Last week episode was dreadful. One of the worst in the whole series. Not only it had a bad plot, but even a subpar execution.

It may be a coincidence but as soon Locke returns we get an episode that is one of the best.

It clarifies the relationship between Ben and Widmore (but it only confirms what could have been inferred from the last few episodes), closes some redundant, dead-end mysteries born anew this season (why Ben was beaten up), and has some brilliant situations and pure-genius dialogues. It was also awesome to see Ben scared shitlessly for the very first time. By John Locke.

A return to form. Or maybe just a return to the only two characters who still have something to say and that haven’t become a joke (but Sawyer is to save too).

Problem is: they only nudged to a corner the real elephant in the room. What’s this smoke monster is really about, what Dharma was up to, who’s Jacob and so on…