After the sky turned purple: what did Tom mean?

[PaulineMRoss]

In 'Not In Portland', Jack asked Tom why, if they could get off the island, Ben didn't just go somewhere to get his tumour dealt with. Tom replied: "After the sky turned purple...", but then Jack severed Ben's artery and we never heard the rest of what Tom was about to say.

Well, this has been puzzling me. Ben learned about his tumour two days before the plane crashed, and Ms Klugh had already organised Michael to bring Jack to them several days before the purple sky. So it seems that the decision to stay on the island and fix the tumour there had already been made well before the purple sky.

Has anyone any guesses as to what Tom might have been about to say? Or what the purple sky had to do with the decision to leave or not?

[Mutant36 is lost]

Well if figured that after the sky turned purple the island was visible to the outside world , thats a logical explanation to how pennys men found the island but it seems that the people on the island can't leave now that thats happenend. Thats my insights anyway.

[The Good Twin]

The only explanation I can come up with is that Jack wasnt originally there to do the surgery and for another purpose like Kate, Sawyer and Hurley. But repercussions from the hatch meant they were unsure as to whether to leave or not because it had never happened before.

Luckily, Jack just happened to be able to do it too. A sort of plan B. All other plans had to be changed / scrapped.

Either that or Ben just didnt want to leave the place he had lived all his life. It never says that they can leave which brings me onto another question - Can the Others actually leave ?

There is no proof to this. Maybe once they are in, they cant get out again. Maybe that is how Walt and Michael are going to return after having sailed around in circles (like what happened with the raft). Maybe they are also the victims of someone elses plans (Him ?) and only have items such as the music and Red Sox baseball game because they have been flown in - hence the food drops.

Penelope Widmore may set out to find Desmond, and may even be successful, but will they be able to get out ?

This could have been what Tom was going to explain ?

:D . GT. :D .

(Hey. I just made that up as I went along. If you can disprove me then please do).

[PaulineMRoss]

The only explanation I can come up with is that Jack wasnt originally there to do the surgery and for another purpose like Kate, Sawyer and Hurley. But repercussions from the hatch meant they were unsure as to whether to leave or not because it had never happened before. Luckily, Jack just happened to be able to do it too. A sort of plan B. All other plans had to be changed / scrapped.

That's the implication from what Tom almost said. But that makes no sense: the producers have said (after the first 6 episodes) that they had answered the question of why exactly those 4 were taken, and at that point the surgery is the only answer on the table. So the decision to use Jack had to have been taken *before* the purple sky, making it definitely plan A.

Either that or Ben just didnt want to leave the place he had lived all his life. It never says that they can leave which brings me onto another question - Can the Others actually leave ?


That's an interesting question in itself, and I'm sure we will get an answer in time. Nevertheless, the purple sky isn't an issue here: if Ben had wanted to leave and had been able to leave, he would have done so in the 2-3 months between discovering the tumour and the purple sky. But he didn't, so his reasons for not leaving must be independent of the purple sky.

But maybe he just didn't realise how advanced the tumour was, and he was too busy organising the kidnapping of Tailies, Claire, Walt, etc, after the crash to worry about it :)

[The Good Twin]

But maybe he just didn't realise how advanced the tumour was, and he was too busy organising the kidnapping of Tailies, Claire, Walt, etc, after the crash to worry about it :)

He does seem the type to get the job done first and worry about himself later. Its an explanation. :D .

[The Smiley-Faced Balloon]

I agree with what The Good Twin said, in fact, I was thinking about this on my 4th run through Not In Portland :p

I think that using Jack to cure Ben was plan B after the sky turned purple. However, then what Pickett said:

"Shepard wasn't even on Jacob's list"

I think we will get the answer soon, as we nearly got it from Tom so Jack should ask the questions we have.

P.S. I am struggling to get on Lostpedia forums, something to do with my router. So I may not be around :( I'm trying to sort it, just can't see what's wrong. It just doesn't load.

[PaulineMRoss]

... in fact, I was thinking about this on my 4th run through Not In Portland :p

Wow, you're keen! I'm up to 3 runs so far... There was just so much to see in this episode. Anyone else notice the pencil in Juliet's hair? Really adds to the dippy effect. And is it just me, or does she seem to have grey hairs mixed in with those flashback curls? Then on the island she has ruler-straight totally blonde hair... Hmmm

[The Smiley-Faced Balloon]

Wow, you're keen! I'm up to 3 runs so far... There was just so much to see in this episode. Anyone else notice the pencil in Juliet's hair? Really adds to the dippy effect. And is it just me, or does she seem to have grey hairs mixed in with those flashback curls? Then on the island she has ruler-straight totally blonde hair... Hmmm

Ooh, I never noticed a pencil. I must admit, two of my N.I.P. runs were while I was on my laptop at the same time, so I wasn't glued to the screen. I only looked up for the scenes I wanted to rewatch those times, like Pickett being rammed into the button and Burke being hit by a bus.

[CurbFan]

In the last Sawyer episode Friendly said something like "Ever since the sky turned purple we've lost comms..." did he not? So they've lost communication with Othersville, this would be the perfect time for Locke to go on a little adventure I feel, what he'd accomplish I don't know, in fact I'd imagine Locke would like Othersville, everyone living in harmony and whatnot, just like the drug farm he used to live on. Anyway, maybe if Eko and co had continued pressing the button Ben would have lived longer but the sky turning purple is a sign that the fail safe has been used which means ill people aren't going to have the island healing deal going on anymore.

That was all rambly, but I havent had an outlet for my Lost thoughts for a while you see.

[The Smiley-Faced Balloon]

In the last Sawyer episode Friendly said something like "Ever since the sky turned purple we've lost comms..." did he not? So they've lost communication with Othersville, this would be the perfect time for Locke to go on a little adventure I feel, what he'd accomplish I don't know, in fact I'd imagine Locke would like Othersville, everyone living in harmony and whatnot, just like the drug farm he used to live on. Anyway, maybe if Eko and co had continued pressing the button Ben would have lived longer but the sky turning purple is a sign that the fail safe has been used which means ill people aren't going to have the island healing deal going on anymore.

That was all rambly, but I havent had an outlet for my Lost thoughts for a while you see.

:D

I hope that the Healing Properties haven't been lost. I don't understand if the Others have contact with the outside world why wasn't Ben taken to them earlier? I like the parallel between the commune and Otherville, I think Locke will find Otherville when he "Lifts up his eyes and looks north" SPOILER:because the Flame station will be likely hidden, although the producers said we were going there this season, and we will meet Patchy (likely at the Flame. Unless he had a vision up there. /SPOILER

[CurbFan]

Hmmm, interesting... Not really a spoiler but talking about a possible spoiler: Are we to assume that Patchy is definitely inside The Flame? If he has, I wonder if he's ever left? That one time we saw him he looked a tad psychotic. Maybe he has never left, is still doing The Flame task (pressing a button or whatever) and Otherville is situated there to prevent anyone seeing or interfering with the experiment. Or maybe Otherville is the experiment, living in social harmony and all that jazz, and Patchy is watching them and has been for god only knows how long.

[The Smiley-Faced Balloon]

One of the Dharma projects might by Utopian Social engineering or something... Otherville anyone? I think the Flame and Patchy must have a purpose like the Swan, otherwise (spoiler): the producers wouldn't be hinting at them being very important.

The purple sky should be explained in what, 8 hours :D

[CurbFan]

7 hours and 51 minutes. ;)

I'm so much more excited about this than I was Juliet's episode, I reckon its because everything with Locke and Desmond is still a mystery, I know we still dont know that much about Ben and co but really after two plus season we still don't know much about the original island. Plus I have a certain affection for Desmond and Locke ;).

[The Smiley-Faced Balloon]

Desmond and Locke are my favouries, now Eko is gone Desmond took his place. The mini-season was aimed at the much more comercial audience i.e. Kate, Sawyer and Jack, the three people are typically attracted to, the Others being "revealed", and then a two very Lost-y episodes on the beach.

Only tonight do we return to the mythology. Although I looked forward to Not In Portland more as it meant Lost returned, but I am looking forward to this more as an individual episode.

[CurbFan]

Heh, Eko dying made things easier, Locke was always numero uno but I could never decided between Des and Eko, one has an acsent to die for and the other batters people with a stick, it was a toughy but good old Smokey helped me out.

Only tonight do we return to the mythology. Although I looked forward to Not In Portland more as it meant Lost returned, but I am looking forward to this more as an individual episode.

I agree with that completely. Also, if we get a Desmond/Claire/Charlie love storyline I might cry, in a bad way.

[The Smiley-Faced Balloon]

Also, if we get a Desmond/Claire/Charlie love storyline I might cry, in a bad way

DON'T DO THAT TO US! I think Claire will flirt with Des (perhaps), and Charlie will be suspicious as Des is trying to help Claire. I think Desmond will remain truthful to Penny though. It would be a disastorous storyline if they drag it out. If it cropped up in this episode, so be it, as long as they drop it afterwards.

[CurbFan]

Indeed, Desmond saving Claire's life and Claire being thankful is as far as it goes. Also... Charlie gets his ass whooped by Desmond in the trailers, that'll be damn good!

[CurbFan]

The sky turning purple must be a warning to everyone else on the island that the button hasnt been pressed and everyone in the real world is dead, which is why Ben, after finding out about the tumour, didnt go to the real world to get it fixed, little did he know that the failsafe was turned.

What'cha think of that?