THE GUARDIAN

In an attempt to flow chart the complex relationships to formulate a set of rules, the above graphic is a representation of the white, black and gray character elements. Crazy Mother is both good and bad (gray). She brought the island visitors much like Jacob did, but her purpose is clouded but may be the same as Jacobs; she was tired of being the guardian.  The red lines show the pattern of killing done by the god-like immortals. For all the "rules," it is apparent that Crazy Mother could kill directly (Claudia and the other island villagers). MIB directly killed Crazy Mother (it is debatable whether there was some rule broken in MIB's rage). Jacob then killed MIB by throwing his body into the light cave (whether one calls it direct or indirect the result is the same).  But in the next centuries, it is apparent that MIB continued to kill visitors as the smoke monster. However, one slight change occurred that altered the cycle of killing: it appears that island followers and candidates killed off each other at times. But in the final cycle, a "candidate" killed both Jacob (Linus) and MIB (Kate). Had that ever happened before?

Was the key to MIB's loophole the fact that if he got a candidate to "kill" Jacob, he would regain his humanity (mortality)? And was Jacob's ultimate demise conditioned upon a candidate killing MIB? It would seem so. Crazy Mom's demise was at the hands of one of her "candidates" to replace her.

So what is the significance of both Jacob and MIB being killed by candidates on the island? One could consider that just like the stone cork in the light cave, Jacob and MIB were the symbolic cork that closed the nexus or portal to the character's sideways world.

It would seem to be a simpleton "eye for an eye" loophole. But it had to be difficult to organize and pull off. For Jacob kept himself secreted in the statue or the mystery cabin. He had intermediaries who would keep "candidates" at bay until MIB manipulated them to "follow" him. And once chaos reigned in the island hierarchy, Jacob had to make himself seen among the followers. That left him open to attack.

For what is the portal to our original 815 characters. For those in "everybody was dead" camp, an explanation. Jack's eye was closed at the beginning of the series. What does not truly mean? Why did he land far away from his plane section (Rose was right next to him)? If we look internally for symmetry, when Jack closed his eye in the finale it meant that the was dead. The loop had come back around. If a closed eye represents death, then Jack was dead in the crash. If an eye opening represents "awakening" or "rebirth" then Jack's eye opening in the pilot meant that part of him was reborn on the island (his body) while his soul went on to help create the sideways world. The sideways world had to have been created when everyone was together - - - possibly during the electromagnetic blast that took down the plane. It would explain why there are parallels between the two places. But there was a barrier between the reincarnated on the island and the souls in the sideways plane of existence. That barrier was the island and its guardian, who had the power to manipulate time and space, in order to release himself from the eternal prison of the island.

In one respect, the island also served as a prison for the 815 characters. Part of them were trapped in the island drama for no apparent reason except to free Jacob and MIB from their servitude to some unknown higher deity. Perhaps, with Jacob and MIB's island deaths, they would be awakened in their own parallel sideways world that their real mother created for them.