What. The.
.
I have said that I hoped the ending would be different from the "spoilers" I unwittingly learned about, which said that the gang from 1977 would be sent back to 2007 and encounter themselves aged 30 years (the "small group" of Others in the Temple), because I wanted to be surprised. I would've enjoyed that ending a lot more than the real one, however.
The episode as a whole was very good, but after seeing 2 excellent endings on the last 2 season finales, this one was just a soul crushing letdown. Despite how awesome the first hour and 56 minutes of the episode was, I'll be left with a bad taste in my mouth for 8 months due to the Locke reveal, Jacob death, and the fact that nothing was shown after Juliet detonated the bomb (and how the
did it not detonate after falling hundreds of feet?). 3 horrible decisions. I went from thinking the show couldn't serve up a "miss", to losing almost all faith in regards to a satisfying conclusion to what was until that point the greatest television story ever told.
The good: I loved the Jacob flashbacks. Juliet dying was an expected (but the manner in which it happened was a surprise) but heart-wrenching occurrence. Beautiful work on the part of Josh Holloway and Elizabeth Mitchell. I probably would have cried, but I had friends over, heh. Phil's death was awesome, though I wanted Sawyer to kill him. Jacob seemingly bringing Locke back to life was a great moment. I enjoyed seeing Rose, Bernard, and Vincent, though how could a cabin 5 miles from the barracks not be found over the course of 3 years? I also liked the painting of the golden retriever in Jacob's cabin. I don't think it had any real significance, and may have been a subtle wink and nod to the theory that Vincent is Jacob, a theory which I propagated.
Like I said, great episode, but the ending was horrible. Maybe there will be a great payoff next season, but the ending was akin to a cannonball to the nutsack. I just hope they can redeem themselves. No matter how good everything has been, people's strongest impression will most often be based on how things end. And tonight, they did not end well.