Siberia Gets Good!

This week's episode of Siberia "She Said It" was the game-changing event of the season.  There was  action, misdirection and mysteries at every turn and now we aren't so much in the throws of a reality competition but an action sci-fi flick that I have been dying to dig into.  While I normally like to follow each character throughout the episode, this week so many storylines crossed that I will be going mainly by order of events, followed by some new theories.  I will also be updating my main theories page so make sure to check back for that at Siberia: Theories Blown Open! later in the week.  For now let's take a look at this week's Siberia!

• The episode began with the cast in the aftermath of discovering Carolina, who up until now they believed was a contestant amongst them, is an actress planted by the producers.  While the entire group was filled with emotions of anger and shock, Johnny was the most effected as he was closest to Carolina and trusted her.  Although she admitted to burning down the shed and framing Johnny, she denied having any involvement with the event in the woods where she was wounded (Siberia Gets a Little Stranger).  She claimed that due to the event, along with her wounds, she is no longer interested in continuing the game or her role in it.  We even saw her speaking to a cameraman about wanting to view the footage from the camera that was following them in an attempt to understand what happened.  Unfortunately, he replied that the camera had been lost along with the footage it contained.  I believe her.  The producers couldn't have executed the light show, or wiped Johnny's memory of the event.  She seemed genuinely concerned both in front of the group and away, implying she wasn't a part of some plot.
• Thankfully, we next saw Sabina, retrieving the camera from the woods and toting it to her hidden cave.  Along with the stolen film, we discovered that Sabina had been stocking up the alcove with food, water, a flashlight and other supplies as well as the bullets (discussed in Siberia: Theories Blown Open!).  My thoughts are that she wants to review the footage in order to see what they are dealing with in the woods around them and to further her ulterior motives.  I believe she will find that it was not Johnny who attacked Carolina, but the mysterious people we have seen small hints of in previous episodes.  If the beast had attacked them, I don't think they would've survived, instead I think Johnny was able to fight off their attempted abduction which explains his tattered hands.  Below in the theories portion of this post, I will go more into who I think they are and what they are doing in Siberia. 
• Annie awoke to find Natalie missing with no one around the camp having any knowledge of her whereabouts.  When she went to retrieve her journal Annie located  a farewell message from Natalie claiming that she missed her ex-boyfriend too much and had decided to leave the camp.  I don't believe this at all.  It seemed like Natalie and her ex's relationship was bad, possibly abusive, and she seemed more determined to stay after her relationship with Annie developed.  I think this may be a Lost-like situation where Natalie was kidnapped by the locals.
• Sam took notice that Miljan has been sitting around a lot the last few days and not helping with the camp duties, which happens to coincide with his discovery of the hidden journal.  While I don't believe Miljan is able to read the inscriptions, we have seen that it includes pictures such as the mysterious compass symbol (see Siberia: Theories Blown Open!).  Miljan also seems more interested in studying his environment, possibly due to picture references in the book.  We saw him back with Ogdy, the carved totem pole, where he quickly diverted Irene away from it and lead her in another direction.  He also snuck up on Sabina while bathing to take a closer look at her necklace, although she quickly detained him, and made it clear that if he ever touches her belongings again she'll kill him, it makes me think that because Miljan pursued it, her locket has a connection to the area and the strange events we have witnessed.  While I'm not sure whether or not the journal lead Miljan to further investigate these things, he is definitely more inquisitive now that it's in his possession.  I had mentioned in a previous post that Miljan seemed "off", not just because of his sense of humor, but because he appears to have a darker side to him.  Later in this episode we saw him carving the mysterious symbol in his arm with a rusty nail, claiming he wants to remember this day, so I can say with some assurance now that there is something not quite right with Miljan.
• On a lighter note, Sam took on the father-figure role and brought Daniel along to fish.  While he teased Daniel about gifting a rock to Irene, it is clear he is looking out for him and cares about his well-being.  Carolina stopped by and though Sam was still angry with her and advised Daniel to not even look at her, Daniel proves he is his own man and ventured over to talk with her.  Unlike the other contestants Daniel wasn't upset with Carolina, he sees her as playing a role amidst a game.
• Irene had the most action-packed storyline this episode, as promised by the previews, however her day began as a simple hunting trip with her bow and arrow.  While alone in the woods, she heard the eerie sound of children laughing, though at first she though it was her imagination she heard it again, but from a different direction.  After running into Miljan studying Ogdy, he redirected her to another area of the woods where he claimed he saw a number of deer earlier.  Once spotted, she aimed and hit the deer head on, but upon closer observation she realized it was a well-done decoy.  Confused, she looked around the area when suddenly a large trap fell from above.  The trap looked human made, with sharpened spikes.  My guess is that the trap, as well as the deer head, was made by the local settlers in an attempt to catch the beast.  The lingering question in my mind is whether or not Miljan knew about the contraption from his journal and lured her there.  He ran for help and soon the bulk of the contestants came to her rescue as they cut of her circulation to keep her from bleeding out, removed the large spike stuck in her leg and carried her back to camp.  While they debated as to what to do with her, since she obviously needed medical attention, Irene stayed strong and firm that she did not want to leave.  
• We saw Esther trying to use her feminine wiles on Johnny after the harsh realization that everything Carolina said was a lie, including her name which she has now revealed is Joyce.  While they flirted a little, when news of Irene's accident came Esther told Johnny that it might not be such a bad thing, as there would be one less contestant.  This threw up a red flag with Johnny because he had concerns that she could be really hurt, and that wasn't good regardless of the game.  Esther continued to show a different side, while comforting Irene in the cabin she seemed impressed and moved by her resilience and strength.  She came out to the others and claimed she would sacrifice herself and go to the helicopter pad for help.  This was a surprise to everyone and they all were wondering why she was being so nice and out of character.  Not long after, Esther returned with the good news that the show would get Irene help and she didn't have to forfeit, all they needed to do was get Irene to the helicopter landing area where she would be transported to the hospital.  While Johnny, Sam, Carolina and Daniel helped carry Irene over the forfeit line and towards help, Irene remembered she had left her rock, a precious gift from Daniel, and Esther conveniently offered to retrieve it.    
• Meanwhile Sabina was wandering the woods when a young girl appeared in front of her, distracted she turned away and when she looked back the girl of 7 or 8 was gone.  I couldn't help but immediately notice the child resemblance to Natalie, who had also gone missing earlier that day.  When Sabina caught Miljan studying her necklace, we saw a clip where she revealed that it held a special place in her heart, inside the locket was a picture of a young boy, likely her son.  She had also heard the child's laughter in the woods before and while searching for the actual child she had seen, she came across a locket, identical to hers in the foliage of the forest.  Upon opening it, it revealed the same picture of the young boy and it was attached to a skeleton.  Where did this duplicate necklace come from?  I'm thinking time travel, it's the only way to explain how the same locket can be in two places at the same time, but we'll just have to wait to find out.  It also goes along with my theories on wormholes as they are believed to transverse space and time, but I will go into that further on my theories post.  Lastly, Sabina heard the discharge of a weapon from afar, which raises more questions than answers as none of the other cast members were shown hearing the shots as well.  
• Upon arriving to the landing pad they immediately saw there was no helicopter waiting.  Johnny quickly came to the realization that Esther had tricked them, she had lied about sacrificing herself and getting help while also cleverly never crossing the forfeit line with the others.  Although they attempted to push the red button for help themselves, they found it too was nothing more than a prop.  Angry and concerned about Irene they questioned the cameraman intensely, wondering why no one was coming to their aid.  Johnny and Sam both attacked the men demanding answers but apparently they had none.  Carolina/Joyce asked about receiving their daily supplies but found out there was no shipment that day and their radios were unable to get any signal.  Confused and desperate they followed Carolina to what she called "base camp", a production site she was aware of, to seek help while Sam stayed with Irene awaiting any kind of aid or transportation.  When they crossed the hilltop they discovered it was empty and ravished, with only remnants of the crew that was once there.  Although it is unclear if they fled or were attacked, it did seem as if the site was ravished and I didn't notice any bodies left behind.  
• I want to finish out with Neeko, although he didn't have a prominent storyline in this episode, he is still a major character and has the muscles to help out, the leadership skills and a level head that they desperately need.  In this episode we saw him really being a team player, helping where he could and providing positive feedback to help keep everyone's spirits up.  He even reached out to Johnny in a manly way by asking about how his finger was doing and wishing him his best.  We also saw him joking around with Sam and Daniel about who caught more fish and thanking them for their part in the group's survival.  In addition, he played the compassionate role as he comforted Annie when she was overwhelmed with Natalie's disappearance and Irene's injury claiming she hates it there and she hates this game.  He also showed disapproval and disgust when he learned what Esther did, and while she claimed he should be thanking her, he was far from happy regarding her actions.  And of course, he was the team leader he needed to be when faced with what to do with Irene, hearing everyone's thoughts and trying to come up with a tangible plan of dealing with the situation.  Go Neeko!

This week's Siberia gave us more drama, betrayal and unexplained events than ever before.  While we have a few more clues as to what is really going on, we also are left with a lot more questions.  I will go into a few of those questions below as well as my theories on the events, but I will also be updating my Siberia: Theories Blown Open! post with these questions where I go more in depth about the original event in 1908 that this show is centered on and the real scientific findings as well as the mysteries happening in the show to date.

Some New Theories:

1. The Beast

• While I can't yet speak to what it is or where it came from (see Siberia: Theories Blown Open!), I feel confident about its roll in:
• Killing Tommy
• Mutilating & Removing the tiger
• Taking Johnny's deer
• I'm still holding on that it is not from this world.  Due to the cave drawing I still think it emerged through a wormhole.  As well as the fact that nature doesn't really do it for me when it comes to the lights in the sky. 
• There is a possibility that it's natural, however it's not my top choice because:
• It was there a long time ago & appeared to be advanced
• It's obviously a formidable opponent for humans
• It seems somewhat intelligent as leaving the mutilated tiger right at their door stoop seemed to be a warning which was then also tidily cleaned up.

2. The Locals

• I have a strong belief there is some kind of ancestor/relative angle.
• They could possibly be the original settlers and the event somehow mutated them.
• This would account for the mutated frog.
• I believe they are guarding the beast and while at first I thought the "Valleymen" of real local lore referred to the beast, I now think they are speaking of the humans.
• I believe that it was them who left the spear as Da LadyBug Man pointed out to me, the spears in the cave drawing match the spear used as a warning to the contestants.
• However, if they want them to get out, then why lead Miljan to the journal?  It seems to me the contestants have been brought there to recreate the 1908 event to possibly right some justice, or discover what happened to the original settlers.
• But what I'm liking the best is that the original 1908 event transported them forward in time, explaining how they are there now.  They are the original settlers and after the second event in the episode "Fire in the Sky" the current contestants were also transported into the same time period as the original settlers.  Maybe even a parallel universe where they are now all trapped.  

3. The Contestants

• I don't think they are there by accident.  Whether it is all of them or just a few, they have some connection to Siberia.  I will go more into detail about this on my original theories blog Siberia: Theories Blown Open.  I believe it could be a House on Haunted Hill-type situation where they have been brought there.
• We can connect Sam's lineage back to Russia because we know that his grandmother is Russian.
• I believe Sabina is there for a reason as I go over in my original theories post, she is an Israeli solider which links her heritage to Siberia as well.  She was also aware of the terrain when they first arrived before having time to study it, she showed off this knowledge once again by being able to find the gun before the others and locate the cave to stash her gear.  The necklace also seems like an eerie connection to the land whether it is time travel, or someone else, possibly the boy or the child's father, had a matching one that proves their presence in the woods. But the fact that it was connected to a skeleton, suggests the body is Sabina's and they have been transported through time.
• I can't get over the coincidence that Sam's bracelet is engraved with the name Anne and we have a character named Annie, this could be a family name which would also tie her back to Siberia.
• Miljan gets "guided" and finds the food shed, totem pole and journal.  I think the totem pole is of more importance than his companion and old friend and we see him studying it while trying to hide it in this episode.  The journal seems to be leading him to Sabina's locket and the other odd findings in the woods.  Whether they have all been there before and this is some type of reincarnation of his ancestors are guiding him it definitely appears as though he too has a connection to the area. 

4. There are also some new questions we have to address:

• What happened to the producers?
• Since their were no bodies, I'm going with either the people in the woods abducted them or they fled when attacked by the beast or the locals.
• Another idea, is that the event that corresponds to the light in the sky has transported them into the future.  Therefore, the producers are long gone as all the contestants mysteriously disappeared just like the settlers in 1908 and are forward in the time line.
• Who are the children in the woods?
• We have seen adults in the woods, so the locals can't only consist of children but I believe they are part of that group.
• While I couldn't help but notice the child's resemblance to Natalie, I remembered something I had brought up in the first episode: that we never actually saw Berglind and Harpeet leave (see: Siberia Finds a Common Bond) The child actually resembled Berglind as well.
• What happened to Natalie?
• By no means do I think she just got up and left in the middle of the night.  Her resemblance to the child makes me think that the locals abducted her but I'm not sure how to explain them transforming her into a child.
• What's with Sabina's necklace?
• I question why Miljan sought it out and that makes me think he saw a drawing of it in his journal which connects it to the original settlers.  Possibly they hallucinated it in one of their prophetic mushroom trips but I think it is even more likely that time-travel or a past life kind of situation is what's going on.  They didn't have color photos in 1908 so it couldn't be that an original settler had one, but possibly they are reliving an event that has already happened.  This could have something to do with the lights in the sky, possibly resetting time until the correct order of events plays out.  Similar to Battlestar Galactica where Starbuck returns to earth to find her necklace and burnt body.  Could Sabina have died in the normal timeline and they have somehow been transported to the future where she finds her own corpse? That's seeming more and more likely!
• What made the trap and did Miljan know about it?
• It seems pretty clear to me that the trap was made by the locals in attempt to catch the beast.  I'm torn on whether or not Miljan knew about it, because I don't think he would intentionally harm Irene.  It is more plausible that he simply wanted to divert attraction from Ogdy and pointed her at the first deer he saw.
•  Who fired the gunshots?
• This one's a puzzler.  There is only one gun that we know of and it's located in Sabina's cave.  Since all of the other contestants were otherwise occupied and we saw no sign of anyone else hearing them, I'm leaning towards the idea that the girl, the locket and the shots were for Sabina possibly leading her to her destiny as we have seen Miljan guided as well.

Thanks for reading and I would love to hear your thoughts as well!  I will respond to all comments, just give me a little time, and would love to theorize, debate and bounce ideas of each other.  Andrew Koerner does a good recap as well, you can find it here.  Like I mentioned before I will be updating my theories page next, where I will go into more detail and connect more clues we have been given in the past.  I also will be uploading a poll where you can vote on what you think is really going on so check back in the next few days for those.  Lastly, I would like to apologize as I am quite sick at the moment thus it took me a little longer to put this together especially to my standards.  Tune into Siberia Mondays on NBC and check back here as there is much more to come!