"Follow the Leader" (Season 5, Episode 15)

My favorite scene in last night's show and in my top 10 of Lost moments was the new and improved Locke explaining to Richard what he had to do and say to the "man" who was about to come out of the jungle at the drug plane crash site. Of course, we as the viewers knew this was the previously seen moment when Richard seemingly by magic appears when Locke needs medical care and instruction. Now knowing that it was Locke himself that coordinated it all (and watched it happen!) just blew my mind. Sort of like Ben, who seemed in equal parts awe and confusion of this uber-confident Locke.

Best Line

• "Why do you think I tried to kill him?" Ben to Richard after he admitted Locke might be trouble.
  

Did You Notice?

• Widmore with gun and on horseback charging through the jungle reminded me of the scene in "Planet of the Apes" when the gorillas captured Charlton Heston.
  
• Was the ship in the bottle that Richard was constructing a model of the Black Rock?
• Locke's appearance with the wild boar on his shoulders was reminiscent of a scene from Season 1.
  
• A little insight into Richard Albert when Ben tells Sun that he is an "advisor" and has had the job for a very, very long time.
• Did Richard actually see Jack and the others die or did they fake their deaths to maintain some timeline continuity?
  
• Jack should change his name to Jerk after his brutal comment to Kate that enough of their time together was misery. It's no surprise she chooses not to go along with him.
• Phil punching Juliet had to be the low point of this at times violent and bloody episode.
• The scene of Chang quizzing Hurley (When were you born? Who is the president?) was much needed comic relief. Hurley had previously commented to Sawyer when he first arrived in the 70's that being in the past might be an issue if he was ever questioned.
• As Eloise is about to leave camp, Charles questioned her decision to go "in her condition" and placed his hand on her stomach, apparently indicating she was pregnant with Daniel. And what makes their love complicated, as Richard commented to Jack?
  
• During the last commercial break, there was a glimpse of the new fall series "Flash Forward". The ad had a black screen with random flashes of various scenes (including a kangaroo!) with the question "What Did You See?" This new show details what happens when the entire world blacks out for two minutes and seventeen seconds and gets to see six months into the future. Could this be this fall's Lost?
  
• Kate joining Sawyer and Kate on the sub can be found in the dictionary under both "awkward" and "third wheel".
• I loved the scene of the sub leaving the island. (Although the previews for next week would indicate that somehow Sawyer, Juliet, and Kate end up back on the island.)
  
• The scene of Locke leading everyone off the beach hearkens back to the mass exodus where Jack and the Oceanic 815 survivors left their camp mid-series.
• If Locke is Jacob as I have previously speculated, is Locke's statement that he is going to kill Jacob more figurative than literal? Perhaps Locke and Jacob will merge or once Locke reveals Jacob's true identity than Jacob ceases to exist?
  

The Numbers - 2 3 4 5 6 8 10 15 16 23 42 108

• Faraday gave Richard 3 seconds to tell him where the bomb is.
• Richard noted that he hadn't seen Locke for 3 years.
  
• Eloise said she shot Daniel 10 minutes earlier.
• Chang questioned whether Hurley was really 46 years old.
• Locke told Richard he had 3 minutes to get everything right prior to Richard's encounter with Locke at the drug plane.
  
• "Nemo" announced that the sub would be shoving off in 2 minutes.
  

Previews - Next week is it - the season finale. "The Incident" will air from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern Time after a recap show at 8 p.m. Rumor has it among the things we will learn are how Hurley got the guitar case and learned of the Ajira Airways flight, what the four-toed statue looks like from the front, and flashbacks into Sawyer's, Kate's, and Juliet's childhoods. And perhaps a more revealing appearance by Jacob?