Damn, the writers wasted no time answering what lies in the shadow of the statue! The insurmountably anticipated fifth season finale of Lost kicked off with the introduction of Jacob, played by Mark Pellegrino, most famous for his role on Dexter. At first glance, he doesn’t seem to fit the bill. This is Jacob? This young, dirty blond, red herring-eating fella is the oft alluded to “Him”? Fair enough I suppose; let’s see where this takes us. After a brief conversation with a mysterious man (Man #2, as detailed by the cast list), played by Titus Welliver of Deadwood fame, I was certain the penultimate finale would top its predecessors. The Incident was one-hundred percent more than I could have hoped for, but it didn’t go over without a hitch.

Only Lost can answer a single mystery multiple times and keep the same question engaging. The opening scene of The Incident depicts Jacob literally lying in the shadow of the statue, but only with Richard’s Latin-spoken response are we clued in to the question’s true answer. Similarly, I thought it was very clever of Lindelof and Cuse to shock fans with yet another Locke-in-the-box. This is the thoughtful writing and careful planning by the Lost executives that fans worldwide have come to know and respect. This year the Lost team seemed to go above and beyond, finally dishing on long-awaited island mysteries and doing so in such a way that’s constantly entertaining. The Incident’s direction, for starters, was much more movie-esque, with overhead camera fly-bys through massive rooms, multiple well-choreographed gunfights, and long-shots of a solitary behemoth statue, as well as “Jacob’s” flaming cabin.

Jacob, Jacob, Jacob… He sure is the handsy type, making sure to touch each castaway he visits, for whatever reason we have yet to discover (despite deductions already being made). The Incident jumped around in time quite a bit, and Jacob’s visits had me on the edge of my seat, jaw resting gently in my lap. Every word Jacob spoke was brimming with purpose and deep meaning, which makes thematic sense, but it’s no easy task to dominate a role when expectations for a top-notch performance have never been higher. Challenge sought and met, in my opinion, and a job well done by all those he encountered, as well. Most everyone seemed to be on top of their game for The Incident, including young Kate, James, Juliet and Rachel. The casting department has always done a damn fine job of picking miniature castaway counterparts, and The Incident holds no exception.

I’m not usually the best at catching continuity errors on the fly, but Jack’s visit from Jacob was bothersome for me; the way Jack recounts his five second story in season one, while Kate stitches him up on the beach, didn’t mesh well with how it actually played out in The Incident. Jack’s detailing of the events that had transpired led me to believe it was his idea to enact the count, not his father’s reprimanding. It was my belief that Jack himself chose to allow the fear to enter and leave him, and thus enable him to finish the surgery. It’s a minor fault, but I’m surprised keeper of the keys, Gregg Nations wasn’t all over this, considering its a classic scene between Jack and Kate. The two even discuss it during the episode.

The Incident ends with three shocking twists: one somewhat predictable, one unbelievable, and one unexplainable. The first of the three is the reveal that John Locke is dead, and has been since Ben murdered him off-island. That begs the question of who or what is animating Locke’s body? I’ve stated my opinion, but I won’t hesitate to again predict that mystery man #2, Christian, Locke, etc. are all non other than Senior Smoke. The second notable game-changer is the apparent death of Jacob, something I’m not sure anyone was actually expecting to happen, but there we have it. Or had it, most unfortunately. The final shock was the fork in the outlet, or more specifically the plutonium core of Jughead being smacked around by Juliet until it got angry enough to go off, blinding home viewers with a white light, and then serving up an inverted Lost outro screen. Holy shit, right?

I look forward to seeing where the Lost castaways end up. The journey for the Oceanic survivors is coming to a close, and we’ve bid farewell to quite a few characters along the way. Juliet’s tragic death marks the loss of the castaways’ resident Other, leaving Miles as the final non-crash survivor. That reminds me – for some nugget of truth in the confusion and chaos of The Incident, look to Miles; you can trust Miles Straume for some legitimate insight. His words echo those of executive producers Lindelof and Cuse, although in a less direct manner.

The look on Ben’s face when he realizes Locke is actually dead – I cannot wait to see that face. Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse have a lot to look forward to in their farewell season, and I’m hoping beyond hope that the trip includes more of the dynamic between Pellegrino’s and Welliver’s characters, in spite of Jacob’s death and Man #2′s use of Locke’s body. Desires aside, now we wait for season six, a wait long enough to carry a baby to term, which coincidentally can no longer happen on-island, perhaps at the fault of Juliet… Now wouldn’t that be ironic?