Episode Report Card Cindy McLennan: A+ | 8136 USERS: C YOU GRADE IT L'chaim!
By Cindy McLennan | Season 5 | Episode 12 | Aired on 2009.04.08
Sometime After the Purge -- 1992 or later: Ben pushes little-girl Alex (who looks more like she's six years old than three) on the New Otherton swing set. He's still wearing an awful wig, but somehow it helps to think he's 30ish. Okay, not much, but let's pretend. Richard comes over and tells Ben the sub is leaving but that he doesn't have to see "him" off. Over the sounds of Alex squealing, "Higher daddy, higher," Ben tells Richard that he does. And we cut to...
The Dock: Widmore is being escorted to the sub when Ben catches up to him and says he came to say goodbye. Widmore corrects that Ben came to "gloat." Ben says he brought this on himself. "You left the island regularly. You had a daughter with an outsider. You broke the rules, Charles." Charles says, "And what makes you think you deserve to take what's mine?" Ben says that he won't be selfish. Ha. "I'll sacrifice anything to protect this island." Charles points out that Ben wouldn't sacrifice Alex. Ben says, "You're the one who wanted her dead, Charles, not the island." I love all the implications in this. I mean, I'm a religious person myself, but I love how these guys claim to know what the island wants, just like people claim to know what God wants. Widmore adds, "I hope you're right, Benjamin, because if you aren't and it is the island that wants her dead, she'll be dead. And one day, you'll be standing where I'm standing now. You'll be the one being banished, and then you'll finally realize that you cannot fight the inevitable." He gets right in Ben's face. "I'll be seeing you, boy." The guards escort Charles to the sub, as Ben chews on the bitter cud of his words. And we jump to...
Ben's Cabin; 2007: Sun is sitting on the front porch when Ben comes out from unplugging Smokey's drain or whatever that was, and is looking for Locke. Sun says Locke had something to do; she didn't ask what. She then muses that Jack must have lied about Locke being dead. She's trying to figure out scenarios in which Locke could have faked his own death, but Linus assures her he really was gone. "Trust me. I'm sure." Ask him how, Sun. Ask him how! She doesn't listen to me. Instead, she asks Ben if he knew John would come back to life if they brought him back to the island and Ben says, "Sun, I had no idea it would happen. I've seen this island do miraculous things. I've seen it heal the sick, but never once has it done anything like this." Then he gets to say the episode title: "Dead is dead. You don't get to come back from that, not even here. So the fact that John Locke is walking around this island? Scares the living hell out of me." And oh my word, I think he's telling the truth again. I think he was faking when he told Locke he "knew" it would happen, and is telling the truth now. But only if I don't think about it for too long. When I think about it for too long it doubles back on itself and I think he's lying. Then I decide he's lying both times, or neither time, which doesn't make any sense, so clearly that's the right answer. Oh help.