LOST: 3x20

LOST
3x20
The Man Behind the Curtain
(A Ben Episode)

I...

So...

There's... and... Jacob...

And... Locke?

Roll credits, cue preview for next week, cut to me and my weekly viewing party friends with eyes wide and mouths open, completely unable to form words.

I will say this, it's good to know Uncle Rico did something productive with himself after that legendary high school football career!

Yeah, that makes no sense...
1. Richard is ageless. I'd love to know whether he's been using Ponds or Oil of Olay...
2. Jacob's invisible. I seriously thought Ben was nutters. I even started laughing. Yeah, all up until I heard, "help me" and the house started rockin.' Question: (Yes, Dwight?) If Jacob is the big wig, why does he need help?
3. I'm very interested in this trail of powder or dust or whatever it is, that Ben and Locke happened across. I saw something saying it could be a "line" of some sort, keeping Jacob at bay.
4. Why did "the hostiles" let Ben become the leader - or is he still just a figurehead? And if they killed off Dharma, then what exactly are they doing there now?
5. Anyone else think Alex might turn against Pops in the finale?

What the hell is going on...?
1. So, is Ben's "hostile" takeover of the Dharma Initiative, "the incident" we've heard talk of before? I haven't really studied up on that, so if you know or have theories, please pass my way.
2. Jacob is...? I'm sorry, but that whole haunted house thing freaked me out. I was seriously concerned about whether or not I'd be able to get to sleep after watching it. The flash of "Jacob" in the chair was the part that wigged me out most. I've seen a bit of the speculation about it over at Lost-Media, but come on... what in the world?

Lies Ben told... (Or maybe we should just start with his few nuggets of truth, as I'm thinking the lies are infinite.)

I have no clue where to start when it comes to Linus and his lies. I knew we were seeing Ben's parents at the beginning, but they pulled a fast one on us! Lie number 1: Ben wasn't born on the island. Not totally shocking, but still, a revelation and an intigator. And what's with him seeing his dead mommy and Jack seeing his dad? I don't like it. Not one bit.

It's hard to know where to go from there. The lies are rampant and not very easy to decipher. I mean, the guy is squirrelly. Who knows what his truth is... I do think he was rather honest at the end, what with holding the gun in his hand and all, but he was freaked when he heard what Jacob said to Locke... and that loads the phrase, "help me," with numerous, unanswerable questions.

I think Ben's feeling the heat. His people started looking to Locke, Jacob spoke to Locke and even though he knows there's something special about John, Ben's majorly threatened by him. Shooting Locke was a power play and Ben's hanging onto his by a very thin thread. I won't be surprised if we see him drained of his authority before too long.

Which brings me back to Locke. Is he dead? Is Jacob/the Island going to heal him as it has before? Is he that important? I heard there would be some shocking deaths before the end of the season and this definitely measures up, so who knows. Whatever the case, I really WAS NOT expecting this. It occurred to me, as Locke looked at the grave, Ben might push him in, but the gunshot was as "holy hell" of a moment as the episode last year where NOTHING happened until the last two minutes when Michael shot Libby and Ana.

The last two eps are going to be intense - and that's a huge understatement. This "game changer" is really starting drive me insane. I hear it involves Jack and another character, which makes me even more insane. I love May Sweeps, but Lordy, it shaves years from my life!