Utility Fog Blog - ::Lost Ep #604 "The Substitute"

Safety Warning. Not for use as a stroller. May contain parts. Manufactured in a facility where one or more of the following may be present: Peanuts, almonds, unfiltered water, oxygen, ultaviolet and infrared radiation, sunlight. Use only as directed by your legal counsel. Do not use during earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding or presidential election years. Use of handles may promote RSI, see your doctor or therapist before opening. May be flammable when exposed to open flame. Not for use as a stepping stool or adult seat. May cause injury if dropped from a height. Does not enable user to fly. Do not eat. If erection lasts for over 4 hours call friends and brag. Persons attempting to find a motive in this blog will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot. We don't need no stinkin' badges. Same-day service. Unplug after use. Slippery when wet. Ignore this notice. Use only as directed. Consume in moderation. Lather, rinse, repeat. Your mileage may vary. For external use only. Don't try this at home. No purchase is necessary. You must be present to win. Do not think of an elephant. Other restrictions may apply. Apply only to affected areas. Part of a daily balanced diet. No shirt, no shoes, no service. You need not be present to win. No user-serviceable parts inside. Do not exceed recommended dosage. Offer void where prohibited by law. Do not remove under penalty of law. You have the right to remain silent. If swallowed, do not induce vomiting. Valid only at participating locations. Freshest if used before date specified. Prices subject to change without notice. Do not fold, staple, spindle or mutilate. Contents may have settled during shipment. Caution! The edge is closer than you think. In emergency, break glass, pull down handle. Product is sold by weight and not by volume. Do not use if safety seal is torn or missing. If condition persists, consult your physician. Detach and include upper portion with payment. Nutritional need is not established in humans. Objects on screen are closer than they appear. Satisfaction guaranteed; return for full refund. Names have been changed to protect the innocent. Anything you say can and will be used against you. May be used as flotation device in case of emergency. Please note locations of emergency exits upon arrival. No animals were harmed in the production of this page. Caution: Dates on calendar are closer than they appear. Please leave as clean on leaving as you would like to find on entering. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is purely coincidental. Do not use if you have ever had an allergic reaction to this product or any of its ingredients.

WARNING
Business is unpredictable and unsafe. The Internet is dangerous. Many blogs have been written about these dangers, and there's no way we can list them all here. Read the blogs.

The Internet is covered in slippery slopes with loose, slippery and unpredictable footing. The RIAA can make matters worse. Patent trolls are everywhere. You may fall, be spammed or suffer a DOS attack. There are hidden viruses and worms. You could break your computer. There is wild code, which may be vicious, poisonous or carriers of dread malware. These include viruses and worms. E-mail can be poisonous as well. We don't do anything to protect you from any of this. We do not inspect, supervise or maintain the Internet, blogsphere, ISP?s or other features, natural or otherwise.

Real dangers are present even on the Web. E-commerce is not the mall. It can be, and is, steep, slippery and dangerous. Web features made or enhanced by humans, such as firewalls and spam filters (if any) can break, collapse, or otherwise fail catastrophically at any time. We don't promise to inspect, supervise or maintain them in any way. They may be negligently constructed or repaired. The web is unsafe, period. Live with it or stay away.

Stay on trusted sites whenever possible. The terrain, in addition to being dangerous, is surprisingly complex. You may get lost. Carry food, water and an APU at all times.

Ads for things you don't want and other objectionable content can arrive from nowhere. This can happen naturally, or be caused by people around you that are being used as bots. Spam and disgusting images of all sizes, including huge images, can arrive, or pop-up with no warning. Use of spam filters is advised for anyone approaching the Internet. They can be purchased or rented from us. They won't save you if you get hit by something big or on a port you left open. A whole DOS attack might collapse on you and squash you like a bug. Don't think it can't happen.

Public opinion can be dangerous, regardless of the forecast. Be prepared with extra damage control, including press releases. Ticking off the blogsphere can kill you. The Streisand effect can turn a simple nastygram into a deathtrap.

If you make hasty comments about those in high places (making unsupported comments that reduce the image of a person, often posted quickly and without thinking) without proper thought and, or allow your employees to do so, you are making a terrible mistake. Even if you know what you're doing, lots of things can go wrong and you may be sued for libel. It happens all the time.

We do not provide rangers or security personnel. The other people on the web, including other visitors, our employees, agents, and guests, and anyone else who might sneak in, may be stupid, reckless, or otherwise dangerous. They may be mentally ill, criminally insane, drunk, using illegal drugs and/or armed with deadly malware and ready to use them. We aren't necessarily going to do anything about it. We refuse to take responsibility.

If you surf at work, you may become pre-occupied with it. This is true whether you are experienced or not, trained or not, equipped or not, though training and equipment may help. It's a fact, surfing at work is extremely dangerous. If you don't like it, surf at home. You really shouldn't be doing it anyway. We do not provide supervision or instruction. We are not responsible for, and do not track how much time you surf at work (although we could if we wanted to.) As far as we know, your employer may find out and send you plunging to unemployment. There are countless tons of loose management staff ready to be dislodged and fall on you or someone else. There are any number of extremely and unusually dangerous conditions existing on and around the Web, and elsewhere on the Internet. We may or may not know about any specific hazard, but even if we do, don't expect us to try to warn you. You're on your own.

Rescue services are not provided by us, and may not be available quickly or at all. Local computer geeks may not be equipped for or trained in hard drive recovery. If you are lucky enough to have somebody try to get rid of a virus or find that deleted file, they may be incompetent or worse. This includes your local computer store. We assume no responsibility. Also, if you decide to participate in a rescue of some other unfortunate, that's your choice. Don't do it unless you are willing to assume all risks.

By entering our site, you are agreeing that we owe you no duty of care or any other duty. We promise you nothing. We do not and will not even try to keep the premises safe for any purpose. The premises are not safe for any purpose. This is no joke. We won't even try to warn you about any dangerous or hazardous condition, whether we know about it or not. If we do decide to warn you about something, that doesn't mean we will try to warn you about anything else. If we do make an effort to fix an unsafe condition, we may not try to correct any others, and we may make matters worse! We and our employees or agents may do things that are unwise and dangerous. Sorry, we're not responsible. We may give you bad advice. Don't listen to us. In short, ENTER AND USE THIS SITE AT YOUR OWN RISK. And have fun!

Warning: This Product Warps Space and Time in Its Vicinity.

Warning: This Product Attracts Every Other Piece of Matter in the Universe, Including the Products of Other Manufacturers, with a Force Proportional to the Product of the Masses and Inversely Proportional to the Distance Between Them.

Caution: The Mass of This Product Contains the Energy Equivalent of 85 Million Tons of TNT per Net Ounce of Weight.

Handle with Extreme Care: This Product Contains Minute Electrically Charged Particles Moving at Velocities in Excess of Five Hundred Million Miles per Hour.

Consumer Notice: Because of the 'Uncertainty Principle,' It Is Impossible for the Consumer to Find Out at the Same Time Both Precisely Where This Product Is and How Fast It Is Moving.

Advisory: There is an Extremely Small but Nonzero Chance That, Through a Process Known as 'Tunneling,' This Product May Spontaneously Disappear from Its Present Location and Reappear at Any Random Place in the Universe, Including Your neighbor's Domicile. The Manufacturer Will Not Be Responsible for Any Damages or Inconvenience That May Result.

Read This Before Opening Package: According to Certain Suggested Versions of a Grand Unified Theory, the Primary Particles Constituting This Product May Decay to Nothingness Within the Next Four Hundred Million Years.

This is a 100% Matter product: In the Unlikely Event That This Merchandise Should Contact Antimatter in Any Form, a Catastrophic Explosion Will Result.

Public Notice as Required by Law: Any Use of This Product, in Any Manner Whatsoever, Will Increase the Amount of Disorder in the Universe. Although No Liability Is Implied Herein, the Consumer Is Warned That This Process Will Ultimately Lead to the Heat Death of the Universe.

Note: The Most Fundamental Particles in This Product Are Held Together by a 'Gluing' Force About Which Little Is Currently Known and Whose Adhesive Power Can Therefore Not Be Permanently Guaranteed.

Attention: Despite Any Other Listing of Product Contents Found Hereon, the Consumer Is Advised That, in Actuality, This Product Consists Of 99.9999999999% Empty Space.

New Grand Unified Theory Disclaimer: The Manufacturer May Technically Be Entitled to Claim That This Product Is Ten-Dimensional. However, the Consumer Is Reminded That This Confers No Legal Rights Above and Beyond Those Applicable to Three-Dimensional Objects, Since the Seven New Dimensions Are 'Rolled Up' into Such a Small 'Area' That They Cannot Be Detected.

Please Note: Some Quantum Physics Theories Suggest That When the Consumer Is Not Directly Observing This Product, It May Cease to Exist or Will Exist Only in a Vague and Undetermined State.

Component equivalency notice: The Subatomic Particles (Electrons, Protons, etc.) Comprising This Product Are Exactly the Same in Every Measurable Respect as Those Used in the Products of Other Manufacturers, and No Claim to the Contrary May Legitimately Be Expressed or Implied.

Health Warning: Care Should Be Taken When Lifting This Product, Since Its Mass, and Thus Its Weight, Is Dependent on Its Velocity Relative to the User.

Important Notice to Purchasers: The Entire Physical Universe, Including This Product, May One Day Collapse Back into an Infinitesimally Small Space. Should Another Universe Subsequently Reemerge, the Existence of This Product in That Universe Cannot be Guaranteed.

Use inside a nuclear power facility voids warranty.

Lost Ep #604 "The Substitute"

Index:

Scene By Scene
Theories/Questions
Recaps

Terms:

T1: The timeline where flight 815 crashed on the Island.
T2: The "flash-sideways" timeline where the Losties continue on to LA and the Island is underwater.
Jack2, Kate2, Claire2. etc2: Characters in T2. T1 characters have no suffix.
Flocke: The impersonation of Locke, presumably by the Man in Black, aka Esau, Jacob's Nemesis, The Smoke Monster.

Scene By Scene

All dialogue from the Lostpedia Transcript

-T2 LA Suburb-

License plate number of Locke2's van: 3PCI068
Locke2 took a leap of faith off the van.
T1 unmarried single Locke wouldn't have laughed at being stranded on the lawn and doused by sprinklers.
Locke loved the rain on the Island.
Where did Locke2 meet Helen2? T1 Locke met Helen at an anger management class he was taking because his dad conned him out of his kidney.
Locke2 gets along with his father, Anthony Cooper2, which strongly suggests that AC2 didn't con Locke2 out a kidney or push him out of an eighth-story window.
This would also mean that Locke2 is paralyzed for another reason.
Black and White (with a little Grey area) Coffee Cup.
"Lost Luggage" LOL

-T1 Island-

POV Smokey-Cam! Screenshots
You could see Smokey's reflection in the window.
I suppose Smokey knows where all kinds of stuff like rope and tarps are.

-T2 Box Company-

There was a picture of Locke2 and his dad, Anthony Cooper2 in Locke2's cubicle.
Yes, Randy Nations is a dickwad in every universe. In a lesser show they would kill him off in an interesting way. I'm still hoping.
Screenshots of Locke at home and work

-T1 Flocke & Richard-

Flocke deliberately hit Richard in the throat to prevent him from speaking. What didn't he want him to say?
RICHARD: "What do you want?"
FLOCKE: "What I've always wanted. For you to come with me."

Flocke is probably just flattering him, but Richard does have some value.
RICHARD: "Why do you look like John Locke?"
FLOCKE: "I knew he'd get me access to Jacob. Because John's a candidate. Or at least he was a candidate..."
RICHARD: "What do you mean? What do you mean a candidate?"
FLOCKE: "Didn't Jacob tell you any of this?"
RICHARD: "Any of what?"
FLOCKE: "Oh, Richard... I'm sorry. You mean, you've been doing everything he told you all this time and he never said why?"
[Richard does not reply]
FLOCKE: "I would never have done that to you. I would never have kept you in the dark."
RICHARD: "And what would you have done?"
FLOCKE: "I would have treated you with respect. Come with me... and I promise I will tell you everything."
RICHARD: "No."
FLOCKE: "Are you sure about that, Richard? Because people seldom get a second chance..."
RICHARD: "I'm not going anywhere with you."
FLOCKE: "Alright."
[Locke sees a blond boy with bloodied arms standing in the jungle ... ]"
RICHARD: "What?"
FLOCKE: "I'll be seeing you, Richard. Sooner than you think."
[FLocke walks into the jungle]
Flocke said Locke was a Candidate, which gave him access to Jacob. Richard didn't know about Locke's candidacy or the concept of candidacy, so there was or is something other than Richard that controlled access to Jacob.
Flocke promises answers.
I'm unsure whether Richard couldn't see the blond boy or if the boy was simply gone when he turned around.
Flocke attempted to recruit Richard, but let him live once he refused. Is is against "The Rules" for Flocke to kill Richard? It's possible that Flocke/Smokey can't kill people unless they've been "judged" or in self-defense. Of course now that I think about it, "self-defense" is a pretty murky concept when one is bulletproof.

-T1 Statue-

Ben tells the truth about everything except for the part about him killing Jacob.
Ilana collected some of Jacob's ashes.
First instance of Ilana showing knowledge of Flocke: "He's recruiting".

-T1 Dharma Barracks-

Search and Destroy, by The Stooges:

I'm a street walking cheetah
with a heart full of napalm
I'm a runaway son of the nuclear A-bomb
I am a world's forgotten boy
The one who searches and destroys
Honey gotta help me please
Somebody gotta save my soul
Baby detonates for me
Look out honey, 'cause I'm using technology!
Ain't got time to make no apology
Soul radiation in the dead of night
Love in the middle of a fire fight
Honey gotta strike me blind
Somebody gotta save my soul
Baby penetrates my mind
And I'm the world's forgotten boy
The one who's searchin', searchin' to destroy
And honey I'm the world's forgotten boy
The one who's searchin', searchin' to destroy
Forgotten boy, forgotten boy
Forgotten boy said
hey forgotten boy

lyrics source
Quite possibly the best use of pop-music in the entire series.
Stooge: " One who allows oneself to be used for another's profit or advantage; a puppet."
I can see Sawyer thinking, "great, another sonofabitch who's supposed to be dead but is still walking around."
Flocke tasted the booze but did not drink. I'm betting we never see him eat or drink.
Even drunk Sawyer could see through Flocke.
LOCKE: "This isn't your house, James." - This mirrors Locke2 telling Jack2 that the airline didn't lose his father.
Flocke promised answers again.
SAWYER: "I'm on this island because my plane crashed. Because my raft blew up. Because the helicopter I was on was ridin' one too heavy."
Coincidence, Fate, or Enemy Action?

-T2 Box Company Parking Lot-

Hurley2's luck: Locke2's lift doesn't even touch his Hummer.
How the hell did Hurley2 even get out of his Hummer?
There's a little polar bear statue in Locke2's box

-T1 Outside Statue-

The crab on dead Locke's head was a nice (creepy) touch.
It's interesting that both Lapidus and Sun were packing heat.

-T1 Flocke & Sawyer-

Flocke was surprised that Sawyer can see the blond kid.
BOY: "You know the rules. You can't kill him."
Can't kill who? Sawyer?
Is this a rule that can't be broken or one that shouldn't? If it can't be broken, why remind Flocke? If the rule can be broken, is there a penalty, or are the rules based merely on agreement? Or is the boy's warning to Flocke just a storytelling device to introduce the rule?
FLOCKE: "Don't tell me what I can't do!"
Is Locke's personality beginning to manifest itself in Flocke? Flocke has shown a liking for machetes similar to Locke's.
Richard and Sawyer's conversation didn't tell us much except that Richard is scared shitless of Flocke. Whether Richard is correct in his low opinion of Flocke's veracity and motives remains to be seem. Me, I'm with Sawyer: get some answers. Even lies can be informative.
"I enjoyed a brief interactivity with LOST this week; when Locke was faced with a stuck chair lift at the beginning, I yelled out "JUMP IT!!!!" seconds before he attempted that very thing. I was highly amused, and tried it later on when Fake Locke was chasing the Island Boy. I yelled "why are you running?!? you're not human!!! change into smoke and GET HIM!!!"

It didn't work."
Source: The CDP (comments)
"What Kid?" Uh, the one you asked if I could see? AWKWARD

-T2 Temp Agency-

In T1 Locke2's interviewer was hired by Hurley's father to pose as a tarot reader.
In T2, Rose2 works for a company Hurley2 owns.

-T1 Flocke & Sawyer-

Flocke said "Of Mice and Men" was before his time.
SAWYER: "What are you?"
FLOCKE: "What I am is trapped. And I've been trapped for so long that I don't even remember what it feels like to be free. Maybe you can understand that. But before I was trapped, I was a man, James. Just like you."
SAWYER: "I'm havin' a hard time believin' that..."
FLOCKE: "You can believe whatever you want, that's the truth. I know what it's like to feel joy... to feel pain, anger, fear... to experience betrayal. I know what it's like to lose someone you love. So if you wanna shoot me, shoot me. But you're so close, James. It would be such a shame to turn back now."

That's a pretty good speech. It may even be true.
I think one reason Sawyer didn't shoot Flocke is because he believes there's a good chance it won't work.

-T1 Burying Locke-

BEN: "Why did you have to bring him [Locke's body] to the statue in the first place?"
ILANA: "Because the people there need to see the face of what they're up against."
BEN: "And whats to stop what they're up against from changing his face?"
ILANA: "He can't; not anymore. Hes stuck this way."
I've got a possible problem with what Ilana knows and doesn't know:
- She knows somehow that Flocke is recruiting.
- She knows somehow that Flocke can't impersonate a dead person other than Locke.
- How is it that she does NOT KNOW that Flocke couldn't have killed Jacob? I hope she didn't believe Ben and is just stringing him along until they get to the Temple.
When did Ilana realize that resurrected Locke was the MIB and why didn't Richard or Ben?
Loved Ben's eulogy. I think he may actually feel guilty.
If Locke was the new leader of the Others, will Ben's confession that he murdered him get him in trouble?

-T2 Locke2's House-

Every episode this season so far there's been a mirror scene. Jack2 in the airplane bathroom, Kate2 in the repair shop bathroom and now Locke2 in his bathroom. Locke2's scene is the first where the character doesn't at themselves in the mirror; because T1 Locke is dead?
"Oh honey, you travel with a case full of knives, how sweet"
Unlike T1 Locke, Locke2 decides to accept his paralysis and stop fantasizing that he could be some special person leading an exotic exciting life. Now all he has to do is stay away from ocean trips.

-T1 Flocke & Sawyer, Cliffs-

How are they going to get out of that cave?

-T2 High School-

Evil genius and master manipulator Ben Linus is a passive-aggressive european history teacher.
But how can Ben be alive? He was wounded and at the Temple when the Losties lit off Jughead and sunk the Island, wasn't he? Except that this requires that flight 815 crashed with Sayid on board so that Sayid travell back to 1977 and shoot Ben, which didn't happen. Welcome to the paradoxical nature of the T2 timeline, if T2 depends on T1.

-T1 Jacob's Cave-

Hey, it's Jacob's ladder! I'll be here all week.
Items on cave table: Scale, small sundial, round mallet, lute
Screenshots of Cave Entrance
Screenshots of Cave Interior
We aren't shown Kate's name or the number 108.
What would Jacob say that he is protecting the Island from?
Jacob's Cave Screenshots
Why are the names "Littleton" and "Straume" crossed out, neither Claire or Miles are dead.
The 3 levels of reaction to the Cave scene:
1. Super Crazy Lost Fans: *BRAINS MELTING* FORGET IT, I AM JUST CALLING OUT OF WORK TOMORROW.
2. Your Everyday Lost Fans: Wow! This is rather a lot of information, but I am pleased!
3. The n00b Lost fans: I totally bet this is purgatory, you guys.
Source: The Ack Attack!
Chart of Names on Cave Wall

Questions/Theories/Hairbrain Predictions

You know what this episode was missing? Tom Berenger
I'm getting a feeling that we won't get many answers from the Others. If Richard doesn't have the inside scoop, who does?
At first I thought the blond boy was 2 people, the first bloody one younger than the second. But Lostpedia says it was the same actor both times.
Casting call for the blond boy:
"Teenage boy, caucasian, 12-14. Dirty blond hair. Wise beyond his years. He's got intense, searching eyes. He's dealt with a horrible family accident. Even at a young age, he has been put in charge of something very important, and it weighs heavily on his shoulders."
Why did Jacob visit Kate as a child but not write her name in the cave? Let's put it this way: He's been on that damn Island for hundreds of years with only a homicidal pillar of black smoke for company.
4 - Locke
8 - Reyes
15 - Ford
16 - Jarrah
23 - Shephard
42 - Kwon
I'm not buying that Jacob gets people to come to the Island by influencing ONE choice they make, usually in childhood. That would be like making a 10 dimensional bank-shot off thousands of cushions.
The numbers may have started with Jacob's Cave list, but why to they keep showing up?
Notice how the Cave numbers are counting down? The current crop of shanghaied dupes are the last ones unless Jacob starts over with larger numbers
Parallels between Jacob/MIB and the Hatch by CruzaderJC
..........................................
You think we look pretty good together
You think my shoes are made of leather

But I'm a substitute for another guy
I look pretty tall but my heels are high
The simple things you see are all complicated
I look pretty young, but I'm just back-dated, yeah
Substitute your lies for fact
I can see right through your plastic mac
I look all white, but my dad was black
My fine looking suit is really made out of sack

I was born with a plastic spoon in my mouth
The north side of my town faced east, and the east was facing south
And now you dare to look me in the eye
Those crocodile tears are what you cry
It's a genuine problem, you won't try
To work it out at all you just pass it by, pass it by

Substitute me for him
Substitute my coke for gin
Substitute you for my mum
At least I'll get my washing done

The Who: Substitute lyrics
.........................................
Do the Jacob's Ladders lead to Jacob's Cave, like the Monster says? Are the names those of the people Jacob wanted to bring to the Island? Or are they just the Monster's list of each of Jacob's players that he's managed somehow to capture? I think it must be the Monster's cave, because Juliet's name is crossed out, and Jacob was quite dead before she finally kicked it. Or maybe it was until just recently a shared space, a free zone where both had equal rights.
Source: Fishbiscuitland
Theory: Jacob needed Ajira flight 316 to bring back the Oceanic 6 (-Aaron) as much as the MIB needed it to bring Locke's body and Ben.
Symbols of confinement:
- Locke2 in wheelchair
- Locke2 stuck on van lift
- Locke2 in bathtub
- Locke2's cubicle
- Hurley2 blocking Locke2's van
- Richard wrapped in tarp
- Sawyer inside house, drinking behind bed
- Flocke describing himself as "trapped"
- Locke's grave
- Cave
- Flocke stuck impersonating Locke
Every time I hear the line "The time for questions is over" in a promo I get the impression "they" are telling me to shut up.
Why does the Island need protecting? Sure, the Island is a strange and unique place, but is it a good place?
- Pro: Undependable healing effect
- Con: Pregnant women die in childbirth
- Homicidal cultists
- Malevolent smoke monsters
- Manipulative, kidnapping, murderous blond demi-god
- Booby-trap laying crazy women
- Nuclear Weapon
- Chemical Weapon
- Ben Linus

Recaps

No recap by Vozzek (yet) because his house burned down .
PLAYING FOR KEEPS , by Fishbiscuitland
Lost Episode 5.15 History Repeated, by Luhks (Which is totally late and totally worth it)
LOST: “The Substitute” , by Kulturblog
SPOILER ALERT: Mini-Recap & Discussion Post for “The Substitute” , by The Ack Attack!
Initial Thoughts: The Substitute , by Gitsie Girl
6 X 04: The Substitute , by Gitsie Girl
Lost Recap 6×04: The Substitute, by The Ack Attack!
And now the Greatest Hits of this week's Ongoing Lost Post!!. by The Ack Attack!
My REVIEWS - EPisode 6x04 - THe SUB is Two , by ThEmIsFiTiShErE
'Lost' Dueling Analysis: 'The Substitute' , by Celebritology
Lost: The Writing on the Wall, by Tubular
Prime Candidate: Cultural Thoughts on LOST 6.04 “The Substitute” , by Pearson Moore
'Lost' recap: The Man With the Plan , by Jeff Jensen (Entertainment Weekly)
LOST 6.04 "The Substitute" Review , by TV Overmind
'Lost': Course Corrections for 'The Substitute' , by Zap 2 'Lost'
S6Ep4: The Substitute , by Long Live Locke
Lost Friday - "The Substitute." , by The CDP
Marc Oromaner’s Lost In Myth: Why LOST Can Be A Substitute For “Willy Wonka”
Key Points from "The Substitute" , by Filmfodder

posted at 08:20 (GMT) - Category: /popcult/tv/lost -

0 -