The Wish List - Halfway Home

Shockingly, and perhaps also sadly and excitingly, “Ab Aeterno” brought us to at the halfway point of the season. Only 9 more hours of Lost remain. I figured it would be a good time to check back in with the wish list I came up with before Season 6 began and see what mysteries have been answered, which ones we appear to be working toward answering, and which ones have fallen way off the radar. And I’m going to try to keep it under 2,500 words this time. Here we go.

23) Why wasn’t Lapidus flying Flight 815? – ANSWERED – In “Dr. Linus”, Frank told Ben that he was supposed to be piloting Oceanic 815 on September 22, 2004, but missed the flight because he overslept. I gotta say, that was kind of a yawner. I’m just going to assume that happened due to all the scotch he drank the night before. Also, it looked like Frank isn’t on the list of candidates, so I really don’t know what he’s going to be up to the rest of the season. Maybe he’ll help execute MIB’s brilliant plan of flying everyone off the Island on Ajira 316. Aaaaand we’re off to a snarky start. Satisfaction: 3.

22) How did the Dharma Initiative find the Island? – Nothing much new here. We did get a mention of Magnus Hanso, but nothing actually about the Dharma Initiative. We do know with (I think) more certainty that Jacob was responsible for bringing everyone to the Island, so I’m banking on the idea that he brought the DI there as well. I doubt they’ll go back to this. Old likelihood: 4. New likelihood: 2.

21) Where did the food pallet drop come from? – SPOILER ALERT: Damon and Carlton mentioned on the podcast that they will answer this at some point this year, but that it might not happen on the show. Very cryptic. Either way, I believe them. Old likelihood: 3. New likelihood: 10.

20) Who was in that cabin in "The Man Behind the Curtain"? – I rewatched that episode after “Dr. Linus” and thought I had it all figured out, but really, I didn’t get anywhere. It was like Jerry sneaking up on Rob Schnieder and then going back to Elaine thinking he’d solved the hearing aide mystery, but when she asks him if he knows anything of use, he says “actually, no”. I had almost the exact same conversation with my dad. The more I see of Jacob, however, the more it seems that he has always kept up residence at the base of the statue, so I’m going to say it was the MIB in the cabin. If we get any sort of MIB/Jacob flashback, that will probably provide an answer. And I think we will. Old likelihood: 9. New likelihood: 9.

19) Who's the father of Sun's baby? – Sun has only had, like, 6 lines this whole season and none of them have had to do with her child. So there has been no progress on this mystery whatsoever. I don’t think there will be any in the future either. Likelihood stays at 1.

18) Why was Libby in the mental institution? – Aside from this week’s Richard episode, there haven’t been any flashback episodes this year at all. I don’t think there will be any in the future either, and without flashbacks, I can’t imagine how we would find out how Libby ended up at Santa Rosa. Sorry Sophomore Ceddy and Malato watching Season 2. Old likelihood: 3. New likelihood: 1.

17) The Whispers – ANSWERED – At least for me they have been. In “LA X”, as Jack, Kate, Hurley and the gang dragged Sayid through the temple, we heard whispers, then saw some Others run across the dark hallway. Couple that with Ben’s warning to Rousseau last year that whenever she heard whispers she should run the other way and I think that’s as conclusive of evidence as we’re going to get that the Others are source of the whispers. Satisfaction: 8.

16) What happened to Claire and Aaron getting on the helicopter? – Not looking good for this one. Claire’s totally crazy, we haven’t seen Aaron, and as far as I know there isn’t a helicopter on the Island. I don’t know how I was so high on this one before this season, but right now it’s looking like this one’s going to get lost in the shuffle. Old likelihood: 6. New likelihood: 1.

15) A Jin and Sun reunion – At least they’re back in the same time period now. All either of them do is ask other characters if they’ve seen the other. Nikki and Paulo had more meaningful lines than these two have had lately. So this better happen soon. I think it will. Old likelihood: 10. New likelihood: 10.

14) How are people on the Island miraculously healed? – MOSTLY ANSWERED – Well, we know how Ben was healed after Sayid shot him. It was the magic healing pool at the center of the temple. How that pool became magical is still up in the air, and after Smokey’s rampage during “Sundown” wiped out the remaining temple residents, I’d be surprised if we heard more about it. The mystery of John Locke’s cured paralysis still remains, as does Rose, Ben and Jack’s respective ailments. It could be as simple as the special “energies” that each person has that can heal them, like Isaac of Ulru said. I’m not too confident they’ll completely solve this one, but I’m optimistic. Old likelihood: 8. New likelihood: 7.

13) What are the "rules"? – The only thing resembling progress we have on this one was the bloody kid in the jungle who told the MIB that he’s not allowed to kill “him”. We don’t know who “him” is (although I’m guessing he meant Sawyer and, more generally, the candidates), and even if we did, that probably wouldn’t tell us anything. Having Widmore back in play on the Island renews my hope that a more clear definition of the rules will present itself. Old likelihood: 7. New likelihood: 6.

12) Kate picks a side – In “Recon”, Sawyer took a big whiff of the dress Kate was wearing during their little time in captivity of the Others. She logged some tough hours smashing rocks in that dress, and I can’t imagine it smelled good, but he seemed to enjoy it. Now all I’m thinking is “skateskateskateskate”. Having said that, I think “neither” is the leader in the clubhouse. We’ll get an answer one way or another though. Old likelihood: 8. New likelihood: 10.

11) Adam and Eve – When Hurley and Jack stumbled back into the caves, it was mainly to remind us of two long-dormant mysteries. This was one of them. I liked Hurley’s theory that Adam and Eve could be two of the Losties, a nice nod to all the fan speculation guessing the same thing. I think that means that won’t be the answer. But there will be an answer. Old likelihood: 10. New likelihood: 10.

10) What's the deal with Richard Alpert? – ANSWERED – One of the best episodes of the season gave us all the answers we’ll ever need about Richard. How did Jacob make him ageless? Richard asked for it in exchange for his loyalty in the Great Island War. How did he arrive on the Island? He was a prisoner on the Black Rock, as slave who turned his life over to Magnus Hanso to avoid being hanged. Does he see his agelessness as a burden? You betcha, especially after Jacob died and he figured his life was meaningless. Now, with his renewed faith, that could have changed. It was awesome having Richard’s history shrouded in mystery, but I like him even better now that we understand how he became the Island’s permanent Number 2. The story about his wife dying and the 150 years of suffering he’d endured since then was just heartbreaking. I loved it. Satisfaction: 10.

9) Why do pregnant women die on the Island? – No progress whatsoever on this one. My Taweret theory appears to be out the window, though. We saw Ethan’s birth on the Island in 1977, so we can safely say the pregnancy problems began after that. And since the Black Rock destroyed Taweret in 1867, it can’t be the statue’s destruction that caused the problem. But my crazy theory likening it to a psychosomatic symptom remains un-debunked! Or fully bunked. Whatever. I’m downgrading the likelihood here, but I’m not scared about this one. It’s too important. Old likelihood: 7. New likelihood: 6.

8) The Numbers – ANSWERED – After a trip to Jacob’s (or is it the MIB’s?) cave and then another to the lighthouse, we know that each of the Numbers correspond to one of our beloved Losties. Awesome. Even though some people still have questions about the Numbers – why these numbers, why do they show up everywhere - it’s way more info than I expected and way cooler too. It was like finding out Jacob had been following all the characters around for their entire lives – it just made sense. Satisfaction: 10.

7) How many hot dogs can Hurley eat in 10 minutes? – I like our chances. We haven’t had a Hurley Sideways story yet, so there’s a tale to be told there. From what we’ve seen of that world, he’s just some rich businessman/philanthropist. And he’s still fat. I could totally see him hitting the competitive eating circuit and just demolishing everyone in his path. But maybe hot dogs aren’t his specialty. Burgers? Jalapenos? Cake? It could be anything. I’m bumping up the likelihood here from 1 to 3.

6) Walt –The way I see it, there are two paths to Walt. The first is if he somehow gets involved in the Sideways world. The problem here is that with the Island out of the picture I don’t know how much they can dive into his specialness. Option two: he’s the one locked down in Widmore’s sub. I’m holding out hope for this one. I think I’d be more excited about finding Walt in there than Des at this point. I’m going to bump this one up too. Old likelihood: 2. New likelihood: 3.

5) Where is Christian Shephard's body? – They alluded to this one in “Lighthouse” when Jack told Hurley the story about the time he chased Christian through the jungle only to find the caves, water, and his empty coffin. I totally thought we were getting some Christian that episode. I guess we’ll have to hold out a little longer. Quick side note – I think the fact that Christian’s body is missing and Locke’s is not is critical to deciphering what it is we’re seeing when we see Christian around the Island. You want a theory? Get back to me in a couple episodes. Old likelihood: 9. New likelihood: 10.

4) Who is Jacob? – PARTIALLY ANSWERED – We’ve learned a lot of new stuff about Jacob this year, but I’m not ready to call this one completely answered just yet. I am ready to declare him the good guy in the fight, however. Old likelihood: 10. New likelihood: 10.

3) A showdown between Jack and Christian / Jack and Locke – Like I said, I thought we were getting a Jack/Christian showdown in “Lighthouse”. I’m not sure Jack was ready for it then, though. Now that he’s starred out at the ocean for a while, he’s getting there but I’m starting to think the showdown won’t come until the finale. Same with Jack and Locke. “LA X” gave us that juicy conversation between the two in the airport lost-and-found where Jack dropped this little ditty – “Nothing is irreversible”. That’s the theme of the season, and when it comes to these two characters, it’s about as loaded as three words can be. Locke’s paralysis, Jack’s Jughead plan, Locke’s death, their broken relationship, their wounded souls – it could apply to any of those. I can’t imagine that will be the last time we see these two face-to-face. But have you noticed Jack is one of the few who haven’t seen Locke as MIB? New likelihood stays at 10.

2) What is the Monster? – PARTIALLY ANSWERED – This question has morphed from “What is the Monster?” to “Who is the MIB?” We know that the Monster was once a person who was trapped on the Island at some unknown time, possibly by Jacob. He’s the “incarnation of evil” and the Island functions like a cork in a wine bottle plugging the path to his escape. He’s a slick operator with a troubled past who’s now recruiting everyone in sight – especially Jacob’s candidates – with the ultimate goal of leaving the Island. But what is that troubled past? And what exactly does he have against the Island? When did his rivalry with Jacob begin? How did it begin? Who is his crazy mother? And how did he become the Black Smoke? We’ll get the answer to all those questions. Old and new likelihood: 10.

1) Why are the Others on the Island? – Gotta say, I’m a little discouraged about this one. Some of those little questions I brought up in my preview, like why they speak Latin, how they built the statue, etc., look like they’re moving further and further off the radar with each passing episode. However, we did get a good look at the temple and with it came a few hints at the Others’ larger purpose. From what I’ve gathered to this point, the Others protect the Island from Smokey. Or they help keep Smokey cooped up on the Island. I can’t decide on which theory I prefer. I don’t think any of them are native to the Island, mainly because if an old-school dude like Dogen wasn’t, than I can’t imagine well-manicured men like Goodwin or Tom were either. So Jacob brings people to the Island to serve him in the war against the MIB, some of whom become candidates to replace him. That’s the best theory I have and I’m down it. I still hope we get a little more concrete of an explanation about it all. Old likelihood: 9. New likelihood: 8.

So if you’re scoring at home, that’s four answered, two partially answered, a bunch on the verge of happening, and only a couple looking grim. Not too shabby, if you ask me. Now, if we could only get some more info on the Hurley bird, Annie, the volcano, and the Tampa job, everyone would just shut the hell up. If only we were so lucky.