Lost - "The Brig"

Once Locke shows up looking for Sawyer, the rest of the episode takes on the satisfying inevitability of Greek Tragedy. We know that Locke has his father and not Ben prisoner, and we know that Locke has connected the dots between Cooper and Sawyer, and that once they meet James Ford will connect those same dots with terrible results.

The audience for Lost is well prepared for sudden and surprising revelations, but not for the consequences of those revelations. We don't know what to make of the drama that grows out of the answers we're always waiting for - especially when this was a connection that many people guessed at in Season 1 when Cooper was introduced. Instead, we just want to get on to the next big secret. But the writers are dedicated to the drama, and because Sawyer has become one of the more compelling characters on the show, this episode was done exceedingly well.

The question for Sawyer is, what now? Is he now free of his past, or have his actions condemned him?

Also of interest:

• Cooper and Naomi both told the same story of the crashed flight 815.
• The comedy of manners between Locke and Rousseau on the Black Rock. Dynamite?
• Sayid let in on the secret of Naomi's arrival. He's smart enough to be suspicious of her and smart enough to see the value of a satellite phone.
• Kate childishly running to Jack. She's desperate for his approval, and I'm guessing she'll never have it.
• What is Jack and Juliet's big secret? Do they know how to reach Naomi's ship, or do they know that she is from the Dharma Initiative?
• There is no magic box. That was just Ben manipulating Locke. Clearly, they kidnapped Cooper and brought him to the island.
  
• Next week we get Ben's backstory.
  

The latest theory:

• Ben and the Others were originally part of the Dharma Initiatives' experiments until Jacob led a revolt.
• The Others use DI's tools to undo the harm done by years of experimentation.
• The Smoke Monster is a former security system that has gained sentience.
• The secrecy of the Others is to keep DI from retaking the island.
• The people they have taken, including the children, are people they know for certain are NOT Dharma.
• Ben and the Others keep files on the survivors and test them in order to determine who might be Dharma agents.
  
• Penny Whidmore is the leader of the Dharma Initiative.
• Does Ben suspect that Juliet really is a mole? For Dharma?
• Was Rousseau and her team from Dharma?