1.02 - Pilot, Part II

Recap: Flashbacks reveal that Charlie is a heroin addict and that Kate was some kind of a prisoner. On the island, most of the survivors are still waiting for rescue, but hope is low and tensions are high, especially after hothead Sawyer blames Sayid for the crash. Sayid fixes the radio but says they need to seek higher ground to send a distress signal. The radio picks up a signal – a Frenchwoman calling for help... since more than sixteen years ago.

Thoughts: Episodes like this remind me that LOST is more about characters than mythology, and when done well we get episodes like this one (watch out for character episodes that don’t actually do anything later in this show). But this episode also gives us a healthy dose of mythology with the polar bear, the Frenchwoman’s message, and a good bit of healthy character insight. And I don’t care how often they show it – that shot of the plane breaking in half is absolutely terrifying.

Favorite moment: Shannon in her bikini. Nah, just messin’ – my favorite is actually when Hurley faints on top of Shrapnel Man. Seriously, though, was it just me, or did every female character take off her clothes in this episode? (Gotta hook viewers somehow.)

Characters introduced (in order):

• No new characters introduced this episode – this was more of a “getting to know you” week for LOST.

What we learned:

• Charlie’s been acting crazy because he’s actually a heroin junkie.
• Shannon and Boone are brothers.
• Sayid was involved in the Gulf War, but on the Iraqi side.
• There are effing polar bears on this island!
• There was a U.S. Marshal (Shrapnel Man) on the airplane, and Kate was his prisoner.
• There was, at some point, a stranded Frenchwoman, but her distress signal has been playing for more than sixteen years.

Questions:

• What’s the deal with Jin and Sun? Is he really just a controlling jerk, or is there something more going on?
• What’s on Sawyer’s letter? And why is he such a stinker?
• Where did Vincent scamper off to?
• As facile as the question is now, is Locke good or bad?
• What secret does Locke tell Walt?
• Claire’s baby – boy or girl?
• How the heck did a polar bear get on this island? (Hint: it’s not “Bear Village,” as Sawyer says.)
• Why was Kate in handcuffs on the plane?
• What favor was Kate going to ask the marshal?
• What happened with the Frenchwoman? Who’s “all dead,” and what killed them?
• “Where are we?”

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Beginning with this episode, issues of trust and distrust, while nothing new to any kind of fiction, have always been key on this show. Expect these to keep cropping up throughout the final season.
• Locke plays backgammon with Walt and gives us a lesson on black and white – as recently as the Season Five finale, this got hit on again. What’s the ultimate relevance of black and/or/versus white?
• Charlie’s episode-closing question - “Where are we?” - is more prescient than maybe even he knows. Where – and when – is the island?