So it’s early Sunday morning, and knowing that Desperate Housewives is on the way later tonight, it’s time to get back on track with my updating schedule. Basically, expect Desperate Housewives to come a little bit early to make up for my tardiness in the past. This past week was pretty nuts, all things considered, but I think things are finally beginning to get a little under control.
Let’s take a gander at the mailbag…
“Mr. Duran,
I look forward to your recaps of “Lost,” a most addictive show. I trust the producers when they say they will not paint themselves into a corner a la ‘Twin Peaks’ by providing what looks like clues, cliffhangers, and elements integral to an overall story arc, that prove ultimately to be nothing more than window dressing, color, and atmosphere. I sure hope they are making certain that all their yellow post-its adhere to the wall and none fall down behind the coffee maker. To help us all keep track of those questions raised over the last eleven episodes that are gnawing away for space in our brain’s memory cells, I have listed them below, and catalogued them as follows: stuff presented to the viewer that better pan out, stuff that may or may not be just story filler, and stuff that obviously through the editing is ongoing, and will lead to resolution. Here is the list, and please feel free to add to it:
SIGNIFICANT and UNRESOLVED! (stuff presented to the viewer that better pan out)
Walt reads a comic book picturing a polar bear. A polar bear shows up a little while later and attacks. How did a polar bear get in the jungle?
Why was Jack’s father Christian’s coffin empty?
Why is the tide coming in so quickly?
Who knocked out Sayid in Episode 6 as he was trying to send a rescue signal? Locke? Ethan? Danielle? Sawyer? Someone else?
How did the plane crash?
What did Locke see when he came upon the monster?
SIGNIFICANT or JUST STORY FILLER? (stuff that may or may not be just story filler)
What is the connection Locke has going with Walt, and why is it being edited in a sinister light?
Is Rose’s husband (or anyone from the missing tail section, for that matter) still alive, or is it just the story’s way of showing Rose choose, as she herself said, hope over denial?
What exactly was the motive of Claire’s psychic for sending her on this flight?
What, if any, was the significance of Claire’s dream (the plane mobile, the blood in the crib, Locke and the Tarot cards, etc.)?
Does Locke have secret connections to his former hunting pal, Ethan Rom?
Does the airplane from Kate’s personal effects retrieved from the Marshall’s suitcase have any connection to the fact that the survivors are on the island as a result of an airplane crash, or is it just creepy stuff a la the plane mobile above the crib in Claire’s dream?
Does Hurley use an alias for a reason, or is it just a nick name, and the reference (“Why? I’m not tellin’.”) thrown into the script for comedic purposes?
UNRESOLVED STORYLINES! (stuff that obviously through the editing is ongoing, and will lead to resolution)
Where is Claire and is she still alive?
Who is Ethan Rom (anagram: Other Man) and why does he want Claire’s baby?
Who is Danielle and what is her story?
How did she get to the island?
Who are the former companions turned “carriers” that she had to murder?
How has she existed for sixteen years?
Where is her son, Alex?
Is she connected with Ethan?
What is the meaning of the French song lyrics on her maps?
What is the buried metal thing that Locke and Boone have found, and why does Locke want its discovery kept secret?
Who is Kate and what is her story?
What did she steal from the New Mexico bank safety deposit box?
To whom did the airplane from the personal effects retrieved from the Marshall’s suitcase belong?
Was it someone, as she said, that she loved… or someone that she killed? Or was it someone she loved AND killed?
Keep up the good work! And don’t shy away from too many spoilers – most of them are being leaked from Abrams camp to keep viewers interested.”
I’m gonna kinda work in reverse here and talk about spoilers first. Sure, some of these spoilers are being leaked to keep people interested, but I’d rather be kept in suspense over what is going to happen next week than now beforehand about the way storylines are going to turn out. That was one of my biggest pet peeves in the first two seasons of 24 (not so much the third season), as spoilers were even contained in the previews for the next episodes. FOX did a really bad job of throwing those together and at times it was all but obvious what the big storyline of the time was going to result in, which caused a lot of frustration for me and for other fellow viewers who were captivated by the suspense of it all.
Now, for the unresolved storylines:
The whole thing with Claire/Ethan is setting up to be one of those really weird storylines, because you have to wonder regarding what the psychic told Claire about getting on the plane. He seemed very intent on making sure that Claire had no one else take care for that baby and have only her as the mother. Could Claire’s baby grow up to become the next antichrist? Or the next Hitler, to stretch it a bit? This is obviously the most interesting storyline, so of course the writers have left us hanging on this one for quite some time (I miss Ethan’s mug on the screen).
We haven’t seen the last of Danielle, as her story is going to wrap around to the rest of the plane crash survivors eventually. I don’t know anything about her companions that turned into “carriers”, but it might be feasible to suppose that Alex could actually be Ethan. It wouldn’t be a very fun plot twist since we’ve already had one of those “That is not my real name, hahahaha, fools!” with Sawyer. Except Sawyer’s secret really didn’t get out there and we don’t even know what his real name is. The French song lyrics have me stumped. I don’t see how they have anything to do with anything unless that was a lullaby that Danielle sung to Alex frequently or something similar to that.
Locke and Boone’s Buried Metal Thing needs to be elaborated on as quickly as possible. It was the cliffhanger that got viewers coming back in 2005, and they didn’t touch on it much in the last episode except for Boone running off with the ax, which means that Locke must be close to breaking open something, whatever it is. Obviously this is a good reason to keep the discovery of the BMT secret, since Locke is so close to opening it anyway, or at least hacking away at something around it.
Okay. Kate and her story. I want to assume that she stole the toy plane from the New Mexico safe deposit box, but I really don’t think so. That just seems kinda silly and makes the whole past episode kinda weak. The personal effects likely belonged to Kate herself, and the Marshal was just bringing them along. I don’t even want to think about the significance of the toy plane, because I’m sure it’s going to mean something and I’m going to feel stupid if I say that it’s going to mean nothing in the end. Everything happens for a reason on LOST.
Signifcant or filler?
Locke and Walt’s connection is significant, since it builds tension between Locke and Michael. Michael honestly has a lot going on with him right now, and besides Dr. Jack is one of the busier men on the island since he had to deal with his son Walt, Locke who is doing something to Walt that may or may not be sinister, and Jin and Sun, but that seems to have been slightly forgotten as of late.
Rose’s husband being alive is likely filler, since I think the writers wanted a survivor that held onto hope but, in the end, was unfortunately being delusional about the whereabouts of her husband. If the writers ever thought about killing Rose off, they should have a Rose-centric episode where the episode ends when she sees a vision (or perhaps a reality) of her husband walking along the beach (if it’s still there), and Rose is so happy that she gets overexcited and has a heart attack. It’s almost dark humor, but it’s bittersweet sadness if Rose dies and it’s a vision of her husband that she sees.
Claire’s psychic in himself is filler, but the motive for sending Claire on the plane is not. I doubt we’ll ever see the psychic again, but there was a reason why she was on her way to Los Angeles, this is a sure thing. As for her dream, Locke with the tarot cards was just a nod to the rest of the episode with the psychic, although it kinda reveals that Claire might secretly be deathly afraid of Locke and that Locke might be the one who ends up hurting Claire and/or her baby (the swerve that some of us are waiting for).
The airplane in Kate’s personal effects is something related to the man she loved and/or killed (perhaps he was a pilot?), and is not similar to the fashion in which the plane mobile was spinning above the crib. That’s just the dream messing with Claire’s head.
I have heard something regarding Hurley that’s somewhat significant. When he bet all that money playing backgammon with Walt and then walking of saying that Walt would get his money soon, it was suggested that Hurley was perhaps a very rich man, or perhaps an heir to a very rich family and would actually have that kind of money if he wasn’t stranded on an island. That would be a neat spin on things and I’d certainly enjoy it since Hurley is the man. I don’t think it’s anything too serious, because I don’t think they want to darken Hurley’s character considering he’s one of the few brighter personalities on the island.
Okay. Significant and unresolved.
The polar bear in the jungle. I have a feeling this will be answered in the season finale, tying the beginning episodes with the ending episode. The comic book might just be a coincidence that perceptive viewers have noticed, I don’t really think that Walt was controlling the island with his mind while reading the comic books or whatever. But the polar bear got there somehow.
The coffin being empty. That’s just plain weird. I can’t even begin to explain it, unless the monster went by and snatched it up to gnaw on it and leave it in a random tree.
I have no clue about the tide coming in so quickly, unless it turns out to be something of a supernatural nature and the survivors are slowly left to become more and more insane as the water closes around them until they’re seemingly left for dead to fend for themselves and hope for salvation in the afterlife.
Sayid’s attacker will also likely be answered in the season finale, and I’m thinking Sawyer just for the hell of it.
Plane crash? I’m thinking series finale instead of season finale, because that’s the big question that’s always been around since episode 1.
What did Locke see when he saw SOME KIND OF MONSTURRRRRRRRRRRRR? Probably his life flashing before his eyes, or perhaps a warning that his life and others would soon change. Perhaps the monster had a way of showing Locke the future. Far-fetched, maybe.
Phew. That was a long one.
“Hey John,
This series is excellent, however I was disappointed like you with this episode. Obivously the reason why you don’t get anything of the Locke/Boone or the Claire/Ethan storyline is to keep you watching. But you can only keep the suspense before either two things happen
1. The audience or at least I gets annoyed and ruins the experience
2. The auidence can guess the plot twist.
I found the second point occured a couple of times in the last season of 24. Where they hold the dramatic pause for a little too long and I guess the plot twist.
Here’s a question. How is it possible for Charlie to use his hand after he was found hanging from a tree ( in episode 10) by his hand for several hours?!? Surely this would cause loss of sensation not to mention movement impossible due to the pain?
(Note: I have been reading your recaps due to being in Australia and a poor net connection. Though Lost will make its Aussie debut in Feb. So I am sorry if you can give an answer like “When he was helping Rose he only used his undamaged hand.)
Michael C”
I hope that option 2 doesn’t happen, because that really sucks when that happens, and you’re right when you mention 24 doing this, although they’ve done it a few times in the past few seasons.
And I apologize for the next part of your letter. That is bad writing on my part. When Jack and Kate arrive to find Charlie hanging, they see the E on his hand, but he’s hanging from his neck. He isn’t hanging from his hand (although that’d be a sick visual). While it is true that Charlie should’ve suffered brain damage from being almostdead/dead for that long, it is not true that he was hanging from his hand. Sorry if my writing confused you.
hey there. i mostly surf the nexus on these boards, but i have been trying to watch lost. i work until 8 and it takes me a 1/2 hour to get home so i usually catch the last 1/2 hour. that has nothing to do with my question though. why is it that you refer to sawyer as the un-sawyer? this was he 1st review of yours i read about the show and was curious. thanks for your time.
Okay, about the Un-Sawyer:
Episode 7 was a Sawyer-Centric Episode that featured his story about how he had been traumatized in life by a “confidence man” bankrupting his family by conning his husband into some lucrative deal (I can’t remember the exact details). Anyway, the Un-Sawyer wrote a letter to this man, saying that he was waiting for the day when he would meet the confidence man and give him this letter to know how his family fell to pieces after the “confidence man” ran through. Turns out that the letter was never delivered to the man, whose name was Sawyer. So when the Un-Sawyer became a “confidence man”, he took the name of Sawyer. So that is not his real name. No real name has been given for the Un-Sawyer, thus he is, indeed, the Un-Sawyer. I try to watch how much I use it, though. I think I’m only going to use it from now on when Kate is talking to Sawyer, since she’s the only one who knows that Sawyer is not his real name.
John,
Great recaps! I read them every week even though I have seen every episode already. A few thoughts/questions: This past week’s “Lost” was amazing! This show has some really mind-blowing storylines! After watching every episode of “Lost” over the past two-three months I was ready to declare it the best show on TV until god shines down on TV viewers and gives us 4 episodes of “24” over a two day span. I really didn’t think the show could improve over last year; yet somehow it has. The show has become extremely engaging with a whole new storyline with a slew of new cast members. I was wondering if you had seen the episodes yet and if you were going to be recapping them? Please say yes! If you have seen them, Keifer mentioned in an interview that someone from CTU is on the bad guy’s side, who do you think it is? Also, I’ve never really watched Alias before but I watched this past week’s episode in HD and I thought it was pretty damn good. Will you be recapping Alias as well? Is there anything from the first three seasons that I should know that really has affected the storyline? Thank you once again for writing the best TV recaps on the web. Keep up the good work!
Let me jump around this letter:
1) No, I will not be recapping 24 or Alias. Although I am big fans of both shows, there is simply no time to get around to it, really. Plus, my TiVo is really unreliable lately when it comes to recording episodes so, to be honest, I’m downloading all four episodes of 24 and the most recent Alias as well. But as far as I know, Murtz (our fearless Television leader) has not approached me regarding a recap of either of those two shows, and to be honest, until DH and Lost end their respective seasons, I wouldn’t be ready to recap those shows.
2) Alias has so many plot twists that it’d be hard to mention anything from the first three seasons that is important to remember. Your best bet would be to try and find an Alias fansite that has storyline/plot information since they’d be a lot more organized than I would be in telling the story of Alias’ past three seasons.
3) I hope this episode of Lost is amazing, since you sent this letter before I could get the recap done!
Speaking of which, on with the recap!
Previously, on Lost: Joy to the world, they actually got a previously segment. Someone up there must like me. Anyway, Claire is missing and Charlie makes tracks to chase her down and find her while Locke follows hot on their trail. But the important thing here is that Boone offers his services to help Locke on his search. So Boone and Locke get to know each other, and while Shannon seems suspicious about what the two of them are doing, Kate assures her that if anyone is safe with Boone, it’s Locke. They don’t really mention that they find the buried metal thing, but they do show that Locke was able to predict that it would rain in a minute…give or take a few seconds.
Open on an eye. That’s about the most common opening besides opening in the jungle. The eye belongs to someone watching Sayid walk up to Shannon with a box, as Shannon giggles. The eye belongs to Boone, as ominous music plays. We go over to Sayid/Shannon, as Sayid explains that he’s brought a present for her help with the translations. They are a pair of shoes, and Shannon is very grateful even if they are half a size off. But the island is making her feet swell. Right. Anyway, Boone looks on with evil in his eyes until Hurley interrupts to start a conversation with him. Hurley knows that Boone and Locke are going boar hunting every day, but what he’s wondering is why they never come back with any boar. They haven’t had any fresh pork in a week, and Hurley think that’s a problem. Because people need solid food. “This isn’t a game, man.” With that, Boone looks back to Sayid/Shannon for whatever reason, and then a cell phone rings in his head and it’s…
…FLASHBACK TIME?!?!? A BOONE-CENTRIC EPISODE?!!?!? This is a swerve in itself, clearly, but I’m happy about it as long as it goes somewhere. Anyway, Boone is at a country club as he talks with Some Random Girl #43121 about tennis. Boone’s phone is ringing on a poolside chair, and he answers it as he takes a swig of some kind of liquid, likely alcohol. It’s Shannon on the other end, as she sounds worried. Boone seems less than enthused to hear Shannon’s voice, as he wonders what’s wrong this time. But Shannon soon starts sobbing heavily and saying that things aren’t going so well here. And then Shannon starts screaming for someone to get the hell away from her and to get the hell out. Boone tries to calm Shannon and then just tells her to say where she is and he will come get her. Why, Shannon’s in Sydney. Australia. As opposed to Sydney, Mississippi, of course.
Back at the beach as Sayid is walking along and here comes Boone, who gets right to the point: “Stay away from my sister.” Sayid doesn’t like it that that sounds like an order, but it’s only a friendly suggestion that Boone suggests he follows. Sayid wonders what will happen if he doesn’t take the suggestion, but before Boone can answer, Locke interrupts and says that there are some fresh tracks. Boar tracks, Claire tracks, whatever. So Boone walks off with Locke, and we get a montage of them going through the jungle as Locke suggests that Boone put aside his differences with Sayid, even if he is hitting on Shasnnon. Sayid is a very competent man, and Locke does not want to make him an enemy. Locke doesn’t find the lack of boar a problem since what they’re doing is far more important and there’s enough fresh fruit and fish to go around. And the Buried Metal Thing is revealed to actually be a door which seems to have more to it, actually. There’s a window and hinges on it now, as Locke declares the BMT to be priority. Did a submarine manage to burrow it’s way deep into the island or something? Man, I’m…
LOST.
And now, a word from our sponsors…excellent opening, as the Boone-centric episode should be awesome since they’ve been building Boone up to be a serious player ever since he discovered the BMT with Locke. And now with a Boone/Sayid showdown imminent despite Locke’s warnings, Shannon will also be catapulted into the spotlight. And remember, as far as we know, only the Marshal, Joanna and the co-pilot have been killed out of the 48 original survivors of the crash.
Back in the jungle, but away from the BMT, Hurley meets up with Jack and wants to talk about something. He makes sure that they have doctor-patient confidentiality first, and then Hurley confides in Dr. Jack that he hasn’t been feeling so well lately, he’s actually been having some digestive problems. Hurley’s been eating nothing but fruit lately, and Dr. Jack mentions that it would help to have some protein in his diet, but Hurley makes the point that there are no boar. But there are proteins in fish, and Jin has been catching a lot of those. Hurley says that’s a no-go as well, since after the plane crash Jin offered Hurley some of his sea urchin (remember that? Episode 1, Part 2–or Episode 2 if you want to be anal-retentive). Since Hurley turned down the sea urchin, he thinks that he’s offended Jin’s family honor or something outrageous like that, and that Jin hasn’t looked him in the eye since. Hurley grabs some leaves and Dr. Jack wonders if he’s eating those, but Hurley is not using them for eating…and then excuses himself. Dr. Jack smiles and walks off. Gold.
In ANOTHER part of the jungle, Kate is gathering fruit along the ground as Dr. Jack comes around, watching Kate from a distance until Kate’s womanly-peripheral vision kicks in and Kate announces to the silent Dr. Jack that she can see him. But Dr. Jack wasn’t hiding, he just didn’t want to disrupt what Kate was doing…whatever it is. Dr. Jack then notices the ugly greenish-yellow things in Kate’s hand and Kate points out that they’re passion fruit seeds. Dr. Jack wants to know what they are for, so Kate drags him along to show him what they’re for. This reeks of sexual tension, which is kind of weird since they had a rather tense moment at the closing of the last episode. They eventually come upon Sun poking holes in the soil. It was all Sun’s idea to build a garden in the middle of the jungle, Kate just happened to come along and find it. Dr. Jack loves the gardens and the idea that these are being started since the boar seems to be running out. Kate wonders if that is the case, or if Locke has just decided to not catch boar for them anymore. Dr. Jack doesn’t see why Locke would do that, but Kate thinks that if the boars are thinning out, Locke wouldn’t have much reason to feed everyone else at his own expense, since there are a lot of mouths to feed. But honestly, think about this. If Locke was that cruel, he probably has the skills and the mindset to secretly kill off the survivors of the plane crash and make it look like accidents so that there would be less mouths to feed anyway.
Back to the BMT, as Boone mentions that the door is sealed shut and the glass on the window isn’t going to be breaking (which are two good reasons to assume that this is either a submarine or a ship–perhaps the ship that wrecked and brought Danielle here?) Boone asks what Locke is making in a bowl, but Locke only explains that it is something for later. Boone doesn’t want to be difficult, but he’s becoming frustrated that they’ve only been able to stare at the mysterious door for two days and he’s not sure what they’re supposed to be doing. As Locke mixes the bowl “for later”, he says something in a foreign language which confuses Boone, until Locke launches into a story. It’s about Michelangelo and his father. His father didn’t understand the talent that his son had so, he beat him, since no child of his was going to use his hands for a living. So Michelangelo learned not to use his hands. And when a visiting prince came to his studio years later, he found Michelangelo staring at a single 18-foot block of marble. The rumors were true: Michelangelo had come into his studio every day for the past four months, just so stare at the marble and then gone home for his supper. The obvious question: What was Michelangelo doing? He was working, of course. And three years later, the block of marble was the Statue of David. Boone hopes that they’re not going to stare at the door for four months, but Locke explains that they’re going to figure out how to open it by sitting there and looking at it. How do you open a door that has no handle or latch or way of opening it? Boone ponders this as we go into…
…another flashback, with Boone knocking on the door of a house. This is assumingly Shannon’s place, but a rather tall man answers the door instead. He opens the door to let Boone in as Shannon arrives (looking stunning as always), but then asks Boone what he’s doing there. Boone thinks that after spending 15 hours on a plane, “it’s so good to see you” or something similar would work well. Shannon says that it isn’t the best time to be coming around as Shannon was about to go out with his boyfriend, Brian, somewhere. Shannon asks Boone to give him a call tomorrow as she flicks back her hair…and reveals a bruise on the right side of her forehead. Boone notices this, but Brian (who looks pretty damn close to Christopher Walken) doesn’t. So Boone walks out…
…and we go to the waterside, as Hurley catches up with Jin. Hurley knows that Jin is probably still mad about the sea urchin thing, but all he wants to know is where the fish are, just point him in the right direction. Hurley has his spear (also from a previous episode, but damned if I remember which one), and he’ll use it as long as Jin gives him an idea of where to look. Jin laughs and then says something in Korean, as Hurley doesn’t quite understand, but thinks that Jin just said something mean.
Back with Boone and Locke as they are on their way back to the home base. Boone thinks that they’ll have to tell the rest of them, but Locke asks what they could tell them. Boone thinks they’ll get suspicious if they don’t start coming back with something, but Locke insists that they’re not ready to know about the BMT, they won’t understand it. Boone doesn’t even think that he understands it, and Locke sees that as a problem in itself. At the least, Boone wants to tell Shannon, but Locke know wants to know why Boone cares about her so much. Boone gets defensive, saying that he doesn’t know Shannon, saying that she’s smart and special in a lot of ways. “Fair enough,” says Locke, as they continue walking, and Boone just doesn’t want to keep lying to her since she keeps asking about where he’s going. Locke wonders if it’s more that Boone can’t keep lying to her, or if it’s more that Boone can’t stand the way she makes him feel when he keeps lying to her. Boone says that it’s both, but he seems unsure. The point is that Boone can believe that Shannon can keep a secret. Locke wants to be sure about him doing this, and Boone says that he needs Shannon off his back. Locke asks one more time if he’s thought through the ramifications, and Boone says that, indeed, he has. “So be it.” And as Boone walks ahead of Locke, Locke draws his knife and nails him with the butt of the weapon, knocking Boone out as it strikes him in the back of the head.
And now, a word from our sponsors…WHOA! Not really a heel turn from Locke just yet, just him wanting to keep the BMT secret although it might actually make things worse with Shannon since he might blame Locke for putting Boone in harm’s way or begin to suspect that it was Locke himself who did this to Boone. Or perhaps Boone might not be coming back to the beach for awhile.
Sure enough, as we return, Boone is tied up to a nice thick tree branch. Boone has no idea what is going on, watching as Locke stirs his bowl of mystery mix. Boone wants to be untied posthaste, but Locke wonders what will happen if he doesn’t. Changing his tone, Boone then backpedals, saying that he won’t tell anyone about the latch. But Locke is going to do something to Boone because he has to let go of some things. Because it’s what is best for Boone. He takes the mix and then puts it on the back of Boone’s open head wound. Whether or not Boone sticks around is up to him, since the camp is four miles due west. Boone doesn’t even know which way is west, but Locke just smiles and draws his big knife from his sheath, shucking it rather close to where Boone is, but still out of reach. Still, Locke insists that should Boone get the proper motivation, he’ll be able to cut free. Boone screams for Locke to come back, but Locke makes tracks away from Boone. My guess is that Boone has some kind of boar food or something on the back of his head, or something that attracts boars that would make Boone’s senses kick into overdrive to get him out of his restraints and to get him the hell out of there. Boone looks at the jungle surrounding him and then at the knife in front of him, but he’s tied in such a unique manner that moving forward to reach for the knife pulls back on his restraints and makes the hand tied behind his back hurt. Boone struggles in pain and can’t reach the knife on his first try, and then screams for help…
…as we go into another flashback, with a police officer telling Boone (and calling him Mr. Carlisle) that “we’ll need a little bit more to go on.” Boone says that he is reporting a crime, as I assume that Boone is trying to tell the police that Brian beat the shit out of Shannon. Before Boone can finish explaining that Shannon is living with a psycho and running with the wrong kind of guy…Sawyer is dragged into the police station by officers. WOW. CRAZY. The detective explains if that that man was her mate, then he would be able to help Boone. The detective wants to finish taking down the rest of his personal info, however, first asking why it is that Boone and Shannon are brother and sister if Shannon’s last name is Rutherford and his is Carlisle. Shannon was married, but she isn’t anymore and besides, that has nothing to do with this. Rutherford is her father’s name, and the parents got married when he was 10 and she was 8. So, yes, Shannon is Boone’s stepsister. No blood relation. But Boone’s mother, Sabrina Carlisle? The owner of the biggest wedding business in the United States. He is the COO of the clothing branch of that operation. The detective gets all sarcastic and I won’t even grace it with a quote here. In the end, however, without physical evidence or a complaint from Shannon, they can’t go barging into apartments.
So Boone goes off to find Brian, and cuts to the chase: He wants Brian to break up with Shannon today, right now. What Brian doesn’t understand as he blows him off is that Boone is the third guy that he will have paid to leave. Brian is to pack up his stuff, leave, and never speak to her again, leaving only when she’s not there. So how much is Brian going to get paid? 25,000 US dollars. But Brian loves her. Boone forces the subject and then Brian says that his love for her…is worth closer to 50,000. So Boone starts writing a check on the docks where Brian’s working.
Out to the garden with Kate and Sun, as Kate tries to make small talk with Sun, like how they’ve been on the island for three weeks now. Kate says that she wanted to go to a remote island and explore it, but somehow ended up on a flight to LA instead. She supposed that that was a case of “be careful what you wish for”…and Sun smiles at that comment. But without realizing it, she tips Kate off. And Kate realizes that Sun just understood what she said. “You speak English?” Sun asks Kate in English not to tell anyone, but Kate is just in shock.
And we go to the man who shouldn’t know about Sun’s English-speaking, Jin, as he catches fish with Hurley watching on. Hurley doesn’t catch any fish at all, and Jin shows off that he was able to catch two nice big ones. So Hurley just gives up and goes to walk away…but as he does he steps on a sea urchin and yells out in pain. Jin goes over immediately and helps Hurley out of the water and onto the beach, but that’s like hauling a boulder for Jin as they straggle onto the beach. The big Hurley finally falls over into the sand, yowling in pain. Hurley suggests that Jin pees on it, since it stops the venom. He saw it on TV. Ahahahahaha. “Just pee on it man! You need to pee on it! Pee on my foot, man!” Finally, Jin gives a response: “No, no.” And now Hurley is confused.
Over to Sayid, who is looking at the Frenchwoman’s maps and making what appears to be a makeshift compass or something similar. He hears a noise behind him as he swings around with a knife to find Locke behind him. Sayid wonders what Locke is doing out in the jungle. Locke explains that they were hunting, but Boone suggested that Locke take the afternoon off. Sayid finds that hard to believe, but Locke thinks that the boy is eager to learn. But Locke doesn’t think he’ll catch anything, which catches Sayid by surprise. So Locke asks Sayid what he’s doing out in the jungle, and Sayid looks at his maps again as he tries to make something of Rousseau’s maps. “But there’s nothing to make.” Sayid agrees, and then Locke notices that Sayid was able to make a compass, something that he hasn’t seen since he was a Weebelow. This interests Sayid, as Locke explains that a Weebelow is something between a Cub Scout and a Boy Scout. A Weebelow gets badges, ties knots, and identifies birds. Mostly. Locke wasn’t the most popular kid in the Weebelow scouts…but that’s all Locke has to say about that as he gets ready to head off again, dropping off his compass to give to Sayid. Sayid needs it more than Locke does now, since Locke knows where he’s going. And off he goes.
Boone has his eyes closed, looking defeated and still tied up…when Shannon calls out for help. Boone explains that he’s tied up and asks Shannon to get over to him, but Shannon’s voice is all around him and Shannon says something unintelligible (to me, anyway, and I don’t have closed captioning since this episode was acquired with less than honorable means)…and Boone is confused…as a loud roar goes off behind him.
SOME KIND OF MONSTURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! THIS MONSTER LIVES!
OUT OF NOWHERE, Boone is scared to the core by the roar of the monster, and here comes the crunching. Boone looks for the knife, and then hears Shannon’s screaming over the crunching of the MONSTER. The crunching gets louder and louder as the monster gets closer and closer (according to Shannon), and Shannon calls out for help again. Boone finally finds the knife, gritting his teeth and breathing heavily as he fights through the pain to try and get the knife with Shannon’s screams and the MONSTER’s crunching ringing in his ears. The restraints pull and pull on his other arm as his hand reaches out for the knife, Boone yelling out in pain but finally getting the knife, and then falling back to ease the pain on his restraints…and the crunching seems to stop for a moment as Boone seethes in pain. BUT THERE IT IS AGAIN! Shannon screams for Boone again, and Boone takes one slice of the knife and cuts through the restraints, and in a flash he’s free of all restraints, knife in hand as the crunch is louder than ever. Boone takes off running as Shannon’s screams and the MONSTER’s movements continue. AND THERE’S SHANNON! AGHHHHH! Shannon is tied to a tree, as Boone runs over and works on the restraints. The MONSTER gets louder and louder as Shannon urgently tries to speed Boone up. Shannon is finally freed and they’re off, running through the jungle as the roar of the MONSTER remains at a state of “VERY, VERY LOUD”. Boone comes to a stop suddenly and then decides to go into a thick grouping of bamboo, directing Shannon in there as well as they crouch down inside of it. We get a monsters-eye view (first time since it found Locke), as a shadow falls over Boone and Shannon). The MONSTER makes swooping noises, as if to check all around…and then the light returns, and birds chirp all around them. And then the MONSTER slams into the side of the thick grouping of trees!!! The loud thundering continues…
…and now, a word from our sponsors?!?!?! AUGH! Probably one of the most intense scenes on the show in a long time, as the roar of the MONSTER came out of nowhere and it all seemed like a very bad dream for Boone until he finally found Shannon tied up to the tree. Insanity. Locke’s heel turn seems to be a sure thing now.
Back in the jungle, but not near the BMT nor where we last saw Boone/Shannon. Rather, Sayid is catching up to Dr. Jack, as he asks the Doctor which direction he thinks is North. The doctor correctly picks the direction, or at least it seems so until Sayid opens his compass. North, according to the compass, is leaning a good amount towards the East. So that means that the compass is defective, since only a “minor magnetic anomaly” would’ve created a degree shift, and that would’ve only been 2-3 degrees. The compass is from Locke, as Sayid notes, who was about a mile east walking through the jungle when Sayid last saw him. At least he thinks it was East.
Over to Boone/Shannon, as Boone continues to hold onto Shannon in the thick “cage” of trees (I believe Kate also went here in an earlier episode to escape the MONSTER). The MONSTER seems to have left, however, as Boone and Shannon carefully get to their feet and Boone walks out to make absolutely sure that they are safe. So as Boone carefully walks his way out of the cage, Shannon asks what he did to piss Locke off. Boone says that he didn’t do anything, but Shannon has a hard time believing that. Shannon wants to talk about it, but Boone suggests that they just go back to camp.
And now, it’s a flashback. Shannon lets Boone into her house, as Boone tells Shannon that they need to get out of this country, so if there’s anything she wants to take, she should probably grab it. But Shannon is hesitant as Brian suddenly arrives home as well. “Oh, well look at this.” Boone is ready to go now, and tells Shannon that it’s okay for them to just walk out right now. Brian then asks Boone if he gets it now. And suddenly, Boone does. “It was a set up.” Brian says that Shannon is just getting back what she’s owed, since apparently she was screwed over by her mother after her father’s death. Kept all of daddy’s money for herself and none for Shannon. Boone then realizes that this isn’t the first time that Shannon’s done this, and calls her a “little bitch” before Brian pushes Boone away. Boone suggests that Brian not touch him since he’s a “lowlife piece of–” but Brian punches Boone right in the ol’ face before he can get the FCC pissed off, and continues to beat the hell out of him as Shannon finally makes the save, telling Brian to get off him. Boone gets up and walks out without a word.
Over to the Brand New Sand Dune of Reflection, as Locke looks out onto the water. Dr. Jack comes up and asks if he’s seen any ships. Locke hasn’t, but he’s patient. Locke is fine with the Doctor joining him, as Jack points out that it’s been awhile since they’ve had a talk. Locke notes that Jack is a busy man, and Jack says the same about Locke. Dr. Jack then asks about the whereabouts of Boone, but Locke says that he hasn’t seen him today, which the Doctor seems to be surprised about since they’ve been “attached at the hip” all week. Locke goes ahead and checks his hip, but there’s no sign of Boone on the hip. I should hope not, but I think Dr. Jack has some antibiotics for something like that. Dr. Jack then asks how the boar hunting is going, and Locke says confidentially that he thinks they’re starting to migrate outside of the valley. Smart animals adapt quickly when a new predator enters, and that new predator is the survivors. The most dangerous predator of all.
Now we’re back to Sun and Kate, as Kate wants to know if there’s anyone else who knows that Sun speaks English. Sun mentions Michael, and then Kate knows that that means that Jin doesn’t know. Sun gets worried again, but Kate calms her by assuring her that she can keep a secret. Hell yeah, she can. Sun explains that she took English lessons in Korea without him knowing and that…it’s complicated. And she can’t tell him now, either. Because Sun loves Jin. Sun then asks Kate if she’s ever lied to a man that she’s loved. Kate then realizes the importance of all of this…
…and now we go to Jin, on the beach as he’s…doing something. Anyway, Hurley’s watching as he asks Jin if he’s sure that he doesn’t speak English, since it’s rumored that Jin does. “Your wife’s hot.” That doesn’t get a very negative reaction out of Jin, so Hurley gets his answer. Jin offers Hurley a sea urchin again, and Hurley yells at Jin that if he eats this, he’ll get a fish and Jin nods as if to acknowledge the deal. So Hurley accepts. “Over the lips, past the gums, yadda yadda…oh God.” Hurley sucks it down and makes a weird face…and Jin seems satisfied, turning towards the water…until Hurley lives up to his name and Hurls everywhere–off-camera, of course. Jin looks over with a sympathetic face and gets up to make sure Hurley’s okay.
Over to the beach with Dr. Jack and Charlie as Charlie takes some kind of pills. Then Dr. Jack helps Charlie to move some wood, as the Doctor mentions that Charlie hasn’t been around the caves recently. Charlie needed a change of scenery, however. Jack then asks Charlie how he’s doing, and Charlie needs clarifcation: How is he doing in week 2 of heroin withdrawl, or how is he doing with Claire still being abducted from the freak who tried to kill him? Dr. Jack explains that he gave Charlie the aspirin for the heroin. Dr. Jack then changes the subject and asks what Charlie think is the deal with Locke. Charlie thinks that he’s a freak of nature. Highly disturbed, and likely to have “killed all of his fellow employees at the post office when his mommy didn’t put a cookie in his lunch tin.” That was his first impression…and then Locke saved Charlie’s life. So does Charlie trust him? Well, if there was one man that Charlie would put his faith in to save all of them, it would be John Locke. Dr. Jack ponders that as he looks at Locke…
And then we go over to Michael, who takes a box out of a bag and takes a look inside, looking somberly at it…as Walt and Vincent arrive through the jungle. Michael quickly closes the box and then admires Walt playing with Vincent, as Hurley arrives and finds it awesome that Michael was able to find his own bag. Michael notices that Hurley got a papaya, and then asks if he can slice it himself. Hurley is more than acceptable to those terms, as he mentions how he stepped on the sea urchin. And here comes Jin, who holds up his part of the deal, holding out a big fish for Hurley. Hurley takes it and thanks Jin, and then realizes that the fish has already even been cleaned. Jin walks off to speak with Sun, and they laugh after sharing a conversation. They continue to speak with each other as they walk past Kate washing up in the waterfall. Dr. Jack arrives and notices that Kate looks happy, saying so. Dr. Jack then asks Kate to put out her hand, and Kate seems a little suspicious, but the Doctor assures him that she’ll like it. Are they gross little grayish-yellow things? Slimy little bluish-black things, actually. Guava seeds. I think that’s what she said. I don’t have closed captioning on this, people. Anyway, end scene.
Back in the jungle, as Shannon is worried that they’re going in the right direction. Boone thinks that if she isn’t sure, she doesn’t have to follow Boone. Shannon then points out that she wouldn’t have to follow Boone if Boone wasn’t friends with Locke, the one who put Shannon out here to begin with. Shannon then asks again what Locke and Boone were doing, assuming that they weren’t hunting that they were doing something else. Boone tries to lie his way out of it, but Shannon wants to know why he even bothers to cover up the lies for him. Boone asks Shannon if she even knows who Locke is. Boone then informs Shannon that he’s the only one who has a clue as to what’s going on here. “It means he’s smart.” Shannon is a little dumbfounded and then explains to Boone that he tied them up. Why? Boone finally spills the beans: They fonud something. While they were out looking for Claire they found a piece of metal buried in the jungle. They’ve been excavating it. Shannon wants clarification on what the piece of metal was, and Boone explains that it was a hatch. “Like a door?” No, like an egg. Shannon then asks where the hatch goes. But Boone doesn’t know. But when Boone said that he wanted to tell Shannon about it, he caught a knife to the back of the head. Of note here is that the birds seem rather angry and noisy as they’re flying around. Perhaps the MONSTER is on his way…or Locke? Big boom, and sure enough, here comes the MONSTER. Boone and Shannon take off running immediately, and for those of you who taped it, you’ll note that part of the ground was RIPPED OUT by the initial boom of the MONSTER. Weird, huh? Boone and Shannon make tracks through the jungle as the MONSTER roars…and then Shannon is lifted off her feet and taken away! Boone comes to a stop and yells for Shannon…but it’s too late! HOLY SHIT!
And now, a word from our sponsors…holy crap on a pita. This is just insane. Insane, insane, insane. Well worth the wait, too.
No cutting to other people now as we’re back with Boone. Boone calls out for Shannon again, looking frantically for her as we hear a knocking on the door (note that most of these flashbacks in this episode have begun with a knocking on the door except for the flashback with the tennis girl and the police officer)…
…Boone is still putting ice on his jaw in his hotel room as he walks to his hotel room door. There’s Shannon at the door, looking superduperslutty as Boone asks what she wants. Shannon somberly states that Brian took the money and ran. Boone shuts the door behind Shannon and walks away from her, noting that the player just got played. Boone knows that Shannon is drunk. Shannon knows for sure, however, that Boone brought the money to pay off Brian because Boone is in love with Shannon. Boone notes that Shannon shows up here plastered, and he always knew that she was a self-centered bitch…but now she’s delusional. Shannon continues to hammer it home, explaining that she’s always known it. Boone says that Shannon is sick but does nothing as Shannon makes her advance on Boone, except to say “Stop”. But Shannon says that it’s okay…as she begins kissing his ear. Boone tries to cut her off, but still does nothing physically, and finally gives in and starts to kiss back. Finally it goes into a full-fledged kiss, and the air is filled with banjos as Boone and Shannon fall to the bed, making out madly. The flashback isn’t over yet, however, as we flash forward now to the end of the love-making, as Shannon tells Boone that when they get back to LA, Boone should just tell his mom that Boone rescued Shannon from Brian, just like he always does, and then they’ll just go back. Boone asks what they’ll go back to, and Shannon says “to what it was”, but Boone doesn’t think that it’s all up to her. Shannon tells Boone to get dressed…
…as now we’re back in the jungle, and Boone is calling out for Shannon still with ominous tones playing over his search. Boone goes to the stream, and notices a LONG, long stream of blood flowing down the stream, but it all leads up over a rock…and to Shannon’s body upstream. Boone pulls Shannon’s body up off the rocks, calling her name several times, as Shannon has to be dead. Her eyes are open, but she has to be dead. No way she survived the MONSTER. We can’t do a Charlie fakeout here.
And now, a word from our sponsors…well, that does it for Shannon as the first major character bites the dust. There’s no way she can come back. It would be senseless, unless the MONSTER has some sort of mercy or something ridiculous like that.
Home stretch time, as night falls and Boone arrives at the camp. Boone draws the knife and runs towards Locke, screaming that he killed Shannon. Locke grabs the knife before Boone can attack and wrestles him down to the ground, but Boone ends up on top. Locke holds Boone’s arm back and then notes that Boone made it back. “That thing…killed my sister.” Boone explains that she died in his arms, but Locke wonders why there’s no blood on Boone. Boone then realizes that, indeed, there isn’t. Boone then asks what happened, and Locke doesn’t know himself. Boone backs off of Locke, as Locke explains that her sister…and then there’s Shannon talking with Sayid! WHAT THE FUCK?! NO! NO WAY! Locke then asks if that’s what it made Boone see. Boone then realizes that the stuff that Locke put on his head…well, Boone was drugged. Locke then explains that it was necessary to give you an experience necessary for Boone to survive on the island. Was it real? Only as real as Boone made it. Boone was so sure that he saw her die. Locke asks Boone how he felt when she died, and Boone then drops a bomb and says relieved. “I felt relieved.” Locke nods and smiles, pointing at Boone and advising him again that it’s “time to let go.” Locke gets up and straps on his bag, telling Boone to follow him. Boone takes another look at Shannon and then looks over at Locke, who turns and starts walking off. And Boone follows right behind.
End show! WHOOOOO. What a ride.
Well, they got me. I was totally fooled into believing that Shannon was dead dead dead. But she was not. And now Locke/Boone has gotten a whole lot more interesting. Not to mention that it seems something is brewing towards a confrontation between Jack and Locke, with Locke bringing everyone over to the Dark Side. I can’t wait for the season finale, certainly, but these death fakeouts have got to stop.
