BEN'S MANTRA

Ben's story could have been the most profound change. The character was not supposed to last more than two or three episodes, but the intense evil brought to the screen kept Ben in the series to the very end. From filler arc to full time character, that was the shifting sands of the LOST story line.

The writers were themselves lost in how to keep a critical darling of daring story telling sharp and new episode to episode. In various hits and misses (see, Nikki and Paulo), Ben captured the real danger of a mad man against the basically naive and overconfident surviviors.

As an adult, Ben sought power and control because those things were never a part of his childhood. He became so obsessed with changing his depressing, measly little life that he snapped and committed mass homicide in order to become the leader of the Others.

How can a shy, innocent boy turn into a mass murderer? Then why could many viewers be drawn into his character so much to call him their favorite?

Ben was extremely possessive of the objects, information and people around him. You can see a god-like demeanor in his thought processes, much like a Sim City game player has the god-like authority to build or destroy his town and people at will.

Since Ben did not have a great childhood, he wanted the things normal children had like possessions, objects, toys and adventures. So as an adult, those lost events wormed their way into his dark mind. Instead of material toys, he collected people to do his bidding. If he wanted a fertility specialist like Juliet, he would kidnap her. If he needed a spinal surgeon, he would bribe, manipulate and torture people to get cooperation. Everything around him was his to do what he liked . . . that was Ben's world view.

But at the same time, he pledged some sort of alliance with Jacob, the island master. But we don't think Ben ever saw or spoke to Jacob during Ben's leadership of the Others. We believe that he only got the information from Alpert, and took the myth and manipulated the Others to follow him. He controlled the natives by claiming to be the word of Jacob, when in fact, that was probably a lie.

It was only when Ben actually met Jacob with Flocke, that Ben broke down and his anger swelled enough to kill Jacob with a magic knife. As such, it doomed Ben to his own island damnation until out of pity, he was spared his own death.

Whether that single act of kindness which he never had during his life "changed" Ben to really become "one of the good guys" is not absolutely clear, but he did move the side to allow Jack and Hurley to take the position he most coveted - - - island guardian. Since he could never control the one thing he desired his entire life, the island, Ben at some point was at peace. It did not make up for all the bad things he did in his life, but at least now he realized the errors of his ways. Errors that would never be punished, even in the sideways after life.

LOCK STEP TO FATE

Expecting life to treat you well because you are a good person is like expecting an angry bull not to charge because you are a vegetarian. — Shari R. Barr

Many of the characters could have considered having a trying childhood or a "hard life."

But very few understood their predicament in order to change their future.

The classic example of this was John Locke.

Things he could not control:

1. Abandoned by father
2. Crazy mother giving him up to foster homes
3. Being bounced from foster parent to foster parent.

Things he could control:

1. Doing well in school, especially in math and science.
2. His attitude towards making friends.
3. His temper.
4. How he handled his relationships.
5. Making obtainable goals.

In LOST, Locke was more resigned to his fate than making things better through his own determination. Fate is the development of events beyond a person's control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power. Locke believed that his fate decided his course for him, from his parental abandoment to subsequent serious injury as a cruel twist of fate.

Yet, the only fate common to everyone is the inescapable death of a person. In Locke's case, it could have been many deaths. A little part of him died when he was old enough to realize that his parents did not want him. A little part of him died when he met his crazy mother who must have put the impression that he was "special" in his mind (a mild that may have become self-delusional). A little part of him died when he put unattainable goals in the early stages of his high school years. He wanted to be a popular jock and not a nerdy science kid. He fell into the trap of popularity as being more important than lifetime skills. He desperately wanted to be liked by other people; but he came off cold and distant. The result was that he turned inward, in his own shell. He abandoned what other people told him, and fell into a personal rut of meaningless jobs and spurts of self-discovery which always ended badly.

Locke was lost from an early age. He never got to the point of accepting his lot in life to make an assertive change in direction. If the supernatural situation which he fell into, the plane crash and the island, was a second chance to change his behavioral anchors, Locke failed at the task. Initially, he was assertive but then was spurned. People liked Jack better than him. It was high school all over again. He had important skills that were diminished by Jack's better skills. This is why Locke resigned himself to accept things that would happen to him. He believed in fate, that his life was predetermined to be bad.

And it was. He was bitter. He was naive. He was trusting. He was bad at decision making. His analytical skills led to the mistake with the Hatch lockdown. He could not convince people to his way of thinking. He allowed other people to control him or use him like a pawn. Even in death, he was a puppet called Flocke.

There was once a line that said "don't confuse coincidence with fate."  In Locke's case, he did. Even in the fantasy world after death, for no apparent reason he could not move on with Helen, who was his partner in that world. Why? He destroyed his personal relationship with her off-island by being obsessed with his father's betrayal. In the sideways world, it was the exact opposite. His father was an invalid. He was with Helen. Was that all pure fantasy? He had no bonds to keep Helen in the sideways world church? If not, why did he accept that loneliness when Ben chose to keep working on his relationship issues. Or did it really matter at all? The dream is not reality. It only makes sense if one erases the sideways story lines. Locke's fate was to die alone, over and over again.

11 WORDS

I re-read a couple of posts from 2010 in regard to the "legacy of LOST."  One had the positive outlook that LOST would spur on more "intellectual" science-fiction-fantasy shows, which are risker to produce but more rewarding to an audience if done well. The other one had a negative view because the ending of the series so was disjointed in the "banal" non-denominational church to the events on the island to be a major fail.

How did LOST wind up at two extremes in viewpoints from the same ending?

Was it like the critical poster thought that LOST had so many intertwined elements that the show could have been the greatest of all time if those main story features were central to the ending of the show. The last episodes negated the five years of previous loyal devotion to unraveling the mysteries, answering the questions, or speculating on future events. Character development is a great ideal, but characters can only ride the wave of good story telling in order to be great characters.

So was LOST's plot, premise and story tangents so random as to make the average viewer head scratch?

I devised a simple experiment. I would go to the web to find 11 random words to see if the results matched the LOST story, themes, plots or premise cues. Yes, this sounds like the old joke that you can fill a room with monkeys banging out letters on typewriters and get a movie script in the end.

So without comment, here are the results of the random word experiment:

vituperate
Blame or insult (someone) in strong or violent language

orotund
(of the voice or phrasing) Full, round, and imposing.
(of writing, style, or expression) Pompous; pretentious

averred
State or assert to be the case: "he averred that he was innocent of the allegations".
Allege as a fact in support of a plea

opined
Hold and state as one's opinion: ""The man is a genius," he opined".

radiance
Light or heat as emitted or reflected by something: "the radiance of the sunset".
Great joy or love, apparent in someone's expression or bearing

hieroglyphic
Writing consisting of hieroglyphs

august
Respected and impressive: "she was in august company".

exigencies
An urgent need or demand

conflagration
An extensive fire that destroys a great deal of land or property

squatted
Crouch or sit with knees bent and heels close to or touching the buttocks or the back of thighs: "I squatted down in front of him".
Crouch down in such a way and rise again while holding (a specified weight) at one's shoulders: "he can squat 850 pounds".

squall
A sudden violent gust of wind or a localized storm, esp. one bringing rain, snow, or sleet.
Verb:
(of a baby or small child) Cry noisily and continuously

LEADERSHIP

"Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower" - - - Steve Jobs

The Apple Computer co-founder was also fond of saying that he did not believe in focus groups where consumers would tell companies what features they wanted in their electronic products. Jobs was insistent that he would tell them what consumers wanted before they knew they wanted it.

Being light years ahead of the curve is one thing, but understanding the dynamic of interpersonal skills is another. As a brash, combative and anal-retentive boss, Jobs had his employees both fearing and worshipping him because of his innovation push towards continued excellence.

The theme of leadership was prominent in the LOST series. It was something that a few characters sought as the ultimate goal in their lives: Widmore, Ben, Locke. A few characters never wanted the role of leader put upon them: Jack, Sawyer, Hurley.  In many respects, the various island story arcs were variations of the child's game of follow the leader.

The pinnacle of leadership would be a devote following. Jacob was a cult figure to the Others, even though few, if any of his followers actually met him. The closest encounter we have is Dogen's back story, when he said he met a man who could save his son from terrible injuries, but it would cost the father (Dogen) a life of service to the island at the Temple. Dogen accepted his punishment for his actions and became a high priest for Jacob's vague vision of the balance between light and dark forces.

But Jacob kept in the shadows. He was a loner. He did not need the adoration of people in his presence. It appears the humans brought to the island were treated more like intellectual pawns in his thesis game with MIB. At some point, a leader needs an emotional connection with his people in order to lead them to the right way.

Widmore was once a co-leader of the Others, but he was banished from the island for allegedly having an off-island child. As a result of his banishment, Widmore spent his entire lifetime trying to return to the island and seek vengeance against Ben and his followers. Widmore's great leadership was purely based on the power of money. He had a lot of it; and he used his wealth to create an army of mercenaries. Those people were only connected by the promise of personal wealth and not of greater purpose.

Ben also ruled with an iron fist. His followers were mostly fearful of his wrath. He used mental manipulation to hold his followers on their paths instead of voluntary devotion to his cause.  Once Ben assumed leadership of the Others, he really had no great vision of what to do next. He started to do side projects like fertility studies which the native hostiles, including Alpert, found disconcerting and not within the framework of the island's purpose.

Locke's tenure as a leader was short. He desperately wanted to be treated and respected like a leader. But most people considered him a fool. When Locke became a leader, it was because the group had come to a crossroads. He got his small band of followers because he promised hope when Jack was still stressing practical necessities of survival.

Jack was thrust into a leadership role based upon his outward skill set as a doctor. People respect a doctor who has special knowledge and skills to help heal people in the time of need. The crash survivors naturally migrated toward the doctor for comfort and advice. Jack's quiet acceptance of his role helped solidify his position as beach camp leader.

But at the same time, Jack did not innovate or create a grand vision for the survivors to follow. Jack did not set down a rescue plan. It was Michael who had the idea of the raft. When Jack was captured by the Others and learned of their ships and technology, he did not fashion a plan in order to use those tools to escape the island. When the freighter arrived at the island, Jack naively accepted their offer of help when other survivors, including Locke, were skeptical of their motivations. Jack's leadership was mostly following the cues of other people's ideas. Jack never had a grand plan of his own.

Even when O6 crazy Jack wanted to get back the island, he had no clue how to do so. He was at the mercy of devious Ben and Eloise. At that point, Jack became a follower. When he time traveled to 1977 Dharma, it was Sawyer who was in charge of their little group. Jack became a wall flower until the final Jacob camp fire scene where he volunteered to be the guardian in order to stop MIB from leaving the island. But as the guardian, Jack had no clue on how to defeat MIB. He gave no direction. He gave no grand speech to mass his troops for battle. It was merely a series of fortunate coincidence that felled MIB.

Even at the end in the bamboo grove, Jack as the leader, was not even mourned by his fellow survivors. They did not stop to honor Jack. They fled to the Hydra Island to catch the plane flight off the island. There was no greater purpose in their actions. It was all personal, selfish survival.

Though leadership was touted throughout the series, there really was no true leader amongst any of the characters. Perhaps the message is that leadership is a hollow title. There is little respect or little rewards in taking the responsibility or accountability for your actions or those of your followers.

WHAT ONE CANNOT DO

“ The great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do. ”
— Walter Bagehot 

"Don't tell me what to do!" 
That was John Locke's defensive line in the series.

Did the main characters succeed in doing what other people told them they could not do?

Jack's father told him he could never be a leader because he lacked the guts to make hard life and death decisions. Jack became the leader on the island, and his decisions did lead to life saving and life taking decisions. Did the 815 survivors respect and follow Jack? Yes. Did Jack earn the respect from his father? Apparently all is forgiven after you are dead.

Locke's counselors told him to stay in school and push for a math and science career. But he rejected their advice. Locke wanted to be a jock, a popular guy, in the "in crowd," to be cool. As a result of his own perception of what he wanted to become, Locke curried favor with no one. He went from dead end job to dead end job. He was not happy. He was the low man on the totem pole. He had no family support so he sought out surrogate families such as the commune, which turned into a bitter betrayal of his trust. On the island, he was given an opportunity to remake himself one last time: as a heroic survivalist who was both feared and respected. Did the island inhabitants respect and follow Locke? At times, maybe a little. Did Locke earn the respect from those who doubted his abilities and beliefs? The only person who came to that conclusion was Jack after Locke died at the end of the O6 story arc.

Kate's mother told Kate that she needed to turn herself in for her crimes. That she had to stop running away from her problems and face the consequences for her actions. But Kate continued to run away. First from her mother, then from her husband, and then from the island. She never truly faced any punishment for her actions (the legal story arc in the series was a farce). The one glimmer of redemption was her quest to find and reunite Claire with Aaron. But in reality, Kate was running away from the responsibility of raising Aaron. She had no idea if Claire was still alive on the island when she agreed to return. And she had no idea whether she would survive the trip or escape the island a second time. Did Kate earn the trust and respect of her mother? No. Did Kate earn the trust and respect of her fellow 815 survivors? Yes and no, because Kate was a fence sitter on most major decisions, often changing sides in a leadership battle for no apparent reason.

THE SECOND ACT

“I once thought that there were no second acts in American lives, but there was certainly to be a second act to New York's boom days,” - - - F. Scott Fitzgerald 

The Second Act in anything is not a guarantee.

In the series, the First Act was clear: the elements of surviving a plane crash with no hope of rescue. How would average people cope with extraordinary circumstances? It was like the survivors were thrown back to primitive mankind - - - little technology, hostile environment, dangerous beings surrounding them at night.

The Second Act was more tenuous: "we gotta go back" was Jack's scream to Kate. The idea that the O6 would want to "go back" to the island after they had been rescued defies basic human instincts of self-preservation. There was no real reason to go back. The people they "left behind" were mostly still strangers in a strange land. They had only known each other for a few months. For Jack, he had a life to actually go back to: his mother and his medical practice. Kate had a personal mission: to raise Aaron for Claire. Sayid had lesser bonds with the people left behind on the island. He actually received his dream when he was rescued: Nadia and a new life. Hurley had the least need to go back. He had a family and enough wealth never to work again. 

When Nadia was "killed" by Jacob's agency, one would have thought that Sayid's pain would be with him forever. If it was truly real, he would have wound upon reunited with Nadia in the sideways church. But he did not. Once he lost Nadia, he would still have no reason to go back to the island because there was no one there he cared about to save. 

Hurley's guilt about The Lie the O6 told was enough to get him back into his "comfort zone," being committed to the mental institution and away from the preying public. His best island friend, Charlie, was already dead. His potential girlfriend, Libby, was also dead. There was nothing to pull Hurley back to the island. 

Kate had even less motivation to go back. She "beat" the multiple charges against her. She was accepted as Aaron's mother. She had enough money to live quietly in peace. She never had to run away from any problems. This is what she dreamed about when she was in custody. The idea that she had to go back to the island to "save" Claire was irrational since to the eyes of the O6 survivors, when the island disappeared, everyone on it was dead.

The idea that a few mental jabs, some coaxing language and heart string pulls by Jacob or Widmore would get people who had no reason to go back to the island onto the Ajira plane is perplexing; so much so it calls into doubt whether the O6 story arc was actually real or as the boat in the harbor stated, an Illusion.

The Island's Second Act was more confusion. The time skip by "some" of the Ajira passengers made no physical or logical sense. We were already shown the "longing" by Sun to the loss of Jin, but she saw him blow up on the freighter. There was no evidence that Jin was alive. There was no reason for Sun to leave her baby and go off on a crazy scheme told by a known liar, Ben. 

If the whole purpose of the O6 was to reclaim something lost when they left the island, none of the O6 really got what they were searching for except Kate, who allegedly reunited Claire with Aaron after the Ajira plane took off the Hydra Island runway. Jack did not come back to the island for anyone or anything. He came back to die, something he could have accomplished without returning to the island. Hurley came back for nothing. His island actions saved no one. In fact, the returning O6 folk were merely pin balls going back and forth between camps as followers in the convoluted tale of Jacob and MIB. Only Kate and Jack fought MIB in the end. And Sawyer showed up only to escort Kate to the Ajira plane while Jack wandered back to his martyrdom. But even Kate's mission to find Claire was one of an accident. She did not know Claire would be brooding near the runway.  So Kate really stumbled to her goal of getting Claire off the island. 

So if the first act was all about Jack trying to keep the survivors from killing each other and the second act's only success was Kate getting Claire home, what bearing does that have on the End?

If the Second Act was the pivotal climax to resolve the LOST story, then the LOST story was really only about Kate. That may be hard to swallow that the story was all conceived by Kate as a dreamweaver.  But since Kate was the only person to get her wish upon returning to the island - - - she is the Dorothy in this Oz. And if we try to look objectively at the sideways church reunion, it was Kate's wish fulfilled that Claire would be reunited with Aaron. And the undertone is that Kate true feelings toward Jack would make him be with her forever. She did so by giving Jack a room filled of people who acknowledged his leadership and friendship. She took away romantic rivals by putting Sawyer and Juliet together. Kate's real Second Act was finding peace in the after life.