Last season, Lost gave us an episode entitled “The Constant”....a mind-bending Desmond-centric episode that gave us a glimpse at Lost time travel. So, it stands to reason that this week’s episode, “The Variable” should be a counterpoint to “The Constant”.
In “The Constant”, Desmond needed to find someone who was anchored in both the past and the present....Penny was his constant. So if one is not traveling through time, they are a constant. Daniel assumes in this episode that the time travelers are variables. They are the ones that can change the equation.
The real question is: Is Daniel correct? My response is “Not yet”.
Prior to this week, Daniel’s mantra had been, “Whatever happened, happened.” Now, suddenly, he believes he can change the future (which for the losties is their past). Let’s take a look at Daniel’s actions and results:
1) He tells Pierre Chang that there will be an accident at the Swan station. Dr. Chang doesn’t believe him and proceeds with Swan development....still moving toward an accident.
2) He tells Dr. Chang that Miles is his son. When Miles denies this, Chang blows Daniel off. What this probably did is ensure Miles and his mom (as well as Charlotte) are sent off the island before the accident...as they always have been.
3) Daniel tries to save Charlotte by telling her to leave, and thus ensuring she follows the same path. (By the way how cool was it that Charlotte says to Daniel “I’m not allowed to have chocolate before dinner”?....the exact phrase she says with her dying breath.)
4) He goes to find his mother on the island and she shoots him, fulfilling the “sacrifice” she referred to when talking with Widmore. (more on this below)
Regardless of Faraday’s contention that he is a variable, every action that he takes ensures that history remains unchanged...he is a constant.
"I'm from the future"
So, clearly Daniel was wrong....or maybe not. I’m going to tread carefully here as, to date, I have been firmly in the whatever-happened-happened camp. If Daniel was wrong about the time travelers being variables, then what was the purpose of telling Jack that if they can set off the Jughead bomb, Oceanic 815 will land safely in Los Angeles?
One answer is that Jack is the variable that can change the equation and erase everything that has happened. Let me be clear that I don’t buy this for one second, because it would set off a time paradox. If they blow up the island, the crash will never occur, but then Jack won’t be able to go back to 1977 to set off the bomb, so everything resets and the crash DOES happen. There would be an endless loop of bomb/no-crash and no-bomb/crash. Can’t and won’t happen.
Another answer is that Jack is the variable and changes something, but history course corrects and island survives. I think this is possible. I could come up with a million wild theories on this, but I’d rather not speculate too much and just leave it open as a possibility.
Yet another possibility (and the one that I subscribe to) is that Jack BELIEVES he is the variable, tries to change the course of history and ultimately ensures whatever happened, happened.
"You're a variable Jack"
I haven’t wandered around the blogosphere yet, but I’ve got a nagging feeling that I’m missing something....and it might be something big.
Let’s move on to my nominees for Mother and Father of the Year....Eloise Hawking and Charles Widmore. We’ve known that Eloise was Dan’s mom, but this is the first week that we’ve received confirmation on the Widmore paternity. I don’t think that should be too much of a shock for anyone as they were both on the island from the 50s through the 70s. I thought I had mentioned Widmore was likely to be Faraday’s dad in a previous post, but I couldn’t find it (guess I don’t get credit). Both of them have been pulling their son’s strings his entire life. What I find interesting though is that while Charles and Eloise don’t seem to be working together on the outside, they appear to be pushing Daniel in the same direction....learning about time travel and returning to the island. This tells me that Daniel’s death is important. It is a critical event that must happen. This is why you could see the pain on Eloise’s face when she encourages Daniel to return to the island and the anger when she slaps Charles and refers to her “sacrifice”. Sacrifice is an interesting word to use, because it implies that she is giving up Daniel’s life for something of greater value.
"How bout a little snog for old time sake, Eloise"
I think if you couple this idea of sacrifice and her insistence for the Oceanic 5 to return on the Ajira 316 flight, it points again to Jack taking some important action related to the island. Jack may be the variable, but Hawking and Widmore are trying to ensure he is a constant.
Let’s go on to the final scene. One of the things I love about Lost is how they can deliver such shocking surprises and then leave you asking yourself “How did I not see that coming?” I always love when Richard is in the mix. For a split second I thought Daniel was going to shoot Richard and we would see how immortal he really is. Then BANG...Daniel is shot and I got that sick feeling that I knew who was the shooter....then, indeed, Ellie is revealed. The pain on Daniel’s face (emotional and physical) is heartbreaking as this exchange occurs:
FARADAY: You knew. You always knew. You knew this was gonna happen. You sent me here anyway.
ELOISE: Who are you?
FARADAY: I... I'm your son.
Epic.
"Don't shot me in the eyeliner"
Here are a few misc observations:
1) Gotta love young Daniel’s line: “I can make time.” Maybe some foreshadowing if Daniel survives (but I don’t think he will)?
2) Speaking of good lines how about Hurley: “You guys were in 1954? Like... Fonzie times?” and Sawyer: “Welcome to the meeting, Twitchy. Good to see you again. Pound cake's in the kitchen. Help yourself to the punch.”
3) It was good to see the meeting at the LaFluer residence....this is the first time ALL the 1977 Losties are in the same place together.
4) Ms. Hawking gives Daniel the journal that he keeps his time travel notes in.
5) Did you notice the “Wired” magazine Widmore moves to sit on Daniel’s couch? On the cover it refers to “Time Travel” and “The Impossible Gets Real”.
6) Radzinski is a complete tool. It was great though to see him in a shootout with Jack, Kate, and Daniel. Over the last 2 episodes it looks like Jack is finally growing a pair again (I guess the island can heal that too).
7) Hurley was carrying his guitar case again when getting ready to leave the DHARMA Barracks. We have yet to get Hurley’s back story for boarding Ajira 316. Its gotta be coming soon.
8) Desmond’s survival is important to both Widmore and Hawking. As was said previously, “The island isn’t done with you yet.” What I can’t figure out is what will bring him back there.
As we head to the final 2 weeks (this includes the two-hour finale) of the season, I think I share Ms. Hawking’s sentiments: “For the first time in a long time, I don't know what's going to happen next.”
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