LOST Podcast: The Transmission

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Jen’s LOST Flashback: “Pilot” Jul 13, 2007

Show notes

I have always found it curious that the first time we meet Jack Shephard, he’s in the middle of the jungle, completely dry. After all, that’s exactly what Ana Lucia says to Goodwin right before she kills him in season two. I find it even more curious that the second person (um, dog) we meet is Vincent. I am convinced that that dog is either the devil incarnate or the savior of the universe. I haven’t decided which.

The first person whom Jack encounters is Kate. The way Kate has changed throughout the series is kind of frustrating. In the first part of season one, Kate is awesome. Kate is tough and cool and doesn’t take any of anyone’s nonsense. It’s clear that the writers of the show intended Kate to be the main character. When the pilot is seemingly chewed up by the monster and spit out? That was supposed to be Jack. The leadership role meant for Kate went to Dr. Giggles, which left Kate a little bit nowhere.

Jack, however, was clearly on the road to becoming his dad. We see it in this pilot episode, and we see it even more throughout the series. When he playfully teases Cindy the Flight Attendant, I can see Christian Shephard in him. The fact that he’s stashed two mini-bottles of vodka in his pocket is not accidental. He would surely have ended up just like his dad, if not for the crash. Speaking of Christian Shephard, we still don’t know why he’s appeared on the island. He seems to be some kind of manifestation of Jack’s past, conjured up by the island, but three seasons on, we still don’t know, exactly.

We’ve gotten to know all of the central characters inside and out, through the flashbacks and through the events on the island. Our initial impressions of all of them have changed. Except for Michael. Michael is just generally unpleasant through his two seasons on the show. His distrust of Locke seems so random and out of nowhere. Which is weird, since Locke is trying to help Michael to be the dad he wants to be.

I’ve probably watched this pilot five times, and I never noticed this thing that happens in the background–Charlie, Sayid, Shannon and Kate are all sitting on the beach and Charlie asks about sunblock to nobody in particular and Shannon says, “oh, I have some”. I love that. It’s a little throwaway moment that makes the situation more real. There’s talk of monsters and polar bears and still, someone is getting sunburned and wants sunscreen. I’d never noticed it before, but it made me smile.

My second favorite scene in this episode is toward the end. Sawyer is sitting inside the broken, burned-out engine casing by himself, reading the letter he’d written to the man who we now know is Anthony Cooper. We haven’t yet learned that Sawyer is not quite the heartless scoundrel he thinks he is. Knowing what we know about Sawyer now makes that scene especially sad.

Notes:

So, does Walt make the rain stop? Michael promises Walt he’ll go find the dog when the rain stops, and it does stop, as quickly as it starts.
Naveen Andrews looks like a totally different person in this episode than he does in the finale of season three. It seems like his face changes not only from season to season, but from episode to episode.
The crash sequence never stops being scary. You see in three times in the pilot, and it’s horrifying every time.

Top Five Character Turns Jun 21, 2007

Show notes

For all the mythology and mind-bending moments, the heart of “LOST” are the characters, their stories, the way they interact and evolve. Looking back at Season 3, here’s our picks for the stars that shone the brightest.

5. Juliet
She’s working for the bad guys, but she’s conflicted about it. Or, at least, we think she is. Elizabeth Mitchell is so good as Juliet. We can empathize with her, but she’s still a mystery. Even as we see her betray Ben, we can’t help but question and doubt her loyalties. We don’t trust her, but we love her all the same.
4. Ben
He’s creepy, dangerous, unstable, impotent, brilliant and funny all at the same time. We’ve seen him helpless on an operating table, we’ve seen him coldly order people murdered. Who’d have thought the poor, helpless guy Sayid was beating on last season was a manipulative mastermind? And the dude killed his own dad. He’s eeeevviiiiil.
3. Sawyer
His parents’ death is the defining moment in his life. The ease with which Cooper dismissed him was enough to push him over the edge. He finally gets what he wants, but ends up more conflicted than ever. Meanwhile, in his scenes with Kate, he’s like a sweet, confused teenager.
2. Sun
We love Jin and Sun’s story. We love how twisted it is. Why Sun didn’t come clean with her dad about Jin’s mom, we’ll never figure out… but it sure was fun to discover that Jin only became a hit man because of her. Yunjin Kim better get a lot more screen time next season. After all, her pregnancy means her days may be numbered.
1. Locke
His journey seems central to the entire premise of “LOST.” He questions fate, his faith wavers, he yearns to be someone special â€“ a deep desire that others repeatedly exploit â€“ yet struggles to come to terms with the fact that he might be. The Others are ready to welcome him as the second coming. And while all the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815 want to get off the island, but Locke doesn’t want to leave. He knows a lot more than he’s letting on.

Top Five Twists Jun 06, 2007

Show notes

Jen and I pick our best shockers and surprises from the third season of “LOST.” What are yours?

5. Juliet was a plant. We kind of figured she was up to something, but in the closing scenes of “One of Us,” when we see her getting her marching orders from Ben, our jaws dropped. Of course, a couple of weeks after we learn she was a spy, she pulls a double-double cross and undermines Ben instead.

4. Ben shoots Locke. Absolutely shocking. We could hear the entire island gasp. Nobody really believed Locke would die, but when Ben left him in that mass grave, we truly didn’t know what would happen. That he lost all hope, only to have Walt suddenly materialize to draw him back out, was doubly surprising.

3. Tie! Anthony Cooper, Locke’s dad, is the “real” Sawyer. And Christian Shepherd, Jack’s dad, is Claire’s dad too. Fans have been speculating about these since last season. Of course, the “answers” add a whole new set of questions. Just the way we like it.

2. The “Red Sox” scene. We finally see that the island is not purgatory, part of a dream, or in an alternate universe. Add that to Ben’s brief “live feed” of Juliet’s nephew in the park, and the mysterious Naomi’s late arrival, and we can be fairly confident that life in “the outside world” is still going on without the lostaways.

1. The “We need to go back” scene. Or, as the show’s creators called it, “the snake in the mailbox” moment. Jack’s season finale flashbacks turn out to be flash-forwards, and the last two minutes of Season 3 suddenly turn the whole “LOST” universe on its head. Our survivors are rescued, and get off the island… but we still don’t know how, and we’re even more intrigued by the fact that Jack comes to agree with Locke and Ben: leaving the island was a mistake.

Season Three in Review May 30, 2007

Show notes

The “LOST” withdrawal symptoms are setting in. For this, our first of about thirty Wednesday nights without a new episode, Jen and I take a look back at the last twenty two. ||| SEASON THREE felt like two separate seasons, largely due to the experimental, six-episode “pod” that aired last Winter before a two-month break. That first set was well-written and laid the groundwork for the Others we’d grow to know and love, but it’s safe to say it made for a shaky, slow start.

But once “LOST” returned to the full slate of familiar characters, elegantly folding in a great bunch of new faces, the magic was back. And unlike the ill-fated tail section survivors (Ana Lucia? Mr. Eko? Remember them?), the Others turned out to be mysterious and compelling. Now, loyal “LOST” fans will always put the original cast first. But we dare say that Elizabeth Mitchell’s Juliet and Michael Emerson’s Ben stole nearly every scene they were in. Mitchell, in particular, would get an Emmy Award. If we could give out Emmys, that is.

Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Sayid, Jin, Sun, Charlie, Claire, Hurley, Lockeâ€¦ all our old friends charmed us, and experienced real growth this season. Sun’s role in Jin’s tortured life as a Korean hit man was fantastically done. The answer to the question of how Locke ended up in his wheelchair did not disappoint. We learn Jack and Claire are half-siblings, and that Sawyer and Locke both owe their conflicted lives to the same con artist. And Locke’s evolution from hapless, bumbling pawn to pivotal leader was great to watch.

Now, we’re not the biggest fans of the ‘love triangle’ business. But we gotta admit, the Kate-Sawyer-Jack subplot brought us great moments of both the sweet and steamy variety.

Meanwhile, the underlying mysteries of “LOST” started to surface. The DHARMA Initiative, the healing properties of the Island (and its paradoxical threat to pregnant women), and in the last few weeks, the mysterious Jacob and hints at some of the larger powers at work.

We’re not able to forget the stakes, either, as we bid a bittersweet farewell to Charlie. Once again, the writers brilliantly make us fall in love with him all over again before killing him off. Meanwhile, not every new character was welcomed with open arms. Season 3 also gave us Nikki and Paolo, a pair that never did fit in and vanished as suddenly as they appeared. Their Hitchcockian, spider-bite send off wasn’t very sentimental, but it was hilarious.

Desmond’s “flashes” were also an interesting development, and definitely started to push “LOST” into tried-and-true science fiction territory. We’ll have to wait and see whether Charlie’s death (or the concussion Charlie administered in the canoe) puts an end to his visions.

But the season finale, and the mind-blowing twist the creators called “the snake in the mailbox,” truly showed the brilliance and ambition of the “LOST” universe. In a show where anything can happen, they still do something that no one could’ve imagined. We see Jack and Kate in a flash-forward rather than a flashback, alive but not quite well off the island. And Jack wants to go back.

We long had visions somewhat troubling visions of the last episode of “LOST” being a rescue and a warm and fuzzy stroll into the sunset. Inevitable, we figured, but we hoped for something more. Well, Season Three closes with that long-awaited rescue already made… and a lot, lot more story left to tell.

Season three of “LOST,” frankly, is one of the all-time best seasons of television. And that makes the nine-month wait for season four even harder. But now, more than ever, we’re hooked.

Through the Looking Glass May 23, 2007

Show notes

“LOST” has spawned a million theories. A show grounded in simple, human drama, but swirling with so many mysterious and supernatural elements that you know anything can happen. And yet, I don’t think anyone could have imagined where tonight’s episode has taken us. We were promised a “game changer,” and a game changer we’ve got. We know we’re only halfway through the grand arc of “LOST,” yet we’re given a glimpse of what we thought was the natural endpoint of a “stranded on a tropical island” story. Suddenly I’m willing to entertain even the most ridiculous, crack-pot theories. Because I have no idea where “LOST” will take us next.

I admit, I’m a spoiler fiend. And even Jen, who valiantly went spoiler free the last few weeks, couldn’t resist. We read about the big twist, “the snake in the mailbox,” last week. Tonight’s season finale, fortunately, was still powerful enough to leave us speechless. But we do somewhat regret depriving ourselves of the chance to have our minds totally blown. Lesson learned. At least for Jen.

Alas, Charlie’s reprieve last week was short-lived, and he dies… having passed on one of the biggest twists yet. His character’s journey was a roller coaster, with some seriously deep dips… but the writers did well by him in the waning weeks of this season. It’s tough enough to lose someone who has been aboard since the beginning, but he met an especially bittersweet end. No, it didn’t look like Charlie had to die. That burst porthole would have taken half an hour to flood The Looking Glass, more than enough time for him to stroll over to Desmond and help him into some SCUBA gear. So he chose to die. On the debate over “free will versus destiny,” I guess he falls in the latter camp.

Hurley’s bus-powered rescue was spectacular. His moment of triumph was extra sweet, after he was cruelly rebuffed by his friends tonight (and last week as well). And when he called Jack with the news? That he saved everybody, including Sayid, Jin and Bernard? Probably one of the best rushes I’ve ever felt with “LOST.”

Speaking of great moments, Alex and Rosseau’s reunion was something we’ve been waiting for since Alex surfaced in Season Two. It was as powerful as we’d hoped, and one that hopefully opens the door to some great character development in the seasons to come. I dare say never in the history of television have a mother and daughter been more perfectly cast than Mira Furlan and Tania Raymonde.

Wonder of wonders, Walt returned, ushered in by the mysterious whispers. He restores Locke’s hope at the very moment he’d lost it all. It was good to see David Malcolm Kelly again… but he’s definitely not a kid anymore. The odd angle and strange voice effect didn’t help. Still, he made sure Locke survived and remains a central character in the “LOST” master plan. His return, in the midst of Ben’s collapsing authority, is a tantalizing tease for Season 4. And his line to Jack, resigned over his making contact with the ship, seemed to strike the deepest of any uttered on this show:

“You aren’t supposed to do this.”

And Penny’s brief conversation with Charlie proved that Naomi isn’t who she said she was (and proved that Ben wasn’t entirely lying). Ben’s desperate last pleas to Jack, that making contact would be the “beginning of the end,” also seem to have been borne out, when we see Jack OFF THE ISLAND! broken and desperate and now yearning to return.

I… I don’t know what to say. Jen?

So they’ve been rescued.

My biggest fear is that the series would end MASH style: with tears and hugs and emotional dialogue about fear and destiny. I could see them all getting on the boat and riding off into the sunset, and it scared me.

It’s safe to say that that’s not going to happen now.

We’ve thought we were headed somewhere, but we were wrong. I admit, this season took forever to get started. I was wondering what the whole point of the six-episode “pod” was, and while I think it might have been dragged out a little bit far, I can still see in retrospect where they were going. Ben and company might be the “good guys” after all. The finale made me reexamine everything we’ve learned about all the characters so far, especially The Others.

Season three of Lost, to me, is one of the best seasons of television ever.

Notes & Notions:

Who died? Whose funeral had no visitors? Who’s neither family nor friend to Jack (and elicits a sneer from Kate)? Benjamin Linus seems a likely guess. Looks like this will become one of the key mysteries of the seasons to come. And I suspect the journey to the answer will be even more delicious than learning how Locke ended up in a wheelchair.
Jack’s crack about his dad being drunk, and presumably alive, was very, very curious. Was he just so whacked out on drugs that he forgot Christian Shepherd was dead? Or is dad… not dead? (Jack also seemed rattled when the pharmacist said she’d call Christian to verify the prescription.) In fact, Jack’s sorry state seemed to be a continuation of the downward spiral we’d seen in his pre-crash flashbacks. Kate, meanwhile, seemed to have settled down with someone, and didn’t appear to be in prison or on the run. I’m not a “time loop” fan at all… but these are pretty juicy morsels for someone to suggest that some of the things we’ve seen happen now didn’t happen.
The code to disable the jamming signal was “programmed by a musician.” Was that a big clue, or just another way to cement in Charlie’s mind that it was his destiny to do what he did?
Some fantastic lines. Rose threatens, “If you say, ‘Live together, die alone’ again, Jack, I’ll punch you in the face.” And Juliet’s quip about building runways for aliens was priceless.
What is the deal with Mikhail? (Cyclops!) He just won’t die. At this point, I’m fairly sure we’ll see him again in Season 4.
Links: “Through The Looking Glass” discussions at TheFuselage.com, Lost-Forum.com, and Pop Candy

Greatest Hits May 16, 2007

Show notes

By popular demand, Jen takes the reigns again! Charlie, up until now, has not been one of my favorite characters. There just isn’t much to him. He’s a junkie, who came thiiiiis close to being successful but never quite made it. It took four Charlie-centric episodes in which nothing happened to bring us to the point where we can appreciate him again. Charlie is likeable, if not a little messed up, and Dominic Monaghan was remarkable in this episode. The look on his face when Naomi told him about his memorial service was priceless.

But the rumors loomed large. I think we were all expecting Charlie to buy the farm tonight. So by the end of the episode, I was alternately weepy and buzzing on some kind of pumped-up sugar high. It’s a weird way to watch this show. And when his lone checkered sneaker floated away? I was a mess.

This hiatus is going to be hell.

You know who else I love? Sayid. He’s the only one on the island, it seems, who is willing to go toe-to-toe with Jack. “You said earlier you were a a leader, Jack. Why don’t you act like one.” [Ryan: Then again, remember what happened the last time Sayid “took charge” of an ambush stolen yacht, anyone?] I know he’s a resourceful dude, but I’m wondering where he got that map of the Looking Glass.

I’ve got “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” stuck in my head. Help!

Still, Jack displayed some cojones tonight. I am so glad he went to Rousseau. I had major doubts about Rousseau this season, but my faith in her is restored. Even if she is only motivated by the chance to reunite with her daughter, she can be trusted. I think. This show continually surprises me with the way I feel about the characters and Rousseau is the best example of that. She comes out of nowhere, stirs up the survivors, disappears, reappears fast as a flash, possibly after being up to no good, and turns around and does something unexpected. She’s my new favorite character. For this week. She’s fearless and quiet and just a general badass. Personally, I wouldn’t have wasted the dynamite on the tree, but whatever works.

I don’t know who Alex has been talking to, but she’s onto Ben. I will not be surprised at all if she gets him killed. If she has learned about her mom, who is her source? There’s a whole lot of time unaccounted for, and I think it’s gonna make a heck of a flashback.

The leadership crisis back at the Others’ camp is intensifying. Alpert is clearly suspicious and Ben refuses to answer any questions. We have not yet begun to see Ben’s bad side, I bet. [Ryan: Even after he gassed his dad and shot the Second Coming?]

And I think we’ve discovered the Other Others. Fans have long speculated about a second group of folks hanging out on the island. Are the two ladies in the Looking Glass affiliated with that group? If not, who are they?

Notes and Notions:

What is with Jack’s hair? There are a lot of bad wigs and confusing hair on this show, but Jack takes the cake. He’s had a close buzz cut for three months and it’s just now starting to grow out.
I always tell Ryan that Rousseau and Alex could be mother and daughter in real life. They look eerily alike.
Yay for Rose and Bernard! I missed them.
Maybe I’m insane, but to me, the second woman in the Looking Glass looked like Cassidy. I can’t even begin to imagine how Cassidy fits into the Other Others, though.
Links: “Greatest Hits” discussion at TheFuselage.com, Lost-Forum.com, and Pop Candy

The Man Behind the Curtain May 09, 2007

Show notes

Because Ryan is a slacker, this week’s blog post is by Jen! I have to admit; I am now very, very nervous. We’re in the last four hours of season three, and in this episode, we encounter an invisible man and another man who appears not to age. We see Ben’sd ead mother, somewhat confirming that Christian Shepherd’s reappearance on the island was not a figment of his son’s imagination. I’m wondering where all this is going.

The Others are much scarier and more threatening than I could have imagined and the survivors’ distrust of each other and lack of communication skills will certainly be their undoing. Jack, the de facto leader of the survivors, is the world’s biggest rube. The fact that such a spineless nitwit is a doctor, let alone that everyone seems to look up to him, is frightening.

Locke is some sort of Messiah. At least, Ben thinks Locke is some sort of Messiah. This scares and angers him. We see that Ben was a sneaky, sadistic S.O.B. from the very beginning, so what he does to Locke at the end of “The Man Behind the Curtain” is shocking, but not surprising. We found out a lot about Ben in this episode, but there’s certainly way more where that come from. Despite what he and Mikhail say, Ben is the most powerful man on the island, at least for now. He feels his power slipping and is resorting to some pretty drastic measures. I still think, despite what went on in Jacob’s cabin, that Ben is pretending to be under the sway of Jacob, whoever he is, and is using Jacob to intimidate his minions.

Few things on TV scare me. That one episode of The X-Files with the malformed lady under the bed made me sleep with the lights on for a week, and just the mention of Bob on Twin Peaks can still send chills up my spine. Other than that, I considered myself relatively scare-proof. Until the Jacob sequence in this episode. That was the scariest moment in the whole series so far. I don’t know who that figure is in the stills making their way ’round the net, but I’m too chicken to figure it out. I got the impression that nobody besides Ben had ever laid eyes on Jacob. The expressions on Tom and Alpert’s faces upon hearing about Locke’s impending visit make me wonder if they doubt Jacob’s existence, too.

Ben’s own daughter seems suspicious of his motives. Has she caught on? Why would Locke need a gun for a visit to someone who has previously been described as a loving, benevolent leader? I think she’s got his number, but how?

Where has Danielle been, anyway, besides looking for dynamite?

A volcano is coming into play. I don’t think the volcano is as dormant as Olivia tells the children it is. The ring of powder around Jacob’s house looks like ash.

Speaking of Alpert, he’s been on that island for quite a while. He asks Ben, “Do you remember birthdays?” as if he’d stopped keeping track of them long ago. Why does Ben age, but not Alpert? I find it interesting that it seems as if Ben has become his superior.

Who is this Horace character? Is he Gerald De Groot? Horace Goodspeed sounds like an alias to me. Was De Groot in trouble with the law?

So Ben’s mom dies in childbirth, seven months into her pregnancy, much like the rest of the pregnant women under his watch on the island. I don’t know about you guys, but the whole baby/fertility subplot gives me the willies. I really hope Kate is not, in fact, pregnant.

Notes and Notions:

Shut up, Kate. Sayid has more on the ball than you and everybody else in your camp combined, so stop talking to him like a child.
Locke has got a bad, bad temper. Terry O’ Quinn plays Locke with such a great combination of hapless pathos, magical wisdom, and rage. We’ve been raving about Elizabeth Mitchell and Michael Emerson all season, but Terry can still blow me away, too.
I still get a kick out of the fact that everyone on the island has either a dead parent or an evil parent or both. It’s like a big Disney movie, times fifty. I like to think it’s Damon and Carlton’s way of sticking it to the bosses at ABC. But it probably isn’t.
How can Uncle Rico be so mean? No, Uncle Rico! Take that back!
Like Kate, Ben kills his own father. Locke tells Kate in “Left Behind” that “they” don’t approve of what she’s done. Considering what Ben did to his old man and what ultimately happens to his body, Kate’s murder of her dad doesn’t seem like the kind of thing they should be concerned about. So what is this really all about?
“The Man Behind the Curtain” discussions at TheFuselage.com, Lost-Forum.com, and Pop Candy

The Brig May 02, 2007

Show notes

This was ostensibly a Locke episode, or at least one that caught us up on his last week on the island, but it was Josh Holloway’s James “Sawyer” Ford that lent it its power. It was absolutely key to learn that some Others think Locke is a saviour of some sort, that Ben may or may not support that idea, and that Richard Alpert is so up to something. But for all the clues and information churned out in “The Brig,” the one-on-one confrontation within is what sticks with me most.

There were obnoxiously unsubtle Biblical references tonight, from Sawyer’s bloodied, bare feet to Locke’s bearing of his father’s cross on his back. And of course Sawyer’s mother’s name was Mary. Locke’s hand wound healed fast (which Jen found reminiscent of “The Lost Boys”), and Ben suggests that his proximity is restoring his health. The fact that Ben brought the camp to the base of a pillar or shrine to sacrifice Anthony Cooper (in front of an audience, no less) was immensely creepy. Alpert implied that Ben’s relatively recent focus on fertility is a mere trifle, that there are bigger things in play. I’m certain he’s right.

There was also a lot of talk about death, of course. Anthony Cooper quite reasonably concluded he was in hell — perhaps the only explanation for coming face to face with your “dead” son mere moments after a major car crash. (It’s a good thing his crash was in Florida and not L.A., otherwise hardcore conspiracy theorists would simply explode.) Naomi fills in a few more blanks on the supposed fate of 815, including a watery grave four miles down and a fuselage full of bodies. I suspect the purgatory theory, the oldest “LOST” theory on the books, will get another round of attention… but I personally feel that the writers are specifically (and for the umpteenth time) debunking the purgatory theory by explicitly addressing it. They’ve done the same for “it’s all Hurley’s imagination” and “time travel,” but I suspect some will never give up on those theories, either.

Once again, Sayid gives us one of the most satisfying conversations of the season by merely sitting down and asking straightforward questions. I loved his reaction to Naomi telling him that Desmond, and not 815, was the target of her search. The details of her arrival — the freighter, the helicopter crash, the fancy phone — are good. Almost too good. I, for one, don’t fault Sayid for being skeptical.

Meanwhile, it’s official, no one trusts Jack, bringing us to the brink of the leadership crisis hinted at early in Season 3.

Still, it’s hard to decide just who to strangle first. Sayid, for spilling the beans to Kate, despite having the most mistrust of anyone. Kate, for running to Jack exactly 0.8 seconds after Sayid told her not to. Or Jack, for being in cahoots with Juliet. It turns out they’ve got a shared secret, one that’s relevant to possible rescue and may redeem Juliet, but given the information anyone has it’s preposterous he’d insist Juliet can be told anything.

And now that Sawyer has Juliet’s recorded message to Ben, things will likely get uncomfortable to her, and perhaps even Sun, next week.

Notes and Notions:

What did Ben mean by saying, twice, that it was Locke who brought Anthony Cooper to the island? How so? Anthony Cooper’s story of the crash and drugs and needle have Richard Alpert’s fingerprints all over it, but how could that have been set into motion by John Locke?
Jen’s still unclear on why the Others were so interested in Anthony Cooper’s demise. Did it matter whether Locke did it or is a Sawyer strangulation just as good? Both Ben and Alpert (who may or may not be on Ben’s side) imply that Locke needed to be free of him, but Alpert gave Locke the tool to get the job done without getting blood on his hands. Given how the island seems to look upon killers, this little switcheroo may turn out to be significant.
Because this wasn’t a Sawyer flashback, it was probably a challenge to demonstrate how conflicted he was over confronting and killing Anthony Cooper. Yet, we felt it, right down to the guilt-ridden puke in the bushes (which Michael also did after offing Ana-Lucia and Libby). The question is, what’s next for Sawyer? We’ve come to expect that once someone’s “issue” is resolved, they’re not long for the island.
Like Alpert, Rosseau similarly resurfaces suddenly and is up to no good. There are many, many things a crazy lady can do with dynamite. I loved that Locke warned her, “Be careful, it’s unstable.”
“The Brig” discussions at TheFuselage.com, Lost-Forum.com, and Pop Candy

D.O.C. Apr 25, 2007

Show notes

“On this island, the rules are a bit different.” I guess so, since the character who spoke the line was presumed dead. Fortunately, that was the only detail that annoyed Jen, who otherwise agreed with me in declaring “D.O.C.” another excellent “LOST” episode. We’re totally loving the reversal revealed in Sun’s flashback that Jin’s tortured career was the result of her meddling as well as the confirmation that Jin is the unborn baby’s father. Yunjun Kim’s scenes with Elizabeth Mitchell were fantastic, and Jin’s ninja moment was impressive. Finally, of course, the woman who drops from the sky drops the pre-thud bombshell: “They found the plane. There were no survivors. They were all dead.”

No doubt the time loop, alternative universe, and purgatory theorists will have a little spring in their step tomorrow, but I’m putting my money on some kind of con. Either the plane crash wreckage and bodies were faked or falsely reported (for a reason), or Little Miss Parachute is messing with our survivors.

She did speak a language only Mikhail understood, for example. And it was her flare gun, accidentally fired by an uncharacteristically clumsy Hurley, that summoned Mikhail to the scene. And was it just me, or did she seemed more shocked than anyone to see Mikhail (just before the “Pulp Fiction” moment). Perhaps she too was under the impression that our Russian communications officer was permanently retired?

He seemed to want that satellite phone. But at the same time, his taking it and then giving it up seemed awfully contrived. Perhaps he was after something else? I’ve pretty much convinced myself that he expected the flare and the parachutist (and was only surprised to find Desmond, Hurley and Charie with her).

I liked that early in “D.O.C.,” we’re shown that seeds of doubt over Jack’s loyalty are firmly planted among the other survivors. He was with them for a week, he seems different, he’s asking about a pregnancy on a baby-obsessed island. As even outsider Juliet seems to be building trust within the camp, it’s clear there’s going to be a leadership crisis as Season 3 draws to a close.

Frankly, I find it a little implausible that Sun would be suspicious of Jack but would follow Juliet into the forest. But, follow she did, down into the Medical Hatch which seems straight out of a horror movie. Juliet reveals the secret Nursery of Death behind the locker room, and reveals Sun’s “Date Of Conception.”

These scenes were among my favorite this season. Sun and Juliet, alternately cold and hard and guilty and vulnerable, their faces capturing a whole palette of emotions within a few moments. At this point, if Elizabeth Mitchell doesn’t get an Emmy nod, there’s going to be rioting in the streets. And the ultrasound? When Juliet was devastated by the very same news that made Sun weep with relief and joy? How perfect was that moment?

Of course, after feeling some compassion for Juliet, we’re again reminded that she’s in the midst of a reconnaissance mission for Ben. (And a “sample” is required of Austen… since she did mate in captivity with Ford.) But she’s not happy about it.

Season 3 has been great. I don’t know where the next four episodes will take us, but I’m just about ready to put all skepticism aside and just surrender myself to the ride.

Notes and Notions:

Sun and Juliet stole the show, but Jin’s father’s conversation with Sun was well done as well. So natural and believable, I didn’t even realize it had subtitled Korean dialogue until I went back to watch it again.
I love Desmond’s line: “You know, brother. By my count, you’ve killed more of them than they’ve killed of you.”
Kate is turning out to be a remarkably good source of information all of a sudden. She apparently told people about Mikhail and his manner of death, and told Sun about the Medical Hatch. So, whether we see it on screen or not, it’s clear the writers are telling us that these characters do talk. Sometimes.
Location Notes: The canal where Sun met with Jin’s mother was along College Walk behind Chinatown in downtown Honolulu. I watched them film this scene, and posted photos here. Of course they returned to The Contemporary Museum space for Mr. Paik’s office. Mr. Kwon’s village is the ponds at Kualoa (mere yards from where the Others’ submarine was moored). I’m not sure where Mr. Kwon’s home was, but I think it’s in the same area the canal scene was shot.
“D.O.C.” discussions at TheFuselage.com, Lost-Forum.com, and Pop Candy

Catch-22 Apr 18, 2007

Show notes

One thing’s for sure, Desmond episodes are different beasts entirely. Most of the way, I wasn’t exactly sure where “Catch 22” was going, and while I loved some of the a-ha moments, tonight’s episode really felt more like half of one. Of course, that’s to be expected as we near the season finale. Jen admitted to being somewhat “meh” on it, too, with Kate’s return to Sawyer feeling more like fan-fic than canon. But with flash forwards mixed in with everything else, It’s hard to compare “Catch 22” to the usual fare. I have to say, “Catch 22” made “Flashes Before Your Eyes” seem all the more brilliant.

Key points in tonight’s episode? Yet another new face on the island, for one… and the mind boggles at how many more ways the writers are going to come up with to do that. But the biggest clue was small, by “LOST” standards: the photo on the friar’s desk.

Oh, sure, it was sweet to see how Desmond and Penny met. But the friar’s talk of Desmond being destined for bigger things was a direct echo of Mrs. Hawking’s jewelry store lecture in “Flashes.” And the picture cinches it: larger forces are in motion to steer Desmond to the island.

This raises more questions, though. Why was Desmond chosen? And when? On the brink of marrying Ruth? Was his blackout and street encounter with the monk part of the plan? Or was it even earlier? And what is his greater destiny? To push the button? To not push the button? Or something else entirely?

Everything else was gravy.

I loved the Bernard shout out, and Jin’s ghost story. Jen liked the Superman v. Flash discussion, even though we heard it twice. Desmond’s mention of taped-up ankles was a nice reference to his running encounter with Jack, and I loved Charlie’s sarcastic reaction to the satellite phone’s failure. “Shocker.” Sawyer found a too-cute loophole in his “no nicknames” deal, and had the night’s top line, “”What, my doorbell busted again?”

The unsubtle mentions of life on the beach somehow getting back to normal was defused well enough: “Enjoy it,” Jack said. “I’m sure something will go wrong soon enough.”

The numbers resurfaced (108 quid per bottle of wine), and heavy Bible talk. Desmond failed where Abraham did not, we presume by not sacrificing Charlie. One wonders, then, how the journey into the forest would have differed had Charlie taken the spear in the neck?

Notes and Notions:

While the photo of Mrs. Hawking and the friar on the desk was a big deal, we also have confirmation that there are, indeed, now two copies of the Desmond and Penny picture. Desmond had his crumpled one, and the book in the backpack revealed a pristine copy. The first time folks questioned whether there were two photos (when the waterfront photographer gave them only one), I figured it could just be a goof up. Now that the two photos have been prominently introduced, I’m convinced something bigger is going on.
So the helicopter didn’t make it to the island, running out of gas or mysteriously dying offshore, crashing much like every other ill-fated vessel that’s ventured near. But the parachute and high-altitude suit and mask imply that the mysterious traveler anticipated a rough landing.
Jen’s not sure what frustrates her more: Jin’s sporadic and sudden grasp of English, or the repeated use of the “language barrier” comedy schtick.
Has Jen mentioned recently that the love triangle (or trapezoid or whatever) stuff similarly grates?
Location notes: Most of the flashback took place at the St. Andrew’s grounds, the same church where Charlie sought redemption and where Mr. Eko was sent on his miracle mission.
Links: “Catch 22” discussions at TheFuselage.com, Lost-Forum.com and Pop Candy.

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