Sawyer was indeed reading A Wrinkle in Time.

I really like the idea of that string of numbers floating around in the world somehow manipulating probability so that multiple people converge and end up on that island.

Me too, Matt. I loved this episode in all its OMGWTFness. I, too, was way into the backstory, and loved that it was directly related to the island events. Hurley was having flashbacks for a very good reason.

Charley was a total ass in that last scene - asked Hurley what he was going to say previously, interrupted him to lay his own heroin secret on him (really aggressively, I thought) and then used that as emotional leverage to get information. Then, rejected the information out of hand. It bugged.

Bugged me too, Nora.

Locke's pretty interested in that baby, huh? Also pretty interested in what Claire remembers. He was ostensibly nice today, but hello: that cradle is TOTALLY OUT OF CLAIRE'S NIGHTMARE. Locke has an agenda, man.

I had a little disconnect for the first part of Hurley's backstory, because it was being played for humor, with the whimsical music and all (reminded me of a light X-Files episode). And this show is so rarely humorous.

Observation:

Walt can make things happen with his mind. His stepdad calls him the luckiest person he knows. He is Good Luck.

Hurley, on the other hand, seems to cause things he doesn't want to happen. He thinks he's cursed. He is Bad Luck.

Walt and Hurley are polar opposites.

Good Luck vs. Bad Luck.

Fat Man vs. Little Boy.

They will face off...TO THE PAIN!

What I noticed right away was 48 = original number of survivors (right?), 815 = flight #, and, of course, 42 = the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

This episode rocked. I have no doubt that at this point the writers are just throwing a bunch of tantalizing crap at us to see what they can forge into a storyline later, but man, I'm loving it!

Man, this show just keeps getting better and better. The last run of eps has been amazing.

In reference to numbers I believe the lady that Hurley went to see in Australia mentioned that her husband and Lenny heard the transmission 16 years ago.

Also, when Hurley tells Lenny in the psych ward that he used the numbers for the lotto Lenny says, "You opened the box!" Box = hatch?

I know I'm probably going to run around in circles over this, but is there any significance to the numbers, besides being on the hatch? The number 16 keeps getting mentioned, which is divisible by 4 & 8, but what about 15, 23 & 42?

Hurley man has the chops. I loved everything about this ep. except Charlie. This ep. deserves an award.

Yup, she said it was sixteen years.

The box factory thing - there was a ref in the Charlie backstory thing, but was there another mention earlier on? I think there was but I can't remember.

What I noticed right away was 48 = original number of survivors (right?), 815 = flight #, and, of course, 42 = the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

Damn! I was just coming in to post about 42 and it being the powerball multiplier.

there was a ref in the Charlie backstory thing, but was there another mention earlier on? I think there was but I can't remember.

Do you mean besides the fact that Locke worked at the box company Hurley owns?

Also, when Hurley tells Lenny in the psych ward that he used the numbers for the lotto Lenny says, "You opened the box!" Box = hatch?

I thought it was Pandora's Box.

The number 16 keeps getting mentioned, which is divisible by 4 & 8, but what about 15, 23 & 42?

Things keep happening "four years ago," which we were picking up on early in the season. They threw another one at us tonight: Sam died four years ago.

23 is a prime number and screws everything up.

there was a ref in the Charlie backstory thing, but was there another mention earlier on? I think there was but I can't remember.

Do you mean besides the fact that Locke worked at the box company Hurley owns?

Okay, this I missed. How do we know Locke worked there? And what about the explosion? Or is that how he was paralyzed?