LOST Whatever Happened, Happened, first thoughts

Last week we went over the various Time Travel rules that could be in place for the LOST universe based on the rules used in each of the three Terminator movies (since each one used a different rule set, which makes me wonder if T4 will use a different rule set as well, perhaps Multiple Reality? anyway, back to the LOST post).

Well, this weeks title (taken from a quote by Faraday, the character) leads us to believe that mainly we are dealing with a closed loop system, aka the time travel rules used in the original Terminator.  Whatever happened, happened and they can't change anything.

Hurley and Miles discuss the rules of Time Travel with Miles arguing from the closed loop, we can't change anything, original Terminator school of thought and Hurley arguing from the dangerous, we can really screw ourselves up here, Terminator 2 and Back to the Future (which, like me in last week's post, Hurley actually referenced in the episode) school of thought.  Hurley appeared to win the argument with his statement pointing out that Benry didn't remember Sayid when they met in 2004, but you would think that he would remember the dude that shot him in 1977.  Miles capitulates at that point, saying he hadn't thought about that.  The episode itself gave us the answer to that question at the end, however.  More on that in a bit.

So, other things that were interesting in this episode before we get to the big stuff...

In some ways I love it when my theories are proven right and in some ways it feels a little anticlimactic.  Way back in the Series Finale last year I knew immediately that Sawyer told Kate about Clementine and that Kate would go to Cassidy with that.  I was right, although, I'm sure that quite a few people figured it out at some point even if not right away.

As for Aaron going to his grandmother, though, I was a little surprised there (although not when it happened, when they should Claire's mother in the Previously On section, then I knew that's where it would be going).  I had thought these last few weeks that Aaron was with Cassidy and Clementine.  Interesting stuff, but like Eggtown, I'm not sure I always buy Kate's reasons for things.  I'm still not sure I see her leaving Aaron with his grandmother, but I like the idea that she has decided if she can't have Aaron she will make sure that Claire can, so she went back in order to save Claire.  That I can buy.

Dr. Jack was given the opportunity to once again (for the first time) save Benry Gale and this time he declined it.  Jack is currently a little unsure of what he's doing, I don't think he's fully over his time as raving, drug addicted, bearded man.  He had a brief bit of being back in control when he tried to get the band back together (as it were), but to be honest he really didn't do any better of a job at that then Locke did.  Everyone came back for their own reasons and not because Dr. Jack told them to.  I really think the scene between Jack and Juliet was interesting.  She asks him why he was supposed to come back, and he says because he was supposed to.  When she then asks why that is he doesn't know.  "Well, you'd better find out," she says.

Of course, I think part of why he was supposed to come back is already in play.  (Yep, now onto the good stuff, Benry!)  By his refusing to save Young Ben's life, he set Kate and Sawyer on a course that would completely alter Young Ben's future.

In other words, it is by the action (or inaction in Dr. Jack's case) of our three main characters that Young Ben, the innocent lad that he is, is turned into Benry Gale, the Moriarty to our heroes Sherlock Holmes.  This is an interesting new twist on the Author of Their Own Situation theory.  A lot of the things that they've gone through are the direct results of the way they "saved" Young Ben.  If Dr. Jack had saved Young Ben, there would have been a kinship their that probably would have come in handy when Oceanic Flight 815 crashed, and Young Ben wouldn't have been so tied to the Others.  But he didn't (as he couldn't, because after all whatever happened, happened) and so Kate was forced to do the only other thing she could to save him, go to Richard Alpert.

When Richard takes Young Ben to "save" him, he tells Kate and Sawyer, "If I take him, he's not ever going to be the same again.  He'll forget this ever happened," (there's your answer Hurley) "and his innocence will be gone.  He will always be one of us."  In other words, he'll become Benry Gale and soon will purge the Island of Dharmaites in the, well, Purge.

But Richard, one Other argues, what about what Elle (aka Ms. Hawking, aka Faraday's Mum) and Charlie (aka Charles Widmore, aka Penny's Dad) think about this??

Richard angrily proclaims that he doesn't answer to them.  Which I find interesting, because as we know, neither of them are currently on the Island (as in 2007 LOST present day sense).  But both seem to have some affinity for the Island still.  Ms. Hawking is in charge of the Dharma station capable of finding the Island (and it was Richard Alpert who told Locke, who then told Benry, that she could get them back, so she, at least, still seems connected to Richard and the Others).  And Widmore claims that the Island is his and always was supposed to be until Benry stole it from him.

So, Richard takes Benry into the Temple.  The same Temple that Benry would one day send all of the Others to in order to protect them from the Freighter Folk.  Which apparently then made it possible for the Others (even those who joined the Others after the plane crash such as the stewardess and the kids from the Tail Section) not to be affected by the Time Shifts.  The same Temple that Rousseau's crew went into and came out "sick", as she put it, but certainly changed to the point where her lover was willing to shoot her and her unborn baby.

A few weeks ago I posited the theory that the Others were dead in the same way that Christian Shephard (and possibly Claire) were dead.  In that "we're dead, but we can totally walk around and interact with you (while not needing brains to survive)" way.  This would explain why the time shifts didn't affect them (remember it didn't take Charlotte's dead body along for the last ride either) and why Richard doesn't age.  I still really like the basics of this theory.  In some ways even more now then when I came up with it.  The only problem that I currently see with it is why does Benry continue to age if this was done to him when he was just a wee little lad.  So, there does need to be a little refining done.  Maybe next week's episode, "Dead is Dead" will help clear this theory up a little bit.

Until Next Time, I really like the idea that what Benry becomes is directly related to actions (and inaction) by our main characters.  That is an awesome revelation.