2.08 - Collision

Title’s significance: The 815ers on the beach finally collide with the Tailies.

Recap: In Ana Lucia’s flashbacks, we learn that she was a cop in therapy after being shot in the line of duty and losing her pregnancy; she rejoined the force but clearly wasn’t ready, tracking down the man who shot her and killing him in a parking garage. On island, Ana Lucia panics and fumbles for control of her group after killing Shannon, but Eko takes Sawyer to the beach camp. Kate challenges Jack to a golf match on Hurley’s course, but the game is cut short when Eko arrives and they have to take Sawyer down to The Swan for medical treatment. Eko tells Locke that Shannon is dead, and the Jack/Kate/Sawyer love triangle is rekindled. Ana Lucia loses control over the Tailies when all of them leave her alone with Sayid, to whom she admits she feels alone. Jack sets out for Ana Lucia, but Eko stops him; Ana Lucia cuts Sayid loose, but Sayid refuses to kill her. The Tailies make it to the beach camp, and Rose and Bernard are finally reunited, as are Jin and Sun.

Thoughts: After Damon and Carlton showed us how it’s done in “The Other 48 Days,” this episode is a flop. The writers of this one had a good idea, but it seems they didn’t know how to make that idea into a whole episode, so they packed it with a lot of filler. Yes, the two camps finally meet, but doing this quicker would have been far more interesting; Ana Lucia’s character is also a bit inconsistent here, since her newfound state of being troubled doesn’t quite line up with the way we’ve seen her act in previous episodes. I can remember thinking it would have been really cool if Bernard wasn’t really Bernard (maybe an Other instead?), but in retrospect I’m glad that Rose got her happy ending with her husband.

Favorite moment: Kate showing that she’s obviously a better golfer than Jack. I also wish I’d been keeping track of how many times Jack has cried, since he breaks down just because Eko mentions Ana Lucia’s name.

Characters introduced (in order):

• DANNY (mentioned), a former lover of Ana Lucia
• TERESA CORTEZ, Ana Lucia’s mom and police captain
• MIKE WALTON, Ana Lucia’s partner
• JASON MCCORMACK, the man who shot Ana Lucia

What we learned:

• Ana Lucia was a cop off-island, in therapy.
• Ana Lucia was pregnant but lost the baby after being shot.
• Ana Lucia got revenge by killing Jason.

Questions:

• Who’s the father of Ana Lucia’s baby? OK, Danny, but who’s Danny?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Nothing of mythological significance here.