Get Ready: Lockdown

We got a great episode of LOST last night with the airing of "Lockdown." Things seem to be ramping up as we get closer to the end of the season, and the writers gave us several interesting new mysteries, like the ultraviolet map on the blast door and the supply drop.

We'll be podcasting this weekend, so get your thoughts to us by posting a comment here, sending us an email or calling our automated audio comment voicemail at: 206-666-2278.

Comments

[Chris]

A thought from the episode - maybe Henry Gale is Kelvin. Kelvin and Desmond figured out stuff was going on in the island, got frustrated pushing the button so started sending one person out to explore the island at a time. Both Kelvin and Desmond would be patsies who crashed onto the island and did not know the whole story.

But they would get the announcment that a food drop was coming, one person would man the computer and the other person would leave the hatch to collect the food. The blast doors would lower to protect the one person in the hatch since they would be alone.

They started mapping out the island when they were out of the hatch and had to go get food. Possibly they encountered at a distance other people and distrusted them - so they made up passwords to tell each other if things were ok (such as 'what does one snowman say to the other?'). So they started drawing the map on the blast doors so if they were infiltrated no one would find out about their activities - or were continuing the mapping from a prior hatch resident that they replaced.

Kelvin encountered Henry Gale, memorized his information, and burried the body. Since he did not trust the Losties at the hatch, did not know what happened to Desmond, told the Losties the story hoping it would keep him safe - not knowing what Desmond had told the Losties so he would not mess up Desmond in the process. Kelvin/Gale was heading back to the hatch because he knew the drop was coming and it was a 2 man operation to push the button and collect food into the hatch.

So Henry might be a liar, but not an other, just a crashed patsy like the rest of the losties with major trust issues.

[andy]

Why would Desmond tell Locke and Jack that Kelvin died then? Instead of "That SOB left one afternoon and never came back!"

I think FormerlyHenry is an other. Should be a great explanation about the grave with RealHenry in it from FakeHenry next week!

What I'm most curious about: We know Fake Henry has great hearing, always listening through the door, so why didn't he answer when Locke was screaming "Please answer me!!"? And the Swan hatch isn't that big, really. When the door lifted and Locke was dragging himself around, where was FakeHenry? What was he doing? Did he push the button? I suspect he did something secret, something not related to the button, the blast doors, or the food drop.

[Matt]

So will Lock devulge what he saw? AND why didn't anyone hear a plane fly overhead to drop the stuff? I suppose a high altitude plane could go by unnoticed. There would also have to be some sort of "base" nearby for a plane to get there that quickly. I'm assuming it was just recently delivered since Sayid and company walked right up to it as if that was a standard path, and seemed to be surprised to see the cargo. Perhaps the doors going down were a part of that scenario of when a drop is scheduled or "Henry" has some hand in it.

Interesting episode but the preview said there were FIVE major events. Can anyone list them?

I'm guessing:
The Map (or whatever that was),
The cargo,
The Balloon/Henry ID,
The doors coming down(which can be combined with the map,
and Locke's leg

Pandora's box just keeps getting bigger.

[WhiteSword]

is this a door ?
http://img356.imageshack.us/img356/2136/vlcsnap3983015mq.jpg

[Carl, UK]

I dont Lock will tell Jack as its one more thing to have power over him??

[Biolite]

So did the countdown go to zero again? Or past zero? Was that what triggered the blue lights?

My gut reaction was that whatever Henry was doing was connected to the air drop, but more likly he was probably sending a signal to the others giving them an update or message or some such. But a great episode. Aside from fueling the mysteries and rasing even more questions, the Jack/Sawyer poker game was great.

[WhiteSword]

i did some zooming on the map
http://img453.imageshack.us/img453/5540/vlcsnap4044035xm.jpg

http://img452.imageshack.us/img452/8328/vlcsnap4044038us.jpg

[shma]

I dont think he had som plan or part of the food drop. He didnt want locke to crawl under the door, and if locked hadnt he wouldnt had any access to the computer what so ever. However its possible he talked to someone on the computer, but how much can one write in one min... he barly could tell someone very brief about what happend to him.

One thing that i was curius about is the point of the map. I assume desmond and kelvin made it. Why make it 'hidden' if it was only them there, who cares if its on the wall... they didnt care much about hiding the mural.

What airline company was flying over locke after Ms Bundy left him ?

Why does dharma freak their employes out all the time. If the time almost run out there is the most annoying sound ever. When they about to get food, alot of freakish sounds, lockdowns, etc etc.

Mr onearmed scientist. said this to kevin.
"Here press a buttonevery 108min, you have 50 machineguns for entertainment use. We'll send u a washing machine in 5 years so please dont break it. we have just enough for for all your time, but only barly. No cd's for you lp's all the way. Analog soudns better then digital.. . Oh yeah, you need medecin couse you will die or something worse if u dont take em.. oh yeah, we have a monster guarding you all time. You will get payed after you done your time on the island."

[daviboy]

Man! last night's episode opened a can of worms for the those of us who hound the internet seeking answers for LOST. As of around 1 p.m. CST, many websites went down or had to completely re-arrange their pages so people could access them trying to see the hi-res shot of the map. Just like LOST to hook us with another great piece of mythology. Hopefully people will quit complaining and start trusting the writers for their expertise.

Keep up the good work guys!

Stay LOST!

[Dharma Bum]

mmm, all good observations and thoughts.
im definitley not sold on any theories yet but ex-henry did seem to look suspicious when locke cam upon him:
two other small things i picked up on
>regarding the question of when this show is actually taking place, be it current, early ninties or whatever, well sawyer refrenced poker on tv which has only been popular for a few years.
> and of course a numbers sighting, lockes dad's lockbox was number 1516

[bioltie]

Well, Desmond's story is that he crashed on the island and Kelvin was already there. So did they make the map? It looks like they knew about most of the hatches already, and if Desmond made the map I could see him wanting to keep it hidden from the rest of the Dharma team. But if that's the case, why is the hatch rigged with those lights? It seems unlikly that the Dharma employees on the island wouldn't be involved with the Swan station at all.

I'm super pumped for next weeks episode. I hope that we get alot of juicy information about what's up with Dharma.

[CandiSpice]

So are we pretty sure that Locke was being conned by his dad and Helen...like a tag team thing....??

My favorite comment was at the Poker game when Kate said "want me to get a ruler?"

great show...can't wait for the podcast this week!

[Matt Jones]

Locke - Sayid connection? Was that Sayid's lost love's home Locke was inspecting?

Great episode overall. Can't wait to get into it on the podcast. The biggest impression I got was that Locke is a natural born mark.

[Maurice Tift]

They could actually spend a good bit of season 3 showing what happened with Desmond in the hatch before the beginning of season 2 - like "The Other 48 Days." With the flourescent hatch map, the story of Kelvin, the reason for a countdown and the hatch doors closing - there's quite a bit of material to work with there.

[Dr. Lori]

Incredible episode. One to watch again and again... a couple points/questions...
1. Weren't we suppose to see a tie between Sawyer and Locke? Did I miss it? I definitely caught the Locke/Sayid tie confirming that Sayid's woman was in LA like the CIA told him...
2. I am beginning to wonder how much Dharma ever interacted with Desmond. That map looked like a desperate attempt to figure out the island. Interesting the remarks about the sickness, all the latin...
3. I knew that as soon as Locke promised Fake Henry protection, he was "making a deal with the devil." How far do you think Locke will go to honor his deal?
4. Any thoughts on who the big bald guy is that shows up at the supply drop?
I love the podcast! Thanks for all your hard work!!

[smokem]

From the map it looks like all the hatches are supposed to lead to the center of the island into a mystery room, but are cut off with x's witch probebly stand for the cement wall.
there also, is a bubble with an arrow pointing to the swan hatch that says "I am here", so Desmond is a prime candidate for the map artist.

Also no idea what it means but three of the seven hatches are drawn with dotted lines.

Cant wait till the podcast!

[Cameron]

As was famously said by Locke several episodes ago:

"We're going to need to watch that again..."

[Mrs. Hurley]

Hey Guys

you must have already seen this i guess, but just in case, and for those who wont venture into the fuselage forums... Pryce posted this over there:
http://hypno.griffithweb.com/template_images2/lost_dharma_decoded-751672.jpg

now i looked up a few things:
sursum corda, according to thefreedictionary.com is "(Roman Catholic Church) a Latin versicle meaning `lift up your hearts'" that is sung by priests in public worship.

Cerberus... well i think everyone knows this one. many headed monster that guarded the underworld in greek mythology, this monster has been used everywhere! and Wiki and loads of other sites have a lot of info on it.

One thing though that wiki mentions in their trivia section is "The Massachusetts Institute of Technology developed Kerberos as a computer network authentication protocol which allows individuals communicating over an insecure network to prove their identity to one another in a secure manner." For some reason this made me think of Dharma more than the actual mythical creature (though it could be theorized that the black smoke is cerberus)...

Malum consilium quod mutari non potest means "It is a bad plan that cannot be changed" and that is a quote from Publilius Syrus a writer from the first century BC... wiki has lots on him if you want more info.

Liberte te ex inferus... i found liberte te ex inferis instead which means Save Yourself From Hell in Latin.

Hic sunt dracones - "here be dragons" it is said that cartographers put this phrase at the edges of maps to represent that there were unexplored probably dangerous things there... but some people (wiki included) say that there is only one map known to have used this so it's not true... however, the myth made the phrase famous so we have to consider the possibility they used it with the same connotation.

Alright... this is my contribution for the day... hope you enjoy it.

cheers

[Michael Box]

mrs. hurley, the link isn't working properly. so i found another one on the "numbers" page.... http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c272/christhisis/lost_dharma_decoded-751672.jpg

hope that is what you were looking for....

[Raz Minder]

QUOTE: Any thoughts on who the big bald guy is that shows up at the supply drop?

Our bald friend was wearing Lenny-like attire - plaid bathrobe and pajama bottoms. Seems like only Hurley saw him as well, which causes Sawyer to call him crazy; probably dubs him with a catchy nickname, maybe McMurphy or Martini. We already know that Hurley doesn't take too kindly to the doubt of his sanity.

Anyway, baldy might be a character from Hurley's institution days.

-----

Great episode; probably cracks my top ten LOST episodes.

Matt Jones hits it off the head. Locke equals a pawn. Even when Locke finds someone who DOESN’T desert him, the man turns out to be the “enemy.”

(As an aside, I’m not sold that Helen was conning him with Coop, but it was just the writers displaying the abandonment theme that is ever-present in Locke; orphan, father uses and then dumps him (only to use him and dump him again), watches his (maybe) first true love vamoose out of his life, etc. But instead of shutting himself out, he naively clings to anything that gives him hope – like the island and his “destiny.” Locke is a masterfully developed character IMO).

I think it would be an incredibly interesting dynamic if Locke does stand by his deal, which, IMO, he obviously doesn’t have to since “Henry” misrepresented himself; voids the verbal contract IMO. However, it creates great tension because we know Sayid can’t wait to empty a chamber into The Other Formerly Known As Henry Gale. I do think Locke would be opposed to killing him, maybe Ana too. Jack could swing either way.

-----

And a clearer look at the blastdoor map reveals the Cerberus project that has malfunctioned and led to catastrophic events. Cerberus, of course, is the hound of Hades, the guardian of the Underworld – a security system, so to speak. My friends, I think we found the origin of Mr. Smokey.

[Biolite]

OK, so based on the link from Mrs. Hurley, it seems that the hatch locks-down when there's an airdrop.

"Activity minimal during lockdown and restocking procedures"

It also looks like Desmond was scouting the island during the 108 min breaks he had. At some point on the map he says he couldn't search some place during "the 108"

Also, a Hanzo relative aboard the Black Rock? Might explain how Hanso/Dharma found the island in the first place.

And it seems that the Black Smoke is probably "Cerebus" as Mrs. Hurley said.

Really Cool

[fearthefalcon]

Long time listener, first time poster. Love the podcast, you guys do a great job yadda yadda yadda.

Word to the people who think Locke's Dad and Helen were pulling a long con on Locke, this week's episode seemed to support the theory that Anthony Cooper is indeed the original Sawyer and should provide some interesting dynamics between Locke and island Sawyer if it is indeed the case.

As far as the map goes, if it was indeed drawn by Desmond and Kelvin then I would have thought that he would have told them about it before making his exit, assuming he is not involved with Dharma/the Others. If Desmond did crash on the island (apparently) accidently as happened with the Losties it would make sense for him to have told them about the map (again, assuming that it is his and Kelvin's work). The fact that he didn't mention it leads me to guess that he knew more about the island than he let on during his short time with Jack/Locke/Kate and that hopefully we'll be seeing him again soon to fill some holes.

[Peter Brichs]

So, guys-That was a kickass episode. Wow...after having started as a weak season (In my opinion, anyways) the writers are just getting better and better at their job.

Anyways, about that ultraviolet map. I've been trying to get to read what it says, and finally found the map from lostlinks - the one with the legible writing.

It says "Activity minimal during lockdown and restocking periods". The way I see it, the hatch locks down when the supply plane drops the supplies...maybe they need to make sure that the hatcheneers don't make contact with the outside world? It would make some kind of warped sense, if the button is in fact an experiment...

Also, that map really raises a lot of questions...like, who is Magnus Hanso? Alvar's son?

Oh, and you probably noticed, but the different stations that are shown on the map...we get a new name - The Flame!

Oh yeah...and the "outer border" of the 6 stations is in the shape of the Dharma logo!

Also, what is DIHG that the map refers to? Darhma Intellegence something-with-H something-with G?

Also, more about the latin...the Lostlinks map claims that some of the latin says "Cogito ergo Doteo"? I think, therefore I *something*.
What I think it says, is "Cogito ergo Doleo" - I think, therefore I hurt.
An homage to the famous philosopher René Descartes (pronounced "Decart")
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cogito%2C_ergo_sum

Oh my, this episode just raises so many questions, and answers almost none. Wow.

[Raz Minder]

Peter, I was thinking that D.I.H.G. could be an acronym for Dharma Initiaive/Hanso Group? My best guess, so far.

[whooptydoo]

I was thinking that since they didnt hear a plane or helicopter when the food was dropped, maybe Dharma drops the food using balloons, and thats what real Henry was doing when he crashed, and then they sent fake Henry to see what the hold up was.

[biolite]

Was there anything interesting on the real Henry Gale's ID? Anyone found a screen cap of that?

[Raz Minder]

Oops, forget the second 't' in initiative.

[Conrad from Pennsylvania]

Was anyone able to make out the voice coming from the speakers when the hatch started going crazy. It sounded to me like a womans voice. Maybe it had to do with the drop, or whomever was doing the drop.
peace,
Conrad (not Cameron)

[jonathon]

did any one notice how locke's wife said are you "him" to locke's dad. sorta like demond and zeke reffered to him.

[Luis]

Anybody notice that the "timer" went from 108 to 107? I think it does this to increase the chances of another accident happen that was mentioned in the orientation video. I guess whatever system or group controlling it the accident has limited time to prevent it from accident.

[C Millz]

First of all, big fan of the podcast, and I'm a first time poster so sorry if anything's confusing at all. I thought that this could be pointed out about the numbers.. on the safety deposit box that Locke got his dad's money out of it said '1516'. I think there's gotta be some significance because it was zoomed in, meaning that the directors wanted you to get a good look of it. Maybe the numbers are how everyone is linked together on the island.. similar to Rousseau's theroy but in a more simplistic way. Another instense of the numbers was with Kate and the dude with the plastic arm getting 23 thousand dollars as reward money. I'm not really sure about this cuz I'm not really great at the whole clue finding thing but I just wanted to see maybe what you all thought about it.

Oh one more thing.. for the podcast in the summer like you all were talking about.. maybe you could still keep it a lostcast by updating on what the cast members and producers are doing and stuff. Well, just a thought. Stay lost.

[Cameron]

Conrad reminds me that I mistakenly got credit on the last podcast for his theory on the graves, which I only followed up on. Sorry dude! Full points to Conrad, his guess was pretty close to what actually happened - I for one will be watching his future theories.

My only (pretty nominal) contributions/thoughts are:

(a) how close the centre of the UV map does everyone think Zeke's territory is. Is the 'line' that Zeke referred to really that dashed ring around the central zone?

(b) the references to 'Intranet' in the UV map are really disappointing. That term that was not coined until around 1994 (a few people claim to have coined it in that year). It is just wrong for the vintage of everything else in the hatch and a real production slip by TPTB.

(c) I hope the little hamster that powers the servers at libsyn is well fed for this weekend because as soon as the podcast goes up, they're going to get a hammering.

[Henry Gale]

Oh man... I'm totally F-ed.....

[Raz Minder]

QUOTE: (b) the references to 'Intranet' in the UV map are really disappointing. That term that was not coined until around 1994 (a few people claim to have coined it in that year). It is just wrong for the vintage of everything else in the hatch and a real production slip by TPTB.

Not sure why this is a mistake (as of now, at least); how do you know when the system was put in? How do you know when the "map" was written - I doubt it was written in the early 80s, for instance, more likely during Kelvin's or Desmond's time when the term intranet was established.

And just because the term intranet is less than 15 years old, doesn't mean intranets, in some form, did not exist before that.

A lot of the basic TCP/IP protocols have existed for 20 years. In other words, intranets have been around as long as there has been networking, in some guise or another.

[Michael Box]

Sayid's girlfriend, Nadia was seen in season one's episode: Solitary. According to IMDB, she was played by Andrea Gabriel.

Also according to IMDB, Andrea Gabriel is credited as playing Nadia in this episode: Lockdown.

This confirms, at least for me, that it was Nadia who Locke was inspecting a house for.

[Michael Box]

Also, here is a link to the real Henry Gale's license:
http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://www.4815162342.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12460

[Michael Box]

Also found a good picture of the "decoded" hatch door diagram:

http://www.thehatchonline.com/images/dharmadoor.jpg

[Runfst247]

I know someone has probably already noted this. The reason the doors went down was becuase it was time for replacements to take over. The doors go up after the button has been pressed for the first time by the new people. The extra crates of food, 'n such, is for the rest of the time until the next replacments come. That only really explains why the doors went up and down, so useless info that you already knew.

[Dave #5]

QUOTE: So are we pretty sure that Locke was being conned by his dad and Helen...like a tag team thing....??

What could be the possible con there? Although Cooper and Helen did exchange oddly familiar glances at their initial encounter at the door of the motel, it just doesn’t make any sense when you think it through. If Helen and Locke’s dad really were engaged in some sort of con, why would they need Locke? The only feasible scenario that I can think of right now is that they needed a patsy for the simple purpose of retrieving the cash from the safety deposit box, perhaps in order to avoid the mobsters chasing Cooper. But, it would hardly make sense that Helen would develop such a long history with Locke (considering the relationship had advanced to the point that he was about to propose), only to accomplish this simple task, which could easily be done by least costly and time-consuming means. Even more, Helen and Locke’s relationship is conveyed by the writers as an authentic one. This is confirmed simply by the genuine support she provides to Locke at the funeral, not to mention her engaging glances in the car. It just doesn’t make sense that Locke’s pops and Helen were conning Locke? Conning him out of what? Someone else’s cash? That doesn’t make any sense. Also not making since, if this was indeed a con, is the fact that Helen, after her initial suspicious glances at the door of the motel, seemed to be legitimately unfamiliar with Cooper. She asked him if he was “him,” as if she simply wanted to know if this was the guy who had screwed her man out of a kidney, and more importantly his emotional stability. This unfamiliarity is hardly consistent with two partners intimately acquainted with one another in the process of a long con. Yet, despite all of this evidence of a non-conspiracy, when one considers that Helen knew Locke was at that specific random motel, in that specific room, at that specific time, one can only come to the conclusion that she must have been in on some sort of scheme. How else would she have known about their location? Unless, of course, she simply followed Locke to the motel. I don’t know. Somebody analyze this Locke/Helen/Cooper storyline further.

[Christine O]

So it seems clear the “blast” doors and the supply drop were linked. Since none of the lostaways saw or heard a plane, my idea is that some kind of local portal near the Swan hatch was opened and the doors dropping were to protect the people in the hatch from the negative effects of this. I dont think it would be radiation or chemicals because these would sustain in the environment and the doors wouldn’t go up right after the drop off. Maybe electromagnetic waves? This could be the origin of the mysterious sickness and why Hurley will get “sick” on next week’s episode.
Regarding the diagrams on the door it seems like the inhabitants of the hatch must have been trapped with the blast doors shut for quite some time to be able to draw that much detail. Maybe because the portal became unstable or was opened by accident for an extended period of time. Given the extensiveness of the Dharma research with all the hatches, I think there must be an ultimate goal linking each hatch and branch of research together (maybe consolidated in the ? in the center of the map). The question is what is the ultimate goal? Probably wont find out for a long time.

[Kate]

Another thought: I noticed watching the episode a second time that the woman Locke did a house inspection for was Nadia, Sayid's girlfriend/childhood friend. How does this flashback fit in with Sayid's story, and does this mean there could be more connections between Mr. Clean and Muhammad?

[Kate]

^^^lol sorry guys. ignore my post...i didn't realize it had already been brought up

[Raz Minder]

Christine, the problem with the portal idea is that a parachute, indicating that it was dropped from the air, accompanied the cargo.

Technology is advanced enough where a (military) plane, from 25,000+ feet – indiscernible (especially at night) to the eyes and inaudible to the ear – could have dropped cargo to a select location. Tactical airlifts don’t have to follow low-level routes to hit their drop zones anymore. For example, there are “steerable” parachutes with GPS systems that can be released from very high altitudes and then be guided to a specific spot.

Or maybe they use smiley-face balloons.

[Loren]

I wonder who exactly buried the real Henry Gale? Did he have a wife who is still somewhere on the island or died later? The an Other decide to bury him for some reason? Perhaps the Others on the island killed the real Henry Gale, buried him, and set up the whole scene to have a pre-planned story just in case anyone, Like Previous-Henry was captured and questioned. But then, why wouldn't Ethan have used the Henry Gale story? Well, there are a lot of questions to be answered in the coming episodes... should be good!!

Can't wait for the podcast!

[Jessica]

I'm new to the site, so I'm not sure if anyone else has posted this. I have an idea as to why everyone's on the island in the first place. We know that the Dharma project has to do with controlling magnetism. What if that's true? What if the island is a particular point on Earth that has a slight magnetic pull? That could mean that the "Losties" plane, Danielle's ship, and Eko's brother's plane flew/floated a bit too close to the island, and became caught in the island's "pull." What do you think?

[Andrew]

Hey everyone...I'm a big fan of the "Locke's dad is the real Sawyer" theory...but let's be honest here: this episode provided NO evidence for that theory. All the episode proved is that yes, Anthony Cooper is a very good con man.
Sure, that presents us with good reason to conjecture of connections with Sawyer, but again, no evidence whatsoever.
If anyone's interested, you should check out the numbers message board. There were some crazy ideas flying around there last night (i.e., that the real Henry Gale must be Rose's brother...what? just 'cause they're both black?)
Anyway, I'm excited for a new podcast!

[Matt Jones]

The Henry is Rose's bother angle isn't so crazy. In the diaries on the official site the author keeps saying their brother is being held in the hatch. What if Rose is the author and her brother is the real Henry Gale.

I'm not saying it's fact, but it's plausible.

[smokem]

http://www.thefuselage.com/Threaded/showthread.php?t=42367

I think this should be looked into, its pretty cool.

[Sigillum Dei Hemeth]

So the way I see it, Dharma begins to do studies on some kind of unique natural phenomenon which occurs on the island. For the sake of argument; let’s say magnetism, a unique pull or brake in the earth’s field caused by a Iron meteor which made impact with the island a few hundred years ago , (if you look at the map the center circle looks to me like an impact site). Their could be a number of different reasons why Dharma set up many different facilities on the island instead of just one site that studied the meteor proper; maybe the medical hatch (or the staff hatch as it is called) studied the effects of the magnetic waves on the human processes, ugh body and the flame hatch studied the effect of the magnetic waves on psychology/psychic development (does anyone think the flame looks like a third eye, which is commonly depicted in Buddhist style works of art). In any case one of the hatches (the Cerberus hatch) and the scientists within delve too far into their experiments and release or create the smoke monster. In order to keep whatever they released on the island they make some kind of security system, which is controlled by the button in the sawn hatch.

I mean obviously there are a lot more threads to the stories then just that; but this recent episode really has convinced me of my suspicions

[bonneville]

My sister thought she spotted the oceanic logo on anthony cooper's bag...sledgeweb seems to think the same thing:
http://lost.cubit.net/pics/2x17/oceanicBag.jpg

could almost be product placement for the oceanic bag at the abc store:
http://abctvstore.shopthescene.com/detail.php?p=3003

Helen and Cooper in cahoots makes some sense: she's the one who "found" the obit, and could've staged the scene with the thugs in their home...the presence of the thugs and cooper's car at the cemetary seem to be more for locke's benefit than anything else...kind of feels like a setup.
(Keep up the podcast, it's the only one I can actually stand to listen to...)

[Lets Dance]

first time poster here.... Just one small thing i noticed that no one else has pointed out. Why was Locke in such pain with blast door on his leg? As seen before in other episode Locke never had pain in his legs when something happened to them. So, why was he screaming in pain when "Henry" tried to move him? I just thought it was weird... it could just be his leg getting broken by the door, or him getting freaked out. But that sorta thing didnt bother him before... he did put out some fire on his foot! Could John just trying to cover up the fact he was in a wheel chair? or is he planning something more. As much as i love Locke on the show I get the feeling that he is not a good guy, or at least there is alot more to him than meets the eye.

The fake Henry was doing something when he was missing for that minute... probably ending the lockdown sequence to free locke from under the door, to gain his trust. he knew how to get Locke to his side. I still think He is a part of the "Others". He seems to understand the hatch, and the people on the island. Just like "Zeke" knew about them and gave his warning about being in places where the losties dont belong... Which to me not only ment stay out of their area, but also the hatch.

Well those are just my thoughts on all of this. keep up the get podcasts.

[Carl, UK]

Does anyone think we will see 'the monster' again before the end of the season?
Also on the offical podcast they said Desmond would be back but nothing yet????

[Matt Jones]

Sigillum Dei Hemeth '

I like where you are going. What if Magnus Hanso is an ancestor of Alvar? What if he was a Dutch navigator and discovered the island and it's massive mineral deposits? He returns on the Black Rock to extract his fortune, but is never heard from again. A century later Alvar Hanso is wealthy man. He knows family stories about his great uncle Magnus's mysterious disappearance. Alvar uses his fortune and what few clues Magnus left to find the Island. Once he gets there he sees that the Island has unique properties that must be studied and exploited. He approaches two idealistic hippie scientists. He offers them unlimited funding for their studies and the unique laboratory of the Island. He indulges them in their utopian ambitions while using them to his own ends. As they continue they work they see why the Black Rock never returned. Strange things begin to happen. People start acting funny. Then they unwittingly unleash the full force of the island before the project is even fully up and running. What we see now is Damage control. The two groups of Others are the original Dharma crew who have been twisted by the sickness (Goodwin’s crew) and the damage control team (Zeke’s posse). The Lostaways are unwitting recruits, just like Desmond.

Developing....

There are many threads to this but I think this could be what’s going on in general. I like where this is going because it fits in with my Adam & Eve being the DeGroots theory. They were tempted by Satan (Alvar Hanso) with the promise of knowledge only to unleash evil in paradise.

[goodking]

I like bonneville's idea that Helen knew about the obituary beforehand, and that it was all part of the ploy. But, I think Dave #5 has a point. What could the ploy be? Why would Cooper and Helen possibly need Locke to get the 700 grand? The only thing Locke did was get it out of the safety deposit box. I just don't see how conning Locke could have been necessary to get that money.

[Billy, CA]

Anthony and Helen did not con Locke. There is no evidence for that and it's a ridiculous theory altogether.

In retrospect, Anthony didn't even con Locke! Locke got the money, Anthony gave him $200,000. Where is the con here? Anthony didn't take anything from Locke, Locke screwed himself over by not letting his father go and lying to Helen. When you're conned, you don't make a profit. Locke was going to make a profit. The only way Helen even fits into that whole scheme is that the scheme is the reason she left Locke. End of story.

[goodking]

QUOTE: Anthony and Helen did not con Locke. There is no evidence for that and it's a ridiculous theory altogether.

Then how did Helen know Locke was at the motel? Did she follow him? That's too simple.

[Matt Jones]

I read you Billy. You're right that it wasn't a con exactly. Unless Locke goes up to the room and all the money is gone. It's really more of a manipulation. Locke may have benefited, but his old man was still using him. And just like before Locke's faith is going to cost him. The first time it was his kidney, the next time it was his girl and his legs. Now with Henry he's loosing his legs and his standing on the island. No pun intended.

I also agree that Helen wasn't in on it.

[Matt Jones]

goodking,

I think it is a simple as she followed him. She did it before. And I'm betting the thugs followed her and broke Locke's legs.

But on the other side of the coin, maybe she was involved and her role was to get Locke out of the room so his dad could take all the money. I don't think so, but it certainly is plausible.

[Doug Nelson]

INTERESTING:
The blast door map mentions "relevance to Valenzetti-related activity."

Sunday night, WHOIS reports someone registered Valenzetti.com, EnzoValenzetti.com and ValenzettiEquation.com. Otherwise, the name returns no Google finds, so the odds of this being related are very, very good.

[Doug Nelson]

Additional theories:
I've considered, for a while, the idea that the island was abandoned by Dharma, and that the Others might be a new group trying to use Dharma's experiment. The map's note "Suspected Shutdown Date: 10.28.84" seems to support this theory, but then, why the Dharma-supply parachute drop?

Cerberus, I'm betting, is the name of the smoke-like defense system.

[Joe Green]

Fantastic. Greatest. Episode. In a long time.

I failed to see the Sawyer connection here. I like the idea of John's father being the real Sawyer but this episode provided no evidence to support that theory whatsoever. Helen wasn't in on the con, basically for all the reasons Billy gave.

I think that the poker game was awesome. It was nice to see some more Jack and Sawyer interaction, as Jack gets really boring otherwise.

One very minor issue is Kates disappearance. She was eager to get to the hatch, then they find all of this stuff and the other 4 must have been like "okay we're off to the hatch now". I can't really see Kate just slipping back to camp after something big like that happens.

Anyway, great Episode. There's so much to talk about, but most of my thoughts have alreayd been posted by someone else. Can't wait for this weeks podcast.

[Greg Cass]

In terms of the Locke/Helen con, I think Helen was originally brought in on a shceme to make Locke stop stalking his father. Cooper hired her to fool him into being in love, and to stop parking outside Cooper's house.

After sometime, Cooper considered the job done, stopped sending money. Helen by that point had truly fallen for Locke and stayed around for the sake of those feelings. She was then horribly upset to find that Cooper had disrupted the whole arrangement by reentering Locke's life. With great frustration and ever more self-loathing she turned down Locke's proposal and took off again.

It's a rough theory...but worth a mention

[mj]

My comments are about the incident and "Cerberus." By now, we know that Cerberus was a guard dog that prevented living from entering hell and the dead from coming back.

What if the smoke is not Cerberus, but what came out of hell (Hell being where they were developing the technology that takes the form of the smoke). Maybe they were developing this "smoke" technology on the island and made some kind of security system to prevent unauthorized people from coming in and the "smoke" from coming out. The incident was this security system failing.

The electromagnetic field is further protection to prevent the smoke from leaving (makes more sense if you believe the smoke is really nano technology, a theory I still believe in). Every 108 mins, the system has to be reset to prevent the electromagnetic security system from shutting down.

[David]

Someone mentioned that Locke shouldn't have been able to feel the pain from the blast door on his legs... I don't think this is true, as in the episode "Deus Ex Machina" where the trebuchet breaks and cuts Locke's legs, he pregressively loses the feeling/use of his legs throughout the episode, and I think that at the end of the episode, when the use of them returned, as did his ability to feel pain in his legs.

[Lost in Mont Clare, PA]

If Henry is an 'Other' and was stalling for an oppuntinity to escape, why didn't he just leave when Locke was trapped under the blast door??

[Randalicious]

If Henry is an other, the reason he helped Locke and didn't leave was because the others are "Good"....

[Sigillum Dei Hemeth]

Mr. Jones,

Dude, I think that Magnus was just put in there to confuse us. One, how would Desmond (presuming that’s who made the map) know anything about Magnus Hanso, other then he shared a name with some guy on some creepy orientation film. By now therer would be little remains of such an old body, and not like Desmond would know what “Magnus” would look like, even if their was something left. I think that Magnus is just used in the way that it was translated “The Great”. A Grave maker which might be there, at the balck rock, might just say something like “ Here lies Magus Hanso”, just to glorify his name. Like THE GREAT HANSO; or whatever. I’m sure the guy had an ego complex.

Anyway, no I like where you took it, that all seems plausible to me except for the Magnus Hanso deal. I mean I could be wrong, but it doesn’t feel right to me.

Second thing; I don’t think that the evil the Scientists released will be anything spiritual; like hell, or demons or the like. I think that what ever was released was something made with science, like a biochemical agent, virus or the smart dust stuff. I think at this point the hell thing is too overplayed in the story. It seems like the writers like to make some thing obvious, make you think it, then at the last moment change it to something you never shall coming.

In magic, we call that the “French drop.”

What do you think>?

[Cihan]

After Locke got a good look at the map, the doors opened and we got a nice shot of the graffited wall in the background. Something to think about.

Great episode, and poor poor Locke.

[Billy, CA]

In relation to the blacklit map, can anyone tell where the Lostaways are?

[David]

The lostaways are in and around the swan station (where the 'i am here' points to).

[Matt Jones]

Magnus could be a reference to "The Great," but it is also a Dutch name. Remember Magnus Ver Magnusson from the world Strongest Man Competitions? A staple of mid to late 90s ESPN. The Dutch role in exploration and the slave trade led me in this direction as well. The Hanso fortune could have been built on this.

And I wouldn't be so sure Desmond drew the map. If he did he certainly didn't do it alone. The Latin phrases are in a different handwriting. Maybe Kelvin had much greater knowledge of Dharma and Hanso.

As for the Adam & Eve thing, I think that the connection is thematic rather than literal. I don't think they actually unleashed Hell, but they did unleash forces beyond their comprehension. Unintended consequences of the pursuit of knowledge is a long running theme in literature. Frankenstein’s Monster began as a noble endeavor.

[mynamesnotannie]

In next week's preview, Hurley is chasing pj boy thru the jungle. He runs alongside the edge of the beach and you can see in the background, something sort of rising from the water. Out there, with nothing else around. Too far out to be surfwaves...

[Dark Hurley]

I'm beginning to think Locke's paralysis before the crash was all in his head.

[Cihan]

When I saw the map, the whole 'game'-like aspect of the series seemed strong all over again. Just like Myst, etc.

[SnakeGriffin]

Why did Fake Henry Gale make up the story about crashing on the island with his wife? Why not say he was ballooning with the real Henry Gale and he buried his friend beside the balloon? If the grave was dug up, his story would have been confirmed? Just a thought!
Love the podcast.My 1st post,hopefully you will hear more from me soon.

[Billy, CA]

He probably chose the story he did to hopefully gain sympathy from the lostaways. He just was unfortunate enough to run into Sayid.

[SnakeGriffin]

That IS bad luck! Asking for trouble wen you have buried someone whos identity you plan to steal with their drivers licence on the body.Was fake Henry set up by the others to keep the losties attention off something else? Not a great theory but its different.

[Atrueskiay]

I guess my question is how can a plain drop down food supplies, without the losties knowing about or hearing or seeing the plane not only fly buy but also the parachutte drop? Thats what I want to know.

[Billy, CA]

It's very hard to see a parachute in the dark, and these days, you can do a precise drop while flying high enough to be out of range of sight and hearing. It could easily have been done and no one would ever have known.

[Experiment 626]

In regard to the question of what Not-Henry Gale was doing right after he presumably entered the numbers -- one major possibility is that it was he who somehow activated the UV lights which allowed Locke to see the formerly invisible map, and that he would, therefore, have done this deliberately so that Locke could see it. I believe that the shot showing the map reflected in Locke's eye was meant to be an indication that he was taking it all in and would remember at least some important details.

And as for a purpose to the UV lights themselves ... aren't they used in some instances to kill certain types of disease vectors? Perhaps they are intended as a safeguard against the "sickness" ...

[Experiment 626]

Okay, this is long, so I apologize ... but I'm just thinking here ...

My mind keeps coming back to the idea that the blast doors are routinely lowered during a supply drop (it will be intertesting to see if there are other supplies included besides food, such as medicines and ammo, perhaps). I'm presuming for the moment that the situation as described in the orientation film can be taken at face value -- and that the supply drop was not intended specifically for the survivors of Oceanic 815 as part of some sort of psychological experiment and or sadistic game. If all that is true, then it would lead one to believe that the whoever dropped/left the supplies is unaware that the situation has changed, at least since the beginning of the season. Consider: There was an apparently automated audio message played in the hatch. It was unintelligible (so far), but given what followed I'll presume the message was a series of instructions. A countdown followed, the last part of which we could understand. Following that, the blast doors lowered -- not all at once, but one after another. We'll presume, for now, that the supply drop was made while the doors were down. First, (again taking everything at face value for now) we can conclude that being inside the area contained within the blast doors is voluntary. Even if the whole procedure comes as a surprise, as it did for Locke this time, it won't be a surprise next time. Locke (or whoever) could simply hear the message begin and calmly walk outside that area of the hatch. Even if, let's say, the speaker malfunctions further and stops working completely, as long as the occupant is awake he'd have time to quickly move to one side or another of the last door as soon as the first one begins to close.

Second: In this case, the doors very nearly kept the button from being pressed (if, in fact, it actually was). This makes me think that under what passes for normal circumstances, one of the two inhabitants of the hatch would stay inside the blast door perimeter and the other stays outside it, so that one of them can enter the numbers and prevent doomsday. Does this indicate that the purpose of the doors coming down is to protect one of the inhabitants so that at least one person is left to push the button? Maybe ... but consider that if something happens (an explosion or whatever) for which the blast doors are actually [i]needed[/i], and that said explosion is powerful enough to kill or incapacitate the inhabitant, what are the chances that the computer itself would survive intact? Why is the dome where the computer is located not also protected, for the love of Pete? I suppose that could be due to the idea that the Swan station's purpose has changed since it was built, because the button-pushing was supposedly not part of the original plan.

So what questions does all of this raise? Loads. First, given the presumptions made above, I see two possibilities that could have to do with why the blast doors descend when a supply drop is forthcoming.

1. Something about the supply drop is potentially dangerous.

2. The doors descend to keep one of the inhabitants inside and isolated while the drop is being made so that person is not exposed to something he is not meant to know (with the cover story being possibility number one).

On the first possibility, one could tie-in the idea that the mission of the Swan station has changed from its original parameters. Perhaps the danger is not from an explosion, per se, but from the possibility that the activity of retrieving the supply drop might attract the attention of some sort of intruder -- possibly Cerebus, which is referenced several times on the map and is most likely the designation of The Mon-stah. If so, it coould be that the blast doors are being simply because they were there and available for use, and didn't require physical alteration of thde hatch -- they were simply adapted for a different purpose than originally designed. But it could be that it there is a perceived danger from the Others, or the Polar Bears or some other possiblity not yet encountered. The presence of the "Quarantine" stamp inside both the Swan and the Arrow stations supports the perception that going outside is dangerous in a general sense, but I tend to discount the idea that the danger in this case is from the "sickness," because the doors don't seem to stay down long enough to take that into account (and if the air ducts are open during all this, as they apparently are as seen in this episode, it would tend to discount the possibility that the "sickness" -- if it exists -- is an airborne threat). In addition, the doors seem iffy as protection against intelligent intruders, because such an entity could presumably get into the protected area the same way that Not-Henry Gale got out -- through the air ducts.

As fore possibility number two, this idea is supported by the existence of the map/diagram. It is written in ink visible only under ultraviolet light, and it is drawn on the back of a door which is only accessible a short time (a half-hour or so) every so often. Obviously, it is meant to be well-concealed. Is it hidden from the other inhabitant? There are two distinct handwriting styles in the notes on the map, but that might have been done by one inhabitant and then a second at a later time. Perhaps the first person somehow learned things about the Dharma Initiative and its activities and recorded them there, partly so that a later inhabitant might see them and learn as well. Hiding the notes (twice) indicates a perception that having them discovered might be dangerous.

Are there other possibilities I've missed (again, presuming that the orientation film isn't a great big giant whopper from beginning to end)?

[danielle]

Check this out! http://www.hilowitz.com/lost/

I think this guy is onto something!!!

Stay Lost!!!

[Kevin]

Michael has been searching for Walt in all the wrong places - he's over at NBC on My Name Is Earl!

[whooptydoo]

I think its important to note that not only has fake Henry referred to the others as "there so called enemies", but he had the perfect chance to high tail it out of there when Locke was down, and didnt. I think theres is more to fake Henry than we know.

And I think its obvious that this was a liked episode just by the number of comments here.

[Nate]

I know this is weird, and you guys are probably all like "duh". But i didn't realize in the back of the season 2 poster, in between the two hills, the others are watching them.

PS. I read an occurence at owl creek bridge in school today (im the same one who read les miserables) and there are some intresting paralels between it and lost. I will email you with some more later.

PPS. You guys are the best ever. Your podcast makes my weekend.

[lostlaw24]

Just watching the episode again and noticed that at the Flightline motel right before Locke brings the money to his dad, an airplane fklies overhead and it is clearly an Oceanic Plane and the address we ahve another appearance by the numbers, Henry Gale's Address is 815. Great Episode can't wait for the podcast

[lucy]

Im not really sure about the balloon theory.
My theory, the realy Henry trying to escape with food from the island and shot down by the others.

[sam]

ok, just looking at the maps again, and I noticed that the numbers 4, 8, 15 showed up a total of 4 times, while the other numbers showed up once when it said on the map "3 of 6 (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42). So I was wondering if maybe these three numbers mean more? Myabe they are more important? Just putin that out there. Also, if you look closely, you can see things that look like paths or roads. Ok, just wanted to say that. STAY LOST!!!

[Mark B]

Oooh look an article about the earths poles flipping and everyone burning up due to excess radition (or something like that anyway)...even mentions lava as an indicator of reversals (how smart am I 8-) )...

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,837058,00.html

and a second one from CNN (must be true then 8-))

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/04/07/poles.reverse/index.html

and another from just last month ....

http://arstechnica.com/journals/science.ars/2006/3/21/3286

[dragon2e]

a little snippet I pick up relating to the map. Towards the right-hand side is written "The Pearl?" and when Jin runs into Bernie he is looking for peral oysters .

[dark_blade]

hey, i found this on a website (http://www.mikedachuk.com/?p=25) and it has translated all the latin writin on th map. gr8 episode.

Sursum Corda - Lift up your hearts
Mallum consullium quad mutari non protest - It’s a bad idea that can’t be changed
Cogito ergo doteo - I think therefore I am depressed
Nil actum reputa si quid superest agendum - Don’t consider that anything has been done if anything is left to be done.
Hic sunt dracones - Here be dragons
Credo nos in fluctu eoden es - I think we’re on the same wavelength
Ut sit magna, tamen certe lenta ira decorum est -The wrath of the gods may be great, but it certainly is slow