as part of my chinese new year resolution I'm gonna try to keep this short.
here's my theory:
GREATER BACKSTORY :
Jacob is something akin to an ancient Prometheus or Pandora, perhaps an egyptian analog that somehow did something fucked up and feels responsible for unleashing evil/iniquity/imbalance into the world, thus resigning himself and his "fuck-up" to exile.
I think Jacob was like an Ancient Egyptian scientist who was doing some wild scientific/mystical experiments on the island and Smokie was his "Igor-turned-Frankenstein". Somehow Smokie ended up as smokie and thus feels betrayed becuz he was suckered into believing that Jacob's goals were good, pure, whatever.
Or perhaps Smokie was fine with the initial captivity, agreeing that: “yeah...you can't let me out into the world like this. My corruptive influence needs to be contained. I'll exile myself here with you, Jacob.”
But then eventually Smokie's like: “UGH! This blows. Eternity is mad long. Hey Jake, how bout you let me out for a little walk?”
And Jake is all: "Nah, son"
And Smokie was all: “C'mon, bro. I promise I'll come right back.”
Then Jake says: "Sorry, killa. Can’t do it!"
But one day Smokie realises that Jacob can and does leave the island all the time and he's like EFF THIS! Starts to feel betrayed (you'll notice that this parallels the relationship of Desmond and Inman).
So at some point the two guys have it out with Jacob saying, "Look, you can't even leave for a minute. Your corruptive powers are too strong."
Smokie replies: "Dude, this is pointless. Mankind is evil anyway. They're fuckin shit up on their own!"
And thus began their little game, which perfectly explains all those convos between them during the days of the Black Rock.
That’s the Grand Backstory, but how do our heroes fit in?
The Minor Players:
For the most part I take everything we know at face value. We are too deep in the show's final eps for them to be giving us too many misdirects.
They were all brought here because they were candidates. I think the candidate search was hastened becuz Jake realised Smoke was making power moves (ie: the look of surprise when he hears Richard was sent to kill him by Smokie).
Now, for whatever reason we are left with X number of candidates.
But Jake not only brought these candidates here to replace him should Smokie succeed in killing him, but also as a means to of counteracting his escape plan should he die in the process.
There were like 100+ candidates but each of OUR guys has a special gift or role to play.
Hugo: is a facilitator of sorts. He communes with the dead and is generally a good troop rally upper.
Jack: is nothing more than his name indicates, a Shepherd, a natural leader. And like all shepherds he must “walk among us but not be one of us”.
He brought half the Losties to the caves. Was gonna bring them to the Hatch, brought them to the tower, got the O6 home. Gathered them up and brought them BACK to the island 3 years later. He did the same for everyone trapped in the 70s, bringing them back to the present.
He doesn't always know what he’s doing, mind you! I submit that, like any shepherd, when he's confused, BAD things happen and people die(caves, tower, O6 leaving). But when he's sure of his actions GOOD things happen, though people may still die (O6 returning, detonating the bomb).
I think his final mission will be to quide the Sideways losties back to the Island world (or somehow facilitate the 'refolding' of the 2 timelines) using Desmond as the conduit and/or to look over Jacob’s new flock of “Others” the way Dogen did in the past (their parallels are just too many, drinking, father-son issues, baseball, standing apart from those that follow, etc).
Jin & Kwon: who knows? let's assume their child is really important
Sayid: is a slayer. a killer. an enforcer. Throughout all 6 seasons we've seen nothing but evidence after evidence of him being called upon to do the dirty work, from breaking a chicken's neck at the age of 6, up until now. Sounds simplistic but I don't think Lost is that uncomplicated. Its complexity comes in how all the parts are interconnected, the interplay.
Sayid is a destroyer. They will need him to do what needs to be done (though possibly for the greater good).
This leaves James. I think James will end up staying on the island. I say this for 3 reasons.
1. He's got NOTHING going for him at home (in either world, mind you).
2. Of all the candidates he's the least likely guy (therefore it makes sense in that literary irony sort of way) yet he was touched the earliest and has spent the most time on the island.
3. Going back to my theme of "what have they done all series" James, for whatever reason, has CHOSEN to stay on the island time and time again.
The kidnapping on the raft wasn't his doing but he did come back.
He CHOSE to jump off the helicopter.
He CHOSE to not take the sub with Juliet in 74.
He CHOSE again to get off the sub with Jules and Kate in 77.
This guy’s just not meant to leave this island and at some point soon he’ll have a chance to board that sub again and he’s gonna say, "son of a bitch" right before jumping back into the Jacob-Smokie conflict knowing damn well that it will be a final decision.
Not sure if that makes him the new Jacob, Smokie or perhaps the new Richard but either way he’s on that island.
ALSO, going back to him having nothing off island. Let’s assume his 'happily ever after' involves either Kate or Juliet. I submit that neither of these two broads has anything going on off island either.
Sideways Kate just got caught and is headed for a long bid.
Island Kate just gave up Aaron (and Jack).
Sideways Juliet hasn't been seen and is otherwise irrelevant.
Island Juliet is dead.
So no matter which way you slice it, these chicks would probably be just as happy staying on the island with Jimmy McDimples.
(Ben and Locke could go a hundred different ways. Let’s just move onto the 3rd and final part of my theory...)
The Major Players: The Widmores.
I think Charles Widmore has ALWAYS been on the right side in that he only wants what's best for the island. I think he knows the stakes, he knows the players and is only concerned with doing anything in his earthly control to ensure a positive outcome for the island and therefore the world.
Eloise on the other hand is a little more...i dunno...Machiavellian.
When Jack detonates the bom 1977, she’s preggos with Daniel who we know is raised off island. This means that she left the island pretty soon after the detonation with knowledge that she's destined to kill her own son. But none of that explains why she knows so much about timelines, Desmond, guys with cherry-colored chuck taylors, etc.
So here's the most radical part of my grand theory…
Eloise is working with the Smoke monster.
Off island Eloise is mad cryptic, all knowing and manipulative. Sure she knows Danny's destined to become a physicist and die on the island. But she ACTIVELY steers him in that direction throughout his life. Why, separate knob? Why?
I think the smoke monster came to her, perhaps in the guise of a dead Faraday. Maybe she sought him out. It doesn't matter. What matters is somehow Ellie and Smokie got together and made a deal.
She'd help him achieve his goals of leaving the island and in return Smokie would give her Daniel back and ensure that the world created by Smokie’s release would not be COMPLETELY corrupted.
This would explain why she's so god damned all-knowing in the normal timeline, why she works toward making everything that HAS happened happen AND why she is still so all-knowing in the sideways world.
That sideways world is the world that Eloise and Smokie agreed to as part of the deal. And think about it. Everyone whom Eloise allows Smokie to kill to achieve his aims kinda gets a reward in the sideways world.
Jack gets a son.
Claire gets Aaron.
Sayid gets to see Nadia.
The Kwons get to be together.
Hugo gets his wealth without the bad luck.
Desmond gets Widmore’s respect.
James gets to play ‘shoot em up bang’ with his little yellow sidekick.
Even Locke gets to live happily ever with Peggy Bundy.
(Kate seems to be ass-out but remember, she’s not a candidate so Smokie doesn't need to kill her to achieve his aims. He’s not breaking the terms of the deal by screwing her over. Besides. no one likes Kate so who cares.)
Smokie is surely out doing whatever a smoke monster does in the sideways world. But he keeps himself in check so long as ELOISE keeps everybody else in check. THAT's why she tells Desmond this is a "violation".
Widmore is completely oblivious to this deal. He seems so and it makes sense given the way he and Eloise act separately off island.
I also think Eloise put Ben up to killing Locke (though perhaps not in that manner) ensuring that Smokie would have a dead candidate to inhabit once they returned.
You'll notice that when she was helping the O6 return she insisted on having as many of them go back. This was to increase the chance that when Smokie “smokes” them all, he’d also be eliminating the “next Jacob”.
Obvsly the plan works, hence the sideways. But as we all know there are always variables.
Desmond is that variable. She's tried her best to control that variable (whether she was aware of his ultimate potential or not) but obviously it won't be enough.
HA! ok. obvsly that wasn't short at all and iIm sure I left some things out but you get the gist.
oh yeah, one more thing. Darlton promised us answers to the whole Libby thing.
I think Eloise put her up to giving Des that boat. How she went crazy afterwards is beyond me but I suppose we'll get answers to that later.
(I also wouldn't be surprised if Widmore put her up to it with prodding from Jacob off island. In fact, I think Jacob has been using both Widmore and Ilana, albeit separately, to help him stop Smokie McSmokerton)
Ok. That’s my time folks.
If I’m right SOMEBODY’S gotta send me a bottle of McCutcheon’s.
