Sledgeweb: What's up, Jonesie?

Astro: HEY oh sorry

Sledgeweb: You must have been yelling at Thlay and forgot to depress the caps lock

Astro: lol. Dude, I talk to him maybe once a week. He has a girlfriend now. No time for the internet.

Sledgeweb: Unbelievable. Well, she'll wise up eventually. ;) You ready to talk LOST?

Astro: I think so. Maybe I better re-read the recap to refresh my memory.

Sledgeweb: I know, next time we need to do this earlier... ok, let's take a quick recap break and then hit it.

Astro: K I'm done

Sledgeweb: Me too. Ok, so, what was your favorite moment?

Astro: hmmm. I think I have two. The opening scene, of course, but I also really liked when Daniel beat down the back door to the hatch. you?

Sledgeweb: I agree on the whole opening scene, especially Dan popping up at the end. I also enjoyed the scene between Alpert and Locke. It was good to have Richard back, and that scene had some humor, but also conveyed some interesting information. It was also fun to see Ethan back in that segment, which to me, was a throwback to the old "Hey, I spotted Ethan..." days.

Astro: Yeah, the whole deal with the compass is what's probably generated the most interest / investigation for me. I think there's so much more to that scene that we think. Or maybe exactly as much as we think, since I've seen a lot of people talking about the compass. But my first thought when Locke got shot was "Geez, how many times are they gonna shoot this poor dude."

Sledgeweb: lol. "Would everyone stop shooting me! It really hurts!" I agree, perhaps he's also taking Ben's position as island punching bag.

Astro: lol. I like that theory.

Sledgeweb: The compass is interesting, and the whole time travel thing is really opening up a lot of questions. Richard says he was sent by Locke, so does that mean Locke has already gone into the past and told Richard he will be shot in the future? What about Locke's encounter with Ethan, would Ethan now have this additional experience with Locke when the drug plane crashed? (before Locke arrived on the island via 815)

Astro: Well, for all we know at this point, Ethan could tell Ben all about seeing Locke and what he said, and maybe that is part of what made Ben originally get captured and pose as Henry Gale. I mean, we know he came for Jack, but maybe he had other motives as well.

Sledgeweb: Right, but how much are we going to try to fit in with what has already happened. Is there going to be a lot of going back and saying, "that's why that happened!"

Astro: What I find interesting is comparing the compass Richard gives to Locke with the one past-Richard gives to young-Locke in last seasons Cabin Fever

Sledgeweb: You think it's the same compass?

Astro: I do.

Sledgeweb: I agree, it looks like the prop might be different, but it's so similar, I think the average viewer (if they are meant to recognize it at all) is going to believe it is the same one.

Astro: and I think that the reason young-Locke didn't pick the compass when asked "which of these items already belong to you" is because technically that compass didn't belong to Locke. Richard gave it to him, and at this point we don't have any proof that it was ever Locke's compass. Its tough to think that Richard got something wrong, but maybe his perspective on the compass messed things up.

Sledgeweb: Or maybe he was too distracted by that CAINE show. We still don't really understand that whole interaction with young Locke and Alpert anyways, so I'm interested to see why that happens and what exactly is going on.

Astro: yeah, true. Its a lot of speculation at this point. Cayley actually brought up an interesting perspective on that which I hadn't thought of. She said that her opinion of the episode was the Locke did pick the compass, and the granules of sand, but it wasn't until he picked the knife that Richard got upset. But I guess we're sort of getting off the subject of Season 5 now, aren't we. :)

Sledgeweb: Well, it's all related. Let's go back to the opening scene, since we both enjoyed it so much. What did you make of Faraday being there?

Astro: Well, my very first thought was that it was a pre-island Faraday, as in he was on the island before the losties. It wasn't until further in the episode, and after seeing his unshaven face, that I started to think it was him, flashing back to a point when Chang was on the island (which at this point I'd assume is circa 1980). Now I'm almost certain that is the case. which means the other islanders are there somewhere, possibly, too.

Sledgeweb: When I saw him, I immediately thought of the Dharma film released during this past hiatus. In that video, Chang was broadcasting to people 30 years in the future about the purge, and hints that maybe someone can come back and help them

Astro: right. I didn't see that video until right after the episode.

Sledgeweb: He also talks about who the president will be in the future, and he knows that Dharma is all wiped out. So, someone from the future had to convey this to him. Right?

Astro: Right, and when I watched that video I was almost certain it was Faraday's voice at the end. I'm hoping we see that video getting made sometime this season. But things like that just bog down this idea of "not changing things" and "the rules" so much. I hope to some extent that they stay true to the rules, but I just don't see how they can at this point.

Sledgeweb: Hrmmm... now I'm going to have to watch it again and listen for Faraday's voice. I thought Cayley made a good point in the recap about Chang telling way too much information to the guy in the construction site about time travel. That's exactly what I was thinking watching that conversation. I don't know much about time travel etiquette, but I know you don't want to go blabbing about it to everyone. That's the sort of thing that gets you shot up by Libyan terrorists, isn't it?

Astro: lol. Absolutely. unless you have on a bullet-proof vest. ;)

Sledgeweb: I agree, time travel can get messy, fast. I hope they can keep it under reigns and just not get too far out there. All mistakes can be corrected with time travel. I just hope we don't see that happening... someone dies, and then they do something to change the past to save them, or something like that.

Astro: Yeah, in my gut, I feel like the resolution to the series is somehow going to involve changing something and breaking the rules. they've simply made too big a deal about the rules for them to either be a ruse, or be foreshadowing something.

Sledgeweb: In my gut, I feel that at the end, an inter-dimensional Patchy is going to show up and blow everyone up, but I could be wrong.

Astro: haha.

Sledgeweb: Was there anything in this episode you really didn't like? Besides the creation of all these potential time-travel problems?

Astro: A shirtless Sawyer, but I'm probably in the minority on that one. It was just so blatantly done. And no shoes?? What is this, die hard? If they start screaming "shoot the glass" I'm calling foul. Seriously though, I think some of the "angry Sawyer" dialog got a little old. And he slapped him? I thought tough guys like Sawyer punched people?

Sledgeweb: I thought Sawyer looked a bit out of shape compared to past seasons, so maybe they shouldn't have done the shirtless bit. I was frustrated that they were doing the whole "you wouldn't understand" thing with Dan again. I mean, we saw that last season over and over. How hard is it? Everyone's seen Back to the Future, right? Just tell them "we're jumping through time like Marty McFly, but with no pimped out Delorean". How hard is that?

Astro: Yeah, I agree. So what do you think about Charlotte? Is she doomed? I mean, the nose-bleed sure doesn't look good. She's a DUI away from getting killed off the island here.

Sledgeweb: lol. Good question. Right now, I think she sticks around for a while. You? And, why do you think she is the only one (seemingly) being affected?

Astro: That's a good question. Miles has insinuated that she's from the island or has been there before, so maybe she's experienced the flashes in some way in the past. I don't know that there's any proof yet that prolonged exposure strengthens the chances, but it seems logical. I just hope they at least keep her around long enough to tell us more about why and how she was on the island in the past. I can't take many more dead end storylines.

Sledgeweb: Is this related to what happened to the freighter people?

Astro: Is what related?

Sledgeweb: The whole bleeding and dying thing, and needing a constant? With Minkowsi and Desmond and Faraday.

Astro: I think so. And if that's the case, its bound to catch up to the other losties eventually.

Sledgeweb: Perhaps. I'm not clear on the whole "constant" thing, so I'm not sure if the losties act as a constant to one another or not.

Astro: well, another thing we haven't discussed yet is how up until this episode, the only time travel we saw was via the consciousness. I was a little shocked when I realized in this episode that it seems that THEY are actually traveling through time. that's quite a large leap from what Desmond did last year, in my opinion.

Sledgeweb: Well, we kind of saw it with Ben, correct?

Astro: You mean in the Tunisian desert?

Sledgeweb: When he showed up in the desert after warping from the island. Right.

Astro: Yeah, in retrospect. But the impact of what he'd done wasn't completely apparent to me at the time

Sledgeweb: And, there was that whole conversation with him and Locke in the orchid about sending things through time. That is all vague to me right now though.

Astro: I'm sure it was clear for many others, but it just didn't hit me, "holy cow, he actually, physically jumped through time!"

Sledgeweb: I agree, we had learned that time travel was possible in the LOST mythology, but now we are actually seeing it. So, the question that has to come up when you introduce physical time travel... can the losties run into past versions of themselves?

Astro: I say no. not according to the rules, which I think probably apply in most cases, but not all.

Sledgeweb: We saw Locke run into Ethan. We saw the drug plane. What would prevent Locke from being at the drug plane when he was there previously? Just some sort of cosmic force?

Astro: They could sneak around their old campsite and see their past selves though, as long as their past selves don't see them. Yeah, at this point we have to assume Fate, A Cosmic Force, God, Jacob, Jacob's mommy, or something is making sure things stay the way they should.

Sledgeweb: Yeah, which is why so many people wish we could just avoid these time travel storylines.

Astro: exactly. I'm a huge fan of time travel. But I was hoping it would stay out of Lost. I've accepted it now, like Juggy. Of course, I'm a huge sci-fi fan. But still, I'd have preferred no time travel.

Sledgeweb: I would have preferred just the conscience and communication aspects of time travel, like in the movie Frequency What about Locke getting shot at the drug plane. You think that was related to him losing his ability to walk when he and Boone went out to the plane?

Astro: actually LostGirl, from SW has told me that exact same theory SOOOO many times now. I personally say no, but at this point I have to admit that it seems totally logical and possible.

Sledgeweb: It doesn't really make sense, but you could imagine that some sort of paranormal psychic link was made in that place with Locke being shot. It's a stretch, but interesting if coincidence.

Astro: well, I hate to bring up the object that Richard took to young-locke again, but that scene does have a connection to the Tibetan Buddhist ritual used to confirm a reincarnated dalai lama.

Sledgeweb: Correct. Which, I think a lot people interpreted as perhaps Jacob being reincarnated as Locke.

Astro: so you could say that an enlightened person, which Locke could be if he's leading the others, would have knowledge of past, present, and future actions regardless of the time he's living in. or the "plane he's existing in" I guess. Yeah, I don't go that far, to the Jacob/Locke connection

Sledgeweb: Is there even really a Jacob? Or is it just the unholy trinity of Kris Kristoferson, Christian Shephard and Claire Littelton in the cabin?

Astro: lol. I like to think of Jacob as the Architect from the Matrix. He's sitting in a shack surrounded by 1970's computers watching everything

Sledgeweb: And I like to think of the Architect from the Matrix as the Colonel from Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Astro: man...I'm hungry.

Sledgeweb: Well, Chicken segues nicely into the next episode. Is there anything else from 5x01 to discuss first though? Ah, actually, I guess the chicken run was in this episode, right? Right before Sayid goes into action at the safehouse. I didn't have much to say about that scene, other than Sayid must cut himself a lot when he's unloading the dishes, but it sure is handy to have the blades pointing up when someone is trying to kill you in the kitchen.

Astro: lol. Yeah, and I loved Hurley's line about it being a "SAFE" house? Hello? Not very safe when people try to kill you.

Sledgeweb: Yeah, that is almost the opposite of safe. I did think Sayid needed a finishing line, like in those 80's action movies. "I hope you got the point!" or "You're dirty, why don't you clean up!" Alright, I think that's it for 5x01. Lets take a break, then talk 5x02 (read the recap first)

Sledgeweb: Alright, I'm ready when you are.

Astro: let me read the recap real fast. I just got back. Had to tuck in the kiddo and the wife.

Sledgeweb: Awwwww. Cool, I'm just reading about tainted peanut butter, so let me know when you're ready.

Astro: lol. okay, I'm ready

Sledgeweb: Ok, before going ahead to 5x02. Any last thoughts on 5x01? What did you think overall? A strong episode?

Astro: I thought it was an excellent episode. A perfect season open full of WTF! moments and "Holy cow" and "no way!" just what a season opener should be. I also thought it wrapped up the end of season 4 pretty well and got us on our way, which I appreciate after Season 3.

Sledgeweb: I would have to agree. Season 2 still gets my vote for best opener, but this was a good way to kick the season off. I wasn't crazy about all the jumping around through time, but, despite that, I thought it was a very good episode.

Astro: so on to episode 2, The Lie?

Sledgeweb: Sure.

Read Talking LOST - 5x02 The Lie