Jack's Arc, Richard the Ageless, Sawyer's last Con and Smokey's Demise! by joshuaeli

A couple of things strike me while thinking about the show moving forward:

Before outlining these things, let me say that I 100% believe that the mystery man on the beach with Jacob is the black smoke monster (possibly before some sort of conflict/transformation) and that the "monster" has been manipulating everyone via dead persons on the island (and possibly anyone off island) from the beginning. This includes all versions of Christian on the island, alt John Locke, Yemi, Alex, and any others I've forgotten. He's been setting us up throughout the whole show, now we see the end game approach...


JACK'S CLOSURE:

I'll just say it outright. I think in the end, Jack is going to die. I think sacrifice is a big part of the show, and Jack is the man to make the ultimate sacrifice. BUT, as with all important characters on the show, Jack must have personal closure to die off. So what would be his major character arc? Well the father/child conflict has been a major part of the show, and none more important than the one that started them all, which is Jack/Christian. So I think that Jack's closure will definitely be burying his father, ON ISLAND.

Think about it, if the Smoke Monster needs an unburied dead body to shape shift and manipulate, then it makes perfect sense that we haven't found Christians body yet, on the island. Plus it makes perfect sense in Jack's overall story arc. He needs to confront his father. He's got issues. The Black Smoke monster is looking to judge people for their past sins. But Christian and Jack both had flaws. Perhaps when Jack in confronted with the monster in Christian-form, he will say he's sorry, but then demand that Christian apologize as well, that would be a great twist. But like I said, Jack must bury his father by the end of the show. And with Christians body in the ground, that gives Smokey one less shape at it's disposal.

And, with Jack's big arc behind him, I think he will make the ultimate sacrifice in destroying the smoke monster, also leading to his own death. Perhaps in dying Jacob will even grant Jack one last request, and Jack knowing that Locke deserves to live on the island in peace, will request that Locke be brought back to the land of the living FOR REAL, and lead the Others, taking Richard's place...which leads me to my next theory...


RICHARD, IMMORTAL IN EVERY WAY...

This has been mentioned before by someone, but I think they didn't go deep enough into the subject, so I want to elaborate:

Not only is Richard Alpert ageless, but I think that Jacob made him impervious to death by anyone's hand but his own! And I think it's been a secret kept even from the Others. Why?

Well, as pointed out by someone else, if Richard is ageless, then he won't die which means that the Black Smoke Monster cannot take his form. But what good does that really do, when someone could just shoot Richard and let the Smoke Monster shift into an Alt Richard? Simply being ageless isn't enough. It only really makes sense if Richard is literally unable to die. That is why Richard is that only one to have seen Jacob. Jacob knows that Richard cannot be impersonated by the Monster, thus he is the only one that can be truly trusted. And yes, I think that Richard will be one of the people from the Black Rock, but it is entirely possible that he is even older than that, since his initials are RA.

Now, you might be asking yourself, then why did he seem afraid of being shot by Daniel Faraday, or why did he wear a face-mask during the Purge? Well, he might still feel physical pain, so perhaps that's why he seemed nervous about being shot, and if you'll recall, he was the first one to take his gas-mask off after the Purge. Just sayin'.

So, my prediction is that Richard will also eventually die, possibly by choice, or at least choose to become mortal again, granting a reincarnated GOOD LOCKE the everlasting life, to lead the Others. This will be granted by Jacob, of course, who has always allowed people to make their own "free will" choice.



SAWYER'S IMPORTANCE

I think Sawyer has made his amends, short of actually raising Clementine himself, he's done pretty well for his character arc. So why keep him around, aside from not wanting to break the hearts of 90% of the female viewers? Well, he has one con left in him, but it's one for the good guys. This is just a wild prediction, but let's see if it comes true...

We've seen many stories cross over, through the seasons. Sawyer's notably crosses over with Locke's as seen when it is revealed that Locke's father is the man that ruined Sawyer's life. Also, it is important to note that Locke's manipulation of Sawyer to kill his father parallels what happens between ALT Locke manipulating Ben into killing off Jacob.

But the Smoke Monster, which I believe is FAKE LOCKE, has been conning and manipulating people from the very beginning. I even think it's possible that Locke's father was never brought to the island, that in fact THAT may have been the Smoke Monster in action for the very purpose of putting the pieces in place! Remember the Monster can manipulate living people who are off island, just as it can take the form of living people who are on island to appear to those off island...

But I think that one of the keys to destroying the Smoke Monster will be to fool it. And who better to do this then Sawyer! The ultimate con man! I think this will be his most important con, and his ultimate role to play. He and Jack will have to work together to destroy the Smoke Monster and save the day!


Well, that's all I've got. Let me know what you think?