Lost Comes Down to the Last Four Episodes

The last time I pondered the mysteries of the show and their possible resolutions, three main questions remained:

Who are the Candidates?
How will the two realities be reunited and merged?
Who or what are Jacob and the MIB?

While those questions each remain, the most recent two episodes (Everybody Loves Hugo (Season 6, Episode 12) and The Last Recruit (Season 6, Episode 13), aired April 13 and 20, 2010, respectively) have revealed more about the first two than the last. So focusing first on recent insight into the nature of the Man In Black (MIB), we know that he can take the form of other people mainly because he now poses as John Locke. But in response to Jack's questions, the MIB disclosed that he can only appear as dead people. He also admitted that he had previously appeared to Jack on the island as his dead father, Christian.

The MIB stopped short of admitting that he needed contact with the body of the deceased person to take their form, although he alluded to that limitation by saying that he was able to become Locke because Jack had brought his body to the island. Of course, Jack also brought his dead father's body to the island on the original crash of Flight 815. But whether the MIB needs to have access to the body to appear as that person is important because Hugo has been visited twice and given important guidance by Michael. But is it really the deceased Michael or the MIB? If Michael did not die on the island and the MIB must have access to the body, then Hugo's apparition really is Michael, who has described the island as a type of purgatory for those who "can't move on."

What is more likely is that Michael's body is on the island and it has been the MIB appearing to Hugo to convince him to thwart Richard's attempts to blow up the plane and to bring the other survivors, including Jack, to the MIB (posing as Locke). The MIB has consistently maintained that they can only leave the island if everyone goes together and it seems especially important that Jack leave with the MIB. So the MIB had a lot of incentive to manipulate Hugo into bringing Jack to him.

How will the two realities be reunited and merged?

The mechanics for reuniting the island reality and the Los Angeles reality remains unclear, but Desmond is most certainly the catalyst. Charlie touched off Desmond's memory of the island reality earlier in this season and Charles Widmore bombarded Desmond with electromagnetism which has seemed to solidify Desmond's coherence of both realities. But since then Desmond has been very busy orienting the Los Angeles survivors of Flight 815 to their time on the island.

Desmond insisted most adamantly that Claire confer with his attorney before going to an adoption agency to give up her baby. Desmond's attorney, Ilana, then introduced Claire to her half-brother, Jack. Desmond had been busy earlier in the day running down the wheelchair-bound John Locke with his car, in front of the school Ben Linus and Locke teach at. Jack gets called away from meeting his half-sister, Claire, to operate on Locke.

Desmond has also been shadowing Hugo since their meeting after landing at LAX. His recognition of Hugo at a Mr. Cluck's chicken franchise seems less than accidental and Desmond takes the opportunity to encourage Hugo to consider that maybe Libby did know him before. This causes Hugo to take Libby on a proper date and have the kiss that prompts his memory of being with her on the island. And Desmond supervises that event from his car.

Sawyer has intersected with Kate and Sayid in LA, but any involvement Desmond had in those meetings remains unknown. But Sawyer does tell Kate he thinks someone is trying to put them together. It maybe just cheeky banter or intuition of something more.

Desmond's importance has also been recognized by Widmore and the MIB. Widmore brought Desmond back to the island and the MIB sent Sayid to kidnap him. The MIB lures Desmond into the jungle, throws him down an ancient well and instructs Sayid to kill him. However, some thoughtful questions by Desmond probably prevented Sayid from killing him. The MIB was simply too distracted to confirm Desmond's death for himself.

Identifying Desmond as the key to reunification of the realities is no more than half the answer. Is electromagnetism the force that will merge the island survivors with the LA survivors? And when will that happen? Will the resulting reality be on the island or in LA? What will happen to those that have only survived in one reality, such as Charlie, Claire, Ilana, Libby and Locke?

Who are the Candidates?

There appeared to be six (possibly seven) candidates. Anyone with Ilana on their scorecard can scratch her off - she was blown up by unstable dynamite. But a frontrunner for Jacob's successor emerged during the most recent episode - Jack. Well on the way of a nautical escape, Jack jumped off the boat to return to the island and the MIB. He described feeling the island wasn't through with him. The MIB has been focused on Jack for some time and made great effort to protect him from harm after his return to the island. In fact, the MIB tells Jack that he has been looking out for him since Flight 815 crashed. Posing as Jack's dead father, for example, was designed to lead Jack to the water he needed. Jack is far and away the best bet for being Jacob's successor, the protector of the island and the jailor of the MIB.

An Additional Question

As the MIB lures Desmond deeper into the jungle toward the well, they both see a young boy outfitted like on of Peter Pan's lost boys. Both the MIB and Desmond see him, the boy says nothing and the MIB instructs Desmond to ignore him. The boy has made appearances before. But who is he and why does he antagonize the MIB?

Four episodes remain between now and the May 23 finale of Lost's six-year run. But the questions keep stacking up like cordwood. Only a short time remains for the answers which the show's producers have promised.