So what's unanswered (spoilers to end of season 5)

[KLOEN]

Just a guess, but perhaps Jacob and Esau can't physically hurt each other, and therefore have to find somebody to do it for them, ie the "loophole".
Now, My guess is that both men are capable of appearing as live versions of whatever corpses are on the island. Hence Yemi, Christian, Alex, Locke and probably some other guys I can't remember. This thing with the corpses having to be ON the island, is probably why Jacob didn't want Miles to come to the island, since he could accidentally ruin some of Jacobs plans if he came across a buried corpse of someone Jacob was appearing as.

We just don't know who has been appearing as who, and for what purpose, though it seems highly likely that Esau appeared as Alex in order to convince Ben to listen to Locke, who is also Esau playing dead-dress-up..

The beard and just a gut feeling makes me think it was Esau trapped in the cabin, and once Locke entered with Ben, Esau saw a possible loophole in Locke, recognizing him for the father-figure hungry higher purpose needing man he was, and started to work on him right there. Ben, having never met Jacob, couldn't possible know it was Esau who was actually talking to Locke.

 

[auntiehill]

^ I think so, too. I think it was Esau in the cabin all along. Ben would never have know any different. And I wondered why Locke suddenly disappeared when Smokey/Alex showed up. I think it's because the two are/were one and the same.

I think working out Esau's strategy is far easier than Jacob's, however. I have yet to clearly see how his plans have worked in his favor. I guess we'll see that next season.

 

[Mallet]

The smoke monster, Christian, and all the dead people are all one and the same.


But all the clues seem there this season. Ben was with fake-Locke he tried to summon Smokey. But Smokey wouldn't come, because he was right there with Ben the whole time. Then fake-Locke conveniently says, "Wait a second Ben, I know where Smokey lives. Let's go." Ben then falls through the ground by himself and meets Smokey. Smokey as Alex tells him to do everything Locke says. Smokey then disappears and fake-Locke pops up right afterward.

Also, we hear the smoke monster noise right before Christian appears to Sun and Frank. He tells them to wait for John Locke to show up and lead them, then he disappears, and Ben and John arrive.

Well, this theory has a problem as well. If Smokey and the "Ghosts" are the same being, and they can only be in one form or the other at any time, as you are saying above, then it wouldn't work because if Christian is the smoke monster, and Un-Locke is the smoke monster, how can Christian be with Sun & Frank at the cabins while Un-Locke is with Ben walking towards the cabins? Either they are different beings, or Smokey can appear in different forms and places at the same time.

I still think Smokey is different from the Ghosts. I think smokey is an independent creature/being that roams the island judging people and killing those it finds unworthy (what it's definition of unworthy is I don't know. It killed Eko, but let the Merc's live). I think both the Adversary and Jacob may be able to influence Smokey when they need to, but for the most part it does it's own thing. Like a well trained dog. When you need it or command it it will do what you want, but for the rest of the time it runs about doing it's own thing.

I also think there are good "Ghosts" and bad "Ghosts". Maybe the Adversary controls the Bad ones (Like Un-Locke) and Jacob controls the "good" ones, like Charlie. And maybe both of them can create/control any dead persons ghost. So you could have a "good" Christian controlled by Jacob and a "bad" Christian controlled the Adversary.

 

[Hunter X]

^I think that Christian in "Namaste" is allied with Jacob. It seems to me that it's Jacob who is trying to bring the Oceanic Six back to fight his enemy, hinted by his "they're coming" comment before we see the bomb going off. In "Namaste," Christian tells Sun where the rest of the Six are and says "you have a long journey ahead of you." Now, maybe he's referring to the journey she and the Others take to the statue's foot, but I wonder if he's actually referring to the journey the Oceanic Six have to go on to defeat Esau.

So much speculation, so few solid clues.

 

[Mallet]

^Yah, there has been a few times when Christian has seemed to be on Jacobs side (or at least trying to help the Losties (and Jack)) yet it was Christian that got Locke to move the Island and told him he would have to die, and basically set everything up so that Un-Locke could happen and Ben would kill Jacob. So that make "that" Christian a bad guy working against Jacob.

That's why I think Jacob and the Adversary can both create/control "ghosts" of the dead and use them to do their bidding, good or evil.

 

[McCoy]

My memory isn't working this morning..when were the different times that Christian appeared to the Losties (other than Locke) that didn't actually end up furthering the Adversary's eventual goal?

 

[Nardpuncher]

How does everyone know that the other guy is called Esau?

 

[Mallet]

My memory isn't working this morning..when were the different times that Christian appeared to the Losties (other than Locke) that didn't actually end up furthering the Adversary's eventual goal?

Well he has appeared to Jack from very early on (like the second or third episode) at those times he led Jack to the water and the caves.

He has appeared other times since then, but I also can't remember the exact reasons, but I do know it was only at the end of season 4 when he was in the cabin with Claire that he seemed a bit more sinister and looking back at it, the first time I think he might have been working for the Adversary.

Of course the writers can retroactively say why or why not Christian was appearing to Jack way back at the beginning of the series and trying to help him.

 

[Mallet]

How does everyone know that the other guy is called Esau?

They don't. It's just that in the bible Jacob has a brother called Esau. SO people began calling him that, even though we don't even know if that character is Jacobs brother at all.

I don't call him Esau (I just call him The Adversary) that way when we do eventually learn his name it won't be as confusing as having two names for the same character.

 

[KLOEN]

They don't. It's just that in the bible Jacob has a brother called Esau. SO people began calling him that, even though we don't even know if that character is Jacobs brother at all.

Yeah, and they weren't exactly on friendly terms.. Plus, Jacob had a son by the name of Benjamin.

 

[Hunter X]

Off the top of my head, here's when I remember Christian appearing:

Season 1: To Jack in "White Rabbit" and the episode before.
Season 4: In "The Beginning of the End" (first episode) in shadows when Hurley looks into the cabin. In "Something Nice Back Home" to Claire, luring her to the cabin, and then in "Cabin Fever" to Locke. I believe he also appears to Jack in the hospital in "Something Nice Back Home." In "There's No Place Like Home" to Michael, telling him he can go.
Season 5: In "This Place is Death" (I think) to Locke when he has to turn the wheel. In "Namaste" to Sun, telling her where the rest of the Six are.

All in all he seems pretty closely tied to the cabin (and Jacob or Jacob's enemy?) except for when he appears to Jack both times and when he appears to Sun and Frank.

 

[Rowan Sjet]

What's up with the Tailies taken by the Others?

 

[McCoy]

Apparently there's still a group of Others at the Temple. They've been there for all of season five.

 

[Hober Mallow]

Well he has appeared to Jack from very early on (like the second or third episode) at those times he led Jack to the water and the caves.

Actually, he was first led to a Cliff he nearly fell off of. Then he found the water and caves -- one of which nearly buried him alive in the next episode.