"This Is Your Brain..."

And this is your brain on the Season 5 Finale of Lost!

At least it represents my brain, after watching the last episode of 2009. After all the new plot aspects, answers, characters, and information that we got in this fantastic double ep finale, I feel like Frank Lapidus watching that mysterious cabin that he doesn't understand the relevance of, going up in flames.

Like Frank's visage of the burning cabin, with the introduction of Jacob and his anti-compadre in black into the storyline, most of my previous comprehensions of what has happened in Lost thus far have instantly flamed out, and I feel as if I must re-analyze nuch of what I've "seen" happen to our Losties and their island counterparts for the past five seasons. Especially due to some apparent contradictions to previous flashbacks we witnessed, including Memphish's fascinating discovery that Sun and Jin's two weddings (pre and post Jacob visit) seem to have serious differences! Be sure to see her post on that. http://macdaddymom.blogspot.com/

Most importantly, we no longer need to wonder what Jacob looks like, and we have some idea as to what he's about, including hints that he has been on a verrrry long mission of some sort that appears to have been continually countered by his personal nemesis. That will be worth a couple thousand blog articles in itself across the Lost-o-net. In addition, we lost our friends Daniel and Juliet this season, with Juliet and her Romeo's parting scene practically squeezing tears out of my TV! Shakespeare has got some competition with that scene. And I stand up and applaud Josh Holloway's sobbing performance (which we know will get passed over at the Emmy's for some other politically-correct dramatic role).

As overwhelming as this double finale episode was, I guess that I'll be compartmentalizing my thoughts on it, one topic at a time, over the long hiatus haul. I have a situation with chronic pain that flared up in April and hasn't let up yet, and it kind of makes my brain shut off when it does that, so I haven't even rewatched the finale yet! I haven't read any of the major recap posts either, so I'm a little behind on the analysis schedule. I hope to catch up soon in case something juicy happens at this year's Comic Con that requires serious attention (hope, hope, hope!).

I very much enjoyed watching Season 5 with you all everybuddy, and I look forward to reading all of your thoughts on it through the long hiatus! :-)

"Fifteen Down One To Go - 5.15"

James and Juliet have been juggling time the way they've been trying to juggle the truth, and it all began to catch up with them after the Heal Bennie mission. No good deed goes unpunished in Dharmaland it seems. It reminds me of where I used to work. And so do Horace and Radzinsky...why is it that the good managers have to kowtow to the nasty ones who always want to hurt the honest people who are just trying to do the right thing? Ah well, that's a rant for my other blog.

I have to admit that I was really put off by Locke sauntering onto the beach with another one of his egotistical "when I'm not being a crybaby I'm a hunter" boars. In my brain I said, "Oh brother." I think that Richard did too.

Locke may seem different to Richard, but we've seen this side of him before. Hopefully his current plans are more positive and productive than they have been in the past. And why is Richard so pliant when he is clearly put off by Locke's loose-cannon attitude? Doesn't he have any say in what goes on?

Oh Daniel, what have they done?! At least you got to look your parents in the eyes, together, in death. But I have to say, the question of Penny's mother and the ambiguous nature of Des' parents is making me really hope that we won't be finding out that those two are actually related. :-p

It was great getting the Red October action in the Galaga, that was fun. Not so much for Juliet, and Kate seems to be oblivious to the kind of stress that she's causing Juliet. "Hey!" seems to be her stock expression anytime she turns up where she really isn't wanted.

So, they're off to see the wizard are they? Is Locke speaking literally or metaphorically when he says that he's going to kill Jacob? He'll either kill the myth or the man, but his unwillingness to explain his motives is, again, annoying to me.

And Ben also, by the looks on his face throughout the episode. :-)

Jack's the new Dharma-shark! This scene was so neat, did TPTB find this perfect little grotto with a tunnel or did they create it? Maybe it's on the brochure of things to visit when in Hawaii. I hope that they cover that in an upcoming issue of Lost magazine like they have with their other complicated set designs!

How was Dan planning on detonating this test bomb? Will they merely break into it to expose the fissile material inside to set off a chain reaction? Either way I'm with Kate on this one, what good can come to them, in radiating the entire island?! I'm also beginning to agree with the Popular Mechanics theory that this may be why the Others' babies get mutated. The island properties may help make super-sperm, but this radiation cannot be good for reproduction. Not that I don't trust Dan, but he's gone now and Jack may be a great surgeon but he's not a physicist.

This notation in Dan's book has to do with "very small black hole" theories. The "Schwarzchild radius" to be exact and something about universe expansion. And it is related to Chang's Kerr metric. I'll try to post more on this on my Lost Science blog, because I'm wondering if the "pinhole" that Chang mentioned is actually his euphemism for a very small black hole.

"Tribute To Professor Faraday"

Well, our man Dan seems to be really most sincerely dead. There is a poem that was written for the Canadian scientist Louis Slotin who worked on the Manhattan Project, after he selflessly endangered himself during an experiment accident (dying nine days later) to save his fellow colleagues. Dan plunged into danger without fear for himself to save people from the disaster of the oncoming DI Incident. The Slotin poem seems appropriate to dedicate to Daniel.

May God receive you, great-souled scientist!

While you were with us, even strangers knew

The breadth and lofty stature of your mind

Twas only in the crucible of death

We saw at last your noble heart revealed

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Slotin#The_criticality_accident

Well done Jeremy Davies, you played Faraday with an excellence and sensitivity that made us love your character! Step up to your place in the SciFi Geek Heart-throb Hall Of Fame next to Mr. Spock. :-x

Once again, here's my little artistic trib to Dan the Man from a year ago.