We skipped writing recaps for the previous two episodes The Substitute and What Kate Does, but recaps are also available on lostpedia.

This week, the story has progressed to the point where we are going to go out on a limb to dig into a concept we mentioned in our recap of the premiere of season 6 “LA X”. In our previous post, we discussed the theory that the “Flash Sideways” are actually the resolution of our characters’ story. The producers want to give us the actual backstory of the characters outside of life on the island.

This is a redemption story

lost producers: Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse

If you’ve watched the Lost recaps before each season, or you’ve listened to the official Lost podcast by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, the producers have been hinting at certain themes throughout the series which are becoming more pronounced.

Official Lost Podcast – Dec 06, 2006 (mp3)

The producers remind us that redemption has been an overriding theme of the series since Day 1. “Kate blew up a house with a man inside,” Lindelof says. “Sayid is a torturer. Sawyer has done all sorts of nasty things. That’s the space the show lives in. Michael was one of the few characters who was a victim before he came to the Island. He was a good guy, and his wife took his son away from him. He didn’t have anything to be redeemed for until now.” – lostpedia

We want to go out on a limb here and throw out the idea that the Flash sideways are, in fact, the redemption that the producers have been hinting at the entire time.

Flash “sideways” are glimpses of the end of the show

If you don’t know what we mean by “flash sideways,” read our previous recap, where we explain the concept in detail at the end of the article.

Here’s what we think happened:

1. In the very first episode, we see our Losties on Oceanic flight 815, we watch the turbulence and then there’s a break in the time-line where, in another scenario, the plane would have crashed
2. We watch the events of the island and what our characters have to go through to “redeem” themselves on and off the island
3. At some point during this season, our Losties will make a decision that will end the split in the time-line. At this point, we flash back to the opening of season 6 where Jack is looking out of the window and we see the island at the bottom of the ocean.
4. All of the flash sideways we are watching this season are a way for the producers to show us the resolved storyline of our characters without having to spend the entire last episode telling this story.

Open ended questions

Here are some open ended questions we’d love to get feedback on in the comment section.

• How does the theme of destiny vs free will come into play during this season?
• Why are these specific people so important?
• What does Jacob vs. Smoke Monster have to do with the story of these specific individuals?
• How many times has this happened in the past?

Last Thoughts

We think it’s important to remind people that the initial name of the show was called “The Circle.” Clearly, these chain of events have happened in the past.

We think the real big question is: “What makes this iteration of The Circle or The Loop result in the character’s redemption story?”

Let us know what you think in the comment section!

Related Posts:

• Important take-a-ways from “LA X”