparent closeness.

Other than that, I have no idea what will happen with the sub, besides that maybe something goes awry (vague, I know) and they need to head back. All I know is that something big will happen, as Brandon mentioned, involving Sun, Lipidus, John, Jack, Smokey, and the Island, which will make for some interesting theories until Season 6. The Final Season.

Bummer.

But, at least it'll be good. Happy watching!

Theories on the season finale

Oh, Lost. Believe it or not, I have been following along with the season, just not writing on this blog.

And the conclusion I've come to is we're in for yet another excruciating cliff-hanger at season's end. I have a feeling it'll be like season 2 when Desmond goes to turn the key, ending in a flash of light (or the flash of a hydrogen bomb in this case). Who's going to end up with super powers this time? Will Jack be Island Radioactive Man? That's totally what his ego needs - a little saving experience. I think that's the main reason Jack wants to blow up the hydrogen bomb - so he has something to do and his journey back to the island won't be for nothing. I see his savior complex coming back in a big way.

I also have a feeling Smokey will make an appearance, something dramatic, like sucking up the hydrogen bomb blast or something. Or maybe eating Locke or Jack, seeing as they're both setting themselves up for some major island controversy. Mmmm Smokey food.

Also, I think maybe Sun and Frank might make everything right in the island before John has a chance to blow up the bomb, thus making everything course corrected. Aaaaand scene.

Thoughts on "Follow the Leader"

The Locke-Ben-Alpert relationship is really interesting to me right now. Something is clearly off with Locke, and Alpert's attitude around him only confirms my suspicions. Alpert was acting wary and almost jumpy when dealing with Locke... my current idea is that Locke is being controlled by Smokey. There is evidence for and against this, but the longer it's apparent that Locke is not exactly himself, the more I like it.

Two literary references I pulled from the final minutes of last night's episode. The first is from the book of Exodus in the Old Testament. Moses has freed the Israelites from the Egyptians and they are now in the wilderness. In chapter 19, Moses prepares the people to meet God.

And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount.

And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.

Very similar to the idea of Locke taking the Others to meet Jacob. It's important to note that the Children of Israel never actually meet God, as they are intimidated and would rather not deal with that experience.

Then Locke discloses his plan to kill Jacob. This is very similar to a major plot point in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. You are familiar with the first book in the trilogy, The Golden Compass. I read all three books a couple summers ago, and they are essentially a thinly-disguised rant against the Catholic church, and to a lesser extent, organized religion in general.

In the final book, our young protagonists kill "The Authority" (the god of their universe), by freeing him from the prison The Authority's right-hand man had placed him in a long time ago.

Jacob's "help me" to Locke. The circle of ash around Jacob's cabin. Locke's assertion that Ben has never actually seen Jacob. It all works.... Locke is going to the cabin to kill Jacob, thereby freeing him. Big time stuff is about to go down.

The undercurrent of Ben still wanting to kill Locke, but fully aware that Smokey will destroy him if he tries (not just kill, destroy) puts Ben in a tough spot. If Richard supports Ben's plotting, that may give Ben a sense that the Island approves, but in the end, Smokey supports Locke, and Smokey is the true power on the Island. Smokey has been on-Island for centuries or even millennia... I doubt anyone has any kind of control over him.

Shaping up for an intense season finale.

Follow the Leader

What struck me most about last night's episode was how lost and confused Alpert and Ben seemed at times. These two seemed the most confident and competent of anyone on the show, and now that's shot. On to the learning:

1. Daniel is dead dead. No taking him to the temple for saving.

2. Jack is sold on Daniel's theory of "blow up the Island and everything reverts back to the original timeline."

3. Richard says he watched Jack, Kate, Hugo, etc. die in 1977 (or somewhere after that point).

4. Locke gave Alpert the first aid kit and instructions on what to tell time-skipping Locke.

So not a whole lot of questions answered, but a few new ones have been posed. Good ol' Lost.

Theories on "The Variable"

Here are some of the better theories on Wednesday's episode from Lostpedia.org. 

On Daniel's age:

Daniel would have to have been born by 1977. He was a professor at Oxford in 1996, which would be impossible at less than the age of 19. This raises a question as to why he didn't have a nosebleed before Miles earlier in the season, however. it's possible the writers have mixed up their own time line again, as they did with Charlotte.

• While I agree with this, Daniel says he's the youngest doctor to ever graduate from oxford, so who knows how young. If he was already as much of a genius as he seemed as a kid, he could've gone to college at 12 or 13, and been a doctor by 20 or 21.

-On the Comic-Con video

Provided that Daniel's prediction about the massive energy discharge about to pass from the Orchid Station to the site of the Swan Station is correct (which will become known as "the Incident"), then the video Dr. Chang recorded must have been taped shortly after the Incident. The Incident would prove that Daniel Faraday really was from the future and already knew that such an event was going to happen. Somehow Dr. Chang will find out more about the time period from which Daniel originates (including information about the current president and the internet) though of course not from Daniel himself.

Most importantly, Pierre Chang will learn of the Purge, and seeing how Daniel was unable to change the past, Dr. Chang will figure that his future cannot be changed either. Therefore he makes this video to be shown after the Purge has already occurred, Pierre himself is dead (and missing an arm somehow) and the DHARMA Initiative is inactive. However, he makes sure that the video is not played until 2008 because that is after Daniel's time loop with the past has ended.

More:

The Dharma Booth Video was filmed after Daniel was shot and after the Incident. Based on Sawyer comments in 1977, it seems Daniel has been off the Island for awhile. When Daniel returns to the Island, baby Miles is a few months old. Daniel doesn't die from the gunshot because Young Eloise takes him to the Temple to be healed like Ben. While Daniel's in a coma or passed out, the Incident takes place. Baby Charlotte left the Island before the Incident but not baby Miles. The Incident is what gives Miles his psychic ability and causes Dr. Chang's arm to be amputated. The video was filmed shortly after the Incident. In the video, Daniel's voice is heard behind the camera, baby Miles is heard crying in the background and Dr. Chang clasps his hand/arm as if in pain.

-On Eloise's seeming ability to see into the future:

Eloise can't see into the future. She got her information from Daniel, Jack, Kate, Sayid and anyone else who flashed to the 70's and came into contact with her. They tell her everything. In her scene with Penny in 2007, she said she doesn't know what's coming next and it's the first time she doesn't know what's coming in a really long time. The reason is, that they can only tell her what happens between the time they meet in 1977 and the time she sends them back to the island in 2007.

I like that last one. Makes sense. Your thoughts?