LOST: Because You Left [Analysis]

Faraday

Um, yeah.  This guy just became a whole lot more important, I think.  Not only is he somehow present during the discovery of the "frozen donkey wheel," looking the same as he does "now" (which means island time...) but he's definitely hiding something from Charlotte, and the rest of the gang.

His mother?  Ah, I have my theory on that, but that'll have to wait for the next episode's posts...  Yeah, you know where I'm going with this.

Desmond

He's special, is he?  The rules don't apply to him.  The same rules that Chang/Candle spoke of beneath the Orchid?  The same rules that Mrs. Hawking (cough) spoke of back when?  Yeah.  Those.

I'm guessing at some point we will learn why.  I hope, anyway.

The Island

Fact: The donkey wheel was there before DHARMA.  OK, where did it come from?  Discuss!

So the island isn't so much moving in space, although we kind of assume it is, since it vanished completely and all, but more importantly, through time.  Or is it stuck someplace and the people are moving through time? Argh, who knows.  Wait, somebody does...

Richard Alpert and Locke

Alright, so Locke is (and the losties are) moving through time.  From his encounter with Ethan, its clear that the Others are not...  they're not even aware anything different is going on, it seems.  Except for one.  Richard Alpert.

Is he somehow "special" like Desmond, that time doesn't affect him? Hence his eternally youthful appearance?

And what of the compass?  Was it part of the items that Alpert showed John as a boy, in the test that he failed? Refresh my memory!  I'm thinking it was.  But then again, so was the knife....

Theory:  The "Others" on the island, up at the temple, are also moving through time.  They are up there to prevent themselves from meeting the "other others" (are you totally messed up yet) so that they don't end up in a back-to-the-futurish meeting-your-past-self moment.  Or something.  Juliet's presence with the losties made me think of this one.  If they happen to jump to a point inbetween the crash and when Juliet joined up... wouldn't there obviously be a "past" Juliet still on the island, with the Others?  Similarly the entire past group of Others would still be there living happily in the barracks?  Along with a past Ben?  Hmmmmm....

Charlotte

Still not sure where this is going.  Recall that she seems familiar with the island.  There's more to this still.

Chang/Candle

Not so much him, but for one other little fact.  A crying baby.  Was this Changlet born on the island? And if so, who is it?

Sun and Widmore

Too short of a scene to really get anything from it.  Except that Sun is a right bitch now, isn't she?

Agostini and Norton

Where have I heard these names before? Argh. Devil's in the details.

...

The rest I think you can figure out on your own, mostly story mechanics really.  The "skipping record" bit was a nice touch, but a little forced.