TVSquad

(S04E12) I completely understand why Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse needed an extra hour for the finale. The first of three hours had so much information and moved to so many different locations, and I still feel like we've barely scratched the surface. It's going to be a long two weeks. That's all I have to say.

The Beach Survivors (The Beach, The Jungle)

The 815ers were still trying to figure out who dropped the satellite phone from the chopper, and what they were supposed to do. When Daniel called the phone on the helicopter, all they heard was Keamy's voice telling his mercenaries to go to The Orchid (watch the Orchid orientation video if you haven't already, people). Juliet claimed that she didn't know about The Orchid, but Daniel knew all about it. He was aware of the secondary protocol, and told Charlotte in a panicked voice that they had to get off the island as soon as possible.

Jack ignored Juliet's concern for his recovery and took off with Kate after the helicopter's signal. He was bleeding when they ran into Sawyer, Aaron, and Miles in the jungle. Sawyer told them about Claire's disappearance and the destruction of the Barracks, and decided to join Jack on his trip to the chopper. Kate took Aaron and Miles back to the beach.

When Kate returned, Sayid had already reached the island and warned the 815ers about Keamy's agenda. This news worried Kate even more, and she and Sayid went after Jack and Sawyer. Daniel volunteered to ferry people, six at a time, back to the freighter. Sun, Jin, Aaron, and a few anonymous survivors joined him.

Sawyer and Jack found Frank Lapidus alone, handcuffed inside the helicopter. He dropped the phone on the beach, hoping that they would find him. He planned to take the 815ers back to the freighter before Keamy returned. When Frank mentioned that the mercenaries were looking for Ben, Sawyer worried about Hurley's safety. Meanwhile, Kate and Sayid found a separate set of tracks in the jungle. Soon they were surrounded by Alpert and the Others, who held them at gunpoint.

The Freighter

When the first group of 815ers reached the freighter, Sun and Jin were shocked (and not terribly happy) to see Michael. Michael did his best to explain his presence on the freighter, but Sun and Jin didn't trust him. Daniel immediately went back for another set of people, which is a sign that he's a relatively good guy. He knew that the island was a dangerous place to be, and was willing to go back and rescue more people.

Now that Michael had fixed the engines, Desmond was eager to rescue the rest of the survivors. There was just one problem: something on the freighter was causing RF interference, and it wasn't safe to move just yet. Desmond found the source of the interference: a giant pile of explosives. My best guess is that the mysterious device on Keamy's arm controls the explosives, and Keamy can blow up the freighter whenever he wants. The people on the freighter are in as much danger as the people on the island.

Locke, Ben, and Hurley (The Jungle, The Orchid)

After sending a signal to his people in the jungle, Ben led Locke and Hurley to the Orchid station, which looked like a simple greenhouse. It was clear that Keamy and the mercenaries were already waiting for Ben, so Ben had to change his plan. He told Locke how to access the real Orchid station from a hidden elevator, and walked up to the Orchid unarmed. Keamy emerged, held a gun to Ben's head, and knocked him out.

Flash-Forward: The Oceanic Six

The now-rescued Oceanic Six landed at a military base in Honolulu, along with a representative of Oceanic Airlines. Everyone looked pretty shaken up, but Jack (who is still a bossy boots off the island) insisted that the survivors could speak to the press. As they left the plane, everyone had loved ones waiting for them, except for Kate. The Paiks, Mrs. Shephard, and Hurley's parents were all there; even Nadia reunited with Sayid after the press conference.

We finally got the "official" Oceanic 815 story. An undetermined number of survivors escaped from the plane before it sank. They floated on cushions and wore life jackets as the current carried them for a day. By the time they washed up on uninhabited Membata island, there were only eight passengers left alive. Luckily, wreckage from a fishing boat washed up on shore, as well as a raft. Kate was six months pregnant when the plane crashed, and gave birth to Aaron on Membata. Jin died in the crash, along with Claire (who was not mentioned at the conference). The survivors took the raft to a village called Manukangga on the island of Sumba, and Oceanic Airlines learned about their rescue.

Sun came back to civilization with a backbone and a grudge against the two people responsible for Jin's death. She didn't say who the second person was, but she got her revenge on the first--her father. Putting her Oceanic Airlines settlement to good use, Sun bought a controlling interest in Paik Heavy Industries. After a heated confrontation with her father, Sun told Mr. Paik that she was going to have her child and start making some changes with their company.

Hurley might have given his lottery winnings to his folks, but he couldn't shake the curse of the numbers. At a poorly conceived island-themed surprise party, David Reyes gave his son a thoughtful (and unsettling) birthday gift. After the crash, Papa Reyes fixed up the Camaro in Hurley's honor, and the car was up and running. When Hurley got in the driver's seat, he was terrified when he discovered that the odometer had the winning lottery numbers on it.

Jack finally got to say goodbye to Christian. There wasn't a body, but the Shephards had a belated funeral anyway. When the service was over, an Australian woman approached Jack. It was Carole Littleton, Claire's mother and Aaron's grandmother. Apparently she came out of her coma sometime after the crash. Carole told Jack all about her connection with Christian, and mentioned that his half-sister was also on Oceanic 815. Jack learned that Claire was Christian's daughter after it was too late to save her. Kate was standing nearby holding Aaron, but it's unclear if she heard the conversation or not. From the look on her face when Carole noticed Aaron, I'd say she got the gist of it.

Final remarks/questions:

• I hope we get more of an explanation about Carole Littleton's miraculous recovery. When we last saw her, she had been on life support for several years.
• Why would Keamy put a bomb on the freighter? Is it a last resort, like Locke's desire to move the island, in case the mission fails? How was he planning to get Ben back to Widmore? Did someone else put the bomb there? So many questions...
• Sun mentioned that she blames two people for Jin's death. Who is the other person? Is there any chance that Jin isn't dead, and that Sun is just playing along with the official story? Things aren't looking good for him.
• The word "membata" is Indonesian for doubt or uncertainty.
  
• Hurley and Ben had another funny moment together. I can't believe Hurley ate fifteen-year-old crackers.
  
• I'm dying to see the inside of the infamous Orchid station.

In two weeks--things come to a head in the two-hour finale. Until then, check out additional Lost coverage at AOL.