Yeah, it does play out like the writer wasn't exactly sure what he was doing. Which is sort of how I've felt about a lot of this season--not so much thematically, but in the way they've failed to integrate the season arc organically into the less arc-y episodes. I feel like they'v been leaving a lot for us to fill in, of late, and it's crossing the line from "fanfic sandbox" to "lazy writing."