And thus we return to our scheduled programming as I finally perform a bit of speculation concerning Jacob’s List whilst rocking out to some Zeppelin (I’m on a binge). If you want to know all the names visible on the list, check the article on Lostpedia, because I’m not here to list a bunch of names. Instead, I’m here to theorize, to discuss, to become infuriated with confusion over why the hell Shephard is on Jacob’s frakking List. Here’s hoping more than one person reads this…
So let’s go over what we know thus far:
Jacob’s List is a list of candidates, scrawled on the surfaces of a hard to reach cave. These candidates are on the List because, according to Jacob, they are possible future protectors of the Island as Jacob was before his death. If you are no longer deemed fit for position of protector of the Island, whether through death or inaction, your name is crossed out. These names include crash survivors, members of Rousseau’s team, some Others, the Freighties, DHARMA people, and the U.S. military operation that came to the Island in the late 40s, early 50s. All these candidates were supposedly brought to the Island by Jacob, pushed in a direction in which their actions would eventually lead to them coming to the Island. Also among these candidates, crossed out, is the critically denied Gary Troup, who was sucked into a turbine in the pilot after writing the piece of crap mystery “novel” that is Bad Twin.
The list now consists of (8) REYES, (15) FORD, (16) JARRAH, (23) SHEPHARD, and (42) KWON. (4) LOCKE was on the list as well, but due to his untimely death and Terry O’Quinn’s apparent allegiance to the Smokey side, his name was crossed out for eligibility as future protector of the Island. Too bad, so sad.
So my number one question, going back to Season 3. 3×06 What Kate Does – Pickett makes first mention of Jacob, stating that “Shephard isn’t even on Jacob’s List.” 3×12 Par Avion – Mikhail Bakunin the one-eyed Other tells his captors why they’re not on the List: Kate, because she’s flawed, Sayid because he’s scared, Locke because he’s angry. And yet Shephard, Sayid, and Locke were all on the list. Kate is a bit of a different story. She’ll be discussed later…
So Shephard is on Jacob’s list. As are Locke and Sayid. I honestly have no crazy-ass theories on the matter, just that the writers better sure as hell know what they’re doing. Those were the first two mentions of Jacob’s list ever, and they better not be disregarded, or blown off as a “different list.” Though I have to ask myself: How do they even know of the list?
When Not-Locke told Richard of the candidates, Richard hadn’t a single clue as to what Not-Locke meant. He was as bewildered as the audience, the man who was the Others’ connection to Jacob. If Richard didn’t know of these candidates, how are we to expect that he knew of this list, let alone who was on that list? And if Richard doesn’t know, how would Ben know? How would Pickett and Mikhail know? I’m fairly sure the majority of Lost fans, actively engaged with the goings on of the internet or not, don’t have recollection of that LEGENDARY line from Season Three. But some people do, including this guy. If Danny freaking Pickett was the true backdoor leader of the Others…. I’ll leave it at that.
Is there any rhyme or reason to the correlation between numbers and names? Or did Jacob just throw some darts at a dartboard until he ran out? I’m DEFINITELY leaning toward the former, in that the names are listed in order of either likelihood of accepting the position or order of priority, who is best qualified to take on the position, with (8) REYES being more qualified than (313) LITTLETON. Let it also be known that (313) LITTLETON is less qualified than (###) TROUP. Crossed out Littleton really is useless.
Another big question out of the episode was as to which Kwon is up on that list, Jin or Sun. My theory? Both. They were both pushed to the Island by Jacob. Sun could have been on that flight by herself, Jin likewise, but certain actions and motivations, all derivative of their true love for each other, led them to the point at which they both boarded that plane, they both crashed on the Island. Jacob recognized them as two halves, and as such, should Kwon be the protector of the Island, it is the Kwons. Heartfelt, I know.
However, if it had to be one or the other, Sun or Jin, there’s one deciding factor. When Ajira 316 was pulled into the Island, Hurley, Jack, Kate, and Sayid flashed out. Linus (whose name is curiously crossed out. Roger? Please no.), Lapidus (also curiously), Ilana (even more curiously), and Sun Hwa-Paik Kwon all remained on that flight, taking them to Island circa 2007. Out of all the Oceanic Six, it was Sun that remained. She was singled out among them all, which means that either she’s the one on that cave wall, and Jacob dragged her with the rest of the people aboard that plane to 2007, or her being singled out from 1977, she is the one not on the wall. But should this logic apply, Lapidus? Ilana?
I firmly believe it was Lapidus’s original destiny to fly Oceanic 815, bringing him to the Island. Then he came aboard the freighter, and left again with the Oceanic Six and Desmond. Then he came back, this time flying Ajira 316. He was definitely meant to come to the Island, and though he didn’t crash with the rest on September 22nd, 2004, the universe has a way of course-correcting itself. But is he a candidate on the wall? Ilana and Bram seemed to think he was a candidate, a potential future protector of the Island. But does this mean his name is written on the wall?
Also, Ilana. As hand-selected protector of Jacob, it would seem she is one of the best suited candidates. And yet we didn’t see her name last week, and if we did, it was crossed out. Could Jacob have picked her specifically because she wasn’t on that list?
Then we have Austen. She was touched by Jacob, why is she not on there? Did Kate bring Jacob hours of frustration with her constant changes in relationship loyalties? Was he sick of who she would choose, and just shunned her storyline from his life? She flashed with Jack and Sayid and Hurley to 1977. By the logic presented earlier, this would make her a candidate, right? And yet, right now, there is no confirmation.
It really all comes down to the one number missing from our little sequence. 4 8 15 16 23 42. What did that reset the hatch clock to? 108. Who is 108? It could be Lapidus, it could be Ilana, it could be Austen. Only the episodes to come will tell.
Piggy-backing off of my Smokey and the zombies theory a few days back, with the infected, the claimed being the black pawns at the hands of Smokey, the candidates could be the white pawns. Smokey can’t kill them, for they are Jacob’s, and he is to protect Jacob and anything of his. But then couldn’t Jacob just list any names he wants, essentially calling dibs before the darkness can infiltrate their soul? Or is this list really not Jacob’s at all?
Could this list be that of the blonde boy’s, the referee’s, the ultimate player’s, the gamemasters? Perhaps every name on that list begins neutral, and depending on who grabs them first (Jacob by touch, Smokey by infection), that is where their loyalties lie in respect of the game. It’s not really Jacob’s list at all – it’s a list of the pieces on the metaphorical game board.
Here’s something to tickle you, however. Why was Jarrah untouched by Not-Locke. He died and was claimed, much like Littleton. And yet, his name remains clearly on the wall. Could the sickness, the darkness be a different entity altogether? Food for thought.
So with these names and numbers supposedly the key players, the pieces on the board, the candidates for protector of the Island, why the hell is Gary Troup, the writer of the unreadable Bad Twin, up there? In the good company of Shannon Rutherford and Claire Littleton no less? I read this theory somewhere and LOVED IT: 4 8 15 16 23 42. They’re the only important ones. The rest, which are crossed out, are just there for show, to trick the Man in Black into making untrue assumptions about the list. Or they’re just there to frak with the audience. Either way, this would explain why Linus and Straume are crossed out, why freaking Gary Troup (and Sullivan the hyper chondriac!) is on the list in the first place! Jacob certainly did have a thing for numbers – those numbers and names were critical to him and are critical in the mythology of the show and the outcome of the game.
However, I’m absolutely curious who #1 ends up being. Here’s hoping that numero uno matters, and that Jacob’s very first, best suited, most important candidate was none other than… the Man in Black.
Comments are very much appreciated, cause I’m sure I missed a helluva lot with Jacob’s list! Share your theories, your thoughts, anything! Anything and everything is appreciated.
[...] Part 5: Theory Time – Jacob’s List [...]