Huh? We ***think ***that Ethan is one of “the others”, but that’s not a certainty. And we don’t know how many of the others there are. And Danielle didn’t say they were dead-- she said her shipmates were all dead. Can you elaborate more on what your thinking?
Something else I noticed that hasn’t been mentioned here:
The lamp in the psychic’s house was the same lamp lighting Locke’s table in Claire’s dream. Maybe the table was the same too, but I didn’t notice that.
“Ethan” (or maybe “Alex”) could be who she was afraid of. Remember she had no fear and scoffed at the notion of a monster. Yet she very clearly feared someone, and detailed the problems with her crew after being on the island.
As mentioned in the other thread, I think being on the island (especially certain more “powerful” areas like the whispers zone) is pretty bad for your mental health. Unless the Island is somehow crawling with people (a third lost party on the Island?), someone is composing the opposing force on the island. What exactly happened to her party, and if all of them were really “dead” seems to be key to who this opposing force is. The Island may have changed who they are, they look the same on the outside but are much different on the inside (hence the Robert vs. Danielle episode).
My conclusion is that her son certainly plays a roll in that, whatever he is calling himself. Bigger is the role the Island itself plays in bringing people there and concealing them from the world. Given what it did to Locke, the Island itself certainly isn’t playing a passive role (just ask the pilot 
).
I noticed it. And the desk was the same, too. We were supposed to link Locke to the psychic in that sequence.
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John Mace- Excellent observation. We should buy you a six pack!
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Trunk and Rich Mann- I disagree that there isn’t room to speculate about things like that. First, red herrings are everywhere in entertainment like this. Second, and more importantly, the writer used Claire and Charlie to reveal that the psychic was legit. The same two characters that were contrasting with the logic of Kate and Jack earlier in the show. Perhaps the writers intentionally used Claire/Charlie to conclude it for a reason. I think they are right, but I don’t think it is beyond reason to doubt them. She’s emotional and naive and he’s a heroin addict. Their credibility could easily be attacked.
Now, after re-watching the episode, I have some new random thoughts:
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Has anyone thought of the possibility that Ethan was NOT the name missing from the manifest? Probably was, but Hurley never said so directly. It was only implied by the quick cut to Ethan with Claire and Charlie.
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I don’t think Ethan was raised on the island. Though odd, he has had moments of humor. “I can see how you’d confuse us.” He seems like a normal creepy person. That is why I wonder if he is the infiltrator. It seems more like he is possessed than a zombie.
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I still think the use of the manifest was odd. How have they crossed off all the names of the dead, when a section of the plane is missing (like the one with Rose’s husband). Are they simply counting them as dead if they aren’t with the 47 here? And if someone responsible used the manifest to mark off the names of those brunt in the fuselage, how did Sawyer get it?
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Any significance to the fact that psychic called Claire by her last name? Did he get it when she made her first appointment or did he do some investigating on her (whether it was a con or he was truly concerned).
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The “Rape Caves”! Nice! Finally something funny out of Shannon. Other than hottiness, she has been worthless in the show. Boone too. They are easily the two most expendable members of the cast.
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Anyone notice that Locke was using a child’s show to spread the sand on the boar’s hide? Kinda morbid.
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Hurley had a funny line I didn’t hear the first time. “I know I’ve already talked to you, but I just wanted to get away from him for a second.” Funny.
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Who played the potential adoptive mother? She looked familiar, but IMDB didn’t list her in the guest credits.
(Post #135, this thread)
I was thinking maybe Hurley was covering for the fact that He’s not on the manifest.
Oh, yeah. That’s right. You DID lose me with the shapeshifter thing though… 
But to further support the Hurley was not on the manifest, how the heck do we know Hugo Reyes didn’t die on the plane and Hurley simply adopted that name?
The best way to do make sure the investigation doesn’t uncover you is to perform the investigation yourself (NO WAY OUT!)
I felt the same way. This episode had some really nice moments (like the aforementioned Hurley-Sawyer exchange) but it really had zero in the way of plot or character development until the last few minutes. I felt that all of the richness and complexity of episodes like “Tablua Rasa” and “Walkabout” were missing.
NEXT week’s episode, however, looks like it could be fun. We’re back to struggle and conflict, both internal and external. Sawyer smiling while holding the razor blade doesn’t bode well for the incapacitated Sayid. I mentioned in an earlier thread I had fears they were going to turn Sawyer into a misunderstood nice guy. He and Sayid both give the show teeth, and any good drama needs some animosity. The whole story of Ethan should be very revealing about the nature of the island.
But this week… Claire’s story seemed a little by the numbers and unoriginal, almost like filler. Of course that may be because the rest of the show has set a pretty high standard. Anyway, still love the show, even if it did stumble this week IMHO.
EZ
Hmm. I keep identifying my favorite episode as Tabula Rasa. My favorite was actually Walkabout.
I kept associating the phrase Tabula Rasa with Locke, but that was Kate’s episode.
Whoa, wait a minute, when was this revealed? I must have missed it. I’ve been marking him down on the other team’s roster ever since he failed to check out Kate in the jungle when she was testing him to see if he was checking her out. She knows it too.
rainy
In last night’s episode, in the scene where he went to give Claire the sedatives, he explained that his old girlfriend told him that he talks in his sleep.
Four pages already. Can you tell people like this show?
Apropos of nothing, if you change the N to a P, you can make the actor’s last name, Mapother.
Claire was telling Jack about her nightmare and Jack said “My ex-girlfriend used to tell me I talked in my sleep.”
Looks like Jack plays for Team Hetero.
Not that I think Jack is gay, but I have seen gay men refer to their sig/oth as “girlfriend.”
He did kind of play the pronoun game. He didn’t say “she” did he?
He did actually.
Directly after that Claire asks him “What’d you say?”
“Something she didn’t like.”
My favorite episode? Whichever is the last one I’ve seen. 
I think it keeps getting better every week, and the last two episodes were a quantum leap above the previous ones as we are finally finding out what the island is all about.
[QUOTE=watsonwil* I still think the use of the manifest was odd. How have they crossed off all the names of the dead, when a section of the plane is missing (like the one with Rose’s husband). Are they simply counting them as dead if they aren’t with the 47 here? And if someone responsible used the manifest to mark off the names of those brunt in the fuselage, how did Sawyer get it? [/QUOTE]
The manifest would be sorted by seat number. Assuming everybody was in their assigned seat, this is actually what the seat manifest is for–making identification of bodies easier…
Ethan, like Charlie, may have strapped himself into the wrong seat. Or, my current weird theory, is that he stowed away on board the plane… in the coffin…
Yeah, I was stretching it a bit to try to cover myself - I knew people were going to come up with reasons why he couldn’t be Alex.
Exactly! And Hurley seems so nice, jovial, and innocuous, he HAS to be hiding something evil!
That he’s GOD! (My WAG!)