Let the 9 months of speculation begin -- and HOLY CRAP! LOCKE IS IN THE COFFIN?! Last night, we had ABC's self-proclaimed night of Lost, I think it's safe to say they weren't bluffing. Last night's conclusion to season 4 did not disappoint. In fact, season 4 as a whole did not disappoint one bit. On my podcast last night, we got a caller who stated that they felt sorry for anyone who bailed in season 2 or early in season 3. I have to agree. Since the end of season 3, Lost has been spot on and last night's season finale was deliciously awesome.
There was so much packed into the full three hours of "There's No Place Like Home" that within the first 30 minutes of Part 2, I thought, "Wow, what the hell can they do to top this in the next hour and a half?" Every minute was edge-of-your-seat incredible. The Oceanic Six story line finally (somewhat) makes sense and is all ready to go for season 5. The island story with Locke's new command of "The Others" and Jeremy Bentham's proclaim that everything has been wrong on the island since Jack left is set up for next season. Michael has been confirmed dead by the producers and Harold Perrineau himself, but what about Jin? I don't believe for one second that he is dead. The Island has moved, but what happened to Daniel Faraday and his raft of red shirts? Does anyone else feel that there is going to be a love connection between Sawyer and Juliet?
So many great storylines have been set up for Lost's final two seasons that I do not have a doubt in my mind that the fans who have stuck around through good and bad will be rewarded with a great conclusion to the best show on television.
Who Is In the Coffin? Locke!
Kudos to the writers -- they had me fooled. The mysterious man in the coffin ended up being none other than John Locke. His fake name? Jeremy Bentham. Historically, Jeremy Bentham is also the name of a famous philosopher whose utilitarianism ideals were in contrast to philosophers like John Locke, who preached the concept of individualism and the mind being a "blank slate" or "tabula rasa." (Side note: Locke is listed on Wikipedia as one of Bentham's influences). Does this mean that when Locke took over the Others, he changed his beliefs and ways of doing things? (It should also be noted that the real Bentham requested his corpse be on display in a wooden cabinet called an "Auto-icon" -- a wooden coffin of his own...)
So, do you believe that Locke is really dead? I don't think so; leave it to the son of a con man to stage his own death in order to rally the troops back to the island. I think Ben is in on it too. It was a nice touch that Locke wasn't all about blowing everything up in this episode; he was only about the island matters. An even nicer touch was that he did care about the people on the freighter that Ben so carelessly sent it to its doom. And just what happened on the island that Locke had to leave and try to convince Jack and co. to come back?
Ben Sacrificing Himself for the Island?
Is Ben really a tragic hero? Is that what he became when by accepted his fate of being banished from the island in order to save it? It sure seemed that way, but alas, I still can't fully trust that Ben is on the side of helping our Losties. His careless disregard for the people on the freighter when he killed Keamy and damned the ship still has me feeling that in the end, Ben is out for his own agenda.
Time may prove me wrong, but I just can't trust the man... yet.
Keamy Set Off the Bomb, Michael is Gone, But is Jin?
It's confirmed that Michael is dead, but what about Jin? I just don't see him dying in that way, without much fanfare. I think wherever Faraday is, he will find Jin and rescue him.
And how creepy were Christian's last words to Michael: "You can go now, Michael."? Here is a big question: Is Christian a bad guy? Is this who Jacob was asking Locke to help save him from? Now that Michael is dead, it leaves open some great possible storylines for the return of Walt. Personally, I believe we will see Walt again when the Oceanic Six return to the island.
Penny and Desmond Together!
Well, I had one wish since the airing of "The Constant" and that was for Desmond and Penny to get their happy ending. While it is still early in the game, and Ben's pursuit to kill Charles Widmore's daughter does not look good, I was really happy - and a little teary eyed - when they finally embraced after more than 3 years.
The Oceanic Six
The story has been set up for next season: The Oceanic Six need to return to the island. The problem with that is that not all of them want to go back, plus we're not even sure if they're all on the same time. Sun's willingness to work with Widmore was interesting; was it a double cross? If Sun ever found out that Ben was responsible for the death of Keamy and the supposed death of Jin, then I can assume she would be teaming up with Widmore.
What was with Claire's appearance in Kate's dream? Claire's pleas to not take Aaron back seemed to directly contrast the phone call Kate got in the beginning of her dream saying that she needed to come back to the island. Something fishy is going on and for some reason, I just don't trust Zombie Christian. And just who or what is Zombie Christian, anyway?
Overall, last night's season finale was a great conclusion to the 4th season and I believe it perfectly set up so many great storylines to be explored over the last two seasons of Lost. And that is what any good TV show season finale should do. We now have nine months to wait for season 5, but with all of the questions raised in "There's No Place Like Home," we may need about 9 months to digest it all.
What did you think? What are you thoughts, questions, comments, and/or theories? Let's open up the discussion in the comment section below.
Be sure to also check out my podcast, "The Lost Podcast with Jay and Jack" or on iTunes by searching "Jay and Jack" or "Lost Podcast."