'Lost': Juliet's Odyssey

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Yeah, Jacob! What about Ben? (cont.)

THE HOLE: Jacob touched Sayid after he left the Island with the Oceanic 6. Wouldn't Sayid still need his castaway experience for that event to have happened? NOT NECESSARILY. Remember why Sayid got aboard Oceanic 815 in the first place: He was going to Los Angeles to find Nadia. I say that the scene in the finale between Sayid and Nadia was/is common to both Lost timelines — the one Juliet destroyed, and the one that has replaced it. Indeed, I think for many of the Oceanic 6, their new 2004-2007 will resemble in many ways their old 2004-2007, albeit with a few, negligible tweaks. To wit:

THE HOLE: Jacob touched Hurley after he was discharged from jail following events that took place during his Oceanic 6 period. Again: Isn't Oceanic 6 history contingent on previous castaway history? NOT NECESSARILY. I think the key lines of dialogue in Hurley's taxi-cab conversation with Jacob pertained to his mental state. Now, remember why Hurley went to Australia in the first place? He was searching for a man who had been cursed by the Numbers, just as he had. My prediction is that in the new timeline, Hurley will return to Los Angeles and check himself back into the mental institution, which is where he spent most of his Oceanic 6 life. When we revisit this taxi scene next season, he'll be getting discharged from Santa Rosa, not jail.

So back to Ben, who represents a trickier challenge to my theory. THE HOLE: Jacob touched Ben after Ben stabbed him. Ben would never have stabbed Jacob if not for John Locke and the old Oceanic 815 timeline. Therefore, Ben can't be among the castaways who will awaken at their Jacob Touch Point, because for Ben, that JTP never would have happened. NOT NECESSARILY. Because that assumes Jacob had never touched Ben before. How quickly we forget: June 1977, when Sayid shot Young Ben, and Sawyer and Kate brought Ben to Richard, and Richard followed through on his promise. I think Jacob saved him — gave him a healing touch that pushed him back to life and healing, just as he gave Locke a push back to life and healing after his daddy threw him out the window. And next season, when all of the castaways get reborn self-aware, Ben's awakening will occur at the moment of his Jacob-touched healing. Which answers a burning season 5 question for us, doesn't it? No, Ben didn't remember being shot by Sayid....

But he might next season. Ben's about to live his entire post-Sayid life again, but this time, he'll have all the memories of his previous life. What will Ben do with that knowledge? We shall see...

As you can tell, I remain pretty activated by the season finale. This column was supposed to be about the results of the survey questions I gave you a couple weeks ago:
1. Do continuity errors in the Lost narrative ruin your appreciation of the story?
2. What are the top three mysteries Lost must resolve in its sixth and final season?

However, I really didn't think my Juliet and Ben musings would produce 4,000 words of copy, and if I got any longer, my editors are going to throw me out an eighth-story window. So guess what? Next week, you're going to get one more Doc Jensen column! Whoo-hoo! We'll discuss the survey results, we'll talk about YOUR finale theories, we'll talk more about Doc Jensen's Hiatus Reading List, and we'll have the season finale of Totally Lost. As for this week's episode, posted below, Dan Snierson and I share more thoughts about ''The Incident,'' and we take you inside Pig E.'s hatch as we continue to explore the mystery of his shooting. Over the next week, if you have a new theory or new thoughts on the survey questions, hit me at DocJensenEW@gmail.com. PLUS: Should Doc Jensen go Twitter during the hiatus? You tell me.

Namaste!

DJ