Last week on L O S T we were introduced to “The Lighthouse,” which further complicates the nature of Jacob vs. Nemesis and their candidates. Earlier that same day I shared an idea that the Cliffside Caves actually belong to Nemesis Dude, with those whose names written inside being the pawns played in Nemesis’ Jacob-defeating end. Given that our writers have been creating a black vs. white duality since season one, it makes perfect sense that their response to a cave would be with a lighthouse. The Lighthouse, aside from an obvious physical contrasting to the cave, also possesses a different purpose: bringing people to the Island (which as we know is what Jacob has been doing since time immemorial). It is here we see an almost identical rendition of numbered candidatesto the ons in the caves, which implies that both sides are aware of all names in consideration.

If the candidate-summoning Lighthouse does in fact belong to Jacob, then there is definitely an inconsistency between the name his sherpas (Others) had listed and the names he himself had scribed along the Wheel of Numbers. Straight up, I don’t know what to make of this. My only guess is that the list the Others had of people deemed already “good” were people who, by some token of their nature, were already exempt from being pawns in Jacob and Nemesis’ game. The people who are “flawed” (i.e., all of our un-abducted Losties) are those truly of interest because the quality of their character remains unclear. Of the flawed, all have the potential to become what Jacob hopes of them, or to descend into what Nemesis Dude expects of them. Their capacity to go either way is what makes them candidates; as candidates they are to be marooned in the wilderness, then tested to let their true nature be revealed. The employment of their freewill will ultimately determine what side they take/fall on. I’m probably way off here, but it was worth taking a stab at.

Now on to the HUGE question: Who is coming to the Island? The list of reasonable potential candidates as categorized on LOSTPEDIA are Desmond Hume, Daniel Farady, Aaron Littleton, Ji Yeon Kwon, Charlie Hume, Jack Shephard, Charles Widmore, Carole Littleton, Alvar Hanso, OT David, some dude name “Wallace,” and no one. Whoever this “Wallace” character is, he was located at 108 (the sum of the infamous 4815162342 we’ve been sweating) and is who Jacob was intending to have brought there. Simply put, this rules out pretty much everyone EXCEPT Jack’s alternate timeline son, David. There is a possibility, however, that one of the characters we’ve come to know as one name may actually have some sort of different “real” name (some speculation has been made that it may actually be Desmond Wallace), but that’s a little TOO far of a reach. Currently, Ima have to go with David. In a response to a comment on last week’s column regarding the ambiguity of which Shephard the number 23 refers to, I added to the possibilities Jack’s son David (which I now take back) based on this reasoning:

The alternate timeline so far has been pretty accurate in detailing the fundamental events in our characters’ lives, yet the situations surrounding them remain ambiguous. In the alternate timeline Christian dies in Australia and Claire is (allegedly) still his illegitimate daughter, Hurley wins the lottery (though with presumedly different numbers), Locke is handicapped (but it’s not certain how), Claire is facing single parenthood, and Kate is on the run from the law (but possibly innocent). If the core of our main character’s lives are consistent in both timelines, then it is likely that Jack has a son in the original one as well  – he just might not know about him yet!

If Jack does in fact have a bastard son, aside from this echoing the actor-portraying-him’s proclivity for getting down, this could also explain the alternate last name of “Wallace” (David’s Mother?). So far, our timelines are “mirroring” themselves pretty accurately, so I wouldn’t rule this possibility out just yet. Regardless of who is coming, though, I have no idea what his or her purpose is.

If any of you have thoughts or links to any info regarding the stuff I discussed here today (or even other L O S T mysteries) I’d be really stoked to check them out! The plot is STILL unfolding, and even though we’re in season six, they keep introducing new factors to the equation (i.e., huge lighthouse no one seemed to notice the entire time they’ve been there), which makes it ever-so-difficult to form solid conclusions. Any sort of direction given towards more plausible answers would be appreciated by me as a serious kindness!

Have a wonderful day and may you all find your proverbial loopholes.

-NH

As I Lay Dying’s new album, The Powerless Rise, will be out this spring on Metal Blade. While you’re awaiting its release, why not get L O S T on AILD’s MySpace page?