Lost: It Only Ends Once: An Unofficial Last Look

By Robert Dougherty

The final season of "Lost" took everyone on one last, cross-dimensional ride towards eternity. We saw how being a candidate can be deadly, found a new way to reunite with the dead, and discovered a new meaning for the phrase "Man in Black." Months later, we're either just starting to reflect on it all, or cursing that we ever looked for answers in the first place.

For those who still don't regret the last six years, "Lost: It Only Ends Once" takes one final look at the end, and all that came after. The author of "Lost Episode Guide For Others" and "Lost: The Island's Greatest Hits" helps sum up the final 18 1/2 hours, and updates his list of the 42 greatest episodes, characters and scenes of all time. In the process, he shares his own journey inside the Lost fandom, and helps fellow Losties heed the show's final message "To remember....and to let go."

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Sep 30, 2010
• ISBN: 9781450256254

Robert Dougherty

Robert Dougherty has written extensively about "Lost", entertainment, pop culture, sports, politics, movies, and current events since becoming a freelance writer for Associated Content in 2008. His analysis of the biggest stories of the day is found daily on Google News. In addition to writing "Lost Episode Guide for Others" and "Lost: The Island's Greatest Hits" he was interviewed by CNN's "The Situation Room" in 2009, and wrote a guide to Philadelphia sports venues for Sports Illustrated in 2010.

Book preview

LOST:

It Only Ends Once

AN UNOFFICIAL LAST LOOK

ROBERT DOUGHERTY

iUniverse, Inc.

New York Bloomington

Lost: It Only Ends Once

An Unofficial Last Look

Copyright © 2010 by Robert Dougherty

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any Web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

ISBN: 978-1-4502-5624-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4502-5625-4 (ebk)

Printed in the United States of America

iUniverse rev. date: 09/21/2010

CONTENTS

Introduction

Season Six

Where We Last Left Our Survivors

Dead Characters In Sideways Time

New Characters For Season Six

Guide To My Episode Guide

LA X

What Kate Does

The Substitute

Lighthouse

Sundown

Dr. Linus

Recon

Ab Aeterno

The Package

Happily Ever After

Everybody Loves Hugo

The Last Recruit

The Candidate

Across The Sea

What They Died For

The End

A Season Six Without Going Sideways

The Island’s Greatest Characters

The Island’s Greatest Scenes

The Island’s Greatest Episodes

The Last Flash Forward

It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress.

– Jacob, The Incident

May 13, 2009: At around 11 pm est, myself and dozens of other Lost fans exited a season finale party, held by radio hosts Preston & Steve. We had just seen a nuclear bomb explode on the screen, with no clue as to what happened next. The word LOST flew over the white screen, as nothing else would be shown afterwards for nearly nine months. After waiting two hours to see if the bomb would change the future, or cause it, not seeing the answer caused me to curse a bit.

However, a lack of resolution is something Lost fans resigned themselves to years ago. Yet somehow, we would bring ourselves to go through it for one more year.

Cue Lost flashback sounds…..

September 22, 2004: This was a night myself and others like me were not prepared for. Even as we saw what happened, and appreciated it, we still couldn’t see what was coming. I was just starting my sophomore year at college, so there were other things on my mind at the moment. After this night, the words Lost Oceanic 815 island and more would hardly leave my mind for six years.

The raves for the pilot episode of a show called Lost led me to check it out. Once it started, me and millions of future Losties saw the most expensive episode in TV history, as well as one of the most intense and mysterious. What’s more, it was only half over, with part two to come next week.

It was certain that I and others would go back to see more. Yet I had no idea at how much more the show had to offer, or that I would one day write three books about it. Likewise, the online community at large had no clue that this puzzle would consume their lives. There was no way of knowing that the show was even a puzzle, so what did any of us know?

Flash forward to…

May 13, 2009: This fan, and millions of others, were left to ponder over the latest cliffhanger, and wait to see it again for more clues. This was the last season finale before the big one, so everyone knew this was a unique event. At this time next year, there wouldn’t be any more new seasons to look forward to.

Now more than ever, I had no idea what the end game would consist of – and for the first time, it frightened me. I was a full subscriber of Daniel Faraday’s Whatever happened, happened theory, which kept Lost stable in a crazy season of time travel. Since Daniel got killed by his mother when he went against his theory, it seemed to further prove Jack was crazy for using Jughead. Erasing the past five seasons could do nothing but damage, and turn the show into a Terminator/Heroes hybrid that changed everything on a whim.

Plus, since that plotline was the absolute nadir of the Jack/Kate/Sawyer/Juliet quadrangle, it didn’t help my sour feelings over it.

However, a more vintage Lost game changer came in the present, which I preferred to focus on rather than the past. It involved the shocking fate of my first favorite character, and how we had all been tricked by his imposter.

Cue Lost flashback sounds…

October 13, 2004: It had been a few weeks since Lost had settled into our imaginations. After the success of the two part pilot, the first regular episode Tabula Rasa met with a little less praise. But through these first three hours, the most intriguing figure was a bald man surprisingly at ease since the plane crash. This man who spoke of backgammon’s two players, two sides and bonded with little Walt was already high on the list of mysteries.

Heading into this night, John Locke would take his first step into the Lost spotlight. But the promos indicated he could meet a nasty end from the mysterious monster, which gave me pause. I was hardly looking forward to meeting this guy, only to have him killed off within minutes.

Yet instead, Locke looked into the eye of the island, and what he saw was beautiful.

Minutes later, I looked into the eye of Lost, and what I saw would quite literally change my life.

Because if not for the revelation of John Locke’s former paralysis, the seeds of my Lost obsession – and the seeds for my future books – might not have been planted.

And if not for that first shocking Lost twist, the show’s growing cult audience might not have developed their own obsessions either.

Flash forward to….

May 13, 2009: Four years and seven months later, that classic Lost moment had turned rather depressing in the long run. We all hoped Locke’s island obsession, which began in Walkabout would end gloriously for him – just as we hoped our Lost obsessions would pay off. Instead, it turned out Locke’s resurrection and rise to power was just a tease. Instead, he was really dead, and being used by a man in black we only met two hours earlier.

In my case, this was the plotline I was anxious to see resolved first, not the Jughead one. Perhaps that was because the 1977 plot was the messier one, and didn’t have Locke and a few other favorites, like the 2007 plot did.

This split feeling was reminiscent of another milestone season finale, which began the dark times in Lost lore.

Cue Lost flashback noises….

May 25, 2005: This was the last night of Lost’s brilliant first season, leaving us all on edge. Over the months, Lost had become true appointment television, as the mysteries and characters developed hand in hand. Locke, Hurley, Sawyer, Jack, Sayid and more had already become iconic, as were the hatch, the numbers, the Others, and the monster.

The previous week, the first part of the finale was overwhelming. Exodus Part 1 demonstrated how far the survivors had come, and ended with perhaps its most moving sequence. As Michael Giacchino’s music swelled like never before, a struggling couple finally reunited, and for one moment, escape and victory seemed within reach. Yet even as the raft left, and the hatch was close to being opened, a feel of dread was close.

That fear was exploited in the two hour part two – but perhaps was overexploited.

Telling the story in two hours, after a perfect one-hour opening, was just too much. Especially since the hatch opening was more dragged out than ever, after already being dragged out for months. For the first time, it was easy to get impatient with Lost for not answering something. Most of us didn’t mind these delays early on, but it was starting to become a nagging concern.

Ultimately, the hatch plotline stalled, with questionable character actions and a stubborn refusal to give out any clues for the summer. However, it was the subplot that looked to redefine the show, while providing a game-changing twist. In this case, it was the long awaited Others coming out of nowhere to take Walt.

Of course, that twist ultimately went nowhere, while the hatch developments did change the course of Lost. However, after a nearly flawless season, frustration and impatience would carry over into the summer, setting up a year of insane expectations. This type of drama would repeat itself four years later.

Flash forward to…

September 20, 2009: By now, the frustration and excitement over The Incident had died down. Now the actual final season was getting closer, with the wait halfway over. Of course, for all my browsing of Lost sites, they didn’t have any scoop on Season Six – and I was struggling on whether to look if they did.

Those worries would get more prevalent later, when the season premiere got closer. At this time, they had just started filming Season Six, so not much was bound to come down. It was going to be a long final four months, but at least I had gotten through half of the countdown.

On this night, the last year was a secondary concern. I had just gotten through publishing my second Lost book, and basking in my advance copies. Lost was on my mind, but not so much because of the future. My focus was on the past season, and whether one of Lost’s own would be honored for it.

At last, the Primetime Emmys finally selected Lost’s second Emmy winning actor. The first was Terry O’Quinn, in his long overdue 2007 victory. Yet the show’s second Emmy winner was even more overdue – and even more central to my Lost world.

Cue Lost flashback noises….

February 15, 2006: This was a rather iffy time in my Lost fandom, and that of many others. Season Two had become a mixed bag, with a stalled hatch plot, a stalled batch of newcomers, and a more frustrating lack of answers. At this point, Lost wasn’t really among my primary TV obsessions, as it was falling off my radar. My focus was mainly on 24, especially since it started its greatest season weeks earlier.

The episode that ran on this night didn’t change that. In fact, it seemed like it was just piling on another mystery, by bringing in a man caught in a net. This was an alleged Other that Sayid tortured, as flashbacks showed the beginning of his torturing career. It brought Sayid closer to the edge, while providing new clues to whether the hatch button was important, but it didn’t seem to do much beyond that.

The captured prisoner didn’t seem too special, as it was probably obvious he was an Other. At the time, he was just another mystery to add to the growing pile. By now, that wasn’t an entirely welcome thing.

But just like the night of the Pilot, this night was among the most important for Lost, and for my viewing experience. For it introduced a character, and an actor, who would shake Lost up for all time and help rescue it from the brink. Ben Linus, as well as actor Michael Emerson, became the center of the show, then helped ensure it wouldn’t fall again.

Because of Ben, and because of his eventually pairing with Locke, Lost would be on its way back. As such, my fandom would be on its way back, as Lost overtook 24 in my mind before long and never left.

Over 2 ½ years after One Of Them aired, I and others rejoiced, as Emerson was officially honored by the Academy. However, he and Ben were already more than honored by Losties everywhere.

Flash forward to…

January 2010: At last, the finale was truly within reach. There was just one month to go, with theories running more rampant than ever. Spoilers were also more in reach than ever, and harder to ignore. I tried to limit my spoiler intake to episode titles, and who would have the starring role in episodes to come. In spite of that, some other spoilers were already given away, though I was still in the blank on what Season Six’s format would be.

By now, we had already been told that dead characters were coming back, which seemed to mean that Jack’s plan worked. This put dread in my heart, since I was fully against it working and erasing everything. I was also wary of dead friends coming back for a victory lap, since there had to be a deeper meaning for it to work. After the missteps in 1977, my confidence was a little shaken.

Yet no matter what clues had leaked, I was still able to avoid the big ones. I had already learned my lesson on that issue the hard way.

Cue Lost flashback sounds….

May 23, 2007: It was my first Preston & Steve finale party, and the first time I actually got together with other fans. It was also the first time my dad watched the show, so I had already tried to bring him up to speed.

By now, my Lost devotion was back to being unshakable, after the most important developments in show history. The rock bottom in early Season Three had been shaken off, and the show was in its greatest creative swing to date in the second half. Ben and Locke were driving the action, newcomer Juliet was already the MVP of the year, and even answers were starting to come. Rescue was being teased, but many expected that it was too soon for that.

Unfortunately, I was hoping I didn’t already know different. In my search to find out about who would die in the finale – and whether Ben and Locke would survive – I stumbled onto some huge spoilers. In fact, so did many other fans, as a user named Lost108 somehow found out everything and posted it online. He revealed that something called a flashforward would be used, meaning that rescue was achieved – and it wasn’t the end of Lost.

When future bearded Jack met up with Kate at the end, the entire Lost universe shifted forever. All were stunned, as the show was now going places even we never imagined. Yet some of us already got an idea, and were not as surprised as we should have been. That created a sense of regret, rather than excitement – though it would return to excitement over time.

Flash forward to…

February 2, 2010: At last, the waiting was over. The very last season premiere was now set to air, beginning a final rush to the end. Although the countdown to Season Six was over, it was now time to start the countdown for the end of it. I was not at a Lost party this time around, as I stayed home with my dad to see what would happen next.

I did not feel like I should start planning for a new book, since I didn’t see how I could make another one. After my first two, I figured I had stretched out summing up the show, and listing its greatest achievements, as much as I could twice over.

Cue Lost flashback noises…

Summer 2008: Season Four was over, and had finished the job of eliminating my doubts about the show. But doubts in my personal life were growing, as I had graduated from college a year ago, with no job on the horizon. I had started freelance writing, but it had not taken off for me yet. At this point, I wasn’t sure what to do, since getting a regular job wasn’t working.

It was my dad who suggested that I needed to get up, stop playing around, and write something. He suggested that since I was so devoted to Lost, I could write something about it. Yet this wasn’t a new idea for me.

Before Season Four, my dad had already branched the idea of writing a Lost book. I figured out an idea in which I could explain each episode to new fans, and confused ones as well. So I started out on what would become Lost Episode Guide For Others but I lost interest in it after a few weeks. It took my dad’s challenge for me to revive it again.

I spent the summer analyzing and simplifying each episode up to There’s No Place Like Home After finding the company iUniverse, we sent out money to self-publish the book, in order to get it out before Season Five.

Just like that, thanks to Lost and my dad, I was an actual author. Of course, I was a self-published author, which is far easier than getting something made by a major publisher. But because of this summer, and my knowledge of the show, it got me on track to set a career path.

If I actually get a book published without having to pay for it first, I will have Lost to thank for the stepping stone. Although Lost Episode Guide For Others and the subsequent Lost: The Island’s Greatest Hits made far less than what it cost, it certainly built up my resume – while getting me closer to my favorite show.

Flash forward to….

May 23, 2010: This was the night that me and millions of others had waited six years for.

But even thought not everyone appreciated what happened on this night, the journey to get here still meant something.

Going into May 23, 2010, I was a two-time self-published author, and a successful freelance writer at that. My devotion to Lost helped to get my writing career in focus, so it truly had life-changing implications for me. To so many other fans, it meant even more.

As such, I couldn’t let go without writing one last recap. I couldn’t let go until I completed my trilogy, and could say that I recapped every single episode in book form. I also couldn’t move on until I provided a final look back at the show’s greatest moments, revising them accordingly for Season Six.

This last look back is in the same format as Greatest Hits as it recaps the past season, and then lists the 42 greatest scenes, episodes and characters in show history. But in this case, it recaps the very last episodes, while containing new essays for Season Six’s best episodes, moments and figures.

In addition, it also acknowledges that the last year had some problems, as well as a controversial finish. Certain questions had to be cast aside, in favor of debatable moments and episodes in general. This was mainly due to the sideways world, which was the main problem many had with the finale and the season.

Without it, we wouldn’t have had the return of old favorites, nor would the ‘flash’ quota have been fulfilled. But without it, there could have been a plan to address all the old questions, and correct the other mistakes of Season Six. This way, no one would complain if the finale didn’t focus on answers – although it’d be harder to fill 2 ½ hours without the sideways.

My alternate blueprint for Season Six doesn’t answer the mysteries, yet it suggests how they could have been addressed with traditional flashbacks. It also gives mystery figures the attention they couldn’t get in the last year, or gives them a better kind of focus.

But first, we will take a final look back at what the real Season Six gave us. For those still confused over everything, or for those that didn’t get the answers, each episode is summed up is my usual fashion. In addition, I attempt to give my own answers for lingering mysteries, as well as cryptic developments – particularly in Across The Sea and The End

Six years of fandom have led me to these final moments, just as they led us all to our new post-Lost life. I went through the same roller coaster ride as all of you, although the roller coaster got more intense in the last half. The rest of you have your own unique stories to remember, or are still trying to figure out what all the fuss was about.

My hope is that my last two books helped you with the first five years, or that other Lost fans you know did their part. But for this final season, and for the full list of the greatest memories of Lost, the nostalgia begins here – before we all finally have to move on.

Season Six

Where We Last Left Our Survivors

Jack Shephard – played by Matthew Fox: Tried to change the future by dropping the Jughead bomb in 1977, but may or may not have caused it – and gotten Juliet killed in the process.

Kate Austin – played by Evangeline Lilly: Attempted to stop Jack, but wound up helping him, while inadvertently coming between Sawyer and Juliet. However, she is still set on finding the missing Claire, and bringing her back to Aaron.

James ‘Sawyer’ Ford – played by Josh Holloway: The reformed con man settled down in DHARMA with Juliet, but with her likely death, his old bitter self may make a comeback.

Hugo ‘Hurley’ Reyes – played by Jorge Garcia: Is with a dying Sayid, while everyone else is fighting at the hatch – and is still carrying around a guitar case left behind by Jacob.

Sayid Jarrah – played by Naveen Andrews: After failing to change the future by shooting young Ben Linus, Sayid is ready for death after being shot by Roger Linus.

Jin Kwon – played by Daniel dae Kim: Still waiting and hoping to be reunited with Sun.

Miles Straume – played by Ken Leung: Found closure with father Pierre Chang in DHARMA, before helping him escape the hatch carnage.

Juliet Burke – played by Elizabeth Mitchell: After forcing herself to give up her life with Sawyer, she looked to have lost her own after falling down the hatch – yet survived long enough to set Jughead off.

John Locke – played by Terry O’Quinn: Is still dead after being strangled by Ben Linus. Although he looked to have been revived on the island, the being posing as John Locke is not who he says he is.

Ben Linus – played by Michael Emerson: The dethroned Others leader took his rage and jealousy out on Jacob, although he doesn’t know that the fake Locke has made him a pawn.

Sun Kwon – played by Yunjin Kim: The only one of the Oceanic Six to remain in 2007, which still leaves her separated from Jin.

Richard Alpert – played by Nestor Carbonell: The immortal advisor to the Others was taken aback when Locke returned, and is even more shocked to see the real Locke’s dead body.

Frank Lapidus – played by Jeff Fahey: The scheduled pilot of Oceanic 815 took Ajira 316 down to the island, and wound up as the prisoner of a few Ajira survivors.

Ilana – played by Zuleikha Robinson: Ajira survivor who is actually the leader of a group devoted to Jacob.

Jacob – played by Mark Pellegrino: The secretive leader of the island was revealed to have visited the survivors in their past, before he seemingly let Ben kill him – on behalf of a foe very familiar to Jacob.

The Man in Black – played by Titus Welliver in past, Terry O’Quinn in present: Jacob’s unknown nemesis has worked behind the scenes throughout the entire series, to carry out his ‘loophole’ for killing him – and succeeded in the form of John Locke.

Desmond Hume – played by Henry Ian Cusick: Survived being shot by Ben, and is in the hospital with Penny by his side.

Charles Widmore – played by Alan Dale: Is waiting outside the hospital to get to Desmond, and to return to the island that Ben stole from him.

Penelope Widmore – played by Sonya Walger: She and her son were spared by Ben, before being reunited with Desmond once more in the hospital.

Eloise Hawking – played by Fionnula Flanagan: The former Others’ leader sent the Oceanic Six back to the island, so as to maintain the past in which she shot her son Daniel.

Claire Littleton – played by Emile de Ravin: Was last seen with her father Christian in Season Four, after having left Aaron behind to head for parts unknown.

Christian Shephard – played by John Terry: His body is still missing, although his post-death appearances on the island have greatly helped the Man in Black’s plans.

The smoke monster: Still mysterious and unknown, although his recent appearances have greatly helped the Man in Black’s plans.

Dead Characters In Sideways Time

Charlie Pace – played by Dominic Monaghan: Died bravely on the island, but nearly dies from choking on heroin on the alternate 815 – although that isn’t all that happens to him.

Boone Carlyle – played by Ian Somerhalder: Got killed helping Locke, yet survives talking to him on the plane.

Edward Mars – played by Fredric Lane: The U.S. Marshal gets to bring Kate back to the U.S. this time, although he gets no further with her.

Leslie Artz – played by Daniel Roebuck: The nosy science teacher blew himself up on the island, but survived to endure his lousy job.

Ethan Rom – played by William Mapathor: Once again, the first of the Others is examining a pregnant Claire, although he is nicer about it this time.

Helen Norwood – played by Katey Sagal: Broke up with Locke before her death, although the two are happily engaged in this realm.

Nadia – played by Andrea Gabriel: Sayid’s great love and dead wife is married to his brother here, yet she still carries something for Sayid.

Martin Keamy – played by Kevin Durand: The deranged mercenary is now a ruthless mob boss tied to Sayid, Sun and Jin.

Roger Linus – played by Jon Gries: Ben’s abusive father is being kept alive by him, instead of being killed by him.

Alex Rousseau – played by Tania Raymonde: Instead of being Ben’s fake daughter, she is now Dr. Ben Linus’s favorite history student.

Charlotte Lewis – played by Rebecca Mader: Was connected to Daniel on the island, and yet gets intimate with detective Sawyer for a night.

Mikhail Bakunin – played by Andrew Divoff: The Other who killed Charlie has both eyes here, and serves as an interpreter for Keamy.

George Minkowski – played by Fisher Stevens: The freighter’s communications officer was lost in time like Desmond, but now drives him around.

Daniel Faraday – played by Jeremy Davies: Is now known as Daniel Widmore, and is a musician instead of a physicist, although that doesn’t stop him from getting flashes of his old genius.

Libby – played by Cynthia Watros: Gets flashes of her short romance with Hurley, then finally gets to have a picnic with him and help him remember.

Pierre Chang – played by Francois Chau: Has both hands, and now only has to narrate tribute videos as curator for the local museum.

Anthony Cooper – played by Kevin Tighe: May or may not have still been a con man, although he still hangs over Locke, but for even more tragic reasons.

Danielle Rousseau – played by Mira Furlan: Alex’s struggling but still sane mother, who actually approves of Ben’s influence on her.

Shannon Rutherford – played by Maggie Grace: Shows up at the last minute to help Sayid.

New Characters For Season Six

Dogan – played by Hiroyuki Sanada: The leader of the Others’ temple, who is charged with keeping it safe from the Man in Black.

Lennon – played by John Hawkes: Dogen’s interpreter, even though he is only needed for appearances sake.

David Shephard – played by Dylan Minnette: Does not exist in the regular timeline, although he serves as Jack’s initially resentful son in the sideways world.

Zoe – played by Sheila Kelly: A geophysicist aiding Widmore’s mission on the island.

Isabella Alpert – played by Mirelly Taylor: Richard’s wife on the Canary Islands, whose death starts the chain reaction that sends Richard to the island.

Mother – played by Allison Janney: An island protector from 2,000 years ago, who raised Jacob and the Man in Black as her own - despite lying to them and testing them as her potential replacement.

Guide To My Episode Guide

Main character: Lists who is the focus of the episode.

Island time line: Describes what happens on the island, which is now set in 2007 and is not jumping through time anymore.

Sideways time line: Describes what happens in the alternate ‘sideways’ universe where Oceanic 815 never crashed.

Important details in Lost lore: A list of all the important details in the episode which are crucial to the show’s overall plot and history.

Amount of action: Ranges from little to fair to heavy.

New important characters: Lists any important characters that make their first appearance in a given episode.

Connections between characters: List the important relationships and conflicts in the episode, as well as any past connection that the survivors have.

Lost mysteries referenced: Lists which specific mysteries are touched upon in the episode.

Lost mysteries introduced: Lists which new mysteries are created from the episode.

Questions raised: List of the major questions and cliffhangers from the episode.

Talking points: A brief discussion of the various themes, plot development and character development in an episode.

Other key issues: One or two supporting talking points.

LA X

From here on in, everything in Lost’s final season is a series of last’s. The premiere brought an end to the last offseason, began the last season - and is the last time that we can picture Lost in one reality. After seeing the island move with a donkey wheel, seeing time travel, and seeing a Man in Black shape shift into a dead John Locke, we now must suspend disbelief for a parallel universe as well. Yet this may not instantly mean that the Jughead plan worked.

The big debate all year was framed as an either/or question - either there would be a total reset of time, or the time line would be completely unchanged. Instead, both camps of fans got what they wanted, to a point. For those that wanted time to reshift, they got that and more - and those that wanted an intact future got that too. Now it’s just a matter of figuring out how these two realities come together, and which one shaped the other.

For six years, Lost has presented the biggest mysteries in TV history, and keeps piling them up even after they solve one or two. This is supposed to be the year where all is solved, but the resolution is farther than even now, in both worlds. Yet the very first Lost mystery of all time may be the key to understanding some of it - assuming he doesn’t destroy one or both worlds first.

To start explaining this, the recap will start with explaining the ‘sideways’ time line, where Oceanic 815 landed, followed by the 2007 on island action. However, are both realities as different as they looked?

The final season begins now.

Sideways time line: The very first scene of the season has Jack Shephard in his seat on Oceanic 815. He looks a bit unsettled, until flight attendant Cindy offers him a small bottle of alcohol. But whereas Cindy offered him two bottles in the Lost pilot, she now offers him just one. What’s more, when the plane hits turbulence, Jack is the nervous one, while Rose is the calm one. But the plane stays intact instead of crashing, and Bernard returns from the tail section to sit beside Rose.

Jack heads for the bathroom, where he notices an unexplained cut on his neck. After addressing it, he goes over and sees Desmond sitting in a nearby seat- since in this reality, Desmond isn’t in the hatch. Jack seems to slightly remember Desmond after hearing him say brotha but he tries to shrug off this deja vu.

Afterwards, the camera pans all the way down to the ocean - where the sunken remains of the island, the DHARMA barracks, and the four toed foot are in this new reality.

Back on Oceanic 815, Jack briefly encounters Kate coming out of the bathroom. She is a fugitive again, overseen by her U.S. Marshal nemesis, Edward Mars. Behind them are Hurley, Sawyer and the no-longer blown up Dr. Arzt. Hurley is now the owner of Mr Cluck’s chicken franchise, and is exceedingly lucky now that the numbers have no power over him.

John Locke strikes up a conversation with his former island acolyte, Boone - who didn’t bring his sister Shannon back with him this time. Locke tells Boone about the walkabout he claims he was on, which ironically makes Boone remark that he’ll stick with him if the plane crashes.

Jack is called over by Cindy, since there is someone unconscious in the bathroom. With help from Sayid, Jack kicks the door open to reveal Charlie, who is passed out. Jack looks for a pen to help clear Charlie’s lungs, but it is gone. However, he is able to get out a bag of heroin from Charlie’s throat, which revives him - to Charlie’s disgust.

When Jack returns to his seat, he finds that Desmond is gone. But by then, Oceanic 815 is ready to touch down into LAX. The former survivors now all go their separate ways, with Charlie and Kate led away in handcuffs, and Locke led out in his wheelchair.

In LAX, Jack discovers that his father’s coffin was never loaded onto the plane, and the body is gone - just like it was on the island. Meanwhile, Kate goes to the airport bathroom, where she pulls out Jack’s pen that she stole on the plane. She uses it to undo her handcuffs, and then knocks Edward Mars unconscious before leaving the bathroom and heading for the elevator. Sawyer is there with her, and briefly notices her handcuffs before he heads off.

As for Jin and Sun, they seem back to their cold, distant relationship before the plane crash. But when their luggage is searched, customs officials find a large, undeclared batch of money in Jin’s bag. Since he can’t speak English in this world, he can’t explain what this is for. When he is led away, officials advise Sun to clear this up if she can speak English - but she doesn’t seem to understand.

Kate gets outside to hail a cab, but has to wait in line behind Hurley and the annoying ‘Frogurt’. When Mars notices her, she runs into another cab, and holds the driver at gunpoint. But there is another passenger with them - Claire.

Jack calls his mother about his father’s missing body in an office. Locke is there as well, inquiring about his missing bag of knives. The two start to share stories, as Locke states that Jack’s father’s body is missing - not his father. Jack actually seems happy to hear that, and asks about Locke’s condition. When Locke says it’s irreversible, Jack comments Nothing’s irreversible and gives Locke his business card for a free consult. The former rivals shake hands before they part ways.

Island time line: In this world, the 1977 time travelers have been sent back to the island in 2007, as Jack’s plan didn’t work here. Kate comes down from a tree with her ears ringing, to find that they are at the remains of the hatch at night - only after Desmond blew it up. When Jack comes to, he is kicked down the pit by an enraged Sawyer, still grief stricken over Juliet’s death.

Hurley, Jin and a dying Sayid are far away at their DHARMA van, as Sayid is ready to accept his death. Jin goes out to the hatch pit to get help, as Jack is reeling from his failure and Sawyer is still screaming at him. But they stop when they hear Juliet’s voice underneath the hatch wreckage. Sawyer orders Jin to bring the van back, so its chains can pull the wreckage away.

Hurley is now all alone with Sayid, but starts to hear noises. He looks around, only to find Jacob himself in the jungle. Since Jacob gave Hurley the idea to go back to the island, and gave him his guitar case, Hurley has a lot of questions for him. But as Jacob focuses on Sayid, he only tells Hurley that he died an hour ago, due to ‘an old friend.’

He instructs Hurley to take Sayid to the Temple, through the tunnel that Jin saw Rousseau’s French team go into in 1988, when the monster attacked them. Jacob assures Hurley that Sayid and everyone else will be safe there, and that he should bring the guitar case.

Back inside the four toed foot, Ben is still stunned over having killed Jacob. Yet he still has no idea that the John Locke he’s taking orders from is Jacob’s old friend, the unnamed ‘Man in Black.’ He orders Ben to bring Richard inside for a talk, while Richard is trying to stop Ilana, Bram and the Shadow of the Statue group from going inside without permission. Ben comes out and repeats Locke’s request, but Richard responds by dragging Ben to the real Locke’s corpse.

Jin returns with Hurley and Sayid, as they pull the wreckage away with the van’s chains so Sawyer can go down and find Juliet. She is still alive and back in 2007, but barely clinging to life, and distraught that she couldn’t stop Sawyer from crashing on the island. Sawyer tries to comfort her, as up above, Jack cannot stop Sayid from bleeding. So Hurley tells him that they need to go to the Temple, since Jack can’t fix Sayid.

On the beach, Richard asks Ben what happened in the foot, but Ben is too stunned to answer him. Bram then takes Ben and some gun-toting Shadow members inside the statue, where they find the fake Locke. Once he says Jacob is dead, and that they are ‘free’ from their task, Bram and his people shoot at him. One bullet appears to strike him, but once the fake Locke leaves, Bram finds that the bullet is now on the ground.

Just then, the sounds of the monster are heard.

The smoke monster charges into the room and crushes its attackers, though Bram is able to pour a circle of ash on the ground and step in it. This seems to protect him, but the monster soon knocks a piece of rock from the statue. It knocks Bram out of the circle, and allows the monster to impale him on Jacob’s tapestry. When the monster disappears, Ben comes out of hiding, and finds the fake Locke seconds later.

All he has to say is I’m sorry you had to see me like that.

The Man in Black that has been impersonating John Locke, and who may have shaped most of this series, is none other than the smoke monster itself.

Back at the hatch, Juliet is slipping away, although she oddly tells Sawyer that they should go for coffee. They share one last kiss, then Juliet tries to tell Sawyer something important - but dies before she can go on. Sawyer carries her body back out, and bitterly tells Jack that he did this.

The next morning, Sawyer is set to bury Juliet with Miles, while the others head to the Temple to heal Sayid. Jin takes them to the wall protecting the Temple, where they go down the hole and through the tunnels inside. Soon, they hear the mysterious whispers of the Others, before they are all captured and led back outside - where they finally get a look at the famed Temple.

Back in the jungle, Sawyer has finished burying Juliet, and demands that Miles use his power to find out what she would have told him. After Miles puts his hands on the grave, he soon gets her final message - It worked - as she may have seen the sideways reality before she died.

At the Temple, Jack, Kate, Hurley, Jin and Sayid are met by a new group of Others. They include former Oceanic 815 flight attendant and ‘tailie’ Cindy, a new Japanese leader called Dogen, and his interpreter, Lennon. Through Lennon, Dogen orders the survivors to be shot, but when Hurley says that Jacob sent him, they stop. He shows them Jacob’s guitar case, which is opened to reveal an Egyptian ankh symbol - the same symbol held by the statue before it was destroyed.

Dogen breaks the ankh to reveal a letter, which seems to contain all five of the survivors’ names. He then orders Sayid to be taken to the ‘spring’ as Lennon says that if Sayid dies, everyone will be in big trouble.

Inside the temple, there is a spring of water that isn’t running clearly anymore - which may have happened after Jacob’s death. Although there are now risks in putting Sayid into the spring, Jack lets them do it. The Others put Sayid under the water as Dogan takes out a giant hourglass.

After all the sand runs through, Dogen has Sayid taken out, but it is too late. Sayid is dead, even after the guilt ridden Jack tries to use CPR on him.

At that point, a captured Sawyer and Miles are led inside the Temple, as the others receive food from Cindy - and kidnapped tail section children Zack and Emma. Lennon takes Hurley to have a private talk with Dogen, as they want to know what Jacob told him, and when he’s coming to the Temple.

But when Hurley says Jacob is dead, Dogen puts the Others on high alert. They set off rocket flares and pour more black ash around the Temple, as Lennon says it’s to keep him out.

The smoke monster/Man in Black, in the form of Locke, is still in the statue as Ben realizes how he was used. The monster - who prefers to be called a Who rather than a What – informs Ben that the real Locke’s final thought was I don’t understand as Ben killed him. He reminisces about how weak Locke was, although he was the only one to realize that his pre-island life was pathetic. However, with Jacob dead, the monster now wants the one thing that Locke didn’t - to go home.

Outside, Richard sees the flare in the sky and finally senses what has happened. At that point, the fake Locke emerges, telling Richard that it’s good to see you out of those chains. As Richard realizes just who this is, the monster strikes him unconscious. He tells everyone else that he is ‘very disappointed’ in them, and carries Richard’s body past the real Locke’s corpse.

In the Temple, Kate is trying to console Sawyer, who is still bitter at Jack. Lennon comes and demands a private talk with Jack, but he refuses. As they fight, Hurley notices something stirring behind them.

Sayid has come back to life, asking What happened?

Important details in Lost lore: There are now two time lines; one in which the Jughead detonation reset the future, and one in which it sent the 1977 survivors back to the island in 2007. In the sideways reality, the island has sunk into the sea, while Jack has once again lost his father’s body, but gotten friendly with Locke. Kate is a fugitive who has escaped custody, and who runs into Claire during her escape. Hurley is a lucky CEO, but Sawyer, Sayid, Sun and Jin still seem the same as they were before the crash.

In the regular time line, Juliet finally dies, but may have gotten a glimpse of the sideways world before her death. The other survivors finally see the Others’ Temple, after the dead Jacob instructs Hurley to take Sayid there. A new group of Others cannot heal him, but he miraculously returns to life anyway. And far away from them, the Locke impersonating Man in Black is revealed as the smoke monster, who is out to ‘go home.’

Amount of action: Heavy with parallel universe implications, but only fair elsewhere, save for the monster/MIB attack.

New important characters: Temple leaders Dogan and Lennon are introduced, and the smoke monster finally reveals his true form.

Connections between characters: In the sideways reality, although the survivors aren’t united anymore, they still recall many of their old bonds. Kate briefly meets Jack and Sawyer, then winds up taking Claire hostage. Jack and Locke actually share friendly words instead of battling each other, while former partners Locke and Boone have a chat. Jack saves Charlie’s life yet again, although this Charlie didn’t want to live.

In the regular reality, Sawyer officially parts with Juliet, and looks to stay enraged at Jack about it. Hurley meets Jacob once again, while Richard appears to have a history with the monster.

Lost mysteries referenced: The aftermath of the Jughead detonation, the fake Locke/Man in Black, the smoke monster, the Temple and its healing powers, Jacob’s guitar case, flight attendant Cindy and the kidnapped children at the Temple.

Lost mysteries introduced: A parallel time line in which 815 lands, the characters still find ways to connect with each other, and Desmond is on the plane. In the regular time line, there’s the Man in Black’s unveiling as the smoke monster, his desire to ‘go home’, why ash seems to hold him off, and his comment about Richard once being in ‘chains.’ There’s also Juliet’s dying words that ‘It worked’, Sayid’s resurrection, why the Temple’s water isn’t clear anymore, the existence of new Other leaders Dogan and Lennon, and Jacob’s mysterious letter with the survivor’s names.

Questions raised: Why are there two realities now? Which one is the real one, or at least the dominant one? How did the island sink in the reset world, and what will that world be like without the island? What will all the characters do in the sideways reality, and will it have any bearing on the island reality? Is it possible for the survivors to go from one reality to another, as Juliet seemed to do? Will Jack and Locke become friends in the new time line? What will happen to Kate now that she’s on the run with Claire? If this is a reset, why are there so many crucial differences between the sideways version of September 22, 2004 and the original one? Why was Desmond on Oceanic 815, and where did he go before the plane landed?

In the regular world, how has Sayid been brought back to life? What are Jacob’s plans for the survivors now, and why were they mentioned in his letter? What will become of the newly embittered Sawyer? Which side of the fate vs reason spectrum will Jack fall on now that the Jughead plan failed? Why did Lennon want a private talk with Jack? How did the Man in Black become the smoke monster, and where is his ‘home’? Why was Richard ‘in chains?’ Why is ash so powerful against the monster? What will Richard, Ben, Ilana, Sun and Frank do now that the truth is out? Is the real Locke finished for good?

Talking points: Now that the anti-reset and pro-reset fans have each gotten what they wanted, all at once, the race is on to see if this makes any sense. There’s still a fear that the reset could be little more than an It’s A Wonderful Life knock off, as the survivors see the downside of life without the island. We already have a world where Locke is still crippled - albeit still alive - where Charlie is a suicidal drug addict, Kate is back on the run, Sawyer might be his old self in both time lines, and Rose is likely destined to die from cancer. Desmond had a happy ending with Penny and his son, so who knows if that was taken from him as well.

Since this format is likely to last the rest of the year, it may build up until the sideways survivors remember their old life, decide to come back, and head back to the starting point of 2007 island time. But that seems a bit too conventional, and may not justify spending so much time in another universe. There has to be more to it than explaining why the survivors got back to 2007, and bringing back dead favorites.

Already, a bit more could have been set up, given Juliet’s apparent pre-death flash to the other side. Charlotte and many others had their consciousness go back in time as they died - could traveling between realities work the same way? Perhaps these two universes work in tandem somehow - with constants like Desmond and Christian’s missing body. And perhaps one of those constants is the smoke monster himself.

What is home for the monster/Man in Black/fake Locke? It could be the Temple, which he seemed to live under already, but going back there can’t be enough. Perhaps ‘home’ for him is the sideways reality, and he will unite the time lines by trying to get back there. It could be that he had a place on the other side, and the island was where he was banished to - perhaps by Jacob, Richard, or even the Losties themselves. Maybe such a banishment would help explain why the former human became a monster in the first place, and that the Losties played a part. Could that explain why they were chosen by Jacob to prevent his escape?

No matter what connections the survivors have to the monster, in whatever reality, it may now be their responsibility to stop him - yet they’re probably not alone. Jacob is still playing a big part, even while dead, and many suspect that he now inhabits Sayid. If that’s true, then Jacob may have the power to travel from ‘vessel’ to vessel - which would differ from the Man in Black’s shape-shifting abilities.

But the Temple’s healing water may have other purposes, as it likely healed young Ben after Sayid shot him, stole his innocence and made him an Other for good. Will it do the same for young Ben’s would-be killer?

There is something to be said about how the sideways reality makes some different, but not others. Hurley is different because there are no more numbers, since the island is gone. Desmond is certainly different, since he never went to the island - but it probably cost him his ideal life with Penny. Jack seems a bit different, as he isn’t so dismissive of Locke anymore, and may sense deep down that something’s wrong. Yet he still wants to put his father behind him at all costs, which may be his undoing like it was in the regular world. Meanwhile, Locke is the same since the island didn’t heal him, and Kate, Sawyer, Sayid, Sun and Jin are likely back to their old circumstances - at least in the early going.

Other key issues: The Others at the Temple seem to have a more supernatural role than Ben’s faction, and may know more about the larger war with the monster. Now that Ben is no longer the all-powerful mastermind, it could be that he was completely in the dark about the real war for the island.

So why did they let Ben take command for so long, especially since doing so put him in a position to kill Jacob? And where do Charles Widmore and Eloise Hawking fit into this battle? It seems like eons ago that Ben and Widmore’s war was the major battle for the island, and now it seems like an irrelevant school yard match - or just the opening that the smoke monster needed for his loophole.

What Kate Does

Back when Lost first premiered, the two hour premiere got everyone excited, but then it had to get down to regular business. For the first post-pilot episode, Kate became the first character to get a centric flashback, as we saw her on the run. Six years later, for the first post-Season Six premiere episode, Kate now becomes the first character to get a flash-sideways to herself. So of course, she’s once again on the run – this time with a new and old friend.

Not only is Kate’s first flashback episode referenced, so is her Season Two flashback, when we found out What Kate Did. But what Kate does in this episode is juggle a lot of ordeals, in both realities. In the sideways world, she gets herself entangled with pregnant stranger Claire for reasons even she may not understand - on a conscious level, that is. In the island world, Kate has to track down the grieving Sawyer, fend off the Others, and finally get back to finding the other Claire.

But as Jack slowly discovers back at the Temple, Kate may not find the Claire that she remembers. And in a post-Jacob world with the Man in Black/smoke monster now unopposed, her fate could be all too easily shared by Sayid, and many more.

Main character: Kate Austin.

Island time line: As Lennon alerts Dogen that Sayid is alive, Jack, Hurley and Miles surround their revived friend. Sayid doesn’t quite remember how he was shot, but he seems all right. Kate and Sawyer watch from a distance, though Sawyer is more concerned with leaving.

Jack takes Sayid outside for some air, as he notices his wound is almost closed. Sayid thanks Jack for saving him, just as Dogen arrives. Through Lennon, he orders Sayid to come with him and answer questions, but Jack wants some answers of his own. While they fight, Sawyer takes a gun and announces he’s leaving. Dogen says in English that Sawyer must stay - likely because there’s no protection outside from the monster anymore. But Sawyer is undeterred, as he orders Kate not to come for him.

Once Sawyer leaves, the Others want to bring him back, so Kate volunteers to track him. Jin also volunteers to go, as Kate promises she can convince Sawyer to come back. Before she leaves, she shares an awkward moment with Jack, who has to stay behind to help Sayid. Kate leaves right before Jack can kiss her.

Sayid is having an even worse time, as Dogen has him strapped to a gurney. Instead of asking questions, Dogen blows ash on him, straps him to an electric generator and shocks him, then burns his side with a poker. According to Lennon, this is just a test which Sayid has passed. But when Sayid is taken out, Lennon realizes he lied to him.