Hulk's DVD Review Special: Looking Back On Lost

[Kermit The Hulk]

DVD Review Special: Looking Back On Lost.



Ah, Lost. Never before has one show given me so much enjoyment and so much misery in just 5 years. Ever since Oceanic 815 crashed on that damn Island, I’ve been enthralled with the castaways struggles against the polar bears, the smoke monster, the Others, Charles Widmore’s freighter, time-travel, and fans demanding to know what the fuck is going on. Well, there struggles are soon to be no more as Lost’s final season is set to premiere in February. Now, with two months to go before Lost rides into the sunset. I decided to look back at the first 5 seasons with a huge DVD review I’ll be calling Looking Back On Lost. So huge in fact that I’m going to give it it’s own thread! I’ll be reviewing the Season 1 DVD that I own and the other seasons from Netflix, so this will basically go on disc by disc basis. And, it won’t be one right after the other. I’m gonna take it a few days at a time, especially with Seasons 2-5 (remember, Netflix; though I am asking for these DVDs for Christmas, so if I get one or more of them, it probably won’t be so long in between reviews).

We start with Disc 1 of Season 1. Now, for those who haven’t seen the show and reading this for some reason or have seen the show but missed an episode or two, I will hide some spoilers. Not all of them, I won’t get too spoiler-happy, but if it’s pertinent to the story, then I’ll have to let loose. Also, here’s a list of the characters and the actors who play so that things won’t get too confusing:

Main characters:
Season 1:
Dr. Jack Shephard—Matthew Fox
Kate Austen—Evangeline Lilly
Charlie Pace—Dominic Monagham
James “Sawyer” Ford—Josh Holloway
John Locke—Terry O’Quinn
Hugo “Hurley” Reyes—Jorge Garcia
Sayid Jarrah—Naveen Andrews
Claire Littleton—Emilie De Ravin
Michael Dawson—Harold Perrineau
Walt Lloyd—Malcolm David Kelley
Jin-Soo Kwan—Daniel Dae Kim
Sun-Hwa Kwan—Yunjin Kim
Shannon Rutherford—Maggie Grace
Boone Carlyle—Ian Somerhalder

Supporting characters:
Rose Henderson—L. Scott Caldwell (recurring, starting with “Pilot”)
Edward Mars—Fredric Lane (recurring, starting with “Pilot”)
Dr. Christian Shephard—John Terry (recurring, starting with “White Rabbit”)
Danielle Rousseau—Mira Furlan (recurring, starting with “Solitary”)
Nadia—Andrea Gabriel (recurring, starting with “Solitary”)
Ethan Rom—William Mapother (recurring, starting with “Solitary”)
Carmen Reyes—Lillian Hurst (recurring, starting with “Numbers”)
Anthony Cooper—Kevin Tighe (recurring, starting with “Deus Ex Machina”)
Sarah Shephard—Julie Bowen (recurring, starting with “Do No Harm”)
Diane Janssen—Beth Broderick (recurring, starting with “Born To Run”)
Mr. Friendly—M.C. Gainey (recurring, starting with “Exodus”)
The pilot—Greg Grunberg (“Pilot”)
Ray Mullen—Nick Tate (“Tabula Rasa”)
Randy Nations—Billy Ray Gallion (“Walkabout”)
Warren—Stephen J. Rafferty (“Walkabout”)
The travel agent—John Simon Jones (“Walkabout”)
Jack (boy)—John O’Hara (“White Rabbit”)
Meathead—Sev Palmer (“White Rabbit”)
Margo Shephard—Veronica Hamel (“White Rabbit”)
The hotel manager—Andy Trask (“White Rabbit”)
The doctor—Geoff Heise (“White Rabbit”)
The ticket agent—Meilinda Cecilia Soerjoko (“White Rabbit”)
The decorator—Sora Jung (“House Of The Rising Sun”)
Liam Pace—Neil Hopkins (“The Moth”)
Steve—Christian Bowman (“The Moth,” “Exodus”)
Scott—Dustin Watchman (“The Moth”)
The priest—Glenn Cannon (“The Moth”)
David—Michael DeLuise (“Confidence Man”)
Jessica—Kristin Richardson (“Confidence Man”)
David and Jessica’s son—Jim Woitas (“Confidence Man”)
Kilo—Billy Mayo (“Confidence Man”)
Sullivan—Scott Paulin (“Solitary”)
Omar—Navid Negahban (“Solitary”)
The prisoner—Xavier Alaniz (“Solitary”)
Richard Malkin—Nick Jameson (“Raised By Another”)
Thomas—Keir O’Donnell (“Raised By Another”)
Rachael—Jenny Chang (“Raised By Another”)
Arlene Stewart—Lisa Fraser (“Raised By Another”)
Mr. Slavitt—Barry Whitfield (“Raised By Another”)
The anesthesiologist—Michael Adamshick (“All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues”)
Andrea—Jackie Maraya (“All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues”)
The husband—Matt Moore (“All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues”)
The head doctor—Mart Stitham (“All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues”)
Jason—Victor Browne (“Whatever The Case May Be”)
Hutton—Tim Halligan (“Whatever The Case May Be”)
Baseball hat—Dezmond Gilla (“Whatever The Case May Be”)
Six foot five—Achilles Gacis (“Whatever The Case May Be”)
The trucker—Michael Vendrill (“Whatever The Case May Be”)
Bryan—Charles Mesure (“Hearts And Minds”)
Malcolm—Adam Leadbeater (“Hearts And Minds”)
Nicole—Kelly Rice (“Hearts And Minds”)
Susan Lloyd—Tamara Taylor (“Special”)
Brian Porter—David Starzyk (“Special”)
The nurse—Monica Garcia (“Special”)
Dagne—Natasha Gross (“Special”)
Lucy Heatheron—Sally Strecker (“Homecoming”)
Francis Heatherton—Jim Piddock (“Homecoming”)
Tommy—Darren Richardson (“Homecoming”)
The buyer—Eric Griffith (“Homecoming”)
Robert Patrick—Hibbs (“Outlaws”)
Laurence—Stewart Finlay-McLennan (“Outlaws”)
Frank Duckett—Jeff Perry (“Outlaws”)
Mom—Susse Budde (“Outlaws”)
Boy—Gordon Hardie (“Outlaws”)
Woman—Brittany Perrineau (“Outlaws”)
The bartender—Alex Mason (“Outlaws”)
Mr. Paik—Byron Chung (“…In Translation”)
Mr. Kwon—John Shin (“…In Translation”)
Byung Han—Joey Yu (“…In Translation”)
Byung’s wife—Kiya Lee (“…In Translation”)
Byung’s daughter—Angelica Perreira (“…In Translation”)
White Suit—Chil Kong (“…In Translation”)
Butler—John Choi (“…In Translation”)
Best friend—Tess Young (“…In Translation”)
Tito Reyes—Archie Ahuna (“Numbers”)
Diego Reyes—Derrick Bulatao (“Numbers”)
Martha Toomey—Jayne Taini (“Numbers”)
Ken Halperin—Ron Morrasco (“Numbers”)
Leonard—Ron Bottitta (“Numbers”)
Emily Locke—Swoosie Kurtz (“Deus Ex Machina”)
Frainey—Lawrence A. Mandley (“Deus Ex Machina”)
Eddie—George O’Hanlon (“Deus Ex Machina”)
Marc Silverman—Zack Ward (“Do No Harm”)
Alyssa Cole—Jenny Gago (“The Greater Good”)
Agent Hewitt—David Patterson (“The Greater Good”)
Essam Tasir—Donnie Keshawarz (“The Greater Good”)
Haddad—Dariush Kashani (“The Greater Good”)
Yusef—Ali Shaheed Amini (“The Greater Good”)
Imam—Warren Kundis (“The Greater Good”)
Leslie Arzt—Daniel Roebuck (“Born To Run,” “Exodus”)
Dr. Tom Brennan—Mackenzie Astin (“Born To Run”)
Sanjay—Anosh Yaqoob (“Born To Run”)
Ana-Lucia Cortez—Michelle Rodriguez (“Exodus”)
Det. Caldenwood—Kevin E. West (“Exodus”)
Gina—Wendy Braun (“Exodus”)
Aussie official—Chard Hayward (“Exodus”)
Jeff—Robert Frederick (“Exodus”)
Airport cop—Mark “Ruz” Rusden (“Exodus”)
J.D.—John Dixon (“Exodus”)
Lily—Terasa Livingstone (“Exodus”)
The ticket agent—Suzanne Turner (“Exodus”)
Old Scooter Man—Glenn Cannon (“Exodus”)
The security agent—Mark “Kiwi” Kalagher (“Exodus”)
The gate attendant—Mary Ann Taheny (“Exodus”)

I’ll update the list as I go along.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Now, let’s get this big-ass review started:



Season 1-Disc 1
1. Pilot Part 1



Director(s): J.J. Abrams

Writer(s): Jeffrey Lieber and J.J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof (story), J.J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof (teleplay)

Plot: Oceanic 815 crashes on a mysterious island; Kate, Jack, and Charlie go searching for the cockpit of the plane.

Flashbacks: We basically see the crash through different points of views of the main characters, mainly Kate, Jack, and Charlie. Jack was sitting in his seat, drinking, and talking with Rose. Charlie was in the restroom getting high off of heroin. And, Kate was sitting next to a federal marshal.

Thoughts: I like how it began, just showing us Jack then following him to the crash site. It makes the viewer just as confused about what’s going on as he is. Looking back, it’s nice to play Where’s Waldo with all the characters as they first appear. “Hey! There’s Michael! Shouting for Walt! Hey! There’s Locke! Just standing around!” Also, this is the most expensive pilot in TV history, and it shows. You can see where all the money went, what with the plane wreckage and the effects for the explosions. It still looks great, and I’m still get shocked when I see

SPOILER: Click to show

that guy get sucked into the engine.

It’s also pretty quiet. I’ve noticed that the show has used more music at the show progressed. As for a review of it, since really goes with the first part of the Pilot, I’ll give it there.

2. Pilot Part 2



Director(s): J.J. Abrams

Writer(s): Jeffrey Lieber and J.J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof (story), J.J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof (teleplay)

Plot: The survivors of Oceanic 815 soon discover that they haven’t landed on such a hospitable island; Kate, Sayid, Charlie, Shannon, Boone, and Sawyer go on a hike to higher ground in hopes of getting a signal from the transceiver from the cockpit.

Flashbacks: Same as above.

Thoughts: Well, over all, this is a good pilot. I like how they made it seem like the pilot was going to be a main character. He was played by Greg Grunberg, who had starred in a previous show by co-creator J.J. Abrams, Felicity. However,

SPOILER: Click to show

he ends up getting killed by the smoke monster.

I imagine this was done because the creators’ (Abrams and Damon Lindelof) original idea was scrapped. They were going to have Michael Keaton play Jack and kill him off. However, they changed their minds, and that’s how we got the pilot dying. I also feel a little bad about the whole thing since Grunberg went on to that hell pit that is now Heroes. If I was him, I’d be cursing the heavens that I got killed on Lost and stuck doing Heroes. Well, maybe not during Heroes’s first season, but right now, I’d be pretty pissed.

I also like how they slowly introduced the mysteries of the Island. This first season has to introduce the characters, but they writers were still able to nicely introduce the mysteries and the characters at the same time. And, yeah, I know these introductions of characters are pretty much filler, but I don’t mind it in the first season. It did, however, become a problem in the second and third. But, more on that later. Anyway, the first time we see the monster and the polar bears are nice in retrospect. And, hearing that French woman’s signal (which stated that the others are dead and had been playing in a loop for 16 years) again is still pretty creepy.

I also liked how the Pilot was split up over two weeks. One of the biggest problems with second episodes is that it has to pretty much re-introduce everything from the pilot on the basis that there are probably people who didn’t see it. This leads to a pretty bad second episode, especially for the people who saw the pilot. By splitting the pilot up, you avoid this and can get on with the show. I don’t know whose idea it was to do this, but that person should get a medal.

As for the acting, it’s pretty good. I forgot how much of an asshole Sawyer was, but I liked when he was an asshole; so, I’m not complaining. Also, it’s amazing how un-annoying Kate and Jack are; I’ll get into this a little more in the next episode. The stand outs in the pilot are Monagham, Andrews, Dae Kim, Holloway, and O’Quinn. They pretty much nailed their characters from the beginning. The writing’s top notch too. All the bickering between everyone is well written. And, that last line from Charlie (“Guys, where are we?”) is still a classic. All in all, it’s a damn fine pilot and a good introduction for this show. 8/10.

3. Tabula Rasa



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Damon Lindelof

Plot: The signal party returns, deciding to lie about the signal; Jack and Hurley learn that Kate is a fugitive; and the U.S. Marshal escorting her back to America is dying, leaving the castaways to debate whether or not to put him out of his misery.

Flashbacks: On the run from the law, Kate ends up on a farm in Australia and becomes friends with the farmer. However, he ends up turning her in to Marshal Mars.

Thoughts: Ah, Kate. The very mention of her name brings fits to Lost fans. She’s as annoying to them as both Voyager and Enterprise is to Star Trek fans. She’s just such a shrill double-dealer that people can’t get behind her. But, I have a confession to make: I don’t hate Kate. Well, I didn’t. Back in Season 1, Kate wasn’t that bad. She was a likeable hero-type. In fact, I enjoyed Kate-centric episodes, mainly for the mystery surrounding her. She was on the run from the law, but we had no idea why. Here you had a woman trying to redeem herself by becoming sort of a leader on this Island. Or that’s what it seemed. She could have very easily been faking, waiting for the right moment to show her true evil colors. You couldn’t really peg this woman. Hell, I’ll admit it: I liked Kate. She wasn’t favorite, but she up there, below Sawyer and Locke. But, that all change after Season 2, when we learned what she did to get arrested. After that, I could care less about the woman. Now, she’s near the bottom of my list of favorite Lost characters (in case you’re wondering, Sawyer’s still at the top, followed by Desmond, Ben, and Locke). It didn’t help that the writers gave her such crappy backstories in Season 3. But here, she’s okay. I still like Season 1 Kate, and I have to admit that Evangeline Lilly is good in the role. She’s not the best actress in the world, but this will be her signature role mainly for how well she plays it.

As for the non-Kate stuff, I really like the interactions between Jack and Sawyer, especially this one: they’re both in the fuselage looking through the overhead compartments. Jack asks Sawyer what he’s found. "Booze, smokes, a couple of Playboys," he smirks. "And you?" When Jack says, "Medicine," Sawyer replies, "Well that about sums it up." Another nice comedic moment is when Michael accidentally catches a peek at Sun topless. And, there was this classic Shannon line about the marshal’s yells of pain, with a good comeback from Boone: “I wish he just die already!” “Real humane, Shannon.” Now, this isn’t the funniest show around, but whenever they do have a comedic moment, it’s usually top notch.

Some things I noticed that are weird looking back: Sawyer’s hair grew a few inches in between the pilot and this episode. That is a huge goof I’m surprised no one picked up on. Also, there are a lot of people on the beach. It certainly isn’t gonna be very crowded by Seasons 4 and 5. And, what happened to all that cargo and luggage? That disappeared over the years as well, never to be seen again. Just where remains a mystery. And, don’t say Sawyer. There’s no way he could have stashed all that crap from the plane away somewhere.

I miss that the episodes no longer end with a song from Hurley’s CD. But, that gimmick had to end sometime. There’s no way his batteries could have lasted all the way to Season 4.

The episode itself is okay. Like I said earlier, it doesn’t suffer from second episode syndrome, in which the second episode of a show is usually the pilot presented in new clothing. It moves forward and is all the better for it. The actual content is fine. Not the most intriguing episode of the series, except for learning that Kate’s a fugitive. The debating about whether or not to kill the marshal brings it up quality rise,

SPOILER: Click to show

especially when Sawyer decides to do the deed but misses his heart, making the situation worse

. One thing that brings it down is the flashback structure. It’s a great idea that the show has used well, but you can tell the creators had no idea how to use it. Thankfully, it got better by the next one. All in all, this episode isn’t bad, but it’s basically just there. 7/10.

4. Walkabout



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): David Fury

Plot: When the food supply runs out, Locke suggests they go hunting. So, while Locke, Michael, and Kate go hunting for boar, the rest of the castaways dispose of the dead bodies from the crash in a make-shift crematorium from the fuselage.

Flashbacks: We learn about Locke, who apparently works in the office of a box company. Also, he went to Australia to go on a walkabout, but the company who does the walkabout won’t let him go because of his condition.

SPOILER: Click to show

It turns out Locke is a paraplegic from the waist down. He regain the ability to walk after he woke up on the Island. The wheelchair we see on the beach is his.

Thoughts: This was the episode that pretty much made me a Lost fan. After I saw this episode, I knew I was continue to watch it until the very end. I’ve somewhat stayed on that course; there were a few episodes I missed, but I’ve stayed loyal to the show. And, this is the episode that did it for me. The way it was written and directed, I just knew that even if there were going to be some clunkers in its run (and there were), there would be excellent episodes like this. The thing that makes this episode is how it makes Locke look like such a badass on the Island but shows that he’s just an office drone in a box company off the Island. He gets browbeaten by his boss, he gets rejected by “Helen,” who’s possibly a phone-sex worker, and his dream of going on a walkabout is dashed due to his condition. It’s almost like they’re two different people. Another great thing about it is how the writer and director (David Fury and Jack Bender respectively) don’t really hide his condition and let the surprise come from foiling the expectations of the viewer. And, the ace in the hole is Terry O’Quinn. He’s got this great confidence to him. He really comes off as a take-charge kind of guy, which is what he’s been type-cast as throughout his career. But, he does have range. He can be a pathetic loser, which is good since that’s what this episode is about: Locke trying to find his place in the world. Off the Island, he’s unsure of himself and what he wants to do. It isn’t until he gets on the Island that he finally figures it all out. This episode shows why O’Quinn is one of the four best actors on the show (I’ll let you know who I think the other three are later).

Though O’Quinn isn’t the only good thing about his episode. Fox is nice as Jack. Like Kate, Jack is a lot likeable in Season 1 than he in the other seasons. Here, he plays the reluctant hero well. But, as the show went on, the character became a little too whiny for my tastes. Jack was never my favorite, but by now he’s down with Kate near the bottom of the character list. I also liked Monagham in this episode, especially in the scene when he gives Shannon the fish she talked him into getting for her. He goes from cocky to heartbroken very well in such a short span.

Other things I liked about this episode: how much people hate Sawyer. It just so funny to see it, knowing how that will all change in just a few seasons. Also, Hurley and Charlie trying to fish with a makeshift spear. Garcia and Monagham have great chemistry together, which is why the scene looks so playful, like these two have been friends for years. And, that Locke was the first person to fully see the monster. It makes sense that it would be him, especially in the context of what Locke goes through in the series. 10/10.

The bonus features on this disc are audio commentaries on “Pilot” and “Walkabout” and a scriptscanner, which allows the viewer to read the entire script for the pilot while following along with the episode. You can click any line of dialogue to immediately interact with the scene it comes from. It’s a neat feature, but it only works on a PC.

Well, that does it so far. I should have Disc 2 up by Tuesday.

[Kermit The Hulk]

I want to make note of a little edit to my review of the first four episodes: I went back and added who the directors and writers of those episodes were. I think that will be easier for me rather than having to mention them in the review each time, and knowing me, I'll forget.

I'll have the review of the next four episodes up as soon as possible.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Also, I decided to add photos, just to make things look nice.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Season 1-Disc 2
5. White Rabbit



Director(s): Kevin Hooks

Writer(s): Christian Taylor

Plot: Jack saves Boone from drowning, but then learns that he was going after Joanna, one of the survivors, who drowns. This causes Jack to become distraught, and he starts seeing a man in a suit, his father Christian; he also saw him in the previous episode. Also, tensions run high when the water supply runs low and ends up getting stolen.

Flashbacks: First, we get a flashback to Jack as a youth, saving a kid from some bullies. Then, we learn why Jack was in Australia. He went after his father, who went on a huge drunken bender and ended up in the land down under. Jack eventually finds him, but,

SPOILER: Click to show

unfortunately, he’s dead from alcohol poisoning. Now, Jack has to take the body back to L.A.

Thoughts: I liked the opening and that woman Boone was going to save but he and Jack couldn’t reach died. It really establishes that Jack is the type of person who wants to save everyone. And, he’s pretty likeable in these first few episodes. As I’ve mentioned earlier, he and Kate were pretty likeable in the first season but then became annoying to Lost fans over the years. Kate went from likeable, sympathetic hero to shrill double-dealer who can’t seem to make up her mind about what she wants. As for Jack, he was basically a superhero. Everyone looked to him to lead them to safety. He’s easy to root for in the first season, but over the years, he got kind of whiny and a bit of a self-loather. He does seem to sabotage a lot of his own relationships (we’ll see that later). Of course, that’s my opinion; most Lost fans would have a lesser opinion of the man. Like with Kate, I don’t hate Jack; but I don’t really care for him. It has nothing to do with Matthew Fox; he’s great in the role, especially in this episode. I blame the writers. I know heroes with flaws are a lot more interesting that those without; that’s why more people like Batman over Superman. But, the writers seemed to focus more on Jack’s flaws than his heroics as time went on. And, it ultimately hurt the character. A good example of this is “Stranger In A Strange Land,” AKA the Jack’s tattoos episode from Season 3.

But, and this is a big but, focusing on Jack’s flaws works here. Jack has pretty much been the de facto leader of this group. Because he’s a doctor and his wanting to save everyone nature, he’s been running around calling all the shots. However, it’s starting to wear on him as everyone is looking to him to solve all their problems: “Jack! Someone’s drowning! Jack! There’s no water! Jack! It burns when I pee!” That crap gets annoying after a while, and Jack just wishes someone else would take on the responsibility. It doesn’t help that when things get to the point that he can’t fix it, he loses it. Literally as he’s seeing his father run around. Speaking of which, he has daddy issues that are hinted at well in the hallucinations of Christian and the flashback showing what he was doing in Australia (FYI to all you noobs to Lost, most of the flashbacks in Season 1 deal with what each person was doing in Australia/how he or she got on the Island. This also applies to every character who joins the cast after Season 1, with a few exceptions). It establishes the problems between Jack and his dad well. They’re both doctors, and they each have a different approach to doctoring: Jack wants to save everyone and everything, while Christian thinks that’s a bad thing as people die and failure is a part of life. Christian’s approach is a lot more practical, yet Jack has a lot more problems with his dad that he naturally rebels against this approach, very ironic considering how much of a man of science we’ll soon see that Jack is. Also done well is how Jack comes to realize that he’s gonna have to be leader of this group whether he likes it or not. It’s written to a good logical conclusion. And, the flashbacks are handled better in this episode than “Tabula Rasa.” This was around the time they figured out how to fully use it in each episode. Though, that whooshing sound that has become the indicating flashback sound effect isn’t used much. I like that and am little upset that they decided to use it; it always sounded gimmicky to me, like the clichéd wavy lines every show and movie have used since the beginning of the mediums.

Even though this is a Jack episode, other people do shine. One is John Terry. He’s always been great as Christian. Plus, the character is surprisingly a lot more likeable than his son. I also liked the scene between Sawyer and Shannon. Holloway and Grace have great chemistry together. In fact, I’ve notice Holloway has great chemistry with a lot of people on this show. I guess that’s one of the reasons Sawyer is such a favorite of Losties. It’s also a pretty thrilling episode, especially when Jack almost dies. These first few episodes pretty slow; it’s kind of amazing to see, especially knowing how action-packed it’s gonna get in the later seasons. Another thing that’s amazing to look back on is everyone interacting with each other for the first time. I liked Charlie’s first impressions on Locke, everyone hating Sawyer, and Jin and Sun getting angry and looking confused with everyone respectively because of their language (for the noobs, Jin and Sun are Korean and don’t speak English). Also, Sawyer gets some great lines in this episode. You can tell the writers immediately fell in love with writing for the man. It’s also weird seeing everyone’s first interactions with each other knowing how their relationships with each other turn out. They’re all on egg shells, remaining somewhat cordial but cautious because they don’t really know these people. A particularly good example of this is Jack and Locke’s first conversation with each other. Another nice touch: Jin being in line while Jack’s trying to convince the ticket agent to let his dad’s body on the plane. All in all, I like this episode. The only disappointing thing about it is knowing that Jack, who’s pretty likeable in this episode, is going to become such an ass later on. 8/10.

Also, something I should bring up. But, it’s kind of a spoiler for the newbies so:

SPOILER: Click to show

There are two unanswered questions from this episode: what caused Jack to see his father and why his father wasn’t in his coffin. There is the theory that the Island brought Christian back to life, somewhat confirmed when Locke comes back to life after dying and his body being transported on Ajira Flight 316 and crashing on the Island. But, we later learned that Locke was really the Smoke Monster, and it didn’t need Locke’s body to fool people. So, maybe Jack was just hallucinating. He did look like he hadn’t been sleeping throughout the episode. However, that still doesn’t rule out the Smoke Monster. Christian’s body could have easily fallen out of the coffin during the crash. I think it was the Smoke Monster, and he was trying to put Jack into place, sort of like a chess game in order to ultimately get his checkmate on Jacob.

6. House Of The Rising Sun



Director(s): Michael Zinberg

Writer(s): Javier Grillo-Marxuach

Plot: Jin attacks Michael, but no one knows why, because Jin and Sun are Korean and can’t speak English.

SPOILER: Click to show

Or, so we think. Turns out Sun can speak English and tells Michael that he is wearing her father’s watch, which Jin was holding.

Meanwhile, Jack, Kate, Charlie, and Locke go looking for water and find a cave with some skeletons in it.

Flashbacks: For this episode, we look at Sun, seeing Jin proposing to her, him asking her father for her hand in marriage, and them settling down. However, Sun soon learns that Jin and her father aren’t exactly nice guys in a legal business, prompting her to flee from them.

Thoughts: Jin and Sun are interesting characters, especially in context with Lost and all its crazy cast of characters. The reason is that out of all the main characters, these two are the most removed from all the craziness. Most of their episodes aren’t Lost mythology-heavy. In fact, they’re almost like the castaways whose name we don’t know, Steve or Stan or whatever his name is. These two simply got sucked up in the main character for various that we’ll see later on, but for now, I wanna explain why these two are a little removed from the main mystery of the Island and that has to do with how we first saw them: two Koreans who couldn’t speak English. That language barrier seemingly created a mythology barrier but not a strong one. It’s more like the border fences between America and Mexico rather than the DMZ between North and South Korea. And, this ended up as a good thing since when the show started to get more and mythology heavy and moving at a faster pace that the first few seasons, their episodes provided and nice breather for the fans.

That is one of reasons I like Jin and Sun-centric episodes. The other reason is this: I said earlier that Terry O’Quinn is one of the four best actors on the show. Now, here’s 2 and 3: Daniel Dae-Kim and Yunjin Kim. They have great chemistry together, and they’ve been able to elevate their episodes since the stories they get are pulpy and cliché. I’ll talk about Dae-Kim later when we get to Jin’s first flashback episode, but let’s look at Kim. She handles Sun well, especially in regards to the big reveal: it turns out that Sun can speak English. She had secretly learned in order to escape from her father and husband to America. And, she handles the acting in English and Korean well; it helps that she can speak both fluently. Her best scene comes in the last flashback, when she’s suppose to make her getaway in the airport but doesn’t because she can’t bear to be apart from Jin.

Though, I can’t give Kim too much credit. The writing and directing are top notch in this episode and not just in the flashbacks. The use of Willie Nelson’s “Is This Where You Want To Be?” at the end was a nice touch. And the B story of Jack deciding that everyone should move to the caves and Sayid disagree is a handled well. It also introduces one of the main themes of the show: separation and factions. It all started with the beach and the caves. As for the acting, Perrineau is great as Michael in this one. He handles frustration and anger, especially in the scene when he tells Jin to leave him alone. Dae-Kim helps with some great reaction shots; you can tell from his face that even though he doesn’t speak English, he understands Michael loud and clear, something that would be played well later in the season. I also like the scenes with Charlie and Locke. They have a nice comical chemistry between them.

The only thing that doesn’t work for me in this episode is “Adam and Eve,” the two skeletons Kate finds in the caves. This mainly has to do with time: it’s been five seasons and we still haven’t found out how they ended up there. There are many theories surrounding them (a primer for those can be found here lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Adam_and_Eve/Theories; also expect more links Lostpedia as this review goes on), and Lindelof and Carlton Cuse (for Lost noobs, he’s the guy who pretty much took over duties as showrunner from J.J. Abrams) have insisted that the caves and the corpses are vital to the overall story arc, and that they'll come back to their meaning eventually. I hope so, because the last time they said this, it didn’t come to fruition:

SPOILER: Click to show

I’m referring to Libby, whose background is still a mystery as she never got a flashback episode.

Other than that, I liked this episode. It isn’t the best, but it is elevated by some great acting and the fact that a lot of questions from the Sun flashback get revealed in Jin’s first featured episode. 9/10.

7. The Moth



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Jennifer Johnson & Paul Dini

Plot: The castaways split up into two camps: those who moved to the caves and those who stayed at the beach. However, they all come together when a cave in traps Jack and they have to rescue him. As this goes on, Charlie is going through withdrawals as Locke has taken his remaining stash. And, Sayid comes up with a plan to find the French woman’s transmission.

Flashbacks: Charlie is the focus of this episode. We see how he got addicted to heroin. Charlie was in a band with his brother Liam called Driveshaft that got real famous. Now, Liam got really caught up in all the excesses for rock stardom, mainly the sex and drugs part. Charlie tried to stay clean. But, peer pressure from his brother led him down the path of addiction. Several years later, Driveshaft is no more, and Charlie is a junkie. Looking for some cash, he goes to Australia to talk his brother Liam into reforming the band. However, Liam is now clean and wants no part of that lifestyle. He wants Charlie to get clean, but Charlie refuses, still blaming Liam for his own addiction.

Thoughts: Now, we get to Charlie. Earlier, I mentioned in the “Walkabout” review how Locke was searching for the place where he belong, the place where he was useful and matter. This can apply to Charlie in this episode. He’s trying to help everyone, but everybody just finds him to be a bother. That is until the cave in that traps Jack; he’s the only one small enough to fit into the hole they dig. All the while, he’s going through withdrawals. It’s interesting how him trying to contribute coincides with him trying to get clean from heroin. And, in his flashbacks, he’s trying to decide whether or not he fits in with his band Driveshaft. He knows that the rock star life is going lead him to a dark path, but he can’t just up and leave because his brother Liam is also in the band. Leaving the band would be like abandoning his brother, which Charlie can’t do, especially with Liam slowly killing himself with booze and heroin. So, Charlie gets sucked in and sure enough becomes a heroin addict. It’s a nice little story, and Monagham plays it well. One of his strengths is being able to go from comedic to dramatic very easily, which is why this episode works. The story is also written nicely. I especially liked the scene where Charlie visits his brother in Australia and the roles are reversed; it was handled well by the actors and writers. I liked how Locke was helping Charlie get clean. He’s found his place on the Island; and now he’s decided to help Charlie find his. It’s almost like he’s becoming Charlie’s dad. To bad that relationship won’t last. Though it’s still nice to see even knowing how things turn out, mainly for a nice monologue from Locke about a moth cocoon as a metaphor for Charlie getting clean. Very well written by Johnson and Dini.

As for the other parts of the episode, one thing I didn’t like about this episode is how Hurley told Charlie to tell Kate that about what happened to Jack. And, I don’t know why. It makes some sense: they have been hanging out a lot, and the other castaways probably noticed, figuring that they were friends or something else was between them. But, it just bugged me. I did like Kate and Sawyer’s exchanges in this episode. They’re practically flirting. Man, those Lost writers didn’t waste any time hinting that there was going to be a love triangle among Kate, Jack, and Sawyer. That’s probably the only thing in the first three seasons they didn’t waste time getting to. I also liked Michael taking charge of the rescue attempt. It’s nice to see someone other than Jack in charge of something.

This episode does bring up two things that got dropped as the show went on. One is something I noticed, and I could be totally wrong on this thread. But, I saw a little indication that there would possibly be a love triangle among Jin, Sun, and Michael. Michael was especially nice to her, pointing out to Hurley that she’s Korean not Chinese. And, when Walt asked him if they could live in the caves, Michael looked at Sun before saying yes. I also noticed this in the next episode. That may have been a possible storyline that the creators and writers decided to drop. I’m glad they did, because the relationship between Sun and Jin got much better as the show went on. As I mentioned earlier, it was one of the storylines I enjoyed throughout the series. Also, Sun leaving Jin for Michael sounds a little too soap opera-y to me. The other thing that got dropped is the caves. The castaways didn’t stay long at this place, but I can’t imagine why. It seems like the perfect shelter, especially considering how dangerous the Island quickly got for them. But, for some reason they all moved back to the beach, even though there was a much securer location a few yard away.

The other main thing about this episode, other than Charlie’s flashbacks and the cave in is Sayid’s plan to find the French woman’s transmission. It’s played well by Naveen Andrews. The man is just so suave and cool. Confidence just pours out his body like sweat. The man could give a speech about how the world is flat and you’d believe; that’s how sure he sounds. That’s why he works as Sayid. This is a character who knows what to do, and you need an actor who sounds like he does. But, that ain’t the only reason this B-story works. It also brings up another mystery to the Island: As he’s trying to triangulate the signal, someone attacks Sayid, preventing him from doing so. The assailant is never shown. The mystery is introduced nicely. On the whole, this episode is very well written. I also don’t wanna short change the director, Jack Bender. Get use to seeing that name, because he directed a good portion of the show, including most of the best episodes. He’s a regular King Midas for this show, practically every episode he directs is gold. 8/10.

8. Confidence Man



Director(s): Tucker Gates

Writer(s): Damon Lindelof

Plot: Shannon is having an asthma attack, prompting Boone to rifle through Sawyer’s stash for her inhaler. Sawyer catches him and beats him up. This ends up leading to Jack, Kate, and Sayid trying to figure out a way to get the inhaler from Sawyer. However, the solution isn’t exactly a nice one. It’s torture. They torture him.

Flashbacks: Sawyer gets the flashback for this episode. We see him conning a woman and her husband out of their money. But, when he learns that they have a kid, he calls the whole thing off. The reason:

SPOILER: Click to show

Sawyer’s mom was conned by a man. When the con man ran off with the family’s money and when his father found out about it, the father killed the mother and himself with Sawyer looking on. So, Sawyer’s spent his whole life trying to find this man, along the way taking on his name and becoming a con man himself.

Thoughts: Previously On Lost (by the way, that’s a quote that’s as ingrained into Losties’ minds as 4 8 15 16 23 42 is), Sayid was trying to find the French woman’s signal. However, someone knocked him out with a log and put the kibosh on that. The prime suspect is our man of the hour, Sawyer! This guy quickly became my favorite character, and this episode is the reason why he stayed that way. We learn that he’s a con man, which makes sense. But, we also learn that he sort hates being one. He became one more out of necessity rather than choice, and eventually stayed that way. The irony of the situation is that a con man ruined his life, and he became the thing that he hates.

Basically, this episode explains why he behaves the way he does. The sarcasm and snapping at everyone is a defense mechanism; he allows himself to become everything everyone thinks about him to keep anyone get too close to him. And, everyone hates Sawyer in this episode, so much so that Sayid tortures him. Though, there is a reason. Everyone thinks that Sawyer has an inhaler, which Shannon needs for her asthma. The big reveal, well the small reveal is that he doesn’t (Sawyer’s past is the big reveal). The reveal scene is handled very well; the sexual tension between Lilly and Holloway is thicker than mud. It’s a nice little episode, and Holloway really makes it. He’s on top form as Sawyer in this one. Hell, even if you like Sawyer, you start to hate him as this episode goes on. It’s also amazing to look back on this episode, knowing how far Sawyer has come since then. His personality doesn’t change, but he ain’t really that con man we all first met him.

As for the rest of the episode, there’s a nice scene between Locke and Sayid in which Locke pretty much convinces Sayid that Sawyer was the one who attacked him. And, much like the last episode, Andrews is great in this one too, especially in the scenes where he’s torturing Sawyer and the end when he decides to leave to go explore the Island. I also like Lilly’s performance in this one. She plays off of Holloway very well. There’s also a nice little B-story with Charlie trying to get Claire peanut butter. The highlight of it is Charlie asking Hurley for peanut butter and Hurley getting insulted by Charlie insinuating that he’s hoarding food because he’s fat. Like I said, Garcia and Monagham have a wonderful comedic chemistry. And, the conclusion to it was very sweet.

As for Sawyer’s flashback, they’re so-so, just you’re standard con man story. Except for the part where Sawyer sees the son of the couple he’s conning. That was done wonderfully. The look on Holloway’s face, the cuts between him and the boy, Sawyer abruptly calling the deal off and walking out; the scene is well written, well directed, and well acted. The only problem I have with this episode is the dialogue; it’s clunky in certain parts, like the reveals that he didn’t have the inhale and what happened to Sawyer as a kid. The dialogue isn’t all bad, but there are a few turds in the cow pasture. Despite that, I fully enjoyed this one. 8/10.

Disc 7—Bonus Material

I’ve decided to look at a few of the bonus materials on Disc 7 as I go along. This will help me speed things up as I won’t have to watch all of them at once at the end. First we have The Genesis Of Lost. That is exactly what it sounds like: a featurette about how Lost was conceived. I’ve pretty much heard the story before: Lloyd Braun came up with the idea of a show about people stranded on an island. J.J. Abrams was brought on to polish it and bringing in the idea that the Island is a character unto itself. Then, Damon Lindelof was brought on board, coming up with the idea that the characters have mysteries themselves. Then, everything fell into place. Not all that interesting, especially if you’ve heard it before. Luckily it doesn’t last long.

Next is Designing A Disaster. This describes how they created the crash in the pilot. Basically, they took an Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, destroyed it, and dropped all the bits and pieces onto a beach in Hawaii. This is pretty much where all the $14,000,000 it cost to make Lost’s pilot went. It’s about as interesting as the first featurette I mentioned. You’d have to be really interested in movie special effects to get into this.

Finally for today, we have Before They Were Lost. Again, this is just like it sounds: the casting of Lost. One of the reasons the cast of Lost is so big is that many of the actors that auditioned were so liked by the creators that they created characters for them. For example, Yunkin Jim originally auditioned for Kate, but after they learned that Kim was a movie star in Korea, they came up with Sun just for her. Because of this, Jin was created. Daniel Dae Kim got the role. By the way, this featurette shows why Dae-Kim is one of the best actors in the cast: even though he is Korean, he admits that he hasn’t spoken it since high school. In fact, his voice is the whitest sounding voice I’ve ever heard. The fact that he was able to not only pick up Korean again and be able to act so well speaking it speak volumes about his acting prowess.

Another actor who had a role written for him was Jorge Garcia. He originally auditioned for Sawyer. They liked him, but he wasn’t right for Sawyer. So, they gave him Hurley. I love the initial description they had for Hurley: “Heavy-set guy. Arrogant and opinionated Red Shirt.” It almost sound like Hurley was due to be an asshole set for a quick death. I’m glad they changed it; I can’t imagine Hurley being a dick. Other interesting thing tidbits from the casting: Sayid also wasn’t in the original outline of the pilot. Maggie Grace got the role of Shannon basically because of her similar looks to Paris Hilton. Ian Somerhalder almost passed on Lost but took the job because J.J. Abrams was working on it and it was being shot in Hawaii. Emily De Ravin got the role of Claire because she is Australia, the country where Flight 815 took off. Dominic Monagham also read for Sawyer but got the role of Charlie, which was originally suppose to be an older rocker has been; the casting of him got the character changed to a one-hit wonder. Matthew Fox also auditioned for Sawyer; basically, Naveen Andrews and Terry O’Quinn were the only ones who didn’t audition for Sawyer. Josh Holloway got the role of Sawyer because he forgot his line during the audition, got angry, and kicked a chair. Also, his Southern charm got the character changed from a slick Northern con man to a dirty, sarcastic Southern con man. Kate wasn’t originally a fugitive; her character was more like Rose. And, the role was the hardest to cast. They went through many women of different ages, sizes, and ethnicities. Finally, a Canadian casting agent sent them a tape of Evangeline Lilly, who had to go through a lot of red tape because she did no work before Lost and wasn’t famous enough to get her work visa through quicker. This almost kept her from getting the role. Also with this featurette are the audition tapes of the cast. These two featurettes are a lot more interesting than the other two, mainly to see how the casting of a show comes together, to see how the creators of a show interact with the auditioning actors, and to see the actors playing other characters on the show.

Well, that’s it for Disc 2. There will be a review for the episodes on Disc 3 tomorrow. Or, well later today since it’s Wednesday.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Good news everyone! I just got Discs 1 and 2 of Season 2 of Lost from Netflix! So, those will be up as soon as the Season 1 DVD review is over. Now, onto Disc 3, followed by some more featurettes from Disc 7.

Season 1-Disc 3
9. Solitary



Director(s): Greg Yaitanes

Writer(s): David Fury

Plot: While everyone is enjoying a lovely day of golf organized by Hurley, Sayid is busy getting tortured by the French woman, Danielle Rousseau, who’s been on the Island for 16 years.

Flashbacks: We see Sayid’s life in the Iraqi Republican Guard. Basically, he tortures people who won’t talk. However, this job forces him to torture a childhood friend, Nadia. And, his feelings for the woman leads him to betray his superiors.

Thoughts: Finally, some answers. Well, it’s not like we had a lot of questions, but there is one big one from the pilot left unanswered: who made that signal? Well, now we know: Danielle Rousseau. She was part of a science expedition whose ship crashed during a storm. They washed up on the Island. After two months, something mysterious occurred. She doesn’t say what, just that it was some kind of disease and something about the Others. Anyway, the team went crazy, and she shot and killed her lover Robert. Also, she was pregnant and gave birth to a baby named Alex, who was taken by the Others. Well, we found out who sent out the signal, but we also got a shitload of more questions. Who are the Others? Why would they take Danielle’s baby? How did her team go crazy? Did the Others do that? Are they even real? Did Danielle actually go crazy and kill them thinking they were actually crazy? Such an intriguing episode. After all the character backstory we got in the last few episodes, it’s nice to get a mythology heavy one. It’s also necessary. We know that there’s something weird about this Island, and it can’t just be that it has polar bears, a monster, and some mysterious signal. Things are getting real. Also, it was a nice touch that we got this from someone who’s been on the Island for a while and finding one of the castaways. We learn from her through Sayid. He’s our surrogate in this episode. His curiosity and confusion mimics ours nicely. And, the scenes between Sayid and Rousseau are done well: nicely written and directed, and Andrews plays it well. The only problem I have is Mira Furlan. She’s not a bad actress, but I’ve just never really been impressed by her.

Even though this is a mythology heavy episode, we do get some character background out of the way. Obviously, this is Sayid’s time to shine. I like his backstory. It was very well written. Fury really brought his A-game to these parts. I also like the directing from Yaitanes. I liked the nice “Nuremberg Trials” homage in the switch from Iraqi to English in the first flashback scene. Though, I didn’t really liked that they spoke English in Sayid’s flashback. Jin and Sun spoke Korean throughout theirs; I don’t understand why Sayid’s wasn’t done the same way. But that’s just a minor annoyance; the rest was great. The hidden reluctance on Andrews face whenever Sayid has to do his job to Nadia, the dynamic between Andrews and Gabriel, and the ultimate payoff of the flashback; all great stuff.

Another thing I like about this episode is how yin and yang it is. Counterbalancing the darkness of Sayid’s plot, we have a B-story in which Hurley creates a makeshift golf course to raise the morale of the castaways. Now, these scenes are okay, cutesy stuff. They’re sweet, but I much prefer the Sayid plot. However, I wouldn’t have done away with them. They are a nice let up from the seriousness of the Sayid plot. Plus, it ties in with one of Lost’s main theme: darkness and light. I also liked the interaction between Jack and Sawyer at the beginning. I loved how their relationship in the first few seasons turned into one huge pissing contest.

All in all I really enjoyed this episode. It is one of the most significant episodes of the series, mainly because of how much of it the writers subsequently abandoned. "Solitary" includes the first mention of the Others, her daughter Alex, her music box, her map of the island, The Black Rock, "the sickness" that took the rest of her crew, her "love" Robert, her expedition, and the whispers. Except for the Others and Alex, most of it has been abandoned. And two things she says seem strange now, given what we know she knows: When Sayid asks her, "Have you seen other people on this island?," she replies "No, but I hear them;" and when he warns her about "the monster," she says, "There's no such things as monsters." Basically, this episode is a prime example of why fans are sometimes frustrated by the show: unanswered questions and plotlines that didn’t really lead anywhere. Other than those frustrations, “Solitary” is still a solid episode. 9/10.

10. Raised By Another



Director(s): Marita Grabiak

Writer(s): Lynne E. Litt

Plot: Claire is having nightmares, thinking someone is trying to abduct her. Some, i.e. Jack, of the castaways thinks she’s delusional, brought on by the hormones from pregnancy, and this doesn’t sit well with Claire. However, some do believe her, prompting Hurley to do a census of the castaways on the Island, which leads to a scary discovery.

Flashbacks: It’s Claire’s time to go flashbacking. We see how she got pregnant. The father, Thomas, abandons her, leaving her to give it up for adoption. However, a visit to a psychic, Malkin, who tells her that she can’t give the child away, leads her on a path where she’ll end up on the Island.

Thoughts: It’s kind of surprising that Claire’s first flashback episode would be some mythology heavy. Much like Jin and Sun, she hasn’t really been a part of the whole craziness that surrounds the Island. Yet, here we have Claire having all sorts of crazy dreams, being stalked by some mysterious man, and Malkin’s cryptic psychic vision. Two tidbits that might have repercussions later on:

1. Jack tells Claire that he used to talk in his sleep, and when Claire asks what he said at night, Jack says he doesn't know, but that his girlfriend "didn't like it." I don’t know why. I just feel it will. Maybe it’s because (spoiler for Lost noobs coming)

SPOILER: Click to show

Jack and Claire brother and sister; they both share the same father, Christian.

2. Claire's psychic insists that she has to take 815, which at the time led fans to speculate that he was setting her up in some way. Well, it wasn’t that hard to speculate; Charlie outright said it at the end of the episode. But what way? Malkin the psychic is another major piece of the puzzle that's gotten lost under the couch over the past year. Maybe it’s because (another Lost noob spoiler)

SPOILER: Click to show

we later learn that he’s a fraud, at least when it comes to other people. I think he actually saw something when he touched Claire. Either way, I suspect that episode was done to write that guy off.

Anyway, this whole episode has lead to some pretty interesting theories about Claire’s baby. You can look them up here: lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Aaron_Littleton/Theories

As for the episode, it’s not bad. There are some good parts. I especially like the scene where Malkin is reading Claire’s palms. Nick Jameson plays frightened very well. I also like the big reveal that Ethan wasn’t on the plane. It was done in such a simple way, Hurley decides to do a census of the castaways, obtains the flight manifest from Sawyer, and finds one name that wasn’t on it; by the way, Garcia did a nice job in the scenes where he explains his idea to Jack, where he talks Sawyer into giving him the manifest, and when he tells Jack about Ethan. There are some nicely written parts, like the ones I mention. Other ones include the scene where Claire decides not give up the baby for adoption, Charlie telling Ethan that Claire is going into labor, and the last scene. Man, it is just so spine-tingling frightening. I still get chills watching it.

Now, I want to talk about the star of our episode: Emilie De Ravin. My feelings on the character Claire are pretty much this: I don’t like as much as I do Sawyer, but I’m not as antipathetic toward her as I am to Kate and Jack. To me, she’s just there. But, that doesn’t take anything away from De Ravin. She’s just a wonderful little actress. I especially like it when she’s being all dramatic. She pulls off what would come off as being a drama queen from any other actress. When she gets angry and her feelings get hurt, she is just top notch. Just her performance is enough for me to give this episode an 8 out of 10.

11. All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues



Director(s): Steven Williams

Writer(s): Javier Grillo-Marxuach

Plot: Claire and Charlie have been kidnapped by Ethan. Jack, Kate, Boone, and Locke go after them. After they split up, Jack and Kate are attacked by Ethan but later find Charlie. Meanwhile, Boone and Locke find a hatch out in the jungle.

Flashbacks: We get another look at Jack’s past. Here, a woman dies on the operating table. His father Christian is responsible as he was drunk during the procedure. He tries to get Jack to play ball and cover it up. Jack reluctantly agrees, until he learns the woman was pregnant and rats his father out, which leads to Christian’s drunken bender in Australia.

Thoughts: Damn, five episodes after the castaways split up between the beach and the caves, we get another group VS group. Now, it’s the Other VS the castaways. Though, we only have the one: Ethan Rom. Great character, by the way. So scary. It helps that William Mapother looks so damn creepy. And, he’s Tom Cruise’s cousin. Anyway, he was our first glimpse of the Others, and he made one hell of an impression. If Mapother hadn’t been so damn good playing Ethan, then the whole concept of the Others wouldn’t have worked. Though, Mapother should get all the credit. It’s was Grillo-Marxuach idea to have him beat the ever living hell out of Jack. And, he also gives Mapother some good, clear, deliberate dialogue. Both of these things work so well to make the Others look like a threat. If the writing and the acting had bad, they would have been just lame group of villains. Instead, they became one of the central myths of the whole show. SPEAKING OF myths, we get a new one in the hatch Boone and Locke find while searching for Claire. Now, this led to a whole lot of speculation, from it being an underground bunker to the whole Island actually being a spaceship, meaning the castaways had been abducted.

But there’s more to this episode than the shows mythology. For one, it’s Jack’s second flashback episode. Earlier, I said that Kate went down hill in Season 2. Well, Jack went down hill half way through Season 1. This is the episode in which our fearless leader turns into the insufferable sourpuss we all know and hate today. On the island, he bickers with Locke about his methods for trailing Charlie and Claire. He bickers with Kate when she tries to talk sense into him. He basically bickers with everyone whom he thinks is getting in his way. Meanwhile in his flashback, he dicks over his own dad by telling a review board that pops was drunk when Jack stepped in to finish his surgery. Now, that was the right thing to do. You can’t have doctors showing up to work drunk; they aren’t airline pilots. But, it was Jack who screwed up the surgery. Also, Jack ratting his dad out led the man onto his path to that drunken bender in Australia that ended killing him. Basically, Jack doesn’t like to suffer fools, but what he doesn’t realize is that he’s a pretty big fool himself.

Jack aside, this isn’t a bad episode. Well, looking back on it that is. There’s a lot of foreshadowing in this episode that fans didn’t really know was foreshadowing. First, there’s Boone explaining the Star Trek "red shirt" theory to Locke.

SPOILER: Click to show

A few weeks later, he’d be dead.

. Then, there’s Walt gambling on backgammon with Hurley and winning $20,000.

SPOILER: Click to show

It later turned out that Hurley was rich.

And, finally, Jack and Kate free Charlie from Ethan's tree-trap, the vines Charlie was hanging from circle around his head like a crown of thorns.

SPOILER: Click to show

Plus he can't breathe…presaging his sacrificial drowning.

Also, John Terry is back. He is always good as Christian. That scene in which he’s pleading with Jack to go along with covering up his drunkenness is just some of his best work on the show. I really love the look on his face when Jack rats him out. You can see his heart break through his eyes. The other cast members gets some good work in as well. I really like the scene between Sayid and Sawyer, except for some bad exposition; it was a nice unspoken apology/forgiving scene. And, this marks the beginning of Boone and Locke hanging out a lot; Somerhalder and O’Quinn have a great uneasy chemistry between the two. By the way, kudos to the casting people. It’s amazing how they managed to find some people who can chemistry with one another.

And, finally, I don’t wanna bash Matthew Fox. Even though Jack became so insufferable over the years starting from here, Fox has been played the character well. He’s good in this one, especially in the scene in which Jack and Kate rescue Charlie. All in all, a good episode all around, only brought down by Jack. 7/10.

12. Whatever The Case May Be



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Damon Lindelof & Jennifer Johnson

Plot: Sawyer finds a case in a pond. Kate recognizes it as the Marshal’s case and tries to get it back from him. Meanwhile, Sayid asks Shannon to help him translate Danielle’s notes, and Rose comforts Charlie about what happened to Claire.

Flashbacks: Kate gets another flashback. In this one, she’s partaking in a bank robbery in order to get the contents of a safety deposit box.

Thoughts: Well, after three action-packed, mythology heavy episodes, are you ready for another one!? Well, too bad! You’re getting Kate robbing a bank and messing with Sawyer. While the latter doesn’t sound too bad, the former definitely does. When I first saw this episode, I thought that was Kate’s crime: she’s a bank robber. But no, it turns out that was just something she did that was a result of the crime she committed that sent her on the lam. It’s complicated, convoluted mess that I’ll explain it as we go along instead of all at once for you Lost newbies. In fact, I think her backstory was one of the reasons why fans became so antipathetic toward Kate. Here, she’s joined a group of bank robbers to, well, rob a bank in order to get a toy plane that belong to a man she got killed. The flashbacks are just your typical bank robbing scenario with some twists that you could see coming a mile away. In fact, they kind of bring down the episode. It’s not bad but just really cliché.

What does brings it up is Kate and Sawyer wrestling over the Marshal’s case they found in the waterfall pond. They do make a great pair, and the lengths they each go to in order to get the case are a little fun. The best part was when Sawyer threw the case down from a high tree in order to open, and Kate ran out and snatched it. Also, it got Evangeline Lilly to swim around in her underwear. Not that she needed much of an excuse. That’s one of the reasons I liked Kate in Season 1: she always seemed to be in various stages of undress. This happened less frequently as the show went on.

As for the subplots, meh. The Sayid/Shannon one is okay. Mainly it just establishes the relationship they’re gonna have later on. And, the Charlie/Rose one is nice, but nothing to sneeze about. There’s also a little more of Locke and Boone messing with the hatch. Honestly, this a very slow episode, especially considering the three that preceded it. The show was finally getting into establishing its mythology, and then we got this. Fans wanted things to speed up, not slow down. Though, I understand why the writers would want to slow down. They do need time to come up with more ideas later on. But, while I understand doesn’t mean I have to like it. 6/10.

Disc 7—Bonus Material

For today’s special features, first we have a making of featurette on the pilot. It’s pretty standard stuff. The only things that really stands out is someone blessing the Hawaiian set (Forgive me for my ignorance to what that guy who blessed the set is called, but I don’t live in Hawaii.) and how they filmed the polar bear scenes, using a combination of a guy running around with fur covered legs and a giant polar bear doll. It’s so ridiculous that can’t help but laugh a little.

Next, we get some artwork from Matthew Fox. Apparently the former star of Party Of Five is an artist. A photographer to be precise. It looks a little pretentious, especially with him narrating it; but Fox is a pretty good photographer.

And, finally for today, we have a quick vignette of the Lost cast at Comicon. Apparently there was a large turnout for the premiere of the Lost pilot even though no one had seen it. I don’t really know why, but that’s mainly because I didn’t spend a lot of time on the internet back in 2004.

Well, that’s it for today. Expect the next four episodes to be reviewed on Friday.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Season 1-Disc 4
13. Hearts And Minds



Director(s): Rod Holcomb

Writer(s): Carlton Cuse & Javier Grillo-Marxuach

Plot: Boone becomes jealous that Sayid is spending a lot of time with Shannon. So much so that Locke decides to help him out…by drugging him and leaving him and Shannon stranded in the jungle with that mysterious monster. Meanwhile, Kate learns that Sun can speak English while they attend to Sun’s garden, Locke gives Sayid a compass to help him figure out Rousseau’s maps, and Hurley and Jin go fishing.

Flashbacks: Boone and Shannon go through the flashback machine in this one. Well, technically, it’s just Boone, but we do learn why Shannon was in Australia. She’s dating some guy named Bryan and calls Boone up to tell him that Bryan is beating her. Boone goes to Australia to see what’s up and ends up paying Bryan off to leave her alone. But, this isn’t the first time Boone’s done this. Shannon has played this con before, and Boone has fallen for it again, mainly because he’s in love with her. Don’t freak out! They’re only step brother and sister. But, it still doesn’t make it any less creepy.

Thoughts: I’m just gonna come out and say it: I don’t really care for Shannon and Boone. Why? Well, they aren’t all that interesting characters. Shannon is a Paris Hilton-type, and Boone has intense looking douche vibe to him. Plus, I know what’s gonna happen to them, so it’s hard to get into their stories in this first season. Now, this episode isn’t bad. It’s got it’s moments, like when Boone tells Sayid to stay away from Shannon, Hurley stepping on a sea urchin and trying to talk Jin into peeing on his foot, and Sawyer showing up in Boone’s flashback. But, that’s all an appetizer. The main course is Boone and Locke. They are such a weird pairing. If these two hadn’t been in a plane crash and stranded on an island, then they would have never talked to each other. That’s what makes the dynamic between these two so great (and the dynamics between most of the people on this show): they are completely different. Locke is a man of faith. He sees signs and thinks the Island talking to him, wanting him to do something. But, it’s easy to understand why. As for Boone, he looks he’s bored with everything. But, he isn’t a bad guy. He wants to help and pull his weight around, but he’s just a business man working for his mom. He can’t really do much. So, he follows Locke around, hoping that he’ll be something by proxy.

They have some great stuff in this season, but the only great thing in this episode is this wonderful speech about Michelangelo Locke tells Boone when he asks Locke what he’s gonna do with the hatch. O’Quinn recites it beautifully. And, Carlton Cuse & Javier Grillo-Marxuach should be commended for coming up that great dialogue. Yet, they should be condemned from coming up with the rest of this episode. For one, they give us one big red herring in the scenes with Boone and Shannon being stalked in the jungle by the “monster.” One crappy, smelly red herring at that. It all being a hallucination brought on by a drug from Locke was such a cop out. Plus, Boone ends up having one of the most linear hallucinations I’ve ever seen. Aside from the monster, it was pretty straight forward. Looking back, I wish it had been more surreal. It wouldn’t have been great, but it would have been better than what we got. That is a minor annoyance compared to the that incest stuff. What the fuck!? Who thought that was a good idea!? I know they’re only siblings by marriage, but still! Greg and Marcia are step-siblings, but if they had sex, wouldn’t you be creeped out? Apparently not Cuse, Grillo-Marxuach, or any of the other writers as they didn’t stand up and say, “Hey. Um…bout this Shannon/Boone sex scene. It makes me wanna take a shower while I shake uncontrollably back and forth crying “Dirty!” as I rub soap over my skin until it’s raw!”

As for Kate and Sun’s sub-plot: it’s okay, but the episode would lose nothing if it was gone. Also, there was something interesting in the plot point with Locke giving Sayid a compass that doesn’t point North. When Sayid tells Jack about it, he thinks it’s defective; but he also mentioned that the compass could be wrong because of a magnetic anomaly. Spoiler for Lost newbies alert:

SPOILER: Click to show

Turns out there is a magnetic anomaly on the Island. A HUGE fucking magnetic anomaly, but we’ll get into that in Season 2.

Anyway, this is a bad episode. It takes a very skilled hand to make incest into a good idea for a story, but they didn’t really have on the Lost writing staff. I will say one thing: at least it isn’t poorly acted. Somerhalder and Grace are pretty good in their roles. Like with De Ravin, I don’t care for their characters, but I do like the actors. They aren’t as good as De Ravin, but they’re okay in my book. Because of the Sawyer cameo in Boone’s flashback, the Boone/Sayid moment, the Hurley/Jin scene, and Locke’s Michelangelo, I’ll give it a 3 out of 10, but it could have easily gotten a 1.

14. Special



Director(s): Greg Yataines

Writer(s): David Fury

Plot: Michael doesn’t like it that Walt spends a lot of time with Locke. This leads to him banning his son from seeing the man. But, Walt doesn’t like this and runs off into the jungle. Unfortunately, he runs into a polar bear. So, now Michael and Locke have to work together to save the boy. Also, Charlie and Kate try to get Claire’s diary from Sawyer. Sayid learns of a black rock in one of Rousseau’s maps, which Claire mentioned in her diary. And, Locke and Boone go looking for Vincent who disappeared from during the polar bear attack but end up finding Claire.

Flashbacks: Michael and Walt share flashbacks in this one. We learn how Walt ended up in Michael’s custody. His parents broke up, and Michael reluctantly gave up custody after a car accident. His mom moved to Australia with his step-dad Brian. Years later, she died. And, Brian suddenly decided he couldn’t raise Walt, fearing him for some reason. So, he tracked down Michael and talked him into taking the boy, which reluctantly agreed.

Thoughts: Some people think that Lost was great in Season 1 and has been downhill since. Those people are wrong. However, some people think that Lost was great in Season 1 and wasn’t again until Season 4. Those people are also wrong. The real answer is: Lost was pretty good from Seasons 1 to 3, with lots of ups and downs. It didn’t get great until Season 4. Don’t get me wrong. I like Season 1, but it has some pretty awful episodes. Exhibit A: the last episodes, “Hearts And Minds,” AKA the Shannon and Boone incest hour. Exhibit B: this episode. It’s not as bad as “Hearts And Minds,” but it ain’t great. The good stuff: The tension between Michael and Locke is great. In the previous episode, I noticed that a lot of the castaways like Locke, feeling really confident in him. It’s nice to see someone have the opposite feelings toward the man. And, Harold Perrineau really shines in this episode, especially in the flashback scenes. Also, I got a chuckle out of Charlie mulling over whether or not to read Claire’s diary. Monagham played it well.

But, there are problems. For one, Malcolm David Kelley isn’t that great of an actor. It’s hard to get into the emotion of the episode, when he sounds pretty much the same throughout. Also, I saw Michael and Locke having to work together coming a mile away. (By the way, why didn’t Boone go with Locke and Michael? Did he just not feel like it, or was he looking elsewhere?) Though, I will give the writers props for Michael getting hit by a car; I did not see that coming. There is also a lot of this episode that is brought up to sound important to the mythology of the show but didn’t really pan out, mostly with Walt. He’s suppose to be special in some way. But, we don’t know why exactly. He’s supposedly a little psychic. There is a nice subtle way of showing this: Walt was reading about a bird in his flashback and a bird flew into the glass door of his house, killing itself. Then, on the Island, Walt reads a comic with a polar bear in it, and later he’s chased by a polar bear. However, both of these actions happened when he’s trying to get his parents to pay attention to him, the mother and stepfather with the bird and Michael with the bear, which could also mean he subconsciously made it happened. This was all some very intriguing stuff. However, Walt was written out of the show in the second season because Kelley hit puberty way to fast, a bad thing for a show being told in real time. Which is a shame because I was very interested in it. I loved Walt’s lone flashback scene; it was very ominous and creepy. The follow-up flashback scene with Brian telling Michael he’s giving him custody of Walt was also top notch and a little creepy. Judging by those scenes, there was a lot of juicy material with Walt. However, we never found out. And because of that, it’s hard to get into this episode knowing the good stuff is gonna pan out.

Also, there’s the polar bear scene. It’s suppose to be exciting and scary, but it isn’t. And, it has nothing to do with Kelley, but everything to do the crappy CGI polar bear. Now, don’t get me wrong: I enjoy a good CGI, but it has to be, you know, good. In order to work, it has to look like it’s real, and this thing does not. The polar bear doll they used in the pilot (look at the featurette on the making of the pilot) looked better than this thing. It really takes you out of the show. All in all, this isn’t a bad TV episode, but it is a bad Lost episode. There is some good stuff, but compared to “Walkabout,” “The Constant,” or “Through The Looking Glass,” it sucks. 5/10.

15. Homecoming



Director(s): Kevin Hooks

Writer(s): Damon Lindelof

Plot: Claire is found by Locke and Boone, but she has amnesia and doesn’t remember anything that happened since the crash. To make matters worse, Ethan returns, wanting Claire back. He threatens to kill one of the castaways if he doesn’t get her. So, the group sets up a trap for him; but it doesn’t work, leading to Ethan keeping his promise. After the death, Claire volunteers to go with Ethan; but the other castaways won’t allow it. So, another trap is set.

Flashbacks: Charlie goes on the flashback merry-go-round for a second time. We see him at the height of his heroin addiction. He’s charming a rich girl, Lucy Heatherton, in order to get at an expensive cigarette case that belonged to Winston Churchill. But, his plan backfires hilariously.

Thoughts: Exhibit C that Season 1 wasn’t the best season of Lost: this episode. Now, much like “Special” there is some good stuff. But, let’s look at the bad first, i.e. Charlie’s flashback. As we know, he is a recovering heroin addict. So, we’re getting his “glory” days as a junkie in this one. Basically, if you ever wondered what “Trainspotting” or “Requiem For A Dream” looked like if they were PG, then this would be it. So, when Charlie was a junkie, he charmed rich women in hopes of steal valuable heirlooms from them and threw up on copy machines. UGH! Couldn’t they have done a better job of showing how bad Charlie’s heroin addiction was? Look at Homicide: Life On The Street. That was The Wire before The Wire existed, and it was done on NBC, network TV. Sure, it wasn’t as intense and racy as The Wire, but like I said, network TV. Both shows have the same feel to them. Therefore, getting the look and feel of drug addiction without showing the really intense aspects that wouldn’t get past the censors can be done. Hell, this show will do it later on in the season. It could have been done here. Instead, we don’t get that. We get Charlie vomiting on a copy machine. But, that’s not worse thing we’ll see happen to Charlie. Just wait until “Fire + Water.”

Now, the good stuff: The flashbacks suck, but the Island action is pretty good. Not only is Claire back, but so is Ethan. If you thought he was scary in “All The Best Cowboys…,” well then, you’ll love him in “Homecoming.” Mapother amps up the intensity and scariness in his performance here. The writers also did a good job upping the ante with Ethan killing a castaway. There were some nice touches with Boone falling asleep on sentry watch and finding Vincent, and some great black comedy with Sawyer mistaking the dead Scott for Steve. Also, Monagham shines in this episode as well. He’s okay in the flashbacks, especially in the scene when he’s having dinner with Lucy and her father and talking about Driveshaft being dead (a nice look of realization on his face when he says that, like it’s first time he’s said it and thought it), but on the Island, he just fantastic. His frustration is done well, whether he’s yelling at everyone to do something, sarcastically talking to Jin, or just staring at the other castaways plan to trap Ethan.

But, there are some problems with the Island action. Claire’s amnesia seems too convenient to me, a regular deus ex machina to set up a possible flashback episode and to keep fans in the dark about the Others for the time being. Also, I didn’t like that Jack ended up beating up Ethan. You mean to tell me that Jack quickly learned how to get the upperhand on in a few days? No way. If they had had Jack, Sawyer, and Sayid gang up on him, I’d buy it. However, this best part about this episode: Charlie killing Ethan. It was frustrating that Ethan died as he could have provided many answers, and it’s another deus ex machina to keep the fans in the dark until the writers can fully figure out just who the Others are. But, it does make sense. You have to realize that Charlie wasn’t thinking about that. He was angry, and angry people do stupid things. They don’t think about the consequences until it’s too late. So, it was a nice touch of realism. Overall, I enjoyed this episode. It’s not as good as some of Lost’s other episodes, but it has it’s moment. Hell, I even liked Charlie’s flashback. Yes, him vomiting on a copy machine is stupid, but it so goddamn ridiculous I can’t help but laugh. But, I also can’t in good conscious say that it was a good idea, especially when they could have come up with something better to show how much Charlie was a junkie off the Island. 6/10.

16. Outlaws



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Drew Goddard

Plot: In the middle of the night, Sawyer is awakened by a boar stealing his tarp. He heads off into the jungle to find it. Kate joins him, fearing that he’ll get lost and die and to get his gun away from him. Also, Charlie develops a little post traumatic stress disorder after killing Ethan.

Flashbacks: Sawyer gets another flashback. This time, we find out what he was up to in Australia. A former associate, Hibbs, tells him that the man who caused his parents’ death in is the Land Down Under. Sawyer hops on a plane hoping to find the man and kill him. However, when he meets him, Sawyer hesitates. But, it’s a conversation in a bar with Dr. Christian Sheppard that Sawyer gets up the nerve to finally do it.

SPOILER: Click to show

However, Sawyer learns after shooting the man that he isn’t the man who cause his parents’ death.

Thoughts: Our last episode had some good Island action and bad flashbacks. This one has good flashbacks and bad Island action. Well, the stuff that happens on the Island isn’t completely bad. Sure, Sawyer’s journey to find the boar that stole his tarp has got the typical “off on a vision quest” bullcrap written all over it, but it’s done well. The best part is Sawyer and Kate’s “I Never” scene. It starts off all playful, with Kate and Sawyer just trying to one up each other. But as it progresses, it ends up getting very deep and ending with a big revelation: they’ve both killed a man. Such a great moment that Jack Bender’s stamp written all over it. Here’s another example why he’s such a great director, especially on this show. He knows just how to take the writers material and spin it into a beautifully silk robe. Though, all the credit shouldn’t go to Bender. Holloway and Lilly act the hell out of that scene. It’s warm, intimate, funny, and filled with sexual tension. It’s just an all-around great scene that never gets old.

Another nicely acted scene is Sawyer asking Sayid about the whispers (Sawyer heard them when he went after the boar). There’s some nice playfulness when Sayid takes pleasure in Sawyer’s plight that nicely transitions to the darkness surrounding this mystery. Too bad we never find out about those whispers. As I’ve said, they’ve pretty much been abandoned. In fact, there are quite a few things that have been abandoned from this episode. These are Hibbs and the Tampa job. Even though Hibbs is played by a well known actor (Robert Patrick from such infamous movies like “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” and “The Marine”), this is his only appearance in the entire show. We never find out what the bad blood between him and Sawyer is, even though there was a perfect opportunity in Season 2. But, I’m getting ahead of myself.

The real meat of this episode is Sawyer going to Australia to kill the man he thinks conned his mom and lead to his dad’s murder/suicide. The scene where he finds the man but can’t do it, the scene when he finally gets the nerve to do it and learns he has the wrong man too late, and the scene in between, when he has a chat with Jack’s dad no less: all good stuff. Now, let’s dwell on scene with Sawyer and Christian. First off, great scene. Not as good as the “I Never” scene, but well acted by John Terry. He also gets some great lines in, like why they call Australia without being burned (“It’s the closest you can get to Hell without being burned”), and that Red Sox never winning the World Series because some people are just meant to suffer (funny considering this episode aired some months after the Sox finally won the World Series; remember he said this in a flashback and the Island took place before that happened). It was also pretty damn shocking. Who would have thought that Christian would end up in Sawyer’s flashback? There was no indication that Sawyer and Jack would have any connection to each other prior to the crash. Of course, this leads to a pretty big theme throughout the show, which has pretty much been abandoned: connections. Now, we saw Jin in Jack’s flashback and Sawyer in Boone’s; but those were small, coincidences really. This was pretty big: Sawyer not only met Jack’s dad but had a significant conversation with him. After this, we got a lot more connections, which got played up more and more in Season 2 and 3 but then disappeared by Season 5. I don’t know why; I thought it was a nifty idea. But, I guess the writers couldn’t figure out a logical conclusion to it. Anyway, I liked the introduction of it here, especially when Sawyer figures out that who Christian was from Jack saying the Sox saying at the end.

Anyway, as I said, Sawyer’s hunt for the boar is pretty cliché. The boar is openly taunting and messing with him, obviously because of what he did in Australia. He gets some cryptic message from Locke in the story of his sister’s death and his mother’s dog that showed up afterwards and disappeared when she died. And, of course, Sawyer ultimately lets the boar live. The Charlie PTSD story is also cliché. He’s depressed about it, not knowing how to deal with the fact that he killed a man; and Sayid helps him come to terms with it, which he does in amazing time. Screw years of therapy, if you can’t get over what you did in the war, go to the Island! You’ll be cured in a matter of days! But, these clichés aren’t enough to bring the episode down. They’re done in an okay way, and the Sawyer flashbacks and the “I Never” scene really elevate it. Hell, you could have Shannon and Boone’s incest and Charlie’s copy machine/vomit receptacle in this episode and they couldn’t bring down those scenes into the muck. It’s that damn good. 8/10.

Disc 7—Bonus Material

What do we got for bonus materials today? Well, there’s some commentary on “Hearts and Minds” from the writers, Somerhalder, and Grace. I didn’t listen to it, but I might go back and do so just to hear their insights on the incest. We’ll see.

As for the stuff on Disc 7, we’re looking at three features under the heading “Tales From The Island.” (FYI, the first six features were all bunched together as “Departure.”) First, there’s “Lost: On Location,” which is split up in a bunch of different parts: “The Trouble With Boars,” which explains how much trouble the animal trainers had with the boars on the show, leading to some CGI boars; and several on the Season 1 episodes “House Of The Rising Sun,” “Confidence Man,” “All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues,” “Whatever The Case May Be,” “Hearts And Minds,” “Special,” and “Exodus,” which explains the sets of these episodes. Not that interesting unless you really care about bee biology. Also, we get an explanation for the incest in “Hearts And Minds,” but not much of one: it sounded like they did it just for the twist. I’ll probably watch that episode with the commentary tomorrow to see if they explain it better there. We’ll see. And, we get the behind the scenes look at the “wonderful” polar bear effects in “Special.”

Next, we have “On Set With Jimmy Kimmel.” Now, one thing I really remember from Season 1 was that ABC did some good promotion for the show when it became a surprise hit. One of the things they did was a lot tie-ins with their late night show Jimmy Kimmel Live. Many of the cast appeared as guests on the show, and Kimmel himself went to the set. Here’s that clip. I love that Kimmel is dressed like Thomas Magnum. The clip itself is okay, not rolling on the floor funny; but it got a chuckle out of me.

And, finally, we got “Backstage With Driveshaft.” It exactly what it sounds like: a featurette on Charlie’s band, Driveshaft. Dominic Monagham explains about what the band is, a one hit wonder that tried to be like Radiohead or Oasis but couldn’t thanks to heroin. They also explain how the song “You All Everybody” came about: "You all everybody, acting like these stupid people wearing expensive clothes" comes from an inside joke amongst several of the writers. Apparently, a woman said this on The Phil Donahue Show and it stuck with them because it was funny.

Well, that’s all for today. I’ll try to review “Hearts And Minds” with the commentary tomorrow, and I’ll definitely have the next four episodes up on Sunday.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Okay, here’s the commentary on “Hearts And Minds”: Boone’s vision quest was done to further bond Boone and Locke. That’s fine, but I think they could have done that in a better way. And, the incest thing was done to give the audience a shocking twist. Well, I have to hand it to them: I never thought I’d see incest on this show. It’s not a great twist, but it is shocking. Though, it is interesting to hear how a TV episode comes about, where the ideas come from, how the other writers on the staff add ideas to one or two writers’ main idea for an episode, and how things change. An example: Boone was originally gonna ingest the hallucinogen Locke gave him, but the writers changed it out of fear that it would give everything away. Smart move. It’s also interesting to hear the actors’ reaction to the episode. Here, Maggie Grace and Ian Somerhalder like it. I would have creeped but gone along with it since I’m on a hit show being filmed in Hawaii. Also, Grace had a great idea concerning Sawyer: have him show up drunk in every character’s flashback. How did they not go along with this idea!? That would have been fantastic! Though, I’m mainly saying that since Sawyer’s my favorite character. Other interesting tidbits: the Locke/Sayid and the Jack/Sayid scenes were added at the last minute because the episode was too short, Somerhalder and Grace were really tied up tight, a nice joke about the monster: “It’s a big buffalo monkey with tentacles.”, how much cream and lotions the cast uses to clean themselves after shooting (they must spend a fortune on that), and the analysis of the incest scene. It’s just weird to hear these people talk deeply about this, but they do through some jokes. So, at least they didn’t take it too seriously. Also, they had actually sold Dr. Locke’s Wacky Paste, would you have bought it? Me: eh, maybe. Well, that’s informative. In fact, I liked that episode better with the commentary.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Season 1-Disc 5
17. …In Translation



Director(s): Tucker Gates

Writer(s): Javier Grillo-Marxuach & Leonard Dick

Plot: Michael has decided to build a raft to get off the Island. However, his plan is thwarted when it catches fire. Michael immediately suspects Jin due to the tension between them. It doesn’t help that Jin has burns on his hands and pretty much flees the scene of the crime. Sawyer finds him and brings him before the castaways to face their wrath. Luckily for Jin, Sun yells out for them to stop in English (Locke also steps in to help Jin). She saves her husband’s life but has also ended her marriage for the time being. Also, there’s some more tension between Boone and Sayid about Shannon.

Flashbacks: Jin gets his flashback time. We see the events of Sun’s flashbacks from his perspective. And, while he does work for Sun’s father, he doesn’t exactly share the same loose morals as him. He misunderstands when his father-in-law wants him to deliver a message to a politician, from whom he got Sun’s dog. So, when Jin has to drive a hitman to the politician’s house, Jin ends up beating the man in front of his family in order to save his life. Jin later visits his fisherman father, who advices him to take Sun to America and get away from her father.

Thoughts: Since the show began, it’s been easy to peg just who these characters are: Locke is a man of faith who believes he has a higher calling on the Island. Jack is a born leader but feels that he needs to save everyone he can. Sawyer is just one charming jackass. Jin is no exception. From what we’ve seen, especially in “House Of The Rising Sun,” he’s a very angry, jealous man. But, we learn that’s not the case from this episode. In the flashbacks, we see that Jin was a nice, caring man who fell in love with a woman; but that woman had a father who wasn’t very nice. To impress him, Jin took a job with his car company and soon learned that it wasn’t entirely legit. Jin got entirely in over his head but had no way. So, he just kept digging himself into a hole until he became the bitter angry man we’ve grown to know at the beginning of the series. But, he only did all this because he’s hopelessly in love with Sun. Just look at the jealousy. He can’t help being jealous of Michael or hating that Sun wants to dress in such skimpy clothing. He’s selfish and only wants her to himself. He’s so much in love with Sun that’s he willing to sell his soul to her devilish father in order to stay with it. Of course, we know the irony that this almost cost Sun to run away. And, the heartbreak Jin feels when he learns of her betrayal and how their marriage seemingly comes to an end…damn! Someone get me some tissues.

This is one of best written episodes of the show; there’s just so much going on in this episode. So many great scenes, like Jin having to drive White, Sun’s revelation that she speaks English, Jin speaking his father after so many years, and Jin volunteering to help Michael rebuild the raft. There was also some good stuff that didn’t involve Jin. I like how everyone was so willing to let Michael just beat the crap out of Jin. Even though Jin hadn’t really made any friends with attitude, it just had this prejudice undertone to it. And, the looks on their faces when Locke accosts them for thinking that Jin could have done it when there are better suspects out there, i.e. the Others: priceless (By the way, Locke’s speech was nicely written and nicely acted by O’Quinn as well). They all acted like their moms caught them sneaking a cookie before supper. Perrineau did some good work in this episode as well. I also like the revelation that

SPOILER: Click to show

Walt burned the raft; I have to admit that I didn’t see it coming.

As for the Boone/Sayid subplot, it was okay. Didn’t really add to the episode but didn’t bring it down as well. And, I really liked how the episode ended with Hurley’s CD running out of power in the middle of Damien Rice’s “Delicate”; that was a nice touch.

Though, I shouldn’t give the writers too much credit. This is also one of the best acted episodes of the series as well. As I’ve said, Daniel Dae-Kim is one of the four best actors on the show, and he really shines in this episode. He amazingly goes from angry to happy to sad to scare in Korean very well. It’s even more impressive after learning from one of the featurettes that Dae-Kim hasn’t really spoken Korean since he was a teenager. Of course, Yunjin Sun was great in this episode as well, especially in the scene where Sun tries to talk Jin into staying. That scene really sold me on how good of an actress she is. There was also some nice acting from the guest stars. John Shin was perfect at Mr. Kwon. That man scary as fuck. He could make you crap your pants just by looking at you (Chil Kong was also scary as White Suit). I also liked Joey Yu as Byung Han. What impressed me was that he was able to sell how powerful and dangerous Mr. Kwon just by the look fear on his face. He looked like he was frightened that he pissed off the Devil. All in all, this is just a great episode. 10/10.

18. Numbers



Director(s): Dan Attias

Writer(s): David Fury & Brent Fletcher

Plot: Hurley sees some numbers from Sayid’s notes on Rousseau’s and freaks the fuck out. He runs off into the jungle. Jack, Sayid, and Charlie follow and eventually join him on his journey to find Rousseau. Meanwhile, Locke asks Claire to help him make something.

Flashbacks: As you may have ascertained, it’s Hurley’s flashback episode. It turns out those numbers that Hurley was freaking out about are his lucky numbers. He used them to win the lottery. However, they don’t exactly bring good luck. In fact, the only good luck they brought Hurley was winning the lottery. After that, his grandfather died, his priest was struck by lightning at the funeral, his brother’s wife ran off with another woman, his mom broke her ankle, the new house he bought her burned down, and he was in a plane crash that stranded him on the Island. Hurley goes on a journey to find out about the numbers, leading him to the mental institution he got the numbers from and then to Australia.

Thoughts: 4 8 15 16 23 42. Those six numbers are one of the most important myths of the show (you Lost noobs can learn more here: lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/The_Numbers, and here: lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/The_Numbers/Theories. And, who would have thought they would have been introduced in Hurley’s first centric episode? From what we’ve seen from him in this season, he’s basically a broad comic relief. The thing about Hurley from my perspective is that he’s like the opposite of Kate for me: I didn’t really care for him until this episode. As I said, he was pretty much a comic relief, especially in some of the middle episodes of Season 1. Remember when he had diarrhea? Ha-harlirious! Basically, the writers were trying to turn him into a comic relief, but they didn’t really give him any good material. He had nice moments with Charlie and Jin, but other than that I wasn’t buying it. Then, this episode came. Not only did he have great comic material, but he also got some good dramatic stuff. Now, to say a word about Jorge Garcia; he’s an okay actor. Not the best dramatic wise, but he is pretty good comic wise. And, he does handle the part where he blows up on Rousseau because she doesn’t know what the numbers mean.

Anyway, as I said, there is some good writing in this episode. The writers came up with a lot of bad shit to happen to Hurley: dead grandfather, house on fire, sneaker factory in Canada burning down, etc. Just good stuff. There were also some great sight gags in the episode: the police showing up just as Hurley was about to call 911, the guy falling from the top of a skyscraper as Hurley talks to his accountant, Hurley yelling at the janitor to stop at the mental institution, Hurley about to explain the numbers to Charlie when a bullet hits a nearby tree. I also liked it when Hurley hugged Rousseau at the end. Who would have thought that would have happened? Another thing I liked is how Hurley kept ignoring Jack, Charlie, and Sayid whenever one of them. That was a nice touch to show just how focused Hurley was on finding out about them because up until then Hurley has usually been one to follow orders. This sudden change shows the importance of them. And good scene about the numbers is when Hurley tells Leonard that he used the numbers to win the lottery. His reaction was very creepy; Ron Bottitta does a good job as the crazed man, and “You opened the box!” line was a particularly good touch. It’s a shame we never got to learn more about him and how the numbers affected his life as Leonard is another unanswered question from Season 1; damn, there sure are a lot of those.

Bottitta isn’t the only good guest actor in this episode. Jayne Taini does a good job in her scene, where Martha Toomey tells Hurley about Sam and the bad luck he received after using the numbers to win a bean counting contest, which led to him committing suicide. It was a nicely written scene, and she played it well, especially when she condemns Hurley for believing that the numbers are curse. That was another good touch about this episode: no one believes Hurley that the numbers are cursed, except for Rousseau, which makes that scene so funny and touching. As for the subplot, with Locke building a baby bed for Claire’s unborn baby, it was okay. A little too sweet for my tastes, but it doesn’t hurt the episode. Also, one thing I did like that wasn’t really tied in with the main plot was Michael and Jin bickering over the building of the raft. Perrineau and Dae-Kim have a great comical chemistry between each other, much like Han Solo and Chewbacca. On the whole, this is a pretty damn good episode. Not as great as the last one, but I really enjoyed it. 8/10.

19. Deus Ex Machina



Director(s): Robert Mandel

Writer(s): Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof

Plot: Locke and Boone continue to try and open the hatch but to no avail. Things get weird for Locke as he starts to have cryptic dreams and his legs stop working. This all leads him and Boone to go out in the jungle, where they find an airplane. Boone goes up into it and discovers Virgin Mary statues filled with heroin and a working radio. Boone tries to contact someone, but the person he finds claims that he was on Oceanic flight 815 and is on the Island. Then, the falls out of the tree it was stuck in, severely injuring Boone. Locke manages to get his legs working again and pulls Boone to safety. Also, Sawyer is having problems with his eyes.

Flashbacks: In Locke’s second flashback, we learn that he’s an orphan and meets his birth mother after all these years. She claims that he’s the second coming of Jesus as she was a virgin when she gave birth to him. Locke doesn’t really believe it and hires a P.I. to confirm her claims. Sure enough, he finds out that he does have a dad, and it’s not the Lord. His real name is Anthony Cooper. Locke meets him and spends a lot of time with him. He soon learns that his dad has kidney failure and needs a new one. Locke volunteers to give him his, and Anthony accepts. After he gets Locke’s kidney, Anthony skips town. Then, his mom comes back, claiming that it was all a con job. Locke is devastated by it and never really gets over it.

Thoughts: What’s this? Another great episode!? Damn! Lost is on a role! And, it’s all about Locke again. Even though we’ve answered why he was in Australia, we did get another question about his condition and how that took place. I thought we’d fine out in this episode, but I wasn’t too disappointed that didn’t happen. We learned something more important about Locke: he has faith but maybe a little too much. He believes that he’s special, meant to do something important. For the moment, he thinks that important something is to open the hatch. But, his faith ends up leading to some dire consequences, i.e. Boone’s death. It makes you wonder: was Locke’s faith misplaced? Locke himself is questioning that as he pounds on the hatch at the end, and that light coming on. Oh man! What a great moment? And, it doesn’t really answer the question. Sure, there is something about the hatch, but we don’t know if that’s necessarily good. As we know, Locke has faith but he does misplace it.

We learn about his misplaced faith in the flashbacks: Locke finds his father, bonds with him, gives him his kidney, and learns he’s been conned. Another great moment. It was very well written (not that surprising as the two main writers are Cuse and Lindelof, the showrunners), and O’Quinn plays it very well. He’s on fire in this episode. I also like Kevin Tighe as Anthony Cooper. The man is so great at playing the charming asshole. He reminds me a lot of Holloway, and that’s no coincidence. There was also some good acting from Somerhalder. His frustration at Locke and his obsession with the hatch. Other great moments in this episode is Locke’s legs not working again (a nice “The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away.” reference), Locke’s dream (talk about creepy and nicely done; the Lost writers do surreal very well), and Boone contacting someone on the plane’s radio and that person claiming to have been on Flight 815 (funny story: I didn’t even hear what the guy on the other end of the radio said and read about it on the Internet; my initial reaction: “That can’t be right!”). This episode also gave us some more questions in the form of the plane Locke and Boone find. I really like the plane because it’s one of the few things from Season 1 that hasn’t really been abandoned by the writers. It doesn’t play much into the main mythology of the show, but it does get answered and leads to some more interesting parts in Season 2.

As for the Sawyer subplot, it doesn’t add much other than comic relief. Honestly, the episode could survive without it. But, I do like it, mainly for how the actors play it. Holloway, Fox, and Lilly really have fun with it and put their all into it. Their enthusiasm with the subplot really adds to it and gets me into it as well. I wouldn’t have like it as much if they looked bored by it. There’s only one real complaint I have with this episode: the age of actors that play Locke’s parents. I got nothing against Swoosie Kurtz and Tighe personally. In fact, I liked them in the roles, especially Tighe. The problem is that they’re only 8 years older than O’Quinn. This is as bothersome as Lorne Greene being 7 years older that “daughter” Ava Gardner in “Earthquake” and Jackie Chan being 8 years older than his “mother” Anita Mui in “Drunken Master II.” It takes me out the story a little. Though, the only solution I could offer is to have a different actor to play Locke as a young man. I don’t know who they could have gotten as O’Quinn has some big shoes to fill. But, that age is just a minor annoyance. 9/10.

20. Do No Harm



Director(s): Stephen Williams

Writer(s): Janet Tamaro

Plot: Jack rushes to save Boone’s life, but his wounds are too severe to be treated on the Island. However, Jack can’t bring himself to let Boone die. Meanwhile, Claire goes into labor, and Kate has to deliver since Jack won’t leave Boone.

Flashbacks: Jack gets a third flashback. We find out that he was married as we see the big day and Jack unable to come up with any wedding vows.

Thoughts: Lost’s roll continues, but it hits a bit of a rough patch here. “Do No Harm” isn’t as a bad “Hearts And Minds,” but it has some pointless flashbacks, like “Homecoming” and “Whatever The Case May Be.” Here, all we learn about Jack is that he was married and that he couldn’t think of anything for his wedding vows. These scenes aren’t bad, some okay acting (especially from Julie Bowen; I’ve always liked her as Sarah), a return for John Terry, and a nice conclusion to it all; but they don’t add a thing to episode, which is pretty good. Jack trying to save Boone’s life was some thrilling stuff. It was like E.R. if they had no access to any medical equipment. Add to that Jack’s incessant need to save everyone (Christian has a great line about that: “You just need to learn to let go.”), and you got some nice conflict. Fox is good in this one, but he comes off a little prickish. I did like his interaction Kim. She plays the voice of reason nicely, and I like the look on her face when she realizes that Jack’s gonna cut Boone’s leg off with the cargo container. She just as good at reacting as she is at acting.

Another great thing about this episode is how Claire goes into labor while Boone is dying. This adds a lot more tension to the episode. And there was a nice shot at the end with everyone congratulating Claire on the new baby while Jack told Shannon that Boone was dead (with that infamous sad score that seemingly plays whenever something depressing happens on the show). I’m not sure if that was a directing idea or a writing idea, but either way, Williams and Tamaro should be commended for it. It also brings up one of Lost’s important themes: life and death and how intertwined they are. You can learn more about this theme here: lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Life_and_Death. Other great things about this episode: that Sayid took Shannon out on a date while her brother died, that made it especially heartbreaking when Jack gave her the bad news; and Boone dying. Now, don’t get me wrong: I don’t hate, and I may not care for him, but I was upset to see him go. However, I was also a little glad since this is the first time a main character died. It added a lot of danger to the show, and it was nice to see the Lost writers finally commit with a death. It was teased with Charlie in “All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues” and Shannon in “Hearts And Minds.” Plus, I liked how Boone told Jack to let him die and absolved him from responsibility for his death.

All in all, this is a fine episode. The only thing that brings it down is the pointless flashbacks. The real problem I have with them is that I don’t really see how they tie in with the Island action like all the other ones. It could be obvious: Hurley’s flashback deals with the numbers, and on the Island, he goes in search of their meaning. Or, it could be subtle: Locke’s flashback about how his father betrayed him is shown to help us fully understand how hurt he feels when Boone dies and he thinks the Island betrayed him. Here, I don’t get how Jack’s wedding deals with him needing to let go. I think they could have come up with a better background story for Jack to go into that. Or, better yet… Now that I think about it, honestly, this episode would be a lot better with out flashbacks. It seemed like these were only added because the writers had established this routine into the episodes and were probably afraid about how the fans would react to them being gone. Looking back, I think they should have gone on with the experiment, which they eventually did in the second season. But, I think they were ready to do it here. 7/10.

Disc 7—Bonus Features

Well, we’ve reached the end of the bonus disc. All four of these come together under the title “Lost Revealed.” So, what just what is revealed? Well first, we have a featurette on the flashbacks. At least that’s what I thought it was. It’s actually two deleted scenes from the Season 1 finale, both show what Sayid and Claire were doing at the airport before boarding Oceanic Flight 815. Claire was drinking a cup of coffee and had a chat with the pilot (Greg Grunberg). It’s a nice little scene that shouldn’t have been taken out of the episode, especially since everyone else got a flashback scene except her. Though, I imagine time constraints kept it out. As for Sayid, we already know a little about what he was doing in the airport before the flight, and that was getting detained by security (Can you say profiling?). Sure enough, as he’s shopping for a tie to look nice for Nadia, security comes up and asks to speak with him for a moment. I liked it. The tie part was a nice touch on Sayid’s Nadia arc. And, just like Claire’s airport flashback, I would have liked to seen in the finale.

Next, we get some more deleted scenes. Why the airport flashbacks couldn’t have been added here I don’t know, but what are you gonna do? Anyway, these scenes are Charlie advising Sawyer that if smoking near the airplane crash is a good idea and the asking for a cigarette; Hurley asking Locke if he wants chicken or lasagna from the plane for supper; Kate and Sayid talking about the monster and the fact the rescue people are looking for the plane in the wrong place; Kate, Sayid, Sawyer, Boone, Shannon, and Charlie climbs up one of the Island’s mountain to use the receiver and Charlie talking to Shannon about Driveshaft; Locke teaching Walt about tells in poker; Shannon and Boone talking about Jin and Sun and Sun attending to Jin’s wounds from the cuffs; Sawyer and Kate talking about Sayid, Jack, and Locke confabbing about Claire; Claire checking over Claire after her return; Kate trying to get Sawyer’s gun after their boar hunt; Sawyer taking Jin back to face the music after the raft burnt down; Kate and Jack talking about Sun knowing English; Michael and Hurley asking Sayid about why Jack attacked Locke; and Charlie and Claire talking about Rousseau and the whispers. Some of these are good, especially the ones with Sawyer, the Hurley/Locke one, and the Locke/Walt. But, some don’t really add a thing to the proceedings, like the climb, Sawyer and Kate’s chat after their hunt, and Kate and Jack’s scene about Sun; which is why there were deleted.

Next is a blooper reel, and a pretty funny one at that. And finally, there’s an excerpt from the salute to Lost that was held at the Museum Of Television And Radio. I thought this would be a typical interview in which they talk about how great the show is, but I was surprised how funny it was. The cast is pretty playful with each other. In fact, I kind of wanna see the whole thing judging from that excerpt.

Well, that’s it for the day. I’ll finish up Season 1 on Tuesday and get started on Season 2 on Wednesday.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Season 1-Disc 6
21. The Greater Good



Director(s): David Grossman

Writer(s): Leonard Dick

Plot: Boone is buried, and during the funeral, Locke reveals how he died and the plane. Jack becomes enraged and attacks him, thinking he’s lying. So, Kate drugs him. Meanwhile, Sayid talks with Locke to see if he was telling the truth, which he was. Sayid lets him off the hook, but Shannon is very upset, blaming Locke for Boone’s death. She even goes so far as to try and kill him. However, Sayid prevents her from doing it. As all this goes on, Charlie takes care of Claire’s baby so that she can get some rest.

Flashbacks: Sayid goes flashbackin’ again. This time we learn why he was in Australia. The CIA and the Australian Secret Intelligence Service want him to infiltrate a terrorist cell which his old friend Essam is a part of in exchange for Nadia’s whereabouts. He agrees and learns that Essam is very reluctant about going through with their planned attack. He thinks he can bring Essam in, but the CIA and ASIS want him to convince Essam to go through with it in order to gain access to the cell’s explosives. He agrees but confesses to Essam at the last minute, causing Essam to commit suicide.

Thoughts: You know, this could just as easily have been a Shannon episode. I understand why it’s a Sayid one; out of all the main characters, he’s the only one who hasn’t been shown doing something in Australia. However, they could have just as easily done that in the next episode, or the first hour of the season finale. Then, again I have no idea what Shannon’s flashback could have been. Still, this is just as much as Shannon’s episode as it is his. For one, she gets to do something other than get a tan, translate for Sayid, flirt with Sayid, and annoy Boone. Here, she grieves over Boone and tries to kill Locke. Also, this is Grace’s best acting job on the show. She’s pretty good as the distraught sister looking for vengeance; the scene where Locke brings her Boone’s pack and then she asks Sayid to kill was a highlight. And, her arc to trying to kill Locke is very believable; Leonard Dick and the other Lost who helped him should be commended for this.

But, as I said, this is Sayid’s episode, and Andrews is great here. I like how he aptly blends the romantic and capable aspects of Sayid. It’s like Sayid is separate personality from his own that he’s able to switch into when the camera’s role. The pain and happiness you see on his face is practically a genuine emotion. And, like with Shannon, he gets some good written material here. The flashbacks are pretty good. The plot of them could have held up a whole movie, I liked how Sayid had to convince Essam to go through with the terrorist attack at the CIA and ASIS’s orders, and it has a nice twist at the end. Well, nice in the sense of shocking and not in the sense of pleasant. I also liked Keshawarz as Essam. He does a good job of selling Essam’s pain over the death of his lover. Though, the best parts of Sayid’s story are the scenes between Sayid and Locke. Such great tension between the two. I hate to sound cliché, but they are pretty much a cat and mouse between someone looking for answers (Sayid) and someone trying to keep secrets (Locke). And, the reveal that Locke knocked out Sayid was a nice touch. I have to admit that I didn’t see it coming when I first saw this episode, but looking back, I feel stupid for not seeing it. All throughout this season, Locke is the one who seemed to be the happiest on the Island. He doesn’t want to leave, and why would he? He’s found purpose and clarity for the first time in his life. Plus, there must be fear that leaving the Island would bring back his condition.

As for the subplot with Charlie taking care of Claire’s baby, it was okay. It was a nice. It added some brevity to a heavy episode. Plus, I liked Charlie’s nickname for the baby (Turniphead), and that Sawyer’s voice was the only way to keep the baby from crying. That’s one cool baby. There’s also some nice stuff with Walt. The scene with him talking to Michael about the raft’s safety was touching. I know I said that I haven’t been impressed with Kelley’s acting, but he has improved a little. And, finally, there’s Jack. He’s insufferable here, but Fox does play stubborn well. And, I liked his blowup on Locke at Boone’s funeral. In fact, that whole funeral scene was nice done. Hell, this episode had one of the best openings of the entire show, mainly due to the emotional content. All in all, this is a good episode. Lost has been on a real roll near the end of Season 1. I did say that Season 1 isn’t Lost’s best season, but it isn’t the worst. It’s like a boxer: it started off slow and steadily, ducking and diving and landing a good punch early on (“Walkabout”). Then, it got beat up a bit (“Hearts And Minds,” “Special,” “Homecoming”). Then, it started to regain it’s composure (“Outlaws”) and started landing more devastating punches (“Deus Ex Machina”). And, as we’ll see, it will win on the judge’s decision. Here, we have one good punch. 8/10.

22. Born To Run



Director(s): Tucker Gates

Writer(s): Javier Grillo-Marxuach (story), Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz (teleplay)

Plot: Michael is almost with his raft and has four spots on it: one for him, one for Walt, one for Jin, and one for Sawyer, who bought his way onto the raft. This doesn’t sit well with Kate, and she seeks to get Sawyer bump. And, that doesn’t sit well with Sawyer. Things get worse when Michael gets sick, and Jack thinks he’s been poisoned. Sawyer quickly becomes a prime suspect. However, Locke suspects Walt, as he destroyed the other raft, but Walt denies it. Meanwhile, Sawyer tries to make nice with Michael, but he isn’t having it, kicking him off the raft for Kate. Upset, Sawyer confronts Kate and exposes her secret: that she’s the fugitive the Marshal was taking back to America. Michael apologizes to Sawyer and gives him his spot back. And, as it turns out, Jack learns that Sun was the one who poisoned Michael on accident, hoping to poison Jin and get him to stay. Meanwhile, Locke takes Sayid and Jack to the hatch and reveals his plan to open it. Sayid opposes it, fearing that it was closed for a reason; but surprisingly, Jack wants to go along with it, thinking it could at the very least provide shelter. However, Sayid’s fears may be right as Walt has a vision and warns Locke not to open the hatch. The vision scares Walt so much that he confesses to Michael that he burned down the raft and wants to leave the Island immediately.

Flashbacks: Kate’s flashback, round 3: We learn more about her criminal past. This time, she wants to see her mom, who’s dying of cancer. But, being a fugitive, that’s very difficult. Luckily, a doctor at the hospital is an ex-boyfriend of Kate’s and agrees to help her see her mom. When she does, the mom yells out for help. Kate runs, knocking over a policeman. The doctor gives Kate his car and insists that she take him with her. Kate hesitantly agrees, but she should have said no as they get into a car accident, and he dies; that toy plane in the safety deposit box of the bank robbery was his.

Thoughts: Well, this was a lot better than the last Kate centric episode. For one, the flashbacks are much better. No cliché bank robbing. In its place, we get some nice touching backstory into Kate’s past. She’s still in love with an old crush, who’s now a doctor. And, her mom is dying of cancer in the same hospital as the crush. She wants to see her mom before she dies. Ah! Doesn’t it just warm the cockles of your heart? Okay, so maybe it’s as cliché as the bank robbing in “Whatever The Case May Be,” but I found it much more emotional, touching, and interesting. There was some heartbreaking stuff: the mom turns Kate in and the doctor dies. It’s pretty sad, and Lilly handles it well. As I said, she had Kate down pat. And, yes, she will get more annoying and less interesting as the show goes on, but here, she’s a-okay in my book. But, the stuff on the Island is a lot more interesting. Kate and Sawyer’s political-like manipulations for getting onto the raft was great. The thing I love about the Kate and Sawyer pairing is that they wanna kill each other as much as they wanna have sex with each other. Holloway and Lilly are just as good when they’re fighting as they are when they’re flirting. And, the kicker is the scene where Sawyer reveals Kate’s criminal past. That was just as heartbreaking as the flashback scenes.

Though, Kate and Sawyer’s power play for the raft spot isn’t the only good stuff in this episode. There’s also more with the hatch. I liked how Jack wanted to open it as well. I see that coming since he and Locke seem to be adversaries now. Though, it doesn’t really make much sense that they would be so friendly after what happened with Boone. But, it is more of an uneasy alliance with the tension boiling underneath. I also liked the scene where Walt finds Locke at the hatch. As I said in the previous episode review, Kelley has improved a little, and this was his best scene to date. I actually freaked out about the hatch as much as Walt did. The reveal that Sun poisoned Michael trying to poison Jin and make him stay was good touch. I also liked the beginning with Arzt trying telling Michael that he should launch the raft soon because of monsoon season. (If he launches after monsoon season begins, then the raft will end up sailing to Antarctica.) He’s a nice character, but I not enamored with him for one reason: he’s only here to answer pointless questions the audience has, like “What are the rest of the survivors doing?” That’s also why I hated Hurley’s diarrhea; it answered the question “How are the castaways eating?” To those who care about such trivial things, why do you care? Who gives a shit!? Why worry about the lesser important castaways and why Hurley hasn’t lost any weight? There are more important things that need to be answered, like polar bears and cursed numbers!

All in all, I really liked this episode. I know all you Kate haters are groaning at that, but I can’t help it. I just enjoyed it a lot. And, it didn’t really have anything to do with Kate. The reason for my like of this episode: the tension. That’s one of the things that’s made Lost so great: the writers and actors have been able to work together to create probably the most exciting and thrilling shows to ever air on TV, and a lot of that has to do with the tension between the characters. The best thing about Season 1 was that a lot of this tension was created through natural character conflict. Jack and Locke have different philosophies, logic and fate. Michael and Jin haven’t really gotten along because language barriers and jealousy. Kate’s a do-gooder, and Sawyer’s a bad boy; they’re gonna clash. I could go on, but these people are very different, and when they clash, it’s explosively entertaining. And, amazingly, it’s mostly natural character conflict that creates this tension, with the mythology stuff in the background. That’s one of the things Lost lost sight of in Seasons 2 and 3: who these characters are and how they would interact with each other. The mythology is interesting, but it can be confusing and frustrating. It needs the character conflicts to keep people watching. Well, to keep me watching. I do like the myths, but I like the characters so much more. It was the characters that made me fall in love with show. To me, the characters and mythology make it a great show. Apart, it’s merely okay. 8/10.

23. Exodus Part 1



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof

Plot: Rousseau shows up, telling the castaways that the Others are coming. Everyone freaks the fuck out, prompting them all to help finish the raft. As they do so, Walt sees the black column of smoke that Rousseau said would signal their arrival. As the castaways speed up the construction, they also decided to tell Rousseau about the hatch and ask her if they have anyway of opening it. She tells them of dynamite at the Black Rock and agrees to take them. So, Jack, Kate, Locke, Hurley, and Artz (a science teacher who previously told Michael that he needs to launch the raft soon) go with Rousseau while the rest stay behind to finish the raft.

Flashbacks: It’s flashback mania as multiple castaways are shown waiting to board Flight 815. We see: Walt and Michael arguing in the hotel room the day before the flight; Jack sharing a drink with a fellow passenger, Ana-Lucia; Sawyer being deported by the Australian government (he punched a very powerful politician); Kate being turned over to the Marshal’s custody before the flight; Shannon waiting for Boone to get their tickets bumped up to first class and unknowingly agreeing to watch Sayid’s bag (she doesn’t and rats him out to security); and Sun and Jin eating at an airport café (Sun spills her drink on Jin and overhears the insults of an American couple).

Thoughts: When, I compared Lost’s first season to a boxer, I said that it won on judge’s decision. What I mean is that, it was well on it’s way to winning and could have easily hit a knock out. But, it didn’t. Still don’t get it? The season finale could have been a knock out, but it wasn’t. It was still good, hence win by judge’s decision. But, it was disappointing. For one, I expected answers. We got them, but I didn’t like them. I’ll elaborate on a point by point basis, starting with:

Question #1: Who’s gonna get the flashback for the season finale?

Answer: Everyone. And, all we learned is what they were all doing before the plane (except for Claire). Not all that interesting. Here are my thoughts on each one of them, including the ones from the next part since this is basically one long three hour episode (I’ll talk about the on Island stuff and have my ranking of Part 1 in the next part):

Part 1:
Walt and Michael in the hotel room: It’s okay but doesn’t tell us anything we don’t already know. Just emphasizes that Walt and Michael don’t get a long because Michael hasn’t been in Walt’s life and he doesn’t respect him as an authority figure. It doesn’t really add anything. In fact, they could have dropped this and replaced it with Claire’s airport flashback.

Jack drinking with Ana-Lucia: This one’s better, mainly for Michelle Rodriguez. I liked Ana-Lucia and was hoping that she’d be a regular in Season 2. Thank you Lost writers for making it so. Anyway the scene’s nicely acted. Rodriguez and Fox have great chemistry.

Sawyer in jail: Nice callback to Sawyer’s cameo in Boone’s flashback. And, I was pleasantly surprised that Sawyer’s real name turned out to be James! I like cool fictional characters with the same first name as me, like James Bond and James T. Kirk. Anyway, it’s pure Sawyer, Holloway at his sarcastic best. So, I liked it. Though, I’m biased toward Sawyer.

Kate in custody: It’s okay. Again tells us everything that we already know. What is interesting about the scene is that we see how much of a dick the Marshal is. He’s a cynical bastard who thinks Kate is more dangerous and cruel than she really is. Though, I have to say that Lilly handled the scene well.

Shannon and Boone: I did like how Shannon turned Sayid in to airport security; it was funny, especially knowing that they ended up becoming would be lovers. Other than that: meh.

Sun hearing the couple: This was okay. Doesn’t really tell us anything, but there was some nice subtle acting from Kim.

Part 2:
Jin in the bathroom: This was pretty damn cool. It made Mr. Paik seem a lot more scary even though he isn’t it. It was also nicely acted by John Walcutt. He was pretty damn scary and handled it well. I wouldn’t be surprised if he speaks Korean fluently.

Charlie in his room: Of all the flashback scenes in these episodes, this one’s the best. Remember when I complained about Charlie’s second flashback and said that Lost did a better job of showing his addiction later on. Well, here it is. The fight between him and his one night stand over the heroin was great, well written and acted. You really get the feel of junkie desperation from it. If they had expanded on this one scene in “Homecoming,” then I would have like that episode a lot more than I did.

Michael talking to his mom: This was a lot better than the first Michael/Walt flashback in this episode. It was nicely written and Perrineau acted it very well. Plus, it shows the tension between the two a lot better than the first one. I also liked the nice Locke cameo in it.

Hurley late for his plane: Remember when I said that the writers turned Hurley into a broad comic relief in Season 1. Here’s good example of it. This is mainly to show that Hurley is cursed. It wasn’t all that funny, except for Hurley’s expression when he learns he has to buy two tickets because of his weight and him buying the scooter.

Locke getting on the plane: This was a pretty good one. I really liked Locke’s reluctant yes to being carried on the plane. He hates that they have to do it, but his only other choice is to wait until tomorrow for the next flight out. O’Quinn plays this flashback well.

Everyone taking their seat: Meh. It’s alright. Doesn’t really add anything to the episode. But, it does look good. And, I did like the shot of Jack and Locke looking at one another. Nice little touch, especially knowing what these two will go through.

Question #2: What’s the Black Rock?

Answer: Now, I said that I would cover the on Island stuff of Part 1 in the part below, but I’m gonna cover The Black Rock here since it was answered in this part: I did not see this coming. I thought it was actually a giant black rock. The Black Rock being a ship that’s in the middle of the jungle no less was a great twist. In fact, it was one of the answers that I pleased with. Interesting thing about the Black Rock: even though it hasn’t really played a huge role in the show, it is huge in the non-canonical Lost material. For you Lost newbies, you can learn more here lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Black_Rock and here lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Black_Rock/Theories. Also, it is one of many things from Season 1 that hasn’t really been brought back into the show. Hopefully, we’ll get all the answers to the questions it’s raised, like how it got to the Island, why it’s in the middle of the jungle, what happened to the people on board, and what not, in the final season.

Also, this is where we get one of the best parts on Part 2: the slow walk back to the hatch with the unstable dynamite. It was pretty exciting, especially when the monster attacked. This is also why I don’t really like Arzt: he’s mainly used to be blown up and show the danger. He’s just a plot point, and I don’t really care for characters that are used as plot points. Though, I did like his comparison of the castaways to high school students; it was nicely written and pretty spot on.

24. Exodus Part 2



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof

Plot: Rousseau, Jack, Locke, Kate, Hurley, and Artz reach the Black Rock, which is a ship. Rousseau leaves to go back to the beach, leaving the rest to figure out how to transport a bunch of dynamite. To make matters worse, all those years in the Island heat have basically turned the dynamite into nitro, which is highly volatile. We see just how as Artz is blown up. Knowing the danger, the four slowly trek back to the hatch to blow it up. This is easier said than done, especially when they are stalked by the Monster. Meanwhile, after the raft is launched, the other castaways head for the Caves. Rousseau returns, sees Claire’s baby, and snaps. She hits Claire and takes it. Sayid and Charlie chase off after her. On the raft, Sawyer and Michael bicker for a while. Then, their radar picks up a boat. They fire their flare and bring the boat to them. Things look good, until they realize that the boat belongs to the Others. They take Walt and blow up the raft.

Flashbacks: More about the castaways before Flight 815: Jin goes to bathroom to clean himself and gets a scary message from an associate from Mr. Paik; Charlie steals some heroin from the skank he slept with the night before his flight; Michael and Walt wait for the plane, and Michael makes a phone call to his mom, telling her that he doesn’t want to take Walt in, which Walt overhears; Hurley wakes up late for his flight and rushes to make it; Locke learns that he has to be carried onto the plane since the machine that would normally load disabled passengers is lost, much to his annoyances; and finally, we see everyone take their seat.

Thoughts: The on Island stuff in Part 1 was great. Rousseau coming to warn the castaways, Sawyer telling Jack that he met his father in Australia, Walt giving Vincent to Shannon, the reconciliation scene between Sun and Jin, the launching of the raft, Vincent swimming out to the raft and Walt yelling at him to go back, seeing the black smoke, all great stuff. And, wonderfully shot, especially the launching of the raft. Jack Bender should be making movies once Lost is over. I really liked how it ended on such a positive note, a nice contrast to all the danger and sad endings we’ve gotten from this show lately. And, I especially liked the shot of the black smoke at the end, a nice reminder that these people aren’t out of the woods yet.

Now, for part 2 and the other questions this finale raised:

Question #3: What does the monster look like?

Answer: Smoke. It’s living, sentient smoke. At least, that’s what we gathered from the glimpse we caught of it; it wouldn’t be fully visible until Season 2. My first reaction to this: lame. A smoke monster!? What the hell!? But now, I don’t mind the smoke monster. As the show’s gotten older, I’ve gotten use to it. In fact, I now like Old Smokey. Though, we still don’t know exactly what it is and how it got on the Island.

Question #4: What’s Rousseau’s story?

Answer: Hell if I know. I was kind of hoping this would be her flashback and we would learn a lot about the Island. That didn’t happen, but we did get the answers to those questions in Season 5. Though, those were a disappointment to me as well. I’ve had this theory that the Lost creators and writers were making this show up as they went along. Now, I’m not so certain. Sure, there’s still evidence to this with Libby and Niki and Paulo. But, now I think they did have big outline of where they wanted to go, but as the years went on, certain elements of it became more interesting than others. To me, I think the writers and creators lost interest in Rousseau and her story, which is why it took 5 seasons to reveal it; and that was only done to answer the fans’ questions and sweep it under the rug.

Though, I did like Rousseau kidnapping Claire’s baby. It was a pretty thrilling storyline and had a nice heart to it as Rousseau takes the baby in hopes of an exchange between the boy and her daughter. It was pretty heartbreaking. It also introduces a nice storyline for Season 2, Charlie’s possible relapse as he learns about the heroin from the plane, and leads us on a red herring, setting us up what we think will be the reveal of the Others. Speaking of which…

Question #5: Just who are these Others?

Answer: Well, we know that they live on the Island. And, now we know they have a boat. And, that they wear rags. They’re also pretty damn smart. They knew about the raft and went for it instead, mainly because they wanted Walt. That was a nice twist written and directed well. The excitement of Michael and his raftmates finding someone out there and the rug pulled from under us when Mr. Friendly says “We’re gonna have to take the boy.” I also liked how they didn’t say that these were the Others. You more or less come to that conclusion naturally. Though, I was kind of expecting more. I thought that they’d be more advanced, not a bunch of people in rags. Luckily, this all turned bout to be a red herring as well.

Question #6: What’s in the hatch?

Answer: A broken ladder that leads to God knows what. Talk about disappointing. I wanted to know what was in the damn hatch! And, all I got was a freaking broken ladder. Plus, I’d have to wait until September to get some real answers! DAMMIT, LOST!!!! YOU REALLY HURT ME, RANDY!!!!

Other great parts of this episode: Walt and Sawyer’s scene about him reading the castaway’s letters; some good performances from O’Quinn, Kim, Dae-Kim, Monagham, Perrineau, and De Ravin; the scene where Claire finally picks a name for the baby, Aaron, and pleads with Charlie to get him back; the rudder falling off the raft; Sun asking Shannon if she thinks if they’re all being punished by being on the Island and Claire answering that “There’s no such thing as fate”; Locke being dragged by the Smoke Monster; Jin giving Michael his watch; Locke’s “man of science, man of faith” speech; the Others taking Walt blowing up the raft; and Hurley trying to stop Locke from blowing up the hatch after he sees the numbers on it. Re-watching these episodes, I have to say that I enjoyed them a lot better than I did when I first saw them. Back then when they originally aired, I was expecting answers and didn’t like what I got. But now, knowing a lot of the answers, I really enjoyed these episodes. They were well written, well acted, and well directed. The only reason I was angry with this finale at first was because I was disappointed. Now that the disappointment is gone, I can fully appreciate the episodes. Part 1: 8/10. Part 2: 8/10.

As for the whole DVD, it’s pretty good. The features are nice. Sure some are your typical making of featurettes, but they did have a lot insight and interesting stuff about how the show was put together. Plus, I was pleasantly surprised by some of them, like the Museum of TV and Radio interview and the commentary for “Hearts And Minds.” I’d definitely recommend this for people who wanna get lost.

Highlight: “Walkabout.” No question about it.

Recommended.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Reminder: I'll start Season 2 tomorrow. Then, I don't know when I'm gonna be able to move on with the next four. Maybe the weekend but work has got a lot of my time tied up.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Main characters:
Season 2:
Dr. Jack Shephard—Matthew Fox (starting with “Pilot”)
Kate Austen—Evangeline Lilly (starting with “Pilot”)
Charlie Pace—Dominic Monagham (starting with “Pilot”)
James “Sawyer” Ford—Josh Holloway (starting with “Pilot”)
John Locke—Terry O’Quinn (starting with “Pilot”)
Hugo “Hurley” Reyes—Jorge Garcia (starting with “Pilot”)
Sayid Jarrah—Naveen Andrews (starting with “Pilot”)
Claire Littleton—Emilie De Ravin (starting with “Pilot”)
Michael Dawson—Harold Perrineau (starting with “Pilot”)
Walt Lloyd—Malcolm David Kelley(starting with “Pilot”)
Jin-Soo Kwan—Daniel Dae Kim (starting with “Pilot”)
Sun-Hwa Kwan—Yunjin Kim (starting with “Pilot”)
Shannon Rutherford—Maggie Grace (starting with “Pilot”)
Boone Carlyle—Ian Somerhalder (starting with “Pilot,” ending with “Do No Harm”)
Ana-Lucia Cortez—Michelle Rodriguez (starting with “Exodus,” ending with “?”)
Mr. Eko—Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (starting with “Adrift”)
Libby Smith—Cynthia Watros (starting with “Adrift,” ending with “Live Together, Die Alone”)
Desmond Hume—Henry Ian Cusick (starting with “Man Of Science, Man Of Faith”)
“Henry Gale”/Ben Linus—Michael Emmerson (starting with “One Of Them”)

Supporting characters:
Rose Henderson—L. Scott Caldwell (recurring, starting with “Pilot”)
Bernard Nadler—Sam Anderson (recurring, starting with “Everybody Hates Hugo”)
Edward Mars—Fredric Lane (recurring, starting with “Pilot”)
Dr. Christian Shephard—John Terry (recurring, starting with “White Rabbit”)
Danielle Rousseau—Mira Furlan (recurring, starting with “Solitary”)
Ethan Rom—William Mapother (recurring, starting with “Solitary”)
Nadia—Andrea Gabriel (recurring, starting with “Solitary”)
Carmen Reyes—Lillian Hurst (recurring, starting with “Numbers”)
Anthony Cooper—Kevin Tighe (recurring, starting with “Deus Ex Machina”)
Sarah Shephard—Julie Bowen (recurring, starting with “Do No Harm”)
Diane Janssen—Beth Broderick (recurring, starting with “Born To Run”)
Mr. Friendly—M.C. Gainey (recurring, starting with “Exodus”)
Dr. Marvin Candle/Dr. Mark Wickmund—François Chau (recurring, starting with “Orientation”)
Cindy Chandler—Kimberly Joseph (recurring, starting with “Everybody Hates Hugo” though she was in “Pilot”)
Jae Lee—Tony Lee (recurring, starting with “…And Found”)
Mrs. Paik—June Kyoko Lu (recurring, starting with “…And Found”)
Goodwin Stanhope—Brett Cullen (recurring, starting with “The Other 48 Days”)
Cassidy Phillips—Kim Dickens (recurring, starting with “The Long Con”)
Alex—Tania Raymonde (recurring, starting with “Maternity Leave”)
Charles Widmore—Alan Dale (recurring, starting with “Live Together, Die Alone”)
Penny Widmore—Sonya Walger (recurring, starting with “Live Together, Die Alone”)
Kevin—Anson Mount (“Man Of Science, Man Of Faith”)
Susan Lloyd—Tamara Taylor (“Special,” “Adrift”)
Finney—Saul Rubinek (“Adrift”)
Helen Norwood—Katey Segal (“Orientation,” “Lockdown”)
The moderator—Jeanne Rogers (“Orientation”)
Francine—Roxie Sarhangi (“Orientation”)
The security guard—Curtis Jackson (“Orientation”)
The waiter—Michael Lanzo (“Orientation”)
Randy Nations—Billy Ray Gallion (“Walkabout,” “Everybody Hates Hugo”)
Johnny—DJ Qualls (“Everybody Hates Hugo”)
Starla—Marguerite Moreau (“Everybody Hates Hugo”)
Mr. Kim—Rain Chung (“…And Found”)
Mrs. Shin—Kim Kim (“…And Found”)
The poor man—Robert Dahey (“…And Found”)
Tai Soo—Josiah D. Lee (“…And Found”)
Mrs. Lee—Tomikee Okhee Lee (“…And Found”)
Sabrina Carlyle—Lindsay Frost (“Abandoned”)
Phillippe—François Guétary (“Abandoned”)
Nora—Ashleigh Ann Wood (“Abandoned”)
The doctor—Michael Cowell (“Abandoned”)
The intern—David Ily (“Abandoned”)
Sophie—Maree Miller (“Abandoned”)
Nathan—Josh Randall (“The Other 48 Days”)
Donald—Glenn Lehmann (“The Other 48 Days”)
Emma—Kiersten Havelock (“The Other 48 Days”)
Zack—Mickey Graue (“The Other 48 Days”)
Man on beach—Jon T. Sakata (“The Other 48 Days”)
Teresa Cortez—Rachel Ticotin (“Collision,” “Two For The Road”)
Mike Walton—Michael Cudlitz (“Collision”)
Matthew Reed—Rick Overton (“Collision”)
Shawna—Jeanna Garcia (“Collision”)
Det. Raggs—Mark Gilbert (“Collision”)
Jason MacCormack—Aaron Gold (“Collision,” “Two For The Road”)
Travis—Matt Moore (“Collision”)
Assistant D.A.—Rand Wilson (“Collision”)
Sam Austen—Lindsey Ginter (“What Kate Did,” “One Of Them”)
Wayne Janssen—James Horan (“What Kate Did”)
Yemi—Adetokumboh M'Cormack (“The 23rd Psalm,” “?”)
Young Eko—Kolawole Obileye Jr. (“The 23rd Psalm”)
Young Yemi—Olekan Obileye (“The 23rd Psalm”)
Ulu—Pierre Olivier (“The 23rd Psalm”)
Goldie—Ronald Revels (“The 23rd Psalm”)
Thug Captain—John Bryan (“The 23rd Psalm”)
The lead soldier—Lawrence Jones (“The 23rd Psalm”)
Tough Moroccan—Moumen El Hajji (“The 23rd Psalm”)
Moroccan #2—Achraf Marzouki (“The 23rd Psalm”)
The priest—Ellis St. Rose (“The 23rd Psalm”)
The Nigerian woman—Cynthia Charles (“The 23rd Psalm”)
Gabriela Busoni—Monica Dean (“The Hunting Party”)
Angelo Busoni—Ronald Guttman (“The Hunting Party”)
Liam Pace—Neil Hopkins (“The Moth,” “Fire + Water”)
Mrs. Pace—Sammi Davis (“Fire + Water”)
Karen—Vanessa Branch (“Fire + Water”)
Young Charlie—Jeremy Shada (“Fire + Water”)
Young Liam—Zach Shada (“Fire + Water”)
The commercial director—Craig Young (“Fire + Water”)
Gordy—Kevin Dunn (“The Long Con”)
Arthur—Finn Armstrong (“The Long Con”)
Peter—Richard Cavanna (“The Long Con”)
Joe Kelvin Inman—Clancy Brown (“One Of Them,” “Live Together, Die Alone”)
Tariq—Marc Cassabini (“One Of Them”)
Sgt. Tony Buccelli—Theo Rossi (“One Of Them”)
Dr. Je-Gyu Kim—Greg Joung Paik (“The Whole Truth”)
Father Chuck—Geoffrey Rivas (“Lockdown”)
Jimmy Bane—Theo Coumbis (“Lockdown”)
Leonard—Ron Bottitta (“Numbers,” “Dave”)
Dave—Evan Handler (“Dave”)
Dr. Brooks—Bruce Davison (“Dave”)
The nurse—Grisel Toledo (“Dave”)
Isaac Of Uluru—Wayne Pygram (“S.O.S.”)
Lindsey—Gabrielle Fitzpatrick (“Two For The Road”)
Chrissy—Melinda Soerjoko (“Two For The Road”)
Richard Malkin—Nick Jameson (“Raised By Another,” “?”)
Joyce Malkin—Melissa Bickerton (“?”)
Charlotte Malkin—Brooke Mikey Anderson (“?”)
Eko’s monsignor—Oliver Muirhead (“?”)
Caldwell—Peter Lavin (“?”)
Dr. Ivan McVay—Felix Williamson (“?”)
Pickett—Michael Bowen (“Three Minutes,” “Live Together, Die Alone”)
Ms. Klugh—April Grace (“Three Minutes,” “Live Together, Die Alone”)
Master Sergeant—Stephen Page (“Live Together, Die Alone”)
Man #1—Len Cordova (“Live Together, Die Alone”)
Man #2—Alex Petrovitch (“Live Together, Die Alone”)

Previously on Lost: The Others went to the raft instead of the beach, took Walt, and blew up the raft. Meanwhile, Sayid and Charlie went after Rousseau and brought Aaron back to Claire, with Charlie taking a Virgin Mary statue filled with heroin from the plane. Meanwhile, Jack, Locke, Kate, and Hurley blow up the hatch and prepare to go inside.

Now, before I get to the reviewing, a little disclaimer: there’s probably gonna be a lot more bad reviews in Season 2 than there were in Season 1. I didn’t really like the second season of Lost when I first saw it. Now, a lot this didn’t really have anything to do with the contents of the episodes. Sure, there were some bad episodes and a lot of filler, but there was some good stuff in this season. And, this is where two of the shows best characters were introduced: Desmond Hume and “Henry Gale,” whom we would know as Benjamin Linus. Plus, it ended with a season finale that surprisingly gave us a lot of answers. It was also pretty touching. In fact, the Season 2 finale is my favorite episode of the whole series. No, the content didn’t really upset me; I was just pissed that the show was giving us more questions than answers, making it frustrating to watch. They just kept us more mysteries and myths, and I just wanted to know what the fuck was going on. Also, it didn’t help that ABC had a weird schedule for it. They would show like one or two new episodes a week and then go on an almost month long hiatus in between. That was really frustrating because the show was speeding up, and ABC kept slowing things down. So, Season 2 wasn’t my favorite. However, I expect that opinion to change somewhat. For one, I won’t have to wait weeks in between episodes. And, I know a lot of the answers to the questions it introduced. So, most of my anger at this season, I’ll be judging mainly on content alone. Though, I still remember there being a lot of filler; so, I don’t expect to fall in love with this season.

[Kermit The Hulk]

So, enough talk, let’s move on to Season 2:

Season 2-Disc 1
1. Man Of Science, Man Of Faith



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Damon Lindelof

Plot: Inside the hatch, a man wakes up, pushes some buttons on a 1970s computer, and injects himself with a serum when he hears an explosion, obviously from Jack, Locke, Kate, and Hurley blowing up the hatch. Locke wants to go in now, but Jack insists that they wait until the morning. However, Locke and Kate ignore Jack’s wishes and go in. Jack follows after and discovers Locke being held at gunpoint by the man who was living in the hatch: Desmond Hume.

Flashbacks: We see Jack meeting Sarah, his future wife, in this flashback. Jack thinks that Sarah has been permanently paralyzed from the waist down. His father, Christian, chastises him for his crappy bedside manner. Later, Jack goes for a run to blow some steam and twists his ankle. Luckily a fellow runner (Desmond) attends to him and gives him some words of encouragement. Then, Jack goes back to tell Sarah that she won’t be able to walk again, but Sarah surprises him by saying that she can feel her legs.

Thoughts: Well, I loved the beginning: Desmond going about his day in the hatch. That made up for not showing what was inside the hatch at the end of Season 1. It was nicely shot, not showing Desmond’s face the whole time. I even liked the use of Mama Cass’s “Make Your Own Kind Of Music.” I wouldn’t have thought to use that song on Lost, mainly because I hadn’t ever heard until I saw this episode. I also like the twist that Desmond was in Jack’s flashback. Nice scene by the way. Henry Ian Cusick was very good in it, so much so that I was elated to see that Desmond was in the hatch because it meant we’d get more of Cusick. Also, it goes back to one of Lost’s big themes: character connections. That connection theme that was introduced in Season 1 got really played up in Season 2. No only did Jack meet Desmond long before their encounter in the hatch, but he was also present at the death of Shannon’s father. As I said, this was a great theme that’s sort of been dropped; and that’s a damn shame. I would have loved to seen where it was going. You Lost rookies can learn more about the character connection theme here: lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Character_connections.

As for the rest of the episode, it was pretty good. And, yes, this is a Jack episode, but he isn’t as whiny and annoying here. Sure, he does come off as a prick in the flashbacks, but that’s because the writers have basically made that into a character trait of his. Also, this was a much more touching flashback than Jack’s wedding in “Do No Harm.” It is a little cliché that Sarah regained feeling in her legs, but we knew that was gonna happen from the previous episode she was in. Plus, Bowen isn’t bad in this episode. She down plays the “woe is me” card well to where it seems natural. Also, Christian’s in this one. I may not like Jack, but I do look forward to his episodes for the chance to see Christian in the flashback. The best part is when he chastises Jack for not being more optimistic in giving patients bad news. Of course, Jack disagrees with him because he doesn’t believe in giving out false hope, which makes him look like an ass. Also, he has some weird hair in the flashback. Matthew Fox should have a buzzcut at all times because that’s where he looks best. As for Jack on the island, there’s a nice scene between Jack and Hurley in which Hurley tells the good doctor about the numbers, his lottery winnings, and his bad luck; which Jack doesn’t really believe. It was played well by both actors. But, the best stuff is Jack and Locke’s growing tension. Their science-based and faith-based philosophies are starting to clash a lot more, which makes for some of the best scenes in Season 2. Though they both come off as smug and prickish in those scenes, both actors play them well.

Also, some other people got to shine in this episode besides Fox. Grace does well playing a scared out of her mind Shannon, and that scene in which she encounters Walt all dripping wet was creepy as fuck. I also like the scene where Locke lowers Kate into the hatch. It was nicely written; I especially liked the part where Kate nearly falls and suggests that Locke pull her up but is lowered down before she can finish her statement and Kate counting to 5 but being interrupted (nice callback to the pilot). All in all this was a pretty good episode. It was thrilling, had great tension, and gave us some more mysteries to chew on in Season 2. I know I complained about the mysteries earlier, but I didn’t mind it here because we couldn’t just dwell on the old mysteries of Season 1. The show has to keep moving forward. I mean, yes, I wanted to know about the Others and the Smoke Monster. But I also wanted to know who built that damn hatch and what Desmond entered into that computer and why. Plus, it didn’t get really frustrating until the middle of the season when the writers just kept piling on more and more mysteries. This was a great introduction for Season 2. It started off strong. And, funny enough, it ended strong as well. Unfortunately, it lagged in the middle. 8/10.

2. Adrift



Director(s): Stephen Williams

Writer(s): Steven Maeda & Leonard Dick

Plot: We see the previous events of the hatch from Locke and Kate’s perspective. After Kate falls while Locke is lowering her, Locke goes in after her. He finds her unconscious in the computer room and meets Desmond. He has Locke tie Kate up and throw her into the pantry. Luckily, Locke was able to slip Kate one of his knives. She escapes into the ventilation shaft. While this goes on, Desmond forces Locke to enter a code, 4 8 15 16 23 42, into the computer when an alarm goes off. Then, Jack enters from where we left off in the previous episode. Meanwhile, we learn what happened with the people at the raft. Michael and Sawyer are struggling to survive on the raft remains. Things get worse as Sawyer’s blood from his bullet wound has drawn the attention of sharks. They survive and manage to drift back to the Island. Then, they find Jin and possibly the Others.

Flashbacks: Michael gets his first Season 2 flashback. Here we see the custody battle between him and Susan over Walt.

Thoughts: And, here is where the lagging begins. In fact, a lot of trends in Season 2 begin here. The most obvious: filler. Here, we see Michael and Susan’s custody battle over Walt. It adds nothing to the show. For one, we already know how it will end: Susan ends up with Walt. We learn nothing new. Second, it wasn’t integrated well into the episode. I mean, the point of them is to show that Michael desperately wants to get Walt back. That is pointless, because we pretty much figured that out when we saw the Others take Walt in “Exodus.” Couldn’t they have shown us something else, like Michael trying to walk again after his car accident? Or maybe something with Sawyer? Why Sawyer? Well, besides being the only other person with Michael adrift at the raft, this episode was originally gonna be a Sawyer centric episode. But at the last minute, the writers decided to go with Michael. Maybe they should have kept it as a Sawyer one. Though, I don’t know what they could have done for his flashback. Maybe the Tampa Job? In fact, why even have a flashback? This episode probably would have been better without one.

Another problem with this episode that would show up in the rest of the season: lots of meandering. All Michael and Sawyer do is bitch and argue as they float on raft wreckage and avoid sharks. It’s like Williams, Maeda, and Dick didn’t know what the hell in this one. And judging by the last minute Michael flashbacks, I’m pretty sure they didn’t. At least it was acted well by Perrineau and Holloway. Now, this episode isn’t their best acting job; but they somehow manage to make the best of the crappy material they’re given. And, I did like the part where Sawyer the bullet in his shoulder. But, that ain’t enough to make me really like the raft scenes. Luckily, things were better in the Hatch but not much better. There, we see the actions from the last episode from Locke and Kate’s action. So, by the end of this episode we’re basically back where we started from at the end of the last episode. And, all we really learned is that the hatch has a pantry filled with food. By the way, nice moment by the writers and Lilly; it got a chuckle out of me. And, these scenes were pretty exciting; I especially like how Locke slipped Kate a knife, pretty sly. But, these scenes are still frustrating since it leaves us back to where we started.

Now, other than Perrineau and Holloway’s acting and Kate finding the food, the only good things about this episode is that the shark has the same logo on its fin that Desmond does on his jumper and the end where Michael and Sawyer find Jin being stalked by some people who appear to be the Others. And, looking back, it’s not a bad episode. The flashback scenes are okay, there were some funny parts to Michael and Sawyer’s raft scenes, and there were some exciting parts. But, this episode is mainly pointless filler. It doesn’t really add anything to the series other than the shark with the logo and the final shot. 6/10.

3. Orientation



Director(s): Jack Bender

Writer(s): Javier Grillo-Marxuach & Craig Wright

Plot: Distracted by Jack and Locke, Kate gets the drop on Desmond, which causes him to shoot off his gun and hit the computer. Desmond freaks out, saying that he must repair it or else the entire world will die. Kate goes to get Sayid, and Jack and Locke watch an orientation video from the DHARMA Initiative, which explains that the numbers must be entered into the computer every 108 seconds. Locke thinks it’s real. Jack thinks it’s a social experiment. And, Desmond just decides to haul ass. Jack follows. Then, Kate returns with Sayid, who fixes the computer. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Island, Michael, Sawyer, and Jin are held hostage by the people they think are the Others. They are soon joined by Ana-Lucia, who was on Flight 815. Sawyer decides to escape by killing the guard, Mr. Eko. However, Ana-Lucia stops him and calls for Eko to let her out, revealing that she and her people are the raft survivors’ real captors.

Flashbacks: Locke gets some more flashbacks. Here we see him falling in love with a woman named Helen. However, he’s still obsessed with his father, Anthony Cooper, and what he did to him; he keeps going to his house. This upsets to the point that she forces Locke to make a choice: her or his father. Locke chooses her.

Thoughts: Finally, some goddamn answers. So, the hatch is actually The Swan, an underground bunker made by the DHARMA Initiative, an organization started by Gerald and Karen DeGroot and funded by the Hanso Foundation, an experimental psychology research group started by Alvar Hanso, sent to the Island on it’s weird electromagnetic properties. The purpose of The Swan is to house a computer that needs a code (4 8 15 16 23 42) to be entered every 108 minutes. But, this also brings up more questions. For one, why do they need to push enter the code every 108 minutes? What happens if you don’t? Also just who is the DHARMA Initiative? Sure we have a brief idea, but there’s definitely more to them. And, where are they? Did they leave the Island? Or, were they killed by the Others? Hell, are they the Others? Did they all go crazy like Rousseau’s people? And, what was this Incident Dr. Candle was talking about? Did it have anything to do with the Others? So many questions! Such an intriguing episode!

But, this isn’t just about the DHARMA Initiative. This is a Locke episode, and it has the return of Kevin Tighe as Anthony Cooper. He only has one scene, but he nails it. O’Quinn is also great in this episode. I love his outburst in the group therapy scene at the beginning. I love his arguments with Jack. I love his reaction to the Orientation film. I love his breakdown at the end. I love his scenes with Katey Segal. He’s just top notch in this episode. Well, except with his argument with Jack. Now, he’s not bad in these scenes, but the writers didn’t really make their conversations pop. And, that’s not just Grillo-Marxuach and Wright’s fault. This was a problem throughout the whole season. I don’t know what happened, but the writers just couldn’t come up with anything good for Jack and Locke to say to each other like they did in Season 1. A good example of this is the last scene, where Locke insists that Jack push the “Execute” button after he comes back. I don’t get. Why does Jack have to push the button to prove his faith? Isn’t the fact that he came and told Locke the correct number good enough? Still, I do think the actors made the most of the material they got. But, these scenes to do show that the writers and actors aren’t that great when it comes to straight melodrama. Lost needs adventure and weirdness to be a good show, both of which the writers and actors handle well. Another example of this: On the other side of the Island, Jin, Michael, and Sawyer are supposedly being held by the Others and meet Ana-Lucia. These scenes aren’t that great. I did like Michael and Sawyer trying to get some info from Jin, but things were really brought down when Michelle Rodriguez came into play. Now, I liked her in that scene with Jack in “Exodus,” but she wasn’t as likeable in this episode as she was in that one. She became more of a hard ass in between. Now, Rodriguez does play hard ass well, but I liked the playful mood she had with Jack back in “Exodus.” I was hoping there’d be more of that here. Unfortunately, the story of what happened to Ana-Lucia on the Island killed all that. Now, as I said in the “Exodus” review, I liked Ana-Lucia. But, I liked her a lot more in that one scene than I did in all of Season 2. And, these scenes do bring down the episode a little.

What also brings it down is some frustration on the parts of Desmond and Ana-Lucia’s people. With Desmond, here we had a guy who had been on this Island for years, and it seemed like he’d be able to give us some answers. But, it turned out Desmond had never really left the Swan for years, meaning that his knowledge of the Island is limited. As for Ana-Lucia’s people, it appeared that they were the others. But, since Ana-Lucia is with them, it appears that they all were on Flight 815, which they were. So, just when it appears that we gonna get some people answers, all we get is people who know as much as we do. And, they all got backstories like the other castaways. At least their stories can fill in the flashbacks. Besides, this episode isn’t all that bad. In fact, the Locke stuff is very good. And, I really liked the tension created with the computer breaking. It added some nice suspense at the end. I also really liked the scene with Jack and Desmond. It was well acted by Cusick and Fox, but Jack comes as a prick. Interesting, he seems just as certain that nothing will happen if the numbers aren’t entered as Locke and Desmond are certain that something will happen. And, it interestingly showed that Jack was divorced. 7/10.

4. Everybody Hates Hugo



Director(s): Alan Taylor

Writer(s): Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz

Plot: Now that they have taken over the hatch, the castaways begin taking shifts on entering the numbers. Jack asks Hurley oversee the distribution of the pantry food. However, he doesn’t want to do it, fearing what the other castaways will do to him. He eventually decides to blow the food up, but luckily Rose talks him out of it. Meanwhile, Claire and Shannon find the bottle of messages from the raft. They give it to Sun, who buries it and loses her wedding ring in the process. Also, Charlie tries to find out what’s in the hatch. And, on the other side of the Island, Sawyer, Michael, and Jin are released and discover that their captors are also survivors from Flight 815.

Flashbacks: We see Hurley on the day after he learned that he won the lottery. He quits his job at Mr. Cluck’s Chicken Shack. His friend Johnny joins him, and they spend the day just hanging out. Then, Johnny learns that Hurley has won the lottery and is hurt by Hurley not telling him.

Thoughts: Damn. More filler. This time, from Hurley. We see what he did on the day after he won the lottery, and it ain’t all that interesting. He just quit his job and hung out with his friend Johnny. Plus, it makes no sense. The whole point is to show how winning the lottery change people’s opinions of Hurley, like how the food distribution will do the same. But, it’s done stupidly. You see, the reason Johnny started hating Hurley after he won lottery had nothing to do with him winning the lottery! It was because Hurley didn’t tell Johnny that he won the lottery. How are we suppose to sympathize with Hurley when he comes off as a bit of a jerk in the flashback? Him trying to blow up the food doesn’t help things either. Thank God they had Rose talk him out of it. This was just the definition of filler. The only real interesting thing about it is that Hurley’s boss is Randy, who would go on to be Locke’s boss. Again, another connection.

Though, the episode ain’t all bad. I loved the beginning. Not too surreal and pretty damn funny to boot. Dae-Kim was great, showing how well he can speak English. And the way he delivered “Have a cluckity cluck-cluck day.” was fantastic; he said it so seriously, like he was reading the news. As for the stuff on the other side of the Island, things have gotten better. Ana-Lucia isn’t as annoying as the last episode. And, I really like her interaction with Sawyer. Plus, it takes us to another DHARMA Initiative station, The Arrow, which was used for planning defense strategies against the Others. Plus, it brought up some interesting ideas with the Tallies. There were 23 of them, but they’ve been widdled down to 5. Along with Ana-Lucia, we have Mr. Eko (played by the wonderful Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), Libby (played nicely by Cynthia Watros), Cynthia (played by Kimberly Joseph), and Bernard (played by Sam Anderson). I liked how Bernard ended up being alive…and white. If there’s one thing Lost has always been, it’s respectful to other races, cultures, and religions, never really portraying them as broad stereotypes. Though, the best thing about the reveal is how well Anderson plays it. I have to admit that I got a little teary eyed seeing it again. Anyway, the 5 remaining Tallies raised the question of what happened to them. It seemed like the writers were implying that the reason there were so few of them was because they did work together like the other survivors. They didn’t live together, so they died alone. Unfortunately, that’s not the direction the show went in. It’s a shame though; that would have made a good story.

Meanwhile, back at the beach, we got Charlie trying to find out what’s up with the hatch. It’s a nice subplot, but I thought it was resolved to easily and earlier. The message bottle subplot was okay. It doesn’t really add anything, but I don’t mind it being here. Though, I really liked Sayid tells Jack about how the Swan’s built, with a thick concrete wall that’s magnetic. It raises more questions about the Swan, but it is intriguing stuff. And, as for Hurley’s plot, I have to admit that it ain’t that bad. Yes, it’s pointless filler, and it doesn’t make much sense; but it’s not the worst episode of the show. It is sweet and poignant in places, and I liked the last shot with Johnny just looking at Hurley with that hurt look on his face. DJ Qualls was actually pretty damn good in this guest role. And, that last scene, where Hurley just passes out the food to everyone, was shot very well. Alan Taylor deserves some props for this episode. All in all, this is an okay episode. Not bad but mostly filler. 6/10.

There’s only one bonus feature on this disc: audio commentary on “Man Of Science, Man Of Faith.” It’s okay and does reveal some interesting insights into the episode. For example, the hatch shaft was completely computer generated with some green screen shots. The special effects team did a good job with that because I couldn’t tell at all. Also, the mural in the Swan was painted by director Jack Bender. Damn! That guy is good at directing and painting. Is their anything he can’t do!?

Well, that’s it for tonight. As I said, I don’t really know when I’ll be able to get the review for the episodes on Disc 2. Probably the weekend, but I’ll have to wait until I get my new work schedule. At least that will allow some time for Netflix to send me the next disc of the Season 2 set. Though, that will be the bonus feature disc. However, I’ll get through it quickly and have my thoughts on them up as I go along.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Bad news: due to my work schedule, it won't be until Tuesday when I'll be able to review Disc 2 of Season 2.

Good news: my local Movie Gallery has Seasons 2 and 3 of Lost. So, to speed things up, I'll rent those from there. It will be quicker to drive there than wait for Netflix to send them. And, I'll probably ended up buying Season 5.

[Kermit The Hulk]

Well, I’m back. Seems like forever since my last review. You know, I originally planned to do this back to back each day, maybe review two episodes at a time. I’m glad I didn’t because of the very reason I decided not to: I was afraid I’d get sick of Lost. And, that hasn’t happen as I’ve actually started missing watch Season 2. I never thought I’d type that. Anyway, let’s carry on with this review:

Season 2-Disc 2
5. …And Found



Director(s): Stephen Williams

Writer(s): Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof

Plot: As the Tailies and the Rafties decide to leave the Arrow and go to the original castaways’ camp, Michael takes off after Walt. Jin wants to go, but Ana-Lucia says no. However, Mr. Eko agrees to go with Jin to find Michael. Meanwhile, back at the beach, Sun frantically searches for her wedding ring, which she lost burying the message bottle.

Flashbacks: Jin & Sun go on the flashback rollercoaster again, but it is their first trip together. We see that Jin was a doorman at the Seoul Gateway Hotel, and he hates his job as his boss wants him to not let any poor people. Meanwhile, Sun has to put up with her mother trying to hook her up with a suitor, Jae Lee.

Thoughts: One of my complaints of Season 2: filler. A lot of the stories in this season are just padding out to end, and a lot of this filler comes in the flashbacks. The flashbacks were necessary in Season 1 in order to establish who are main characters are, how they ended up on the plane that brought them to the Island, and why they act the way they do. Now, in Season 2, we already know all this, and the flashbacks seem unnecessary, yet they’ve been established into the show’s routine; it helped that they introduced some new characters. That’s why we get things like Hurley’s last day as a poor man. However, not all flashback filler is bad. Here in this episode, it’s actually pretty good. I really enjoyed Jin’s flashback; it was a nice story of a man who wants to be a success, but he can’t ignore his roots for better or worse. Sun’s flashback is okay but unnecessary. I do like the banter between Sun and her mom, I like the uneasiness on Kim’s face in the scene where she meets Jae Lee and the heartbreak on her when he tells her that he’s going to marry another woman (some nice acting from Kim), and it introduces a nice recurring character in Jae Lee. He’ll be more prominently featured in later Jin and Sun episodes, and here there is a little foreshadowing to that. Tony Lee, the guy who plays Jae, has some good chemistry with Kim, so there scenes are bearable. But, I could have gone this whole series without learning about her adventures in matchmaking. Honestly, this could have just been a Jin only episode, and it would have been fine. But, I’m not too upset about the inclusion of Sun’s flashback.

However, these flashbacks don’t really tie in well with the on Island action. They seem nice, fluffy, and a little melodramatic, a huge contrast to the suspense and danger of Michael heading into the middle of Other territory and Jin and Eko going after him. Now, I could sort of see Jin’s flashback tying in with this, but it’s pretty loose. And, Sun’s flashback is really out of place with it, but I understand that it’s tying in to her subplot: looking for her lost wedding. However, that also seems out of place here. Just like her flashbacks, it’s a little unnecessary. But, I didn’t hate it, mainly because there were some good scenes between Sun and the other castaways. Her scene with Jack was nice. The one with Hurley was okay and got a few chuckles from me but didn’t add much; the same could be said for the one with Kate. And, I loved the scene with Sun and Locke, who has a great bit of dialogue in it: when he tells her that he found himself on the Island, Sun asks how he did it. Locke answers, “The same way anything lost gets found: I stopped looking.” These scenes were pretty well written, surprisingly by the showrunners, Cuse and Lindelof. Usually, they handle the big mythology episodes. But, they turn out a nice background one here.

But, there is some mythology here in the Others. I liked how they introduced the body of one of the Others they killed; it’s a nice pre-callback to “The Other 48 Days.” That scene where Eko and Jin see the Others walking through the jungle was pretty creepy. Though, it does raise one big question: who are these barefoot others that Jin and Eko saw, and where the hell are their shoes? I know they appear to be primitive, but come on! They have to have gotten shoes by now. Other good moments from this episode: a nice interaction between Sawyer and Ana-Lucia, it’s one of the few likeable moments she has in this season; and Jin and Eko trying to convince Michael to come back with them. It appears that they have decided to help Michael get Walt back instead of going back to the Tailies. Some nice subterfuge on the writers part. All in all, this is a nice episode. It’s not all that necessary and important to the show’s mythos, but it’s a nice break from it. 7/10.

6. Abandoned



Director(s): Adam Davidson

Writer(s): Elizabeth Sarnoff

Plot: Shannon’s visions of Walt continue, and when she tries to tell anyone, they think she’s crazy and hasn’t fully gotten over Boone’s death. This just pisses her off. Meanwhile, Locke helps out Claire with Aaron, much to Charlie’s chagrin. And, the Tailies and the Rafties continue to trek through the Island. However, things become complicated when Sawyer’s bullet wound becomes infected and starts killing him. Ana-Lucia wants to leave him behind, but Jin and Michael refuse and build a stretcher to carry Sawyer. Eventually, they make it to the beach, but things take a horrible turn when Cindy disappears and Ana-Lucia shoots Shannon.

Flashbacks: Shannon gets her first full flashback episode. We see that she was a ballet teacher until her father’s car accident; he was the man who was hit by Sarah, Jack’s wife, in the “Man Of Science, Man Of Faith” flashback (Jack even makes a cameo in Shannon’s flashback). After the funeral, Sabrina, Shannon’s stepmother, tells her that she’s cutting Shannon off, leaving her to fend for herself for the first time in her life. Boone offers to give Shannon money, but she angrily refuses, thus beginning her life of hooking up with guys and conning Boone into paying them to leave her alone.

Thoughts: Aw, poor Shannon. It’s sad to see her go, but she wasn’t all that necessary. I mean, I can’t imagine what more they could say about. And, we pretty much know all about her pre-Island life: she was a rich girl who got cut off and took to tricking her brother into paying off “abusive” boyfriends to leave her alone, knowing that he’ll always do it since he’s in love with her. *shudders* Sorry, bad memories of “Hearts And Minds” coming back. At least she got an okay flashback here to make up for that. But not by much. Shannon’s flashback is pretty much the definition of filler. All we really learn is that her father was killed in a car crash that also involved Sarah, Jack’s future wife; and we already knew that from “Man Of Science, Man Of Faith.” All the flashbacks do is to reiterate the fact that Shannon doesn’t like to be talked down and coddled to and to show that she’s more than a Paris Hilton-type. She’s complicated and has feelings to, you know.

But, her stuff on the Island is considerably better. I liked how she kept seeing Walt, and I would have liked to seen a resolution to this, like her using this connection to the boy to find him. But, I understand why it never went anywhere: Malcolm David Kelley hit puberty fast and was starting to get much older looking. This is a big problem for a show that’s moving at a slow pace timeline wise. It’s only been 48 days since the plane crash in the show even though the show had been on the air for well over a year. So, because Kelley had to go, I’m guessing Grace had to go as well. Tis a shame. And, not just because of the Walt stuff. I liked her relationship with Sayid. Hell, it actually made Shannon a lot more likeable than in Season 1. It would have been interesting if they kept her on.

SPOILER: Click to show

Imagine what would have happened if Shannon survived, got off the Island with Sayid, and they met Nadia.

But it didn’t, and there’s no use complaining about it. What’s done is done. Anyway, this is a nice swan song for Grace on the show. She was pretty good in this episode, and her death was a lot more heartbreaking and emotional than Boone’s, mainly because she and Sayid were beginning to fall in love and then it got snatched away so suddenly. Speaking of which, that scene where Shannon gets shot was nicely done. The confusion and anxiety of the scene was beautifully done with some nice touches like the whispers and Cindy disappearing preceding it. Some nice work from Davidson and Sarnoff.

Also speaking of which, let’s look at the Tailies and the Rafties’ trek through the jungle. There was some nice tension in here if a little obvious; we get it the Tailies and the Rafties aren’t too friendly. But, there is a nice change up with Ana-Lucia hesitant with Eko’s plan to cut inland to get Sawyer back faster to Jack. I also liked how Sawyer’s condition is worsening. It’s a nice red herring because, if I remember correctly, this episode was advertised that someone would die, and with Sawyer getting worse, he seemed like the obvious choice. Plus, Holloway gives a nice performance as well. Though, not all of this subplot is good, and by that I mean Ana-Lucia. This is where she starts to get a little more insufferable and annoying, pretty much the Ana-Lucia we all know and hate. I wanna say more about her, but I’ll get into that when we get to her episode. Anyway, there is another subplot going on with Locke helping Claire out with Aaron and Charlie getting annoyed with it. It’s okay and nicely establish some tension between Locke and Charlie over Claire, especially in their backgammon scene. However, this all leads to a horrible road. More on that later. As for this episode, it’s pretty good. And, yes I did say that Shannon’s flashback are basically filler, but there is some highlights to them, mainly the clashes between Shannon and her stepmother. And, it was nice seeing Ian Somerhalder again. But, still unnecessary. 7/10.

7. The Other 48 Days



Director(s): Eric Laneuville

Writer(s): Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof

Plot: We see the previous 48 days of life on the Island from the Tailies point of view. As mentioned earlier, 23 people survived the tail section’s harsh landing in the ocean. They swim to shore and make camp the best way that they can. However, things soon turn dark when the Others come and start kidnapping people. Mr. Eko kills two of them, causing him to punish himself by not speaking for 40 days. Then, a few of them die from injuries. Then, the Others return to take more people. Ana-Lucia kills another one of them and finds a U.S. Army knife and a list of the Tailies on him, causing them to suspect that one of them is a traitor. The Tailies decide to leave their beach and move out into the jungle. They make camp, and Ana-Lucia builds the cage pit we saw in “Orientation” and puts Nathan in it, thinking he’s with the Others. However, Goodwin releases him and kills him, revealing that he’s with the Others. Ana-Lucia soon figures it out and kills him. Also, we see how the Tailies found The Arrow, that Bernard was the one who answered Boone’s distress call in “Deus Ex Machina,” and how they found Jin.

Flashbacks: There are none here. Though, technically this whole episode is one big flashback. But, we don’t get any that take place off the Island.

Thoughts: So, after the thrilling conclusion of “Abandoned,” what do we get? An entire episode that backtracks to Day 1 on the Island. Why would Lost do this us? To show what the Tailies were doing on the Island, silly. That may have been a disappointment for fans who wanted to see the immediate aftermath of Ana-Lucia shooting Shannon, but “The Other 48 Days” is a huge disappointment. In fact, it’s a pretty good episode. For one, no filler flashbacks. In fact, no flashbacks at all. Like I said, this episode is pretty much one big flashback, but it is the first to ditch the usual Lost episode structure: on Island action, flashback, and back and forth between the two. It’s just a straight forward chronological retelling of what happened to the Tail Section people, and it’s pretty damn exciting. The first scene manage to beautifully capture the frantic anxiety of the crash aftermath in the pilot but not actually rip it off; the Tail Section falls straight into the ocean, almost as if it was pulled, forcing the people inside to swim to the beach.

Also this has a lot more about the Others than we’ve previously seen, mainly because the Tailies had a lot more encounters with them than the original castaways. Either they were closer to the Others’ settlement or maybe they just liked the scenery better where the Tailies landed. Who knows? Anyway, their first meeting with the Others was a lot more intense than the original castaways: Eko kills two of them who sneaked into the camp. Amazing scene. Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje plays it well; he’s great a looking scary. Though, he’s also pretty good in the few scenes he does speak in. In fact, he’s pretty nice. Also, this episode raises some good questions about the Others. For one, why do they kidnap so many Tailies? What are they gonna do with them? Why not take all of them? What was wrong with Ana-Lucia, Libby, Eko, Bernard, and Nathan? Hell, why even take them? Why just go up to them and say, “Hey! Wanna join us!?” And, what’s so special about the Tailies? What makes them such “good” people as oppose to the original castaways? The only person they wanted from the original castaways was Claire; what’s so special about her? And, why did they remain so untouched while the Tailies were picked off like grapes? Are they not as “good” as the Tailies? Well, the answers to these questions: who knows!? These can be added to the list of mysteries that haven’t been answered. Well, except for why they wanted Claire. More on that later.

The unanswered questions this episode raises doesn’t take away from how good it is. It’s pretty much the most exciting and thrilling episode of the show so far. The scene where the Others take most of the Tailies was pretty damn scary. I also liked how they began suspecting Nathan was an Other. By the way, I liked that guy, mainly because I enjoyed Josh Randall’s performance. I would have been okay with him staying on the show. Though, I did like how Goodwin kills Nathan, mainly because he was defending him against Ana-Lucia. The fact that Goodwin was really the Other among the group and he ended up killing Nathan to avoid being found out was a nice twist. By the way, Brett Cullen was pretty good as Goodwin. Another amazing thing about this episode: Ana-Lucia isn’t annoying! Okay, she’s annoying but not that much. It’s more like “Could you just be quiet for a second?” annoying rather than “OH MY GOD!!!! SOMEONE SHOOT THIS BITCH!!!!” annoying. Here, she’s more of a tragic hero type. I think that’s what the writers were trying to do with her character, but they botch it spectacularly. Not here though. That scene where she confronts Goodwin with her suspicions that he’s an Other and the scene where she breaks down and Eko comforts here were both played well by Rodriguez. If they, the writers and the actress, had managed to keep her like she was in these, I wouldn’t have as much of a problem I had with Ana-Lucia as I did. All in all, this is just a great episode. Well written, well acted, well directed. The only problem I have with it is that so many questions this raised haven’t been answered (well, that and the title; couldn’t they have found something a little less generic? I would have called it “Tailies”), but that’s just a minor imperfection in an otherwise perfect episode. 9/10.

8. Collision



Director(s): Stephen Williams

Writer(s): Javier Grillo-Marxuach & Leonard Dick

Plot: Ana-Lucia shoots Shannon, and Sayid witnesses the whole thing. He pulls out a gun on Ana-Lucia, but Mr. Eko stops him from shooting her. Ana-Lucia and Eko subdue Sayid and tie him up. Eko then takes Sawyer to Jack. This causes a huge commotion at the beach and the hatch as Jack rushes to save Sawyer. Meanwhile, Ana-Lucia’s group starts abandoning her one by one. Michael goes first and tells Locke and Jack what happened. They want to go after Ana-Lucia guns blazing, but Eko manages to talk them out of it. Then, Jin, Libby, and Bernard leave Ana-Lucia, leaving her alone with Sayid. She eventually decides to untie Sayid, who decides not to take revenge.

Flashbacks: We get our first Tailie flashback. Well, our first off Island Tailie flashback. We see Ana-Lucia’s life off the Island. She was a cop in the LAPD and is just returning to the force after medical leave; she was shot by a burglary suspect. As she goes back on patrol with her partner Mike, it’s obvious that Ana-Lucia still hasn’t gotten over the shooting. Later, Ana-Lucia learns from her superior, and mother, that they’ve caught the man who shot her. However, Ana-Lucia says that he isn’t the man. He’s release, and Ana-Lucia follows him to a bar and shoots him.

Thoughts: And now, Ana-Lucia is annoying again. And, I do mean “SHOOT HER, DAMMIT!!!!” annoying. She’s just too intense. A particular example is when she pulls her gun on a domestic disturbance call in one of her flashback scenes. I don’t know who’s idea was it for Ana-Lucia to be so goddamn serious! Michelle Rodriguez? The writers? The directors? Who!? Who thought Rodriguez was doing a good job!? Now, I get why she’s such a serious character: she’s had a very rough past as we’ve seen on the show, but that doesn’t mean she has to be intense in every second of every scene she’s in! Someone should have gone up to her and say, “Lighten up a little bit.” And, it’s just amazing how was this character has fallen. She was great in that one scene in “Exodus.” She was okay in “The Other 48 Days.” But here: UGH!!!! Especially since this is a Ana-Lucia episode. Yes, she’s the first of the Tailies to get a flashback episode. I’m not too upset about that. Her flashback story is okay. We learn that she’s a cop, she was shot on the job, and she killed the guy who did it. And, this all serves to show that this woman’s life has been a constant series of bad decisions, and she’s constantly trying to compensate for them. But those compensations end up leading to more bad decisions, which cause everyone in her life to leave her. It’s so tragic. And, if the character was a little more likable I’d care. But, I don’t. Like at all.

SPOILER: Click to show

Though I did like that her mom was her superior officer and that reveal that she was pregnant when she was shot a lost the baby. Those were nice touches.

But, here’s the amazing thing about “Collision”: other than the stuff with Ana-Lucia, it’s actually a pretty damn good episode. For one, it shows the huge contrast between the original castaways and the Tailies. The people on the beach are having a nice time, eating fruit, playing golf, and just hanging out. Plus, they got some cool new places to sleep in The Swan, which even has a record player and LPs. Though, they’re bad LPs (apparently DHARMA Initiative has never discovered good music) but still. The only problems they’ve encounter is one Other taking Claire, Boone’s death, and the polar bears. Meanwhile, the Tailies have been abducted and attacked, leading to constant fear and paranoia. And while they did a DHARMA Initiative structure, The Arrow is pretty sparse and crappy compared to The Swan. It’s painfully poignant and beautifully wrapped up in the reunion scenes of Walt and Vincent, Jin and Sun, and Rose and Bernard.

Plus, there’s some great acting here as well. Well, not from Rodriguez. Okay, so she ain’t terrible but just needs to tone it down. Andrews is great in this one. I love the simmering anger he displays throughout. And, his refusal to kill Ana-Lucia is the cherry on top of it all. I liked how Fox, Lilly, and O’Quinn reacted to meeting seeing Mr. Eko and Sawyer nearly dying. Locke and Eko’s first encounter was a particularly nice touch: they just say “Hello” to each other. Lilly is really nice when she has to get Sawyer swallow some antibiotics. Akinnuoye-Agbaje is particularly good in the scene where he convinces Jack to not go after Ana-Lucia with guns. He has a great straight forward, deliberate delivery that makes him sound pretty convincing. There’s even some good acting from the guest stars as well, most notably Rachael Ticotin as Ana-Lucia’s mother and Michael Cudlitz as Ana-Lucia’s partner. On the whole, this is a pretty good episode. Ana-Lucia’s parts bring it down, a lot. But, there other parts of the episode bring it up considerably, enough to warrant a 7 out of 10.

Disc 7—Bonus Features.

Much like I did with the Season 1 DVD, I’m gonna look at the bonus features on Disc 7 as I go along. I like how this disc is set up, as if it’s part of the DHARMA Initiative orientation film we saw in “Orientation.” All the features are separated into three parts: Phase 1, 2, and 3. I’ll guess we’ll just start with Phase 1, Observation:

There are three features here: Lost: On Location, The World According To Sawyer, and Fire + Water: Anatomy Of An Episode. I’m just gonna look at two of them; I’ll save the Fire + Water feature for when I get to that episode because I have a lot to say about that one. Good God almighty do I have a lot to say about that episode. Anyway, Lost: On Location is pretty much like the feature of the same name from the Season 1 DVD was like. It’s split up into different parts, each focusing on different Season 2 episodes: “Adrift,” “Everybody Hates Hugo,” “Abandoned,” “Collision,” “The 23rd Psalm,” “The Whole Truth,” “Dave,” “S.O.S.,” “Two For The Road,” and “Live Together, Die Alone.” These basically show how the episodes were filmed and how some of the ideas for them were created. For example, it was Naveen Andrews’s idea for Sayid and Shannon to hook up. They’re all mainly just your typical behind the scenes features. But there is some good stuff in them. There’s a funny story in the “S.O.S.” one: apparently actor Sam Anderson kept moving rocks long after the crew yelled cut and walked off. The one for “The 23rd Psalm” brings up one of the best aspects of Eko’s arrival on the show: he is a man of faith, like Locke. But, there is a big difference between their faiths: Locke is a more philosophical, paganistic faith that mainly lies in the Island. Eko has a more religious based Catholic faith; he believes the Island can do amazing, but it’s more of an instrument of God and not the Island itself doing these things. I’ll get a little more detailed about this as we go along.

Next is “The World According To Sawyer,” which just goes into great detail about all the nicknames Sawyer gives to the castaways. This one is great, mainly for how it contains almost every one of Sawyer’s great lines from the first two seasons.

Well, that’s all for today. And, good news! You’re not gonna have to wait several days for the next set of reviews. I’ll have my thoughts on the next 4 episodes up tomorrow and the 4 after that on Thursday. See you then.