"Sundown" Online Buzz

Online Buzz
This episode had many good reviews. People have used the word "epic" a lot in describing it. Fans were surprised that they broke the Season 1 mold they had been following. Season 1 episodes centered on characters in this order: Kate, Locke, Jack, then Sun. Season 6 went: Kate, Locke, Jack, Sayid. But most fans seemed to enjoy this twist. Even though we spend hours trying to figure out what Lost is doing, we still love that they can surprise us.

Many people are saying this episode was a mirror image to one of two earlier Sayid-centric episodes. The first is "The Economist" from Season 2. That was the episode where we learned that during his Oceanic 6 time, Sayid lost Nadia and became a hit man for Ben. The similarities are that even though Sayid thinks he is a good man, he still ends up killing. In "Sundown" he first acted as Dogen's assassin, then Man In Locke's, and off-island he killed to protect Nadia and her family.

The second episode "Sundown" is compared to is the first Sayid-centric episode "Solitary." (S1 E9) Fans felt like there was a nod to it in "Sundown" when Miles was playing Solitaire in the courtyard. "Solitary" was the episode we saw Sayid during his days as a torturer and he had to torture Nadia. But when he was commanded to kill her he helped her escape. On the island, Sayid was captured and tortured by Rousseau. Then as he headed back to the beach camp he heard the whispers in the jungle. There are several similarities it has with "Sundown." The way the wind blew around him before Smoky showed up is remincent of the first time he heard the whispers. Instead of being sent to kill Nadia, he was sent to kill Man In Locke. He set Nadia free but went through with it for Man In Locke, unsuccessfully. Before Nadia left, she wrote him a note on the back of her picture: "You will see me in the next life, if not in this one." Man In Locke promised Sayid he could have something that is not possible in this life. In "Solitary" we saw him fix Rousseau's music box, in "Sundown" he fixed the broken vase.

I have a new favorite nick name for Claire: "Squirrel Nut Claire"

Details and Easter Eggs
Sayid brought yellow roses for Nadia. Red roses represent love. Although Sayid loves Nadia, he couldn't show it so he chose yellow roses which signify joy and friendship.

There have been some questions about a watch Keamy was wearing. There is not a good close-up of it, but it is possible that it was the Rolex Jin brought on the plane. Maybe Keamy was the one Jin was delivering it to, or Keamy just stole it from Jin before he threw him in the fridge.

There was no blood on the knife after Sayid stuck it into Man In Locke. I didn't mention this in my first post because I felt it was pretty obvious but a lot of people are talking about how creepy this was. I think the writers were also trying to point it out to us later in the episode when the knife had a lot of blood after killing Lennon.

Theories
Many people think Dogen and Lennon will be resurrected from the dirty water, the same as Sayid. If they do, they may ask Sayid to apologize for killing them like Locke did to Ben!

Some people are wondering if Kate could have been recruited by Man In Locke off-camera since she said told Jack she wasn't going back to the Temple and then ended up back at the Temple. I don't agree with this one. Just because she changed her mind does not mean she has turned to the dark side. Come on, how many times have we seen her change her mind?!?

There could be a little more validity to the theory that Claire did something to Kate off camera. After that evil glare, I thought Claire would've strangled her once she was within reach. Could she have done something when Kate helped her out of the pit? Does Claire have the ability to "infect" others? Man In Locke gave Kate a strange look but didn't call her out or say she didn't belong. Some think this means she is evil now and not a threat to the group. I'm not sure I'm ready to believe this one. I think Kate was leaving with them because it makes more sense to go with the living than to stay with the dead.

There are many theories about how the two story lines fit with each other. One of the most popular is that the off-island LA story line is the future for the on-island characters. Many shows that end leave you wondering what happens to the characters afterwards. Lost could be giving us the epilogue before it ends. There are several variations of this idea. The on-island characters could do another sort of "h-bomb" reboot causing them to go back and become the characters we've seen who landed in LA. OR the characters could live out their lives on the island but when they die, they will be "uploaded" into their off-island counterparts. AND/OR the choices they make on the island effect what kind of life they have off island. For example, Kate and Sayid have chosen the wrong side in the battle between good and evil therefor their off-island stories are less than perfect.

I believe more in the theories that the two story lines will collide in some sort of epic way. Wouldn't it be cool if the characters could look into some sort of mirror, see themselves in the other story line and then decide which life they want to live? OR what if there is a certain D-day when all the off-island characters suddenly remember everything that happened on the island. It could happen at the moment Locke is getting married, Claire is giving birth to Aaron, Jack is doing surgery on another character, and Saywer and Juliet meet each other in a coffee shop. What would they do? How would they react? OR is there some way that the island story is the future for the off-island characters? It could make your head spin!

Namaste!