"He's Our You."

Because I like to remain completely spoiler-free I never know the title of each new episode of Lost until after it has aired. My favorite line from last night's installment was Sawyer's description of Oldham to Sayid: "He's our you." When I woke this morning and went to Lostpedia (the encyclopedia of all things Lost, of course), I literally gasped upon learning the title of episode 10 of Season 5: He's Our You. Brilliant!

"He's Our You" opens with an adorably young Sayid breaking the neck of a chicken, as his older brother is clearly fearful of any harm coming to that animal. (No harm, no fowl! OK, bad pun...couldn't resist!) Immediately I thought of Season 2, and a young Eko in Nigeria, killing a man so that his younger brother, Yemi, would be spared that experience. Coincidence? Of course not! This is Lost. One of the Nigerian guerrillas tells Eko that he is a "natural born killer," and the same could be said of Sayid's destiny...all those early days of snapping chicken necks will hone him into the ninja he's meant to become. (Y'all remember in Season 3's finale, "Through the Looking Glass," Sayid broke that Other's neck using just his legs? Yeah. One of my favorite moments ever. He's so badass.)

We then see young Ben delivering a sandwich and some reading material to the imprisioned Sayid. Let me just pause right here and tout the casting of the kid portraying lil' Ben...it is spot on, I tell ya. He is amazing! The book Wee Ben passes to Sayid is A Separate Reality by Carlos Castaneda. I won't even attempt to break that one down for you, but feel free to click on the book title for Wikipedia's synopsis. And, as always, remember that nothing is happenstance on this show. Ben gave Sayid that particular book for a reason. Duh. (And the book lover in me again rejoices at all the literary references which circle the world of Lost. Truly fantastic.)

Next we find ourselves in Russia, where Sayid is doing what he does best...chasing people while brandishing a gun. Honestly, have you ever seen a better dressed hitman? Sayid...dude...with that sleek black ensemble and your hair so carefully blown-out, you are rocking the GQ style. When offing a Russian, why look like a thug when one can look like this:Sayid effortlessly pulls off the look of a classy assassin with the ease of a runway model. I dig him. After killing the Russian Sayid meets up with Ben, who informs Sayid that his work is done. It seems Sayid has managed to exterminate all of Charles Widmore's organization and Ben is all "Mission accomplished...we so rock!" And by "we," Ben clearly means Sayid, 'cause Ben's hands haven't been pulling triggers...no, Ben's hands are more of the strangling kind. (Cough-cough--John Locke--ahem.) Sayid has been a badass his entire life...torturing, killing for a living, and being a super Ninja is all he knows, which is painfully evident when he begs of Ben, "What do I do now?" The chipper Ben replies, rather smugly, "Go live your life." (And then I started singing T.I. and Rihanna's "Live Your Life." I'm sure Ben did, too...off-screen.)

Back in 1977 Horace tries to get all McGruff Crime Dog on Sayid. It doesn't work, because seriously...McGruff would be a more convincing interrogator than Hippie Horace.

Next we see that Juliet not only brings home the bacon, but she also fries it up in a pan. Oh yes, she is a W-O-M-A-N. In this brief, tender scene between Jules and James, we learn the crux of the entire episode..."It's over--this--us--playing house," laments Juliet. Yes, dear viewers, the Dharma Way of Island Living is coming to an end. I love that Saywer tries to convince her (and us!) otherwise: "So they're back, nothing's changed." Puh-lease.

Sawyer takes off to deal with Sayid, and we then hear my second favorite line of the evening:

Sawyer: How you doing?

Sayid: A 12 year old Ben Linus brought me a chicken salad sandwich. How do you think I'm doing?

Awesome.

Meanwhile, Kate, Hurley and Jack are feasting on waffles. While they're chowing down, let me praise Hurley for a minute. Firstly, please tell me the little chef hat & cutlery symbols on his Dharma patch completely rocks your world. Because it's totally rocking mine in a big way. It's the coolest Dharma station yet!Secondly, Hurley had some of the best lines in this episode...

Jack: He (Sawyer) told me to leave him alone and let him do his job..."

Hurley: (incredulously) You going to?

Just like the audience, Hugo has Jack's number.

Hurley then spills the beans about Sawyer and Juliet...you know, how they are not just roommates? The expression on Kate's face, upon hearing this revelation, was utterly priceless. As was Hurley's next line, "Who couldn't see that coming?" I'm taking this one as a gentle nod from the writers and producers of Lost, for those of us (Me! Me! Me!) who predicted Sawyer & Juliet's coupling during last season's finale. I knew it the second shirtless Sawyer swam up on the beach to find Juliet buzzing on some Dharma Initiative Rum. Good times for those two. And good call for Hurley...I so love him stating the obvious. I so love him, period.

Moving on...

Let's discuss Ben's dad. He sucks and got what was coming to him in the purge. The end. That's way harsh, I know, but we now realize part of the reason why Ben is the way he is. What is it with this show and father figures? So many of our island peeps--Sawyer, Locke, Jack, Ben, Sayid--have daddy issues.

And then we return to the time when Sayid was working for the greater good. One minute he's a finely skilled hitman for hire, the next, he's getting all Habitat-y in the Dominican Republic. Here's our Sayid laboring on the behalf of those less fortunate, selflessly devoting his time and talent in a situation where the only potential for bloodshed is an accidental hammer to the thumb, or getting knocked on the noggin by a 2"x4". Of course Sayid's reprieve is curtailed by the appearance of Ben, doomsdayer that he is. Ben spends the next few minutes reminding Sayid of his murderous traits, gently prodding him with statements such as, "You're capable of things most men aren't...it's in your nature...you're a killer!" Way to be encouraging, Ben! Using a potential threat to Hurley as bait (and casually tossing out the intel on Locke's murder), Ben once again manages to place Sayid under his thumb. And on the trigger.

Then we come to Oldham, Mr. He's Our You. I want to go on record here and now with the following opinion: Best. Casting. Ever. It's LARRY, from Newhart, y'all! Oh my head, this made me so happy. William Sanderson as Oldham! I kept waiting for him to say, "Hi, I'm Larry...this is my brother, Darryl, and this is my other brother, Darryl." Pure awesomeness. (He's currently on True Blood, too...if you're wondering where you've seen him.) This Oldham chap intrigues me. He listens to Billie Holiday, lives in a teepee, and knows a square full of sugar helps the medicine go down. Methinks he's probably hit the hookah a whole lot, too. I'm just sayin'.

Seeing Sayid chained to the tree was reminiscent of "Confidence Man," from Season 1, in which Sayid "tortures" Sawyer for withholding Shannon's asthma medicine. Yes, the tables have turned. And I have to admit that seeing Sayid tripping on that truth serum was far out, to use a term from the era in which they currently reside. Sayid breaks it down for the gang, as truthful as he can be. The gang then all but exclaims, "What you talkin' 'bout, Willis?" Clearly, they don't believe Sayid...or his "you're all going to die" prediction. Silly gang.

We then learn that after storming off from the marina (leaving Jack, Kate, Sun, and Ben behind), Sayid gets his MacCutcheon on in a swanky bar. Desmond, we miss you. Please come back. And if you didn't see this coming:
...my friends, you need to bone up on your Lost sleuthing skills. Oh...and that's hot.

We have the brief scene between Juliet and Kate to discuss. Or not.

(Crickets chirping.)

The Dharma City Council holds a meeting to determine Sayid's fate. By the time the gavel pounds, it's unanimous: Sayid's cell has become death row! The more I learn about Amy, the more I fear her. Girl is shifty, to put it mildly. She's pretty hardcore standing there, cradling baby Ethan, waxing about the safety of all Dharma children...a regular Old Mother Hubbard. Wanting to stomp Sayid with her shoe.
After being a total follower with his affirmative vote, Saywer heads to Death Row and offers to free Sayid. But Sayid will have none of this, declaring to Sawyer, "I know exactly why I'm here." Alrighty then.

Sawyer then goes to see Kate...blah-blah-blah. Oh look! A flaming VW van! Did we love the speedy manner in which the Dharmaville Volunteer Fire Department sprang into action? We did. The show's writers made a serious effort for the audience to see just how tight-knit this community is...notice how Sawyer called a bunch of redshirts by name as the flames blazed? Like any of us cares if it's Erin or Steve or Sally Lou holding a hose. But Sawyer cares. Noted.

With the fire crisis keeping everyone else occupied, Ben Junior is on his mission to rescue Sayid. Sayid tells Ben he will take him (Ben) to "his people" (Richard and the hostiles). "That's why I'm here." Sayid explains to lil' Ben. And off they go tromping through the jungle, as these two are wont to do. Until Jin and his No Rosetta Stone Required English shows up and almost thwarts the plans.

What plans? Oh, that would be Sayid fulfilling his mission. You know, to prove what Ben has been telling him all along: "You were right about me. I am a killer!" BANG!

The anguish on his face just slayed me. Brilliant acting, Naveen Andrews. Kudos to you!

Now, if you think Ben is truly dead...well, I'll just remind you...George Strait has some oceanfront property in Arizona that he'd really like to sell. Let's not forget Jin is lying there, too...Sayid's dropping bodies like flies. His game is back on!
Oh Ben...we hardly knew ye...at this age, that is.

A couple of questions:

*During the Dharma City Council meeting, Radzinsky mentioned contacting "Ann Arbor." As in University of Michigan? As in the DeGroots, the founders of the Dharma Initiative? Are the DeGroots still in a positon of power in 1977?

*When Ben Junior visits Sayid's cell just before breaking him out, Ben says of his father, "I hated him." Hated. Past tense. What does this mean?????? Or am I making something out of nothing?

(Edited to add: I must have hearing problems, because everyone's telling me Ben Junior said, "I hate it here." BUT...just so you know...I've scoured the lost message boards and others heard the same as me. I'm not alone in my mistake, and I find comfort in that. Good times.)

And now, please let the sussing commence!