Smoke monster takes out Richard, Locke makes a deal with Ben

Locke arrives on the main island and sees Zoe and Widmore's gear in an outrigger canoe. He looks at in for a moment then moves on.

The the barracks, Zoe arrives and tells Widmore that they need to go. Widmore tells them that they are going to hide in Ben's secret room. Ben says that he's not going to hide because Locke's going to find him sooner or later.

Miles says that he's going to survive by running through the jungle, but before he leaves, Ben asks for Widmore and Zoe's walkie talkies and gives one to Miles. Before Widmore goes into the secret room, he tells Ben that Locke is going to kill him. Ben says "Then I guess this is goodbye."

Richard then decides that he's going to talk to Locke, since all he wants is for him to join him. As Richard and Ben slowly walk outside, they suddenly hear the sound of the smoke monster approaching. In one motion, the smoke monster catches Richard by the neck and tosses him off into the distance.

Ben is stunned, but slowly sits down in a chair in front of his old house. Locke appears and sits down next to him, ominously playing with his knife. He says that Ben is who he was looking for and Ben offers him some lemonade. Locke tells Ben that he wants him to kill some people, and if he does, he can have the island after he leaves.

Ben hesitantly agrees and then after Locke asks whose outrigger is down at the dock, Ben tells him it's Widmore's. When Locke asks where Widmore is, Ben gives it up that they're hiding in his closet.

We're left wondering the fate of Richard, who is not seen for the rest of the episode. We also don't see Miles again. Ben was quick to give up Widmore to Locke, but Widmore is certainly the one person Ben has no interest in forgiving.

Widmore says Jacob told him to come to the island, Locke is coming

Ben continues to hold a gun on Charles Widmore and asks what he's doing there. Widmore brushes him off telling him to put down the gun and telling Zoe to go the equipment from the outrigger and then sink it. Ben says not to go anywhere, but Widmore says that if he shoots him, his last chance of survival will be gone. He then tells Zoe to go because Ben won't shoot her. She slowly walks out as Ben stands there.

Widmore turns to Richard and asks why they are there and Richard reveals their plan to blow up the Ajira plane. Widmore says that he's had the plane rigged with explosives since they got there and that as usual, he's three steps ahead of Ben.

Ben then asks Widmore how he returned to the island and Widmore reveals that Jacob invited him back. He says that Jacob visited him after the freighter was destroyed and showed him the error of his ways and shared with him the information he needed to know when he returned to the island.

Zoe then interrupts on the radio to tell Widmore that Locke has arrived on the main island in an outrigger. Wimore tells her to get back quickly and tells everyone that they need to hide if they don't want to die.

So Jacob brought Widmore back to the island which explains why he knew the candidates names and the other information he possesses. Ben is certainly not happy that Widmore has seen Jacob since Ben was ignored by him for so long. We see jealousy inside Ben stirring again.

Ben, Richard & Miles get C-4 from the barracks, discover Widmore & Zoe

We finally see Ben, Miles and Richard again, making their way through the jungle towards the barracks. Miles questions whether Ben's short cut is accurate and Ben says he lived at the barracks a long time and he knows how to get there. Mile hits back saying he lived there 30 years ago, "otherwise known as last week." It's nice to see a little humor return to the show.

Once they arrrive at the barracks, Miles starts getting that dead body feeling and says that he get "wonky around dead stuff." Ben asks him if he has something to share and before Miles can say anything, Richard says that Alex is buried there. He says that he buried Alex's body after Ben left the island. Ben pauses and looks down at the ground then thanks Richard.

They then enter Ben's old house where he immediately moves the bookcase, revealing his secret room. Miles notices the door where Ben summoned the smoke monster and asks what it is. Ben says that it is where he was told he could summon the smoke monster, but he now knows that it was really summoning him.

Behind the hanging shirts, there is a safe that Ben opens to reveal six bricks of C-4. Ben asks Richard if they want to cripple the plane or "blow it to hell," and Richard chooses the latter, so they take a six bricks.

They suddenly hear a noise, and leave the room to discover Zoe in the kitchen. They point their rifles at her and Ben asks who she is. Then Charles Widmore enters house and says that she' with him. Ben looks completely stunned to see Widmore.

The group splits up, some go with Richard & the rest with Hurley

At the flaming wreckage of the Black Rock, Richard is preparing to go to the Dharma barracks to get grenades and other explosives. Jack wants Richard to slow down and Hurley pipes up saying that they should go talk to Locke. He says that Jacob is there now and told him that is what they should do. Richard wants proof that Jacob is there and tells Hurley to ask Jacob what the island is. Hurley tells Richard that he has nothing to prove to him. Richard says that he's lying because Jacob never tells them what to do.

Richard says that he's going to destroy the plane and asks who is coming with him. Ben and Miles both choose to go with him while Frank, Sun and Jack decide to stick with Hurley. As Richard's group leaves, Hurley looks panicked about his own plan.

It's certainly worth nothing that all of the candidates stuck with Hurley, which may not bode well for Richard's group.

Hurley blows up the Black Rock + Ben ponders Ilana's death

As the beach camp gang make their way across the island towards the Black Rock, Ben ponders Ilana's death. He says that she was handpicked by Jacob and trained to protect the candidates. He continues saying shortly after she told the candidate who they were, the island was done with her and she died. He says he wonders what will happen the rest of them once the island is finished with them.

As the group reaches the Black Rock, Richard notices that Hurley is missing. Suddenly they hear him screaming "Run!" and "Go!" as he runs away from the Black Rock which is destroyed in a massive explosion. Everyone is thrown to the ground as pieces of the ship rain down around them.

Richard screams at Hurley asking him why he did that and Hurley simply says that he was protecting the group. Richard says that now they're all dead and walks off.

Miles goes to Hurley and asks him why he blew up the Black Rock. Hurley tells him that Michael told him to and that people come to him and yell at him after they die. When Miles questions whether he always does what the dead people say, and Hurley replies "Dead people are more reliable than alive people."

Well, that's likely the last we'll be seeing of the Black Rock, at least in the present. We've been there a lot this season, so it will be nice to move on.

Hurley takes Ilana's bag of Jacob's ashes, supports Richard's plan

At the beach camp, Hurley looks through Ilana's things and finds a copy of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's book Notes From the Underground in Russian. He then discovers the bag of ashes that Ilana collected from the firepit where Jacob's body burned at the Taweret statue (the four-toed statue). He looks inside, and decides to keep the bag.

In the group, as Richard prepares to go get more dynamite, Jack starts to question his plan. Hurley pipes in and supports Richard's plan and seems sincere when he convinces Jack to trust him. As we know, Hurley has his own plan, but we'll get to that later.

It seems that Hurley is being really smart when he takes Jacob's ashes, which will quite possibly come in handy for warding of Locke or the smoke monster some time in the future.

Ilana is blown up by Black Rock dynamite

Ilana returns from the Black Rock with four sticks of dynamite in her bag which she says is enough to destroy the cockpit and all of the instruments. When Hurley questions the plan, Ilana gets into a bit of tizzy, saying that they have to trust her because she's been training her entire life to protect the candidates.

Ilana begins to recklessly put water bottles into the same bag as the dynamite. Richard agrees that this is what they need to do, but when Hurley says that Jacob never told him that they should blow up the plane, Ilana has a bit of old Ben freak out where she says that everything she's doing is for the best interest of the candidates. Suddenly, she drops her bag to ground, and in a giant explosion, Ilana is no more.

Hurley sees this as Michael's prediction of people dying because of him coming true.

Ilana being suddenly killed was a hell of a way to say goodbye to a series regular. We never learned much about her, but I'd guess that we'll be seeing her again and at least getting a little more info on her relationship with Jacob.

Hurley brings Richard back to camp, Sun doesn't like Richard's plan

Sun returns to camp and Jack examines. He believes she may have aphasia which affects the language center of the brain. Ilana then smiles when she see Richard and Hurley return to the camp.

Richard tells everyone to pack up because they need to go to Hydra island and destroy the Ajira plane so Locke can't leave the island. Sun fervently objects to the plan of destroying the plane since she wants to leave the island with Jin, but no one can understand he impassioned rant since it's in Korean. She angrily storms off.

So is the loss of the English language really being caused by aphasia, or is it possible, as some have theorized, that Sun may have partially slipped into a time where she didn't speak English (like the sideways timeline)?

Hurley helps Richard make his peace with Isabella, says they must stop the man in black

Back in the present, Richard makes his way back to the ruins where he digs up Isabella's gold cross. He looks up and starts yelling that he was wrong and that he changed his mind. He's opening that the man in black (Locke in this time) will hear him.

He turns around to find Hurley instead who tells him that Isabella sent him and she wants to know why he buried her cross. Hurley says that she is standing right next to Richard and that he'll tell Richard what she says. She wants him to close his eyes, just like she told him to do when she was dying.

She tells Richard that it is not his fault that she died and it was just her time. She says that he has suffered enough and when he says that he misses her, she says that they are already together. Isabella then disappears.

Hurley then tells Richard that she said one more thing. She said that they have to stop the man in black from leaving the island or "We all go to hell." We then see an extra-wide shot where we can see Locke looking over the valley where the are.

Again the question is, what havoc will be unleashed if Locke (the man in black) successfully leaves the island?

Richard gives the man in black a white stone, buries Isabella's gold cross

Richard returns to the ruins where the man in black is waiting. The man immediately knows that Richard didn't kill Jacob and then Richard gives him a white stone from Jacob. The stone is like the one the man in black (Locke) threw into the ocean in "The Substitute."

The man in black tells Richard that if he ever changes his mind, the deal he offered to give him Isabella back will still stand. He then gives Richard Isabella's gold cross which he says he found in the Black Rock. When Richard looks back up, the man in black has disappeared.

Richard goes over to an old stone bench and digs a small hole in front of it and buries the gold cross.

Jacob explains that the island is a cork to contain evil, gives Richard eternal life

Richard sits outside the statue wrapped in a blanket as Jacob approaches carrying a bottle of wine. Richard asks what is inside the statue and Jacob only says that no one comes in unless he invites them in. Jacob tells Richard that he is not the devil and reveals that he brought the Black Rock to the island.

Jacob then tells Richard to think of the wine in the bottle as hell or malevolence, evil or darkness. He says that if the evil got out, it would spread and that the cork in the bottle is the island, which keeps the evil where it belongs.

He continues explaining that the man in black believes that everyone is corruptible because it is in their nature to sin. Jacob says he brings people here to the island prove him wrong, because on the island, their past doesn't matter.

He said that before Richard, there were many other people who all died. Jacob says that he didn't help the people because he wanted them to help themselves and to make the decision between right and wrong for themselves. When Richard points out that if Jacob doesn't step in, the man in black will, this intrigues Jacob, who then offers Richard a job as his intermediary. Richard would be the the one to interact with the people Jacob brings to the island.

Richard asks what he'll get in return for doing the job. He first asks for Isabella back and Jacob says he can't do that. Then Richard asks for his sins to be absolved so he won't go to hell, but Jacob says the can't do that either. Finally, Richard says that he never wants to die, he wants to live forever. Jacob says he can do that, and touches Richard on the shoulder.

So this scene was possibly the biggest mythological reveal to date. We get an explanation of the island's possible purpose from someone who would actually know. The question is, what happens when the cork is not in the bottle and the evil escapes? What consequences would there be? And how does the island act as said cork? What force is it that keeps the evil on the island?

We also see the moment where Richard became the ageless go-between we've come to know. It's surprising that he asked to live forever rather than Jacob giving him the gift on his own.

Jacob kicks Richard's ass, dunks him in the ocean

Richard makes his way to the beach and sees the what remains of the Taweret statue. There is just the foot left as we've seen in the present, and there are broken pieces in the water and on land right around  the foot. Richard takes out the dagger and approaches the statute. He sees the entrance open, but is suddenly punched by Jacob.

Jacob beats him down and takes the dagger. He asks Richard who gave him the dagger, and Richard asks where Isabella is. When Richard reveals that Isabella is dead, Jacob asks if he met a man dressed in black. Richard confirms that he did and says that he told him that Jacob was the devil and that he needed to kill him to see Isabella again. Jacob tells Richard that it wasn't really Isabella and that he is not dead and the island is not hell.

Jacob grabs Richard and forces him under the water numerous times, repeatedly asking if he still thinks he's dead. Richard finally says that Jacob should stop because he wants to live. Jacob then stops and says that they need to talk.

So Jacob's line of questioning here seems to insinuate that this may be the first time the man in black has tried to kill him. We also see Jacob hostile and angry for the first time. It's a long way from his mellow, somewhat zen persona we've seen in the later years of his life.

Man in black gives RIchard the dagger, wants him to kill 'the devil' (Jacob)

The man in black gives Richard some roasted boar which he quickly gobbles up. He tells Richard that once he's done eating, he should head west and once he reaches the ocean, he'll be able to see the statue that broke into pieces when the Black Rock smashed through it. He says that is where he'll find the devil (Jacob).

The man in black hands Richard a dagger which appears to be the same one Dogen gave Sayid. He then tells him to kill Jacob before he has a chance to speak because he's very persuasive. These are essentially the same instructions Dogen gave Sayid about killing Locke (the man in black).

The man in black tells Richard that he is the black smoke, but that Jacob took Isabella and he couldn't stop him. He tells him that Jacob took his body and his humanity and rebuts all of Richard's objections by asking him if he ever wants to see Isabella again. Richard takes the dagger and the man in black leaves.

So most of what the man in black says seems like lies to get people to do what he wants and that certainly seems to be the case here. He brings up Isabella over and over again. Much like when Ben lied though, I'd imagine there are bits of truth sprinkled throughout the lies.

The man in black releases Richard from his chains

As Richard lies passed out on the floor of the Black Rock, the man in black enters the ship (he is in the form we saw him in "The Incident" talking to Jacob). He touches Richard on the shoulder, which causes him to wake up shocked.

The man in black gives Richard some water and Richard asks him he is in hell. The man in black says that they are in hell and that he's been on the island long before the Black Rock crashed there.

Richard asks about his wife and the man in black says that "he" must have her, implying Jacob. He says that he'll help Richard and set him free from the chains as long as he agrees to do anything he asks. Richard agrees to the deal.

After releasing him from the chains, the man in black says "It's good to see you out of those chains," the same thing he said to Richard as Locke in "LA X." Then he says that if they are going to escape from hell (the island), they'll have to kill the devil (Jacob).

So how long before the Black Rock crashed did the man in black become trapped on the island and is this his original human form? It seems that even in the 1800s, he was still a master manipulator.

Isabella appears to Richard on the Black Rock, smoke monster 'grabs' her + the boar

Chained inside the Black Rock, Richard struggles to loosen a floorboard. It starts raining and he struggles to reach some water to drink, but can't reach it. Later he manages to remove the nail from the floorboard and begins to chip away at the wall where the chains are attached.

Later, Richard wakes up to the sound of a boar nibbling away at one of the bodies. As the board charges at him, he drops the nail just out of reach.

Richard passes out again, and is later awoken by the sound of Isabella's voice. She comes over to him and tells him that hey are both dead and in hell. She says she is there to save him from the devil. Suddenly, they hear the sounds of the smoke monster. Richard tells her to run away and when she heads up to the deck, she lets out a blood curdling scream. Richard calls for her, weeps and falls to his knees.

So here's the big question. Was Isabella the smoke monster? It would seem so because she is dead, but can the smoke monster be her but also appear to be above the ship, essentially in two places at the same time?

The smoke monster kills Whitfield & other officers but spares Richard

The Black Rock is sitting in the jungle during the day. Richard and Ignacio wake up and hear the officers above. One says that Captain Hanso is dead. They call up to the deck for help and Jonas Whitfield comes down.

Instead of helping them, Whitfield kills three of the surviving slaves, including Ignacio. He says that only five officers have survived and they have limited supplies and fresh water. As he's about to kill Richard, Whitfield says that if he doesn't kill him, it'll only be a matter of time before Richard kills him.

Suddenly, we hear the familiar sound of the smoke monster, who ravages the officers on deck. In burst through the ship and grabs Whitfield before slowly sliding back into the ship. It creeps up to Richard and does it's little flashing snapshots, much like it did to Juliet in the season 3 episode "Left Behind." When Richard opens his eyes, he finds that the smoke monster has silently disappeared.

So why at this point does the smoke monster kill everyone but Richard, but in the future, it seems to let a lot more people live? Is it because Jacob's plan and the rules involved have yet to completely evolve, or was Richard specially selected by Jacob for a purpose?

The Black Rock crashes into Taweret statue on the island

The Black Rock is tossed about in the ocean by a nasty storm. Richard and another slave passenger named Ignacio are struggling to avoid being tossed about themselves. Ignacio looks through a hole in the ship and sees the island. Then he also sees the statue of Taweret (the four-toed statue) which he says is the devil that is guarding the island. Richard cowers in a corner, clutching the gold cross as a giant wave propels the Black Rock into the head of the statue.

So we finally learn how exactly Richard came to be on the island and why only the foot of the statue was left, all in one short scene. Truly awesome.