The Hidden Candidate by The Graphite

Okay, I have a theory. Just watched last week's episode over again.

First, I think the cave is almost definitely Smokey's. Jacob has his place in the statue, and we've even seen him weaving the tapestry there, etc. It's not just a meeting place or something. The cave is the opposite and belongs to the adversary. The candidates are certainly Jacob's, but this sloppy style on the wall doesn't suit Jacob. It suits the angry and dark Smokey. He is keeping track of Jacob's candidates, and even eliminating them. He successfully eliminated Locke and got everyone to bring Locke's body back for him to walk around in.

Second, who is the replacement? Here's my theory. Kwon. Which Kwon? Sun or Jin?

Right before unLocke mentions the candidates, we see the LA X timeline, where they show us Locke as substitute teacher. Teaching what, of all things? They made sure we saw him as a teacher, even though that isn't really an especially logically intuitive job for him. The writers put him in that job, teaching... what?

Reproduction. "The human life cycle" is even written on the board behind him. What an unusual school subject to stick into the story. Yes, some TV series have a penchant for putting that topic into school-related stories, however it's nearly always a part of the plot itself, the controversy of the topic, etc. That's not the case, here. Human reproduction, and the life cycle...

Moments later, we see the candidates as explained by unLocke. We see the flashback of Jacob touching both Jin and Sun. Blessing their union. He touches both of them.

My theory (it's just an idea) is that Jacob has played an exceptional game of chess with his adversary. He has put pawns all over the board, and allowed his opponent to knock them down, again and again. And his opponent pridefully thinks he is winning because of the number of pieces he is taking out of play. But that's not what wins chess. What wins chess, in the end, is the one final piece you move into checkmate. You can sacrifice any other piece except for... what? Except for your king. You protect your king, and you sacrifice as many of the other pieces as you have to in order to defeat the other side.

Jacob has brought in all of these candidates to confuse and distract Jacob. And one after the other, they have fallen. But the real candidate is hidden... the product of two "kings" -- Kwon and "Paik." The hidden candidate. The secret candidate. That's why Jacob was confident and calm as he was killed. Because he knew the real candidate was hidden from Smokey. Hidden where? Oh yeah... off the island, where Smokey can't go!

"Ji Yeown" means "flower of wisdom." With the last name "Kwon" it means "flower of wisdom [in] authority."

42 is the hidden Kwon. The beginning of the new life cycle.

It's just an idea. I don't know. We'll see!