You wanted a Michael update? Last night’s episode of Lost, “Meet Kevin Johnson,” filled us in on everything that’s happened since the end of season two, when we last saw him sailing away with Walt. The guy tried to kill himself, an Other was outed, a sniper nailed a couple of island people, Naomi and Minkowski enjoyed more screentime, and evidence surfaced that Widmore faked the wreckage found in the ocean. Oh, and course we learned that Ben still controls everything.

Specifics after the jump.

The episode opens with a tense town hall meeting at Locke’s house. Our buddy Miles returns, with his jaw still intact. Ben reveals to the group that Michael is his man on the boat, and the Losties gasp. He also explains that Miles’ mission is to retrieve Ben and then kill every remaining person on the island. Ben confides to Alex that the freighter folk will use her to get to him. He begs her to go with Karl and Rousseau to The Temple, where the remaining Others have been since we last saw them.

Sayid and Desmond confront Michael on the deck of the ship and we flash back to Michael in New York.

Though his car is older, the stereo in it reveals that it’s relatively new. Michael is despondent after having revealed to Walt who he killed to get them off the island. He pins a suicide note to his shirt and drives full speed into a dumpster. We next see him in a hospital, and Libby – who he unintentionally killed on the island – enters the room. Michael awakes with a scream.

Geek Alert: He’s still in a hospital room, but the room’s equipment was far less high-tech than the equipment in his dream. Why? The monitor in his dream says that all alarms are off and to “admit patient to activate alarms.” Wouldn’t he have been admitted?

After being released from the hospital, he hocks Jin’s watch for a gun and tries to kill himself in an alley. (Note to producers of Lost: New York is not filled with alleys. In fact, there are hardly any. Sorry, it’s a pet peeve of mine.) Michael is interrupted by our favorite Other, Tom. We assume that means this is before he’s been shot on the island. Tom tells him that they’ve been keeping tabs on him since he and Walt left. He also tells him that the island won’t let him die. Back in his apartment with a gun, Michael tests that theory. As he does, there’s a news report about Flight 815’s wreckage being discovered.

Michael goes to Tom’s hotel room where we meet Tom’s boyfriend, Arturo.
Tom tells Michael that Charles Widmore faked the wreckage, and issues a new assignment: Michael has to pose as a deck hand and kill everyone aboard the freighter. Reluctantly, he accepts the mission. However, it seems that the island wasn’t ready for him to die; as he tries to blow up the freighter, a note saying “NOT YET” pops up. Ben contacts him and tells him to make a list of the people on the freighter. Again, he agrees. Is there anyone Ben doesn’t own?

Sayid and Desmond confront Michael, who reveals the truth about what he’s doing there. Sayid tells the captain that Michael is Ben’s spy. The captain seems unimpressed with that info. We’ll have to wait until they return to see how he really feels about it.

Back on the Island:

En route to the Temple, quiet shots begin to ring out from the jungle and Karl goes down. Rousseau and Alex try to run for it, but Rousseau takes a hit. Alex waves a white flag of surrender, aaaaand…LOST. See you in a month.

Let’s Discuss:

So help me with this timeline: How could Michael have sailed from the island, been rescued, flown to New York, convinced his mother to take care of Walt, become despondent, attempted suicide, recovered from what appeared to be very serious injuries, gotten out of the hospital, pawned the watch, wrestled with Tom in the alley, left for Fiji, boarded the freighter, sailed out to sea, sabotaged the freighter, then days later meet up with Sayid… all in the span of like 2 months!?!

Here’s a thought. The boat sailed on the bearing Ben gave Michael, and that bearing sent Michael and Walt physically back in time, which could explain Walt’s height. Yes, Faraday said it was your consciousness that travels, but otherwise, I’m at a loss as to how they fit it all in eight weeks.

Tom’s file had a picture of open graves in Thailand. Thailand was also Jack’s pre-crash vacation spot. Coincidence? Maybe we’ll see Bai Ling return to the show in a future episode (fingers crossed).

There was also a purchase order for a decommissioned 777 in Tom’s file. It was made out to Widmore Industries. Wouldn’t Widmore been a bit smarter than leaving a paper trail?

Was Michael’s hospital connected to Ben or Widmore? The nurse seemed like she knew more than she let on, sort of like that last-minute replacement doctor at the hospital where Sun gave birth. Tom did say that they were keeping tabs on him. Could some connection to Ben or Widmore explain why it seemed he was out of the hospital so quickly?

Did Ben send Rousseau and Karl into the jungle to die, like he did with Goodwin?

Michael’s passport number was HNS012153. Is it a coincidence that the letters and the first digit look like “Hanso?”

The game show on TV in Michael’s room seemed to have a ‘70s vibe. There was nothing you could make out from it, except someone said “Kurt Vonnegut,” an author the show has referenced more than once.

Oh, and by the way, thank you to the producers of the promos for Lost, for clearing up any further debate. The Oceanic 6 are: Jack, Kate, Sayid, Hurley, Aaron and Sun. The end.

Help me out with some of those questions. What do you think?

- Sean Salo


Tags: Lost•Television