Lost 5.12: Ben vs. Charles, and Locke's Slave

Just saw Lost 5.12 on DVR - after the Passover seder. The two stories have a lot in common, actually - release from bondage, quest to regain a promised land, intervention of forces greater than humanity - but, as far as I know, no time travel in the Jewish tradition....

Tonight's Lost was not that much about time travel, either, though we saw glimpses of Charles and Ben throughout time. We learned last week that Charles and El have some kind of authority over the island and Richard's people - though Richard, who in effect is the high priest in contrast to Charles and El's political authority, made it clear that he takes orders from no one.

Young Ben's recovery, due to Richard and the island's healing properties, puts him on a slow-moving collision course with Charles, which leads to Ben forcing Charles off the island, a few years after Charles tried to prevent Ben from "adopting" Alex.

We already knew part of the later piece of the story, in which Ben holds Charles responsible for Keamy's killing of Alex, as he holds himself even more responsible, too.

It plays out tonight. Ben comes to kill Penny - Charles' daughter - but Desmond stops him and beats Ben to a pulp (a common condition for Ben). Penny & Desmond may be my favorite couple on Lost, so I was glad to see Penny live. I have a feeling Penny may be out of danger now - at least, from Ben.

And later, back on the island, resurrected Locke leads Ben to confront the smoke monster, who lets Ben live, but summons Alex to tell Ben he must become Locke's slave.

So now it will be Locke with Ben in service versus the still dangerous Charles.

But I'd still like know why Richard - unlike even Moses - never ages, and if he's the only one.

6-min podcast review of Lost 5.12: Passover edition

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More Lost - see : The Richard-Locke Compass Time Travel Loop ...

and Lost Returns in 5 Dimensions and 5.3: The Loops, The Bomb ... 5.4: A Saving Skip Back in Time ... 5.5 Two Time Loops and Mind Benders ... 5.6 A Lot of Questions ... 5.7 Bentham and Ben ... 5.8 True Love Ways ... 5.9 Two Times and a Baby ... 5.10 The Impossible Cannot Happen ... 5.11 Clockwork Perfect Time Travel

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The Plot to Save Socrates

"challenging fun" - Entertainment Weekly

"a Da Vinci-esque thriller" - New York Daily News

"Sierra Waters is sexy as hell" - curled up with a good book

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Passover and Politics: Reflections

Hey, Passover starts tomorrow night - it's always been my favorite holiday.

A fine feast, catchy songs, and a great storyline - what more can you ask for?

The part I like best comes early in the seder. Why do we need to have a Passover ceremony - the answer is provided by a look at The Four Sons. The first son is highly intelligent - no need to have the story of Passover told for him, because he already understands it. The second son is evil - no point in telling the Passover story for him, because he deemed himself above all of this. The third is a little bit of a dim-wit - no need to have the story told to him either, because the meaning can be satisfactorily conveyed to his weak mind in just a few, simple sentences. But the fourth son - he who has not the capacity to even inquire - he is the reason that the Passover story must be told. It must be told, in other words, for those who, for whatever reason (perhaps because they are too young, or otherwise know nothing at all about the ceremony), cannot even ask a question. It is told just in case they may be interested in learning more.

Which son did I always identify with? The evil son, of course... :)

Now, clearly, this part of the ceremony is also sexist - though, in all of the seders I've ever been part of, girls as well as boys were considered part of the The Four Sons (the youngest child - girl or boy - reads The Four Questions, which come a little before The Four Sons).

The story, of course, is the rising up against oppressors, and freeing a people from bondage. It is a story, alas, that never grows old.

Back in 1968, I remember scandalizing my Uncle Benny by saying something at our seder about Martin Luther King, Jr., who had just been assassinated. It wasn't that Benny was a bigot - he was just surprised to hear a current event talked about at a seder.

This year, we have another kind of bondage that we can rise up against. We have an African-American and a woman running for President - the first time for each group in America. I strongly support Barack Obama, and expect him to be our next President, but I also will honor Hillary Clinton and her contribution at the seder.

I hope that every American who has yet to vote, and can vote in the upcoming primaries, does so. We made some progress since Moses led the Jewish people out of Egypt. We can rise up from the bondage of the last eight years now by going to the polls.

Have a sweet Passover, everyone!