LOST: The good, the bad and Benjamin Linus

"Sometimes good command decisions get compromised by bad emotional responses."

Those were the words of one Benjamin Linus, moments before "moving the Island" in the Season 4 finale of "LOST." Through his three seasons on the show thus far, Ben Linus, a self-proclaimed "good guy," has said and done a lot of things - some good and some very, very bad - and has established himself as, arguably, the most fascinating character in the entire series.

As we did for Kate Austen, let's use Lostpedia to quickly characterize Ben Linus to give us a brief overview of who this mysterious man is.

Classifying Ben Linus:

Lostpedia characterized Ben in the following groups (among others):

• Jacob's Candidates
• The Others
• Leaders of the Others
• Dharma Initiative Staff
• Fathers
• Murderers
• Patients
• Multilingual characters
• Pianists
• Teachers
• Cancer survivors

Ben is truly a man of many talents, making him one of the most multi-faceted characters on the show, certainly. As much as you want to hate the guy, you can't help but be intrigued by him.

Moral ambiguity is defined as "lack of clarity in ethical decision-making. In other words, moral ambiguity is when you have an issue, situation, or question that has moral or ethical elements, but the morally correct action to take is unclear, either due to conflicting. principles, ethical systems, or situational perspectives."

Ben Linus is unquestionably one of the most morally ambiguous characters in the history of modern television. Throughout the remainder of this blog, we will dissect some of Ben's most pivotal scenes through Season 4 only and analyze how - and why - he so often let bad emotional responses compromise his good intentions, as well as a couple times when he did the right thing.

Ben Linus, the liar

"I lied." That's a line that escapes Ben's lips more often than not. In fact, in the Season 4 finale, when he tells Locke, "I wasn't being entirely truthful," Locke responds, "When are you being entirely truthful?" Ben is a notorious fibber, and it makes the Survivors and viewers alike detest the man. He clearly cannot be trusted.

Ben Linus, the bug-eyed bamboozler

"How many times do I have to tell you, John? I always have a plan." From our first encounter with Ben Linus, way back in Season 2 when he was known as "Henry Gale," he was acting in a way that he knew would allow him to manipulate others. The most frequent target of Ben's manipulation is, of course, John Locke. Ben constantly drives a wedge between Locke and his nemesis, Jack Shephard, causing Locke to question whether he is actually calling the shots on the Island. Locke often takes out his frustration by throwing dishes against the wall, much to the delight of an internally giddy Ben Linus. Possibly the most incredible thing about Ben's manipulation is that he can do it from positions of power, as well as less fortunate situations, like when he is being held prisoner or (quite often) getting his face pummeled by Jack.

Ben Linus, the man of his word

On the other hand, Ben has also been known to keep his word from time to time. He has notably kept his word to Michael, who he promised to let off the Island in Season 2; Jack and Juliet, who he promised to allow on the submarine in Season 3 (but not if Locke has anything to say about the matter); and Kate and Sayid, who he made a deal with at the end of Season 4.

Ben Linus, the murderer

Ben has got a startling amount of blood on his hands, whether directly or indirectly. Let's take a look at these scenarios individually:

• The Dharma Initiative: During his younger years, Ben assists Richard Alpert in what is commonly referred to as "The Purge." In one fell swoop, Ben personally kills his father, Uncle Rico Roger "Work Man" Linus, and Richard and the Primitive Others wipe out the rest of the Dharma Initiative. All of the bodies were tossed into a pit, where Ben would later attempt to murder John Locke.
• Anthony Cooper: As a way to manipulate Locke in Season 3, Ben arranges for John's scumbag father, Anthony Cooper, to be brought to the Island. He tells Locke, essentially, not to show his face among the Others again unless he makes a significant personal sacrifice. The irony of it all is that, although Locke hates his father, he cannot bring himself to do it. However, there is someone else on the Island who would be more than happy to relieve him of that burden; James "Sawyer" Ford realizes that Cooper is actually the Sawyer that he has been trying to track down his entire life. Sawyer kills Anthony Cooper for Locke, essentially making Ben responsible for the murder.
• Goodwin Stanhope: Ben has kind of a weird crush on Juliet before the Oceanic 815 crash. Juliet had been committing adultery (let's call it what it is, people) with a man named Goodwin, who was previously married to a woman who died giving birth on the Island. In order to get Juliet for himself, Ben sent Goodwin on what ended up being a suicide mission when he assigned the man to locate any Survivors from the tail section of the plane. Goodwin was killed by Ana Lucia, in self-defense, a matter of weeks later.
• Martin Keamy: Ben is directly responsible for the death of Martin Keamy, the head mercenary from the freighter. Ben kills Keamy in retaliation for something we'll discuss in a moment, during a scuffle at The Orchid station. Although Keamy is despicable and likely got what was coming to him - and it could be argued that Ben killed him out of self-defense - the big problem with this murder is that Keamy was wired to a heart monitor that held the lives of everyone on the freighter in the balance.
• The freighter: When Keamy died, it was only a matter of time before the bomb in the mechanical room of the freighter went off. Despite Michael's best efforts, the bomb explodes and presumably kills everybody that wasn't able to get off the ship in time. This includes Michael, as well as Jin, who appeared to be blown away as his screaming wife, Sun, was flown away from the boat. The most chilling part of all of this is the moment when Locke explains to Ben that he just killed everyone aboard the freighter and Ben coldly responds, "So?"
• Alexandra Rousseau: This is, arguably, the worst lie that Ben ever told. After abducting Danielle Rousseau's infant daughter years ago, Ben had basically raised Alex as his own daughter. She and the Others often refer to Ben as the girl's father, and he totally treats her like his own kid, whether for good or bad. But when Keamy and his team of soldiers march their way to Dharmaville to confront Ben with guns a-blazing, Ben is forced to make an emotional decision. When Keamy captures Alex and holds her at gunpoint, demanding that Ben turn himself in, Ben calls Keamy's bluff by saying that Alex is not his daughter - that she means nothing to him. Out of annoyance, undoubtedly, Keamy pulls the trigger and kills Alex. Ben is very much to blame for this, and he knows it, judging by the look of sheer terror on his face. It's definitely a heart-wrenching moment. It actually looks as though Ben felt bad about this one - and it's a moment that he won't soon forget, as we will see in future seasons.

Ben Linus, the man of a thousand threats

Ben has an odd rivalry with Charles Widmore that has not been fully explained through four seasons. During "The Shape of Things to Come," Ben visits Charles and promises to extract revenge for Alex's death by threatening to killing Widmore's daughter (and Desmond's girlfriend), Penelope. We'll learn more about this lovely predicament as the show progresses.

Ben Linus, the dictator

Ben's rule over the Others appears to have been a tyrannical one. We learn in Season 3 that Tom Friendly and many of the Others have grown tired of Ben's leadership style. Ben is oppressive to some, such as Alex's boyfriend, Karl, and creepy to others, like Juliet, who he once told, "You're mine." Oftentimes, it was Ben's way or the highway on the Island, and it didn't always work out they way he would have wanted.

Ben Linus, the torch passer

When it becomes clear to Ben that his mission is going to take him off-Island, he finally decides to pass the torch of leadership to John Locke. As Locke and Ben explore The Orchid, Ben is relatively patient with Locke and explains many of the answers to Locke's never-ending questions. Before descending down to the donkey wheel, he tells Locke where to find the Others - his new people - who are "ready, willing and able to share what they know." He also says, humbly, "Goodbye, John. I'm sorry I made your life so miserable." Though his methods along the way were highly suspect, Ben Linus ultimately set John Locke up for success in his new role.

Ben Linus, the mover of the Island

In what may have been Ben's most heroic moment thus far, he successfully moved the Island, with tears in his eyes, at the end of Season 4. While his motive may have been somewhat selfish (to improve his standing before "Jacob" and stay one step ahead of Charles Widmore), moving the Island likely saved the lives of everyone who stayed on the Island. If the Island had stayed where it was, Widmore would have known exactly where to go and he would have wiped everyone out, reclaiming the land as his own. But Ben's turning of the wheel prevented that impending catastrophe for the time being, despite presumably causing a typhoon of new and unknown challenges for the future (and... the past...) of the Island, its inhabitants and the Survivors of Oceanic 815.

Ben Linus, the man of many words

Ben has the best quotes. His dark sense of humor is inappropriate, incredible and perfectly timed. Michael Emerson is a master in this role. While I could write an entire blog of Ben's best lines from Season 4, I'll leave you with just one, proving to the world that Ben Linus is the father all men should aspire to be:

Benjamin Linus. What a guy.

Until next time,

Namaste... and good luck.