Duplicity

(SPOILER: DO NOT READ if you haven't seen the premiere)

The season six premiere proved what many had speculated would happen after the detonation of the hydrogen bomb. I'm talking of course about the existence of an alternate timeline in which Oceanic Flight 815 does not crash on the island, and instead lands safely in LAX. We've had flashbacks and flashforwards in the past, but this season introduced the fabled "flash-sideways". Fabled because for as long as LOST has been around, the possibility of parallel alternate timelines, the "many worlds"/multi-verse theory, has always been discussed.

It's a novel idea, isn't it? In this parallel reality, our characters don't seem to have changed much at all. In fact, even in this first episode, it's clear that no matter what, they are destined to cross paths, and by extension, destined to be heavily involved in each other's lives.

Of all the characters, the most affected is arguably Locke. In this other world, on September 22nd 2004, Locke is still paralyzed. He seems to have accepted his medically irresolvable situation. The only one to give him hope, however small and fleeting that hope may be, is Jack. Quite the change indeed.

But in the reality that we've always known, Locke is a dead man. His likeness has been taken by the Man in Black (a.k.a. the Smoke Monster), and his corpse is carelessly dumped on the same beach that once gave him hope, just three short years before.

Is this the last we've seen of our John Locke? We have until May 23rd to find out. As always, click the pic for a bigger version.