The Beginning of Act III

As we reach the end of Season 4, we enter the final third of the entire Lost series, or Act III as I'll call it.

Now, think back to the "Dalai Lama" test Ben was given as a young boy. One of the objects placed on the table was The Book of the Law by Aleister Crowley (Wikipedia him for more info...it's quite entertaining!). Crowley was in Cairo when he "received" the book from Aiwass, a messenger for the Egyptian god Horus. This book is divided into three chapters. So as we hit Act III, let's look at Chapter 3. Each line begins with its designated verse number. It starts:

1. Abrahadabra; the reward of Ra Hoor Khut.
2. There is division hither homeward; there is a word not known. Spelling is defunct; all is not aught. Beware! Hold! Raise the spell of Ra-Hoor-Khuit!
3. Now let it be first understood that I am a god of War and of Vengeance. I shall deal hardly with them.
4. Choose ye an island!
5. Fortify it!
6. Dung it about with enginery of war!
7. I will give you a war-engine.
8. With it ye shall smite the peoples; and none shall stand before you.
9. Lurk! Withdraw! Upon them! this is the Law of the Battle of Conquest: thus shall my worship be about my secret house.
10. Get the stele of revealing itself; set it in thy secret temple -- and that temple is already aright disposed -- & it shall be your Kiblah for ever. It shall not fade, but miraculous colour shall come back to it day after day. Close it in locked glass for a proof to the world.

I can't help but see things stand out.

First, what if Aiwass is like Christian Shepherd and Horus is like Jacob. One is the messenger for the other.

There is division hither homeward; there is a word not known.

I definitely feel we will see some conflict about people choosing to stay or go home, while others may have no choice. But there will be division about going home or not.

Now let it be first understood that I am a god of War and of Vengeance. I shall deal hardly with them.

Jacob? Vengeance has certainly been a recurring them on the island.

Choose ye an island! Fortify it!

Duh!

I will give you a war-engine. With it ye shall smite the peoples; and none shall stand before you.

Smokey?

Lurk! Withdraw! Upon them! this is the Law of the Battle of Conquest: thus shall my worship be about my secret house.

If anything, the Others "lurk". Secret house? Jacob's house?

Get the stele of revealing itself; set it in thy secret temple -- and that temple is already aright disposed -- & it shall be your Kiblah for ever. It shall not fade, but miraculous colour shall come back to it day after day. Close it in locked glass for a proof to the world.

The Others went to a secret temple. But could the temple be the island itself? And locked glass...they are entering the Orchid station, which is a greenhouse.

For the complete text, check it out here. Warning: you may be cursed for doing so.

When the Nightmares Started

Last week, Ben asked Widmore, "When did you start sleeping with a bottle of scotch next to your bed?"

His response: "When the nightmares started."

I think the "nightmares" Widmore spoke of is the same type of visions that haunt Jack, Hurley and others throughout Lost. And I think Ben knows they happen, which is why he asked the question. Ben must know that they are a sort of side effect of having contact with the island.

Perhaps everyone has these visions, but some are worse than others. Some of the castaways may be experiencing them and not even realize it. It's only the traumatic ones, like Jack seeing his dead father, that garner attention. Then flip that with Hurley, who seems to have embraced his visions of Charlie after first fearing them.

Clearly Jack fears his father and always has. I think the visions of dad will continue to haunt him until he embraces his father and comes to a reconciliation with him. Remember, Lost started off focusing on people's past, and many of the castaways have rectified their previous actions. Jack still has never done that. He never embraced his father. We only got a first glimpse of that last night when he talked about his father being a good storyteller. Yet, Jack ultimately divulged into pills and booze, just like Widmore last week.

Jack's haunting past is effecting his present, exemplified in his insecurities. He has loved Kate for so long and he finally has her, which we already know he will lose her. Jack's redemption is likely going to be saved for the series finale, so we will have two more seasons of a self-tormented, whiny Jack. Thank goodness there are more characters to enjoy.

Ultimately, Jack's desire to return to the island, as shown in the first flashforward at the end of last season, may be the same as Widmore's desire to find the island:

To make the nightmares stop.

A Taste of Things to Come

Ah, we got great look last week of the ongoing war between Ben and Charles Widmore. It seems that these two are locked in a battle, possibly good versus evil. But first, I want to reference a previous blog post of mine on March 2:

"On another note, Penny's dad bought a book once owned by a Hanso that was an artifact of the Black Rock. I think he may end up being the ultimate villain to this whole series. I think he may be the economist Sayid was trying to get to in the future. I think that's his freighter out there, which is why they know not to answer Penny's calls. He has had connection with Dharma in the past and now he wants Ben because he led the purge. He wants the secrets of the island for his own personal gain. Maybe even to be immortal. Maybe he's been to the island and now he's trying to get back. Maybe he was on the Black Rock when it set sail."

Now I bring this back up because there is a big theory circulating that Widmore is actually Magnus Hanso, the captain of the Black Rock and the ancestor of those that started the Hanso Foundation. I debated this idea in my head for awhile and concluded that they are not the same person. However, I do think Widmore does have a connection to the ship, with one of two possibilities.

1) He was the owner of the company that the Black Rock sailed for, which is partially how he accumulated his wealth. He may have even been searching for the island then, with this being his first freighter.

While this is a possibility, I favor my second idea, which is also why I don't believe Hanso and Widmore are the same person.

2) He was a member of the crew of the Black Rock, sailing under the command of Hanso. And I quite possibly think Widmore was the second in command of the Black Rock.

Think back to the auction scene in Desmond's flashback where Widmore purchased the journal of the first mate of the Black Rock. I think Widmore was buying what used to be his. The journal was auctioned by Tovard Hanso. So it wouldn't make sense that Widmore would have to buy something from the Hansos if he was a Hanso himself. There was a painting of ship next to Widmore's bed that I believe is of the Black Rock.

There may have been a history between Hanso and Widmore. Widmore may have led a mutiny against Hanso to take control of the island. I think there may have been a battle between the Hansos and Widmores for control of the island over the years. Then Ben stepped in and disrupted that battle and entered the war. Now I think Ben represents good and Widmore represents evil. Think back to the pilot episode where Locke and Walt play backgammon and Locke talks about what the colors represent. And yes, Ben does do some seemingly evil things. However, I'm reminded of the fortune cookie saying I keep in my wallet: "For a good cause, wrong doing may be virtuous."

Finally, Widmore seems to care greatly about Penelope. But I've yet to see any display of emotion or connection to the Hansos, which brings me to my final point.

Penny won't be killed. Ben won't be the one to go after and kill her. He will send his lackey Sayid. While Sayid may find some revenge in killing her, he ultimately won't because he will see her as innocent and does not want to hurt his friend Desmond. So it will probably come to a dramatic scene with Sayid pointing the gun and ultimately unable to pull the trigger. He will tell Penelope to go into hiding and tell Ben that she is dead. Ben will have the satisfaction of his revenge, though it never will have taken place.

Hot New TV Shows for the Fall

As this television season wraps up next month and many favorite televisions shows start coming back, the networks start announcing their new shows for the fall. Here's a preview of what may be coming to a TV near year.

*Follow all the crazy antics of the inhabitants in a mental institution in the new series "Mixed Nuts."

*A disgraced New York governor becomes an ornithologist who discovers a new bird species in "Spitzer Swallows."

*A young culinary artist opens up a restaurant in D.C. in "Hail to the Chef."

*The president of a dairy plant must juggle his life as a father at home in "The Big Cheese."

*The life of the plumber who's responsible for all the waterworks in the British monarchy's residences in "Royal Flush."

*The warden of a southern prison is the focus of the new sitcom "Alabama Slammer."

*Proprietor Alan B. Monty must deal with all the guests complaints of his ocean-side hotel in "Beached Wail."

*A woman leads a high profile life as Prague’s preeminent matchmaker in "Czech Mate."

*Prominent playground equipment salesman Walter Riley does his best in his fast-paced job in the new sitcom "It Don't Mean a Thing if it Ain't Got that Swing."

*What happened to Amerigo Vespucci after he drew a map of the world? Follow his zany adventures in "Out of Bounds."

*Dr. Jack Webb loses his arms and legs in a horrific go-kart accident, so he opens up his practice online in "Jack Webb, M.D."

*Richard Moll's bailiff character from "Night Court" moves to Vegas to start his new career in "Pit Bull."

*A group of fisherman off the coast of Maryland face hard times when they can no longer make big catches in "Nothing But Net."

*Environmentalist Robert T. Patterson faces the world's problems in "It's Not Easy Being Green."

It Was Michael After All

Or was it?

I've been intrigued by delicious speculation recently that it really is not Michael...but rather Walt grown up. Yet, the previews for next week said something about how far a father is willing to go to protect his son. Yet, that's just the kind of crazy thinking Lost has people going through these days.

I was sitting here trying to convince myself that last night's episode was not a combination flashback/flashforward. But, yeah, it really was. I remember at one point saying to myself, "Wow, Jin's phone looks really old." That was evidence number one. Then was the fact that it was the year of the dragon, or 2000. I'm not buying a time jump to the next year of the dragon, which is 2012. Finally, Jin said he was working for Mr. Paik, Sun's father. Now, I would have bought some conspiracy theory here. Perhaps Jin is off the island, working with Ben much in the same way as Sayid. Think about it. Sayid and Jin have very similar backgrounds and are capable of doing the same kind of work. So, as this might not ultimately been the case in this episode, I think it might be in the future.

Which brings me to...

Jin is not dead. I don't think so. The date of death on the grave was the date of the crash. So, we know that's not true. And we still don't know what the complete story devised by the Oceanic 6 is, but we know it includes saying a lot of people died in the crash.

So, yes, I think Jin is still alive and may be doing the same sort of work Sayid is doing. He has the experience and connections too. Mr. Paik may be involved with Widmore somehow.

I also think Jin may be alive because of a seemingly weird statement Hurley said. He asked if anyone else was coming, which Sun replied no. Then he said a creepy, "Good." But I think that "good" meant no one was coming out of the woodworks to possibly spoil the lie they have told. As evidenced when Sun rushed into the hospital, people know the Oceanic 6. So they must keep up appearances as much as possible.

Which brings us back to the Oceanic 6. I had Jin in. But Jin's now out. Is Aaron really the last piece of the puzzle? Or is there another one yet to be revealed? A part of me just doesn't want to accept it's Aaron. Mainly because I really don't care about Aaron. Also, he's never been called or identified as Oceanic 6, whereas Jack, Kate, Sayid, Hurley and now Sun all have been. I'm still trying to figure out who it might be.

Maybe Ben, assuming the identity of someone on the plane. He certainly has the means, and might be able to find someone on the flight who had little or no connections in the world. Or now, maybe Michael. I just don't want to call this case closed just yet.

The Dearly Departed

My dog died today.

It wasn't unexpected. He had health complications for awhile. He was the runt of the litter, so it goes with the territory. He wasn't put to sleep, but he also didn't suffer. He was just in the arms of my mother, took one last deep breath and his heart just stopped.

You see we always knew it would be his heart. He had a heart arrhythmia, caused by enlarged heart muscles for his size of a dog. He had to take regular medication for it, but never seemed to mind.

In his years of life, I never saw him growl or snap at anyone else. It wasn't his personality. He loved meeting new people and would literally try to "talk" with those he would see. He was quite social.

Maybe that's why I picked him. But in a way, he picked me. When we went out to Bristow, Oklahoma, to see the Mrs. McClendon's puppies, he was the first one to walk up to me. So I picked him up and didn't let him go until we got home. Back then, he didn't really look much like a dog, so much an ewok.

He had his favorite people too. His groomer in Tulsa. The neighbors in Houston. The squirrels.

I named him for the street I grew up on, Ramsey. In a way, he bridged my life from Louisiana to Oklahoma, through his name and his presence.

All in all, it was only fitting that he died in the arms of someone who loved him dearly, and he died of a big heart.

Jacob and His Father

When Isaac was aged and blind, he decided to bless his eldest son before he died. He sent Esau out in the fields to hunt down some meat and prepare him a meal, after which he would receive his blessing. (According to the Jewish commentators, since the blessing would be prophetic, and prophecy only rests on one who is in a joyful state of mind, Isaac desired to first eat meat and drink wine to arouse himself to happiness.)

Rebecca overheard this exchange. As Esau went out to the hunt, she instructed Jacob to fetch her two goats so that she could prepare a tasty meal for his father, and commanded him to bring the meal to Isaac to receive the blessing in his brother's stead. Jacob protested that his father might notice the substitution through touch, since Esau was hairy and he was smooth-skinned. Rebecca told him not to worry, and placed hairy goatskins over his neck and arms.

Thus disguised, Jacob went into his father's tent. Isaac was surprised that he had returned so soon from the "hunt." "Who are you, my son?" Isaac asked suspiciously. "I am Esau your firstborn," Jacob replied (the Hebrew words, however, can be divided into two statements: "I" and "Esau is your firstborn"). Isaac was still suspicious and asked to feel him, since Esau was hairy. The goatskins seemed to fool him, although he maintained, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau." Nevertheless, Isaac blessed him and sent him on his way.

As soon as Jacob left the tent, Esau arrived and exposed the deception. Isaac was shaken, but he affirmed that Jacob would indeed be blessed. To Esau's pathetic entreaties, he agreed to give Esau a lesser blessing. Esau exclaimed, "Is that why he is called Jacob (יעקב), because he has deceived me (ויעקבני) these two times?" (Genesis 27:35), another play on Jacob's name. Then Esau swore to himself that he would kill Jacob in revenge as soon as his father was dead.