In bloom: Part 1
I want to flesh out something that came up in yesterday's entry. Or rather, I want to expand upon it, since "fleshing it out" implies I have some grand answer to the topic at hand. As per usual, I don't. Far from it. Just a lot of ideas zigzagging underneath the bald exterior of my Bert-like head. (Some people have Ernie heads. I have a Bert head. Just one of God's fun little pranks upon me.)
I want to think more about the city reflected in the water in the print ad for Season 4 of Lost, the Oceanic 6, and The Orchid Station, take all of those, stuff them in a blender, and then take that delicious Lost-shake along the submarine Galaga and see if we can't figure out how time works on the Island, why the difference in time separates it from the real world, and why that barrier is literally the barrier between life and death.
Let's start first with the print as. As I described it yesterday, it shows the main characters of the Island on the shore, at the edge of the ocean. However, instead of themselves reflected in the water, what we see is a reflection of what appears to be a modern city with the number "6" just below this reflection (relative to the eye of the viewer of the ad). This reflection calls to mind the promise of the title of the last episode of Season 3, "Through the Looking Glass." One must literally go through the (watery) looking glass in order to get back. But that's not to say it's easy, and certainly not to say it's safe.
The notion of the Looking Glass underwater hatch as a waystation between our world and the Island world is further suggested in the Looking Glass' design: namely, in its ability to hold a submarine for docking. The moon pool can serve no other purpose than as a holding station for the Galaga. This design, coupled with evidence within the show, strongly points to the fact that the Galaga has long been the more reliable way to get from the real world and the Island world.
But given the peculiar nature of time on the Island, is such a voyage preferable? One can look at Ben's reticence to let people leave the Island as a way to psychologically control those with whom he comes into contact, but one could also rightfully suggest that Ben has an extremely good reason for keeping those on the Island right where they are. And that reason could be inside the Orchid Station.
Let's take another look at the Orchid Station Orientation tape.
What's important, at least to my discussion today, is Halowax's terrified look at seeing two rabbits with the number 15 in the same room at the same time, along with his shouts to make sure they don't touch. He also asks a female in the room, "When did you set the shift?" She answers, "Negative 20! " One (ie, me) could assume that what we're looking at is the same bunny sent back in time twenty minutes...hours...days...the point is, that whatever shift was set failed to do the one thing it was supposed to do: produce Rabbit 15 in a location nowhere near itself.
One can only imagine just how dire the circumstances would be should these two touch, but given Halowax's response, I don't think the response would be bad on a level with, say, I dunno, the outrageous ticket prices one must pay to see a Hannah Montana concert. I mean, that's dire, but not as potentially dire as Rabbit 15 V1 and Rabbit 15 V2 gettin' all snuggly with each other. Such an anomaly could fall under one of the hallmarks of time-travel fiction: meeting yourself is bad, bad juju...potentially universe-ending.
"But," you interject, "You Bert-headed buffoon! People come and go from the Island! We've seen Richard! We've seen Ethan! Clearly it can't be cataclysmic to travel to and fro via the Looking Glass on the Galaga!" Well, this is all true, but luckily I've anticipated your question, which I in no presented with a counter-argument handy, no sirree.
But that answer will have to wait until tomorrow. But I'll let you posit your own theories below in the meantime. But think about whom Ben trusts, think about the shifts, and think about the bumpy ride that the Galaga takes in order to make the trip. Also, bone up on your paradox theories. I have a feeling Ben's trying to fulfill an ontological paradox, while trying desperately to avoid a grandfather paradox. (However, he really has no opinion of Alanis Morrissette's song "Ironic" either way.)
Ryan also posts every 108 minutes over at Boob Tube Dude.
The more we tinker with theories and regurgitate what we know, what indications we have perceived from Lost; I become more and more engaged in the possibility that what we are seeing on the show Lost are parallel universes. The show starts with the crash of 815. In one universe it goes down, all are dead. In another parallel universe it crashes onto an Island in a different time. What I'm alluding to is a magnetic anomaly or black hole of sorts..a Bermuda Triangle, where our Oceanic Flight 815 has been transferred to not only a different universe, but also a different time along this parallel universe. What I'm trying to put into words is that back in the real world it is late 2004 and there's a plane full of dead bodies at the bottom of a trench. And in our Lostie world..they are actually in a universe or separate time line; only this time line is in 1939, a time when the Glenn Miller Orchestra was playing tunes and Amelia Earhardt was flying around the world. When Naomi slips through this tear in time and space, she find our Losties alive and believes that they are already dead because they are dead in the real world. When Jack/Kate find there way back to our world, they must come up with an elaborate lie in order for people to believe that it is them. Perhaps this is why Jack says in the season 3 flash forward finale that he is tired of lying. I feel like I'm so close to making sense of this..but not quite there.
On a side note(this turned out being a lot longer than a side note), I have been re-watching Season 3 on Blu-Ray and a startling thing occured to me. When they first brought Jack, Kate, Sawyer to the Hydra Island; they had Kate get in a dress and have breakfast with Ben on the beach. He asked her to put on handcuffs, Ben says she will have a very unpleasant next 2-weeks. OK fine...but then when they bring her back to the cage, her wrists are all bloodied as if those handcuffs where chained to something and that she was struggling to get out of them. Sawyer asks if she's ok..she just cries, as if ashamed to tell him. Also, she's brought in to see Jack to try to convince him to do the surgery. Jack asks, "Did they hurt you"...she just breaks down crying. How horrific a theory that enters my mind. I don't know if they'd do this on a ABC show, but I really think its possible Ben or some other Other may have raped her. Once again, this thought is mostly due to her bloodied wrists and her reaction to Sawyer and Jack...I remembered wondering if they would ever explain why her wrists were all banged up. This leads me to the thought that Kate's preggers, and the baby is not Sawyers. In the flash forward scene, future Kate is at the airfield with bearded Jack and say she has to go, he'll wonder where I am. Can "he" be her son, her mini-Ben son. Freaky and scary...dark and sinister. Perhaps it's Ben in the casket...neither friend nor family to Jack, but he asks Kate why she didn't go to the funeral. Kate says "Why would I". Despite Ben being the father to her child, he raped her...she is not compelled to go to his funeral.
Anyways, talk about rambling. Lost in 2008..can't wait.
I'm convinced that someone cracked Ausselio's spoiler tease at tvguide.com that the "he" that Kate mentions is Aaron, i.e. Claire's baby. As far as the bruising on Kate's wrists... I'm betting on Room 23! I'm going to go back to abc.com and watch the episode and the way she reacts to said room. Maybe she was partially brainwashed?!? How would that come into play?
Plus I'm still sticking to stupid theories that Vincent is in the coffin (small coffin, but too small for Ben?) and the black doctor in the 3rd season finale is Walt.
Marino:
DarkUFO.com offers up a number of deleted scenes from Season 3 that show up on the Blu-Ray version, including this one which will answer your question about Kate's wrists:
http://dvdlost.blogspot.com/2007/10/season-3-kate-handcuff-scene.html
Ben is sinister, but he's not THAT sinister!
Hey kpplz: Might wanna slap a big "Spoiler Warning!" when talking about the Ausselio stuff...I am trying to keep this blog as spoiler-free as possible, and while that might be a fool's errand, I want to maintain speculation, not spoilers, both before and during Season 4. The readers and I would be most appreciative...thanks!
So, do you think Charlie could still be alive? Maybe he was able to move through time or something crazy when he got trapped under the water? Grasping at straws, I know, but I'm desperate. I don't want anyone else to die!!! Just finished a marathon of the first 2 seasons. Too much information and my brain isn't big enough to get around it all.
Robyn: the producers confirmed on the Season 3 DVD that Charlie's incredibly dead, but we haven't seen the last of him yet. I actually hope he's dead, as his final acr was actually incredibly noble and moving (sacrificing himself for Claire and Aaron). The glimpse of him we see in the trailer is more than likely a manifestation to Hurley, much like Dave, Kate's horse, Jack's dad, etc.
Your theory makes a lot of sense Ryan. It would explain the dead bodies from the Oceanic wreckage. I actually theorized about Doppelgangers back in the break between Seasons 1 and 2. However, I was dismissed by a lot of skeptics.
It appears this anomally only takes place above ground (plane or boat) but not underwater (submarine). This relates back to your theory about an underwater portal within the Sunda Trench.