Lost: Sundown

At this end of this episode my wife turned to me and simply stated, "Well, lines have been drawn". Indeed they have, though some characters might find themselves on the wrong side, at least temporarily, most are exactly where they belong.

"Sundown" was the culmination of a character regression that has been developing since the opening episode of this series. Sayid has been the tortured torturer since we first knew him, always attempting to atone for his past sins. Unfortunately he could never pull away from them and for every two steps forward he took one back. In the present, flashback, flash forwards, and now flash sideways Sayid killed and tortured his way throughout these past six seasons.

But somehow he was always redeemed in the eyes of the audience because each murder/torture session obviously was a burden to his psyche. When he killed Dogan and the hippie interpretor, however, he was happy. He reveled in the carnage, there is no peace for Sayid, only death. He was right, he does not deserve Nadia.

Claire has managed to avoid killing Kate for at least a couple of minutes so that's good. That noted, I do wonder how long she will wait before taking her first shot. What happened to Claire to make her fail Dogan's "Goodness Test"? Obviously she is where she belongs at present, considering the good guys usually tend not to kill bound hostages with axes, but when did she make that turn?

Is Kate where she needs to be? Does she belong with Smokey the Nemesis or is she currently playing for the wrong team. She has killed, is responsible for the death of her best friend, lies like a rug, and is generally known for making terrible decisions in the relationship department. All that said I hope she gets traded! Maybe Smokey will use her and Jin to trade for Ben.

Smokey decimating the temple was one of the most intense scenes in this entire series. It was simply brutal. Illana, Frank, Sun, and Ben stormed the temple as Smokey destroyed it to save, Miles? I like Miles as much as anyone, his description of Claire was terrific, but plot wise he should have been cannon fodder at this point so why is he still alive?

Ben seemed so earnest when he approached Sayid and said he could still save him. Was he lying again? Simply waiting for his opportunity to join with Smokey? Or does he truly regret his actions? Too bad about Sayid giving in to his dark side.

It seems as though Illana is leading the anti-Nemesis forces. I wonder if she will capitulate leadership to Hurley since he is the only one with a direct line to Jacob. How did Illana become so important?

Dogan knew he was a goner when Sayid sat next to him. He confessed his sins to his soon to be killer in a moment of honesty that was heartbreaking. Then he allowed Sayid to drown him in the murky water. Dogan's interpreter, however, did not see that coming.

I immediately recognized the man that picked Sayid up at his brothers house, I just could not place him in the vast universe that is "Lost". When it turned out Martin Keamy was the man Omar owed money to I was simply floored. Sayid cemented his evil nature in all of his existences by killing Keamy in cold blood (even though he deserved it).

Widmore, Desmond, and Penny need to show up and have a major role in the finale of this series. Ben and Widmore had rules against killing each other just like Smokey the Nemesis and Jacob had. The rules need to be explained and the Widmore/Hume story arch is just the one to explain them.