Greetings Losties!
Apologies for the long hiatus -- between Lost taking a week off, and me taking a week off (I totally blame my new puppy, Lucy - she tries to chew on my computer cord every time I pull it out!) - and every time I've sat down to write this, she gets needy. Oy... MAJOR apologies that this is coming out so late - but better late than never! Right now, she's snoozing peacefully on my leg - so we're all good until she wakes up!
It's been awhile since we've connected! Kind of like Sun and Jin... except WAAAAAAY different!!!
Argh! Sun... Jin... SAYID! Wow...
So, I'm still raw and stingy after last week's epic installment. Not one, not two, but THREE characters (and MAJOR characters, at that!) were eliminated from our plot last night. Possibly four, if you count Lapidus (but souces online say that he's alive and well - albeit, soggy). WHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!?!?!?!?!
I mean, I knew it was going to happen. I read spoilers, I read gossip, I KNEW that at this point in the season a bunch of the major characters would die -- I just didn't know who, when, why, or how. Now, I've got my answer for three of my favorites. And boo. Those weren't the answers I wanted! I don't want to watch all my Lost-ies die - it's like watching close friends die. I mean, we've spend about a bazillion hours with these people - digging deep into their characters, their pasts, their souls, and now they're gone. And it seriously hurts.
I have to say though, THAT is the power of good storytelling! Bravo to Damon and Carlton - we've waited all season for this flash-sideways timeline to be explained, for questions to be answered, and as we draw nearer and nearer to the climax of the series, the payoffs are starting to happen. And while we may not like the end results (i.e. dead Sun and Jin, evil/good Sayid, Feral Claire, etc.) things are starting to wrap up. We're ripe for some serious jaw-dropping in the final few episodes - I mean if last night made me cry like a baby, then what will the finale illicit? I'm scared to find out! I may need to take the following day off of work to pick up the piece of my shattered life. I'm hoping not, but it could totally happen.
So, last night we got to major storylines where a lot happened!
TIMELINE A (Off-Island)
Locke is healed by Jack after Desmond hits him with his car. Then, Jack says that Locke is a "candidate" for a new procedure that could help him walk again. Locke declines, and this makes Jack curious about how he wound up in a wheelchair in the first place. Jack does some digging, finds Locke's dentist via his dental records
and it turns out that Jack and the dentist were on Oceanic 815 together. Oh yeah, the dentist is Bernard (who seemed like he has some weird knowledge that Jack doesn't - but maybe I'm misreading because I love Bernard). Yay, Bernard!
and it turns out that Jack and the dentist were on Oceanic 815 together. Oh yeah, the dentist is Bernard (who seemed like he has some weird knowledge that Jack doesn't - but maybe I'm misreading because I love Bernard). Yay, Bernard!
Somewhere in there, Jack finds out that Claire is sans accomodations and invites her to stay with him -- they're family. They share a mirror moment - in which you'd expect som
e iota of clarity to cross them - let this be the moment where the timelines connect for Jack? But no, it's just a music box and a mirror. But it does play "Catch a Falling Star..." -- coincidence? Never! Nothing on this show ever happens by accident!
e iota of clarity to cross them - let this be the moment where the timelines connect for Jack? But no, it's just a music box and a mirror. But it does play "Catch a Falling Star..." -- coincidence? Never! Nothing on this show ever happens by accident!
Bernard points Jack to Anthony Cooper (Locke's Dad and the man Sawyer is still looking for) - 
who is catatonic in a nursing home. Later, Locke admits that it's his fault that Cooper's a vegetable -- he had just received his pilot's license and was taking his Dad on the first flight. The plane crashed, creating Veggie Cooper. Therefore, Locke doesn't feel he has the right to get to walk, and chooses to remain paralyzed.
who is catatonic in a nursing home. Later, Locke admits that it's his fault that Cooper's a vegetable -- he had just received his pilot's license and was taking his Dad on the first flight. The plane crashed, creating Veggie Cooper. Therefore, Locke doesn't feel he has the right to get to walk, and chooses to remain paralyzed.
John says that he told his father to "Trust me." The same way Jack begged Sawyer to trust him on the sub later...
Interesting... Locke CHOOSING to remain paralyzed. Something about that sentence sticks in me and makes me think. Is Locke choosing 
to remain paralyzed the equivalent or connecting idea of on-island (real) Locke's obsession with destiny? Or something in that vein? I'm having trouble clarifying my feelings with words on this one, but something tells me that Locke choosing to remain broken will mean something in the long run.
to remain paralyzed the equivalent or connecting idea of on-island (real) Locke's obsession with destiny? Or something in that vein? I'm having trouble clarifying my feelings with words on this one, but something tells me that Locke choosing to remain broken will mean something in the long run.
Also, the when Jack says, "What happened, happened" John gives a little glimmer of recongition. He's heard that line before! But what really stops him short in his wheelie tracks is when Jack says, "I wish you believed me." He stops, glaring in some serious recongition - that's the line he wrote to Jack in his suicide note. But he moves on, and the story stops.
Oh, and (even after their soggy on-island end) we see Jin bring a large bouquet of roses to Sun - who has apparently just given birth - yay, Ji-Yeon!
Timeline B (On-Island)
Subtitle: The plot we REALLY care about
Jack wakes up in the outrigger. Sayid tells him their on Hydra island, and he's lucky he didn't have to paddle. Damn... It SUCKS to be Sayid right now! Think about it, he's totally Flocke's bitch! He runs around doing Flocke's errand-boy stalking, boat-paddling, and well-shooting (which we find out he didn't do - but still, he was tasked with it). I can see why he'd totally take a bomb to the chest, but that's later...
Anyway, back at the polar bear cages, Widmore's people are putting the Losties into the cages. Sawyer breaks free and holds one at gunpoint, but Widmore himself steps out of nowhere and puts a gun to Kate's head -- citing that she's not on his list, and is therefore expendable. Sawyer, having seen the big wall, knows Kate's not on the list so he regretfully allows them to be locked up.
While the cages are a throwback to the Sawyer/Kate love affair - the love we witness this time is Sun and Jin's -- they've been reunited and it feels so good! He inquires about Ji-Yeon, and finds out that his daughter is safely living with Sun's parent's (this is a key bit of information that I feel informs his later, traumatic decision). She gives him back his ring - that's she literally carried through time and space to bring back to him. Now that's some loyalty! They vow to never be apart again - famous last words...
Now, at this point it really seems to me like Widmore is trying to protect the Losties -- he's locking them in a super-safe cage, surrounding them by anti-Smokey pylons -what could possibly go wrong? Well... apparently Old Widdy forgot that the pylons are operated by an electrical generator - one that can easily be unplugged! I say "easy" if your name happens to be Sayid and you happen to be an ex-Iraqi Republican Guardsman. But, as luck would have it, one of our Losties fits that bill - so he unplugs the generator, Smokey roars into town killing everyone he can, and Jack frees the captives. I totally said Jack's line before he did though, thus ruining the funny moment when the Losties are starring at Smokey in fear (as he guts several of Widmore's henchmen) and Jack ominously replies, "I'm with him."
If the writers of Lost can be faulted in any way, it would have to be at their attempts to bring levity to dark situations via humor. They SUCK at this! Remember the Sun and Jin reunion, capped off by Lapidus' lame-ass comment - "Guess, someone remembered how to speak English!" Oy. Vey. Stick to the drama people!
With the group reunited, Flocke reveals the plan -- they're going to blow up the airplane and steal Widmore's submarien. Hey! That was Sawyer's plan! Smokey's a plan-stealer, he is! Sawyer notes this and pulls Jack over for a little chat -- Jack is hell-bent upon staying on the island. Sawyer's okay with that, as long as he helps Sawyer and his buddies get to the sub and keep Flocke OFF the sub so they can escape. Jack agrees.
Flocke is the first to reach the plane - finding is guarded by a few of Widmore's cronies. While they shoot at him, he deflects their bullets, walks up and snaps their necks - woah! Intense! He then enters the plane and finds it already rigged with C-4 - ready to explode!
Unbeknowing to us, Flocke grabs some C-4 and saves it for later...
As the group heads to the sub, the plan starts to unfold. At the dock, Kate gets shot -- causing Jack to follow her into the sub to help fix her wound. But not before he manages to knock Flocke into the ocean - thus preventing Flocke and Claire from getting onto the submarine. Jack didn't intend to box Claire out, but after Widmore's men started shooting, she became the island sharp shooter and had to go Annie Oakley on their asses. Thus, when Sawyer's forced to make a choice -- Claire AND Flocke, or neither, he chooses neither.
Somehow, prior to this, Flocke manages to make a switch. He changes out Jack's backpack, for his own. As Flocke holds Claire back from trying to chase the sinking sub, he ominously tells her that she doesn't want to be on that sub. We'll find out why VERY soon!
Down in the sub, Lapidus and gang have gotten the captain under control (via holding him up at gunpoint) and Hurley's been sent on a search for the first aid kit - so they can tend to Kate's gunshot wound. However Hurley must not have been looking very hard...!
See the pic below to see what I mean...! It's RIGHT next to Lapidus! And seriously, did you catch how absolutely no one even asked if he was okay, after the whole sub-sinking? I'm concluding that deep down, everyone might love Hugo, but they downright loathe Frank Lapidus!)
So, Jack looks inside his backpack for something to help stop the bleeding -- but, d'oh! It's not his backpack! It's FLOCKE'S BACKPACK! And, it's not stocked with medical supplies -- it's filled with a block of the C-4 attached to a watch timer (that we saw Flocke steal from one of the guys he killed at the plane) - NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Sayid, always a soldier, analyzes the situation and informs the others about how to disarm the bomb. Sawyer's ready to do the deed, but Jack (now the Man of Faith) stops him and tries to get him to understand that Flocke can't kill them - that he's trying to get them to kill each other instead. He BEGS Sawyer to trust him, and since that was the same line he used in the Jughead situation that got Juliet killed, Sawyer's like "OH. HELLLLL. NO!" and totally tries to disarm the bomb.
Sawyer pulls out the wires and for a moment, the bomb appears to have stopped! But, then it starts again - only FASTER! And since they're already diving and it will take at least five minutes for them to resurface - five minutes that they DO NOT have. Shiiiizzz!!!
What are they going to do?!?! Sayid makes a choice. Despite his apparent trip to the dark side, Sayid tells Jack that Desmond's in the well - ALIVE - and that Flocke wants him dead, so he's got to be important. Jack asks why Sayid is telling him all of this, and Sayid, prophetically states, "Because it's going to be you, Jack." Does he mean that Jack is the candidate?!? That's what I took from that statement - and that Jack's going to be the one to go toe-to-toe with Flocke in the final showdown. That, and "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Sayid don't do iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!!!!"
But he did.
With that, Sayid grabs the bomb and HAULS ASS down the narrow passage of the sub, to the end farthest away from his friends. The bomb explodes and Sayid is no more.
Woah.
It was so fast, so explosive, and yet so heart-wrenchingly painful.
As the rest of the group tries to escape - things go wrong. Lapidus gets knocked out by a door - his whereabouts are unknown (for now). Sawyer screams, "What about Sayid?!?" And Jack screams back, "There is no Sayid!" That line killed me. I started crying - it felt like I'd been punched in the gut. No more Sayid? I don't want to watch Lost without Sayid!!! He's the resident badass - NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Jack sends Kate with Hurley, along with a buddy-air tank, and they make their way to the surface. Side note: I wish we could have seen that footage, since Hurley isn't known for being the swimmer of the group - cannon ball, anyone? It would have been an interesting recuse to watch! Sun is trapped behind a large console, and then locked underwater by some random sub pipes - NOOOOOO! Not good! Jack, Sawyer, and Jin try to free her, but it's not working. As the water rises higher and higher, somehow Sawyer gets knocked out and Jack is forced to help him.
And then it happens, Jin realizes that Sun is permenantly stuck. She's not going to escape. He makes his decision and tells Jack to leave, without him. Jack doesn't want to - believing he can get everyone out - but Jin, is insistent.
When they're alone, Sun begs Jin to leave - the unspoken context of this exchange being, "Ji-Yeon - one of us has to survive for the baby!" - and yet, Jin remains true to his promise. They will never be apart again.
She implores him, but he silences her with Korean, "I will never leave you again." I lost my shit when he started speaking in Korean - it was so pure, so honest... I'm tearing up right now, a full week later, just thinking about it. Such a tender, sweet sacrifice - true love in action. This scene KILLS me. Even watching it again for the recap, is SO incredibly painful. I love Jin and Sun - probably even more now that they're gone.
The sub sinks, and only after their souls have departed from their bodies, do Jin and Sun unclasp hands. Epic, seriously epic.
As a viewer, I feel like I've lost three friends this week. And it's heart-wrenching...
But I didn't break down into a sobbing baby, until we go back to the shore. Hurley has somehow (miraculously) morphed into an Olympic swimmer and managed to save both himself and Kate. Jack revives Sawyer, and the two pairs are reunited. Kate seems to have made her choice (choosing Jack) as she runs (as best a girl who's been shot in the shoulder and near-drowned in a submarine explosion can run) to Jack panting, "I couldn't find you, I couldn't find you..." He hugs her tight.
After Hurley and Jack assess Sawyer's condition, Kate asks the questions we've been dreading about Jin and Sun. Where are they? And, I totally felt the same way as I did when Hurley was doing cannon balls at the beginning of Season 4. You know, when Hurley's celebrating being rescued, just before he finds out that his best island buddy, Charlie, is dead. I sobbed like a baby then, and again now. When Hurley suffers, we all suffer.
Anyway, Kate asks and Jack can't answer. He just shakes his head. A lone tear starts Hurley's sob fest, but then he breaks down in earnest. And with him, all of us.
Jack makes his way to the ocean, and looks up at the sky - almost as if talking to the island. In my head, his inner monologue was saying - if this is what's supposed to happen? Have I brought ALL my friends back here, simply to die? Is this my fault? Does everything I touch turn to shit? What do you want from us?
And he finally cries. Big, tough, Dr. Shepard breaks down in humble tears of confusion and every heart in the Lost nation goes out to him.
Back on the dock, Flocke tells Claire, "It sunk." Like he can sense that half the candidates have died. Claire is disturbed this news, saying that "They were all on it, everyone. They're all dead?" "Not all of them." Flocke replies. And with that, he gathers his stuff - ditching Claire - who asks, "Where are you going?" He mysteriously replies, "To finish what I started." (i.e. kill all the candidates - shizzz!)
Back on the dock, Flocke tells Claire, "It sunk." Like he can sense that half the candidates have died. Claire is disturbed this news, saying that "They were all on it, everyone. They're all dead?" "Not all of them." Flocke replies. And with that, he gathers his stuff - ditching Claire - who asks, "Where are you going?" He mysteriously replies, "To finish what I started." (i.e. kill all the candidates - shizzz!)
Bad Robot!
Next week (or tomorrow) looks FANTABULOUS! It's the episode we've all been waiting for - the end game explanation! We'll find out what the hell this crazy island game that Jacob and Man in Black have been playing this whole time - AND Allison Janney guest stars!!! Whoo-hoo!!!
This brings us to:
TARA'S BIG LIST OF LOST QUESTIONS
(Sort of Short)
- Where did Widmore get his list from? Jacob? Someone else?
- Did Flocke really ditch Claire? Or does he not need her anymore, now that Kate's been shot?
- How bad is Kate's wound? Is she going to die?
- Since we saw Jin/Sun in the sideways world, are they going to be okay over there?
- What happened to Frank? Did he die? Is he going to be okay? And why did Ilana ever think he was a candidate? If he's alive, he totally is one!
- Why does Bernard remember Locke's case so clearly? Why would he care so much?
- What does Bernard know that others don't - he clearly seems to have a clarivoyance that the others do not, right?
- Is Desmond okay? We now know that Sayid didn't shoot him, but he's been down there for awhile...
- Is Desmond a candidate? He might not be on the MIB's list, but he clearly has magical powers!
- Are Widmore and Flocke working together? Is the whole "War" a ruse?
- Where the heck are Miles, Ben, and Richard?
- There are only three episodes left, will we ever see Walt again?
- Juliet in the sideways world, is she going to hook up with Sawyer?
- I heard Ben gets a love interest, when are they planning on making that happen?
Namaste!
P.S. Scroll down to read something funny :)
Is this what the ultimate end game has been leading us to? Can't wait until tomorrow night!
And to leave on a funny note (so y'all don't go home and slit your wrists over the demise of Sun, Jin, and Sayid) - check out the lastest (Lost-oriented column) from Aaron Karo, a fellow Lost fan and author or "Ruminations" --
-Viewers of the television show Lost come in three varieties. There are those who watched one episode out of curiosity, had no idea what the fuck was going on, and promptly gave up. There are those who watched from the beginning but got so confused and frustrated by season four that they angrily deleted the show from their DVR’s series recordings. And then there are those like me – hardcore, unabashed Lost nerds who watch entire scenes in slow motion to catch fleeting references and share message board theories with religious fervor. There are no casual fans of Lost. Either you don’t watch it at all or you’ve once considered getting a tattoo of the Numbers. And so, when the series finale airs next week, millions of us will no longer be able to get our Oceanic fix. The Island will be done with us even though we’re not done with the Island.
-One of the most amazing (and confounding) aspects of Lost is that there are about nine million fucking characters. Losties brace themselves whenever a new character appears onscreen because we know we will soon know them front, back, and sideways. It would not be an exaggeration to say that I know some of the main characters better than I do my own friends. I just found out my buddy’s parents got divorced over a year ago. But I can tell you exactly where and when Jack’s dad took his appendix out. Poor Jack.
-One reason a show like Lost won’t come around again any time soon is that watching it is actually a lot of work. You need to recall obscure details from five-year-old episodes in order to fully understand the new season. The fact is, today’s television viewers are lazy. Personally, I’d rather watch my screensaver than Jersey Shore. But, sadly, more people would rather watch reality TV than remember that the sailboat Sawyer took to Hydra Island is the same one Desmond used to compete in his race around the world.
-If there’s a bright side to Lost going off the air, it’s that I’ll stop spending so much damn money on it. From my BlackBerry wallpaper, to the $90 Dharma Initiative jumpsuit I wore for Halloween, to all the episodes I bought on iTunes, this show has cost me a fortune. There are non-monetary costs as well – like the hair loss I suffered in season two when my DVR cut off the crucial last thirty seconds of every episode, or all the valuable time I’ve spent on Lostpedia when I could have been, you know, talking to girls.
-I’m aware, of course, that some people fucking hate Lost – both because it’s such an absurd show at times, and because people like me won’t shut up about it. But one of the joys of being a fan is meeting kindred spirits. Finding out someone you know is also a Lostie is like running into someone from your hometown or meeting your biological parents for the first time. There’s so much to talk about at first that you don’t know where to begin. How Hurley is so fat after all this time is generally as good a place as any.
-For me, Lost has been so much more than just a source of entertainment and Facebook gossip. It’s also brought me closer to my mom. After all, I can always bond with my dad over the Yankees. And my sister and I can always discuss how annoying our parents are. But for mothers and sons, common interests are not always as easy to come by. For me and my mom, it’s Lost. She dutifully watches every episode and then calls to have me explain to her what the hell just happened. Unfortunately, yesterday was the last Mother’s Day of the Lost era. When we spoke, I asked my mom what we would talk about after the series finale. “Aaron,” she said, “I still don’t understand season one.” “Well then, Mom,” I replied, “we have to go back.”
-One of the most amazing (and confounding) aspects of Lost is that there are about nine million fucking characters. Losties brace themselves whenever a new character appears onscreen because we know we will soon know them front, back, and sideways. It would not be an exaggeration to say that I know some of the main characters better than I do my own friends. I just found out my buddy’s parents got divorced over a year ago. But I can tell you exactly where and when Jack’s dad took his appendix out. Poor Jack.
-One reason a show like Lost won’t come around again any time soon is that watching it is actually a lot of work. You need to recall obscure details from five-year-old episodes in order to fully understand the new season. The fact is, today’s television viewers are lazy. Personally, I’d rather watch my screensaver than Jersey Shore. But, sadly, more people would rather watch reality TV than remember that the sailboat Sawyer took to Hydra Island is the same one Desmond used to compete in his race around the world.
-If there’s a bright side to Lost going off the air, it’s that I’ll stop spending so much damn money on it. From my BlackBerry wallpaper, to the $90 Dharma Initiative jumpsuit I wore for Halloween, to all the episodes I bought on iTunes, this show has cost me a fortune. There are non-monetary costs as well – like the hair loss I suffered in season two when my DVR cut off the crucial last thirty seconds of every episode, or all the valuable time I’ve spent on Lostpedia when I could have been, you know, talking to girls.
-I’m aware, of course, that some people fucking hate Lost – both because it’s such an absurd show at times, and because people like me won’t shut up about it. But one of the joys of being a fan is meeting kindred spirits. Finding out someone you know is also a Lostie is like running into someone from your hometown or meeting your biological parents for the first time. There’s so much to talk about at first that you don’t know where to begin. How Hurley is so fat after all this time is generally as good a place as any.
-For me, Lost has been so much more than just a source of entertainment and Facebook gossip. It’s also brought me closer to my mom. After all, I can always bond with my dad over the Yankees. And my sister and I can always discuss how annoying our parents are. But for mothers and sons, common interests are not always as easy to come by. For me and my mom, it’s Lost. She dutifully watches every episode and then calls to have me explain to her what the hell just happened. Unfortunately, yesterday was the last Mother’s Day of the Lost era. When we spoke, I asked my mom what we would talk about after the series finale. “Aaron,” she said, “I still don’t understand season one.” “Well then, Mom,” I replied, “we have to go back.”
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