"Ji Yeon"

Episode Rating: B+

WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS

I think Lost just did something no show has ever done before. They just killed a character, but they will still be a permanent cast member for quite a while. That's impressive. And heartbreaking. Last year, when they introduced the concept of the flashback, I had the feeling characters would be dying in the future. Of course, as tonight's episode proved, this is all the more heartbreaking, because we'll still have these characters around when we know they're troubled fate. Jin, may you rest in peace...sometime in the future.

Overall, this was a solid episode. The last ten minutes were the best, with the revelation that Jin was dead in the future providing more emotion than most of this season's episodes combined. This episode was slower than other episodes this season, but was a step up from last week's Juliet-centric episode. I think this is because Sun and Jin are two of the show's strongest characters, and all of their episodes have been very powerful. Of all the show's relationships, theirs is the most fleshed out and emotional.

This episodes was slower, yes, but provided some big answers in many areas, and small clues in others. Yes, much of this season has been very fast paced with lots of plot, but remember, a show doesn't have to move fast to give relevant plot details. Tonight's episode was chock-full of tidbits that I expect will be very important.

Let's get things started with the obvious; the flash-forward/back. I thought the revelation that Jin's story was a flashback was a cool little trick on the viewer, but when you think about it, the plot wastes time; when we go back and re-watch the episode, this plot will feel slow, and won't have the same surprise-impact. While some may argue that first-viewings are the most important thing to think about when forming an episode, this is a show that demands repeated viewings, and rewards them handsomely. But using a trick like this, while fun, will ruin some of the episode down the road.

But I digress. Sun is alone in this flash-forward, and highly distraught by Jin's death. She was very, very attached to her ring and called out for Jin while in labor. In a roundabout way, this leads me to believe that Jin did not die of natural causes. I think if he had died of Cancer or something like that, Sun probably wouldn't have been so extremely distressed; while he was dying, she would have had time to say goodbye. I've already given theories on a few people who will die to get everyone off the island, and I think I can add Jin to the list. If he sacrifices himself to get Sun safely off the island, then I think that would be a sort of event that would emotionally haunt Sun the rest of her life.

This theory is supported by the fact that Jin's tombstone showed his death date as September 22 nd, 2004; the day of the crash. If Jin had died back home, they would have used the real date. We've seen in other flash-forwards that the Oceanic Six are trying to keep it a secret that others survived the crash. If this is the case, and we can assume Sun is in on it, then we can also presume that Sun's story about Jin is that he died in the crash; she lied about the real death to keep the conspiracy going. Hurley's sudden appearance after the baby's birth supports this theory even more. I believe he came partially out of friendship, but also to make sure she was keeping the conspiracy secret, like when Jack went to see Hurley in the mental institution. It's all these little touches that make this episode, while technically slower, full of relevant plot points.

Another tidbit this flash-forward provides is an approximate time for the rescue to occur. Sun is 2 months pregnant in the present, and is giving birth in the flash forward. That means that sometime in the next 7 months, the Oceanic Six will depart the island. Because Jin was comfortably settled in at home, and people recognized her as one of the Oceanic Six (showing that time for the media frenzy to happen was allowed), I'd say they get rescued in about 4 months, maybe sooner. This leads a question I've been posing for a while wide open; is it the freighter that rescues them? I think not, but I'll ramble on this later on.

One last note about the flash-forward; the producers put a fun easter egg into the opening flash-forward scene, where Sun is watching T.V. Unless my eyes deceived me, Sun was watching the show Expose; the soap-opera Nikki guest-starred on. Of course, it was dubbed in Korean.

Anyway, I think we'll be seeing Jin's sacrifice either this season or the next. Keep your box of tissues handy, because I think it will be quite the heart-breaker. Jin's death also signals that there is one more member of the Oceanic Six. If he died on the island, then the final member has yet to be revealed.

Onto the next big issue of tonight's episode...the freighter plot line. Before I go any further, I'd just like to say this: CALLED IT!!! Yes, Michael is Ben's inside-man, as I've been theorizing since episode two. I'm sure most of you came to that conclusion, with or without my help. The twist seemed a bit mellow because of that; sometimes I hate it when I'm right, because it takes the drama out of the scene. Anyway, there's no point speculating any further on this, as my theory was proven correct. I'm not sure how he got on the freighter; as I previously stated, boats can't leave the island. When Desmond tried to sail away, he went in circles. I expect Michael ended up right back where he started, and Ben put him on the freighter with the promise to take he and his son off the island as soon as possible. We'll see next time, because the title of the next episode is "Meet Kevin Johnson," and according to ABC's plot description, will chronicle Michael's journeys since season two.

The most interesting point in the freighter plot was when Sayid and Desmond met the captain. This was right after Regina committed suicide. Did anyone else get a very Kubrick-esque feel out of this sequence? The dead, haunted look on the actresses face, the high strings note, etc. Kubrick was a horror master, so why not homage him?

Anyway, the captain claimed that Ben staged the wreck of Oceanic 815. The most important point here is that it has been confirmed that the fake wreck was indeed fake. Everyone thinking the survivors are in heaven should abandon this theory for good.

Would Ben have the resources to do this? Maybe. When Sayid found Ben's stash of money and passports in a previous episode, we were lead to believe that Ben is very well off. He has many resources, but could he stage something like that? I think not. For instance, where would he get 400 bodies? Yes, he has the corpses of the Dharma initiative, but those are very old and decayed, and there certainly weren't 400 of them.

No, I believe that the captain was lying through his teeth. I think that Widmore staged it; he's much richer, and probably could get 400 bodies if he wanted...Also consider that, throughout the season, the freighter people have been working tirelessly to turn the castaways against Ben. Last week, they turned off the poison gas in what, at least to me, seemed like an attempt to discredit Ben. The captain was just extending this even more. It's either Ben or Charles, and I think Charles is the more dastardly of the two.

In fact, I've said many times that I don't think Ben is all that bad a guy. In fact, tonight a theory formed in my mind that seems entirely plausible, and fits with the current situation.

It's been made completely apparent that the freighter has absolutely no intention of rescuing the castaways. In fact, I think Ben's right; they want them dead or at least out of the way. And as the flash-forward showed, the castaways will be rescued sometime in the next 4 months. If the freighter won't do it, then who will?

Ben. Ben will. He can get off the island if he wants; that submarine wasn't the only method. By the time they get off the island, I think Ben will persuade the castaways that Charles Widmore and the people on the freighter are bad, and if the castaways want a better life, they must get rid of Widmore. Thus, I think that Ben will take a select few off the island, the rest staying behind to "hold the fort."

Sayid will already be working for Ben, as the assassin we see him become in flash-forwards. I also think Kate is in on it; in Jack's flash-forward, she said she needed to get back to "him." Maybe "him" was Ben, and not baby Aaron. Jack, Hurley, Sun and the last, unspecified member are probably less-informed, but have been given the instruction to uphold the conspiracy until such time as they are ready for further instructions.

I think the cataclysm for them siding with Ben will be an attack by the freighter in an upcoming plot; maybe this season, maybe next. Whenever it happens, characters like Jin and Claire will die; Sun will go back a widow, and baby Aaron will leave with Kate. This whole plot will serve to bring down Mr. Widmore, so everyone can live their lives as they choose.

I think Ben only wants what's best for the island. He doesn't need to keep these people there, and if they help him bring down the man threatening the island, then I think that he will reward them handsomely. Those who elect to stay will stay, and those who want to leave will leave. Happy ending.

Of course, this theory has little evidence to support it, but I do believe in two things; that Ben is a good guy and that the freighter is evil. That's enough evidence to form this theory. If I'm right, I'll be shocked but happy.

That's all for tonight. This was a pretty good episode; better than "The Other Woman," but weaker than everything else. Sun and Jin prove themselves to be very strong characters; I especially liked the scene where Jin and Bernard talked while fishing. As character episodes go, this was one of the best. The emotional ending nearly had me in tears; I don't want to see Jin die. It's all the worse because we have to experience this shock again, sometime down the road. Flash-forwards, you are cruel devils!!

Next week's episode will be the last until April 24 th, when the show will return for five episode that will comprise the end of Season Four. Let's hope it's a good mini-finale...

REFERENCE EPISODES:

(Episodes Tonight's Installment Reference, Directly or Indirectly, or Were Mentioned in My Article, Sorted in Air Date Order)

"S.O.S."---Rose and Bernard's sole flashback, introducing Rose's cancer

"The Glass Ballerina"---showed Sun's affair

"Expose"---the origin of the show Sun is watching in the first scene of the flash-forward

"D.O.C."---confirmed the baby was Jin's, and that Sun was going to die if she didn't leave the island