LostSeason 6, episode 6SundownOh, my word. What an awesome episode. Apart from the awesome smackdown between Dogen and Sayid (easily the best action scene we have seen in Lost so far), what happens at the temple is just so jaw-droopingly good. Shocked doesn’t even begin to describe what I felt at the end of the episode. I cannot wait for the next episode!
This week, the episode centres around Sayid and the choices he has to make, both in his side-flash/alternate reality and on the island. I feel for Sayid, I really do. Here is a man (like many of our Losties) who is absolutely trying his best to get away from his past, but no matter where he is, violence follows him. He may try to live out a non-violent life, but it follows him.
But anyway, in Sayid’s flash this week, we see him go to his brother’s house. His brother, Omar, is married to Nadia and they have two children. Omar gets himself into a situation (having borrowed money from a criminal) and wants Sayid’s help. Sayid declines.
Omar gets attacked and lands up in hospital, and when Sayid makes to set off to confront this criminal, Nadia sends him home to wait for the children. When she gets back, they chat, and Sayid tells her that the reason he steered her towards his brother is because he doesn’t deserve her.
The following day, Sayid is “picked-up” by two goons who take him to Keamy. Being the Super-Sayid that we all know that he is, Sayid gets the upper hand and ends up killing Keamy and his thugs. He also finds a bound and gagged Jin in one of the side rooms.
Back on the island, Sayid goes to visit Dogen, where they proceed to beat each other up magnificently. Sadly, for Sayid, Dogen gets the upper hand but doesn’t kill him and banishes Sayid instead. Sayid goes outside and starts packing his stuff. He tells Miles that he’s been banished and that the Others are odd, first they save his life and then they try and kill him. That’s when Miles tells him that he was dead for a whole two hours and that the Others were just as surprised when Sayid suddenly stirred and sat up.
Outside the temple, Monster-Locke and Claire are standing just beyond the circle of ash. Monster-man sends Claire in to deliver a message to Dogen. He wants to meet Dogen, but Dogen doesn’t want to meet him. Dogen tells them to put Claire in the hole until this has been resolved.
He tells Lennon to bring him Hurley and Jack, but when he is informed that no-one knows where they are, he tells Sayid to follow him instead. He gives Sayid a dagger. He explains that this man was trapped and now that Jacob is dead, he has to be stopped. He also tells Sayid that this man is “evil incarnate”. He also tells Sayid that this is his chance to prove that he is still a good man.
Sayid is instructed to plunge the knife into the man’s chest
before he can say anything. He also tells him that the man will be in a form of someone he knows who is dead. Sayid leaves the temple and meets Kate outside. Sadly, he doesn’t mistake her for “the man” and doesn’t stab her (one can live in hope!!) He tells her to ask Miles what’s going on.
He meets Monster-Locke in the jungle but before he can plunge the knife into his chest, Monster-Locke speaks. But Sayid stabs him still. Monster-Locke
doesn’t even bleed and pulls out the dagger and hands it to Sayid. Maybe I should call him Zombie-Locke instead! Anyway, they talk. He offers Sayid a deal – something that Sayid wants more than anything else in the world... even if it’s dead, it seems.
At the temple, Miles tells Kate that Claire is back. Kate goes to see Claire, who is literally in a hole deep in the ground. Kate tells Claire that she took Aaron, at which point Claire glares at her. Sayid gets back and tells them all that there is a man outside, and he wants to leave the island forever, that Jacob is dead and that they are free. Either join him or die.
Most of the Others leave, and Sayid goes to the pool and finds Dogen there. Dogen tells him about his son and how Jacob offered his son a chance to life in exchange for Dogen moving to the island. Sayid grabs Dogen and drowns him in the pool. When Lennon enters and starts freaking out (as it seems that Dogen was what was keeping Monster-Locke out of the temple), Sayid slits his throat.
That’s when ole Smokey enters the temple and creates general mayhem, panic and murder. Luckily, our Losties get saved. Kate by jumping down and holding onto the rope ladder at the hole and Miles by getting rescued by Illana along with Frank and Sun. Illana leads them down the secret passage that Jacob sent Hurley and Jack through.
Ben, who was also with Illana’s group, goes to fetch Sayid. Sayid tells him that there is no time left for him (Sayid) and smiles at Ben all evil-like. Ben gets scared and leaves.
Finally, when Smokey is done creating havoc, Sayid, Claire and Kate leave the temple and find Monster-Locke and his new Lockettes waiting outside. Sayid and Claire join Monster-Locke and Kate does so very reluctantly.
Wow. I am so shocked, dismayed and just stunned at Sayid. I honestly didn’t think that he would join the dark side. You may say that we don’t know for sure if Smokey is the bad guy, but judging from the evil glint in Sayid’s eye, and the fact that he thinks that he has embraced evil, I’d say that Smokey is the bad guy in this.
The
Key points for this episode:
• Sayid. I’ve always had a soft spot for Sayid. I’ve always thought that this poor guy is so haunted by his past and his inability to get past it... But I didn’t expect this. He was always looking for redemption, but I don’t think that he believed that he was redeemable, which is why it was so easy to accept Smokey’s terms and conditions, I suppose. We don’t know what Smokey’s T&c’s are though. I wouldn’t trust him as far as I could throw him... that’s if I could throw him.
Interesting, though, that Dogen tells Sayid to stab Smokey before he speaks. I wonder if this would have made a difference. Maybe Dogen knew that Sayid would not be able to kill Smokey and sent him anyway, hoping that Smokey would kill him. Hmmm. Maybe not. Dogen seems to think that Sayid has been “claimed” by Smokey, so why send him willingly to Smokey knowing that the scales are more evil than good???
Also very interesting, is Ben’s reaction to Evil Sayid. He seems genuinely scared. I have only ever seen Ben this scared once before, and that was when he went to Jacob’s cabin...if I remember correctly. What exactly is it that Ben see’s in Sayid?? A bit of Smokey, perhaps?
Sayid’s side story, like every other side story we’ve had so far, is interesting.
• Kate has joined Monster-Locke and his Lockettes, possibly because she didn’t seem to think that there was another option. Now, I may dislike Kate a whole lot, and I often hope that someone’s going to beat her up, but if I have to be honest, I don’t think she’s evil and I don’t think that she would willingly join Locke if she thought that she had a choice. Remember, Smokey said “Join me or die”.
Everyone knows I have Kate-hate, but I must say that for the very first time since this show started, I am actually concerned for her. Yes, I want her dead, but not at the hands of ole Smokey or nutter Claire... or evil Sayid. Hmm. Evil Sayid is acceptable, I guess... just not Smokey or Claire. Actually, I don’t want her dead; just sufficiently beat up by Juliet would suffice.
But how are we to interpret Smokey’s face when he sees her. I can’t figure it out. He’s surprised, that’s for sure.
• Illana remains to be a mystery. How is it that she knows exactly where to go and what to do? Does she see dead people too??
Questions answered this week:• Where there any questions answered? I’m not entirely sure that we were given any answers, so I am going to say none.
New Questions this week:• If Dogen was what was keeping Monster-Locke out of the temple, what is the purpose of the grey ash?
• Is Kate on team-Locke? (I doubt it though)
• What is going to happen to Kate now that Claire knows that she took Aaron?
• What does Monster-Locke intend doing with his Lockettes now?? How does he plan on leaving the island?
• Why is Ben afraid of Sayid. And just where is Ben anyway?
Interesting Trivia (from
this site)
• Omar and Keamy are the first two characters to be killed on screen in both the original timeline and sideways timeline.
• In medicine, the term "Sundowning" refers to the phenomenon where people with psychosis or dementia become very agitated at dusk. At this time they are more likely to go wondering off away from safety when they are very confused.
• At the hospital after Omar's mugging, Sayid and Nadia pass Jack, who is in his hospital scrubs, in the hallway.
• Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith: Sayid is recruited by the Man in Black when the latter says he will be able to see Nadia again if he joins him. Sayid's first act after being recruited is going to the temple and killing Dogen which allows the Man in Black to enter killing the others. This is similar to when Anakin is told he will be able to save Padme if he converts to the Dark Side. Anakin's first act as a Sith is to go to the Jedi temple and to kill the younglings.
• The hieroglyph tile on the wall in the temple hallway that Ilana pushes to open the secret passage is a Shen ring. The Shen ring is an ancient Egyptian symbol of eternity and protection. In ancient Egypt, the Shen Ring also represents dual concepts of time; the cyclic line of periodicity and lineal time (into infinity).
• The Ten Plagues of Egypt - Passover: With Sayid warning the Temple people about the coming of the Man in Black, they can choose to stay or leave. Those who would leave would be spared, but those who stayed would die. The final plague in the Bible talks of God sending the Angel of Death to Egypt and would kill the firstborns, but would pass over those who stayed true to Him and obeyed him.
Interesting Screencaps (from
this site)
Monster and Claire
Drowning Dogen
Glaring at Kate
Evil Sayid
The adventures of ole Smokey
Locke and the Lockettes