LOST: The Candidate - It's the Beginning of the End

If you haven't watched the May 4th episode of LOST, stop reading right now and go watch it! Then come back.

I'll give you a minute to leave...

Are they gone? Okay...

For those of you who did watch it... WOW! I was expecting someone to die tonight, but I never thought we'd lose three of our core castaways. On top of that, UnLocke has finally tipped his hand, and Jack appears to be claiming his own destiny. So what does it all mean? Here's what I think...

Sayid had to die - Remember what Hurley said in the last episode about people being able to come back from the dark side? He mentioned Anakin (Skywalker, who became Darth Vadar in Star Wars). It was an act of sacrifice - saving his son, Luke - that redeemed Anakin. While I believe Sayid turned when he found Desmond in the well and spared his life, the redemption became complete tonight when he grabbed that bomb and got it as far away from his friends as possible. Unfortunately, he didn't run quite fast enough...

Sun and Jin - LOST's most tragic couple - When the bomb went off in the sub, not only did it kill Sayid, but it pinned Sun to the wall behind a huge piece of metal. As the water rose higher and higher, Sun begged Jin to leave. Jin refused. I kept expecting Sun to remind Jin that they have a daughter back home, and it would be nice if she had at least one parent to raise her. But that didn't happen. When Jin said, "I will never leave you again," that was it. Their fate was sealed. The last shot of Sun and Jin was of their clasped hands, under water. Then, reminiscent of Jack and Rose in Titanic, their hands slipped apart, and Jin floated away. That part moved me, but what killed me was when Hurley found out and he burst into tears on the beach. Yep, I cried, too.  

Having your name written on the cave wall doesn't mean you won't die... it just means the Man in Black can't kill you. Up until tonight, I believed that UnLocke could only get off the island if he went with the others, but Jack nailed it. He can't leave unless all the candidates are dead. Problem is, he can't kill them himself. Making the bomb and putting it in Jack's pack, knowing that everyone would end up together in the sub, was a genius way to have them kill each other. But it didn't work. Sawyer, Hurley, Kate and Jack are still alive, and now there's no doubt that UnLocke can't be trusted.

Who else will die? I can almost guarantee that Claire will bite the dust. My guess is that she will also come back from the dark side, stand up to UnLocke, and he will take her out. But in her sacrifice will be her redemption. She may even give Kate her blessing to raise Aaron.

Meanwhile, in Sideways land... Things are fairly confusing. The passengers of Oceanic 815 are crossing paths like crazy. They are experiencing those odd, haven't-I-seen-you-before moments. When the real Locke was lying in the hospital bed, talking in a half-sedated state, he said "Keep pushing the button" and "Why won't you believe me?" The connection between the two realities is there, and I still think that the two will merge back together into one. I just have no idea how.

Oh, and here's some exciting news. TVGuide.com reports that the series finale has now been extended by thirty minutes. It will air on Sunday (make note of the different day), May 23 at 9/8c, push the local news back by half an hour, and be followed by the Jimmy Kimmel Live: Aloha to LOST special at 12:05 AM.

Okay, now it's your turn. What do you think about tonight's episode?