Ep 6. 316

Oceanic Flight 316 takes off from Ajira Airways with 'The Oceanic Six' and a few other survivors on board. Jack, Kate, Hurley and Sayid are among the characters that board Flight 316, which was proposed by Benjamin Linus as a means of returning to the island.

As the plane flies over the Pacific Ocean, turbulence hits and panic ensues among the passengers. One of the pilots, Frank Lapidus, manages to level the plane out but it becomes clear that they are flying off course. The passengers begin to suspect that the plane is not heading to Guam as promised but is instead headed back to the island.

The episode is split between two timelines, beginning with the main characters after their departure from Los Angeles and then flashing back to the time after the island had been moved in the previous season.

In the present day, the characters on Flight 316 begin to experience strange occurrences including a sudden flash of bright light. Upon landing, they realize that they have indeed returned to the island, but back in time. The island is now occupied by the DHARMA Initiative, a scientific research project started in the late 1970s. Jack, Kate, and Hurley struggle to understand what has happened, while Sayid, who is believed to be a hostile, is interrogated by DHARMA.

In the flashbacks, it is revealed that Benjamin Linus had been working with Charles Widmore to return to the island. This segment sheds some light on a key question asked throughout the series: why did the Oceanic Six have to lie about their experiences on the island?

As usual, Lost uses these different timelines to explore the philosophical underpinnings of the show and to ruminate on concepts like free will, fate, redemption, and love.

The episode represents a major turning point for the series as it signals a shift in the characters' relationships with the island. They are no longer the passengers of Flight 815, but now natives of this strange place that seems to have a life and personality of its own.

It's a compelling episode that offers some much-needed context for the events that follow in the coming seasons. As one character remarks at the end of the episode, "We've been waiting for these people to come back to us for a long time." Indeed, the stage is set for what promises to be a groundbreaking season full of twists, turns and unexpected surprises.