Ab Aeterno
Synopsis
Before you watch
Ab Aeterno aired on March 23, 2010. The title is Latin for from eternity. Tucker Gates directed, and Melinda Hsu Taylor and Greggory Nations wrote it.
Where things stand: Sawyer has been playing both sides between the Man in Black and the rest. Ben has faced judgment from Ilana, and the flash-sideways has been filling in different lives for familiar people, one episode at a time.
This hour promises a lot: Richard Alpert’s origin is finally revealed, and the Island’s purpose is explained. Richard has been one of the show’s quiet puzzles since the third season, so this is the episode many viewers waited years for. It is also the hour that steps furthest from the season’s pattern, so do not expect the usual mix. Nestor Carbonell later talked to the official magazine about learning the character’s history when he read this script. Leave time to sit with it afterwards.
Key revelations
Mysteries in play
What is the Island?
mythologyThemes
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