Lost, Season 5, Episode 12
Dead is Dead

Locke: Pre-resurrection Locke was always unsure of himself, always doubting. As he says to Ben, always following others around hoping they would lead him to whatever it was he was looking for. But not anymore. Since coming back to life after the Ajira crash, Locke has gained confidence and a continuing sense of clarity concerning his destiny to be on the Island. He's been telling everybody since the crash that he felt a destiny to be on the Island, and it's obvious he was right. Locke is no longer believing Ben's lies. Also thinks Ben wants to be judged because he let Alex die and not because he left and then returned to the Island, as he says

Ben: His ability to control everything continues to slip away. With Locke enjoying his new-found confidence, Ben is no longer running the show. Yet he continues to try to deceive. First, he deceives Cesar about Locke. Later deceives Sun about knowing that Kate/Hurley/Jack/Jin were part of Dharma 1977 (we know this because he later admits to Locke when they're going to the Temple that the Temple is where he was taken as a child...and it was Sawyer and Kate who brought him there, so he knew). Maybe a way to convince Locke that he's on his side was to kill Cesar. (WHOA! Didn't see that coming...) But, it would be an attempt by Ben to back up his claim that he supports Locke, but you know he doesn't. He seems to genuinely accept blame for Alex's death for not leaving with Keamey when they gave him the opportunity to do so. In flashback style, we see Ben (1988/1989 Island-time, so would've been 24/25) with a young Ethan taking a crying baby Alex from Danielle Rousseau's tent. Returning with Alex, he's challenged by Widmore to kill the baby. Ben refuses saying he will not kill a child and it's not the Island's wish for the baby to be killed. He also tells that Widmore he did not kill Rousseau

Charles Widmore: The tensions between Widmore and Ben are obvious, going back to when Ben was a child and had just been healed by the Island (in the Temple). Even then, Widmore told Richard it was wrong to have brought Ben there to begin with, and is upset when Richard wouldn't just let Ben die. (Not wanting children to live is becoming a trend for Charles)

Sun: When Sun and Frank are met at Ben's old house in Dharmaville by Ben and Locke, she shows him the picture of Hurley, Jack and Kate in the 1977 photo of the Dharma Initiative given to her by Christian. She opts to stay with Locke and Ben to try to find Jin, at which point Frank heads back to the other Island where the Ajira survivors are

Frank: Upon returning to the Island from Dharmaville, he's accosted by Illana and some of the other armed men. He's knocked out after being unable to answer the question posed by Illana, "what lies in the shadow of the statue?"

SMonster: Okay, so it seems that the SMonster starts as some sort of liquid below Ben's old Dharmaville house. When it is judging Ben, it does the same thing it did when it surrounded Eko: it flashes parts of Ben's life (with sound) involving Alex, including her death. Ben genuinely seems emotionally affected by the loss of Alex and this reminder of it, so does the SMonster forgive him? It's still not clear who or what controls the SMonster, but we know that it takes form of dead people (Christian, Yemi, Dave) and possibly animals too (the black horse that Kate saw). So, when Alex appears after the SMonster retreats back into the vent, it's apparent this a representation of Alex as done by the SMonster. The SMonser lets Ben live, but for how long is anybody's guess

Alex: Seen in flashbacks in the SMonster's montage to Ben while judging him. But, her appearance after the SMonster disappeared is memorable. Alex/It slams Ben up against the wall and says she/it knows he wants to kill Locke, but if he tries she/it will hunt him down and destroy him. Alex/It also tells Ben to follow Locke and his every command

Illana: It seems obvious that if she's there with a whole metal crate full of guns that she's there on some sort of mission. It's likely that this is the work of Widmore. After all, it's been alluded that he staged the crash-site of Oceanic 815, so it's likely he used his money (and power) to set-up another flight and seated it with the people he needed. It's curious how Ben, Sayid, Jack, etc. all would end up on the flight too, but it still seems like a set-up by Widmore

Other charcters
Desmond / Penny / Danielle Rousseau / young Ethan / Cesar (es tu, Cesar?), but only briefly / Richard Alpert

Double Take
--There's a game of RISK in Ben's house
--The SMonster oozing out of the grate and surrounding Ben

Funny
--"I was just hoping for an apology." Locke to Ben after Ben tries to explain why he killed him in L.A.
--Cesar to Ben: "How do you feel?" Ben: "Like I've been hit in the head with an oar."
--"This gentleman and I are taking a boat. Does anyone else have a problem with that?" Ben to the other thugs after he shoots Cesar
--After Ben tells Sun that Locke is not dead and is in fact right out the window, she looks out and Locke just waves

Interesting
1. Ben tells Sun to go into the house because he "can't control what is coming out of the jungle", and the it's Locke, not the SMonster, that comes out of the jungle
2. Illana asks the question "what lies in the shadow of the statue?". You may remember Desmond asking Locke in Season 2 in the hatch "what did one snowman say to the other?"
3. Above the altar area where the SMonster came up was a carving with Anubis (the statue from the Island and also the Egyptian god that carries the dead to the afterworld) with the SMonster in front of Anubis, as if obeying him or awaiting some sort of command
4. While talking to Widmore after child-Ben was saved, Richard says that he didn't let Ben die because it was what Jacob wanted. Then he said the Island chooses who the Island chooses. Does this imply that Jacob and the Island are one-in-the-same?
5. Richard is watching the exchange between Ben and Widmore very closely, as though the bad-blood between them is necessary. He does nothing to stop them
6. Widmore, before leaving the Island in exile, telling Ben that if he was wrong about keeping Alex alive, the Island will take care of that eventually. Also tells Ben he'll one day be on the outside
7. Widmore was exiled because, as Ben said, he left the Island constantly and also fathered a child (Penny) with an off-islander. Ben says he broke the rules
8. On the beach, Ben drinks from an Ajira water bottle. Wonder if this is the water bottle previously found in the outrigger by Sawyer and Juliet?
9. Ben can only summon the SMonster, but he can't control it

10 Ben tells the young Rousseau: "If you ever hear whispers, RUN!"

Questions Answered

1. The Island heals child-Ben

2. Widmore was once the head of the Others/hostiles
3. It's Desmond who put Ben in the bloodied condition we saw him in as he was in getting on the Ajira flight. Arriving to follow-through on his promise to Widmore that he would kill Penny, it's Charlie (their child) that makes Ben change his mind, it seems. He wouldn't kill Alex as a baby, and he won't kill Penny because of Charlie. This realization, however, matters not to Desmond who after being shot, but not killed, by Ben, pummels him as the gun falls into the water. After hitting Ben about a dozen times, Desmond rolls him into the water, all bloodied and beaten

Questions
1. Is it possible that the Island put Ben in place as a temporary place-holder while it waited for Locke? Remember, Locke turned down two previous offers from Richard Alpert (once during the compass/knife/sand/comic book test when Locke was five and then again when he was a teenager and turned down the chance to go spend the summer at Mittelos Labs), so it's possible he was expected to be on the Island sooner, but turning down these offers put all of that on hold.
2. How does Locke know how to find Jin?
3. So, what does lie in the shadow of the statue? The 'Jughead' bomb? The room with the Island-Wheel? The Temple? We know where the statue once stood...seems to be near the well that Sawyer/Miles/Juliet were at when Locke ventured down to turn the wheel.
4. What was the liquid that Ben released before the appearance of the SMonster? After releasing it, he says to nobody "I'll be outside". What was that all about? Did he have to tell the liquid/SMonster where to go to find him?
5. Where have Desmond and Penny gone since Des broke open the can of whoop-ass on Ben on the L.A. Marina?
6. Does Charles Widmore know more about what the Island wants? He was right about Ben
eventually being exiled, but is surprised to learn that Ben is going back.
7. Who was the mother of Widmore's child off-island?
8. What was it that Locke had to do? When Ben was looking for him, Sun said Locke told her he had something to do
9. How did Locke know where to find the Temple?
10. What are all the mechanical noises associated with the SMonster?
11. Did child-Ben already know Widmore somehow? The look on Ben's face when Widmore introduced himself seemed to indicate this
12. Is it because of Widmore's always wanting kids to die mindset what causes the Others to eventually revere kids? Ben has seen Widmore's side when it comes to children, so maybe Ben as the leader was always protecting children. (The children, remember, were taking first from the Oceanic 815 survivors by the Others)

Tune in next week for Lost, Season 5 Episode 13 "Some Like It Hoth".

Until then, if it's in the best interest of the Island, you'd better stay out of the way.

Feel free to share your views, theories, money....