Like a six-year-old onion, the layers of Lost‘s mysteries are being peeled back, bit by bit, with the unwanted outer husks having long since been discarded in favor of the meaty center therein.  At that center, it seems, is the true nature of the Island itself, and the feud between Jacob and this so-called “Man in Black” who, like Locke before him, doesn’t want you to tell him what he can’t do.

Much like last week’s episode, this week’s episode kept the focus nice and narrow.  The people who got the all the exposure last time (Kate, Jack, Sayid, and the Temple crew) don’t appear at all, and the folks who didn’t appear last time get all the screen time here.  I really hope this format continues, as it really helps to tighten the individual episodes’ narratives while making progress appear faster.  Plus, it’s making for cockteasing cliffhangers, and that’s always a plus.

It’s a big ol’ Lockefest this week, despite the fact that Locke is dead (and, as of now, buried) in one universe.  We see more of the repercussions of the bomb detonation in the new timeline, including the fact that Locke (the real one) is actually engaged to Turanga Leela Helen Norwood this time around.  Presumably, this means that Locke didn’t try to get a phone sex operator to join him on his walkabout this time around, though it’s interesting to see that he still desperately wanted to go on it (only to ultimately still be denied the chance).  New!Locke’s lack of faith really helps to accentuate just how much his time on the Island really did change him, both for better and for worse.  I suppose it’s better to be weighed down by anxiety and doubt than it is to be choked to death by Benjamin Linus, though.

Speaking of which, Ben’s eulogy for Locke (back in the original timeline) is already one of my standout moments of the series.  It’s not often we get to see Ben when he’s vulnerable, but for the first time since… well, pretty much ever, Ben is in a position where he has no control.  He’s a man who has lost everything–his friends, his confidants, the upper hand, and even his direction.  We see how pathetic Ben can really be when he’s out of his element, and also probably how much he really did genuinely like John Locke, in a sense.  I’ll put the kibosh on any implications of an off-screen bromance, however.

One does have to wonder how much of a kindred spirit the Man in Black sees/saw in Locke, as well.  How much of what we see is the Man in Black’s original and/or real personality, and how much of it is influenced by having usurped Locke’s form?  His outburst of the classic “Don’t tell me what I can’t do!” calls a lot of that into question, and it’ll be interesting to see what the answer is–especially since it’s claimed that MIB is stuck “being” Locke for the time being.

Contrasted with the Man in Black (who desperately wants out), Locke (who desperately wants to be a whole person again), and Ben (who desperately wants to not be a loser), we also have Sawyer, who just plain doesn’t give a shit.  To be fair, I can empathize with Sawyer a lot, who, much like the late great Juliet, kept on almost-but-not-quite getting off the Island, only to have everything keep sucking harder than before.  He’s great at playing the part of the man with literally nothing left to lose; when the Man in Black shows up to offer him an out, you can tell that a lot of what Sawyer is thinking is, “Well, how much worse could things really get after this?”  On the off-chance that he does have an opportunity to escape his fate–an irony being offered by someone in the form of once-Locke–there’s no real reason not to take it.  Well, unless DHARMA whiskey is better than my imagination gives it credit for.

Of course, this all culminates with the doozy reveal of Jacob’s cave, with the names and the numbers, and the list of who are presumably the “finalists” for what Jacob and the Man in Black consider candidates.  Each of the remaining candidates also has a number assigned to them, which–surprise, surprise–correspond to the Numbers.  Names of the dead appear crossed out (Faraday, Pace), but names of people who are still alive are nevertheless crossed out as well (Straume, Littleton), and at least one person’s name who had to have been crossed out by Jacob before dying (Burke).  What does it all mean?  Well, of course, we don’t get to know now.  That would be cheating.

Other threads are still left dangling, but are batted at enough to draw our attention to them. Like, what’s the deal with Ilana?  I mean, seriously? And was Richard really just the lackey, or is he actually the Natalie Portman to Jacob’s Keira Knightley?  And how come Frank Lapidus remains the only person with the objectivity to think, “Oh my god, how can you people all be this fucked up?”