Season 6, Episode 3; “The Substitute”

Now we’re talking! For all those that might have been a bit lukewarm on last week’s episode can’t have much to complain about the answer-packed, mythologically heavy, Locke centric roller coaster we were treated to this week. I mean, is there a better character on TV than John Locke? I could watch Terry O’Quinn work his magic all day, but I digress. There’s a lot to review from “The Substitute,” so let’s get right down to it.

There’s likely no better place to start than in the Numbers Cave. Some major information was revealed by MIB (“Flocke” or “Un-Locke” as the kids call him these days) to Sawyer in this scene, and to properly understand all the new info, we should quickly step back and review the tumultuous relationship between Jacob and the Man in Black.

Remembering back to last year’s finale, we learned that Jacob and MIB agree to disagree on the basic motivation of mankind. Jacob, the white piece in this game, believes in their inherent goodness, while MIB thinks otherwise. Time and time again, he sees them “come, fight, and destroy. It always ends the same.” He’s sick and tired of playing this never-ending loop with Jacob and he wants out. But as we all know, there are rules to abide by…rules that we can now begin to piece together in a more cohesive manner. First, Jacob selects the players by touch and essentially brings them to the Island, whether the players are aware of it consciously or not. Because "he has a thing about numbers,” these players are assigned a number (and in case you somehow missed it, our 6 candidates are numbers 4,8,15,16,23,42 – a convenient solution to a pesky mystery the producers didn’t quite know what to do with), and ultimately have a chance to win what's behind door #1: personal redemption and the crown of protector of the Island. MIB’s part in the game is simple…he cleans up the mess the candidates make when they ultimately fail themselves and their fellow man. He can’t interfere in their personal failure, meaning he can’t kill anyone Jacob personally selects (including Jacob himself), but he is there to scoop them up when they inevitably ruin their own chances at success…which they do time and time again. Once they fail, they belong to him. There were a lot of names in that cave, and so far none of them have won the prize. This game has been going on for quite some time, and MIB simply doesn’t want to play anymore.

So, as we all know, MIB concocts a plan to get out by manipulating Locke, taking over his body, and eventually persuading Ben to kill Jacob. But the game doesn’t end with Jacob’s death. In order to free himself completely, he needs to be sure that the remaining candidates – Hurley, Jack, Sayid, Jin (I’ll explain that one later), and Sawyer - are eliminated so that Jacob’s role isn’t fulfilled once again, which would keep the never-ending battle alive. But as we know from the rules, he can’t simply kill the candidates them himself, as a little boy ghost version of Jacob that only he and the candidates can see reminds him in this week’s episode. So he does the next best thing. He sets the stage for them all to kill each other.

As Ilana said, MIB is recruiting. So far he’s got Claire and Sayid, and he’s currently working hard on Sawyer. He is preparing for war, a war that has been hinted at for quite some time now. But it won’t be waged by Dharma or Widmore or any other outside influence against the Island. Instead, it’s a civil war - Jacob’s team versus MIB’s – and it will be waged on the Island, winner takes all. But it’s currently unclear to what that prize is for the winners. At first glance a simple “good vs evil” answer seems to suffice, but after a closer examination, we start to see that the simple answer may not necessarily be the case.

Over the next few episodes, we will be forced to consider whether or not MIB’s is truly “evil” or not. After all, who’s to say that he’s not the one that is right in the eternal argument between he and Jacob? He made quite a good case to Sawyer in the cave, didn’t he? In the end, didn’t Jacob effectively just use the O6 by pushing them to the Island, playing them as pawns in a game just to try to prove a point? A point that he has, so far, been unable to prove? Instead of vindication, Jacob tries and tries again, but “it always ends the same.” You can't argue that makes some solid points. And while I wouldn’t want MIB / Fake Locke to baby sit my kids or anything, his actions and tone at this point don’t really put him in the anti-christ category just yet. We just haven't heard his full side of the story, which is what we're beginning to understand now.

So if MIB is not evil, than what does he stand for? If Jacob hopes to prove man’s inherent goodness, what is MIB looking to prove? In the cave, he asks Sawyer, “why are you on this Island?” Jacob’s version of that answer might revolve around Sawyer needing to cleanse his soul of his past life, move beyond his criminal ways, come to terms with his traumatic childhood, and ultimately live a life filled with love and happiness. After all, this is almost exactly what happens to Sawyer when living in ’77 Dharmaville with Juliet. He was a changed man…for the better. If Sawyer can accomplish those goals, then maybe he then could be the one to protect that ability to redeem one’s life for others – i.e. protect the Island. But MIB’s answer to the same question is that Sawyer is on the Island because he was brought there against his will to act out a scene that ends the same way time and time again. There would be no hope for redemption, no love, and no happiness. Instead, Sawyer lives on as a prisoner on this Island both physically and emotionally, unable to break free of the misery and sadness that endures within him.

In the end, MIB may not represent “evil” per se, I think he represents something even worse: nothing. He believes in a world that is void of meaning and hope. This perspective in a way, can be construed as even worse than “evil.” Everyone wants to feel that their lives have a purpose, and that they can fulfill that purpose and overcome any obstacles that come in their way along the ride. They want to feel that no matter how bad things get, they can always get better. If MIB wins this war, and no one is left to protect the Island, could it mean that man is no longer able to rise above despair with hope and redemption, leaving him more lost than ever? Does it, once and for all, answer the question that has intrigued us for so long - “what is the meaning of life” - with an emphatic “nothing?”

I’m not sure if that’s the direction the show is going in, but you can be sure that the war is coming, and that its resolution will weigh heavily on what this show is ultimately about. Jacob claims that each game played and each candidate brought to the Island represents “progress.” But clearly the balance of power seems to be regressing in the direction of MIB’s motivation to end this game once and for all. The metaphor couldn’t be more clear as Flocke tosses white rock from the scale out into the ocean…citing it as an “inside joke” between the two opposing Island powers. Flocke is constructing an army, and at this point we should believe that he’s in the lead…but if perennial good guys Jack, Hurley, Jin, and Temple folk have anything to say about it, it will be a fight to the end.

But let’s move away this metaphorical business for a bit and focus on answering a few more Island mysteries. First off, there is one conspicuous name missing from the Cave wall: Kate’s. She was clearly touched by Jacob and brought to the Island, but now does not seem to meet the standards of candidacy. Frankly, I’m at a loss for this one. The only thing I can think of at this point is that her “stealing” of Aaron removed her from Jacob’s good wishes. But to Kate’s credit, there wasn’t much choice in the matter seeing that Claire decided to run off and play with Smokey in the jungle one night, leaving Aaron behind. Chime in with any thoughts you might have…I’ve stayed away from the blogosphere thus far, so I’m sure many theories are abound.

Another mystery is which Kwon did Jacob truly bring to the Island? Flocke states that even he didn’t know which one it was – Sun or Jin – but I think the answer lies in the another mystery that we’ve had since the beginning of last year. Viewers have long wondered why Sun never flashed off Ajira 316 along with Kate, Hurley, Sayid, and Jack…well, I think it's because she was never the chosen Kwon. Instead, Jin – who was already in ’77 Dharmaville – was the one that would eventually “come back” to present time after Jacob’s death, along with the rest of the candidates. Furthermore, if you look at the candidates commonalities, all of them have personal struggles to overcome. Jin was a terrible husband living in a dark life of organized crime. Sun, while no angel herself , was driven to acts of infidelity due to how Jin was treating her. Her struggles were a direct result of Jin’s behavior. The producers had mentioned that the answer to the non-disappearing Sun mystery would be indirectly answered early in the season, and I think we came upon that answer this week.

Now we’d be remiss not to go over some of the Flash-Sideways action in “The Substitute.” As you should be highly aware of by now, these Flashes are going to coincide with what we’ve already seen in earlier seasons of the series, even if the contexts surrounding our characters are different. First off, Hurley is still the owner of the box company where Locke works, and Randy – Locke’s boss at the Mr. Cluck’s in past seasons - is still his boss in the Sideways and still a total Douche (great line, Hurley!).

Sideways Rose may live in a different context as the Temp agency head, but she’s still diagnosed with terminal cancer, and has come to peaceful terms with that cancer just as she did on the Island (even before she felt that she was healed). In pure Rose fashion, she put aside all the stressers and drama that surround her (both on and off Island), and becomes the voice of calm and peace. Live in the now, and forget about everything else. She’s remained the most consistent character we have had on the show, and I think that balance is necessary when surrounded by all these ridiculously unbalanced characters we deal with every week.

Ben will no doubt be an influence in Sideways Locke’s new life, and seems to fit nicely into his European History teaching gig. I mean, Ben was a master teacher when leading the Others, don’t you think? He molded minds, guided his people into the future, and created a functioning society based on rigid rules and regulations. Not unlike High School, right? And sure, maybe his intentions were a bit cloudy when leading the Others – you know with all the brainwashing, manipulating, ego trips, and more – but then again, that description could be pinned to at least a couple of my old teachers when I think about it. Thankfully, those teachers fell short of trying to kill me, but I think you get the point.

Another curious coincidence is one that I haven’t gotten a lot of support on at the water cooler, but I think a Sideways Walt was floating around in this episode. On two occasions (the delivery boy at Locke and Helen's house and at the high school), we were shown a somewhat out of focus picture of a young black boy. Now, I’m not sure if it was specifically Walt or more of a nod to his “presence” and connection to Locke. Clearly, the producers can’t physically put Walt into a scene in 2004 because he is probably about 6’ 7” at this point, but he played a crucial role in Locke’s early Island life and the writers would want to match that role in the Flash-Sideways…or at least pay homage to it. I’m probably way off on this, but it’s a gut feeling…flame away!

And last but not least, there is the man himself, John Locke. He’s with Helen, they are in love, and he seems to be in a pretty good spot. Sure, we can still pick out the similarities between pre-dead Island Locke and Sideways Locke – the feelings of confusion, the shame, and the shield of bravado that he uses to hide behind. But what’s most interesting is that on the Island, John is dead. MIB has taken over him, but at the same time, he seems to have taken over just a slice of John’s persona with him. The coincidence between the two is maybe even more apparent than that of any other characters: they are both trapped. The old John Locke could never escape his eternal despair, wheel chair or not. Every time he thought he was breaking free, it just turned out that he was being manipulated and used again and again, all the way up until his death. Every time he would scream “don’t tell me what I can’t do!” he’d follow it up with exactly that – something he could not do. MIB seems to be in the same exact boat. He is physically trapped on the Island. He so desperately is trying to escape but at every turn Jacob seems to be just one small step ahead of him, reminding him that no matter how hard he tries, he will lose this game. Flocke looks so unbelievably frustrated when boy/ghost Jacob pops up, reminding him that just cause he’s (Jacob's) dead, the rules don’t stop applying to him that he slips right back into John Locke territory and repeats that ever present line “don’t tell me what I can’t do!” The ghost’s presence serves as a reminder, and possibly a clue to his future demise. John Locke, a handicapped man working at a box company (come on, you can’t get a bigger metaphor than that), was never able to truly break free from his own chains…and now we see that he and MIB may share the same fate. After all, as Ilana said, Flocke is “stuck that way now.”

Tid Bits:

Line of the week:

Far and away Lapidus’ remark after Ben’s eulogy at John’s burial:

“This is the weirdest damn funeral I’ve ever been to.”

Leave it to Frank to deliver perhaps the funniest line of the season thus far.

Numbers Breakdown:

4 – Locke

8 – Hurley

15 – Sawyer

16 – Sayid

23 – Shepard

42 – Kwon (I think Jin)

Notice that now that Locke is crossed out Hurley is curiously next in the sequence. Could the fact that Hurley is now kind of leading the Temple losties and is blessed with good luck in the Sideways serve as clues that he’s next in line for Jacob status?

Other names:

10: Mattingley

222: O'Toole

233: Jones

291: Domingo

Umm…Jacob fielding a baseball team or something?

The Last Supper Pic:

My buddy Vin made a great comment in last week’s post that maybe the “Last Supper” promo pic that ABC released before the season (and was posted here a few weeks back), was a clue to the two “sides” of this inevitable war. I think he’s definitely on to something, although some of the players on each side don’t quite yet add up (Richard and Ilana on Flocke’s side?). Who knows, but I thought it was pretty smart and definitely relevant to this week’s show so take a look for yourself.

OK! That is plenty for this week. Again, sorry for the lateness, but unfortunately a Monday posting could become a regularity due to the fact that work continues to assert itself as time sucker #1…pesky work. But look at it this way, now your primed for the next episode just around the corner titled, “The Lighthouse.” Enjoy!