'Lost': A tale of two crashes
In this past week's episode, "Ji Yeon," we learned from Captain Gault that those aboard the freighter believe that Benjamin Linus staged the crash of Oceanic 815 seen in "Confirmed Dead." So, case closed, right? We can put that little mystery to bed now. Oh wait, no we can't: this is Lost. Cases don't remain closed anymore than that guy in Monty Python and the Holy Grail stays dead. Cases keep popping up and muttering, "I'm not closed yet!" on this show.
There are three ways to view Gault's monologue about Ben's involvement in the staged crash. They are:
- He's absolutely telling the truth.
- He believes he is telling the truth.
- Dude's totally lying.
Remember, he works for Charles Widmore, who wants to find the Island as much as Ben wants to protect it. Ostensibly, Widmore informed Gault about Linus' involvement with the crash, fed him a story about Ben's involvement, or merely informed him to pass on this false story for purposes yet unknown.
I'm not interested in taking sides on this matter, in that we simply don't have enough information to truly make a definitive call. However, I think it's equally likely that either Ben Linus or Charles Widmore are ultimately responsible for the staged crash. About that, I feel good. (I knew that I would.) So here I am, all Robert Frost-like. Two roads diverged in a Dharma wood, and I can totally travel both. How? By doing here what I generally do off-line about important Lost topics: arguing with myself.
For the purposes of the following, we have to first assume that the wreckage found in "Confirmed Dead" is in fact staged and not in fact the actual Oceanic 815 that left Sydney on September 22, 2004. After all, we only have official, in-show confirmation of this fact thanks to Gault. Before the season started, I posited a scenario in which the Lostaways were both alive on the Island AND in a plane crash at the bottom of the Sunda Trench, but I've abandoned that theory for two reasons.
Firstly, it's way more complicated than it need be, and while I enjoy making things insanely complicated as a general rule, that doesn't mean things NEED to be all Avril Lavigne-like. Secondly, there's a snippet of dialogue in which the news reporter watched by Daniel Faraday mentions that due to the depth of the wreckage, no bodies could actually be recovered. And that factoid makes a staged crash an almost complete likelihood. So, that's one assumption behind this theory.
The other assumption inherent in this argument is that we can take everything in Find815 and flush it down the toilet. Don't worry, this IS me writing this, and yes, I did just state that I will look at the show and only the show for clues, and no, I'm not going into canon/non-canon again. But I at least want to expressly say that I'm ignoring it for the purposes of today. That being said, Find815 did suggest some of the possibilities laid out below, and I didn't want to pretend I came up with those things on my own, either.
Whew. That's a lot of setup, but I think it was both necessary and incredibly entertaining in and of itself. So, with all that established, onto the online self-argument.
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I don't even know why we're arguing this, McGee. Clearly it was Ben Linus.
Hey, me, once again you're a moron. It's obviously Charles Widmore.
You fool. Ben Linus is constantly six steps of everyone on this show. Even when it looks like he's beaten, he always comes out on top.
But let's not assign him God-like powers, either. If his reach is like Will Smith's cardio (ie, infinite), then the stakes for the show are dramatically reduced. We've long needed an adversary worthy of Ben Linus, and in Charles Widmore is that man.
So riddle me this, ye who obviously has a picture of Charles Widmore in your locker: how would CW assemble such a wreck in the first place?
Easy. Dude's totally rich. And he's been long obsessed with finding the Island, as evidenced by his purchase of the journal of the first mate of the Black Rock. Moreover, he seems to have sent people towards the general direction of the Island (Henry Gale, Desmond). Oceanic 815 was just another (and biggest to date) attempt to find the Island.
You so need to tell me what crack you're smoking, so I can buy myself some. You're forgetting that Ben Linus isn't exactly doing too shabby himself on the money side. You saw all that cash in his secret room. Moreover, I'm willing to wager that Mittelos Biosciences nets him a nice income. He's got the cash, and moreover, via Mittelos, access to all those cadavers found inside the ship.
But did you see Ben's look when Oceanic 815 first appeared in the sky over the Barracks? He looked pretty damn surprised, I must say. And looked as if he formulated a plan, on the spot, to take advantage of what literally fell out of the sky and into his creepy lap. You're going to sit there and tell me that in the three months or so between that crash and the freighter's arrival that Ben managed to stage a fairly accurate representation of the crash? I can't believe I share the same brain as you.
Trust me, the hate's a two-way street. It's Ben! This guy has a network that rivals most governments. And unlike most governments, he actually puts his networks to proper use. It's more likely to me that he staged the crash after identifying the type of plane that went down than your assumption that Charles Widmore staged the crash prior to September 22, 2004. Because that's what you're implying, right, you bone-headed balding freak?
Amen, it's almost like you read my mind. Wait, you are my mind. Hey, cheating! But yes, Charles staged the crash months/years before the actual event. Look, no one's gonna raise a ruckus if a single individual disappears, but if an entire plane disappears? That's something else altogether. And so he needed a backup plan, and one that could be found in order to draw off any search that could lead someone accidentally to the Island.
So wait, you're saying he wanted the crash to be found?
Exactly.
That makes no sense. Also, remember, Find815's non-canon, so bite me.
It's non-canon, and so is the Maxwell Group, but the idea behind both of those are still valid. The world would be placated by this discovery, and its depth would prevent any further inquiry, and so case closed. The world moves on, and the Island gets closer within reach.
But you're forgetting that the Oceanic 6 put a huge monkey wrench into that plan.
I cannot fathom how, ye with an even less cheery disposition than Ana Lucia.
Oooh, harsh with the Ana Lucia reference. (Also the whole "ye" stuff is mine, not yours. Back off.) But no: remember what Abaddon said to Naomi about the importance of there being no survivors. Suppose Ben recognized Oceanic 815 for what it was: the biggest assault on the Island's existence in decades. He recognized the plane as Widmore's work. And so, HE, not Widmore, staged a crash that could be found with a proper nudge to a proper salvage vessel.
I'm going to shoot you all Michael-style if you don't get to the point.
The point is that the Oceanic 6 function in Ben's mind as a check to Widmore's attempt to get to the Island. No one off the Island knows about it except for Widmore (as evidenced by Widmore's painting), but having six world-wide known individuals with knowledge of the Island? That could create a checks and balances system by which stalemate is achieved, the Island is protected, Widmore is thwarted, and Smokey lives to see another day.
Terrible.
Awful.
Mom always liked me best.
That doesn't even make sense.
Neither does your theory.
Let's let the readers decide. They usually have interesting things to contribute.
Fine by me, if it means I don't have to hear your yapping any more today.
***
Ryan also posts every 108 minutes over at Boob Tube Dude.
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Very funny post, Ryan. It kinda reminds me of my self discussions about Lost too.
First comment! I never thought i'd live to see this day. I think I'm gonna have a Shannon freakout...
I was just waiting for you to throw out a "Ryan, you ignorant slut!"
I tend to believe it is Ben staging the crash but for good purposes. I think that this will be one of the first steps in making Ben more of a "good guy" leading up to German Vet Ben protecting the O6.
Yeah...I'm definitely thinkin' it's Widmore. He has all the resources and money to make that crash happen. Plus, in addition to wanting to find the island, he doesn't want the island to be found for another reason: Desmond. It seems like he convinced Desmond to do this race and helped him find it, and he would do anything to convince Penny that he's dead. Of course, that's granted the only reason he doesn't want Desmond/Penny (Desny?) to happen is becuase he doesn't feel Des is worhty.
While Ben may have some power, outside of the island it's pretty much worthless. If he does actually have that $3.2 million, though, that might be something to consider. I just can't imagine that he has that many people working for him off the island though--it's not like he could have gotten Richard, Tom, Ethan, and Goodwin to go out, hijack the plane, and put in the Sunda Trench...
It's interesting your take on the Oceanic 6, Ryan. It's been theorized before that the Oceanic 6 were a product of some mastermind. Stands to reason it would be Ben, especially since Abbadon told Naomi that 815 had no survivors.
So, the Freighers are revealed to be false, not really going to rescue anyone. So the only way off the Island will be through Ben's good graces, which explains why A) they're all sticking to a cover story, B) why Sayid is forced into being Ben's hitman, and C) why only 6 made it out and the rest had to remain behind; they're either on Jacob's list, Ben's list, or they're all dead.
I don't trust the captain at all, and not because the secret note told me so. Anyone who gives up such detailed explanations on Lost certainly can't be trusted!
Ryan, if the wreckage was deep enough not to be recoverable, then how is it possible that they could account for all 324 bodies? It would be easily accepted that there were no survivors if the wreckage was found in the middle of the ocean, so why the need to stage 324 bodies?
Neither Widmore nor Ben would want any of the survivors to make it back to the real world. Ben only let Michael and Walt go because he knew the bearing he gave them would lead them to the freighter and thus back to the island. Which means he had to know the freighter was coming beforehand. And I wouldn't be surprised if Walt is the one banging on those pipes.
If Widmore was behind it, that's probably why Frank was included in Naomi's mission, to simply keep him out of the public eye. I'll bet he doesn't make it home.
I think something neither planned causes the O6 to be rescued and that Ben and Widmore end up making a deal to control them to keep the island secret.
I believe Widmore staged the crash. He definitely has the money and resources to do it. I've thought all along that he had planned the crash of Oceanic 815, possibly using Christian and Libby as agents in making sure certain people were on the plane. As a result, he would have to stage the found crash so that the real one would not be found. Genius. Pure evil genius.
Ben being the one behind the Oceanic 6 rescue also makes sense. He has the ability and resources to do it. He helps keep them safe, so that the secret stays safe. All the while, working from the outside to take Widmore out. This would also be why Abaddon is after the Oceanic 6. He knows they have information that would hurt their cause if it was told. Abaddon very well could be the one who gets them back to the Island.
Shari wrote (here): if the wreckage was deep enough not to be recoverable, then how is it possible that they could account for all 324 bodies? It would be easily accepted that there were no survivors if the wreckage was found in the middle of the ocean, so why the need to stage 324 bodies?
I've been ***uming it's because the small deep-sea remote-operated-vehicle showed 324 bodies, even though it is too deep to get the equipment down there needed to actually recover the bodies.
If your question is concerning why did Widmore or Ben stage bodies in the first place, I'm ***uming it's because the wreckage was fairly intact and thus there would be at least skeletal remains (visible via the deep sea camera) in the (belted) seats for quite some time.
If you are questioning the need for a staging in the first place, then I'm more in tune with you. For I would think the pacific ocean is so huge and deep that the searchers would give up pretty soon anyway. Thus having no wreckage found seems a less risky strategy than hoping that nobody (such as Lapidus) will see a corpse (on camera) that doesn't look like it should.
(After all, the ROV could probably be equipped to bring back DNA samples of the pilot and others to prove they are fakes -- ***uming the salvage company isn't in on the scam of course.)
So I'm hoping that there was more reason for the staging than just to give the powers that be a reason to call off the search.
Shari wrote: if the wreckage was deep enough not to be recoverable, then how is it possible that they could account for all 324 bodies? It would be easily accepted that there were no survivors if the wreckage was found in the middle of the ocean, so why the need to stage 324 bodies?
I've been ***uming it's because the small deep-sea remote-operated-vehicle showed 324 bodies, even though it is too deep to get the equipment down there needed to actually recover the bodies.
If your question is concerning why did Widmore or Ben stage bodies in the first place, I ***ume it's because the wreckage was fairly intact and thus there would be at least skeletal remains (visible via the deep sea camera) in the (belted) seats for quite some time.
If you are questioning the need for a staging in the first place, then I'm more in tune with you. For I would think the pacific ocean is so huge and deep they would give up pretty soon anyway. That seems a less risky strategy than hoping that nobody (such as Lapidus) will see on corpse (on camera) that doesn't look like it should.
(After all, the ROV could be configured to bring back DNA samples of the pilot and others to prove they are fakes.) (***uming the ROV folks aren't in on the scam, of course.)
So I'm hoping that there was more reason for the staging that just to give the powers that be a reason to call off the search.
Oops -- Only the first paragraph above should be in italics. (On my computer the whole comment is in italics.) Perhaps the powers that be are correct, Mark, and we shouldn't be messing with this stuff.
(I think the problem was caused by the aborted previous post, which was aborted because I now -- after a recent virus attack -- have most java scripts disabled most of the time.)
Again, my apologies.
Whoa doggy! Due to aforementioned computer problems (and family [relative] obligations) I haven't been on-line since my post of March 7th -- and boy have I missed a lot!
I just spent a couple of hours getting caught up (see Dark, most of us do read everything eventually), and I am absolutely blown away by everything!
Here I was all set to shout about how upset I was about the "B movie" trick in the latest episode (absolutely wasting, as Brian of the North and DJC already mentioned, a good ten minutes of screen time at a time when every second counts) when I read about Damen Lindelof's flip remark regarding the ending of the video game (and related matters regarding how they can't be bothered with worrying about whether non-mother-ship stuff is canon).
Instead of feeling satisfaction that I was right (apparently) all along (check my post of March 5th) that the ending was just a big joke on Damen's part, I felt as bad for those who felt ripped off by the game (and other non-mother-ship stuff) as I do for those of us (such as myself) who really get frustrated by the occasional lapses in writing on the show. (For instance, see my points regarding Eggtown Feb 27th.)
(Of course, just about everyone hates the tatoo episode and Nicki & Paolo.)
At the risk of beating a dead horse, I do feel the need to say that my feeling ripped off by the flash-forward has nothing to do with "how much you ***umed Jin would be one of the Oceanic 6", as Ryan postulated. I didn't care much either way. I felt frustrated for the aforementioned reasons (which BrianOTN and djc articulated very well).
I find it interesting that most people seem to fall into one category or the other -- if they are really bothered by the videogame/ARG stuff, they aren't bothered so much by the lapses in writing or "B" movie tricks of the "mother ship" -- and vice versa. I guess it all comes down to you are bothered most by deficiencies in what you love (and/or invest your time in) the most.
I've never played a LOST ARG or videogame (or just about any other), but I feel I'm just as devout a fan as I've seen each of the seventy-some episodes probably an average of three times each, and (like Mark) and am an aspiring writer. (A few very minor credits so far.)
So let both sides join hands and admit we both have a right to be dismayed, and hope all of this unpleasantness is behind us.