Welcome to the LOST Rewind for episode 3x11, "Enter 77"

Timestamp: Day 79, Saturday, December 8, 2004

In Enter 77, we see Sayid is going by the name Najeev and is working as a cook at a restaurant in Paris called "Portail d'Arabie" (The Gate of Arabia or The Portal of Arabia). A man currently eating at the restaurant asks for the chef so that he can compliment his cooking. Sayid comes out from kitchen and meets this man, Sami, and they talk. Sami ends up offering Sayid a job as a cook at his restaurant, "Le Jardin Croissant Fertile" (The Fertile Cresent Garden; a possible reference to the Garden of Eden in what is now known as Iraq...) and offers to pay him well for it.

Do the names of the restaurants mean anything more in terms of hints at what's going on on LOST? Possible hints - Do you need to get to the Island via some kind of portal? Is the Island supposed to be some kind of Garden of Eden? If so, by whom and for whom?

Well, as it turns out, Sami's motives behind hiring Sayid to be a cook at his restaurant aren't what they seem. According to Sami, Sayid tortured and burned Sami's wife, Amira, back when Sayid was member of the Iraqui Republican Guard. Initially, after being put in a room with Amira, Sayid says that he doesn't remember Amira and didn't torture her. Then, he says that he does remember her, but he didn't torture any women while he was in the National Guard. Then still, he breaks down and tells Amira that her face has haunted him and that he is very sorry for what he did to her. Amria forgives Sayid, saying that she is doing so because she doesn't want to be like Sayid or like the people who tortured her pet cat before she adopted it.

An interesting aspect of the Amira-Sayid relationship is that Sayid and his coworkers were supposedly trying to get Amira to admit committing a crime that she said that she didn't committ. They burnt her arms so badly that she ended up confessing to it, to the crime that she didn't committ.

Is it possible that Sayid is confessing to a crime that he didn't committ, too? Why wold he do that, especially considering that he didn't know that Amira was going to let him go until after he confessed? Did Sayid somehow feel responsible for her horrible emotional and spiritual state, even though he isn't responsible, possibly, for her physical state (the burns, etc...)? Was Sayid trying to release her from her emotional and physical pain? Explore the concepts of punishment and redemption and how they are the backbone of this intense episode...

Speaking of punishment and redemption, we see Hurley and Sawyer square off in a ping pong game for the rights to Sawyer's stash. As we know, Hurley beats the pants off Sawyer and Sawyer must stop calling people nicknames, even the mean ones.

Keeping a stash of important "stuff" that probably should have been community property wasn't very nice, obviously, of Sawyer. Was losing embarrassingly to Hurley in a game of ping pong and not being allowed to call people nicknames punishment enough for Sawyer? Why did he adhere to the punishment? Are we seeing some changes for the good in Sawyer? Does this punishment of sorts lead to a mini-redemption for Sawyer? Think about how he becomes more a part ot he group around this point in time, too, when you consider everything...

On the Island, Kate, Sayid, Locke and Danielle end up following the compass reading of 305 from Mr. Eko's stick on their way to find Jack. During their travels, they find the Flame Station and the infamous Mikhail Bakunin. Also at the Flame Staion is what seems to be the same cat as the pet belonging to Amira from Sayid's flashback. Ironically, Mikhail says that its name is Nadia. Coincidence? Does Mikhail know about Sayid's Nadia?

While playing with a chess game on Mikhail's computer in the Flame Station, which is a communication station with a satellite on it, Locke ends up "Entering 77". The Flame Station blows up. We know that there is dynamite in the basement of the Flame Sation and it's probable that this "Enter 77" initiated the blast. Does entering 77 on the computer do anything else in your opinion? Why was Mikhail so casual about Locke playing around with his computer? Is the computer and the Flame Station the only way to contact the outside world?

Random questions about this episode: Why did Danielle really opt to wait for Kate, Locke and Sayid away from the Flame Station? She gave an answer why in the episode, but do you believe her? Do you think that she knew Mikhail beforehand?

Why did Bea Klugh seem so willing to die for the Others' causes and so unafraid to die? Where do Mikhail's seemingly nine lives (or more...) come from? Was Mikhail really a member of the DI at one time?

Compare Sayid's cat with Kate's horse and Jack's "vision" of his father and Hurley's vision of Dave. Are they the same thing? What are they and where do they come from? What are the chances that the cat's name was really Nadia?

This was an intense episode. What are your thoughts about it? By the way, in real life, Mikhail Bakunin is considered to be one of the fathers of anarchism, which, apparently, was connected to the thoughts and philosophies of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Does this mean that we should think that Danielle Rousseau and the Other's Mikhail Bakunin are working together?

I think the cat was just a cat (as it doesn't even look like the cat in Sayid's FB). I really enjoyed this episode, but the actress who played Amira really annoyed me with her over-acting.

Junie...just a quick comment: I don't think the cat was really named "Nadia", unless she turned up after the Losties crashed on The Island. I think Mikhail said that because he knew Sayid's past after doing research (from his communications station) on all the Losties.

Alternatively, it's some type of psychological game or therapy, and that info was common knowledge to whomever "TPTB" are...

ETA: I may have to retract that because of the Nadia (gymnast) poster...

ETA: I may have to retract that because of the Nadia (gymnast) poster...

I was just going to comment that Mikhail was totally a hardcore fan and it makes perfect sense for a kid who grew up in Eastern Europe in the 70s. They used to send her fanmail by the truckloads.

The cat is my favorite animal ever used on Lost, by the way. Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. :nadia:

I was just going to comment that Mikhail was totally a hardcore fan and it makes perfect sense for a kid who grew up in Eastern Europe in the 70s. They used to send her fanmail by the truckloads.

The cat is my favorite animal ever used on Lost, by the way. Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. :nadia:
That last glimpse of her outside the Flame (after it exploded) was awesome...including Sayid looking back over his shoulder at her...

I also loved the scene with Amira and her cat...the cat was beautiful, and so was Amira, despite her physical and emotional scars (loved her dress and shawl, LOL). Her actress gave a fine performance, too (Amira's); and likewise, the cats! ;)
100%
I can "buy" that the cat and Sayid's childhood friend were both named "Nadia" by coincidence, but what about Amira's cat and Sayid's Nadia both having been tortured?

Hmmmmmm...

It's also interesting that we have Sayid, the former torturer who also reverted to his old ways on The Island (Sawyer), and Amira (in her past) having witnessed the cat being tortured and rescued him/her, and she did likewise with Sayid. Amira "became the torturer" by watching her husband beat Sayid, but she did stop him. It reminds me of the common advice given to victims of abuse...to "break the pattern" or "stop the cycle" (such as with their own children and other people, etc.).

Is it possible that Sayid is confessing to a crime that he didn't committ, too? Why wold he do that, especially considering that he didn't know that Amira was going to let him go until after he confessed? Did Sayid somehow feel responsible for her horrible emotional and spiritual state, even though he isn't responsible, possibly, for her physical state (the burns, etc...)? Was Sayid trying to release her from her emotional and physical pain? Explore the concepts of punishment and redemption and how they are the backbone of this intense episode...

I don't think that Sayid tortured Amira. I think he'd just been carrying this terrible guilt for so long, thought he was about to be killed, and confessed. It didn't matter to him at that point that she was not someone he personally tortured. He needed to bare his soul, she needed to hear a sincere apology for what had been done to her, and it was a perfect opportunity for both of them.

What I think it really gets back to is the idea of hope. Amira and Sayid at the time they meet are both hopeless. They are broken people, living in their pasts, their faith in humanity utterly broken.

But the interaction with the confession, and her offer of forgiveness, surprises them both, I think, And it gives them both hope that things can change.

Junie...just a quick comment: I don't think the cat was really named "Nadia", unless she turned up after the Losties crashed on The Island. I think Mikhail said that because he knew Sayid's past after doing research (from his communications station) on all the Losties.

Alternatively, it's some type of psychological game or therapy, and that info was common knowledge to whomever "TPTB" are...

ETA: I may have to retract that because of the Nadia (gymnast) poster...TR - LOST is so good at making strange situations seem even stranger. I think that I go with the general idea that because there are so many seemingly coincidental things on LOST that they ALL can't be simple coincidences - or can they?! LOL!

On one hand, we know at this point that Ben had folders with information on the Losties, so things about Sayid are known by the Ben, Mikhail and the Others. But, and it's a BIG BUT, how would they know about something like Sayid and Amira...and her cat?

Alternatively, the cat is a pretty big symbol of Sayid's past, like Kate's horse is of her past, so if the Island itself can download memories from the Losties, well, they're you go. This would kind of mean that the day-to-day things from the Others' lives, like Mikhail's cat, are also things from the Losties' lives. How is that possible, even if the cat that we saw with Mikhail is not literally the same cat that belonged to Amira, but a lookalike (somehow)?

I was just going to comment that Mikhail was totally a hardcore fan and it makes perfect sense for a kid who grew up in Eastern Europe in the 70s. They used to send her fanmail by the truckloads.

The cat is my favorite animal ever used on Lost, by the way. Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. :nadia:I totally agree with you, Claudia (and I'm also distracted by your avatar...). I think that the poster is there to reinforce the idea that Mikhail was honestly a big Nadia and gymnastics fan and as a result, named the cat Nadia. If we take that as a fact and take Sayid's relationship with his Nadia as a fact AND take his relationship/connection to Amira as a fact, it leaves us in a pretty strange place. This is too big of a coincidence for me to accept as just a coincidence, unless we have to look at every strange situation as an isolated coincidence and not heap all of the weirdness into one big pile. If we do, then the Losties as a whole, IMHO, have experienced too many coincidences for them all to be just coincidences...and...something is fishy...does that make sense?

So...are we supposed to take each Losties' backstories and look at them individually, strange coincidences and all? I ask that question because if we count the amount of supposed coincidences that have happened to and between all of the Losties, we come to a number that's too high to be normal...

It's also interesting that we have Sayid, the former torturer who also reverted to his old ways on The Island (Sawyer), and Amira (in her past) having witnessed the cat being tortured and rescued him/her, and she did likewise with Sayid. Amira "became the torturer" by watching her husband beat Sayid, but she did stop him. It reminds me of the common advice given to victims of abuse...to "break the pattern" or "stop the cycle" (such as with their own children and other people, etc.).I think, TR, that seeing her husband beat Sayid made her realize for sure that she had to break the cycle of abuse. Afterall, her issue with Sayid was that she said that he beat her, etc. It had to end somewhere and she, Amira, made the Choice to end it by letting Sayid go...

I don't think that Sayid tortured Amira. I think he'd just been carrying this terrible guilt for so long, thought he was about to be killed, and confessed. It didn't matter to him at that point that she was not someone he personally tortured. He needed to bare his soul, she needed to hear a sincere apology for what had been done to her, and it was a perfect opportunity for both of them.

What I think it really gets back to is the idea of hope. Amira and Sayid at the time they meet are both hopeless. They are broken people, living in their pasts, their faith in humanity utterly broken.

But the interaction with the confession, and her offer of forgiveness, surprises them both, I think, And it gives them both hope that things can change.I like this, KA. I think that it's about making Choices and I admire what Amira did, especially considering the amount of pain that she was going through, both emotionally and physically.

One interesting idea - Did Amira actually think, 100%, that Sayid was the person that burnt and tortured her or was she looking for an end to her situation by finding someone that fit the bill, so to speak? I remember going back and forth wondering what Amira and Sayid really believed and what each of them really did...

One interesting idea - Did Amira actually think, 100%, that Sayid was the person that burnt and tortured her or was she looking for an end to her situation by finding someone that fit the bill, so to speak? I remember going back and forth wondering what Amira and Sayid really believed and what each of them really did...

im absolutely sure it was sayid who tortured her.

neither of them could a mistake about such a thing. also if it wasn't true it would rob the story of some of its weight and impact.

im absolutely sure it was sayid who tortured her.

neither of them could a mistake about such a thing. also if it wasn't true it would rob the story of some of its weight and impact.I have to admit that my first reaction to Sayid seemingly breaking down and telling Amira, yes, I do remember you and I burnt and tortured you, was that he did do it. To use a pharse that I used in another thread recently, the stakes were too high for that not to be the truth...

However...I guess that what I meant was that was it possible that Amira did know, on some level, that Sayid was NOT the person who tortured her, but she needed closure, etc., so he became the one that tortured her?

Even though Sayid could see what type of a state of mind, etc., that she was in, it seems now that he did do it and he wasn't just appeasing her for the sake of her emotional closure. He was telling her the truth for the sake of her emotional closure and, it seems, for his own emotional well-being...

I'm with Black Lotus, I don't think that's something you forget. Sayid is perhaps the only character that comes close to Mr.Eko's level of cruelty in his past and like Mr.Eko I think he feels he lived the life he was given and made the best of it and now he's struggling with his decision of not "doing it" anymore.

I love the guy, but he's done some pretty atrocious things in his life.

Oh, I don't think that either person would have forgotten what had happened and who did it. Just thinking outloud that it's possible that Sayid just said that he did it to try and help her heal. However, my gut feeling is that he did torture her, etc...

I get a different feeling from Sayid in terms of what he thinks about what he did in the past. I think that he is more remorseful than Mr. Eko was. I think that Sayid is more willing to acknowledge that he made some mistakes...

In Enter 77, we see Sayid is going by the name Najeev and is working as a cook at a restaurant in Paris called "Portail d'Arabie" (The Gate of Arabia or The Portal of Arabia). A man currently eating at the restaurant asks for the chef so that he can compliment his cooking. Sayid comes out from kitchen and meets this man, Sami, and they talk. Sami ends up offering Sayid a job as a cook at his restaurant, "Le Jardin Croissant Fertile" (The Fertile Cresent Garden; a possible reference to the Garden of Eden in what is now known as Iraq...) and offers to pay him well for it.

Do the names of the restaurants mean anything more in terms of hints at what's going on on LOST? Possible hints - Do you need to get to the Island via some kind of portal? Is the Island supposed to be some kind of Garden of Eden? If so, by whom and for whom? The Fertile Crescent is Mesopotamia, or modern day Iraq. Good name for an Iraqi restaurant. And of course that suggests the other Garden of Eden symbol in Lost, Adam and Eve in the caves.
An interesting aspect of the Amira-Sayid relationship is that Sayid and his coworkers were supposedly trying to get Amira to admit committing a crime that she said that she didn't committ. They burnt her arms so badly that she ended up confessing to it, to the crime that she didn't committ.

Is it possible that Sayid is confessing to a crime that he didn't committ, too? Why wold he do that, especially considering that he didn't know that Amira was going to let him go until after he confessed? Did Sayid somehow feel responsible for her horrible emotional and spiritual state, even though he isn't responsible, possibly, for her physical state (the burns, etc...)? Was Sayid trying to release her from her emotional and physical pain? Explore the concepts of punishment and redemption and how they are the backbone of this intense episode... The flashback got really interesting for me at the scene with Amira, the cat, and Sayid where he does confess to her. Otherwise if he had gone on insisting on his innocence it would have been just another flashback.... This really gave us another look at Sayid.
It reminded me of the movie "Music Box" with Jessica Lange, when she discovers he father was a Nazi war criminal after he denies it for a long time. Really powerful stuff about the question of redemption and living a good life afterward heinous acts.

The flashback cuts back to Sayid refusing to kill Mikhail. (It wouldn't have mattered if he had; as we now know, Mikhail has more lives than Nadia the cat. :rolleyes: )
Speaking of punishment and redemption, we see Hurley and Sawyer square off in a ping pong game for the rights to Sawyer's stash. As we know, Hurley beats the pants off Sawyer and Sawyer must stop calling people nicknames, even the mean ones.

Keeping a stash of important "stuff" that probably should have been community property wasn't very nice, obviously, of Sawyer. Was losing embarrassingly to Hurley in a game of ping pong and not being allowed to call people nicknames punishment enough for Sawyer? Why did he adhere to the punishment? Are we seeing some changes for the good in Sawyer? Does this punishment of sorts lead to a mini-redemption for Sawyer? Think about how he becomes more a part ot he group around this point in time, too, when you consider everything...
Suddenly Hurley's in the loop, as he knows where Kate went and isn't into sharing details with Sawyer. Hurley's a pretty good hustler, looking all nonchalant while the game is being set up. Sawyer did stick to the punishment because he is part of the island group and he's getting used to that.
Later, Hurley as the island psychologist tells Sawyer "I know you're the kind of guy that needs 'stuff'"...and he wasn't referring only to the Playboys he had just tossed his way. He knows a hoarder when he sees one, and it seems like Sawyer's heard it before too from his reaction "What, are you a shrink?" And kudos to Nikki for saying it wasn't his stuff in the first place.

During their travels, they find the Flame Station and the infamous Mikhail Bakunin. The best part of the episode. With classic Old World hospitality, he serves you tea before he kicks the snot out of you. :biggrin: It seems that every part of his story was truthful except the part about being the last member of the Dharma Initiative.
I just noticed that Mikhail cleans Sayid's wound with (Dharma) vodka, like Jack cleaned his own would with airline vodka in the Pilot. (There was also a bottle of Dharma Merlot next to it. Wonder how that tasted.)

Also at the Flame Staion is what seems to be the same cat as the pet belonging to Amira from Sayid's flashback. Ironically, Mikhail says that its name is Nadia. Coincidence? Does Mikhail know about Sayid's Nadia? It's one of those Lost name coincidences - Nadia is a typical name both in Slavic and Arabic countries - but I'm with Sayid - I've been spooked by the stare of a cat before.

While playing with a chess game on Mikhail's computer in the Flame Station, which is a communication station with a satellite on it, Locke ends up "Entering 77". The Flame Station blows up. We know that there is dynamite in the basement of the Flame Sation and it's probable that this "Enter 77" initiated the blast. Does entering 77 on the computer do anything else in your opinion? Why was Mikhail so casual about Locke playing around with his computer? Is the computer and the Flame Station the only way to contact the outside world?
I couldn't help but be reminded of Wargames when the computer asked Locke "Ready to Play?" in the same voice that said "Good Evening, Professor Falken." And like in the movie, starting a game with the computer led to explosive results.

We may find out that entering 77 was what summoned Not Penny's Boat. How ironic for Locke if so - his curiosity and poking around at things brought on the very thing he didn't want: rescue.
Locke blows sh*t up and not for the first or last time. There was a funny moment earlier when Ms. Splodey herself had to be told that the putty bricks bolted to the wall were C4.

Why did Bea Klugh seem so willing to die for the Others' causes and so unafraid to die? Where do Mikhail's seemingly nine lives (or more...) come from? Was Mikhail really a member of the DI at one time? All the Others seem willing to die. Ben's cult seems to be rather powerful.

For the longest time I believed Sayid lied about torturing the woman, to give her a sense of closure. He thought he was a dead man anyway and had nothing to lose and it was the just and compassionate thing to do. Now after rewatching the episode a few more times I can't be sure, really due to Naveen's increcible acting. That's what really elevates this episode: the characters are so fleshed out and realistic Sayid's actions here can be looked at ambiguously. We may never know the truth, nor do we ever really need to know. Either way, Sayid just becomes a fuller, richer character.

Initially, I thought that, "Wow! He did it!" That was my gut reaction. Then, I thought about all of the parallels in the story and all of the strange possibilities. I wondered if he just said that he did it so that he could help Amira go on emotionally and have some closure. But, then again, I thought, Sayid IS a torturer. Was a torturer? Anyways, the characters are what they are. IMHO, it's much more of a powerful storyline and a powerful character if Sayid did torture her, especially because it gives him so much distance to travel from bottom to top...from horrible Choices to good Choices...from horrible doings to Redemption...

I've always thought that Sayid did it and never really had any doubt until now...I still think he did, but now I can't say I feel 100% about it.

I guess I didn't weigh in clearly yet - I too think Sayid did torture Amira. Having it be true gives the story the emotional weight as Junie said.

In Enter 77, we see Sayid is going by the name Najeev.

Could it not be Najeeb? – I mean, I’ve read the subtitles too, but I can work with Najeeb: ‘of noble descent’ sits well with the son of a war hero, and I can’t find an explanation of Najeev at all.

Interesting Sayid chose Syria as an assumed country of origin while in Paris; it was once administered by France so maybe that’s why. Are we still suspicious about his French speaking ability?

I have ‘Nadji’, as I believe appears on Mikhail’s typewriter, translated as a given name meaning ‘suave’. Sounds like smoothy Sayid. But ‘Nadia’, which I’d previously understood to mean ‘Hope’ in Slavic/Russian and ‘tender’ in Arabic, I now find described as meaning ‘the beginning’ in Arabic – very interesting that one – and ‘caller’ in African (a whistle blower perhaps or an announcung angel?). ‘Hope’, as a LOST theme, gives it the edge though.

Is the Island supposed to be some kind of Garden of Eden?
In the beginning… I think my new Arabic meaning of Nadia may have just nosed ahead again.

But I fancy the Island might be the Last Safe Place: its magnetic properties repelling the rising waters of the Deluge ….or some such sci-fi imagining. A haven from a solar storm?

Initially, after being put in a room with Amira, Sayid says that he doesn't remember Amira and didn't torture her.

I didn’t see a flicker of recognition on Sayid’s ‘haunted by her’ face during their introduction.

Then, he says that he does remember her, but he didn't torture any women while he was in the National Guard.

I’m sorry – I couldn’t quite see that remark through the smoke emanating from Sayid’s trousers. LIAR! Although we never see Sayid strike Nadia and their dialogue isn’t proof positive of anything other than a psychological abuse.

An interesting aspect of the Amira-Sayid relationship is that Sayid and his coworkers were supposedly trying to get Amira to admit committing a crime that she said that she didn't committ. They burnt her arms so badly that she ended up confessing to it, to the crime that she didn't committ.

Yes. Not so very long ago in our collective shameful history, women admitted to consorting with daemons and suckling the Devil’s imps with their witches teats.

If you believe in the Devil and daemons and that women are born corrupt by the nature of their sexuality, I suppose you might think they could have actually been guilty. But some who don’t are left with the opinion torture isn’t that useful a tool in determining guilt. Especially of imaginary crimes.

Their neighbours and associates – named by them under torture - died alongside them, but the community at large was believed saved by their deaths in the flames and the hangman’s noose, so that was alright. Whoopee cak, for the greater good.

Is it possible that Sayid is confessing to a crime that he didn't committ, too? Why wold he do that, especially considering that he didn't know that Amira was going to let him go until after he confessed? Did Sayid somehow feel responsible for her horrible emotional and spiritual state, even though he isn't responsible, possibly, for her physical state (the burns, etc...)? Was Sayid trying to release her from her emotional and physical pain? Explore the concepts of punishment and redemption and how they are the backbone of this intense episode...

I think there’s a very strong case for a false confession by Sayid: he assuming the role of prisoner in this power play, dancing to his jailers tune either because he hopes a happy jailer is less likely to hurt him, or because he’s guilt wracked and shamed and grasping the opportunity to confess his wrong doings and redeem himself through her forgiveness.

He couldn’t know what would happen, he mightn’t even have wished for it – he may have wanted her to kill him; escaping his pain or convincing himself other people act as he once did given similar circumstances and that he’s not a bad person because of it, but whatever his motives – and I do like the idea he confessed for her sake - he left that room with his life and I would hope he’s grateful for it; that lady deserves her compassion be rewarded by his living a good life.

Was she playing a game – having known to be innocent Sayid stand in stead of her real abuser while she did some cathartic exercise? It seems less likely than what she says she will tell her husband: she made a mistake. But if it were true, it wasn’t terrible – it was healing.

Keeping a stash of important "stuff" that probably should have been community property wasn't very nice, obviously, of Sawyer.

Sawyer braved the B-O-D-Y--S in the fuselage and collected that stuff through his own labour from an idea that he had. From his perspective, why the hell should he give that product away gratis?

Funny that everyone else got their feathers ruffled - white ones, presumably, as they didn’t fancy touching the corpses or incurring their ghostly wrath – when they were treating Sawyer like the Little Red Hen: “You did this, all by yourself? Great! Can I have some?”

…a little red every-hen-for-herself, who neglected to invite anyone to come along mind. ;)

By the way, in real life, Mikhail Bakunin is considered to be one of the fathers of anarchism, which, apparently, was connected to the thoughts and philosophies of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Does this mean that we should think that Danielle Rousseau and the Other's Mikhail Bakunin are working together?

Too loners working together – that’s funny. But I’ll add Danielle to my list of probables who may have assisted Mikhail in escaping his bonds. Mrs Kluh, FYI, isn’t on it. :biggrin:

Regarding "Did he or didn't he?"--I liked it being ambiguous and I hope it remains that way.

I was sorry Darlton made a statement on how Jae Lee actually died. That death had wonderful, haunting ambiguity, and their discussion sort of ruined it.

I get a different feeling from Sayid in terms of what he thinks about what he did in the past. I think that he is more remorseful than Mr. Eko was. I think that Sayid is more willing to acknowledge that he made some mistakes...

Also, Sayid seems to care more about redemption than Sawyer who wants people to hate him. It's as if Sawyer just can't get enough punishment.

This was one of my favorite episodes in all of Lost history. The writers need to utilize Sayid's story more often.

Sawyer pointedly noted that the ping-pong table shouldn't have landed in the jungle, since the hatch imploded. Just another hint, IMO, that events on the island shouldn't be taken at face value.

When Sayid questioned whether Locke really thought they would chance upon the Others based on bearings from Eko's stick, John replied, "I don't know what we're going to chance upon, Sayid, but my bearing is the only bearing we got". The thing is, we don't know whether Eko's carvings were Jacob-inspired, or whether this was all part of the MiB's loophole from the get-go (or C., none of the above).

The ping-pong match between Sawyer and Hurley was just one of several friendly 'confrontations' we have seen between the two (previously regarding a tree frog, and subsequently involving horseshoes and Risk). Is it possible that these could be foreshadowing some future confrontation with stakes a bit higher than Sawyer's stash? Maybe one of them will find himself manipulated by Jacob's nemesis. After all, Hurley did warn Sawyer about Locke during their game of Risk ("this is exactly what he wants, to fight amongst ourselves").

Locke finds himself unable to resist the request of the computer in the Flame station, "READY TO PLAY? Y/N". He had previously admitted to Jack that he liked to play games, and 'the island' knew just how to suck him in. The fact that the game was apparently set up by the DHARMA Initiative makes me wonder whether the DI, like the Others, had been set up by the MiB as a stepping stone in the creation of his loophole. The endgame of the chess program was, after all, the same as Bea Klugh's (when captured, better to self-destruct than divulge your secrets). And when Mikhail told John that the game was "programmed by three grand masters...and it cheats", I wonder who he was referring to?

I think that Sayid really was responsible for the torture of Amira in Iraq, and that somehow his memory of the mercy she showed him was used to convince him to keep Mikhail alive (at least temporarily). It's interesting, however, that he showed no such mercy when it came to the shooting of young Ben.

Read this yesterday and it resonated: http://www.easyenglish.info/psalms/psalm077-taw.htm