Holy Smoke Monster

WOW!!! All I can say is HOLY SMOKE! WOW WOW WOW! Dead is Dead was such an amazing episode of LOST. Something I've been waiting for for such a long time. We actually met Smokey! And it was amazing!!! Plus, we got almost an hour of Ben and Locke and LOST can never go wrong with two of their most amazing characters.

1) OK, I'm saying. I'm just putting my new theory out there right at the start: Current alive Locke is Smokey playing dress up. We clearly saw that Smokey takes other forms, such as with Alex in the temple, why not Locke? For the moment enlighten me and ponder this: a) Locke is alive after he was clearly killed by Ben, b) When Ben conjures Smokey, Locke comes out from the buses, c) Locke knows exactly where to find Smokey (yet we've never actually seen Locke at the temple before this ep. Only once dragged down a hole by Mr. Smoke and looking into "the eye of the island," d) when Ben goes to find Smokey below the surface Locke goes to find rope, e) when Ben is done having is chat with Smokey in the form of Alex Locke reappears with rope, f) Ben is told by Smokey to follow whatever Locke says!!! Maybe the title of the episode says it all "Dead IS Dead." OR - is Ben the one who is really dead? I mean he has been shot and beaten to a pulp several times. SO NOW WHAT DO YOU THINK?

2) Here's your brief lesson in Egyptian mythology (take a look at the pic above): Anubis is presumably on the right. Anubis was the god to protect the dead and bring them to the afterlife. He was usually portrayed as a half human, half jackal, or in full jackal form wearing a ribbon and holding a flail in the crook of its arm. Most likely all we have left of him is a foot statue now. HOWEVER, then there is a depiction of the Smoke Monster on the left of the picture. This is where I get excited about the Egyptian Apep, an evil demon, the deification of darkness and chaos. As the personification of all that was evil, Apep was seen as a giant snake, crocodile, serpent, or in later years, in a few cases, as a dragon, leading to titles such as Serpent from the Nile, and Evil lizard. Some elaborations even said that he stretched 16 yards in length and had a head made of flint. (Flint is what hikers use to make fires...which make smoke!!!) Plus, n an annual rite, called the Banishing of Apep, priests would build an effigy of Apep that was thought to contain all of the evil and darkness in Egypt, and burn it to protect everyone from Apep's influence for another year. AND, Apep was thought to live in the underworld, he was sometimes thought of as an Eater-up of Souls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3) Ben clearly has mommy issues. We all know that his mom died while giving birth to him and his father went around blaming him for killing her. Poor Ben. Now he's faced with killing Danielle and Alex, BUT he can't cuz there's a baby involved. Later, history repeats itself once more and we see Ben faced with trying to kill Penny (so glad he didn't), BUT he can't cuz there's a baby involved. So, it seems Ben does have a week side.

4) Who actually killed Alex? Keamy because he's a jerk. Widmore because he wanted revenge on Ben for getting booted from the island or maybe thought it would be a ticket back if he did what was initially supposed to have been done? Ben because he had to think of the island above anything else? OR Smokey, because she was bound to die anyway (according to Widmore)?

5) If Alex died because Ben was protecting the island, which is what he was initially supposed to do in the first place, does he really need to ask for forgiveness?

6) Widmore truly is the bad guy! He disobeyed the rules, went island and woman hopping way too many times, and really is kind of a jerk.

7) Going out on a limb here - Richard Alpert has always been on the island and is actually Egyptian (given the eyeliner look)! Maybe he is Jacob! Maybe Jacob is his father! maybe him and Jacob are brothers. Who knows, but I want a Richard Alpert flashback!

8) Who is Illana and why is she on this island with a big metal box? Why does Ben not seem to know or care, when he seems to know everything. And what's with, " What lies in the shadow of the statue?" Is she talking the whole thing or just the foot? Is it another code like the snowman/carrot riddle? Was she sent by Widmore?

9) Now that Ben is back is he a bit different? It seems he may not know as much as before. He didn't know about Hurley and the gang in the Dharma Initiative ( and while that is actually happening now in the past - it DID happen - cuz what happened happened!). He seems to truly not have known that Ben would be totally alive again (even though I think he may have had a clue it could work). He doesn't know where to find Smokey - which I found really weird. We definitely saw a more vulnerable Ben in this episode.

10) Who lived in Ben's house before Ben? I mean it does lead to Smokey's lair. Someone obviously built the house on top of Smokey's underground chambers.

11) Did taking Alex cause the island pregnancy problem? If the island or Jacob wanted Alex and Danielle dead, and Ben chose to save their life (a baby's life) then maybe killing babies before they're born was the other alternative. Especially since later on when Widmore is leaving it is clearly stated that he had a baby OFF the island with a woman. Why not on the island with a woman?

12) SO briefly this season I thought the whispers where people in a different time standing in the same place while talking (as in Sawyer watching Kate). That's obviously not the case. Now Ben tells Danielle to run the other way if she hears whispers. Why? Are the whispers related to the Others? If you can stretch your brain back to season 1 she told Sayid that she never saw them, but she heard them.

13) Why does Ben tell Sun to apologize to Desmond for him? The attempt to kill Penny doesn't seem like something Ben would apologize for. Was it for shooting Desmond and then realizing he has a kid? Possibly. Was it one last chance to redeem himself before having a face to face with Smokey?

14) Why does Charles so desperately want to go back? His life seems pretty good (even though he doesn't have a relationship with Penny). Why can't he talk to Elloise and figure a way to get back? I mean yes he was banished, but what is really stopping him from going back. Especially if he was able to send a freighter full of people there. Will the whole trying to kill Penny thing set her on a reconciliation trip to find her father and get revenge on Ben and get Desmond back to the island.

15) When Ben enters his old house the game Risk is exactly where Sawyer and Hurley left it right before Keamy came barging into Otherton and shot Alex. Which means what? Well, it could mean that the Ajira flight has actually landed just after Claire's house blew up, Alex was shot and the O6 and Ben left the island, which is why Sun isn't running into herself. Or am I way off and they can't run into themselves? I have a headache.

16) Why didn't Desmond die? I saw he has Michael syndrome - the island won't let him.

17) Close up on Locke's shoes. Why? We know he's wearing Christian's shoes cuz Jack put them on him. So is he filling Christian's shoes? I kinda say no cuz we just saw Christian talking to Sun. hmmm?

18) Does Smokey take people to the afterlife and if so, then is Ben not worthy of going yet??? Let's ponder this for a sec... Shannon became a better person and died. Boone became a better person and died. Charlie quit drugs, cared about everyone, sacrificed himself, became a better person and died, Michael couldn't die at first then saved everyone, sacrificed his life, became a better person and died. Ana Lucia - better person= died. Libby - better person= died. So who has been seriously hurt and hasn't died?Ben! Ben has been shot at, stabbed, beaten and is still living to talk about it. Jack! Jack even tried to kill himself and it got interrupted. Saywer has been very seriously hurt and is living to talk about it. Locke has been shot at and murdered and is still walking around (maybe alive - I believe he's Smokey tho). Claire blew up in her house and came out ok (kinda). Where she is, I have no idea.

19) Why did Ben have to drain out the water to summon Smokey? Is it a Smoke can't mix with water thing? Is that why we never see Smokey on the beach?

20) Last, but never least, young Widmore on a horse looked absolutely ridiculous! What is with that Fabio hair!?! Ben's younger hair days kinda sucked too!