"Kate is Annie? What's the big deal?" you say. "I discredited that theory a week after 'The Man Behind the Curtain!'" I know, I know. It's old hat. But my guess is you haven't thought about it since we were given proof of the island's time anomoly, and about Ben's ability to leave the island. The main reason why it was rejected out of hat was the ages of those involved (Kate and Ben), and the perceived timing of when the Dharma group took over the island (seventies).
I propose that Kate and Ben grew up at Dharma in what would seem to them to be the 90s (af least off-island). It was simply made to emulate the culture of the sixties and seventies. Annie-Kate eventually left the island, presumably with her biological father. This would explain several things, such as how she knows her way around the island so well, why she ran off by herself so much right after the crash, as well as her strong reaction to Alex's (Annie's) dress.
It would also explain why she's been manipulating everyone for the last two seasons for no good reason. She's now working for Ben. That's what they talked about when he took her to breakfast. He was telling her who he was. That's why the next two weeks were going to be very unpleasant. Ben used his relationship with Kate to manipulate Jack into doing his surgery (go back and watch the miniseason...Kate was totally responsible for every decision that Jack and Sawyer made).
So why is Ben significantly older than Kate? Because, evidently, he leaves the island quite frequently. We all now know that the island isn't right within time. Ben's frequent travelling on and off the island has caused him to appear to age quickly to those who stay within the island's time continuum. This would explain why Richard seemed to stay the same age as Ben got older. It was actually Ben who was aging stangly. Just how he ages, and why, are not part of this theory (isn't that convenient?), as there are already a googleplex of theories that try to guess at how the island fits into time and space.
Theory by Messy J
I propose that Kate and Ben grew up at Dharma in what would seem to them to be the 90s (af least off-island). It was simply made to emulate the culture of the sixties and seventies. Annie-Kate eventually left the island, presumably with her biological father. This would explain several things, such as how she knows her way around the island so well, why she ran off by herself so much right after the crash, as well as her strong reaction to Alex's (Annie's) dress.
It would also explain why she's been manipulating everyone for the last two seasons for no good reason. She's now working for Ben. That's what they talked about when he took her to breakfast. He was telling her who he was. That's why the next two weeks were going to be very unpleasant. Ben used his relationship with Kate to manipulate Jack into doing his surgery (go back and watch the miniseason...Kate was totally responsible for every decision that Jack and Sawyer made).
So why is Ben significantly older than Kate? Because, evidently, he leaves the island quite frequently. We all now know that the island isn't right within time. Ben's frequent travelling on and off the island has caused him to appear to age quickly to those who stay within the island's time continuum. This would explain why Richard seemed to stay the same age as Ben got older. It was actually Ben who was aging stangly. Just how he ages, and why, are not part of this theory (isn't that convenient?), as there are already a googleplex of theories that try to guess at how the island fits into time and space.
Theory by Messy J
