TV Watch: Lost - Whatever Happened, Happened

A good, solid episode and probably my favorite Kate episode for some time. It feels like the show has gotten the hang of both time-travel-as-plot-device and flashbacks-as-plot-device, and they can even juggle them at the same time. Leaving the gaps before the flight back makes it pretty easy to know where they're trying to fill in the story, and the show doesn't feel like it's fishing-with-Jack-in-Singapore for more material.

I loved Hurley debating with Miles, although the explanation that becoming an Other requires some kind of a memory wipe felt a bit forced - but whatever, at least they're acknowledging something the fans have been questioning all season long. Although having Miles explain the time travel just reinforces the question of where Faraday went.

And I guess now we can get back to asking about Claire as well.

That Jack is the most direct impetus for Ben becoming, well, Ben is the real moral to the story (although we can also thank Sayid, Kate, Sawyer, etc.). Ben getting othered seems like a specific moment for DHARMA, but I'm curious as to what's next. Swan hasn't been built yet, the Purge is years away, and Locke is still way off in the future. It would be interesting to see the Losties use DHARMA to investigate the island better, things like the Frozen Donkey Wheel, etc., but it's difficult to tell even how much DHARMA knows at the moment.

When Alpert tells Kate and Sawyer that to save Ben, he'll "lose his innocence" in the process, The Girl openly asked what that really meant - and I have to say I have no real good answer. Interestingly, we know Ben, unlike Richard, will still age (unless he comes out of the temple an adult - which I guess explains the phrase).

We also know, from the quick sidebar by red shirt Other #4 that Widmore is still in connection with the island.

All good stuff, looking forward to next week.