What Kate Does/Theories

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Theories about What Kate Does

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Stated as questions or possibilities (avoid question marks, "Maybe", "I think", etc). More appropriate for another article. Illogical or previously disproven. Proven by canon source, and moved to main article. Speculative and lacking any evidence to support arguments. Responding to another theory (use discussion page instead). This does not include responses that can stand alone as its own theory. Usage of an indented bullet does not imply the statement is a response. See the Lostpedia theory policy for more details.

Jack's Purpose

• Clearly Jacob is not done and needs a "body" to control similar to the way MIB is controlling Locke's body. I believe Jack will become the new Jacob. He has always been the leader so this would be nothing new. Clearly Sayid is not Jacob as most people previously thought. This all goes back to the opening show scene of Jack opening his eyes to Vincent running in the jungle. Jack and Dogen already seem to be connecting as well.
  • That Jacob needs a body to control is not at all clear. Neither is it clear that MIB needs a body. We know for certain that MIB is not controlling Locke's body. It appears that he is actually impersonating Locke, just at the Smoke Monster appears to have impersonated people in the past. Both in the cases of Locke and Alex, we see that the Smoke Monster impersonates rather than re-animates. The above claim is nothing but speculation and is directly contradicted by the evidence.
    • I don't think Jacob needs a body to reanimate. He has Hurley (and possibly Miles) who get to talk to dead people and relay his intentions. Jacob doesn't need a body...he has all the chess pieces he needs to play his games. Also Locke doesn't seem to be reanimated either. The monster is like the First on Buffy...it takes the forms and memories of the dead. The MiB takes the form of dead people, Jacob merely sends dreams and visions of dead people. I think Claire died in season 4 but came back to life (either by Jacob or the Monster's design) much like how Jacob revived Locke after he fell from the window. When she died the monster staked his claim on her, just like he did with Ben and Sayid. Kate saw a vision of Claire in season 4...I don't think that was the monster...I think that was Jacob giving Kate a warning via her dreams and he could use Claire because she had technically died. I think Hurley doesn't see the monster when he talks to dead people...he hears the dead thanks to Jacob.
  • Of course Sayid is not Jacob because there is no other body. Like the fact that there are two bodies of Locke.
    • What about Christian then? why was his body missing? Sayid is something dark, but not MIB, some kinda dark force(infection) similar to him. Same thing inhabits the French people other than Rosseau, and Claire as stated
• Jacob is not inhabiting Sayid's body, MIB is. MIB was inhabiting Christian's body as well and while inhabiting Christian's body he lured Claire into the cabin, which is why the ash around the cabin was broken, and Jacob whispered help when Locke visited with Ben. MIB while inhabiting Christian's body also was the one who told Locke he would have to die in order to come back to the island and save it. He tricked Locke so that he could then use his body to carry out the rest of his plans.(not sure what those are yet=maybe create his dark army to fight jacob's for the island...)
  • MIB is not inhabiting Locke's body, no one is. This has been firmly established, especially since we saw MIB walk right past Locke's dead body. MIB has taken an artificial form that just looks like Locke, which is entirely different than inhabiting Locke's body. Whatever is going on with Sayid is something different, since that is not an entity taking the form of Sayid, but rather Sayid's actual body, infected or what have you...which is entirely different than Locke's situation.
  • MIB doesn't want to fight Jacob for the island. He wants to go home.
  • I think there is a fact you are all forgetting. Sayid has the same thing that Claire got. So that would seem to say that its not a true incarnation but something else, an actual "sickness". He has been "claimed" that can mean a lot of things but not necessarily that he is now Jacob. I think we have yet to see Jacob's ultimate plans, but it is safe to assume that he is in control and expected this outcome.
    • The word translated as "claimed" can be more appropriately translated as "chosen" or "called".
  • The being "claimed" is what happened to Rousseau's group and why she had to kill her friends when she realized they had been taken over and the same would happen to her if she didn't stop it first. This supports the theory that being claimed is like being possessed which is different then when the MIB takes over a deceased's body. What we don't know is whether those possessed are extensions of the MIB's power or something else.
    • I agree this makes the most sense. MIB is some how using Locke in a very different way than the others.
      • This is also supported by the fact that MiB seems to need John Locke's form and only John's to carry out his plans. He's had the ability to take other forms the whole time, but is only in the guise of Locke was he able to kill Jacob. He's also keeping Locke's form now, despite having already taken care of Jacob.
        • I think this had something to do with trust, people trust Locke now, and that was maybe the loophole which MIB was looking for.
          • I agree with this. I think it has something to do with doing things willingly. Like Ben killing Jacob or Sayid taking the pill.--Orkidchild 20:30, February 10, 2010 (UTC)

- You remember saying Lennon that if Sayid dies they would all be in trouble. That means death is something they fear, especially now that their protector Jacob is dead. They may not have the idea that MIB came to life in Locke's form hence they fear the death that happenen in front of their eyes meant MIB is returning by "claiming" Sayid's body.

Everything that happens is supposed to happen/fate

• Everything that happens is supposed to happen/fate such as: Ethan Rom/Goodspeed being involved with the birth of Aaron, Kate being there/helping to deliver Aaron, Aaron being born to Claire, not aborted or given away, Sawyer being alone and without love, Kate becoming friends with Clair
  • Not EVERYTHING is supposed to happen. For example Hurley is now lucky.
    • Hurley just states that he's lucky, maybe he was SUPPOSED to win the lottery, but didn't use the cursed numbers this time. Maybe if the island sunk, the numbers never made it off the island.
  • "Destiny" is a combination of chance occurances and active determination, hence the allusion to backgammon which is a game of chance and skill. The universe loosely follows a course, but every individual has the opportunity to take active or passive roles along that course.
  • Certain significant events that happened on the island will happen in the alternate timeline.
    • Locke will be able to walk again.
      • This was already foreshadowed with Jack giving Locke his business card. Jack has already healed a seemingly irreversible paralysis in the original timeline (his ex-wife Sarah), and we can (possibly) assume that he has this same power in the new timeline.
    • Boone will be reconciled with his sister
    • Charlie will die
• Artz is going to play a bigger role. He was a red shirt many episodes ago and has been seen in the first three hours of season 6.
  • Artz has often appeared as a cross-referencing source of comic relief. Ever since his death, he has made appearances for the sake of an in-joke (most prominently in Expose). I'm not trying to discount this theory, but I think it's very possible that he's merely showing up for comic effect in the same way that the Always Sunny in Philadelphia other reappeared in this episode. If anything, my guess is that Artz will die in the new timeline just as he did in the original timeline.
    • And, he will die in a similar fashion as in the original timeline: It will be a darkly-comic death that benefits the survivors in some way. (Making him a tragic hero within his role as comic relief.)
      • Frogurt also appeared too didn't he?

Sickness

• In The Indecent, parts 1 & 2, the real Jacob "claimed" Sayid, along with Kate, Sawyer, Jack, Sun and Jin, Hurley, Ilana, and Locke. We did not see Jacob claim Clair, so we either have to assume Jacob did it but we didn't see it, or that Dogen is guessing about Clair being claimed.
  • The note in the Ankh was a message from Jacob saying he had claimed the above characters and that's why Lennon said if Sayid died "we're all in trouble.

• What about the Dharma Initiative? They seemed to have a cure for this sickness. Desmond took it and then after the hatch blew up, Charlie gave a case of injections to Claire and Aaron. They seem to know a lot since they are able to repel the smoke monster with their fences. --SmileUpsideDown 00:44, February 11, 2010 (UTC)SmileUpsideDown
• The "sickness" is a lie that Jacob invented in order to manipulate people. Both Sayid and Claire seemed absolutely fine.
• Dogan is misled at this point about the so called 'infection.' What is happening to sayid, and what had happened to Claire are not the same 'infections' that Rousseau's crew had after seeing the monster below the Temple. We will find out in time what the true reason for Sayid's well being is.
• The “infection” that Dogen refers to is the sickness that infected the French Team. Sayid and Claire may have it. Dogen also explains it that they were, “claimed”.
  • Sayid is still dead. Just like Locke. They were all "claimed" by MIB. Sayid now is in fact MIB since he died. MIB is able to appear as people whose dead bodies are on the island - just like Christian, Locke, Yemi, Alex, (probably) the French Team and now also Sayid (and even Claire like it is hinted at the end. We saw her with MIB in the cabin and now she is referred to as sick). Think about how Sayid cried while he was tortured. The old torturer-Sayid would have stood still. This is not Sayid. So who is it? We only know one person who is taking over dead bodies on the island. The "Sickness" is just a term for being resurrected and "taken over" by the MIB/"Darkness"/Black Smoke.
    • It's worth noting, however, that the MIB had merely duplicated Locke's body, as the original body is still on the beach. In Sayid's case, whatever has "claimed" him has actually taken over his physical corpse. Also, it appears that at least some part of Sayid's personality remains...if Sayid was now 100% someone else, he would not have offered to trust Jack's judgment and take the pill.
      • That offering could still have been a trick to gain Jack's trust (remember how Ben was tricked into trusting MIB). Perhaps he would have shown his real face if Jack would have wanted him to get the pill. However, the 2 bodies - 2 souls -> 1 body - 2 souls? fact may be significant (but not necessarly: It could still mean that MIB can choose if he wants to incarnate the real body or only appear as the character. Remember Christian: His coffin is empty. So it could be his real body (most of the time; i think the Frozen Donkey Weel scene with Locke is definitely an apparition) which is used by MIB. The fact that he didn't use Locke's real body could be due to the simple fact that he couldn't open the coffin from the inside).
  • There was no infection affecting the French Team. Danielle Rousseau claimed the remaining members of her team were infected and shot them because, after losing her child and many collegues, she became insane. If any member of the French Team exhibited signs of a darkness growing inside of them (as Dogen put it) similar to what seems to have happened to Claire, it would only be Danielle Rousseau. Danielle lived in the same manner as Claire is doing after being infected(in the wild, alone), the others mistook new traps in the jungle as Rousseau's when clearly Claire is the one responsible, and all this happened to both after their child was taken from them by inhabitants of the island.
    • In 'This Place Is Death' we see that her allies had changed somewhat, the man she loved tried to shoot her. Her calling them sick wasn't entirely the madness talking.
    • Agreed. From what Jin sees in his flashback, it is Rousseau's team that had changed, not Danielle. I do find the comparison between Claire and Danielle interesting, but there is not enough information yet to draw any real conclusions.
    • Agreed. I think that Rousseau went "crazy" not because of the sickness but because of losing her child. Claire is different. She left her child to be taken by Sawyer. She has shown no sign of even wanting Aaron. I think she has the "sickness" while Rousseau was grief stricken.
    • Agreed. Claire and Danielle clearly different cases although they both seem to appear as wild inhabitants in the island. All members of French Team except Danielle had contact with The Black Smoke. And they somehow changed. Claire had a contact with Black Smoke as it appeared as Christian and then changed.
      • They "clearly" were different? It appeared to me that they were "clearly" the same. The show went through a lot of trouble to point out that Claire and Danielle were going through the same experience. They act the same as wile inhabitants on the island, they have very similar backgrounds (both being pregnant and having lost the men in their lives), and if the "infection" was something different for both of them, the show would have come up with a much different way of explaining it, no? Just some thoughts, please don't call me stupid.
        • I think you're right. They've created an obvious parallel in both women's stories. I think Rousseau, and the rest of her team, were infected with the island's darkness, Rousseau was just a little more cunning and was able to kill off the rest of her team before the madness completely sank in.
        • Have they definitively stated that it was indeed the entire crew that was infected? I say this because we never see the circumstances of Rousseau shooting the other members of the team. Perhaps they were shot in cold blood by a murderous Rousseau. We're lead to believe that her husband was the infected one because he tried to shoot her on the sly, but couldn't it have been just as likely that he was trying to stop a madwoman/murder? We aren't even sure he was shooting to kill, maybe just a wounding shot to protect his unborn child. My reasoning for her being the "dark" one is the near identical appearance and M.O. to Claire (whom, should we trust the others, really is "dark"). --Jason6368 20:15, February 10, 2010 (UTC)
  • Dogen specifically states that Claire has it, and Sayid is developing it.
  • Ben may also have it, have acquired it by being revived in the same manner Sayid was.
    • The water was "dark" when Sayid was submerged. As this seems to be a new occurrence (to the temple dwellers) Ben was not claimed.
• We will discover that Claire WAS infected (just like the French team), but at some point in the past three years, she broke free of the infection, and began living on her own on the island, in much the same way Rousseau did (and the Others may not even be aware of her breaking free of the infection). This will inspire Jin or someone else to try to save Sayid form the infection, since Claire is proof of the ability to break free of it.
• MIB does not have the ability to infect anyone, just certain people (it's why he never infected Rousseau, and perhaps why he killed the other woman on the French team).
• Is the "darkness" part of the smoke monster? Maybe not directly but the people infected have a part of the smoke monster "infecting" them?
  • I think it is what is said it was. They have been claimed by someone. Most likely MIB. He is still Flocke for all intents and purposes. We have yet to see MIB be in two places at once in the same reality so we must assume he is in Locke's double body still.
• Miles looks strangely at Sayid several times, both in the last episode and this one. In the last episode, Miles is hanging out near dead (?) Sayid and also acts strangely when Jack asks him what's up. Did Miles get some sort of vibe from Sayid or his possessor that he doesn't fully understand but makes him uncomfortable?
  • Also if you think back to the episode where Claire actually vanishes, Miles is constantly staring at her strangely as well, as if he senses something strange. Sawyer notices and orders him to stop, if I remember right, something about a 'restraining order.' Based on this, I think Miles can sense the 'infection' and that may make him rather important in the days to come.
• I think "claimed" is a more appropriate term than "infected". When Sayid was healed in the murky spring, he was claimed by the smoke monster and will now "serve" Smokey, but exactly how remains to be seen. However, Jacob can also "claim" people, which is what happened to Ben when Richard told the Losties that if they healed him (in a presumably clear spring), he would always be an other. Ben was "claimed" just like Sayid and is now completely different just like they said Sayid would be, only the others see being "claimed" by Jacob as a good thing. Dogan said a darkness was spreading through Sayid, so they would say that a light(?) spread through Ben and anyone else Jacob has "claimed".

Ben didn't die, he was badly wounded. But Sayid died; he stopped breathing and then all of a sudden he came back to life. He's stunned. He survived the ashes, he felt pain with torture, is it possible he's MIB

• • How do you know what happened to Ben? Both Sayid and Ben went into the temple with very serious wounds.
• Claimed people are recently deceased and unburied bodies which have been overtaken by the island's dead. Claire's corpse from the Keamey-led Dharma barracks attack was claimed by the soul of Rousseau. Many people have pointed out that Sayid has been "sounding British" since his reawakening. Sayid's corpse was claimed by Charlie's soul. These claimed bodies retain the thoughts, mannerisms and identity of the original inhabitant for a time. As the Darkness grows (as described by Dogen), the original identity fades. This explains why Claire seemed like Claire before abandoning Aaron in the Jungle... but is a walking-talking incarnation of Rousseau in 2007.
  • This would also explain the Ankh in the guitar case (the focal point of the scene) as Charlie walked off the plane, arrested, in LA X. It case was the vessel representing his rejuvenation/reincarnation as Sayid
  • This may also explain why Ben claimed to be Henry Gale. Ben died and then was resurrected and claimed by Henry Gale? Depends on when did Henry Gale arrive + taking into account the crazy timelines.
  • Correction to the statement above. Ben Claimed to be Henry Gale because he wanted to hide his identity from the 815 survivors. Ben admitted that he was on his way to get John Locke. Watch again at the end of season 2.
  • I have to challenge the above correction, because Ben lies a lot. And we now know that he never takes part in any "operations". It is obvious that taking Locke would be a very big effort and can not be pulled off by Ben alone. It is almost certainly a lie. Ben knew a lot of details about Henry Gale.
• Miles was staring strangely at Sayid, but remember, he was staring strangely at Claire right before she disappeared? Maybe he can see the sickness.
• We have always automatically assumed Rousseau was "good" as she helped the 815 Survivors against the Others and subsequently took her word that her team was infected. The time-flash where Jin sees her team attempt to shoot her seems to make this seem true. However, the team members try to tell her that the Smoke monster is the "security system" for the island, which turns out to be true, as when Ben summons the monster to stop Keamy's team, the heiroglyphics were translated to mean "To Summon Protection." The fact that Rousseau's team knew of the role of the smoke monster implies some interaction with the Others, who we know are on the side of Jacob. The fact that they tried to kill her might mean she was really the infected one as we do not know what the cause of the infection is directly, and there was also a time lapse between when we see her team pulled under the temple and when she faces off against them. It also stands to reason that Claire has fulfilled the Rousseau role, setting traps for the Others and antagonizing them. Between Dogan's remarks that Claire had turned evil AND her presence in the ash-circle cabin with Christian Shepherd (Smoke Monster) it is highly plausible, that Rousseau was in fact bad all along. In the season 4 episode entitled "Beginning of the End" she sides with John Locke's team, the consequences of which lead to the Oceanic Six leaving the island (which we obviously know is against Jacob's wishes, as he attempts to bring them back but does fit into Smoke's wishes of John Locke dying). Our automatic assumption that Rousseau was good and the Others were bad isn't necessarily the case and our point of view might need to be shifted to Others = good, Rousseau/Claire = infected and working with Smoke against the others.

Claire

• Perhaps we have it backwards...we're mistaking God for the Devil and the Devil for God; perhaps it is the "others" who are sick and not Claire. MIB said he was "disappointed" in all of the others. It just may be that he is the "good" guy and Jacob the "bad." The most evil character I can think of is Ben, who was following Jacob's orders. After sending Ben on his errands for so many years, Jacob doesn't show an ounce of love for Ben in the way a "God-like" or prophet character would. Also, MIB says to Richard Alpert that it's good to see him out of the "chains." Is Alpert Jacob's prisoner? Is that what Alpert meant when he said to MIB/LOCKE "I'm this way because of Jacob." Is the whole island a prisoner to Jacob? Has it and the "others" been "claimed" by an evil force (Jacob) and Rousseau and Claire forced to hide in order to remain unclaimed. Perhaps Claire left her baby and went into hiding in an effort to remain "unclaimed" (this assumes that the evil chooses/abides by rules about who to claim and it chose not/could not claim the baby).
  • I like your thinking, but maybe its not Jacob and MIB we have mixed up, maybe its Bens loyalty, the Others assume Ben has been taking Jacobs orders, but as we know, he has never seen or talked to Jacob, so how can he be taking orders from him? Maybe its MIB who Jacob has been following, without his knowledge, and the others have been doing MIBs work for him, assuming that they were really doing it for Ben/Jacob, not knowing that Ben has never talked to or seen Jacob.
    • I think to an extent Ben has done Jacob's work. The children abduction idea...all Jacob. The lists...all Jacob. The runway on Hydra Island that Kate and Sawyer were forced to help the Others build...which Ajira 316 landed on...all Jacob. Ben to an extent was given instructions from Richard who got them from Jacob and they were written on slips of paper. Jacob rarely gave instructions and would never meet with Ben. Ben was insecure because one he knew he didn't have a communion with Jacob and two he knew what steps he had to go to get rid of Charles Widmore. Carrying out Jacob's will gave Ben a inflated sense of self importance and entitlement. He spent the majority of his time trying to hold onto his power. He thought since he was the chosen one who lead the Others that gave him carte blanche to do whatever he wanted and in the back of his mind he knew he would have to deal with other people who threatened his primacy over the Others (Locke, Jack maybe even Walt). I don't think Ben was totally MiB's puppet. Both Jacob and the MiB used him for their own purposes. Once Ben started worrying more about holding onto his power than serving Jacob he was furthering MiB's goal. This is what happened to Charles too. He became more concerned about holding power than doing Jacob's will...he would pervert what Jacob's intentions were to satisfy his own agenda. This is the game that Jacob and MiB play. Give someone a bit of power and see what they do with it. Can they stay the course and do what Jacob demands or do they become corrupted? I think up until now MiB has won every round of the game. But the game keeps going. Jacob only has to be proven right once and then the game is over. MiB is tired of the game and wants to go home.

• Claire has become the "new" Rousseau (note the parallel- both of them arrived at the island pregnant, but had their baby taken from them). It was Claire who placed the dropped-rocks trap and the bear trap.
  • Claire's baby was not taken from her. She abandoned Aaron in the jungle.
    • Did she really abandon Aaron though? I don't think she willingly left him. She was being influenced by Christian, or MIB, or whoever he is. So in a sense she was possibly tricked into leaving him. This could be something that she realizes later, and prompts her to live like Rousseau, because her baby was in fact taken. Just in a less direct way than Alex was taken from Rousseau. Not exactly sure of the significance of their similarities yet but we'll see...
  • This may explain why she was in the Cabin with Christian, which, in turn, may prove that Smokey has some control over the 'infected', although he's probably not directly possessing them.
    • Dogan describes the infected as being deeply evil- which Rousseau was not. Perhaps neither Claire nor Rousseau were infected in the way Dogan suggested, but have merely gone a touch insane.
      • Deeply evil to Dogan might be something different though. It is still somewhat of a mystery as to who "good guys" and "bad guys" really are.
• Does this mean it's possible it was Rousseau who was infected, and not her team?
  • This would explain why they were trying to kill her, because she was developing the 'infection'.
  • At least one of Rousseau's team turned on her. This can be seen in the timeskip where Jin encounters the team.
  • I dont think so. We have no reason to believe that. She was willing and able to help the Losties against Ben, then later she helped against the freighter people. She seems able to make her own judgements. I think it is more likely her crew was infected, she was forced to kill them. This added to losing her child drove her a little crazy. Hence the jungle woman life.
  • If you remember watching the scene when Danielle kills her team, it's very clear that it is her team, and not her that is infected. Her own husband claims that she doesn't understand what the Smoke is and then proceeds to try and kill her. It's obvious that they have been infected by the Smoke while beneath the temple.
• Claire and Danielle were both infected.
  • Disagreed. There was no sign of Danielle's infection. She was just scared since her friends tried to shoot her and take her baby away. All the flashbacks, we have never seen Danielle getting in contact with MIB.
  • Claire will play the role intended for Danielle during season 6, before Mira Fulan choose to leave the show, as Danielle was never intended to die in season 4.
    • I don't think theories should ever have anything to do with casting decisions. It's really just irrelevant. We can only use what Darlton have given us, regardless of how they get to a particular place in the story.
• Claire is (as Sayid) dead and was "claimed" apparently from the MIB. Remember Season 4 final when the Merceneries blow up some of the Dharma houses, Claire "luckily survives" such an explosion and a few minutes later meets Miles: Claire says something like "Wow, we're lucky to be alive!" and Miles answers something like: "I wouldn't be too sure.". She already was dead and claimed (as Miles seemed to notice that something was different with Claire).
  • This seems like a stretch. There is really no good evidence to support this.
    • There was a scene right after she wakes up after being caught in the explosion where she asks whoever was sitting with her why her father was there. It doesn't seem random to me that she'd see Christian (aka MIB) right after that event if we're working under the seemingly safe assumption that every single time Christian has appeared on the island, it's been the MIB. Maybe someone else remembers the details of the scene better (or if it was a deleted scene), but she obviously saw Christian at that point.
  • Correction. When Claire woke up after the explosion, she was mistaken Sawyer for Charlie. She said "Charlie", when Sawyer tried to help her. Claire saw Christian when she woke up in the middle of the night. She noticed Christian holding her baby and that was when she said "dad".
  • Agreed. It's not a stretch to assume she is dead like everyone else who is "controlled" by MIB, because Claire is seen with Christian aka MIB in the Cabin. She is either controlled by him (which makes her dead) or tricked like Ben/Richard were.
    • I think its a stretch to say she died as early as was stated. She may be dead, and evidence of how this "claiming" works would make it possible. Remember though, if the French team was "sick", then it seems you do not have to be dead. I think Locke is the only one that is directly controlled by MIB. He is different, the only one where we see the body is still around. The others seem to be actually "sick" with this darkness. Not actually possessed but as you say tricked or maybe even brainwashed some how.
      • It seemed that when the French team was undertaken with the "sickness", that they were killed before being taken over by someone/something.
• Aaron is a talisman against the darkness. Claire "must raise him" for her own protection (not his). When Christian lured her away from Aaron she became vulnerable to MIB's "infection". The vision that Kate saw off-island was MIB's attempt to keep Claire and Aaron separated. Alex served as Danielle's talisman in the same way; the kidnapping was due to MIB's manipulation of Ben to make Danielle vulnerable. MIB is causing all the pregnancy deaths to remove the mother-child shields of protection.
  • Alex was taken because Ben made a crack decision to take the child and not kill Danielle, which was a plan that Whidmore devsied. At that point Whidmore was taking direct orders from Jacob, not MIB.
• Perhaps the drugs that Ethan was providing to Claire in season 2 acted as a precursor for the "sickness." The medical team was experimenting at that point and the outcome of the medications might have been unknown. Or perhaps giving birth on the island could have potentially caused her to start going a little nutty and left her susceptible to the sickness as well.

Alternate Claire and Alt Timeline

• Claire had been in contact with the LA adoptive parents, since she expressed frustration at Lindsay not calling her before the trip from Australia to call off the adoption. In the original timeline, the psychic had arranged the adoption and only told Claire about it the day before the flight took off on 9/22/04.
• Based on the ultrasound date, in the Alt Timeline Oceanic 815 took off in October, not September. This pushes around a number of previously established times things happened, such as Christian Shepherd's death and Sayid burying his friend.
• "LA X" was not a typo. It referred to the parallel timeline. I doubt the date was just a mistake, seeing as so many people noticed it. Were we ever told when the sideways flight actually took off? Are we just assuming it was Sept. 22?
• There's no way the date is a typo. A member of the production crew or prop guy was assigned to make that speficially with details on exactly what should be on it.
• The date on the ultrasound could merely be the estimated date she is due (some ultrasounds provide a due date based on the measurements of the baby).
• I bet this is the right answer. Claire says that she is 36 weeks, pregnancy lasts 40 weeks. The ultra-sound says "D: 10-22-2004". I'd bet D means "due".
  • Claire didn't say that, Ethan did. He walked in an seemed to know an awful lot about her....didn't Kate just pull him in from the hall? He didn't do an exam, either.
• There is no way this is the due date because it is immediately below the exact time the ultrasound was taken. There is no point in having the time of day if you don't know the actual date - or had to guess at it from the size of the baby on the picture and the supposed due date. No, the one month time jump is deliberate and yet to be explained.
• If the Island is pulling Ethan and Kate toward Claire because Ethan examined Claire in the Island timeline and Kate helped deliver her baby, will Jin and Sawyer also end up at the hospital? (Jin was with Claire and Kate when Claire went into labor and Season 5 Sawyer peeked through the trees and saw Kate with Claire in labor during one of the flashes.)

Combating "The Darkness”

• Dogen gives Jack a pill to give to Sayid, which he later confesses is to get rid of the "darkness" and is actually poison. When Ben and the Others used a poison gas attack on the Dharma compound during The Purge, they were actually preventing the "darkness" from spreading to the rest of the island, as the "darkness" had already claimed the Dharma encampment.
  • Also, Daniel and Charlotte prevented a large amount of poison gas from being released by Ben at The Tempest. Perhaps Ben had anticipated that the "darkness" had already spread to some of the inhabitants of the island or had been carried over by the science team.
• The reference to being 'infected' was suggested to be an imperfect translation of Dogen's words in Japanese. Perhaps the Darkness is some sort of inside knowledge about the island that gradually manifests itself within the person's mind causing them to act "strangely". Once this knowledge is revealed to the audience, the behavior of those that are "infected" will not seem so strange. For example, the behavior of the Others in Seasons 1 and 2 seemed very "strange" to the audience, but to them it was perfectly rational once their backstory was (slowly) uncovered.
  • Regarding Sayid, in that scene Dogen says in Japanese "kegasareta" (汚された). The addition of the sareta implies it was done by an outsider, like he was forced to do it. The statement kegasareta is from the verb kegasu (汚す), which means "to pollute" or "to contaminate."
  • In the later scene when Dogen is speaking about Claire, he uses the verb "miserareru" (魅せられる) which means something like "become enchanted" / "become bewitched" in English. This phrase, as the translator said, doesn't have a clear definition in English.
    • The definition is slightly vague, refering to a powerful influence over someone, the best word to discribe "misuru" is charming; "[The] possessing or using or characteristic of or appropriate to supernatural powers".
  • It seems that the translations are vague in a few cases, possibly intentionally. Based on context, I'd expect to call Sayid "possessed", not infected. I was surprised the translator, a native English speaker and presumably clued in to what's really going on, didn't select this word.
    • I got the impression Lennon was deliberately avoiding the word "possessed" because they know it will provoke an incredulous reaction from Jack. Thus he is trying to use something that sounds more "medical".

Something in the water?

• Dogen and Lennon noted that the spring in the Temple was cloudy, not clear like it normally was. When Sayid was put in the spring and died instead of being healed, he came back to life supposedly infected by the "darkness". Perhaps Smokey has contaminated the ground water supply of the island. Jin was about to take a drink from the stream and was abruptly stopped by the Others. Even though it was to find out what happened to Kate, they may have saved him from being contaminated as well.
  • Earlier in the episode Jack asked Miles to get water, which Jack is seen drinking later on; Kate has also been seen drinking in this episode. Seems unlikely that pretty much everyone is going to get infected by drinking the water on the island.
    • In the beginning of the episode, Aldo actually brings Kate the canteen that she's later seen drinking from. At the end of the episode, they make a point of showing Kate filling her canteen with water from a spigot in Dharmaville.
  • Recall that Dogen himself placed his cut hand in the water to test its healing powers. If the Others thought the water might be contaminated, Dogen would never have done that.
• Smokey is actually the good guy and is trying to protect the losties and defeat Jacob who has continually manipulated situations on this show.
  • This is far from certain, but it's worth considering. Though it generally seems to be assumed that Jacob is "good" and the MIB is "bad" there is really no reason to assume this. Indeed, the show's creators might be playing directly into this assumption. Without knowing anything about Jacob and MIB's actual goals or intentions, it is impossible to assess whether either of them is "good" or "bad" at all.
• The contrast between clear and murky water is an extension of the white and black symbolism associated with Jacob and his Nemesis.
  • Now that Jacob is dead, his Nemesis has control over the springs, and therefore was able to "infect" Sayid.
• At the end of the episode you can see that Dogen offers boiled water to Jack (tea) , It is that boiling water prevents them from getting infected?
• The water became murky immediately after Jacob's death.

Rousseau

Rousseau has been dead for years, every appearance of Rousseau since 815 crashed has been the Smoke Monster.

• Rousseau is shot, killed, and buried by the mercenaries from the freighter. The Monster can't be hurt by bullets.
  • The reason the Others with Kate and Jin state Rousseau had been "dead for years" is because she has indeed been dead since late 2004 (at least 3 years), not because they mean she was dead years before the Losties arrived.
    • • It is also possible, that many of the others believe that Ben shot, and killed Rousseau when he snatched Alex in 1988. After all he fired a false shot in the sand, misleading young Ethan who was sitting outside, and told her to stay away.

• • Going along with that, it appears Rousseau was eventually 'infected' since we know Claire is 'infected' and she bears a striking likeness to Rousseau (traps, strange looking, etc.), albeit we have only seen her for a few seconds.
  • Can't possibly be right- we've seen Rousseau and the Smoke Monster at the same time (near the sonic fence).
    • That's assuming Smokey can only take one form -- for all we know, he is really inhabiting Locke but at the same time can spread 'badness' into others, not controlling their actions directly but effecting them mentally. We've seen no proof that the MIB was using Rousseau for his own intentions, whereas he is actually using Locke's body for his own means. Presumably he can inhabit the dead but can effect the living.
• Alex really was Ben's adopted daughter, he took her in after the real Rousseau had died.
• She was no way Smoke Monster, Danielle was shot killed and buried after Keamy's attack in season 4 agreed. But it is true we haven't seen any events from Danielle between when Ben Alex away from her right until she captures Sayid.
• No. Rousseau was shot and killed by Keamy's team three years ago...hence, she has been dead for years. There is no secret meaning or conspiracy here.
• Rousseau never was infected, she just went insane over having to shoot her entire crew, her baby being kidnapped, etc. Claire only bears resemblance to Rousseau because she has had to live on her own for 3 years, so she has learnt some survival skills. Claire is still infected and 'serves' for the Black Monster now.
  • There have been numerous episodes where Rousseau have accused someone (e.g. Sayid in Season 1) that they are infected, so it would be unusual if she was aware that she was infected too. 'Infected' people also tend to show little emotion for their actions (e.g. The French crew, Claire in the cabin with Christian) however Rousseau has shown a lot of emotion over the years, her love for her daughter being one of them.
  • agree: There really seems to be no way that Rousseau was smoky. Evidence does not support it.
  • They were both infected. When we've seen Claire with Christian in the cabin, she was alright with missing Aaron and whatsoever. She hasn't looked alike Danielle at all. The only thing that can fight the infection are motherhood feelings (Harry Potter, anyone?). At first Claire was OK with joining Christian, but then she started to miss Aaron, freeing herself from "the darkness". Danielle was carring about her child all the way through it.
• One point to remember, which makes this confusing. Rousseau was shot and killed in 2004. When Ajira Flight 316 crashed on the island it was the year 2007. When the losties who were stuck back in 1977 detonated the bomb they were sent to 2007 (which is where they are right now in season 6) and not to 2004. So this makes Rousseau's death a few years ago. I think that Claire had made the traps and that is what Aldo was afraid that Justin might have eventually revealed if he would have kept talking.

The Mechanic (What Kate Does)

• The taxi driver, the two nurses, and the cop were all listed in the credits. The mechanic was played by Jeff Kober (imdb page), but he was not listed in the credits. Previously, they deliberately left Marvin Candle/Pierre Chang from the credits in Orientation. The mechanic will prove to be an important/recurring character with connections to other Lost characters.
  • This is a big stretch. Following your logic, every side-character who was not listed in the credits will potentially have a big role. That really isn't enough to assume that. However, there were more unlisted characters who did NOT reappear in this show as the opposite.
    • Though the writers do love playing with their narrative devices. It wouldn't surprise me if he appeared later in the island timeline. So far in the alternate timeline all we are seeing are people we are familiar with, but wouldn't the alternate timeline be a fantastic way to introduce a new character to the island timeline?
    • The point is that they do usually credit speaking characters like that. You have to be pretty insignificant not to get credited. (Or pretty significant, in the case of Marvin Candle.) They credited woman in bathroom in the last episode, which is the only role that woman has ever played. If a glorified extra like that gets a credit, why not a much more central character played by an experienced actor? There has to be some reason.
    • In general, when an actor has a role with as many lines as he had, the producers would be contractually obligated to mention him or her in the credits. To be left out, the actor would have to agree for some reason.
    • Speaking part = credit. So it is odd that he doesn't get credit - especially since he has such a strong on screen presence. How does Kate come across this mechanic. She does seem to know this part of LA. Why is he so willing to help a fugitive.

• The mechanics shades and the zoom in on his face emphasize his unusual eye color; he has Kates eyes, he's her biological father.
• He did have an unusual amount of lines for a side character and he seemed relatively cool under pressure, maybe because he didn't feel threatened by Kate. Likely just a side character, but definitely a chance he shows up on the island later.
• Ethan was at the hospital when Claire and Kate arrived. He was at the right place at the right time--probably not a coincidence. Other characters that we are just now meeting may also be in the right places at the right time--this mechanic could be another "other" in this timeline.
• The mechanic bears a strong resemblance to the figure in Jacob's cabin in The Man Behind the Curtain. That figure is obviously not Jacob nor MIB (nor anyone else). We will see this character in future episodes.
• Just like Jacob had Richard Alpert as a slave/helper , MIB has one too, this might be the man in the cabin that looks like the mechanic.

Ethan and crossed Timelines

Ethan = Ethan Goodspeed. In the original version, Ethan's parents were Amy & Horace, but she only married Horace after the Hostiles had killed off Amy's husband Paul, Amy being rescued by Sawyer and Juliet. Unless we are going to get a second bout of time travel, in which Sawyer and Juliet return to 1974 and rescue Amy again (unlikely as the producers have said the time travel season is over) then

• (a) This is probably the first indication that this timeline is the one which occurs POST 'incident', and Ethan is there as a result of being evacuated from the island, either on the sub, or in some other way. However, the Miles and Charlotte who arrived at the island on the freighter were both evacuated from the island just before the incident. We would therefore expect that the timeline that has Ethan working in the hospital (and not dead) should have a Miles and Charlotte also (even possibly a Faraday). Given that these two were recruited by Widmore to go to the island, should we not expect that to occur in this timeline also? (Would these be the same Miles, Charlotte and Faraday who arrived on the island in the original timeline?)
• (b) If this is not the case, and Ethan was born on the mainland, then this means that this alternative timeline has been in existence since at least the time of Ethan's conception and probably earlier. This means that the timeline was created prior to the incident (since Juliet helped to deliver Ethan first time around). In other words, if this is the case, the incident had nothing to do with the creation of this new timeline.
• Ethan and Amy were evacuated to the mainland along with Mrs. Chang, Miles, Charlotte and her family and the rest. When Jughead went off, Ethan never returned and was raised there like Charlotte and Miles with little to no memory of having been there. With the island at the bottom of the ocean, there was nothing to cause Ethan to join the Others as a young man or to change his name. Because he was still the same person with the same talents, skills and interests he became an OB/GYN in both timelines.
  • I agree, but the problem with that is: if we assume (and we now kinda have to) that the first time around in 77, when "the incident" (hitting the pocket of electromagnetic energy at the swan and everything collapsing) happened without the interference of our losties - because that time around the island didn't go kaboom and then probably (we don't know yet) somehow ended up on the floor of the ocean. it's your typical paradox, and it simply hurts everytime i think about it (damn you, time travel!).
  • What you say is accurate - except for the paradox. There have been two timelines created with the detonation of Jughead. One (in which all the Losties we've been watching for 5 years) inhabit where the nuke didn't affect the timeline, and one where it did. Where Jack, Kate, Sayid et al are now is the same timeline where Ethan was shot by Charlie, and Aldo was fooled by Kate and Sawyer with the Wookiee trick - just three years later. In that one Ethan was taken away and brought back, to eventually join the Others. In the Alt timeline, he was never brought back because the island sank.
• Ethan could also be born of the island to the same Amy and Horace (we did see Horace in Portland). In this case it is possible that Amy was never maried to Paul, therefore Ethan had no choice of his last name.
• When Dr Ethan visits Claire on alternate reality, he knows Aaron's name, Maybe he's still coming from the old Lostie reality or maybe he has some kind of intuition.

"Whatever happened, happened"

• The events in the show still coincide with "whatever happened, happened". Even though the bomb went off, and the Losties went back to 2007, all the things they had accomplished still occurred (at least in this "main timeline"). This is known by the fact that when Sawyer goes back to the Dharma village everything is still wrecked ala the smoke monster when it destroyed all the people from the freightor AND the fact that the things Sawyer had burried in his house were still there. So his life with Juliet did still occur back in 1977. Daniel was wrong, the bomb didnt change anything. The true "Reset" has not occurred yet, and will be a result of what happens with the survivors who are currently at the temple and with Flock/MIB. This "true reset" is what will lead to what we are seeing as an alternate timeline back in 2004.

• Additionally it makes sense now that Ben really did not have any idea that the Losties at one time existed in 1977, because at the time of the "incident" the people who didn't belong there went back to 2007. At the point in time in which the incident occurred Ben was taken away to the temple to be resurrected, and may not have met Jack, Kate, Etc. enough times to really remember them later on when they arrived via flight 815 in 2004.
• Other events in the show that support this are the way the Losties have interacted with one another in the new alternate timeline; Jack recognizes Desmond, Locke and Jack share a moment that seems to go a little deeper than a chance encounter, and now Kate gets a weird feeling when she hears the name Aaron. The events on the island still did occur to the people in the alternate timeline, they just need their memories jogged a little before they get all of their memories back.
  • I don't think that may be the case, Kate could have easily had her reaction because Claire was just about to make an adoption official, but suddenly names the baby. Locke and Jack share their moment when Jack says that nothing is irreversable, and Jack also has an awkward moment because a stranger is coming toward the open seat that had been open the entire flight. Except for Jack and Desmond's moment, both of the others would be perfectly acceptable for the awkwardness that followed.
    • Jack and Desmond met back on the track before Desmond left for his sailing race, which explains them recognizing each other on the plane.

• But in this new timeline it would not make sense for Desmond to leave for the sailing race. Right? Would he be on the plane coming from Australia? We don't know if they still met on the track.

• There is no reason Desmond wouldn't have left for the sailing race; however, judging by the differences in the timelines (Hurley's in particular), we can assume he completed it, was doing it for fun rather than proving a point, or any number of possiblilities.

• Kate also had a moment in the cab when she saw Jack outside.
• It would be possible to have all these reactions for no specific reason, but for the sake of the show it wouldnt make sense for these reactions to be pointed out so clearly. This alternate 2004 timeline is in someway connected DIRECTLY to the existing timeline in which flight 815 crashed.

Sayid Failed the Witch Hunt Test

• It doesn't appear that Sayid acted any differently than anyone else would have during his torture at the hands of Dogan.
  • Perhaps ‘’not yet.’’ He is probably succumbing into the “infection” that “claimed” him.
  • The test was to see if Sayid was either Jacob or MIB. Since he reacted like a normal human, he 'failed' the test.
    • It was clearly stated that the test was to see if Sayid was 'infected' or 'claimed' not inhabited by MIB or Jacob. He either failed because they noticed something the viewer wasn't shown, or because they are on a witch hunt.
  • Sayid was a Republican Guard and a torturer to many himself. The fact that he acted so much like anyone else would have when being tortured feels wrong. Sayid would definitely have been well equipped to deal with torture without immediately begging for his life.
    • Being tortured may have been a test to see if Sayid's position on destiny/fate vs. free will. By asking "why are you torturing me?" he is implying that he was not accountable for his prior actions (e.g., he was destined to be a torturer) -- a response consistent with MIB's philosophy. Accepting torture without comment would indicate accepting personal responsibility for past choices he had made (consistent with Jacob's belief in free will).
    • Why do you say this? Do you remember when Sayid was captured by one of his former victims and tortured? Or even earlier when he was captured by Rousseau? Sayid's behavior in this episode doesn't contradict any prior reactions.
      • It's not important if there is any contradiction to the past. They only have to know the fact that he was a torturer. That's enough for Dogan and Lennon to assume that he is acting like someone else. And yes, Sayid did act different. There was never a scene like this where he seemed so helpless and despaired. Hours ago he accepted dying. Now he is confused like a child.
        • Sayid didn't feel that he had any information to give up. Also remember that Sayid has evolved somewhat as a character over the years. He has lost the one he loves, and had a brush with death. He might not be as cold and hard as he used to be.
• Dogan and the others are witch hunters who poison people they think don't pass the test (the DI being a good example).
  • Medieval witch hunts were senseless to the victims since either way they would die (by drowning or burning).
• Dogan blows what I suspect is metallic dust across sayid then shocks him. I think there is a special electromagnetic property associated with claimed or infected people and these first two actions are diagnostic as stated and then the branding is a symbolic 'marking'.
  • I doubt it, but could the marking Sayid received be any relation to "Juliet's Mark" that she received in "Stranger in a Strange Land"?
  • Perhaps a non-infected person would have interacted with the metallic dust in some other way? What would happen if electricity moves through metallic dust?
  • I thought that the dust Dogen blew over Sayid was the same ash that they use to protect themselves from the Monster/MIB. Maybe the Monster is made up of people who are infected/claimed/possessed?
    • This is an interesting thought- similar to the demon Legion from the New Testament that is made up of many demons. Perhaps the smoke monster wants to 'go home' meaning the souls want rest.
      • I would like to expand on two points. The use of the powder (which I believe to be the same substance used to repel the monster) is of the utmost importance here. We know for sure that two things can stop the monster: the grey powder/ash and the sonic/electromagnetic/microwave (still not clear on that one) Dharma fence. I believe Sayid was indeed submitted to a test: Dogen used a combination of electricity and that (very likely magnetised) powder to determine if Sayid was in contact (I’m not going to speculate about possession here) with the Smoke Monster. Also, did you notice how gently Dogen cranked his little generator? Sayid’s reaction seemed out of proportion with the brief, possibly low-voltage shock he received. That could mean one of two things: either the powder amplified the shock or his reaction to the treatment means that he was indeed “infected” by the monster.
• With how shallow those needles went and how small they were it seemed almost like acupuncture of some sort, which is often combined with electricity. In a healthy person, this would reduce pain and restore balance to the body. Sayid is now no longer in "balance" and therefore is harmed when the needles apply the shock.
• Although only remotely related - there's an uncanny similarity between how Sayid drowned then returned to life and how Charlotte Malkin drowned and then returned to life in Eko's flashback? - She even states that she saw and spoke with Yemi while 'between places', (she also mentions John Locke, whom she didn't know) - which would be Eko's reason for being in Australia and also his reason for being on the flight which crashed on the same island his brothers corpse was on - all MIB's handywork in setting up his little loophole? Was Charlotte claimed in the same manner in which Sayid was? Interesting similarity at least, though most could be due to Eko originally being the MIB but leaving the show before that could happen, so it could've been the original begining of the loophole groundwork.

Lindsey Baskum

• Lindsey Baskum will probably factor into the rest of the season in a major way. Her identity has been shrouded in mystery ever since Claire's first flashback, and her appearance in this episode was decidedly unsatisfying. Nearly every character from Claire's story has proved important (Richard Malkin played a role in Eko's story, Claire's boyfriend's artwork appeared in Widmore's office, her mother showed up at Christian's funeral and ended up adopting Aaron). If this woman was handpicked by Malkin as being fit to raise Aaron, there HAS to be more going on with her.
  • I'm pretty sure it's been confirmed that the painting in Widmore's office was just a re-used prop and nothing else. And whilst I agree with this theory I get the impression that Jack and Kate were always meant to be the couple who raised Aaron; the 'couple in L.A'. By the way Kate and Jack reacted when they saw each other in the airport car-park, I think we'll definitely end up seeing them together again by some coincidence, though whether they'll end up together or not.
    • The above theory is actually a great idea, but I have always had the feeling that Kate did not love Jack the way that he loved her... or the way she loved Sawyer. Obviously they were married for 3 years, but it still never seemed like an ever lasting love type of relationship. It seemed more of a relationship of convenience more than than anything.
      • Umm, Jack and Kate were never married, let alone for three years. Jack asks Kate to marry him, yes, but their relationship falls apart.
• At this point, we're not certain that's the same family that was picked by Malkin in the original timeline. But it appears likely that it is. What happened to her husband to leave her may be a changed detail in the new timeline.
  • It's possible that the family Malkin "picked" was irrelevant, and that his only intention was that she crash on the island.
    • Agreed. I was surprised to see that this "good couple" even existed.
      • They might not exist in the other timeline, but in this "new" timeline, the island doesn't exist so he couldn't have wanted her to crash on it.

Kate innocent?

• Clearly she could just be lying to justify her actions, or perhaphs she really was just wrongly accused in this timeline. This change of course in the alternative timeline might have been triggered by her relationship with Tom Brennan being pertubed following the theft incident, in which Jacob was not there to bail her out.
• Kate is innocent in this timeline. When talking with the mechanic, she says, "I'm wanted for murder." Not that she murdered anyone.
  • Kate also seemed very sincere when she asked Claire if she would believe that she was innocent. It is unlikely she would have asked this question of a complete stranger with nothing to gain.
    • It seemed more that Kate was pained talking to Claire, not wanting this girl to fear her because of what she did.