Lost--smoke monster infected all of the Others?

Question

when the smoke monster 'infected' Roussou's shipmates they all turned murderous.

I've often wondered why the 'Others' were so bent on killing. I mean they could have just put the survivors of Oceanic 815 on the submarine or boat they had and put them on another desserted island (since they wanted to keep their island secret) or made them swear to secrecy & taken them to the mainland like they did Micahel & Walt.

This would also explain Widmore saying the Ben/the Others took his island. The monster was against the Dharma people, *but* Ben could summon it at will like he did when the freighter mercenaries killed his daughter.

So it seems like the monster is with the Others & against Dharma ppl & anyone else. It also seems like it takes them over or posses people since Roussou's fiance was going to kill her after he was possessed.

So, this just begs the questions;

-->what is the smoke monster?

-->how much does it posses other ppl--is there any essence of the original person left once the monster 'infects' them?

--> what is the monster's full extent of cooperation with the Others -or- has it infected the Others & therefor *CONTROLS* the Others?

--> if so, is the smoke monster another manifestation of Jacob? remember that Jacob existed before Jack got there, after Jack got there, then msgs from Jacob came from a figure that *looked* like Jack's father. So there is an entity that can take many forms, is this entity the same as the smoke monter?

--> what's in the temple? remember the monster guards the temple. And when the freighter mercenaries came to kill Ben's daughter he told her to hide in the safest place he knew of for her--the temple.

what are your thoughts on these questions?
what other questions came to your mind about the smoke monster once it was revealed that it 'infected' Roussou's shipmates & possessed them?

Answer 1

yes, Widmore is no longer a Hostile/Other, so he and his freighter people are now subject to attaack by the monster. It's irrelevant that he once was an Other, as another ansewr suggests.



I other questions about Temple. Is 'Temple' just another name like the Orchid station, which does not really disclose the true meaning of the location? Or is it really a religious site? Is the show going to go with a whole religious / unexplained mysteries of the Other World (pun intended, as in what lies in The Beyond & also as in the society/religion of the Others)



The writers said that everything would be explained in real terms & that they wouldn't pull a Deo ex-machina, where they say it was all just a dream, or a hallucination of Hurley, who is still in a mental hospital. But it is getting increasingly dificult to put it all together in the realm of science.



I had always thought --before this episode where the monster possesses the French crew-- that the smoke monster was really a dinosaur from the ancient past because it makes dinosaur noises, it is tall and will pick up people and smash them around. I had thought that it could interact in a limited way with people--hurt them, but not use them as food because it could not *fully* cross over to this time period.



But taking possession of minds just blows that theory out of the water.



So, I am intrigued, but just have more questions than answers.

Answer 2

I think that "just putting the Oceanic 815 survivors off the Island and making them swear to secrecy" won't work. True, at that point they didn't know a lot about the Island and its powers, but I think that the whole point of taking certain people is to help keep the Others' numbers up, since they cannot procreate. Also, if you remember, Widmore (in one of the flashes, episode "Jughead"), young Widmore that is, was a member of the Hostiles, which is the same thing as the Others.



The smoke monster, Cerberus as it has been called, was against the DHARMA folks because they were trying to exploit the Island. I think that Cerberus is some sort of manifestation of Jacob, and the infection that the French crew experienced was a way to keep Rousseau safe until she could give birth to Alex, or maybe even "convince" her to join with the Others. Her shooting her crew was her emphatic NO to that question. I don't believe that Cerberus controls the Others, but acts as some sort of body guard or test/security system, a physical body that Jacob can take to spew wrath and smite those that would oppose him or harm his people or threaten the integrity of the Island. This is why Ben does not summon the smoke monster, but it acts on his behalf. On another note, I think that something remains of the original person that Cerberus inhabits, but once 'possessed', this person is no more in control of themselves, but pushed aside to allow Jacob full control.



I do think that Christian Shephard, and all of the 'ghosts' that we have seen on, and off, the Island are more manifestations of Jacob... maybe even the smoke monster, just not in its destructive form, which is the smoke itself. We have seen these ghosts as guides or messengers, Ana Lucia appearing to Hurley after her death telling him to not get arrested, Libby appearing to Michael helping him on the freighter, and even Claire in the cabin in the woods telling Locke that she is okay (I am a believer in the idea that Claire is dead).



The temple is something that is totally new, and I can't wait to see what it is all about... I personally think that it is a future DHARMA station by the same name, given the name The Temple because of the heiroglyphs on it. Ben mentions it when telling Alex and Rousseau and Karl to head there before Alex is captured by Keamy and killed. It is also mentioned at the end of season 3, when Ben tells the rest of the Others to go to the Temple (and it is on his map), to stay safe. I have a feeling that the next few episodes will explore the Temple a bit more, but in what time period, I don't know.



I want to know what was in the Temple, besides the smoke monster. I also would like to know more about what happened down there with the French crew... there is more to it because as of this point we have never seen Cerberus/Jacob take control of living people... so are the French people dead or alive? All I know, is this helps explain why Danielle is so nuts... killing her crew and then losing her child and then living alone on the Island for 16 years will make a person a little crazy.



I can't wait for more LOST!

Answer 3

Yeah, I believe what Kris G suggested. additionally, the smoke is meant to be some form of secure practices gadget for the island, so it ought to be that as time went on, she did no longer see it as a monster yet as a secure practices degree.

Answer 4

why is the smoke monster stuck in locke's body?

Answer 5

The smoke monster is technically the island. Because if that when it takes the people away it shows them things and pretty much starts controlling their minds. So what you should actually be asking is why would the island want Danielle dead so badly?Or is it Alex that they it wants dead so badly?