Those of us who knew beforehand that this week’s episode was going to be a Jin/Sun flash-sideways expected the long-awaited reunion between the two. Alas, that still has not happened, but we got a juicy flash-sideways and some more info on Widmore nonetheless.
The episode began with some of Widmore’s crew shooting Smocke’s entire camp (minus Smocke who had snuck off to convert Sun) with tranquilizer darts before hauling Jin off.
Widmore’s crew took Jin to Room 23, the brain-washing room on Hydra Island where Ben stowed Alex’s old boyfriend, Carl, and attempted to grill him on the pockets of electromagnetic energy he worked with as a 1970s Dharma employee. When Jin refuses to answer questions unless he can speak to Widmore, Tina Fey look-alike Zoe brings the two together. Widmore shows Jin a camera he found in Sun’s belongings on the crashed Ajira plane, which folds photos of Ji-Yeon, his daughter he had never seen. He also tells Jin that if the Man in Black leaves the island, everyone both of them know will cease to be.
Back on the main island, Sun throws the first of a few hissy fits when Ilana explains that they will not be going anywhere until Richard returns. She stomps off to the location of her former garden but when Jack tries to talk to her, she sends him away. Shortly thereafter, Smocke approaches her with promises of a reunion with Jin, but Sun runs away from him, only to run smack dab into a tree and get knocked out. Ben finds Sun, who can only speak Korean as a result of her injury, and brings her back to the beach. Richard and Hurley return and declare that they are leaving and Sun bitches Richard out in Korean because she does not care about saving the world, she only wants to find her husband and leave the island. Later, Jack finds her sitting alone on the beach and discovers that although she can not speak English, she can write in English, and also hands her a tomato he found in her garden. Sun apologizes and then accepts Jack’s promise to help her find Jin and take them both off the island because she trusts him more than Smocke.
Off the island, in flash-sideways-land, the Kwons, who we discover later are not actually married but secretly hooking up behind Sun’s dad’s back, are allowed to leave the airport with the watch they brought over for Mr. Paik but without the $25,000 hidden in the box. When Martin Keamy comes looking for the cash, bringing along with him Mikhail “Patchy” Bakunin to translate, Sun tries to cover by paying him off with money from her own secret account. Patchy and Sun go to the back and Keamy and Jin go to a restaurant. We learn that Mr. Paik was really paying Keamy $25,000 to kill Jin after he found out that he was screwing his daughter. Daddy Paik also closed out his daughter’s account, meaning she could not pay off the men. Luckily, Sayid’s flash-sideways intersected with the Kwon/Paik’s and when Patchy and Sun arrive at the restaurant, Keamy and Co. are either dead or gasping for life and Jin has the upper-hand with one of their guns. Patchy shoots while Jin goes for the gun and then Jin shoots him dead in the eye (hence the patch!). Unfortunately, one of Patchy’s wayward shots hit Sun in the stomach. She seems okay, but the same may not be true for the baby she then tells Jin she is (was?) pregnant with.
The episode ends with Sayid, who admitted to Locke at the beginning of the episode that he has ceased to feel, attempting a sneak attack on Widmore per Smocke’s orders. He rises out of the water just as Zoe and another Widdy (someone on Widmore’s team) are dragging a drugged Desmond out of the sub. Desmond looks into the water and sees Sayid right before the episode ends.
Could Desmond be the “who” that Widmore referred to with Jin — the package that he has been guarding to well? If so, I am not sure why he would be. Next week’s preview reiterated that the island is not done with Des, but I can not predict how Desmond would help Widmore since the two loathe each other. Perhaps only under the influence of copious narcotics.
Other than Des, not much theory this week. But I find it interesting how certain aspects of the characters’ lives seem to be self-fulfilling. As in, no matter what, Sun gets pregnant by Jin and Patchy loses an eye and Sawyer tries to exact revenge on the original Sawyer. This may relate to the theory from Steve Replenski ’05 that I posted two weeks ago about the characters making some sort of deal with Jacob or the Man in Black so that one of their desires comes true but with unintended consequences.
I am also having a hard time remembering when we last saw Patchy. As you hopefully recall, he is the dude with nine lives. We have seen him foam at the mouth and survive and shot by Charlie and survive so there is no reason to believe that the underwater grenade that killed Charlie also finished him off (unless, of course, killing Charlie after he reached Penny was Jacob’s plan for him so once he completed it he could be put out of his misery). If we have seen him since he killed Charlie, let me know. It is hard keeping every detail about a five and a half season show straight.
I did not mention before Claire and Smocke’s conversation about Kate. Scared that her son will not remember her, Claire asked Smocke if she could stay on the island when everyone leaves. Smocke says he needs her and that he also currently needs Kate in order to convince Jack, Hurley, and Sun to move to his side but that once she does that job, “whatever happens, happens.” This is a phrase we have heard before in different usages (once more last night actually, when Widmore said “what is done, is done”) but it either proves that Smocke will use anyone to get what he wants or he will tell someone anything in order to get them to do what he wants. Nonetheless, I think it points to him being a bad guy.
Finally, did anyone catch what Sawyer said to Kate about having made a deal with Widmore? I was under the impression Sawyer was trying to play the two men off of each other, but maybe he told Widmore he would confess to Smocke and try to manipulate him to Widmore’s plan and then Widmore would reward him with a ride on the submarine. I am not sure at this point but if the latter is true, Smocke’s Sayid plan just threw a curveball and probably wrecked that plan.
Keep sending me your thoughts and theories! To encourage more participation on the comment board, I will be holding weekly drawings for those who say something (anything!) on the comment board. No one commented last week so I awarded myself a new dress. If you all really do not want to comment I guess I will just have to keep buying myself new things. But seriously, make a comment and possibly win a prize!
See ya in another week, brotha!
