Thanks to ABC for the screenies

Dr. Ben Just a manipulative as Benry

This episode was Ben centric.  In the flash sideways Dr. Linus is as history professor who heads the History Club, and helps the AP students.  He's shit on, just like every teacher and forced to cover detention and cancel his history club.  Who is Ben's student? None other than Alex.  Alex wants to get into Yale and asks Ben for help studying for a test.  While studying we find out that the principal is having relations with the school nurse and Ben decides to use this to his advantage.  He approaches the principal with this knowledge and demands his job in return for not outting him.  Like the DB this guy is, he retaliates by saying he will not only not give Alex the recommendation she needs, but he'll make it so she will never get into Yale or any other university.  At this point I really didn't know what Ben would do.  If it was the "island Ben" he wouldn't care, "island Ben" is only out for himself.  but Dr. Ben is compassionate, Alex isn't his daughter in this reality but he still cares about her and her future rather than his.  He cares for his aging sick father, and seems like he actually cares about him.

Island Ben, sad and lonely

Ilana finds out that Ben is the one who killed Jacob and makes him dig his own grave.  Wow, she's hardcore.  While digging with a makshift bamboo shovel (seriously, the have no ACTUAL shovel??), MIB arrives and asks Ben to join him.  MIB magically opens the chain around his ankle and reveals there is a gun against a tree a few hundred yards.  Ben bolts, and Ilana is on the chase.  The chase ends with a gun in Ilana's face, a sad, sad Ben tells Ilana he's going with MIB because he's the only person that'll have him.  Ilana says she will and he chooses to go back with Ilana.  Wow, I honestly didn't expect that.  I expected Ben to go with MIB, he promised freedom!  I learn something new and human about Ben every week.

You got a little... Richard on you

Richard interrupts Jack and Hurley making their way back to the temple.  As they approach the Black Rock, Jack asks WTF.  Richard tells them that everyone at the temple is dead and tells him he wants to die.  Jack agrees to help and lights some dynamite, then sits down for a chat confident that somehow the fuse will be extinguished because he's a candidate and the island doesnt want him to die.  The fuse is extinguished just as he predicted right before it reaches the dynamite. 

AHHHH I HATE HIS SMIRK!!!!

I hope next week Jack asks good questions that arent just selfish questions about himself.  Poor Richard, I really feel for this guy

So, ya know the theory last time Pandora had put forward? That seems really plausible.  Alex and Ben's dad are back in Ben's life, Locke is with Helen and on good terms with his dad, Nadia is in Sayid's life.  Everyone has everyone they loved or needed back in their lives.  Although, not as close as they were before, but still there. 

Something else, is this "flash sideways" really a flashback flash do-over? Hear me out, Juliet says "It worked".  The flight landed safely in L.A. and what we're watching on the Island is just what happened before the MIB changed the past.  What do you think?