You Know What Really Grinds My Gears?

People who say the word "Both" as if it has the letter L in it somewhere. I know we are in the Midwest and everything, but come on, people... BOLTH? You just sound ridiculous. Or maybe there is something in your mouth?

Also, people who put the letter F in the word Strength. Read it. S-T-R-E-N-G-T-H. No F. So people who say "Strenfff" really grind my gears. Read the word before you say it, and maybe you won't sound like such an idiot.

Just saying.

LOST Finds Out About Heroes

Jack: "Hey Brittany, it's me, LOST. I know I've been gone for a year and everything, but I'm coming home next week, and I just wanted to call you and tell you."

Me: "LOST? Oh, hey, how are you......? It's been a while, huh?"

Jack: "Yeah, it has, but I... wait a minute, are you watching another TV show? Is someone else there with you?"


Me: "No, I uh,,,, well I am just watching USA reruns of Law and Order, you know how I love those shows, ha ha....."


Sylar: "You mean you haven't told him? He doesn't know about us?"

Me: "Well, to be fair, I was with him for five years, and he left, and then you came along, and I..."

Sylar: "What I was just an accident? You never meant to watch me?"



Jack: "Jesus, Brittany, who are you talking to? I can hear you over the phone.... I don't deserve to be lied to...."


Sylar: "You think he's better than me? You think you can just throw me away like some piece of trash? I'm special, dammit."

Me: "I can watch both of you, it's really not that big of a deal. I thought you would understand, I told you about LOST when I first started watching you."

Sylar: "All you ever do is compare me to LOST, like I'm not good enough. Now you're going to pay..."


Jack: "Brittany? What the hell? Are you okay? Get out of there!"



Sylar: (Dies)


Ben: "Hello, Brittany, my name is Benjamin Linus. I believe you have some explaining to do..."

Me: "My faith never wavered, I just needed something to hold me over, I promise. Nothing Heroes ever gave me was as substantial or meaningful as what you gave me. What did you expect me to do for a year, though? Go on a limb full of Ancient Egyptian Jacob theories? I wrote half of those theories myself."

Ben: "Oh really?"

Me: "Yes, really."

Ben: "Well we'll agree to disagree then.... I hope we'll see you next Tuesday now that our problem is out of the way?"

Me: "Yes. I'm sorry."

Ben: "I know."

My LOST Re-Watch

I started to re-watch this season not only with the special edition Dharma package, but with Nikki Stafford's Finding Lost: Season 5. This book is not a play-by-play of each episode, or as the author herself states, is not a substitute for watching Season 5 if you are trying to catch up. This book is a guide to read along with or after you watch each episode, or even after you've watched the entire season. I have almost finished this book, so this book has been both of the options above for me.

I read Stafford's Season 4 edition last year when I stumble upon it in the downtown library. Not only does she give a summary of the episode, but points out little details you might have missed, a list of all The Numbers used in each episode, plot holes, notable deaths and injuries, and deep cultural reference analysis. The last part is what I find to be quite useful. Stafford takes the books and movies read and watched by the characters in this show and gives the reader a detailed cliff note version of that piece of literature. She then analyzes this piece and relates it to what is going on in this episode, and how it is relevant to the entire story. Books like The Invention Of Morel and Valis were among the few mentioned in Season 4, and had me waiting eagerly for Season 5 to come out in November.

I began to read before I started watching because I had to wait for my special package in the mail. The book was a good pick-me-up until the real thing came along, and got me thinking over Christmas break.

I'd almost forgotten how much I loved this show. I had almost let the wonder and awe, and yes, the utter joy I get from watching this series slip away from my mind completely. No wonder long distant relationships never work. You forget the good times, and focus solely on how that person has abandoned you. I'm sorry I ever doubted you, LOST. I'm sorry I compared Heroes to you so many times, just because it was the closest thing around me at the time. LOST is so much meatier and fulfilling than any other show could be, and Stafford's book had so many references flowing through my head, it made me appreciate this season and series more than ever.

I started re-watching Season 5 to prepare for Season 6 like most people do when a season comes out on DVD. I got the special edition which I pictured earlier, so I was extra excited to watch everything again in case I missed or forgot anything. I didn't forget anything, per se, but I was immediately drawn into the world Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof created. It was as if I hadn't even seen any of this before. It was as if seeing the island disappear into the ocean was as surprising as ever, even though I knew exactly how and why it happened.

I'm not going to go into insane details like I did with Prison Break, because that was a disaster, and LOST is a thousand times more detailed than Prison Break. What I will do, however, is briefly go over the elements that really stuck out to me in this season. Those that I liked, and those that I did not. I will start off with how beautiful the synergy of John Locke's interactions with Richard Aplert all match up with the flashbacks we saw from last season. The scene where Richard takes the bullet out of John's leg and tells him he has to die in order to bring his people back to the island is so memorable and chilling.... it's fantastic.

The fact that John is the one who caused all of those scenes of Richard in his childhood does make one question his 'specialness', though. Is he actually the leader? Or did the events just unfold that way because of what he believed or remembered? I think the island sent him to those exact times for a reason. I believe in John Locke, no matter what.

While John, Sawyer, Juliet, Faraday, Miles, and Charlotte skip through time burying hydrogen bombs and watching Aaron's birth, Jin is separated from the others due to the blast of the freighter. He runs into Rousseau's team of scientists and witnesses everything that she told Sayid. He sees them crashland onto the island with their inflatable raft. He sees all of them get pulled underneath the Temple by the smoke monster. He sees them come out and turn on each other, forcing Rousseau to shoot her own husband before he kills her. So awesome to see all of this play out before our eyes.

A few flashes later, Charlotte and everyone has bloody noses. Charlotte falls and dies in Daniel's arms. She tells him that when she was a child a scary man told her never to come back to the island or she would die. She tells Daniel that he was that man, and then she bites the dust. I didn't really get time to care about this character, so her death is sad, but not terrible. I'm more heartbroken over Daniel's sadness than her actual passing.

John and friends continue on after meeting young versions of Widmore and Eloise, and they eventually find the orchid station. It is covered by a well in whatever time period they are in, and John is lowered down by Sawyer before another time warp happens, and the rope breaks. This sends John plummeting down to the ground, breaking his tibia in the process. He screams out and is visited by Christian who tells him he has to bring his people back to the island. John tells Christian that Richard told him that in order to do that he has to die. Christian barely bats an eye and says "I guess that's why it's called sacrifice, John."

That quote could be uncouth, or humorous if you look at it in the right way, but I don't see it that way. John Locke is forever the Christlike figure, and it is no coincidence that a man named Christian is telling him that it is called 'sacrifice' for a reason. John accepts his fate, and, with a broken leg, moves the island once more. Very selfless. Very Christlike.
He ends up in the middle of the desert like Ben did when he first moved the island, and is picked up by a truck full of natives. He wakes up in a hospital where they set his leg, and is being watched by who else but the powerful Charles Widmore.

Damn that Widmore, always lurking around every large financial corner of the show.... Anyways, Widmore fixes John's leg (financially) and sets up a fake identity for him. He sends him off to find all of the people that got off of the island, and convince them to come back. One might think that it is odd that Richard, Ben, and Widmore all have the same plan for John Locke. This often never happens considering that Widmore was banished off of the island when Ben took the role as leader. One might also think that, once John finds all of his friends, Widmore will use them to try to find the island again. What a jerk, huh?

The rest of the flashbacks/present day business is showing all of our friends off the island. Desmond makes a baby with Penny on a boat, Jack gets engaged to Kate then ruins it, Sayid marries Nadia then works for Ben when she dies, Sun gets some balls and outwits her father, and Hurley is back in an insane asylum. All normal stuff, right? I guess. The only un-normal thing? John still hasn't convinced any of them to come back. They think he is crazy, so he is drawn to his last resort to get them all to come together...
Don't jump! John? John? I'm coming in.... Benjamin Linus stops John from killing himself by running into his hotel room which was apparently unlocked. I guess if you are going to kill yourself, you don't really care about who comes in after the fact, right? I don't know, but Ben talks him down right before taking the wire and strangling him to death. Locke told Ben he knew he had to die, so maybe Ben though he had to be killed and not kill himself? Stafford mentioned that killing oneself is a straight ticket to hell in most religions, and since this show is an extremely spiritual if not religious show, that bit of information is probably important.

This is how John Locke ends up in the coffin. This is how Jack goes crazy and almost jumps off a bridge in Season 4. This is why no one came to the mysterious man's funeral. Aha. Ben quickly cleans up his mess and makes it look like John killed himself in the fashion he had originally intended to. He then converts Jack to work with him and bring John's body back to the island. At this point everyone but Hurley is in Los Angeles, and they have a meeting by the dock with a lot of yelling and a lot of guns. No one gets shot or killed in this scene, however, and Ben convinces a few of them to go to a church with him. These few people are Sun, Jack, and Desmond who is there for "different reasons".

The church has a Dharma station underneath it (of course) and it is called The Lamp Post. It is where people make up equations to find where the Island could be at any given time, depending on where the giant pendulum is moving. I won't get into it because I really don't understand it. I just accept it and move on. Eloise tells them they all need to recreate the original flight as much as they can so that they can go back to the island and help their friends. She would also like them to try and help her son, but whatever, I guess that's not important to her at the time.

Jack, Kate, Ben, and Sun all book tickets on the same plane to go to "Guam". Hurley is there with a guitar case (Charlie), Sayid is there in handcuffs somehow, and Lapidus ends up being their captain. Coincidences? There are no coincidences on the LOST Island. Stafford brings up a good point at this point in her book. She explains that Jack has become John Locke, and Kate has become Jack Shephard. Jack believes that they are all here for a reason, and that everything is going to be okay. Kate just says that it's a coincidence because they all wanted to go to Guam. Man of science, man of faith, anyone? It's good to see Jack is a growing, round character at this point.

It's good because as Jack read's John Locke's suicide note that is addressed to him and reads "I wished you would have believed me.", the plane starts freaking out, and our beloved white light shines with a loud POP! Jack wakes up in the jungle exactly like he did in Season 1, but is near a lagoon where he saves Hurley from drowning and quickly finds Kate passed out on the bank. The three of them wander around aimlessly looking for the rest of their "friends". They think that they are alone until Jin pulls up in a Dharma van, expressing that they are in 1977. Hooray.

But where is everyone else? Where are Sun, Ben, Lapidus, Sayid, and these other characters on the plane? They are in 2007 somehow, and Sun and Ben go to the main island to go to the Dharma barracks. John Locke resurrects and follows Sun and Ben so they can find Jacob. John wants to "Thank" jacob for resurrecting him, and Sun wants to know how to find her husband. Ben wants to be judged for his actions (letting his daughter die), so the three of them become a weird team. Lapidus stays behind and hangs out with the woman who had Sayid in handcuffs, and her friend Noah, I believe his name is. Ilana knocks Lapidus out and she says he is a candidate for something even though he doesn't know "What lies in the shadow of the statue." Whatever that means, right?

Sun and Ben meet Christian in a house and he shows them a picture of Jin, Kate, and Jack in the Dharma Initiative in the 1970's. He tells Sun she is in for a long journey to find her husband, and the three of them go off to find Richard and then Jacob.... I think.

Back in the 1970's, a role reversal much more intense than that of Jack and Kate being Locke and Jack and all of that noise happens. Juliet, Miles, and Sawyer have all been integrated and accepted into the Dharma Initiative. Even more crazy is that they are all respected as equals, and Sawyer is the head of Security, going by the alias of James LeFleur.

Yes, yes, the con man we all know and love is the authority figure that the Dharma Initiative has come to fear and respect. Nice turn of events, LOST. It shows progressively how our group of time travelers get to this point. It shows that James tells everyone to let him do the talking because he has lied professionally for all of his life. I am sure glad they all followed his lead, because he talked his way out of a huge war between the hostile and the DI. He calmed Richard down and took blame for two Hostile bodies. He put fear in the eyes of the people we've only heard rumors about or got glimpses of in Ben's flashbacks. James has been a much better leader than Jack ever was, and when Jack finally meets up with him, he doesn't restrain himself from telling him so.

Unlike beating James up like most of us anticipate, Jack sits back and lets James call the shots. he goes through orientation and lets James put him in a janitorial position. Kind of ironic and humorous, but he could really care less at this point. He is on the island, where he needs to be, and he admits to James later that it is nice to have someone else calling the shots for once.

Yes, the man from the Orientation video exists. His real name is Dr. Pierre Chang. He is actually Miles' father, which means that Miles was born on this island, and left shortly after being born. Nice how all of that connects, isn't it? We also see things like Ethan being born and a young Benjamin Linus being abused both mentally and physically by his father, Roger (Workman).

Sayid is shortly found in 1977, unlike previously alluded to before (my bad). He was somewhere in the jungle and Jin finds him while he is at work with a few other Dharma folk. This might seem to be a good thing considering the fact that we though we had lost him in the crash, but the other Dharma folk label him as a hostile, and Jin is forced to place him in a holding cell back home. Wah wah wah..... A young Ben Linus sees Sayid in the holding cell and befriends him. He gives him food and a book called A Separate Reality which, on the DVD commentary, the producers encourage the audience to read and analyze.

What can I say about this book? I didn't even read it and I hated it. Stafford gives a very thorough description of A Separate Reality and it is basically the second book of a trilogy some guy in the 1970's passed off as his thesis. He used the New Age Movement as a legitimate reason to go down to Mexico, find some Native American shamans, and exploit their religious and spiritual use of peyote to get high and hallucinate. I know why the producers wanted the audience to read this. I know why it ties into LOST and all of its mythology and spirituality. But come on. This guy was a crock.

Did this book describe reaching different realms of realities by using smoke (a smoke monster) and encourage people to stop thinking so logically and just appreciate the spiritual world for what it is? Did it describe the specialness of someone who came along an ancient culture who could one day lead them all? Did it describe hallucinating about seeing dead people from one's past that told them things they needed to know about their future? Yes, yes, and yes. But this guy used something sacred to a group of people and just used it to get high as a kite. I read excerpts from these pieces of "literature" and was unimpressed. It sounded like some of my old hippie friends from a past life of mine discussing a bad trip. This man is unprofessional, and was eventually found out and no longer allowed to turn his thesis is on this subject. Although I am glad I read about this book, I am also glad that I did not actually read it. Sorry Damon Lindelof. Sorry Carlton Cuse. Sorry young Ben Linus.

Sayid is broken out of prison by this young Ben, and Sayid shoots him in return, thinking that he can undo all of the bad things Ben has done in his adult life. He shoots him in the chest and runs away before Jin finds him and brings him back to Dharmaville. There Juliet and her team of surgical nurses try their best to save the young Ben, but the prognosis is bleak. He is losing too much blood, and the Dharma initiative isn't very prepared for stuff like this.

Kate comes in and decides to help Juliet save the young child. Has she gone crazy in her travels? Does she remember Ben putting her in a polar bear cage for his amusement? Or has raising Aaron over the past three years given her a different perspective on life? As much as I hate Kate's character, this decision makes me hate her a little less. It is a completely selfless act on her part, which is something we have never really seen her do before. Even taking Aaron under her wing was a selfish act to begin with. When confronted by Jack with the logic of "That's Ben!"

Kate just looks at him and says "It's not Ben yet. .... I can't let a kid die."

She then finagles Ben out of the infirmary and into a Dharma jeep. She explains to Jack that Miles' and Hurley's conversation of "Whatever Happened, Happened" backs up her every move. She says that she was always supposed to save Ben and turn him over to Richard. She says that this will set in motion everything that has already happened, they just hadn't yet experienced it for themselves. Jack's take on this theory is that if it already happened in the past, he will just sit back and let it happen to him. Logically, he always just sat back and watched Sawyer run the town. I think his ego is still shot and he's just making up excuses to be damaged and lazy.

The theory of "Whatever Happened, Happened" is from Daniel Faraday who inherently returns in this episode from doing experiments in Ann Arbor, MI at the Dharma headquarters. He comes into Sawyer and Juliet's house after Miles and Hurley have a very detailed conversation about the results of time travel. The basis of this theory is that one cannot change the future by doing something in the past. One can die in the past because it is that person's present, so to speak, but it is still linearly the world's past. It is said that Sayid always shot Ben, and Juliet and Sawyer always lived in a house together in 1977, they just didn't remember it because it was in their own personal future. The universe will always course correct itself and make the linear time line happen the way it is supposed to. Got it? Good.

Now, Sawyer helps Kate take Benjamin over the sonic fence border to Richard. Richard taked Ben into his arms and says that if he does what they ask, then "He will lose his innocence" and never be the same again. He then proceeds to take him into the Temple through a door we have never seen before, and that is the end of the scene. This leaves the viewer to believe that the Temple not only judges people for their actions, but can save them from dying. But if it can save them, what did Richard mean by "lose his innocence"? Is the smoke monster going to pop young Ben's cherry? Is the smoke monster going to make him evil, and erase his old memories of the DI? Is it going to make him more powerful? Is the smoke monster even involved in this ritual? Another set of questions that have to wait until Season 6, I guess. Ugh.

Upon Faraday's arrival, he convinces Jack and Kate that while "What Happened, Happened" is a formidable theory, he now believes in free will. He believes he can change things, and tells them he needs them to take him to his mother, Eloise. She was the one that brought the Oceanic 6 back to the island at The Looking Glass Station, and is the woman who explained Desmond's destiny in episodes like "Flashes Before Your Eyes" and "The Constant." She is pretty much the founder of "Whatever Happened, Happened." The only bad thing? She is the leader of The Others in 1977, so getting an audience won't be as easy as Daniel wishes.

Kate, Jack and Dan all hop in a jeep together and go across the sonic border once again to the jungle. They had to steal some guns from the motor pool beforehand, and got in a pretty heated gunfight with Radzinski in the process. Oh well, at least they didn't follow them into the jungle, right? Right. Dan is grazed by a bullet but will survive after Jack looks it over. Just a flesh wound, Dan.

The three find The Other's camp quite quickly (I guess they weren't on the move in 1977), and Dan takes it upon himself to hold a gun up as he enters the camp, demanding to speak with Eloise. He is awkward and almost seems like he is waiting for something to happen... he finds Richard who is sitting down drinking some tea or coffee or water or something, and points his gun at him. Richard is unarmed, save for his mug, and tries to calm Daniel down. He talks to him for a bit and then....

NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Daniel! Daniel, noooooooo! Don't die! What? What? But you were so.... you were supposed to..... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Daniel is shot by his own mother and falls flat on his back, his beloved Diary in his jacket. Jack and Kate are astounded as they watch from the treeline, and Eloise shows absolutely no mercy about her actions. "He had a gun on you." She tells Richard.

Even HE is astonished. "He wasn't going to shoot me!" Fucking Eloise. You are so grounded.

Daniel looks up at the woman who he knows to be his mother and a tear falls down his face. He tells her that she knew all along that this was going to happen. He scolds her that she sent him here to die, and didn't do a thing to stop it. He dies with a broken heart. So terrible. I remember watching this episode and freaking out. I couldn't believe my eyes. Had they really just killed Daniel off? Was he really gone? The man with all of the answers? The one who was going to inherently save us all?

I guess so.
This brings me to a section of my blog I would like to call Dear Richard Alpert. I have so many questions for this guy, I decided to write them all down in the form of a friendly letter. Here goes:

Dear Richard Alpert,

Who are you?
How old are you, really?
Are you a pirate?
Are you Egyptian?
Are you from Ancient Rome and that is why you speak Latin?
Is that why all of The Others speak Latin, because you taught it to them, and made it the language of the land?
Did I just answer my own question? I think I did. Yes.
What is the real purpose of The Others?
What do you even do on a daily basis?
Do you just sit around the campfire drinking tea, discussing "Who's your favorite Other"?
Were you the leader before Eloise?
How do you know all of the secret passages into the ruins?
Why are you so strong?
Can you regenerate like Claire Bennet from Heroes, or are you just un-aging?
Do you know what the smoke monster is? Can you tell me?
Why didn't you time-jump along with Locke and the others?
Are you a part of the island?
How does Ilana know to ask for you?
Is Ricardus your real name?
Are worldly things such as love and relationships below you?
Could you learn to love me if they weren't?

Thank you for your time,

Sincerely,

Brittany

Kate and Jack go into the camp a little more calmly than Daniel had, and explain to Eloise that Daniel is her son. She finds his Diary in his jacket, and reads the inscription written on the cover in her own handwriting. She then invites them into her tent and they tell her that Daniel had a plan to correct the future. They tell her that they need to detonate a bomb to counteract the Incident of electromagnetism so that none of the bad stuff in the future can happen. She agrees to go and help them, as long as Richard goes along with her, and the four of them are on their way to get a bomb.

Meanwhile, in 2007, John Locke has resurrected, and brought Ben and Sun along with him to find Richard and The Others. Mmmm. There is so much Richard in this finale, it is so awesome. Anyways, Richard greets John Locke like an old friend, but after he demands to be taken to Jacob, Richard gets a little suspicious. He voices this concern to Ben who isn't really any help in this situation, and the lot of people just sort of follow Locke on his journey across the island.

Richard is right to have his suspicions, though. He says he's never heard of anyone rising from the dead before, and that it is probably because of Jacob. John counters his suspicions by saying that he's never seen someone that doesn't age before, but it doesn't mean it can't happen. Touche, John Locke, touche.

"I'm this way because of Jacob."

That's the only clue to Richard's backstory we get in this segment. Thanks a lot, world. He confronts Locke and takes his answers with a grain of salt. As he follows the entirely "New Locke" to Jacob's layer, it is revealed to the audience that John Locke's dead body is in a metal crate being carried by Ilana and her group of misfit toys. This was a huge shock, and can only mean one thing.... Locke is still dead. Dammit. The one thing that sucks that I didn't really think about the first time I watched this was how sad John Locke's death is. Not the fact that he died, but the fact that no one cared. John Locke spent his whole life trying to be special, to fulfill his destiny and to do the right thing. He was always unappreciated, doubted, betrayed, and abandoned in the end. Because the audience knew that John Locke was walking and talking on the island after the Ajira crash, John Locke's death was almost as unimportant as his life felt to him. We just assumed he would come back to life, so our reaction to his actual death is sub par. I don't even remember mourning over the passing of my favorite enigmatic character, which is a big damned shame.

R.I.P. John Locke. You were the best character on a television show. Ever.

So who is this bald guy convincing Ben that when they reach Jacob, Ben is going to have to kill him for him? Who is this man with all of the answers and confidence to order Richard and Ben around as if they were Boone and Charlie in Season 1?

Well, let me give you the rundown. At the beginning of the last episode, we open with a man in white making an Egyptian tapestry in what looks like The Temple. He catches a fish, eats it, and sits back as he watches an old pirate ship get closer to the island. At first no one knew who this man was, or what was going on in this scene, but of course we all knew that it was important.

A man dressed in black walks up to him and sits down, asking him if he brought the ship here on purpose.

The Man In Black: "It always ends the same, they come here, they corrupt, and destroy." He clearly believes in destiny, and the fact that people are inherently evil and selfish.

The Man In White counters him by claiming that "It only ends once; everything up until then is only progress." Clearly he believes in free will, and that people are inherently good in nature.

"Do you have any idea how badly I want to kill you?" The Man In Black stares at his counterpart.

"Yes."

"Someday I will find a loophole....It's always nice talking with you, Jacob."

Jacob?............................Jacob?................................Jacob! Bladow! The big supreme being we have heard so much about... the man behind the curtain is finally revealed! The scene is so cryptic and subtle, it was everything I wanted and more. And I didn't even think that I was going to be able to see Jacob this soon. Such a good move, Lost. I almost forgive you for killing Daniel. Almost.

While Jack, Richard, Eloise, and Sayid (yes, Sayid switched places with Kate as she went to grab Sawyer and Juliet off of the escape sub) find the bomb in the temple, we see flashbacks of our Beloved Jacob. We see that not only has he been around long enough to see the Black Rock land on the island, but has played pivotal roles in the lives of the Oceanic 6. He touches each one of them individually, coming out of nowhere in very pivotal points in their lives. He touches Jack after he cuts the dural sac on the young girl at work, he touches Kate after stealing a lunchbox, and Locke after falling out of his father's building. He touches Jin and Sun on their wedding day, blessing their marriage. He touches Sayid after he returns from the island and distracts him while his wife is run over by a car. Yeesh. And finally he touches Hurley when he gets out of prison and into a cab. He tells Hurley that there is a plane going to Guam, and that he should get on it to go back to the island. He leaves him with a guitar case in remembrance of Charlie. He tells Hurley that he doesn't have to do anything he doesn't want to, but the plane is there and he should think about getting on it. He leaves, and we are once again reminded about his firm belief in free will.

Clearly his influence means something, and clearly, it worked. The Oceanic 6 are all on the island, even if they aren't all in the same time period. Jacob is also shown to have a flashback with the mysterious character Ilana. She is in a hospital in Russia, I believe, and is bandaged up to the point where you can only see one eye and her mouth. Jacob comes to visit her with gloves and a coat on, and does NOT touch her. The two of them speak in Russian, and she says she is glad to see him. He asks her if she is willing to help him, and she agrees, bandages and all. This scene makes my head spin. The way they were talking means that they have had a semi-casual relationship before, and that this girl is in a lot deeper than we thought. It does, however, disprove my theory that she is working for Widmore. So that is nice.

Her and her friends arrive at Jacob's residence with Locke's body in towe, and she asks which one is Ricardus. Clearly she is Jacob's right hand if she knows to ask for Ricardus, right? Right?

"It's Richard, actually." Richard, who are you kidding? We all know you are a bajillion years old.

"What lies in the shadow of the statue?" She asks him this as she has asked a few others in hopes to find whatever she is looking for. Richard is the first man to answer her correctly. In Latin, he responds:

"The one who will save us all".

Well, it's really a shame he let Fake John Locke con him into opening the Shadow of the Statue for both Ben and Locke to visit Jacob. Ilana shows Richard John Locke's dead body, but it is too late for Richard to do anything... or so he makes it seem.

"John Locke" told Ben that he wasn't going to kill Jacob when they reach the statue, but that Ben was going to. Ben looked apalled at this statement, and asked why he had to kill Jacob. Kind of a nice twist, Ben fearing the act of taking someone's life and all, but he went along with it until now. Until now, Ben talked with Richard and shared suspicions and gave Sun fake answers about the island. Until now, Ben was scared to death that John Locke was alive and well when he strangled him to death in his own hotel room.

But now the two of them are in Jacob's lair, and Jacob is sitting in a chair, just waiting for them. He is calm and cool and looks at John Locke.

"I guess you found your loophole."

"I guess I did." Duhn duhn duhn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ben is just as surprised as we are watching this interaction. Sure, we figured there was something wrong with "John Locke", but we weren't thinking it was something this cataclysmic. Ben looks at Jacob and asks if they know each other, and Jacob syas that yes, in a matter of speaking, they do. "John Locke" looks at Ben and tells him to do what he came here to do, and Jacob stands up to come and talk to Ben.

"Whatever he told you.... you have a choice." Jacob is comforting and calm,much like Richard always is. Even in his most dire moment, he still preaches that Benjamin has a choice, to walk away or to do what "John" told him to do.

When "John Locke" told Ben that he wanted him to kill Jacob, Ben questioned his logic. "John Locke" tells Ben that he has lived here all of his life, and has never seen the man that gives him orders. He tells him that despite his loyalty, he contracted a tumor in his spine, and watched his own daughter die before his eyes. "John Locke" then asks him why he wouldn't want to kill Jacob, and then quickly walks away.

This doubt-ridden speech leaves Ben to mull his whole life with The Others over. When "John" tells Ben to come with him into the statue, he follows with little reluctance. Now that they are in Jacob's presence, and "John" tells him to do the deed, he unleashes his feelings. When Jacob told Ben that he had a choice, he almost wells up with tears. He asks Jacob what choice ha had? He says that all of his life he has been hearing songs and praises of his name. Things have happened to him 'because Jacob wants it to happen'. He claims that he has done everything Jacob asked him to and then some, but has gotten nothing in return. He says that he had to pretend to talk to an invisible man in a chair to make it seem to John Locke that he really was worthy of an audience with Jacob. He says that he has requested an audience with Jacob after all of the fighting, and all of those lists he would give him, but not. Ben was told that he had to be patient. Ben was told that he needed to wait to see Jacob and that everything will happen in due time.

He looks at "John Locke" and says that Jacob talked to John, and John could physically see him. He said that John asked Richard to see Jacob, and he gets marched right up to his statue. John didn't have to wait or be patient like Ben did, and Ben has been doing all of the work for over 16 years now. Ben looks up at Jacob with the knife in his hand and stares at him like a child. He has lost his faith in a god that he has been raised to love and respect, but everything was taken away from him. His loyalty, faith, and devotion to his god has gone unnoticed, and he wants answers. Who can blame him?

"What about me?" Ben stares at Jacob, hoping to get an apology or a reward, or.... something.

"What about you?"

Poor Benjamin Linus' faith is not just broken, but shattered into a thousand pieces with these words. No wonder he finds it easy to follow "John Locke"'s instructions. Ben stabs Jacob several times. Jacob falls to the ground and barely gets out the words "They're coming," before he dies and is tossed into the fire by "John Locke". What could he have meant by that, "They're coming"? Does he mean Ilana and her random group of myspace friends? Or does he mean the Oceanic 6 if their plan works? Or does he mean someone else? Only time will tell.........

And speaking of time, Jack and Sayid have managed to get the core of the bomb out of its huge shell, and are transporting it through Dharmaville to the Swan station. Richard knocked Eloise out and refused to go with Jack the rest of the way, so it is the old gang again. Jin, Hurley, and Miles picked up Sayid and Jack after Sayid was shot, and they drive to the Swan. Sayid is losing blood, and the plot is losing time, and of course, Juliet, Kate, and Sawyer make a road block to stop the detonation of the bomb.

They stop the car and Sawyer and Jack fight it out over destiny and Kate and doing the right thing and the love of Juliet and whatever. Jack tells him it needs to be done so they all decide to just sort of... go with it. Damned flipfloppers. The gang of Losties goes to the Swan station, and the magnetic pocket of energy has been breached by the drill Radzinski is running. It is only a few moments before they can detonate this bomb, destroy the pocket of energy, and reset their lives.

The bad thing about this idea, even though it sounds like it might work, and it is written down in Daniel Faraday's journal? The bad thing is that they could be causing the very incident they are trying to stop in the first place, as Miles brings up before everything gets intense. The bad thing is that John Locke will never know a purpose in his life. The bad thing is that Daniel will never get better, even though he dies. The bad thing is that no one will remember these life-changing events in their lives. The bad thing is that Kate will still be in handcuffs, and Sawyer will be a con-man, and John Locke's dad will still be alive, and Nikki and Paulo will be as well. The bad thing is.......


NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Juliet gets caught by some tangly chains that pull her toward the tunnel of doom Radzinski had just drilled. So much for science, assholes. Kate sees her first and grabs her, and then she yells at Sawyer to come help her. It is one of the most emotional scenes in this series to date. Sawyer is half-in the tunnel as the chains pull her down, and Kate is trying to reach down and get the chains off of her, but it is impossible. Sawyer is crying as he holds onto his love and says that he won't let go, but she says that it's okay. Her last words are "I love you so much," and she lets go, falling into the electromagnetic abyss. She lands at the bottom right next to the hydrogen bomb that still hasn't gone off yet, and smashes it with a rock until the screen goes white and LOST comes across as the end of the season. I cry every time I watch this part, and I don't care who knows it. I have always been a Juliet fan, and her demise was definitely the most heartbreaking. Yes, it was even more terrible than Daniel's death. But that's because part of me thinks that Daniel knew he was going to die in the first place, but that is neither here nor there.

Why was this scene so sad? Why do we care about Juliet, and inherently, no longer care for Kate? I think that Kate is selfish, and, even though she does not try to 'steal' Sawyer back in any way, Juliet notices changes in his behavior upon the Oceanic 3's return. She notices he calls her Freckles again, and when Rose and Bernard talk about just being together and happy, she looks at Sawyer while Sawyer looks at Kate. Her life has been riddled with divorce and disappointment from her early childhood. Her parents were divorced, she had a cheating husband who she divorced but still worked for until Richard found her, and the only man she loved on the island was married to someone else. Maybe they weren't in love, but after Ben found out about this affair, he set this man up to be killed by the Tail section of Oceanic 815 survivors. Nothing lasts forever to her, so when Kate returns, it is like everyone she has ever been with all over again. And all she wanted to do was get her cancerous sister pregnant. She was going to change the world! She was amazing. Ugh, dammnit, electromagnetism, you stole our last good female character away from us.

R.I.P. Juliet Burke. You were amazing and misunderstood and good-hearted and beautiful. I'm sorry this had to happen to you.

So that's it. The end of Season 5. I watched it really fast, and actually took more time reading up on it and writing this damned thing than I did viewing actual LOST footage. But, that's what you get for being obsessed, I guess. I will leave this entry with a few questions I want answered by the end of all of this.

What is Frank Lapidus a candidate for?

Who is Ilana?

Will we get a Richard backstory?

Who can kill the smoke monster?

What's with the Whispers?

Can you bring Daniel back?

Thank you ever, ever, so much.

Good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight.

Pass/Fail

To be quite honest, I didn't really like this episode... at first. The teasers were that of Sylar becoming a softy and telling Claire he doesn't want to be alone. I know that all good characters need to grow and be round by definition, but this all seemed forced and well, a little cheap.

Sylar can't kill as we found out two episodes ago, so he goes to Claire for guidance. He tricks her into meeting him for a study group at college and Puppetmasters her into listening to him. He describes their similarities and says that they are very much the same. He proceeds to want to find out what makes her tick by using Lydia's powers, and the kiss we all saw was just a way to use those powers.

"Her methods were a little hyper-erotic, but..." Whatever. He kisses her and calls her out on building walls between herself and others. He says that she uses her "specialness" as an excuse never to dive into a relationship. She is an invincible girl, yet is the most afraid to be vulnerable or accessible. He says that she, like him, will end up alone if she doesn't change her ways.

Claire stabs Sylar in the eye with a pencil and runs to Gretchen who she found out is tied up in their dorm. She apologizes for everything and they have a cute moment while hiding from Sylar where she discloses her insecurities. She's finally opening up to Gretchen when it turns out that it was Sylar all along. He morphs back into himself and says "That wasn't so hard?" and then just walks out of her life. He just..... he what?

Claire is stunned, but manages to find the real Gretchen and tries for round 2 of apologies and disclosure. They end up in bed together smiling and laughing with candles, so the chat had a positive effect on her life. Thanks.... Sylar......??????

Normally I wouldn't buy the fact that Sylar got a little action, a little clarity, a little cat-n-mouse, and called it a night. That's just not him. But what this season is trying to show us is that he will forever have a little bit of Nathan inside of him. He will always have that good American boy that wants to fight off his homicidal urges and do the right thing. even though he still wants to be evil and powerful, he is curious as to how it's all going to end. Will he end up alone? Will no one mourn his death, like Hiro told him? I guess only time will tell, dear Gabriel....

And speaking of time, we find ourselves at Noah's apartment where I was all ready for a Super-raid on Samuel's carnival by Mohinder, Ando, and Hiro. What happens instead? Mohinder opts out after building a compass because he "made a promise to a girl". Oh my gosh, Mohinder. Be a man. You've already been gone for over 8 weeks. What's another 8 weeks on top of that? She'll understand, and if not... whatever. He leaves and tells Noah that he still has Ando and Hiro to work the compass.

Hiro passes out quickly after Mohinder leaves, jinxing the doctor's words. Ando rushes to his side, and the scene cuts to a hospital where they take him into emergency surgery. The doctors talk about how dangerous this operation is, and Ando watches through the glass as he hopes his friend will make it through.

Hiro wakes up from his fainting spell and finds himself in the Burnt Toast Diner. His dead father, the other waitress that worked with Charlie, Samuel's Grandfather Friend, and Adam Monroe are all there with him. His father is in his Judge robes and makes no kind reference to him at all, forcing him to call him "Your honor". Adam is prosecuting Hiro, and presents Kaito with the case of "The People vs. Hiro Nakamura". Although this is a council of mostly dead people, they are judging whether or not Hiro has used his powers for personal gain... hence the title "Pass/Fail".

Hiro demands a lawyer, and Ando shows up with a lopsided briefcase to defend his best friend against Kensei. Quite humorous, but very symbolic. No one has ever been there for Hiro like Ando has, especially in the reality of the moment as he watches his friend fight for his life.

Monroe brings several witnesses to the stand such as preteen versions of Ando and Kim, an attempt to reach Charlie, and even Sylar. Ando and Monroe banter back and forth while Kaito uses a sugar dispenser as an anvil. Great imagery. What a perfect purgatory comparison. Hiro is outraged at the reactions of his witnesses, and Ando eventually puts him on the stand. He gives a heroic speech about his code, but is still convicted of using his powers selfishly.

He goes into the hallway with all of his judges and jury members following him, and walks towards the light. He pauses for a moment and then looks back at his father. He tells him that he wants to change his plea to guilty. He says that if he is going to go out, he is going to do it heroically. That's the Hiro we all know and love.

Kaito smiles and give his son a sword. Everyone leaves except for Kensei, and the two of them battle it out in a white room. The scene cuts from the epic battle between Hiro and his once-idol to images of resuscitation in the hospital. Ando watches intently and tells Hiro to fight. he tells him that he is a hero, and that the Hiro he knows would never give up. He tells him he has seen him bend the fabric of space and time, and that he cannot die. Very moving stuff, especially as it is voiced over while Hiro fights. I love the Ando/Hiro dynamic.

Hiro ends up beating Kensei, and walks towards the light very slowly. He is pale and cold, and sees the figure of his mother come to shape. She is dressed in a kimono, and looks as beautiful as she did when he saw her before she died. Hiro tells his mother that he is ready to go now, but she tells him that he is not finished. She tells him that she is there to heal him, and that he has much to do. She kisses his forehead and Hiro wakes up in the hospital, alive on the operation table. I kind of saw this coming, but it was still gripping and heartfelt.

Meanwhile at the carnival, Vanessa wakes up to a new dress from Samuel and goes to breakfast with him in town. She is reluctant, however, because she claims that breakfast turns into lunch which turns into dinner which turns into drinks which turns into... well, you get the picture. Samuel says that all he asks is for breakfast and he will take her home straight away. Nice Irish word, straight away.

The two of them spend the day together, and we see the ridiculous boy that lives inside Samuel. We see that he is a hopeless romantic, and wants nothing more than to be with Vanessa and drink milkshakes and kiss each other and hold hands and skip in a field full of marshmallows. Although it is nice to see a less frightening version of Samuel, one can understand why Vanessa is so reluctant to go along with his charade of happiness. He is one of those guys that seems mysterious and sexy and what-have-you, but when you get into a relationship with him, all he talks about if how pretty you are and how he wants to marry you. These things are good in moderation, don't get me wrong, but not every five seconds.

Samuel begs her to see this one last thing, this 'perfect' thing that she will love, and he will be out of her life is she wants. She agrees to go along with it, and sees what he and Ian have been working on for the past few weeks or so.

"It's what you've always talked about!" His eyes light up with hope as he shows her the cabin she's been describing for years. He holds her close and describes all of the dreams she's told him and how he's made them come true. He tells her that she doesn't have to live at the carnival, because they can live in this house together and be happy, and find pots o' gold, and red balloons, and blue stars and... I digress.

Vanessa is flattered by all that Samuel has done for her, but laughs and says that she cannot live there. She says she has a life, and can't throw it away. She says that Samuel is living in a fantasy.

Samuel's face drops, and his heart is shattered; not broken, but shattered. All of this was because of her. All of these people were there to make him the most powerful being so that he could make this getaway for the two of them, and she can't live there? Who does she think she is? Doesn't she love him? Doesn't she.....??????!!!!!!!!!!

Samuel reacts in a subtle way (for once). he gets choked up and starts talking about taking her back home. His eyes dart across her face and all over the place. You can tell he wants to cry, but is trying very hard not to. Vanessa tells hi that she is sorry, and the two of them share a slew of very passionate kisses. Vanessa is kissing him to tell him she still cares, but can't change her life for him. Samuel is kissing her because it's the best thing in the world, and doesn't want to believe that it's over. Samuel is the one that retracts from her 'loving' lips and walks away. Poor, poor Samuel.

The viewer quickly goes from being sad about Samuel's heartbreak (well I was, anyways) to a realization that this is the fork in the road for him. THIS is what makes him snap. The next scene is pure evidence of this transformation as his entire demeanor has completely changed. There is no more "The name's Samuel, friend" business anymore. There is no time for charming people's pants off so they can visit his carnival. There is just time for pure, uninhibited rage.

Samuel goes back to the diner where he and Vanessa had breakfast that morning and orders the same milkshake. The waitress approaches him and asks if something is wrong. He looks up and says that yes, something is wrong.

"Am I scaring you? Do I look scary?" He asks her and stands up, walking towards her. The poor girl denies that he scares her, and starts backing up, but he presses on. He presses on in a way that he almost loses his Irish accent. He says that he is tired of people like her looking down at him like he isn't good enough. He gets in her face and yells this last line, bringing out the Knepper we all love to hate.

He looks down at his hands and says that he's tired of following everyone else's rules, trying to fit into their world. He starts an earthquake and says that everyone will have to play by his rules from now on. He shakes his hands and the camera pans down from an aerial shot, getting blurry and out of focus to demonstrate how upset he is. This picture below shows just how insane he is with anger at this point, and how abandoned he feels.
This hissy fit ends up taking the whole town down, and Samuel could care less. He has done a complete 180 at this point, and his demeanor, tone of voice, and actions have all shown that quite clearly. The last shot of this episode shows him coming back from the damage he has caused with a look in his eyes I can only describe as pure evil. His head is pointed down and his eyes are up with a sinister smirk painted on his lips. They say there is a fork in the road for every person, whether they choose to take the path of a villain, or to let the hero in them rule their actions is completely up to them. Samuel chose the path of the villain, and we were all waiting to see what would make him into this awful man.

I think my days of loving Samuel Sullivan just might be over. I think that what this show is doing with Sylar seems cheap at the moment, but levels out what they are doing with Samuel. Samuel is going to be a far greater and more dangerous villain than Sylar ever was. Sure, Sylar is the most powerful human on the planet, but he is young, and was lied to, and was misguided. He has Nathan in him now, and wants to make amends and find answers. I think that Sylar could help take Samuel down, although I would like Sam to stay for at least another season.

Close To You

Why do birds suddenly appear every time you are near? Just like me, they long to be close to you... on the day that you were born the angels got together and decided to create a dream come true. So they sprinkled moondust in your hair and..... Oh I'm only kidding.

Matt Parkman is back! Hooray!

Matt Parkman re-enters our lives by making a recipe as a stay-at-home dad while his lesbian-looking wife goes to work. Usually Janice looks nice, I mean, even Sylar called her hot at one point, but for some reason the actress that plays her decided she should chop all her hair off. I have had my fair share of awful haircuts, don't get me wrong, but DAMN. Janice looks terrible. Anyways, Matt sees her off and is visited by Noah who tells him how bad his security system is. Very Benjamin Linus.

Noah convinces Matt to find Samuel's ex-girlfriend with him so they can get some answers. Noah needs Matt because Lauren refused to go on this "Obsessive" route to find Samuel. Matt is reluctant at first, claiming that he is safe and happy, but Noah tells him his head is in the sand by staying at home. He also tells him about Samuel recruiting Claire. A cheap shot at his own cowardice to talk to his own daughter? Maybe. But we get Matt and Noah together, so it is all worth it to me.

The two of them find Vanessa at a concert hall and convince her to trust them via Matt's mind trick. She describes Samuel as "All swagger and rock and roll", which we all believe in the "8 Weeks Ago" flashback scene when he killed his brother and Mohinder. Noah tells her to call Samuel, and they set up a sting at her apartment building. Only Samuel Sullivan is far too advanced for that, and takes her away before Noah and Matt can taze off all of the Eli replicas surrounding the building. Damn that Eli.

Noah quickly catches on an finds Samuel in the back. A great visual alluding to the old Western films is shot as Sam and Noah face each other. Good versus Evil, only Good is wearing black and Evil is wearing...tan with swirlies? Noah points the gun and yells out Samuel's name, demanding to know where Vanessa is. Samuel tells Noah that Vanessa is gone and rips the street in half between them, diappearing in the dust from the upheaval.

Matt and Noah follow a GPS they apparently put on her before the sting and follow her in their SUV. They stop when they see her signal stop and end up in an empty part of the desert. Oh no, the carnival is magically gone! Who saw that coming? Looks like Noah needs another plan... again. Matt yells at him for burning bridges with Claire and tells him to go hug her while he, himself returns to his wife(ish) and child. Noah apologizes to a very aloof and suspicious Claire, and Matt questions his bravery out loud to Janice.

Back at the Carnival we see Vanessa sitting in a lawn chair outside Samuel's trailer with several Eli's keeping watch. Kind of silly, but very resourceful, and a nice touch as far as effects go on this show. I hate and love Eli. But not like I hate and love Samuel. Speaking of which, Samuel comes out of his trailer with a tray of tea and that godawful swirly vest. Oh, man, that vest....

Vanessa is unimpressed with the tea, her chair, Eli, the carnival, her wrinkled face despite her beauty, and of course, with Samuel. She says she wants to leave and that she's being held there against her will. She stands up and Samuel grabs her, getting all sensual by touching her face. He does some strange John Travolta Face/Off thing and smiles while playing with his mouth. Classic Knepper. Vanessa CLEARLY wasn't having it...
Yes, kids, that's the look of pure desire. :/

Anyways, Samuel tells her to stay after calming her down and says he has to show her something 'beautiful' and 'perfect'. One can only imagine this 'thing' is the Promised Land he and Ian built in front of Claire, but with Samuel, you never know. It could be a shrine to her in a brides dress like Erik made in Phantom of the Opera. My vote is on the shrine.

The other story going on involves Hiro talking in pop culture references, begging Ando to admit him into an Asylum. Ando agrees, though he doesn't quite understand everything until Hiro points to a cell marked "Ahmadi". Ando uses his red lightning to break into the hallway, and puts two and two together. Dr. Suresh = Dr. Watson..... duh!
Ando takes Mohinder's medicine in order for him to snap out of his drugged stupor, and immediately regrets it. Although this helps the situation in general, Hiro now has to take care of a drugged up Ando while Mohinder uses his super strength to break out of his padded cell and straight jacket. What is the result? A child-like Hiro, a pissed-off Mohinder, and a high-as-a-kite Ando. Classic comedy.

Ando uses his red lightning again to get out of the asylum, and the three of them are seen running through the swamplands of Florida. The sounds of shouting and dogs barking aren't far away as beams of flashlights barely miss them as they make their escape. The viewer now knows that THIS is what they were showing in the collage at the end of the episode before Christmas Break. This was what was included in Samuel's last Promised Land speech.
Ando kept saying "I'm swimming!". Hilarious.

While the three amigos are running, however, Mohinder is still hot as hell and demands answers as to why he was put in the asylum in the first place. Ando's drugs have apparently worn off with his burst of exercise, and he stands up for his friend like he always does. He tells Mohinder that he doesn't have much time left, and is freeing him from the asylum before he dies. Mohinder immediately shuts up. Things might not be completely clear to him yet, but they are certainly put into perspective.

The dogs are getting closer and Mohinder tells Ando they need to teleport in order to escape. Ando says that with Hiro's mind the way it is, his powers don't work. He uses his red lightning after finding out that they would have used electroshock therapy in the asylum to fix him anyways, and Hiro is back. Sancho and Dr. Watson are gone.

"Ando, Dr. Suresh.... we must stop Samuel Sullivan!" And then Boom, they teleport away from the swamps and into Noah Bennet's apartment as he is kissing Lauren. Hiro looks embarassed and says that he is sorry to interrupt, but both Lauren and Noah look very excited. Noah smiles at them and simply says:

"Hello boys." Perfect. The Justice League is assembling again and I couldn't be happier.

The last character arc of the day is our beloved Peter. His story intertwined earlier with a carnival scene that I didn't want to cover until now. It starts off with Samuel drawing Vanessa before Bennett and Matt talked to her. He is alone in his trailer and is also writing what looked like a calligraphic poem. Lydia walks in on him and he attempts to cover up the drawings of Vanessa and says "I'm just writing a letter."

At first it seems he is trying to spare Lydia's feelings as he covers the picture and lies about what he is doing. But I am so over trying to figure out Samuel and Lydia's relationship that I just assume there was nothing deep there to begin with. I have come to terms with the idea that he likes having her there, they are friends with possible on-and-off benefits, but she could never match up to Vanessa (as if anyone could). He whores her out to do his bidding and doesn't ever think twice about how she feels about any of it. There. I can stop caring about those two. For good.

Anyways, Lydia says that the woman in the picture is beautiful. Samuel tells her that she will meet her soon enough and that he apologizes for all that has happened recently. He says Hiro, Claire, and Edgar were difficult situations, but it will all come to fruition soon enough. Lydia tells him that Sylar was difficult as well, and you can tell she was really upset about it. This just shows how much Samuel does NOT care about Lydia and her feelings, because in his eyes, she did what he needed her to do. She fulfilled his needs, and that's all that matters. He then tells her that they are so close to realizing their dreams.

"Our dreams, Samuel? Or are they yours?" Touche.

Samuel changes the subject and tells her to go into town and buy him some ink. The true Alpha Male is coming out in him.

Lydia leaves his trailer and talks to her daughter about not trusting him. Amanda says that she likes him, but Lydia knows better. She talks about how someone woulf be a better leader than Samuel, but she says that he is "so far away". Amanda tells her mother to call him, which, in the carnival, seems preposterous, but Lydia's power once again surprises me. She closes her eyes and thinks about Peter, and he wakes up in bed with the compass tattoo spinning crazily on his forearm.

What? She can call people like that? Or maybe just people Samuel has injected with ink? Maybe she awakens the ink? What is her power, exactly? I though she just sees people's desires..... ugh. Her powers have new rules every week and it is getting on my nerves.

Anyways, Peter calls Noah the next day to tell him about his tattoo, but gets a voice mail. He is drawn to Emma's apartment by her cello playing, and she tells him how excited she is that her Siren power worked. Peter sees the compass marking on her cello, and the two of them have a conversation about Samuel and William Hooper, and Peter finally realizes what he is up against. He tells Emma that he is a bad man and caused Noah to get stabbed, but she is naive and defends the Irishman.

Angela walks into Peter's apartment babbling on about some uptown restaurant she wants to dine at, and glares at Emma when she sees her.

"Peter, how do you know this woman?" Whoa. Angela has always been uncouth, but come on.

Emma gets uncomfortable (as she should), and she says she needs to get back to work. Peter walks her to the door and he asks his mom what the deal is. Angela doesn;t seem apologetic at all, and claims that she saw Emma in one of her futuristic dreams. She said that she saw her being responsible for killing thousands of people, and that Peter should stay away from her. Like Angela could talk, she was the one who almost convinced Nathan to blow up New York City.

Peter steals his mom's power before she leaves and dreams of Emma. He claims he has to 'see for himself' what Emma is capable of. I bet he wished he didn't take that power, and ignored what he saw in his precognitive dreams. He tosses and turns as he sees blurry visions of Emma sitting in a chair with her cello. She looks pallid and sickly, as if she cannot stop playing the cello and has a sad look of desperation on her face. She is in the mirror room at the carnival, and lights flash on and off in her direction, further disorienting our poor heroine. She looks up as someone walks up to her and offers him her hand. That person is Sylar.

"Don't worry, I am here to save you." What?

Peter wakes up and runs over to Emma's apartment. He barges in after she opens the door and he smashes her cello into pieces. He tries to explain to her about his dreams and his concern for her safety, but she doesn't care. She bends down to her broken instrument and refuses to read Peter's lips. She yells at him to get out and points to the door.

"Goodbye, Peter." She whispers without even looking at him.

This scene is so heartbreaking without capitalizing on Peter's emotions. Peter has fulfilled his own prophecy by trying to prevent it. The pieces of the cello are scattered at Emma's feet and are almost unrecognizable. Almost all of them except for the piece with the compass painted on it. To Emma, Peter just destroyed the one thing that could enable her to help people and be special. The several rejection letters from hospitals to accept her residency had left her at an emotional stand-still. And now the only person she had a connection with broke her favorite toy? It's almost impossible not to feel the betrayal Peter displays by shattering her dreams. It's also impossible not to feel the disappointment Peter has at his own actions. Both of them have suddenly reached a point in their relationship they never thought they would come to.... the end.

Emma will no doubt follow her compass to Samuel, and all hell will break loose. Hopefully we can see Mohinder, Ando, Hiro, and Noah team up and prevent that from happening.

I'm the king of wishful thinking.

Daybreakers

It's hard to find a good vampire movie these days. With Twilight and New Moon and all that business going around the world, one can only be too careful. Sure, this movie wasn't without its camp or cliche vampire themes, but it was refreshing and excessively gory. Two of my favorite things.

As you can see the movie is very beautiful. It is set in 2019 after vampires have populated the world, and humans are about 5% of the earth's population, if I had to guess. Technology is more booming than it is now, and news all over the world addresses vampirism as if it is humanity and completely normal. The change of tides is often referred to as The Outbreak, even though the general population does not seem to consider their condition an illness that requires a cure.

Edward Dalton (Ethan Hawke) is the main character in this dark utopia for the undead, and is first shown to us onscreen as an absent reflection in a three piece suit in his side mirror. He is a silent, brooding type, but not the typical Angel or Louis de Point du Lac by any means. He is simply what Ethan Hawke would be like if he was turned into a vampire in real life. Poetic, tortured, sensitive, sweet, beautiful, and straight edge?

Okay, maybe not straight edge. He is seen chain smoking cigarettes through the entire first half of the film, but if you're a vampire, and they can't hurt you, then why not? I guess he's more of a vegetarian of sorts, but I hate to refer back to Twilight, it makes me sick. Anywho, Ed is a hematologist at the major blood corporation in America. He works for the big whigs and is working hard to find a human blood substitute. He tried different saline-looking solutions and different mixes, but everything he tries ends up in a bloody mess (literally). His abstinence from human blood is driving him to work harder so that his company can stop harvesting humans for blood like pods from The Matrix.

Ewww.....

Ed's boss is Sam Neill who seems to have taken a break from acting after the very underrated Event Horizon. Welcome back to Earth, Sam Neill. Sam tells Ed of his daughter who despised him after he turned into a vampire. He said she ran away and never looked at him the same. Although this look into the Trump-like character's life is nice, it is hard for me to believe that he is sorry.

Ed goes home and runs into some humans with his car. He saves them from being seen by the police and makes googlie eyes at the girl. He goes home for a birthday drink with his brother when something like this comes in and crashes the party.
Oh no!

Ed and his brother kill the monster, and find out that it was actually a neighbor of theirs who hasn't drank human blood in three weeks or so. Earlier that day, his boss gave a presentation on the degenerative aspects of going hungry. The world is going through a blood famine, and if Ed can't find a blood substitute soon, this will happen to all of them. Talk about a wake up call.

The girl human somehow manages to sneak into Ed's back door and tells him to meet her at this place in the middle of the day by a tree. She leaves after giving him a map and says that she can trust him. I don't know about you guys, but isn't it going to be a little dangerous for a vampire to meet someone at noon? I guess not.

The technology boom of 2019 has that covered too. Not only do their doors open by ocular recognition and other Gattaca references, but the cars have something that is called "Daytime Driving" that activates panels to cover up the shields and windows, and activates a panoramic camera on top of the car, allowing the driver to view all sides around him at any given time without being burnt to a crisp. Those vampires think of everything, huh?

Edward goes to this tree at noon with his technology and meets his girlfriend who tells him to pull up to the Lion King Tree Of Life. There he meets up with who else but Willem DaFoe who tells him he used to be a vampire just like him. The two of them shake hands in the shade and it is very cool.

Trouble comes in the form of his military brother following him to this tryst, and our protagonist is faced with an immediate decision. What does he do? He goes with the humans to help their cause. Although I would love to go further into this plot and give literary comparisons along the way, I'm afraid I cannot. Unlike a television show, you only get one shot to see this, and I don't want to ruin this for you. I just want to give you a taste, to get you revved up a little bit.

Not that anyone besides myself ever reads these, but maybe someone does, and I don't want to spoil Daybreakers for them. So, in conclusion, this film starts off beautifully with the dark 1940's imagery of a classy vampiric population, and ends beautifully with a slightly different situation. The blood and guts are very graphic in this movie, and are beyond the pale of most slasher pics I have seen quite recently. (There is a close up of a decapitation and people eating it). So there is that for the guys, and yes, Ethan Hawke takes his shirt off for the ladies. All in all, this was a good movie to give you hope after Twilight.

Cheerio

Last Week of Christmas Break

This is me and Tony waiting in the car repair shop lobby for five hours. The thing worse than that? Tony's car was stuck at his parents' house getting worked on by his dad... for five days. Ugh. The nightmare is finally over. Both our cars are working now. Hooray.

Sketchy Slump

So I used to draw all of the time. I started when I was thirteen after I saw the movie Titanic, and went on from there. I never took any classes besides the ones in high school that were mandatory, and it pretty much shows. Although I get better with each piece I finish, taking a few years' break from sketching can take a dramatic toll on one's "craft", if I can even call it that.

Being surrounded by art majors and tattoo artists who have been professionally trained in these areas surely doesn't help my drive either. I want to draw and create in my free time, but with school and work, I feel like it's impossible to get up to my friends' standards. It should make my drive harder. It should make me want to succeed and reach for the sky. So I drew this... my first sketch in years. It's not the greatest, but it's better than I expected. I just need to keep up with it and expand my horizons by drawing new and original things. Wish me luck and expect more....

Dharma Initiative Orientation Kit: Season 5 of LOST

I got the Special Edition: Season 5 of LOST on DVD today. I couldn't be more excited. I haven't read through every single thing yet, but I've looked it all over. I watched all of the special features on the actual discs, and am more than satisfied.

Not only is this package in a large binder with a VHS Orientation video in the left sleeve, but it has detailed maps of the Dharma grounds, protocol for each section of the encampment, and a copy of the truce between the Natives and the Dharma Initiative. This limited edition piece of memorabilia is amazing for LOST fanatics like me everywhere. If you want a copy of your own, their should be plenty left on Amazon.com. That is where I got my copy, and I doubt you can find them in any stores.

I hope to finish this at work this weekend while on third shift, and get reaquainted with my old friend just in time for its return on February 2nd.

Namaste

Upon This Rock, Let It Bleed (2 Hour Special)

I was so excited for Heroes to come on after the seemingly eternal hiatus during Christmas Break. I had gotten my older sister hooked on it, and even watched a few episodes of Season 1 and 2 with her to get in the mood.

So when I spent two hours watching commercials and Claire mourning over Nathan while Peter sulked with her, I was a bit disappointed. Sure, that's not all this episode was about, it's not even how it starts off, but it was a major focus. I understand that the Petrelli and Bennet family need to grieve over Nathan's death. It's extremely overdue and very necessary, but I felt like it drug on. Maybe it's because I buried my great-grandmother a few hours before I watched this episode. Maybe watching her suffer from Alsheimers' disease for nine years until she finally let go made me bitter about Nathan's prolonged suffering even after his death. I might have been emotionally compromised while watching the funeral scenes, so my disdain for their duration is slightly justified.


Besides that, this episode(s) was alright. I think I just psyched myself up and expected too much. I didn't realize that this is a lot like the 6th Harry Potter book... not a lot happens, but you learn a lot. It also sets everything in motion so that the real action can begin. So, my outlook on this isn't as bad as it was five seconds ago. Harry Potter always puts me in a good mood.


This episode starts off with how Claire interacts with the Carnival on a daily basis. Which was good and enlightening, because I think that is a legitimate question that crosses everyone's mind every now and again. What goes on in the day-to-day of a travelling carnival? And a carnival with Supers on top of all that? Even though we've had moments with Samuel and Lydia sharing meals at the dinner table throughout this season, we still haven't met any other Supers. We haven't gotten to see anyone else besides them have a normal life like our protagonists. Maybe that is an intention of the writers to show how superficial and transient the carnival truly is, or maybe it is just a coincidence. I think it is intentional.

Claire seems to give the carnival life; to give it reality and humor. Everyone there just lurks in the shadows as they watch her smile and pick up trash. They pretend to be happy that she is joining their family. The only person who I truly believe to be happy that Claire is there is Lydia. She tells her how she always brings Samuel breakfast and tells Claire to do it to earn some brownie points. This friendly chore "accidentally" ends up in Claire discovering Samuel with Bennet's Primatech files. Whoops. Claire has the guts to confront our Irishman and he claims to have a lot of past with her father, but leaves it at that. He tells her she is free to go back to college, but orders Eli to make her stay. What a liar. What-ever. Samuel can't surprise me anymore. I've got his number.


He goes into the city after getting his outfit approved by Claire and visits Emma. Emma goes through her nice and very accurately-depicted handicapped apartment and answers the door. Samuel half-ass signs while talking to Emma and explains that he gave her the cello. He shows her his compass tattoo that matches the emblem on the cello, and she invites him in. They chat and take a walk through Central Park. He tells her that her power isn't only seeing sound, but she is a Siren. She can call anyone she wants to her with her music/sounds. He asks her to bring this guy who can create plantlife to them. She does it for him, and feels herself getting stronger. The three of them go to the hospital, get this guy cleaned up, and the two men go back to the Carnival. Emma stays. Smart girl.

Damn, it looks cold in New York. Not. Freaking Los Angeles... It won't stop snowing here in Indiana! Ughhh! Sorry, I digress......

The other storyline is Hiro's. He was Reverse-Haitianed by the Rastafarian guy at Samuel's carnival when he stood up to Samuel about where Charlie was. After the Rastafarian guy grabbed his head, we saw clips of what Hiro did to change the past in order to complete his "Bucket List" before he died. He then started talking about Sherlock Holmes and Star Trek before he disappeared in time and space right before Samuel's eyes. I, like most other people watching Heroes diligently, was very confused after this happened, and am still not far off.

Hiro arrives in Present Day Japan after he leaves the carnival, and is making all sorts of comic book pop culture references. He rescues a woman's purse from a thug after grabbing a cleaver from a butcher. He gets arrested, but bailed out by Ando and his sister. He is talking nonsense about Arkam and Spock and Watson and all of this fictional craziness. He mentions the Danger Room, and Ando starts to catch on. He remembers it's the training room of the X-Men, but also where Hiro keeps all of his comics. Hiro is still very debilitated, but is somehow trying to tell Ando something very important. The three of them go to the Danger Room and figure out that something is in an Asylum he needs to get out.... We know that it is Mohinder, and I'm sure Ando will figure it out, because that's what the previews for next week show, but it takes him a while, so that's okay.

So, back to Claire and her madness at the Carnival.... She confronts Samuel about everything he's done and everything he's about to do. She tells him that she knows he killed his brother (after having a non-conversation with Lydia), and is skeptical about what he's going to do with this 'Promised Land' he keeps talking about. To be quite honest, she says a lot of bold things to him that I wouldn't dream of saying to a man that powerful who just welcomed me into his home. But then again, I can't heal or regenerate, so I guess she really has nothing to lose here, now does she?

Samuel sugar coats Joseph's death, saying he lost control and was only trying to protect his family from the government. He even goes so far as to compare himself to Mr. Bennet, saying that he was sure Noah had lied and even killed to protect Claire in dire straits. We all know this to be completely true, so we understand why Claire lets it slide for the time being. She still demands to know why he had a map of the valley where Joseph is buried and what he plans to do with it. Samuel shows her what Emma's Central Park friend can do, and together they build this very Eden-like garden with water and flowers and grass and everything, right in the middle of the desert.

Claire accepts this as a suitable answer to all of her suspicions and leaves temporarily. She got a call from Peter telling her Nathan had died, and that she should come to NYC for a bit. Probably a good idea. Peter fills her in on all of the Sylathan/Mattler business, and she gets pissed. So pissed, in fact, that she makes Mr. Bennet stay at home with Lauren, and not attend the wake. It makes sense, though, especially after Peter tells her that the man who staged her biological father's death as a plane crash was indeed her adoptive father. How Shakespearean. She continues to sulk with Peter, and cuts herself on accident because Peter still has the Haitian power. Stupid Claire, don't you know how to be more careful? Oh that's right, you don't.

Peter pulls a Mr. Incredible and listens to a police scanner on the rooftop after telling Claire the horrible truth. Angela tells Claire to go after him and smack some sense into him, and she finds him in an office building where some nutso got fired and started shooting everyone. Peter thinks that somehow the Haitian power can benefit this situation. Don't you know how to be more careful Peter? There is a running theme in this Godforesaken family, and it's just silly. Peter ends up getting shot after unsuccessfully talking the shooter down. It isn't fatal like the shotgun from Jeremy could have been, but I'm sure it hurt. He asks Claire to touch him so he can heal, and she hesitates. She tells him that he's acting like an idiot (it's about time) and that he needs to get his head on straight. She tells him that she won't always be there to help him. She tells him the truth, and that's what he needed to hear.

While Claire and Peter banter, Noah leaves his apartment window open and tazers Edgar whose been tailing him for a while, apparently? It came out of nowhere, but Noah seemed to be expecting it. Then again, this is Noah Bennet we are talking about, and we haven't seen him get rude in a good long while. Bring on the Plan, Noah:)

Noah speaks Japanese (Yay) to a sushi chef and pays him mad cash to close down for the night. He and Lauren torture Edgar in the freezer after injecting him with something that slows the heart down. Darth Maul won't talk. They find out that violence isn't the answer and decide to just ask him questions instead. Noah finds out that Samuel banished him and pinned Joseph's death on him. They come to an understanding and almost convince Edgar to help them take down Samuel when his Jim Jones Brainwash Job kicks in and Edgar freaks out, talking about his family. He says he can never hurt them and runs (quite quickly) away. Damn. Could have been a good plan. Sorry, Noah.

Back at the Carnival, Samuel is controlling his ink and drawing on a blank piece of paper. It is a picture of a girl that I thought to be Emma at first, but is a lot prettier than Emma. And guess what? She's blonde with what looked like blue eyes. Big fucking shocker, Tim Kring. Do you hate us? Did we hurt you as a child? Is there something about our chocolate hair and caramel skin that just stirs up hate inside of you? But only when it's women? Ugh. Tim Kring, you were confronted at Comic Con about having a lack of diversity in your female characters by a very correct fan. I have said this time and time again, but now this new love interest comes up and its the same thing? You promised us a woman of color this season, and you gave us Becky; an invisible girl who I am sure you are going to phase out just like you did Monica and Maya. Not like I liked Maya, don't get me wrong, but I liked Monica. Everyone did. And now where is she? Huh? No one knows, and you don't care. Give me an Indian woman, a Native American girl, hell a half Italian American woman that resembles Peter or Sylar or.... whatever. Give me something. Fuck.

Rant is officially over.

This woman in the drawing is called Vanessa. She is the girl Samuel has loved ever since he was a teenager, as seen in a wonderful flashback at the beginning of this episode. He speaks briefly of her to Emma, and then we see that this drawing is one of many obsessive sketches our Irishman has produced throughout the season. It's good to know that Samuel had a heart once. It shows that something terrible happened that probably altered his mindset for the rest of his life and made him the selfish bastard he is today. It's good to see him not raping dudes like he did in Prison Break.

But what's not nice? Is what the hell is going on with Lydia? The way he touches her and looks at her and dresses in front of her and has her bring him pancakes... it doesn't make sense to me. Maybe he is with her since he cannot be with Vanessa, but Lydia just seems to do as she is told. Her temperament is so hard to read with him. I know she is afraid of him, but did they sleep together a lot in the past? Is he just a touchy-feely guy? He got slightly jealous when he found out about her and Edgar in the webisodes, but let her make her own "mistakes"...

Which brings me to the current state of things. Sylar is back. He has the compass that Samuel gave Gabriel Gray, and he TKs Samuel to his trailer, only to find he can't follow through with the kill. Samuel uses his awesome earthiness to create a sandstorm around Sylar and rips the skin off of his bones. It was probably the coolest thing I've seen since I watched Cloverfield. And Cloverfield was a damned good movie.

Samuel puts Sylar in his old trailer to heal, I guess, and tells Lydia to go in there and use her "charms" on him. This is where I get confused about their relationship again. She says "I'm not just a piece of flesh you can toss around".

"You didn't seem to mind the first time he was here." Samuel retorts.

Anger? Jealousy? Not really, just fact painted with his usual charm. She seems more offended than anything. I have no idea what is between them. Maybe that's why they're bringing in Vanessa. The people want to see Samuel have a love interest, but not Lydia. I know I do. You know what else I know? I'll be pissed if Vanessa is somehow another version of Ali Larter. Anyways, he gets all touchy feely again and touches her hands, saying they meant for a smooth labor or something lame like that. She finally agrees and goes in to find a shirtless Sylar who is less evil but still bad. Like the Diet Coke of evil.

Lydia tries to tell Sylar that he doesn't want to die alone and that she knows what people feel. Yadda yadda grope kiss yadda whatever. Sylar isn't feeling it, and then he is, and then he empathetically takes her powers and head-buts her. He goes out to Samuel and demands he tattooes him so he can find out his next step. Pretty smart move on Samuel's part. Sylar no longer wants to kill him.

Sylar gets stuck by Samuel's rod and sees the tattoo take the form of Claire's face. He freaks out and is like "Say what?" to Samuel and Samuel just shrugs his shoulders.

The end of the episode is Sylar flying outside of Claire's dorm room window saying 'Hello Cheerleader", and that is it. I don't know how I feel about that, really, but the two of them will live forever and everyone else will die all around them. Maybe he wants to have companionship? Maybe he wants a good game of cat and mouse? Maybe Samuel manipulated the ink so Sylar will bring Claire back to him? Who knows. All I know is that it can only get better from here on out and I am very excited.

I give this Episode(s) an 8/10.

Shalom