So-so. Kinda boring. Ratcheting up Juliet's background with Goodwin doesn't fit with Juliet's feelings for Jack, since Goodwin hasn't been dead all that long. And what happened to Andrea Roth's face?!?!!? She used to be so pretty!

I've been waiting for this all morning!!!
As for Widmore, I still think he had something to do with the Dharma/Hanso groups. Maybe as a financial backer or something. If he wasn't involved with Dharma how else would they know that Ben killed all the Dharma people with that gas? And I love that FINALLY the rest of the Others kind of come out to play! I miss the forest talking and spookiness of it. That Harper lady is kind of scary!! I LOVED when Ben walked by Hurley and Sawyer and just like smiled at them while they tripped out. I was totally laughing.
And I may be just biased, but I do NOT like Jack with Juliet. He's being such a manwh*re. Kate, Juliet, Kate Juliet. Ugh. But I still love him. And Des. I missed Des this episode, but that's ok. I worried about Sun though! I hope they can get her off the island! I want to know how Sayid and Des are doing on the boat too.
I think there's only like 2 more episodes left! I hope they don't leave us hanging on a thread!

What if the people on the boat were Nikki and Paolo? Remember them? with that whole being paralyzed and buried alive thing...

I definitely thought it was a flash forward at first too, and Juliet was one of the Oceanic 6. I do still think the rain means something...as soon as they discover Dan & Charlotte are missing, it starts to pour, coincidence?

I think it is Michael on the boat, but yes, it would be fantastic if it was someone else we've never thought was even possible!! Can't wait to find out...

Probably the worst episode of the season so far, but still good.

I am also assuming it's Michael, but who else could it be? Everyone else who used to be a survivor is dead and buried (Boone, Shannon, A-L, Libby, Eko, Nikki, Paolo). Well, Charlie isn't buried. Wouldn't it be wild if it was him? I doubt it, though.

The only other person I could imagine it being is Christian Shepherd. In Jack's flash-forward, the one doctor alluded to Jack's dad being alive. I could see him being the one on the boat.

But Harold Perrineau's name has been in the credits all season...

i actually liked this one a lot better than last weeks episode. i still don't understand the whole "list" thing. has baffled me for awhile now. i'm dying to know why Widmore is so interested in the island though...

as for who's on the boat, i'm kinda thinking now that it's so obviously michael that it can't be him. i like whiplashgirls idea of it maybe being Charlie. that'd be absolutely wild!!!

Even if Juliette was off-island, she would not be one of the Oceanic 6, because she was not on the plane. Good point about Harold P. in the credits; that has to mean something! I think the fact that it is him on the boat is an inside joke poorly kept secret because the writers would not have accidentally put him in the credits. They are probably like, "DUH people, it's Michael!". But... if Michael is on the freighter then where is Walt?

Why Widmore is interested in the island: I thought Ben made that kind of clear? He said that Widmore wanted to exploit the properties/ anomalies/ miracles on the island, like Locke and his magically healed legs.

I disagree with some of the comments above; I LOVED the episode. While it wasn't as crazy as The Constant, The Other Women left me falling off my chair. I couldn't help laughing at Ben 24/7 (LOVED Juliet's line: Being an Other is very stressful, Jack. hilarious). The episode really cleared a lot up, including how insane Ben is. I still have somewhat of a soft spot for him though.

Also, how the heck did Ben acquire that tape? Since one of his men obviously took it in the "real world", how did it manage to land on the island...? Unless there's some new technology I'm not aware of.

I love Jack and Juliet. At this point I'm tired of Kate's whining and if she wants to sleep with Sawyer, so be it. Juliet may be insanely confusing but I still like her much more than Kate.

I'm thinking the whole Widmore wanting the island is a ploy to fool Locke. I don't think he wants to get there for the reason he's telling Locke. I don't trust Ben and you can never just take him at his word. There's something else going on with the boat and Widmore...

If you all remember from the TV Guide thing with the cast, Evangeline Lilly asks whatever happened to Michael, to which they answered that all her questions would be answered in the March 13th episode. So if it's not Michael on the boat that would be a real mind blower. Also - let's not forget that Ben gave Michael VERY specific instructions to stay on a certain course.

I flip back and forth between Ben and liking him. I mean, Dan and Charlotte have a point about him wanting to kill people on the island. Yet they obviously know WAAAAAY more about the island than they let on. Also, if they ARE employed by Widmore then can they really be the 'good guys'.

I was fairly sure that it was a flashback from the start as the room Juliette was in looked so much like the inside of the houses in New Otherton.

Lastly - agreed that Jack and Juliette is a sucky combo. Although I am seeing her in a new light now. More fallible than once thought.

I have a really hard time believing that's why Widmore is going through so much trouble to find the island. I don't think Ben made things clear at all. Widmore seems like such a sinister person; I definitely don't take Ben's answer at face value.

Both Widmore and Ben Linus are creepy, sketchy characters. Whom of them do we trust with the secret(s) of the Island? Just because Ben says Widmore is the bad guy doesn't make it so. This episode solidifies that Ben is a whack job, but Widmore is no saint either...

I liked this episode because the themes explored were quite a departure from the norm. Sure, we've had serious romance here and there but I liked that Ben's emotions were the driving force behind a lot of the craziness. It showed a different part of him (still a totally creepy one) and it makes it doubly interesting that love could be the catalyst for conflict.

Oh, and I totally agree about Michael Emerson. He is a total pro. He makes me laugh AND I'm still totally scared of him at the same time. He's also quite hysterical in real life from what I've seen.

It's probably Mikhail on the boat. He can survive anything. And yeah, I realize it isn't possible if he was on the island when Naomi landed, but it would be funny.

divinelight! That was so my most current thought on the secret other on the boat ... yay because i love patchy!!!

last weeks episode was soooooooooooooooooooooo much better...

I thought Juliet was one of the six as well. And if it's not Michael on the boat, I will be shocked. I thought the silhouette at the end kinda looked like him too.

i think ben's revelation is only half true. i do believe widmore is behind it (and have for a while) but i agree that i think there's more to it than exploitation. ben just used what he knew locke was most afraid of: having the island taken away from him (either b/c other people ruin it or his is taken away).

i thought this episode was so-so, but d@mn! give michael emerson an emmy stat or i'll lose all faith in the system (it really will be a popularity contest)!!

..."he is taken away."

and yes, i was afraid for a second that juliet was one of the O6 too, so they also fooled me!

I really hope the man on the boat isn't Michael - everyone knows he is part of the cast, so it will be a letdown because we're all hoping for a shocker! Personally, my fingers are crossed for Charlie or Shannon!

ben is a snake..i totally believe that there is more to the situation that he is telling locke. plus he's so freakn' creepy with his 'You are mine!' thing. oiy. this episode was good but last weeks was WAY better.

My final thought about this episode: Juliet will probably die soon.

Ben is insane and won't allow her to be with anyone else and they need to make way for Jack to get with Kate... again, or for the first time.

Michael Emerson: BEST actor on the show. BEST.

I was disappointed by how boring this episode was. Probably the MOST boring episode of all Lost history. Boring bored bored bored.

I was sort of disappointed with this episode too, mainly with just the backstory — it seems like all those scenes could have been pasted into a Season 3 episode. All we learned from the backstory, pretty much, is that Ben is in love with Juliet (which was alluded to last season) and that Goodwin was married and how their affair started (which also would have been more useful/relevant last season). The pace was just totally different since we've either been getting these insane, revelatory flash forwards, or Desmond's mind-blowing time travel.

But yes, Juliet did look really pretty — her hair color looked fantastic. Haha, ditto about Claire's haircuts — I love when the Losties get trends suddenly, like skinny jeans and bangs. Kate, I remember, has worn like Citizens of Humanity or some other designer brand of jeans — did she rob a boutique while on the run?

End rant.

I totally think it's Michael on the boat or least the writers want us to think that. In the preview for next week's episode it says "you will discover the last of the Oceanic 6." If Michael is on the boat, what if he's the last of the Oceanic 6?!?!

Also, is Aaron being considered one of the Oceanic 6? If so, then we'll find out the last one of the 6. If not, we'll find out the last 2 of the O6.

And BTW, I'm dying for the man on the boat to be someone presumed dead. Why would Locke need to sit down if it was smelly old Michael?

That's an interesting theory, Curly, that Michael is the last of the Oceanic 6! I hope not because i'm really pulling for Sun and Jin. But if Michael and Walt are the last 2, that would mean that Aaron is not included in the O6.

Okay so this is totally random but....... what if it's Walt? I'm actually laughing because it's so unbelieveable but hey I thought I'd put it out there. He WAS on the island (well we think, Locke saw him) and he has grown up, but he's still only like 16 in real life.
In reality there's Not that many people it could be. I hate having to wait a week to find out though!
Also, were do you think the rest of the Others are hiding out? There must be more bunker type things. How do they do the whispery disapeary thing?!?!???!?! oh i love lost

About the rain...I read on Lostpedia that according to the LOST timetable, it would be around 12/26/04..which was the day of the Indian Ocean tsunami. Some people say that the island is actually in the Indian Ocean and not the Pacific.

Was anyone else totally distracted by Harper's mole on her chin?

Also, it kinda freaked me out when Ben yelled "because you're MINE" to Juliet. It gave Ben a whole different aspect to his personality. It was weird to see him lose his cool. I wonder who the woman that Harper says Juliet looks like is and who she was to Ben.

Just a guess (I can't remember what she looked like), but I bet Juliet looks like Ben's childhood friend. Annie or something like that. I'm not sure how Harper would know that though.

OMG Renee, I have to say, I LOVED that they brought the whispery stuff back. It's possibly the creepiest part of Lost. I love the writers all the more for not forgetting anything that was part of the first season!

And where did Harper go? Girlfriend just disappeared. I hate that.

sumbum: YES.

Okay, so did anyone else notice that when Locke took the video tape out of the safe, there was nothing else in it, but later Ben walks over to the safe and pulls out the file on Widmore? Locke almost looked like he wanted to say something, but didn't. Remember when Ben told Locke last season(? I'm losing track of time here) about a box where whatever you wish for would appear inside?

I also hoping the person on the boat is someone other than Michael! I agree with geeksugar, why would Locke need to sit down if it was just Michael? That's totally not that shocking.
I read somewhere before this season started that Boone comes back at some point in the season. I assumed it would be in a flashback rather than some sort of freaky voodoo resurrection, but wouldn't it be AWESOME if it was Boone? I loved him. He might not be the best actor on the planet, but he sure is purdy! Plus, the island is known for it's healing capabilities, as demonstrated not only with Locke and his legs, but when he got shot, and with Rose's cancer. Wouldn't it be crazy if he was somehow healed and resurrected?? LOVE THIS SHOW!

I keep thinking it would be crazy if Niki and Paulo were on the boat since they were burried alive, but but I doubt it.

I still want to know where the other Others are. Where has Richard been all season? Where are those kids, since they finally mentioned them? Its like they all disappeared?

And maybe we will finally learn some more about "The List" of who was good and who was bad. That would be nice!!!

derekh - I thought it actually looked like there WAS a stack of paper in the safe. That's what I thought he was gonna pull out as I expected that the tape was still the Sox game. Maybe I'll have to go back and watch that part again.

i loved when juliet was b*tching about harper and goodwin was like "uh, she's my wife." classic!

thoughts on the boat: i'm fully expecting michael, which makes me think it won't be... i'm hoping for christian shepard, cause how amazing would that be? and last but not least, i'm suspecting walt - in the interview where the actors ask the writers questions one of them says something about time and growing being different off the island and the other one says something like 'you're said more than enough' leading me to believe that it's important.

theory on ben and getting info to and from people: is locke living in ben's house??? how completely plausible does it seem that ben would have created back entrances and escape routes in his own house?? especially in his downstairs cellar thing. even if it's not his own house, it's his damn village, i'm sure he knows it backwards and forwards and has a lot more freedom than he lets locke believe. slimy guy.

ok, enough from me. =)