Previously...on LOST!

[OumaFan]

I have obviously tons of questions but one little (or maybe not little) thing that has bothered me for a long time is why Richard Alpert, who's immortal (?), maybe even a crew member of the Black Rock (?) and who seems so important is always seemingly the second in command, why he is always just an advisor to a leader, whether it be Whidmore (who may be a descendant of the original others) or even a guy that wasn't an original other or a descendant in Ben.

Now at times he almost seems like the real leader just acting like he's second in command (when he says he doesn't answer to Ellie or Whidmore when he takes Ben to be cured) but still that doesn't really answer the question of why he's not the leader overall.

And I will not be happy with "that's the way the Island wants it" as an answer. Its probably the answer.

Anyway I'm saving the two part final for tonight. Sucks that Daniel died, oh well. Richard saw "all of the 1977 Losties die?"

Edit-now that I think about it I guess he was the leader in 1954 when Locke came to the camp.