This was the episode I was waiting for. Forget all the disappointments from last week (though, admittedly, I will be making golden cave jokes for a long time). “What They Died For” actually told us what they died for—a novel concept on Lost, but one that I’m betting fans appreciated. And for all the subplots and mythology, minutiae and monsters, what really matters now are the castaways. As it should be. Speaking of…

Until last night, a strong argument could be made that Hurley, Jack, or Sawyer would be the Candidate (now with a capital C). Hurley was the moral compass of the group, the only one who could really talk to dead people, and a natural ‘holy’ successor to “the man with the God complex.” Sawyer had shown growth, going from greedy ex-con to guy who’ll jump off a plane for the greater good. And then there was Jack—the man of science-turned-man of faith. The natural-born leader and wannabe martyr. So… who got the job? Wait for it…

Mystery #1, aka Jacob’s campfire stories: Why did Jacob bring them to the island? I can’t believe we actually heard the truth from Jacob. I was convinced they were going to end the episode with a cliffhanger…or that Smokey would fly through and snuff out Jacob’s fire before we heard anything. After all, they smoked out Richard within minutes of the show starting. (Though I’m not convinced Richard’s dead. A man who never ages doesn’t die so easily, and if Smokey can’t kill Jacob, how could he kill Jacob 2.0?)

Jacob gathers Hurley, Jack, Sawyer, and Kate around the campfire and starts to tell them one of the scariest stories they’ve ever heard: the tale of total self-sacrifice. It goes a little like this, though I did read in between the lines a bit:

Jacob: You’re here because I made a mistake. [Translation: I shoved my brother down a hole and he turned into a smoke monster.] Since then he’s been trying to kill me. [Translation: He’s a pain in the ass.] He found a loophole and managed to do so, so I brought you here to do what I couldn’t. [Translation: Kill the SOB.] I picked you because you were all flawed, like me. You were all alone. You needed this place as much as I needed you. [Translation: Hold me.]

But why didn’t you need me, or Sun or Jin, or Sayid? Kate asks indignantly. Fair point. Why were they crossed off the candidate list? Because you’re a mom, Kate. Sun and Jin were parents. (And Sayid was …um, full of darkness.) “You didn’t need the island.” Well…that makes perfect sense. It was one of those “A-ha!” moments with such a simple explanation, it made you feel a little dumb. Dumb and satisfied.

Then Jacob asks them to make a choice (something he never got to do), and volunteer to protect the light on the island. There’s the proverbial drumroll, and … Jack steps forward. Yesssss. Predictable? Who cares.

Jack: This is why I’m here. This is what I’m supposed to do.
Jacob: Is that a question, Jack?
[Pause.] No.
Then it’s time.

Jacob makes Jack drink from the Stagnant Stream of Youth, since the Wine Bottle of Youth was busted, and now Jack is “just like Jacob.” It was one of the saddest moments I can remember on this show. Jack is resigning himself to a lifetime of duty and loneliness; as always, Hurley says it best: "I’m just glad it wasn’t me."

But you know what this means? It’s open season on Hurley and Sawyer, who—by relinquishing their candidacy—are vulnerable to Smokey. Things are going to get ugly in the final episode. As an aside, I think Kate is going to try to stay with Jack. She knows she has to give Aaron back to Claire, even though Mama’s crazy, and without Aaron, she has nothing. And if she tries to stay, Sawyer will inevitably try to make her leave. That’s just how it works. What would this show be without a final stab at a love triangle? The series started with Kate sewing up Jack after the plane crash, continued last night with Jack sewing Kate up, and (I think) will end with Kate dying to stay with Jack—literally.

Mystery #2: Why is Charles Widmore back on the island? Essentially, as a chaperone for Desmond. They unceremoniously wrote Widmore off the show last night, reducing all his manipulation, conniving, and deviousness to puppies and kittens. Widmore only comes back to the island because Jacob told him to, and he brings Desmond as a “fail-safe, a measure of last resort” for protecting the island. I mean, I know Lost’s producers have said this show is ultimately about characters being able to stop patterns of bad behavior, but they certainly streamline the plot when a villain turns good.

Doesn’t look like Ben’s changing his ways anytime soon, though. He shoots Widmore dead, then promises the Locke-Ness Monster to kill on his behalf. I can’t quite tell if Ben’s playing him for a fool or not. Is he a lost cause? So distraught about sentencing his daughter Alex to an early death, he’ll fill Sayid’s role as LNM’s hired gun? Or did Ben satisfy his quest for vengeance by finishing off Widmore? He could easily double-cross LNM and blow up the plane with that backpack full of C-4…

Meanwhile, some of the best lines of the night came during the scenes with Ben and Miles. A depressed Ben is still a hilarious Ben, and I love whoever came up with “secreter room.”

Mystery #3: Why is Desmond running people over in Sideways LA? Or beating them up in parking lots? To make them see. Whether it takes a near-death experience (Locke, Sun), or reliving an Island Universe experience (Ben, Hurley, Charlie), Desmond is showing people the way they were, like a Dickensian Ghost of Islands Past. And perhaps that opens them up to live a better life in the Sideways world; it gives them a second chance to improve on poor decisions. Ben can be a better father figure to Alex here than he was on the island. Locke can “let go” of his bitterness. And maybe that’s why the Sideways world ultimately matters.

Final thoughts: Loved the great escape staged by Desmond. He’s still my favorite character on the show…though I worry that Locke will give him an offer he can’t refuse: Destroy the island, or Penny dies.

How can I wait until Sunday?