Lost Review:
"Namaste" (Episode 5.09)

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When Jack, Kate and Hurley ended up face down in the jungle at the end of "316," I assumed they had fallen from a plummeting plane. But when the plane made an emergency landing in this episode with few casualties, I realized my mistake. In "Namaste," the passengers look to Ben and ask where everyone has gone. His eyes glaze over in that sinister "you can't tell if I'm lying" look, and he answers, "I have absolutely no idea." They've gone off to the past.

Kate, Jack, Hurley and Sayid have been transported off to '70s Dharma Initiative land. And, of course, the man in charge is none other than Mr. LaFleur: good old Sawyer himself. This paves the way for a tension-filled dynamic between Jack, who is used to being top dog, and Sawyer, who has suddenly come into his own as a leader. "Namaste" throws out hints of the budding friction between the two when Jack visits Sawyer's home. Not only has Sawyer taken Juliet, but he tells Jack that the "Doc" only lead on blind, terror-stricken instinct when he was in charge, while he, "LaFleur," makes decisions by sharpening his critical thinking skills. Like Winston Churchill, he tells Jack, he'll read a book a night, even in the most dire of circumstances, to quicken his mind. This is a harsh blow to Jack, who, with his drinking and impassioned pleas to go back to the island, has certainly not gained more control of his rational side.

Ben continues to be a complete enigma. Sun voices the concerns of the entire crew when, upon being asked if she trusts him, she replies, "I have no choice." However, it was very satisfying to see her pummel him with the oar and declare, "I lied." Of course, as things seem to turn out in Lost land, Sayid receives a sandwich from a pale, malnourished boy with over-sized spectacles. When he asks the boy his name, the kid replies "Ben."

So perhaps we'll begin to see what is floating around inside that opaque mind of his.