Lost Recap: "Ab Aeterno"

What an absolutely phenomenal episode.  For a long, long time, The Constant has been my single favorite episode of Lost. After last night's Ab Aeterno however, it's a very close competition.  For years we have waited and wondered about the mysterious Richard Alpert.  The producers gave us everything about him in this episode.  There's so much to talk about from this episode so I'm sure I will leave a lot of stuff out.  Feel free to comment if I don't mention something you found interesting.

This episode was absolutely PACKED with answers.  We found out where Richard came from, how he became a prisoner on the Black Rock, what happened to the Black Rock crew, how the statue broke, and oh...we found out WHAT THE ISLAND IS.   We learned that island is basically a cork to hell/evil.  For the most part, the island keeps the world a good place because it keeps the evil trapped inside.

As I said in the opening, I have a ton of thoughts so I'm just going to narrow things down to a few of them.

1. Why couldn't Jacob bring back Richard's wife Isabella?  Just a few episodes prior, Dogen told Sayid that Jacob had brought his son back to life, but that he (Dogen) could never see him again.  Seems to me that either one or both are lying (or perhaps I heard Dogen incorrectly).
2. It's interesting to note the biblical passage that Richard is reading while in the prison.  It appears to be a section of Luke that tells the story of Jesus' temptation in the desert where Satan tempts him through three different trials.  Interestingly enough, this entire episode is about Richard's temptation of going over to the side of the Man in Black.  In the end, Hurley and Isabella convince Richard that he can't allow the Man in Black to leave, or they will all go to hell.
3. I still can't be sure who is good and who is bad.  The writing is so superb that I constantly vacillate between Jacob and MIB being the good guy. 
4. Hurley has to be the most awesome character on Lost.  In terms of morality, he seems to be the best example of a wholly "good" person.  I'm sure there will be many deaths as the finale approaches...Hurley better not be one of them.

Before I get conclude, I have to comment on the superb acting in this episode.  Nestor Carbonell was absolutely amazing.  I found his emotion incredibly believable and I felt truly sorry for him in many scenes.  The scene near the end of the episode (where Hurley delivered a message from Richard's deceased wife) was one of the most touching and emotional scenes from the entire series.  It definitely rivals the Ben/Ilana scene from a few weeks back.

I cannot wait for next week.  In my opinion, this was the best episode of season 6 by far.  Here's to hoping they get even better from here.