4.09 The Shape of Things to Come

1. Jack doesn't feel well, has a stomach bug, Kate wonders why they aren't back from the boat yet, Jack says Sayid said the engine is down, he's trying to fix it, that's he's probably wondering why they can't get in touch.
2. Vincent barking, Bernie calls for help, they find the body of doctor washed ashore, Daniel and Charlotte recognize him, Dr. Ray from the Freighter, his throat is slit.From Lostpedia
   
3. "We're all gonna die." Hurley
   
4. Locke, Hurley, Sawyer are playing risk, babysitting Aaron, Hurley says that Australia is the key to the game.
5. "I can't believe you're just giving him Australia. Australia's the key to the whole game." Hurley
   From Lostpedia
6. Keamy is holding Alex captive, he tells her to turn the sonic fence off, she asks him to spare Aaron's life, the code she uses on the fence is 1623.
7. The phone rings while Locke, Sawyer, Hurley and Aaron are at Ben's house playing Risk, the phone broadcasts code 14J, Locke leaves and tells Ben, he gets a shotgun out of the piano bench, says they have to get to other house for better positioning, they're here he says.
8. Ben flashes to the desert, wakes up, he's wearing a DHARMA parka, says Halliwax on the nameplate, he breathes out cold air, he's in the Sahara Desert, he vomits, he has a gash on his arm, Arabs arrive on horseback, one of the men starts to frisk him, Ben whips out his death beating-stick, flips the tables, kills the other dude with his friend's gun, destroys both of them instantly.From Lostpedia
9. Ben says that the code 14J is an early warning system, one of their people has been captured, they tripped panic switch at the security fence, they had a five minute debate about it before they went and got him, Ben sent Rousseau, Karl and Alex away yesterday and he says they're safe, Sawyer wants to grab Claire form the other house, Locke wants to go with him, but Ben says it's important that John survives what's about to happen, to stay close to him, people coming won't risk hurting him, that he's the best chance to live.
10. Daniel is examining the Doctor, Jack says his throat is slit, wants to know if he knows anything about it, Dan says he was fine the last he saw him, says when is a relative term, Jack says about fixing the satellite phone, but Dan says it could only be used for beeps and boops, Bernie says telegraph.
11. Ben says he's scared of the people that are coming, they cover the doors with bookshelves and furniture, Hurley takes care of Aaron, wonders how Sawyer is going to get back in the house.
12. Sawyer is on his way to Claire's house, talks to a random log carrying guy, asks about Claire, all of a sudden, the log carrier is shot mid-sentence, then there's a rocket explosion on Claire's house, then more gunshots, log carriers die, but Sawyer escapes without a scratch.From Lostpedia
13. Ben arrives at a Hotel in Tunisia, asks for a room, says it's not his first time in Tunisia, he's a preferred guest, Dean Moriarty, he asks woman at the desk the date, which is October 24, 2005, he sees Sayid Jarrah on the television, they mention the Oceanic 6, he says he wants to bury his wife in peace.
14. Aaron is crying, Locke asks why he has to survive this, Ben says there's only one person that can save them and that's Jacob, that he and Locke have to go to Jacob together, Locke says he doesn't know where the cabin is, but Ben says that Hurley knows where. 
15. Sawyers saves Claire from the rubble of her former house, she's disoriented and asks for Charlie, Sawyer tries to take her back to the house, but the door is barricaded, Hurley tries to move stuff, but then throws an ottoman through the window and tells Sawyer and Claire to come through, the door bell rings, Miles arrives with walkie, says they let him go and want to talk.
16. In Tikrit, Iraq, Sayid is at Nadia's funeral, Ben pulls out a camera and watches a bald man drinking coffee, Sayid is carrying the casket, looks up and finds Ben, tracks him down, Ben says he's there to find the man who murdered wife, that he took Desmond's boat to get off the island, The Elizabeth, he followed a heading to Fiji, says Charles Widmore tried to convince the world that his plane was on the bottom of the ocean, Sayid asks what that has to do with him and Nadia, Ben says there was a man there, named Ishmael Baker, and that he's one of Widmore's men, five days ago in Los Angeles, a photograph was taken by a traffic light camera, on the corner of La Brea and Santa Monica, three blocks from where Nadia was killed, Sayid asks why they would want to murder her.From Lostpedia
17. Miles says there's six of them, told him they were security, to escort Ben back to mainland, Miles says to take the walkie, that they have a hostage, Ben says his people are prepared to die, but Miles says it's his daughter.
18. Keamy answers the walkie talkie, tells him his name and that he's an employee of Charles Widmore.Martin Keamy, employee of Charles Widmore, says he wants to talk face to face, to look at him, states his terms, to put his hands on his head and walk straight to him, once in custody, no one else will be harmed.
19. Ben says his name is Martin Christopher Keamy, former First Sargent of the United States Marines Corps, served with distinction from 1996-2001, since worked with Mercenary Organizations, specifically in Uganda, knows exactly who he is, so dispense with the formalities.
20. Keamy calls out for Alex to be brought to him, he tells Ben to come out or he'll kill her, Ben says he wants to present a counter proposal, for he and his friends to leave and go back to helicopter, to forget they were ever on the island. 
21. Keamy tells Alex to say goodbye, she talks to Ben, says he killed Karl and her mother, begs him, Ben says it's under control, that she's not his daughter, that he stole her as a baby from an insane woman, that she means nothing to him, she's a pawn, says he's not coming out of the house, to go ahead and do it, and Keamy kills Alex execution style, Ben is completely shocked, because Keamy called his bluff.From Lostpedia
22. Alex is dead and Keamy has disappeared, Ben says that he changed the rules, Sawyer says that they should just toss him out, but Locke says he doesn't think they'll let them walk out alive no matter what they do.
    
23. Ben takes off, pulls back his bookshelf, flicks a switch and escapes into his secret room, where a door comes down behind him, before Sawyer can catch him, he pulls back his rack of suits to reveal an ancient stone wall with markings, hieroglyphs, Ben pushes the heavy door open.From Lostpedia
24. Ben watches and sips tea in a café, he then follows Ishmael Bakir, but gets caught, tells him his name is Benjamin Linus, and that he wants him to deliver a message to Charles Widmore, Says kill him, but keeps shooting even after the gun no longer has any bullets left, Ben says they're finished, Sayid says he has no life, they took it from him, that he spent the last 8 years searching for the woman he loved, he married her and he buried her yesterday, he wants to know who's next, Ben says he'll be in touch.
25. "I spent the last eight years of my life searching for the woman I love. I finally found her and I married her. And I buried her yesterday. So don't tell me this is not my war. Benjamin... Who's next?" SayidFrom Lostpedia
26. Hurley and Claire come out of the bedroom with Aaron.
27. "You all right, sweetheart?" Sawyer "Yeah, a bit wobbly, but, uh, I'll live." Claire "Well, I wouldn't be too sure about that." Miles
28. Ben comes out of the hidden room, he's covered in dirt, he tells everyone to run from house when he says, and to head straight for the treeline, the house begins to shake, the smoke monster comes, they leave the house, the smoke monster comes out and it attacks the men, summoned, Ben says goodbye to Alex.
29. "Did you just call that thing?" HurleyFrom Lostpedia
30. Daniel Faraday gets signal from the satellite phone and sends Morse Code, asks what happened to the doctor, says reply is that their friends are fine and the helicopter is coming back in the morning, Bernard says he's lying, that they didn't know what he was talking about and said that the doctor is fine, Jack asks why he said the helicopter was coming back, that they were never going to take them off the island, Dan says no, Jack is sick, collapses in pain.
31. Sawyer, Claire, Aaron and Miles are heading back to the beach, Locke threatens Sawyer, Hurley stays because Locke and Ben need him to find the cabin with them.
32. London, England, Ben arrives at a Penthouse, says he's there to see Mr. and Mrs. Kendrick in 4E, but it's really Charles Widmore's apartment, Ben enters a dark room, tells him to wake up, Widmore says he wondered when he would show up, Ben asks when he started sleeping with a bottle of Scotch (MacCutcheon) by the bed, Widmore replies that he did when the nightmares started, asks if Ben has come to kill him, but Ben says they both know he can't kill him, that he's there because Widmore murdered his daughter, Widmore says that Ben did it, not to blame him, everything that he has, he took from him, Ben says he's going to kill his daughter, he'll understand how he feels and he'll wish he hadn't changed the rules, Widmore says he'll never find her, that the island is his, that it always was and it will be again, but Ben says he'll never find it, Widmore says that the hunt is on for both of them. 
33. "You creep into my bedroom in the dead of night, like a rat, and have the audacity to pretend that you're the victim? I know who you are, boy. What you are. I know that everything you have you took from me." Widmore "I'm here, Charles, to tell you that I'm going to kill your daughter. Penelope, is it? And once she's gone, once she's dead, then you'll understand how I feel. And you'll wish you hadn't changed the rules." BenFrom Lostpedia

Questions:

1. How does the doctor's body arrive at the Island before he is killed on the Freighter?
   
2. What is the time difference between the Freighter and the Island?
   
3. Is the Risk game a clue? Is Australia really the key to everything?
4. Why is Sawyer impervious to bullets?
5. Did Claire die in the house explosion?
6. Did Ishmael Bakir really kill Nadia? Is he really working for Charles Widmore?
   
7. What is the significance of the hieroglyphs in Ben's hidden room?
   
8. Did one of the polar bears turn the frozen donkey wheel?
9. What are the rules in which Ben is referring to? How has Widmore broken them?
10. Why does Miles say "I wouldn't be too cure about that." when referring to Claire living?
11. Why can the Smoke Monster be summoned from beneath Ben's house?
    
12. Why can't Ben kill Charles Widmore?
13. What is the true connection between Ben and Widmore?
    

Favorites:

1. "No. My gut says we're getting off this island." Jack "I thought your gut was sick." Kate
2. "We're all gonna die." Hurley "Calm down, Chicken Little. The sky ain't falling just yet." Sawyer "This is exactly what he wants--to fight amongst ourselves. You're making a big mistake, dude." Hurley "It's his to make, Hugo. (To Sawyer) Let's get on with it." Locke "Right. ...I'm attackin' Siberia." Sawyer
3. "Surrender! Surrender!" Arab Man "Oh, so you do speak English." Ben
4. "Let me guess. "14-J" ain't the code for the pizza boy." Sawyer 
5. "When? "When" is kind of a relative term." Daniel 
6. "What's going on?" Doug
7. The whole scene where the log carriers die and Sawyer escapes without a scratch.
8. "I think the technical term is "shock and awe"." Ben 
9. "Charlie?" Claire
10. "Those people were murdered to make you angry, James. So you'd be more likely to come storming in here and throw me to the wolves." Ben "[Sawyer grabs Ben] Yeah, what's wrong with that? Sounds like a great plan to me. (To Locke) What do you say, on three?" Sawyer 
11. "(Sing-song) I wouldn't if I were you." Ben 
12. "How did you get here?" Sayid "I came across the Syrian border. It's really not as difficult as you might--" Ben "How did you get off the island?" Sayid 
13. "Well, Miles, sounds like you're not gonna collect your $3.2 million." Ben
14. "(Whispers to Locke) Who's Charles Widmore?" Sawyer "Later." Locke 
15. When Sayid keeps shooting the gun, even after it's out of bullets. Sayid is badass. 
16. "Hang on. "Jacob"? Who the hell's Jacob?" Sawyer
17. "(To Locke) You harm so much as one hair on his curly head... I'll kill you." Sawyer "Fair enough." Locke
18. The entire scene with Benjamin Linus and Charles Widmore.

Notes:

1. Ben shows up in Tunisia, which is the same place that Charlotte found the polar bear bones during her flashback in Confirmed Dead.
2. The painting seen in Charles Widmore's bedroom is the same one seen at the auction in The Constant.
3. The scene with Ben and Charles Widmore is very symbolic. Ben is seen in the dark, and Widmore is seen in the light. This is yet another representation of black and white, and could perhaps be a clue, especially if you've seen the end of Season 6.
4. I remember how mind-bending this episode was when it first aired. You could not believe that they actually killed Alex right in front of Ben, and that he just stood there and let her die. I remember feeling complete and utter shock in that moment.
5. The scene where Sawyer is going to get Claire and all the random log carrying guys die is hilarious.
6. This episode shows a lot of guts. My favorite episodes are when the writers take risks and don't assume that I'm too stupid to understand what's going on. I love when they stay complicated and don't spoon-feed me details. Give me the benefit of the doubt.
7. When Ben arrives in the Sahara Desert and the Arab men on horseback find him, they have a conversation. One notes that there is no trail, the other man wonders where he came from, and asks if he fell from the sky.
   
8. Finally, Claire mentions Charlie. What took you so long?
9. I like how Sawyer is taking charge in this episode and that he's worried about Claire.
10. Ben's flashforward takes place on October 24, 2005, which is one year, one month and two days after the crash of Oceanic Flight 815.
11. According to Wikipedia: On October 24,1593 a man named Gil Pérez, who was a Spanish Solider serving the Filipino Guardia Civil, suddenly appeared in the Plaza Mayor in Mexico City.
12. Any woman that hooks up with Sayid must have a death wish. Every woman he loves dies. Poor Sayid. No wonder why he has to kill people. He's just making it even.
13. The scene were Alex dies is so sad. The last thing she hears before she dies is that she means nothing to the man she thought was her father, and this is after having to go through the death of her mother who she just met after 16 years and her boyfriend dying right in front of her. That scene is just heart-wrenchingly painful to watch.
14. The Smoke Monster scene is friggin' awesome. Except for the fact that no one really dies from it.
    
15. From Lostpedia: The symbols on Ben's secret room door appear to be hieroglyphs that are determinative signs in Egyptian, a basic translation of these hieroglyphs is "to summon protection."  
16. If you go to If the Earth Were A Sandwich you can see that Tunisia is on the opposite side of the world from the South Pacific, where the Island is, which could be why Ben transports to the Sahara Desert, in theory.
17. The final scene with Ben and Widmore is one of the two scenes in LOST history that hasn't been shot in Hawaii. It was shot in England to accommodate Alan Dale.
    
18. In a deleted scene for this episode, Ben is seen in the Sahara Desert after he kills the men and steals their horse, retrieving money hidden under a rock. When he arrives, he looks around to see if anyone is there, and another Ben is seen in the background laying in the sand, much like when Ben was transported there. The shot can be seen at the 0:25-0:27 mark.