Following the final scene of the previous episode, "Whatever
Happened, Happened", Ben Linus (Michael Emerson) wakes up after being
knocked unconscious by Sun-Hwa Kwon (Yunjin Kim) in the episode
"Namaste". He is greeted by John Locke (Terry O'Quinn), whom Ben
previously murdered prior to their arrival on the smaller island adjacent
to the main island on Ajira Flight 316. Ben tells Locke that he has broken
"the rules" by returning to the island, after he left it in the
episode "There's No Place Like Home" and that he must be judged
by the smoke monster. Locke agrees to accompany him to the main island.
Before leaving, Ben retrieves a picture of his adopted daughter Alex
(Tania Raymonde) from his old office at the Dharma Initiative Hydra
Station. Ben also tricks one of the other survivors from Flight 316,
Caesar (Said Taghmaoui), and steals his shotgun. When Ben and Locke try to
leave the smaller island on a canoe, they are halted by Caesar, whom Ben
suddenly shoots in the chest.
Upon arriving on the main island, Ben and Locke travel to the Dharma
Initiative's barracks, where they find Sun and Flight 316 pilot Frank
Lapidus (Jeff Fahey). Sun shows him the photograph of Jack Shephard
(Matthew Fox), Kate Austen (Evangeline Lilly) and Hugo "Hurley"
Reyes (Jorge Garcia), who have traveled back in time to 1977 and joined
the Dharma Initiative. Sun also tells Ben that Christian Shephard (John
Terry) instructed her to wait for Locke because together they will be able
rescue the others from the past. Frank decides to return to the smaller
island, where he is taken hostage by Ilana (Zuleikha Robinson) and the
other 316 survivors. Meanwhile, Ben, Locke and Sun travel to a temple
belonging to the island's native population, called the Others. Inside the
temple, Ben is separated from Locke and confronted by the smoke monster,
which replays several of Ben's memories of Alex. The smoke dissipates and
Alex appears to Ben, telling him to follow Locke's lead without question;
Ben agrees and his life is spared.
In flashbacks, Ben's relationship with Alex is shown. First, in 1988,
he kidnaps Alex as a baby from her mother Danielle Rousseau (Melissa
Farman), whose life he spares. He returns to the Others' camp with the
baby, which disappoints their leader Charles Widmore (Alan Dale), who
wanted Ben to kill both mother and daughter. Sometime later, Charles is
banished from the island. Before he leaves the island by submarine,
Charles tells Ben that Ben will ultimately be banished as well because he
was unable to sacrifice Alex's life. Following Alex's death and his
leaving the island, Ben confronts Penny Widmore (Sonya Walger), Charles's
daughter, and shoots Desmond Hume, her husband. Ben is about to shoot
Penny, when he is disracted by her son Charlie, allowing Desmond to get
the jump on Ben and severely beat him.
"Dead
is Dead" is the twelfth television episode of the fifth season of
ABC's Lost. The ninety-fifth episode of the show overall, "Dead is
Dead" will air on April 8, 2009 on ABC in the United States and on
April 12, 2009 on Sky1 in the United Kingdom. The episode was written by
Brian K. Vaughan & Elizabeth Sarnoff and directed by Stephen Williams.