4/4 Excellent episode.
I was absolutely convinced Ben was going to die in this episode, so his being spared was a welcome surprise. Man, we got SO many answers, so many confirmations of theories.
We finally get to see inside the Temple/Cerebus Vent. We literally see where Cerebus comes out of (and he's Anubis' pet snake!). We find out what went down on the boat with Ben and Des and Penny. We find out why Widmore got exiled. We confirm my theory that many of the 316 passengers were Widmore agents undercover. We finally get to see how Rousseau lost Alex (I wish that scene had been bigger and more epic though).
I'm a little disappointed that Widmore's exile was so mundane. I was hoping Ben tricked him into Donkey Wheeling the Island away. But he just got caught going off-Island all the time and fathering Penny? Too easy.
Anybody else think Emerson did not look age appropriate in 1988 when he stole Lil' Alex?
OMG! Ben KILLED Cesar! I did NOT see that coming! Of course I'm still convinced he was a Widmore agent (he knew how to go through Ben's Hydra Office a little too well), I'm sure we'll see this in flashbacks later. I didn't expect Ilana to be a Widmore agent though, but her codephrase confirms it. I thought she would be the 'innocent' and Cesar the snake in the grass.
I also thought Locke was very large and in charge here. He was cool and confident and knew how to cut through Ben's BS. I loved the way Ben's options and misdirections to keep away from judgement slowly dwindled away one by one, till finally Locke tells him they're going down in the vent, and Ben realizes he's out of tricks, and tells Sun to tell Des he's sorry. Well done.
The bit at the end where Cerebus gave him a "this is your life" was actually pretty touching, and when it took the form of Alex to chastise him, I got tears in me eyes. Well done scene.
I do wonder though what'll make him come back to the island if not to avenge Penny.
