It Only Ends Once and It Worked by Marioninnyc

What viewers have been calling “the altverse,” “alternative timeline” etc, is in fact a “reset” timeline that began at the time of the jughead blast. However, there was something else, another “variable” besides jughead that caused the Island to sink.

We know that in what we call “alt-2004″ the Island is on the bottom of the ocean. Yet Smokey doesn’t seem to be lurking in the world and life goes on. Alt-2004 isn’t exactly hell. Some people are pretty happy. It’s understandable why Eloise doesn’t want anyone messing with it.

So somehow “it worked.” The Island sank and the threat of darkness overtaking the world sank with it. How?

During the finale we will see a final return to the past. When? It has to be some point after the swing sets and dharma houses were built since we see them in the bottom of the ocean as the plane flies above them in alt-2004.

Prediction: They go back to 1977. Specifically, the day of the jughead blast. Daniel was right that we are the variables and Juliet was right that it worked, except it didn’t quite work, at least not yet. The reset happens when the island sinks setting off the alt-timeline which is in fact the “real” timeline. Jughead alone didn’t cause this to happen. Jughead plus another factor involving our steadfast survivors on a final mission (and act of faith) will.

I don’t know what the final battle will look like, but it will be well-written and involve community, heroism and sacrifice. Des will play a key part. It will provide a definitive end to the Island and it will “only end once.”

So back in 1977 as our friends transported from 2004 are trying to blow up jughead, they will be “joined” — but probably never meet themselves from 2007. (Imagine 2007/Sawyer having to watch himself try to save Juliet while 2007/Jack (or Kate) tells him that he has to let it her die.)

Before jughead goes off and whatever else has to happen to sink the Island (probably involving electro magnetic fields, Jack’s finding the source, Des making a sacrifice, Flocke/Smokey getting trapped), the 2007/Losties will be helping to make sure that some of the Dharma folks safely leave. Little Ben and his Dad will be evacuated. My money’s on 2007/Miles making sure that this time Dr. Chang is on the sub with his wife and baby Miles. Or maybe everyone is evacuated to Hydra Island and waits there for rescue.

Those we think of as “original” timeline Hurley, Sawyer, Jack, Des, Kate and Ben all sink with the Island or die in the battle and in the reset timeline aka “the alt-verse” those who are “ready” remember everything. They don’t all have to. Maybe Jin and Sun aren’t at the concert, but each remembers having the same crazy dream where they were drowning or Miles doesn’t remember anything because he doesn’t need to. In this timeline he never lost his dad and wasn’t an embittered ghost hunter. Charley will meet Claire though neither need to remember all the details to begin their happily ever after life.

This would explain why Ben and his Dad remember being on the Island and why they left. Damn thing sank! Some Asian guy put them on the last boat to Hydra with Dr. Chang and his family. This would explain why Rousseau never got shipwrecked there. Jacob never went back in time select those particular candidates by screwing with them, so Kate didn’t get away with her lunchbox caper and maybe learned something. Sawyer still sought revenge but had a little counterweight of reason, choosing to be a cop rather than a con. Jack never saw Jacob when he left the operating room. Maybe he calmed down on his own, figured something out. Maybe this had some indirect effect of his not marrying his first wife and instead marrying, well, you know who, and it didn’t quite work out. The reset no doubt had many consequences, but it’s not “alt” or parallel. It’s what happened.