Do you think Locke knows WHY he can miraculously walk again? If he doesn't he may have in the back of his mind that he could be returned to his nonambulatory state at any time. Or...maybe he knows why and depending on the reason, may or may not be worrying about it. Speculation???

My theory is that he does know why he can walk.* I think something happened to him between being kicked off the Walkabout tour and getting on that plane that will explain it.* *If a human being somehow plotted this whole thing out (as opposed to mysterious Others or it being just a chain of coincidences or cursed numbers or synchronicity etc.)... and they needed a collaborator, Locke would have been the perfect choice and post-Walkabout would be the perfect psychological moment to propose the idea to him.*

I think Locke KNOWS why also -- I often wonder if it goes back to the very beginning of the pilot episode when he sat staring at the ocean in the rain ---

I am really leaning toward the mind control theory and I think his mind was already under the control of the others FROM the moment he could walk.............

And he was already living on a thin line between fantasy and reality before he ever got to that Walkabout, it wouldn't have been all that difficult to nudge him right over it.*

If someone gave him the chance to not only walk, but to be a sort of a Colonel, and in this ideal setting where he'd be completely in his element -- he'd snap it right up.*

No matter what the cost to anyone else -- He would justify it by saying he could help and or save them ---

Yes, we've already seen an example of his "the end justifies the means" philosophy -- curing Boone by bonking him on the head, tying him up and administering hallucinogenics.*

i agree, i think that locke knows why he can walk. as far as i can remember, he really didnt seem that surprised that he could walk after they crashed. at first i thought it was really corny that he started to jog like 5 seconds after he supposedly stood up for the first time in however many years but i now think that this is deeper than a mistake on the part of the writers. i'm not sure about the whole idea that he was involved in bringing down the plane although it is a really fascinating theory. i agree that locke does follow the "end justifies the means" type of mindset but i dont think that he would willingly go along with a plan that killed a whole bunch of people. i think that locke may have been to the island before and that he knows there is something special about the island. or else he is just really in his element. i mean how would he know to mix these certain plants together to form a hallucinogen.

i agree, i think that locke knows why he can walk. as far as i can remember, he really didnt seem that surprised that he could walk after they crashed. at first i thought it was really corny that he started to jog like 5 seconds after he supposedly stood up for the first time in however many years but i now think that this is deeper than a mistake on the part of the writers.


I guess I'm not understanding why you say this is a mistake. Whether he knew or not...if he hadn't been able to walk for 4 years, doing a 5 minute happy dance is certainly appropriate! That actually was one of my favorite scenes.

Now that you all are saying he knows why he can walk I am seeing that scene in a slightly different light. Like when he first moved his toes. Did sensation suddenly return and that's why he decided to see if they would wiggle? Or was he expecting it to happen and was just testing it out? Hmmm.

Maybe after being dumped by his tour he ran into Claire's Psychic who told him you will walk again but only after a great trauma.* He wakes up after the crash and thinks --- COULD THIS BE THE GREAT TRAUMA?*
::) ::) ::)


I think the island gave Locke back the ability to walk. Remeber in the MOTH where he told Charlie if you give the island something it gives you something back . It just makes me wonder what he gave the island?

But what could Locke have given the island in the few minutes it took him to wake up from the crash?*

I don't think in the confusion of the plane plummeting to earth and (supposedly) cartwheeling through the forest that our Locke would have had much time to give anything to anyone ...

Remember - his wheelchair WAS ON THE PLANE (well, I am sure we are to assume by the way he looked at it that the wheelchair was his).

To me? It looks like the trauma of the crash and however he landed may have (medically, possibly) corrected whatever went wrong with his legs to begin with. He sure looked like he was experiencing sensastion in his legs for the first time in a while when he was lying on the beach wriggling his toes.

After experiencing the way he was treated when he was refused the "Walkabout" - then WHY would he WANT to tell anyone he was in a wheelchair? Would you?...

Good point that the crash could itself have been the cure.

For all we know, his inability to walk could have been psychosomatic in the first place.

Indeed, CAM, it could have been psychosomatic. That happens.

My thinking is that Locke considers that the island "gave" him the use of his legs again. I think that's what he meant when he said to Charlie "the island will give you what you want, but you have to give it something in return". As to what Locke is giving the island in return, I am not sure - nor am I entirely sure about his statement "I looked into the eye of this island and it was beautiful" - unless it is a metaphor for saying "the island is harsh and unforgiving, but it has given us all a chance at a new life"...