Cabin Fever SE4 EP11

“Destiny is a fickle bitch."

Oh. My. GAWD!!!! What an awesome episode with four great “Oh My Gawd” Moments! Let’s get into it:

Mutiny by the Bounty Hunters
The helicopter comes back from the island. The Mercs are piling out, carrying the injured. “What happened to him?” the Captian asks. “A black pillar of smoke threw him 50 feet in the air and ripped his guts out.” Keamy explains. Keamy gets all up in Sayid’s face and demands that Sayid tell him how many people are on the island and where they all are. Sayid responds with his patented: “Now why would I want to do that?” answer.

Keamy wants to know who dimed him out to Ben. He pulls a gun on the Captain. “It wasn’t me, man. It was Michael.” Keamy storms into Michael’s bunk and begins beating him. He pulls his gun on Michael and pulls the trigger as the Captain begs him not to—except that the gun jams and Michael can’t be killed--again. The Captain then explains to Keamy that Michael is the only one who can fix the boat since he was the one who broke it.

Keamy and takes the Captain’s key to the safe and goes to open it. Inside is the Secondary Protocall—bound with a nice Dharma cover. Could it be that the Dharma initiative is/was Widmore’s project? Ben (or according to Ben “Dharma’s leader”) wiped them out. This is why two weeks ago, Widmore told Ben that everything Ben has he stole from Widmore. Keamy is clearly in charge and the Captain in helpless to stop him. Keamy knows it, and hands his jammed gun over to him. “Fix my gun,” he barks.

Frank goes into Michael’s bunk and confronts him “Why didn’t you tell me, you were a survivor of 815? I’m the only one in the world who would have believed you!” Michael tells him that it was Frank’s boss who put that fake plane on the bottom of the ocean. Frank chuckles at Michael. “You’re as bad with your conspiracy theories as I am.” Michael is desperate that Frank listen to him. “Don’t fly that guy back.” Meaning Keamy. “He’s gonna kill everyone on the island. Believe me, you don’t want that on your conscience.” Frank and Michael leave the bunk and see Omar fitting Keamy with some sort of device on his (nicely developed) arms.

In the meantime, the Captain has decided to help Des and Sayid. He tells them to hide, but Sayid says he needs to get his friends off the island. So the Captain gives them the zodiac. Des won’t go back on Zodiac. “I’ve been on that island for three years, brutha. I won’t step foot on it again, not when my Penny’s coming for me.” Sayid takes off alone.

So the Mercs are suiting up for another run at the island when Omar says to the doctor, “Hey doc, want to hear something weird? That morse code signal I got before said that the Doc washed up on shore with his throat slit!” Meanwhile, Frank is refusing to fly Keamy back to the island. Keamy attempts to rationally negotiate by grabbing the doctor, slitting his throat and throwing him overboard. Then we hear gunshots. “Hey Keamy!” the Captain calls. “I fixed your gun.” But the Captain is no match for the evil Keamy, who shoots him in cold blood. Due to Keamy’s excellent debating skills, Frank is now convinced that it is in his best interests to fly the Mercs back to the island.

Frank, knowing that bringing the animals back to the island is pretty much a death sentence for the island dwellers, steals a sat phone and stuffs it in a bag. The Jackies are sitting around the camp at the beach, when they hear the approaching chopper, coming in low. A package drops out of it and Jack finds Frank’s sat phone dialed in to the tracking screen. “I guess they want us to follow them.” Jack concludes.

The Mythology of Locke
Emily, is a young teenage girl getting ready to go out on a date. Her mother comes in to tell her that she’s not going out and that her “boyfriend is almost twice her age.” “Jealous, mom?” Emily retorts as she flits out the door into a rainstorm and right in front of a moving vehicle.

Flash to Emily being wheeled into emergency. She groggily comes to, telling the nurse, “I’m pregnant.” She delivers a son. “His name is John!” she calls as they wheel the premature infant out. Emily is Locke’s mom.

Emily is recovered from her accident and they are about to take John out of the incubator. “He’s the youngest preemie to ever survive!” The nurse says. “He’s a fighter.” Emily is distraught, she can’t bring herself to hold him and runs out of the room. The gracious and classy lady who is Locke’s grandmother starts to light a cigarette. ”Who can I talk to about adoption?” The nurse stops her from lighting the cigarette, which draws both their attention to the man standing in the window. “Is that the father?” the nurse asks. “I don’t know who that is.” Grandma says. But we do: it’s RICHARD EYELINER!!!! (OMG #1)

There are some parallels with the desperate and unexpected nature of the births of both Locke and Ben. Both were born unexpectedly and under less than ideal conditions. Both were, for all intents and purposes, abandoned by their mothers and both had unhappy childhoods. Both were approached by Richard Eyeliner as young children.

A few years later, young Locke is playing backgammon. Richard Eyeliner comes to see Locke to see if he would be right for his school. “I run a school for kids who are extremely special.” Richard looks at the picture on the wall that Locke drew, which looks like a man being attacked by the smoke monster. Richard then lays a bunch of objects on the table: A baseball glove. A Book of Laws. A jar of …grains? …Pebbles? …Inert smoke monster? A compass. A comic book (is it the same one Walt was reading?) A knife. “Tell me which ones are yours.” Richard says. “To keep?” John asks. “No, tell me which ones are yours already.” Locke picks the jar first. Very good. Then the compass. Excellent. Then the knife. Not so good. “Are you sure that’s yours? Richard Eyeliner asks. Locke nods yes, and Richard grabs the knife from him. “Well it’s not.” Richard abruptly packs up and tells Locke’s foster mom that he doesn’t think Locke is ready.

Yet a few more years later, a teenaged Locke has been shoved in a locker and the “in” crowd is laughing at him. His science teacher comes and gets him out. He takes John into a classroom and tells him of a terrific opportunity: a company in Portland called Mittelos Labratories (you may remember their logo in the background during the airport scene in Juliet’s initial recruitment by Richard Eyeliner) wants them to come to their summer camp. “Dr. Alpert (Richard Eyeliner’s other name) is very interested in you.” But John is not ready to commit to his inner geek. “I like boxing and fishing and sports and cars. I’m not a scientist!” But his teacher knows better, “You may not want to be the guy in the lab, but that’s who you are. You can’t be the prom king, you can’t be the quarter back. You can’t be the superhero, John.” And John replies, perhaps for the first time in his life, but certainly not he last, “Don’t tell me what can’t do.”

Flash to a time shortly after Locke’s crippling accident. He is trying to learn to walk again, but is having a tough time. His session is finished and the orderly is wheeling him back to the room. “Don’t give up, Mr. Locke. Anything is possible.” Locke bitterly dismisses this man’s blind optimism. His spine is crushed. He will never walk again. The camera pans out to reveal the creepy Mr Abbadan wheeling him (OMG #2), who tells him, “You need to go on a walkabout. With nothing but a knife and your wits.” It’s interesting that Abbandan tells Locke that he needs to bring a knife, especially in light of Richard Eyeliner’s obvious aversion to it and Abbadan’s and Eyeliner’s opposing sides to the ongoing conflict. “You need to go find your self. I thought I was one thing when I left. I found out I was something totally different. And when our paths cross again, You will owe me one.”

I think that Abbadan and Eyeliner were shipmates on the Black Rock.

The Mythology of Jacob
Locke, Ben and Hurley are trekking through the jungle, looking for the cabin. Locke asks Ben how much further and Ben says, “I don’t know, I’m following Hurley.” To which Hurley complains, “I’m not even in the front.”

Locke is dreaming. He walks through the jungle to find Horace cutting down trees “to build a shelter for him and his wife to get away from the DI.” (that’s hippy slang for “Dharma Initiative”). We last saw Horace coming to the rescue of Ben’s father in his MG Midget shortly after Ben’s mother has died in the woods giving birth to him. Twelve years later, Horace secured a sweet position for Ben’s dad as a “Workman” at the groovy Dharma Initiative. “I’m not making any sense am I? That’s because I’ve been dead for 12 years. Find me, John. Find me and you’ll find Him. Jacob has been waiting for you for a long time.”

So a newly directed Locke wakes up the others and tells them he knows where to go. Ben looks wistfully at Locke. “I used to dream, too.” Hurley has a theory about why he, Locke and Ben can see the cabin: “We can see the cabin because we are the craziest.” Locke explains that they need to find the Dharma initiative so that they can find the cabin. M”You remember the Dharma initiative, don’t you Hurley? There were about a hundred of them living here on the island, building those houses and making that Ranch Dressing that you like.” “What happened to them?” Hurley wants to know. Locke looks over his shoulder at Ben. “He did.”

Locke is down the pit of death, trying to find Horace. “So this is where you shot Locke?” Hurley asks, just makin’ conversation. “Yes Hugo, I was standing right where you are when I pulled the trigger.” Ok, time out here. Is it just me, or is every line delivered by Michael Emerson an exercise in sheer perfection? Whe you read this line, it doesn’t translate nearly as well as it is spoken by Emerson. By contrast, Hurley’s and Sawyer’s lines translate pretty well on the written page.

So anyway, Locke finds Horace (“Mathematician” or as we like to call them here on the mainland, “Mathlete”) and locates a map in Horace’s pocket. It is a map to the cabin, which Locke realizes Horace was building in his dream

Locke then tells Hurley he can leave now, since now he’s got a map, he doesn’t need him anymore. Hurley is upset that Locke is letting him go, But Locke explains he doesn’t want anything to happen to Hurley and he’s not sure how safe it will be. Plus he forced him with them at gunpoint. He wants to give Hurley a chance to go back to the beach. Hurley says no, I think I’ll stay with you guys. As Hurley walks off, Ben smirks at John, “He actually thinks staying was his idea. Not bad, John. Hot bad at all.” Did Locke manipulate Hurley into doing what he wanted or was he sincere when he said he could go? “I’m not you.” Locke says. “No. You’re not.”

Ben is lamenting the shift in power. “I got sick and you got well. I got a Tumor on my spine and my daughter’s blood all over my hands. Things had to happen to me, that was my destiny. You’ll see there a consequences to being chosen, John.” Hurley interrupts Ben’s pity party. “Guys? Cabin.”

Of course it’s dark when they finally get to the Cabin (what good would finding the cabin in full daylight be? It wouldn’t be nearly as creepy.) Ben is resigned that Locke is the chosen one. “I’m not going in there with you. My time is over.” “Yeah,” Hurley agrees. “I’m cool with you going in alone, too.”

Locke goes in to see someone sitting in the chair. “Are you Jacob?” “No,” croons a familiar voice, “But I can speak for him. Locke moves closer and reveals Christian Sheppard (OMG #3). Then Locke realizes someone is sitting behind him. It’s Claire (OMG #4) She seems quite at home. “Don’t worry about me John, I’m with him.” John starts sputtering asking why she is there. “What about the Baybay?” Locke wonders. “The baybay is right where he’s supposed to be,” Christian assures him. Christian asks if Locke knows why he is there. Locke ponders for a moment then says, “Because I was chosen to be here.” Christian and Claire smile knowingly at each other. That’s the right answer. But Locke has more questions. Christian cuts him off. “We don’t have time for this. They are coming. Why don’t you ask me the one question that is most important?” Locke knows what to ask, “How do I save the island?”

Meanwhile, Hugo and Ben are sharing a candy bar, waiting for Locke’s Jacob appointment to be over. When Locke emerges, Ben asks him if he was told what to do. “Yes. He told me we need to move the island.”

Next Week
Umm...sorry. I watched the previews, but nothing stood out. I don’t even know who the featured character is.