The Numbers Have Changed in the ATL by Dave LeClair

I love the occurrences of The Numbers throughout the entire show, and immediately noticed the lack of them in the ATL. They almost never appeared in the background like they usually do. Jack was in row 24 instead of 23. We don't know what numbers Hurley used to win the lottery, and we don't even know if that was Flight 815! If The Numbers appear often in the regular timeline but not in the ATL, are there no Numbers at all, or is there a new set of numbers? With notebook in hand, I recorded EVERY occurance of EVERY number in the ATL flashes for Season 6 Episodes 1-4 to find out if new Numbers exist. Here's what I found.

4 8 15 16 23 42 are barely shown. Because Jack is in Row 24, you can see 23 for a split second but 24 & 25 are shown far longer than 23. And yes, Locke does have his Swan-sounding alarm go off at 6:15, but who doesn't wake at :00, :15, or :30?

THE NEW NUMBERS

The number 2 appears very often. Yes, it is a low and therefore commonly used number, but gosh it was used excessively! Indirectly, 2 was hidden within other groups of numbers (like Z-2939 on Cindy's phone or Row 32) at least 28 times. Directly: Boone told Locke he wouldn't survive 2 days without his cell phone. Christian's coffin is missing and Jack says the funeral is in 2 hours. The Marshall tells Kate she has 2 minutes in the bathroom. Sawyer and Kate take Elevator 2 together. The officer removes 2 stacks of bills from Jin's bag. Kate offers 2 hundred dollars to remove her handcuffs. A hospital intercom pages someone to Recovery 2. Although 2 never verbally or visually appears in The Substitute: Locke pushed his remote button 2 times in attempt to hit Hurley's H2, Helen answers the doorbell when it rings 2 times, and Rose indirectly tells Locke he will be back in 2 days if he takes a construction job.

5 is the next common number, but I'm not as conclusive about it as I am on 2. It mostly appears indirectly. Jin and Sun are seated 5 rows from Jack. Captain Norris announces winds are blowing southwest at 5 miles per hour. An airport announcer tells Flight 32-something to proceed to baggage claim 5. To open a door, airport security taps 5 more than once in the code on the number pad. On his business card, Jack's zip code is 90025. Kate's taxi doors lists the cab rate reads $2.50.

10 may be another one. Locke spent "10 days in the outback". The officer tells Jin anything over $10 thousand has to be claimed. There is a big 10 on the wall where Kate's taxi almost hits Artz. Locke's mailbox lists address 1014, and he tries clicking forward out of his van 10 times (I may be wrong off on this). Randy tells Locke he was in Australia on "the company's dime" and a dime is 10 cents but that's a bit of a stretch.

I will keep tracking all occurrences in future episodes if you like this theory. I am sure that 2 will remain and some other numbers will start emerging.

THE NEW CANDIDATES?

In The Substitute we learn that The Numbers correspond to the remaining uncrossed "Candidates" on the cavern wall. Lostpedia has an extensive list of 45+ candidates identified at http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Candidates. I can't say I verified their list to the episode, but I did compare their list to my notes. I've found some candidates' numbers in the ATL! Whether this means these characters are more important in the ATL or if these are just Easter Eggs, I'm not sure.

"Lacombe" is #2 in the cave, and this was the name of one of the scientists in Rousseau's team. A candidate #5 has not been shown yet, and I won't speculate on whether that's Kate or not. (Interesting tidbit: In the Season 1 DVD extras they say Boone's original name was going to be "Five", but it seems he is #226 as Carilyle. Hey, more twos!). #10 is Mattingley; an Other was wearing his uniform in 1954. That covers the new Numbers in the ATL that I've identified so far.

I think these are just little Easter Eggs, but we'll see how this progresses...
- Row 33 is where Hurley and Sawyer is seated. #33 is Karl Martin, Alex's boyfriend.
- Captain Norris says it's 72 degrees in LA, and Sayid's passport shows he was born in 72. There is no listed candidate #72 but an unknown "Oralingo" is #272. More twos!
- Claire's ultrasound photo lists 55dB, Katie's taxi has license 4DQS554, and unavoidably Jack's business card lists 555 numbers. Candidate #55 is Juliet Burke.
- 29 appears twice. Cindy uses a phone labeled Z-2939 and Claire's ultrasound photo is dated 9:29AM. Candidate #29 is "Brennan", who is either Claire's ex boyfriend or another scientist from Rousseau's team.
- 20 appears twice. When Kate and Sawyer leave Elevator 2, the wall reads T-20. When Claire is asked how long ago her contractions started, she says 20 minutes. Candidate #20 is a Rousseau.
- Ethan reads Aaron's heart rate at "140bpm". Candidate #140 is Charlotte Lewis.