The Return of Charles Widmore

Well, if Ben can return to the Island, so can Widmore, I guess. I'm a bit embarrassed that I completely forgot to say anything in my analysis of Dr. Linus about Widmore's arrival via submarine. I think that my friend Mike (hi, Mike!) put it best - the scene just interfered with our enjoyment of the beach reunion.

But we can't just ignore Widmore's return, as we know it doesn't mean anything good.

How much time has elapsed since Ben shot Desmond and Desmond beat Ben almost to a pulp? A week? How did Widmore find the Island? It seems unlikely that Eloise Hawking helped him, after her slap when he dared to compare his loss with hers. Daniel Faraday is dead. Did Widmore have plans in place already when he hovered outside the hospital? Did he know that Locke, aka Jeremy Bentham, had died?

I'm also curious about any allies that Widmore might have on the Island. Clearly, Ben is not an ally. Ben exiled Widmore off the Island (a fate worse than death?) and bears the horrible memory of Widmore's agent killing his daughter. Locke is dead.

But what about Miles? Miles was hired by Widmore for purposes still unknown to us. What was Miles supposed to do for Widmore?

Sun was also an erstwhile ally of Widmore's. Now, of course, all she wants is to find her husband. But what was she supposed to do with Widmore? What did their plans involve? Did she somehow help Widmore find the Island?

A lot of bloggers are wondering who is on the sub with Widmore. I think it is safe to say neither Eloise nor Daniel are on the sub (these were both suggested by bloggers). Maybe Aaron, Ji Yeon, and Clementine? Okay, I'm just dreaming about this one. But surely he has someone important on that sub!

In the meantime, according to Comcast's description of Recon, this week's new episode, Sawyer's back. My mother will be so happy.

Jacob's Touch

In Dr. Linus, we learned from Richard that Jacob's touch brought about changes, changes that can be seen as either blessings or curses. We know that Jacob's touch made Richard never die (at least, by his own hand) and never age. It also appeared to me that Jacob's touch revived John Locke after his father pushed him out of a window eight floors above ground. We don't know if Locke would have aged, but we do know he could be killed - just ask Ben.

So, what are the rules of this touch? Are there rules? Clearly, some who are touched by Jacob can age, or else Kate and James Ford would be the oldest children ever. Actually, I can hear some of you say that Kate is a child, but you know what I mean. We know that those who have been touched by Jacob can be "claimed" or "infected", as we saw with Sayid.

Can Sayid, Jin, Sun, Jack, and Hurley age? Is it possible that they will never die? Or can they never die until Jacob or the Island is done with them?

Is it Jacob's touch that makes a Candidate? notLocke seems to think so. If so, then Kate is surely a Candidate, as are both Kwons. Is it the touch that makes the Candidate worthy? Or is it just an acknowledgment of their worthiness? Or perhaps the touch is just to make the Candidate safe?

And what about Ben? I don't remember this, but apparently, Jacob actually touched Ben as Ben stabbed him to death. Did this touch pass on to Ben any of the qualities we're looking at? Could it have possibly turned him into a Candidate? Wouldn't that be funny?

We have to adjust to the fact that not all questions will be answered, but I sincerely hope that we get answers to some of these questions. It might help explain why these people were brought together to the Island.

Benjamin Linus, Season Five

I’ve been delaying this post, and I’m not sure why. I think that part of it is that in the writing, I know I will have to face a fact I’m not sure I’m willing to face: Ben killed Locke for his own purposes, not for what was best for the Island. Any doubt about that was removed when he looked at Sun and said, “Dead is dead.” He had no idea that John Locke could be resurrected, or, as the case turned out to be, the Man in Black was reincarnated into John Locke.

Like John, we saw Ben at his lowest point this season (both in the 1970s and in “current time”). Unlike John, we never saw Ben at the height of his powers. Indeed, we saw Ben take an often passive, reactive role this season, something we haven’t seen from him. No matter how bad the situation, Ben has always been able to turn it to his advantage. But not this season.

Let’s start with Ben in the 1970s…

The Transformation of Ben into an Other

When a young boy brought Sayid a meal, it was no surprise that it was Ben. Three years had passed since the events of The Man Behind the Curtain, and Ben had been waiting patiently as instructed by Richard. He was clearly excited to see Sayid, thinking that perhaps the time for patience was over. Not content to any longer wait patiently, Ben characteristically took matters into his own hands, arranging for a distraction so he could rescue Sayid.

Unfortunately, Ben’s eyes were blinded as to Sayid’s true purpose, as he learned later to his regret. And why shouldn’t he have been naïve? We saw the abuse that Ben suffered at his father’s hands – emotional and physical. And Ben was only twelve, with little experience of the world outside of the DHARMA Initiative. Sayid’s presence gave Ben hope that his time of misery and suffering were over.

But Sayid was not a Hostile, and knowing what a monster Ben would become in the future, after escaping the Initiative, Sayid turned his gun on Ben, shot the boy, and left him for dead.

Other than apologizing for taking his father’s keys, Ben was a passive participant in the remaining events in the 1970s. Juliet tried desperately to save Ben, to no avail, and the only surgeon around refuse to help. Juliet, knowing the character and abilities of the Others, made a decision with Kate – the boy had to be taken to the Others. Richard agreed to take the boy, but warned his would-be rescuers that the process would forever change Ben, who would lose his innocence and become one of the Others. Further, his memory of the events that transpired would be lost.

I’ve stated elsewhere my disappointment that Ben had no memory of the events that transpired in his getting shot. He mentioned it briefly in Dead is Dead, but otherwise we have no real idea as to how much his memory was impaired by the process of saving his life. When Sun showed him a picture of the 1977 recruits into the DHARMA Initiative, Ben was genuinely surprised to see Jack, Hurley, and Kate among them. Maybe he wouldn’t have remembered them anyway, since he seemed to have little contact with them as a boy (at least while conscious), but it appears he also had no memory of Sawyer, Juliet, Miles, Sun, or Daniel. The fact that Ben lost his memory of the events resulting in his being shot meant that when he was caught in Danielle’s net, he didn’t recognize Sayid. When Ben called Sayid a stone cold killer, he didn’t know that it would result in his transformation 30-something years earlier from a boy to an Other. I still feel this was a missed opportunity.

Ben Gathers the Oceanic 6

Between the time that Ben turned the wheel and brought Sun and Jack to Eloise Hawking, Ben worked as he always did, through manipulation, behind the scenes. He manipulated Sayid into killing his enemies, most likely Widmore’s men. He manipulated Jack into gathering the remaining Oceanic 6 for the trip back to the Island. He coldly dropped Sayid as soon as he no longer needed him, then convinced Sayid to kill Hurley’s “guards” as a means to “protect” Hurley. He managed to convince Sun to follow him, hiding Jin’s wedding ring until they were at the church where Hawking was.

Ben’s powers of manipulation failed him only twice. Hurley refused to follow him back to the Island, even though he had once believed it was the thing to do. Only Jacob’s intervention brought Hurley back. And Ben couldn’t manipulate himself to kill Penny Widmore in retaliation.

Ben’s “shining” moment was his one interaction with John Locke, in Locke’s hotel room. I’m not convinced that Ben himself knew he was entering Locke’s room to kill him. If Ben had planned to kill John, no matter what, then he truly was a master actor, a manipulator of the highest skill.

But I wonder if Ben killed John Locke not because Locke had given Ben the final piece to the puzzle needed to return to the Island (Eloise Hawking’s name), or because he believed that Jacob communicated with John again. As we saw in Ben’s final scene of the episode, Ben has felt the pain of being ignored by Jacob while John Locke has been special. This reminder of Ben’s seemingly unimportance to Jacob, and John’s place on the Island, may have been the final straw. And John Locke’s life was ended in a brutal fashion.

I’ll miss you John. I really will.

Back Home on the Island

Ben showed up on Ajira 316 beaten and bloodied from his encounter with the Hume family. Like Frank and Sun, Ben did not flash into the 1970s. Instead, he stayed mostly to himself, but seemed pleased that Sun was following him. He seemingly talked her into going with him to the main Island, but his confidence in his skill and his mark was misplaced. Sun didn’t trust him, and as soon as she had the knowledge from him that she needed, she knocked him unconscious. And thus, thousands if not millions of Lost fans sighed, “Finally.”

But then Ben woke up to his worst nightmare. John Locke greeted Ben as he awakened, “Welcome to the land of the living.” Did Ben give up just a little at this point, knowing the Island favored John so greatly? Maybe not. Ben skillfully manipulated Caesar to mistrust John, with the ostensible reason of getting the shotgun away from Caesar.

In my opinion, Ben’s manipulation of Caesar was Ben’s last. For him, it was essentially downhill from there on out. At one point, Sun asked Ben what happened to the rest of the infamous statute. He told her it had been that way for as long as he had been on the Island. She looked at him and asked if he expected her to believe him. The master manipulator sighs, “Not really.”

We know, of course, that John Locke remained dead. Instead, Ben was accompanied by not-Locke who insisted on following Ben back to the Island. Ben alleged that he planned to be judged by the Island for breaking the rules – returning to the Island after turning the wheel – but not-Locke forced Ben to admit he sought judgment for Alex’s death. Now accompanied by Sun, Ben and not-Locke sought the Temple. Once there, Ben was surprised that not-Locke knew a different way inside it.

In the Temple, Ben’s life continued to turn upside down. For the Smoke Monster showed up, giving Ben a visual of Alex’s death, and then it turned into Alex. At first Alex pretended to listen to Ben, but then, she pinned him against a pillar:

Listen to me, you bastard! I know that you’re planning to kill John again, and I want you to know that if you so much as touch him, I will hunt you down and destroy you. You will listen to every word that John Locke says, and you will follow his every order. Do you understand?

When the Smoke Monster left, Ben looked devastated, not least by the fact that it left him alive.

From there on out, Ben was not-Locke’s lackey. Not-Locke was the lying , deadly manipulator, and Ben was the easy mark. Not-Locke slowly but surely let Ben in on his plan, that they must find Jacob, that Jacob must die, and that Ben must kill Jacob. And why wouldn’t Ben want to kill Jacob? After all, despite years of loyal service to the Island and to Jacob, following every order, Ben never saw Jacob. Instead, he contracted cancer, watched his daughter die, and was banished from the Island. Oh, how skillfully not-Locke found Ben’s every weakness.

At the final confrontation between not-Locke and Jacob, Ben was the actor, but not the focus. Although Ben observed that not-Locke and Jacob appeared to know each other, he didn’t explore it. For he finally was face to face with Jacob, the entity he had heard about for 3 decades, the entity who never met him, who never found him special. When Jacob reminded Ben that he had a choice, Ben exploded.

Oh... so now, after all this time, you've decided to stop ignoring me. Thirty-five years I lived on this island, and all I ever heard was your name over and over. Richard would bring me your instructions--all those slips of paper, all those lists--and I never questioned anything. I did as I was told. But when I dared to ask to see you myself, I was told, "You have to wait. You have to be patient." But when he asked to see you? He gets marched straight up here as if was Moses. So... why him? Hmm? What was it that was so wrong with me? What about me?!

Then Jacob responds, “What about you?” And then Ben stabs Jacob over and over.

In that final episode, we learned that John Locke was never resurrected, and that it was someone else who acted as John. From what Jacob said to not-Locke, we have assumed that not-Locke was actually the Man in Black, or Esau. What will happen to Ben when he realizes that he was the pawn in a game that may be centuries old?

The Actor

After the season ended, Michael Emerson made the media rounds doing interviews. I’m sure it had nothing to do with a plan to encourage Emmy voters to select him as Outstanding Supporting Actor, but either way, he did win! Yeah! A well-deserved win.

Emerson also appeared at Comic-Con this summer, and took an active part in the humor of the Lost panel, showing his “audition” for the role of Hurley, and making fun of Josh Holloway for not being able to read. It appears that everyone had a great time.

Editor's Note

I had fabulous pictures for this post, but I had problems with Blogger this time. I honestly don't know if the problem is with the pictures or some other problem. It was annoying.

The Temple

Here it is, another Lost-eve, and I’ve a few thoughts to share about the Temple. The Temple, of course, is where we saw Richard Alpert carry the unconscious young Ben Linus at the end of last week's episode. We don’t know a whole lot about the Temple, so I thought I’d compile what we know here, and then ask my questions.

We first heard of the Temple in Meet Kevin Johnson, when Ben gave Alex a map to the Temple, saying it might be the last safe place on the island. Oddly enough, the map has a Dharma logo on it. When Karl suggested that the survivors go with them to the Temple, Ben refused, saying, “It’s not for them.” We didn’t see the Temple until This Place is Death. Remember when Montand was dragged by the smoke monster/security system into the hole, losing his arm in the process? And remember that Robert, Lacombe, and Brennan followed Montand into the hole, after he called to them? Danielle would have gone into the well too, had Jin not been there to stop her. This occurred at the Temple – or its outer walls, at least. We saw the walls, covered in Egyptian hieroglyphs (there’s another line of thought –all the Egyptian symbols this season). Apparently there was an official podcast after This Place is Death, in which the producers reported that the walls we saw are just an outer perimeter. The Temple is inside these walls.

We know nothing else about the Temple. But after seeing what happened to Robert, Lacombe, and Brennan, and then after hearing what Richard told Kate and Sawyer about what would happen to Ben, it just elicited a slew of thoughts. In case you need reminding, Richard said:

If I take him, he’s not ever going to be the same again. He’ll forget this ever happened and his innocence will be gone. He will always be one of us. Do you still want me to take him?

Is it the Temple that turns people into “Others”? How does it alter them? Were the Frenchmen turned into “Others”? What about being an “Other” made them so deadly to Danielle? Who built the Temple – the “Others”? The Dharma Initiative? Who or what decides who goes to the Temple and who doesn’t? Why was it not for the survivors? Has Juliet been to the Temple? Has she been irrevocably changed?

Who are the “Others”, anyway?

I use quotation marks around the word “Others” because it appears that there are two kinds of Others. Ben and Richard are privy to the Temple, but Karl and Alex were not. And I don't know what the differences are.

I am thoroughly intrigued.

Sacrifice of the Little Prince?

Well, it's Lost-eve night and I know that y'all are as excited as I am to see what tomorrow night brings us. Before my thoughts are completely consumed by what the new episode brings, however, I wanted to discuss a theory that Nicole brought up in the comments last week.

"There's some major Christ symbolism going on:

• The island selects a "chosen one"


• The "chosen one" gets killed


• The island resurrects the "chosen one"


• The "chosen one" goes on the lead the island's people.

Ben was the chosen one, he just got killed and will now be resurrected to lead the others. Then, when it becomes Locke's time to lead, Ben realizes he has to kill Locke so Locke can fulfill that same destiny - if Locke would have killed himself then it would all be messed up. This might also be why Ben tried to kill Locke before - but it wasn't time yet. I bet Richard was at one time a leader too (got killed and resurrected years ago - which is why he doesn't age)."

This is an intriguing theory. I know that there is more to it than an attempt by Nicole to justify some of Ben's more abhorrent behaviors. I don't know that Ben's first attempt to kill Locke was really to help John on his chosen one journey so much as an attempt to keep Locke from supplanting Ben. Whether Ben's eventual killing of Locke had pure or mixed motives will be seen.

We've known for most of this season that Locke would die, which Christian/Jacob called a sacrifice. No one said how he had to die. Let's look back at the event. John, heartbroken from his failure to convince any of the Oceanic 6 to return to the island, takes steps to hang himself. Ben breaks into the room, and talks John out of suicide. After talking with Locke a little while, suddenly Ben chokes John to death. He then arranges the scene to look like the suicide John had planned. The only thing he missed was the suicide note.

If Nicole's theory is right, then Ben will die, only to be resurrected so he can lead.

Similarly, Jesus was the Son of God, you know, the "chosen one". He was killed as a sacrifice to save us from our sins. He was then resurrected, and continued to lead his people. Another tale of sacrifice was found in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, in which Aslan chose to be executed by the Witch to save his people, only to be resurrected later.

One difference between Lost and Jesus and Aslan is that Jesus and Aslan knew exactly what they were getting into. They made a choice to submit to death fully aware of the ramifications of their choices. Neither Locke nor Ben made a choice. Yes, Locke knew he had to die, and he made a conscious decision to die, but he changed his mind at Ben's urging. Ben never told Locke, "I'm sorry John, you have to die. And it can't be by your own hand." Nor did Sayid let Ben know his plan to save the future by killing the young Ben. Unlike Jesus and Aslan, there was no free will on the part of Ben and Locke. Instead, it's only the executioners who acted with free will.

Whatever the case may be, I suspect that we've not seen the end of Ben. After all, tomorrow night's episode is titled Whatever Happened, Happened.

He's Our You

Wow, what a stunning episode. Okay, well, stunning ending - the episode itself was just so-so as it led inexorably to a scene I hoped never to see: Sayid killing a 12 year-old boy. This scene sparked so much thought in me, that honestly, I’m glad I had an extra day to compose my thoughts. Further, just that scene alone requires me to have separate posts about this episode, one focusing solely on that final scene, and another on everything else.

Many of y’all know that Sayid is one of my favorites. A large part of it has to do with how, well, gorgeous the man is. The actor plays an Iraqi but is in reality of Asian descent (India), and I’ve always had a thing for Asians. But Sayid is more than just a pretty face (and body) to me. He’s a fierce warrior with a strong streak of loyalty. He develops strong attachments to women, Nadia, Shannon, even Elsa. He has almost as much of a spiritual component as Locke does, and believes that he must atone for his sins. Yes, he’s a killer, but he’s a killer with a heart of gold. Right?

I know I said last week that it looked like Sayid was going to try to kill Ben, so I sort of expected something like this, but this foreknowledge didn’t lessen the impact. But because of my previously mentioned affection for the character of Sayid, I honestly didn’t think too much about the death of Ben. I figured he’d survive, one way or the other. If the island doesn’t mean for him to die, there will be a course correction, and a young Ben will hold this extra betrayal in his devious little heart and be closer to being the Ben we know and love and detest. Instead, I went to bed thinking of the implications of Sayid’s actions on Sayid’s soul. I gave Ben hardly a passing thought.

That ended the next day, in talking with friends (hi Amber, Brian, and Karen!) and reading blogs here and there. People really are contemplating that Ben might be dead. That Sayid pulled what people have wondered for years – he’s gone back in time to kill a horrible man before he becomes the horrible man. Sayid killed his personal version of Hitler.

Or not. So, this post will focus on the shooting and the two major characters in this transaction, Sayid and Ben, both dead and alive.

Sayid Kills a 12 Year-Old Boy

When it comes down to it, Sayid killed a 12 year-old boy who had placed his trust and hopes for the future in Sayid. Ben may have had ulterior motives (and honestly, what 12 year-old child doesn’t? I was 12 once – I remember.), but he did show kindness to an imprisoned Sayid, bringing him sandwiches and a book. Sayid justifies his actions by declaring, “I know exactly why I’m here.” He told Ilana that Ben was a liar, a manipulator, and a monster, and Sayid was clearly disgusted with himself that Ben manipulated him so easily. Lastly, Sayid told the young Ben that “You were right about me. I am a killer” before shooting the boy. The killing was justified – why else would Sayid be back on the island in 1977 with a defenseless Ben – yet clearly a terrible thing to do.

The episode seemed designed to have us agree that Sayid is a killer at heart. We open to a scene reminiscent of one we’ve seen before. A young boy can’t kill, so his brother kills for him. In Mr. Eko’s case, his brother Yemi had been ordered to kill an old man. The victim in “He’s Our You” was a chicken. I know that we were supposed to think, how coldly Sayid the boy killed that chicken! But I just can’t go there. The doomed chicken was penned with a number of other chickens; clearly, the family was raising their own food. When you’re raising your own food, you don’t anthropomorphize them like I would, you don’t give them names (Prunella and Bobbin come to mind, for some reason), and you develop no attachments to the beasts. I don’t find it that odd or telling that the young boy can do what he’s probably seen done hundreds of times. Was he a little efficient at it? Yes, he was, so it probably wasn’t his first time. I think it more means that he’s a survivor. He becomes a cold-hearted killer later.

The next flashback shows us the killer side of Sayid. He’s in full assassin mode, hunting his prey heartlessly. Clearly, being Ben’s assassin has given Sayid’s life meaning, for he’s clearly adrift when Ben tells him, rather coldly, that Sayid’s done. There’s no one left to kill. Sayid is now free to live his life. Sadly, Sayid has no life to live. He never bothered to develop one.

We then see Sayid in full atonement mode, working with a Lost-created version of Habitat for Humanity, building homes or schools or some such. Here takes place the conversation that I had to watch over and over. Ben comments on Sayid’s lack of enthusiasm about killing the men watching Hurley. The rest I wrote (thank goodness for DVR):

Sayid: What makes you think I want to [kill the men watching Hurley]?

Ben: You are capable of things most other men are not. Every choice you’ve made in
your life, whether it’s to murder or to torture, it hasn’t really been a choice at all, has
it? It’s in your nature. It’s what you are. You’re a killer, Sayid.

And to some extent, Ben’s right. Sayid has always fallen back on his torture skills when he felt the situation called for it. Remember when he tortured Sawyer in the belief the con man was hoarding Shannon’s asthma inhalers? That’s the only way to get information out of someone? And the only way to keep your friends safe is to kill a group of people named by Ben? A man you know to be less than forthright and honest? Whether Sayid took joy in torture or killing, whether it is his nature, however, I believe to be debatable. Just because he’s capable doesn’t mean it’s what he is.

The final flashback reminded me of Sayid’s relationship with women, as Ilana seduced the depressed Iraqi. He bemoans that he no longer wants to do the one thing in the world that he’s good at. What? The only thing you’re good at is killing and torture? Isn’t he some kind of telecommunications expert? Wasn’t he perfectly capable of fixing anything electronic? And the only thing you’re good at is killing? Whatever.

I had hoped throughout the episode, that Sayid would see what kind of life 12 year-old Ben had. Sayid witnessed the elder Linus' brutality toward the boy. Why couldn't Sayid instead of taken pity of Ben, helped him escape from his life, and generally be a good influence? Did Sayid even consider this option?

We last saw Sayid flying through the jungle. No matter how fast or far he runs, however, he won’t be able to outrun himself. He will feel the consequences of this for the rest of his life.

A Young Ben is Shot, Part I: Ben Lives

So we'll first assume that Ben survives the gunshot wound to the chest or somehow is resurrected as John Locke was.

My friend Nicole has a theory about resurrection. Ben needs to die and be resurrected in order to become the Chosen One, the leader, or the Little Prince of the Island, which has chosen him for this role. This is an interesting theory, and one I’ll think of for some time to come.

However Ben survives, if he survives we must rethink everything we know about Sayid and Ben’s relationship. I have to assume that Ben remembers the man who tried to kill or successfully killed him (similar to how Locke remembers that Ben killed him). Sayid first meets “Henry Gale” in one of Danielle’s traps. Perhaps “Henry’s” fear was more than just feigned – here’s the man who killed me. (If I really want my nose to bleed, I would have written, “here’s the man who will kill me nearly 30 years ago”).

Then there’s “It’s your nature” speech. We knew this speech was designed to manipulate Sayid to rescue Hurley and eventually return to the island. Was the harshness also designed to inspire Sayid to kill him? So he can be resurrected?

In This Place is Death, Ben angrily told Sun and Jack they’d thank him “if you had any idea what I’ve had to do to keep you safe”. Was he referring the amount of time he had to spend with the man he knew would shoot/kill him?

A Young Ben is Shot, Part I: Ben Dies

And by dies, I mean that he is not resurrected, he’s either buried or cremated, and Michael Emerson loses the best job he’s ever had. If that happens, then everything changes.

Does Widmore remain on the island?
Does the Purge never happen?
Will adequate staffing of the Swan mean that Oceanic Flight 816 never crash?
Does Juliet never leave Miami?

The questions are never ending.

So, with all these thoughts still racing in my head, I’ll sign off. I have at least one more post in me for this episode. We gotta discuss Sawyer’s comfortable Dharma life, Juliet’s realization that “It’s over”, and Sayid's reaction to truth serum.

An Addendum to "LaFleur"

Well, last night we had company while I was trying to write my blog, and I realized that I forgot something extraordinarily important. So important, that I'm breaking my self-imposed rule of not blogging during the day.

Sawyer, Juliet, Jin, Miles, and Daniel last flashed into 1974 - that's what Sawyer told Juliet when he was convincing her to stay. We know that all but Daniel remained with the Dharma Initiative in 1977 (I assume Daniel is still with them, but as I noted before, we didn't see him.).

I think they might have met Ben by now. If not, they will soon.

Not the adult Ben. He didn't flash with Jack, Kate, and Hurley. He is currently too injured at this point to even know that Locke has resurrected.

I'm talking the young Ben. The Ben we met in "The Man Behind the Curtain." The boy who was born too soon, whose mother died in childbirth, whose father hated him. I did some investigating, because I needed a timeline.

Using Lostpedia, I discovered that Ben was born in the early 1960s. It's a little frustrating that we don't know a specific year, but that will be sufficient for our current purposes. I don't remember if we were told in "The Man Behind the Curtain" how old Ben was when he landed on the island with his father. The actor who played him was Sterling Beaumon. According to the Internet Movie Database, Beaumon was born in 1995. The episode in question aired in 2007. Therefore, the actor was 12 when he played Ben. So, I think it is fair to say that Ben was approximately 12 too.

To me the early 1960s could be anywhere between 1960 - 1964. I think 1965 is just too close to "mid-1960s", but I could be reading too much into this. (I know, a shock). But, using my assumption and my tortured math skills (I am not a rocket scientist), let's take the latest year Ben could have been born, 1964, and add twelve, 1976.

If all these assumptions are correct, Ben is on the island already. If I'm off, or Lostpedia is off, even a little, then it is conceivable that Ben arrives on the island around the same time as three of the Oceanic 6.

If you ask me, the possibilities are rich. I can't wait.