Lost: The Two Ben Linuses
By Dan Birlew | Posted March 10, 2010 in Television | 5 Comments »The Redemption of Benjamin Linus
Again we see another character in the flash-sideways universe getting a much better deal out of life without the influence of the island. Again we’re faced with the possibility that the sideways universe is showing us that either a) Jack’s plan to change history by detonating a bomb in the electromagnetic core below the Swan hatch worked, and has changed everyone’s life for the better, or b) the Man in Black is fulfilling more promises to the characters through the sideways universe; in Ben’s case, it would be a promise yet to be made in the Island universe. But since the producers have said that the sideways universe is “not mutually exclusive” from the Island universe, then we have to go with the idea that the Man in Black is making good on his evil bargains.
Locke volunteers Ben to become Principal, claiming "I'll follow you."
This entire concept is starting to remind me of the beginning of Stephen King’s novel It. The first several chapters of the novel introduce us to six (Count ‘em, SIX!) protagonists who all moved away from their hometown of Derry and proceeded to forget that they ever lived there. Each of them lives an ideal life until they are reminded of what happened when they were children, when they defeated an evil shape-shifting creature. So here again we have Lost, where the Stephen King references and similarities abound; So far we’ve been introduced to six protagonists (Jack, Locke, Kate, Sayid, Ben, and obviously in an upcoming episode; Jin) who have no memory of ever being on the Island, but they’re getting to accomplish what they lost out on when Flight 815 crashed. And there’s a shape-shifter around, only Ilana says he can’t change forms anymore for some reason (and so far, it appears she’s right). Now we just have to wait and see if the sideways universe characters start getting some kind of “call” from the Island universe, and I’ll bet Stephen King is all set to get another check from ABC.
Miles watches Ben dig his own grave.
But unlike most of the other protagonists we’ve focused on this season, Ben has managed to redeem himself in both universes. In the sideways universe he finally managed to do something right for Alex at his own cost (whereas in the Island universe he let her die), and in the Island universe he had a chance to kill yet another protagonist in order to regain charge of the Island… only he didn’t. When the Man in Black said he wanted Ben to take charge of the Island, you would figure that was all Ben needed. It was indeed a surprise that he didn’t kill Ilana or run off to take up the Smoke Monster on its promise. Perhaps through his murder of Jacob and being used like a tool, Benjy-boy has at long last seen the errors of his ways. Not that the heroes are convinced; Sun didn’t seem too eager for his help and Jack gave him some pretty strong sideways (universe) glances when he arrived back at the beach camp. Ben will have to earn his way into the heroes’ hearts, and it remains to be seen if they, or we for that matter, can trust him. After all, I still hold to my theory that Sawyer is conning the Man in Black until he can find an opportunity to turn in his favor, and there’s no surety that Jin and Kate will side with old smokey either. So there could be reversals and betrayals to come in both camps.
The Redemption of Richard Alpert, And… Jack is One Crazy Mofo
Richard examines the chains that once shackled him to the Black Rock.
The side story in tonight’s episode showed us an answer; Yes, Richard Alpert came from the Black Rock slave ship which originally arrived at the Island in 1845 and yes, those chains inside the ship were once his, as referenced by the Man in Black during the season’s opening episode. We also got to see another swing in Jack’s belief system. Two episodes ago he was smashing up Jacob’s equipment, demanding answers, throwing childish fits. During this episode he calmly lights a dynamite fuse and then sits there, taking no action to prevent disaster, sure that no harm will come to him. And his faith paid off. For years the man of faith, Locke, kept telling Jack to be a man of faith, and now he’s finally ready. But for how long? Next episode he’ll probably be angry about something else or beating Ben’s head in. There’s just no telling what you’re going to get with Jack during each episode, which makes me question whether he’s really fit to fill Jacob’s shoes….
Clues About Future Episodes
Ben was pulling up clues in both universes tonight that we should probably keep in mind as the final season progresses. The opening references to Napoleon’s exile to the island of Elba off the coast of Tuscany would have been almost self-referential if this was the Island Ben who was talking. But in a way it was, just in reverse; Ben and his father left the Island shortly before the blast at the Swan hatch, which in a way was Ben abdicating the power he would have had on the Island if it had still been there to kill the Dharma Initiative and take over. So in a way, Ben was exiled from the island to the mainland and lost his power there, whereas Napoleon was exiled from the mainland to an island and relieved of his power.
There can be no doubt that the subject matter of Alex’s history test will come up again. The East India Trading Company was in power from 1600 until 1873 which means that the Black Rock setting sail from Portsmouth, England most likely sailed under the East India Company flag. We may see this in reference to the Black Rock’s arrival at the Island if Richard is kind enough to share more of his extensive history with the heroes (and by several counts, I understand that he will indeed reveal more of his past). It could be that the dissolution of the East India Trading Company led to the establishment of the Hanso Foundation, the mysterious company run by relatives of Black Rock ship captain Magnus Hanso. Hopefully I’m right that this is a clue that the show will soon tie up this loose end.
Then of course there’s the appearance of Benjamin Disraeli on the back cover of a book (unidentified) with his famous quote “Justice is truth in action.” Disraeli is a former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, which is something that sideways universe Ben, the European History teacher, would be well aware of. He was Prime Minister from 1874 until 1880, right after the East India Company was dissolved, so one wonders if this ties in to the theory above somehow.
Another clue is the appearance of the novel The Chosen by Chaim Potok, which concerns the relationship of two genius-level Jewish boys who grow up in post WWII Brooklyn. The boys start off as heated rivals but become dear friends. Perhaps this is an indicator that Ben will be nice from now on? Or perhaps since the book was found in Saywer’s old tent, it means that Jack and Sawyer will be able to put past rivalries behind them. But one can’t help noticing that the book is about Jews, and that Benjamin Disraeli was the first and so-far only Jewish Prime Minister of the UK, so one wonders if we’re supposed to be connecting those two dots to look for clues. I couldn’t be sure how yet, but perhaps further developments in upcoming episodes will let us know.
Where Did Widmore Come From?
Charles Widmore has found the Island via submarine. How?
My theory? I bet he planted a tracking device of some kind in John Locke’s body while Locke was wounded and unconscious following his warp-ride to Tunisia after turning the frozen donkey wheel to finish moving the island. After all, didn’t Widmore seem a little too confident in letting Locke find the others and convince them to go back to the Island? Obviously he had an ace up his sleeve all along, so that convincing the Oceanic 6 to go back or Locke remaining alive didn’t even matter; he just needed someone to ferry Locke’s body back to the Island so he could get a vector on it. He may have been betting on Ben killing Locke and taking his body back to the island all along, which would make him just as culpable in all this as the Man in Black. Now it remains to be seen whether Widmore was lying that he wanted Locke to be the new leader of the Island (probably) or whether he’s traveled back to the Island by sub to take matters in his own hands.
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Lost went totally meta for me last night. I am an “Angry Lostie” as Lindelof calls us, and I am Richard Alpert. Jacobs is J.J. Abrams. The fuse is our patience. The dynamite is the remote control. The Smoke Monster is Abrams’ creative ADD. Lost is a therefore a meditation on how and why good shows go bad and the effect it has on the loyal audience.
However, unlike Alias which went to Whateverland the season before its last season, Lost has only really lit the fuse in the last few episodes for me. The dynamite will never blow– I’ll never change the channel until this is over (unlike Alias, which got the Arzt treatment when the cloned spy-sister appeared). Oh Richard, I understand your pain. You can cry on my shoulder if I can borrow your mascara.
/Angry Lostie Rantlette
I don’t know what to make of Sideways world anymore. I wish we still had available the “alternate and unstable timeline” theory– it just makes sense, and would be fun to watch as time self-corrects itself to the path of events that were “supposed” to happen. The wishworld thing does make sense in the context of the comic-book references that have been sprinkled throughout the show, though. There’s a Superman story where this sort of wishworld thing happens to Supes. I forget the story title, but its well known to those who know these things. I don’t like it, of course, because it needs the magical explanations that I don’t like, but it is really the only thing that makes sense in the context of what we’re not permitted to consider.
So if this is turning into IT, does that mean that Kate’s gonna have sex with all of the others (the other guys, not The Others) to form a lasting bond with them to defeat the Man in Black? Cuz I think ABC would object, what with their apparent “Values-Voters” bent of late.
Haha, no but Kate still has a lot in common with Beverly. She had an abusive stepfather/father and had sex with Jack and Sawyer: Two out of six ain’t bad! Now if she and Sun would just get the hots for each other, Lost can end and I’ll be a happy man!
I just wonder whether the Man in Black/Adversary/Flocke/whatever we’re calling him these days is really the bad guy, or if “bad guy” is a concept that can rightly be applied to this being. This has actually been bugging me since last season’s finale (in which we were first introduced to the character). The same thoughts apply to Jacob: good, bad, or otherwise?
Perhaps these beings, these creatures, these spirits or whatever they are are one and the same. Perhaps they are two sides to the same coin, yin and yang, light and darkness. In other words, perhaps this struggle represents something much more complex than the struggle between good and evil — or am I hoping for too much from network television?
They keep bringing up the black vs. white thing, which usually represents good vs. evil. Absolutes. It’s the characters who represent shades of gray, and I definitely think Jacob was good and the Man in Black is evil. Now we have to see if gray can become white against black.
I’m more partial to moral grayness in life and philosophy, but yeah, the show is definitely leaning toward the absolutes with all their (unsubtle) symbolism.