After a few weeks of hiatus Lost returns with a bang with episode 9, entitled "The Shape of Things to Come", a Ben-centric episode.

This was another example of an episode with a hell of a lot going on. Lots of information was thrown at the viewer but in that brilliant Lost way that doesn't make us, well, lost. We found out more about the smoke monster, how Sayid came to work for Ben, what Ben has been up to since the Oceanic Six got off the Island, that something bad has happened on the freighter evidenced by the doctor being found washed up and dead on the beach, and that Ben has some sort of past with Mr. Widmore.

What I Liked

First of all I loved the fact that we have gotten another Ben-centric episode, this time showing us a flashforward as opposed to a flashback. It was back in the first third of season three that we found out about Ben's past and how he came to be on the Island and now we get the polar opposite of that by finding out what he's been up to since the Oceanic 6 got off. The layers of mystery just keep on building up, answering some questions but raising even more.

I like the fact that the people on the island are starting to talk to each other openly about stuff, asking and answering questions that we, the viewers, have had on our minds for a very long time.

I also loved how it connected up how Sayid came to work for Ben, something I couldn't before see them doing in any sort of satisfying way. When we found out in Sayid's flashforwards episode that he was working for him I couldn't see how it was possible to link it. But by using the Nadia storyline, which I know all fans were wondering about, they have provided a great linking of how certain events came to be.