Lost: Where There's Smoke

Unfortunately, the laughably awful hair pieces alone prevent this installment from getting on my personal Top 10 list of best “Lost” episodes. (You’re SO much better than that, “Lost”.)

Otherwise, there were more than enough reasons to like the twisty “Dead is Dead.” Reason number one is that the episode gave the incredible Michael Emerson a terrific showcase. The second reason is that we got some freakin’ answers!

As Ben revealed to an increasingly powerful (and smug) Locke that he’d come back to the Island to be judged by the smoke monster, we learned how Ben first clashed with Charles Widmore over the kidnapping of Danielle Rousseau’s baby and eventually ascended to a leadership role with the Others. (At least until Locke showed up to apparently unseat Ben.)

In fact, this Ben/Locke role reversal played a major part in the episode from early on when Locke sat in Ben’s old office chair to address the “elephant in the room” (you killed me, buddy!) to the episode’s symbolic final shot as Ben literally looked up at the man he’d just begrudgingly sworn to obey.

But first, they had to talk about that elephant. As most of you (including my girlfriend Erica) suspected Ben told Locke that he’d killed him to help inspire the Oceanic Six to come back to the Island, but only after he’d gotten some crucial information out of his bald frenemy. (His line about simply not having time to convince him to commit suicide again was funny.) Ben also said his wide-eyed surprise at seeing Locke alive was attributed to the difference between believing something could happen and actually seeing it.

Of course, the genius of Michael Emerson’s performance is that we can’t ever tell if anything he’s saying is true. We KNOW, Ben is a pathological liar/manipulator and we’ve seen enough that we shouldn’t ever believe ANYTHING he says. Still, Ben (thanks to Emerson’s unblinking dead-eyed conviction) is always able to convince the other characters (and the audience) that at least SOME of the stuff he’s saying might maybe possibly be true. For example, I believe that his explanation for killing Locke is the truth, but I don’t believe that he ever expected to see him again. (“I’ll miss you John. I really will.”)

Fortunately, the guy he’s dealing with is not your father’s John Locke. Despite the fact that Ben was up and outwardly manipulating people (Cesar, R.I.P. — for now) against Mr. Born Again, Locke was able to sniff out at least one of Ben’s lies. Ben wasn’t being judged for coming back to the Island (that whole “whoever turns the wheel can never return” thing turned out to be a crock) — he was being judged for letting his daughter die.

And so we got the story of how Ben came to be baby Alex’s daddy circa 1988-89 (the plane crash year 2004 -16-year-old French girl = unfortunate late 80’s hair). I know that Emerson is a great actor and the show wanted to utilize him as much as possible, but having him play in his early 20’s was beyond absurd. (I’m assuming Ben was born around 1965, since he’s 12 years old during the 1977 Dharma days.)

Turns out Charles Widmore — who’d resented Ben’s Jacob-approved presence since the Island first healed the boy — had ordered Ben (and Ethan) to kill Rousseau. Instead, Ben, the guy who always longed to be reunited with the mother who died giving birth to him, couldn’t go through with it, spared her life, told her to steer clear of any whispers (more on THAT eventually, please) and took her baby. (Was this the Others’ first official kid-napping?)

Ben challenged Widmore to do the deed himself (“Is this what Jacob wants?”) before Charles backed off. (Noticeably missing from these flashbacks was “Ellie” Hawking, who’d been apparently leading the Others along with Widmore during the time Sawyer and Kate handed young Ben over Richard Alpert.) Eventually, Widmore was expelled from the Island for crimes like fathering a child with an outsider (hello, Penny!) and leaving the Island frequently (though judging by all the passports we know Ben has, he seems guilty of doing some travelling himself).

Widmore left with these not-so-lovely parting words about Alex: “If the Island wants her dead, then she’ll be dead.” (Note to self: apparently the course correcting Island wanted her dead.) This also makes me think that when Ben famously exclaimed “He changed the rules” after Alex’s death, he was referring to Jacob, not Widmore.

What’s not debatable is that Ben wanted Widmore’s daughter dead as retribution. As we guessed, the reason Ben was bloody a few episodes ago was from his attempt to kill Penny. The show further made us believe Ben had killed Penny (or Charlie) by having him ask Sun to tell Desmond that he was “sorry” before the unsuccessful assassination was eventually revealed. (Calling Widmore right before was ice cold.)

While the scene was undeniably tense (Desmond getting shot was a jolt), and Ben sparing the life of a second mother in this episode was great for us Desmond/Penny fans, this action sequence was actually the most puzzling part of the episode. Why was Desmond relatively ok after getting shot? (Was the “Island’s not done with you yet” mojo protecting him?) Why did Ben’s arm end up in a sling? What happened after Ben got dumped in the water? (Man that was a LOT of blood!) Did he simply swim 50 feet away and run away after that or did Des try to get at him some more? Finally, is it written in Michael Emerson’s contract that Ben gets his face beaten in as soon as his current wounds heal? Even though the book seems to be closed on this scene, I’m kind of hoping we revisit it at one point, because right now it’s coming off as sloppy and confusing.

Back in the present, Ben and Locke had hooked up with Sun and Lapidus back in Ben’s old house. (I loved that Sawyer and Hurley’s “Risk” game was still intact.) Sun announced that a creepy guy named Christian had told them to wait for John Locke (insert nonchalant wave). More importantly, Ben seemed genuinely surprised that Jack and Co. had been a part of the Dharma Initiative, pretty much confirming that he DID undergo some sort of memory wipe in the Temple. (Since the Others were still living in the jungle during the Alex kidnapping in ’88, I’m guessing the Purge hadn’t happened yet, which means Jack and Co. are probably safe — unless the writers are planning on keeping them where they are for 11 years.)

Ben tried to summon the smoke monster though a basin that looks like what happens when my bathroom sink gets a little clogged up. Eventually, Locke led Ben and Sun into the jungle and into the Temple. Actually, as Ben announced, it’s the wall that supposed to keep people like Sun and Locke (and me) from actually seeing the Temple. Given the Others’ theatrical penchant for playing dress up, I wouldn’t be shocked if the “Temple” is some sort of modern-ish structure.

In the show’s climax, Ben entered a subterranean chamber and was judged by the imposing, billowy smoke monster. So why did I think this scene was a bit of a cheesy meltdown? Emerson did his best, but having the monster judge Ben by literally replaying footage we’d already seen of some of Ben’s “not-so-greatest hits” as Alex’s father (Previously, on “Ben”) seemed pretty anticlimactic.

Fortunately, things picked up immediately afterward when “Alex” appeared and bullied Ben into serving Locke. We pretty much know “Alex” was really the smoke monster appearing in human form (like when it manifested as Mr. Eko’s brother, Yemi) and seeing into Ben’s heart. (I know you’re already planning on killing John again!) This also makes you wonder if the other “dead” people who appear on the Island are all Smokey. (Note that Locke was conveniently absent during Ben’s judgment and that we distinctly heard the smoke monster noise in the jungle right before Sun and Lapidus met up with Christian a few weeks ago.)

Ben had no choice but to comply. However, knowing firsthand what it’s like to be replaced as the “chosen one” to lead the Others, I still expect Ben to have one more big trick up his sleeve.

So what’d you think of this episode? Were the toupees heinous on purpose? (I’d like to think they were, since this is a pretty big show with a decent budget, but they still took me right out of the Island flashback scenes.) What’s in that crate Illana was fiercely protecting? Is it possible the Ajira survivors’ weird, aggressive behavior can be attributed to the same sickness that struck the French? Where DID Locke go when he wandered into the jungle? (To locate the Temple?) Finally, what lies in the shadow of the statue? (No worries — I won’t hit you in the head with a rifle if you don’t know.)