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LOST – 6×16 – "What They Died For"

By | May 20th, 2010
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This was really hard to write. It’s really sinking in that this is the second to last time I’ll have an episode of LOST to watch over a few times, write, watch again and write again. Here’s some thoughts on “What They Died For.”

Jack wakes up in his home and finds a mysterious cut on his neck, just like the one we saw on his neck to open this season. Is that some sort of hint? But what would it be hinting at?

Desmond calls Jack pretending to be from Oceanic to say that they’ve located his missing cargo. But why? He’s obviously trying to get Jack to remember the island, but how? Maybe an empty casket will turn up and seeing that will remind him of the empty casket he found near the caves?

In the pilot, Kate stitched Jack up while an unknown monster roared off in the jungle with unknown intentions. Now we see Jack stitches Kate up while a known monster who looks like John Locke roars off in the jungle trying to kill them.

I liked that Kate acknowledged that with Sun and Jin dead, Ji Yeon is now an orphan. I didn’t like that again, no one mentioned Lapidus.

Even though Jack stitched up her, Kate goes over to Sawyer and leans on him as he watches items from the boat come ashore. Is that a hint that they’ll be together when this is all said and done?

Desmond shows back up at the school and ends up beating up Ben. Ben isn’t fully island activated by this, but he saw a few glimpses and it’s enough for him to go to Locke later and ask him questions about it.

The B Team (Ben, Miles, Richard) head back to the Dharma barracks to pick up some C4. When they arrive, Miles has an experience with someone who’s been buried. Richard explains that he buried Alex. This reminds us about what Widmore did, something that becomes important later when Ben kills him for that very action. Ben saying “it was the one summoning me” seems to me to be proof that he realized that it wasn’t Jacob in the cabin at all, but the monster.

Enter Charles Widmore. The last time he and Ben saw each other was when Ben snuck into his room one night to declare that he would kill Penny. Awkward. Widmore helps himself a glass of water and explains that the reason he came back was because Jacob went to him and told him everything he’d need to know for this purpose.

Substitute Mr. Locke rolls into the nurses office to check on injured Dr. Linus who explains the attack. Locke calls the police as Dr. Linus says that he “saw something” and was trying to get Locke to “let go” and that he’d believed him. He asks if that means something to Locke, who seems to put a few things together though he doesn’t say anything.

Desmond goes to the police station to turn himself in to Detective Ford who’s talking to Miles about the concert that’s going on that night. Desmond’s cellmate? Sayid. The cell next door holds Kate. He says hello to both and smirks…he definitely has a master plan.

Jack and Sawyer head towards the well Desmond’s in, and Sawyer expresses his regret for the bomb on the sub. “I killed ’em, didn’t I?” Jack thinks that’s true, but he says “no, he killed them” anyway. This is a great show of humanity by Jack, sensing the guilt radiating from Sawyer, especially considering the rage that Sawyer had directed at Jack over Juliet’s death.

Hurley sees Ghost Child Jacob who demands his ashes back and runs away, leading Hurley right to adult Jacob, who says that his ashes are burning in the fire he’s built and when the fire burns out he’ll be gone for good. “Get your friends…we’re very close to the end, Hugo.”

Widmore and Zoe hide in Ben’s secret room, Miles takes a walkie talkie and runs away, Ben and Richard go outside to wait for Locke’s arrival. Richard plans to talk to Locke, but then the monster is heard in the distance and Richard is thrown through the air off screen. (Some people think he’s dead; I think we’ll see him again. He’s to important of a character to just be killed that quickly.) Locke then strolls around the corner and sits down next to Ben. “I need you to kill some people for me, Ben…once I leave this island, you can have it all to yourself.” Ben is in, but I think he has a backup plan and is conning Locke. He’s a master manipulator and I don’t think he’ll end up being a bad guy. He gives up Widmore’s location.

Continued below

Dr. Linus is leaving school when he sees Alex who offers him a ride home. She then asks her mom…Danielle Rousseau! Alex says he should come over for dinner, to which Danielle says “we insist, even if we have to kidnap you!” Cute. After dinner, she explains to him that he’s the closest thing to a father figure Alex has ever had. That was true on the island, and now here in the sideways as well. He is moved to tears.

Ben leads Locke into the secret room where Zoe and Widmore wait. “I wanna see this,” he says, as he follows Locke inside. Widmore tells her not to say anything, so Locke slashes her throat. “You told her not to talk to me, that made her pointless.” Locke then tells him as soon as he gets off the island he’s going to kill Penny, but he gives him his word that he won’t if he tells him why he came back to the island. “I brought Desmond Hume back here because of his unique resistance to electromagnetism. He was a measure of last resort.” He then whispers into Locke’s ear…and is shot three times by Ben. “He doesn’t get to save his daughter…did you say there were some other people to kill?”

Jack, Sawyer and Jack all meet up with Hurley and Jacob. This time, they can see and hear him though. Kate asks why Sun, Jin and Sayid had to die and if it was for nothing. “Come and sit down and I’ll tell you what they died for. I’ll tell you why I chose them and why I chose you. And then I’ll tell you everything you need to know about protecting this island, because by the time that fire burns out, one of you is going to have to start doing it.”

Locke visits Dr. Shephard in his office. Locke mentions how they were on the same plane, met when they both lost luggage, Jack gave him his card, Jack was the doctor he went to when he got run down by Desmond and then Jack still wanted to fix him, then the same guy who ran him down shows up again at his school and explained to Dr. Linus that he was trying to help Locke “let go.” He asks “what if all of this…maybe this is happening for a reason. Maybe you’re supposed to fix me.” Jack says “I think you’re mistaking coincidence for fate.” Locke then says he’s ready to get out of the chair.

Jacob tells the foursome that he brought them there because he made a mistake a long time ago by turning his brother into the smoke monster. Sawyer says he was doing just fine until he was dragged to the island, but Jacob says that none of them were; they were all flawed. Kate asks why hers was crossed off, and he says it was because she became a mother but that it was just a line of chalk and the job could be hers. Jack asks what the job is, and Jacob explains that there’s a light at the center of the island that needs to be protected. Hurley asks Jacob how he’ll pick, but Jacob gives them a choice. I thought Sawyer was going to step up because of how guilty he felt about the deaths he caused on the sub, but Jack is the one who steps up and accepts the job.

Jacob takes Jack to a stream and explains that beyond the bamboo field where Jack first woke up is the light. “Now you’ll be able to get there,” Jacob says. I guess you can’t get there unless you’re the protector of the island? Jack drinks the water. “Now you’re like me.”

Detective Ford lets the three prisoners know they’re being shipped to county. Desmond tells Sayid and Kate “it’s time to leave.” They both think he’s crazy, and he says that he can get them out and that the driver knows where to go. Both promise, thinking that he’s just making things up. The car stops. Ana Lucia opens the door and lets them out. Hurley shows up in his Hummer. “You didn’t say Ana Lucia was gonna be here!” She asks “do I know you tubby?” He responds “oh, no…we never met. Anyways, here’s your money.” Desmond says she’s not ready yet, so apparently Ana Lucia is not welcome on the Desmond’s Island Enlightenment ride. Hurley takes Sayid and Kate goes with Desmond. “We are going to a concert,” he says as he gives her a dress to wear. Looks like almost everyone is planning on being at the concert David is performing at.

Ben walks through the jungle with Locke and asks why he walks around if he can turn into smoke anytime he wants. “I like the feel of my feet on the ground. It reminds me that I was human.” They get to the well and find that Desmond is gone. Someone lowered a rope down to let him go. Who was it? Sayid? Claire? (We didn’t see her during this episode, so what’s she been up to? Did she know he was even there?) Ben asks what Widmore said to him. He told him that Desmond was a failsafe; Jacob’s last resort to make sure he is never able to leave. Ben asks why he’s happy that he’s alive. “I’m gonna find Desmond, and when I do, he’s gonna help me do the one thing that I could never do myself. I’m gonna destroy the island.”


//TAGS | LOST

Crit Obara

Crit Obara is a longtime friend of Matthew's. He previously covered LOST for MC, and now co-writes MGA Study Hall. He is the man behind the curtain of fuckyeahlost.com and you can follow him on Twitter @crittweets.

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