Season Two Roundup

I’m sure it’s darkly and ironically intentional that this season – dominated by questions about who’s in charge, who to accept orders from, and whether our lives are within are control – began with Mama Cass crooning the independence anthem “Make Your Own Kind of Music” (which I now have stuck in my head – thanks, LOST). In another way, it’s also LOST’s way of saying that they’re going to keep doing their own thing regardless of whether or not the viewers are totally on board; we take it for granted now, but there was initially some skepticism about crash-landing on an island where there just happen to be a whole heck of a lot of “other” people.

The Others are one of two central plotlines this season, with artist-formerly-known-as-“the-hatch” The Swan (and the ensuing mystery of The Dharma Initiative) dominating the front half of the season. With two such important plot points on the table, it ought to have been an exciting season laden with heavy mystery, intrigue, and new layers of mythology. Unfortunately, though, the second season was marked mostly by the writers spinning their wheels in a classic case of “the sophomore slump.” A perfect illustration of this is that the first season encompassed roughly 44 days on the island; the second season only explored 23 (ah, the numbers!). This protraction ends up hurting the show; recall that it took almost three full episodes for us to have enough questions answered from last season’s finale to feel good about it, and that we had to see the Desmond/Jack/Locke scene three different times from three different angles. Maybe I’m just spoiled by the “compressed” storytelling of Seasons Four and Five, but Season Two feels drawn out, and some of it even seems pointless. I’m thinking of a lot of the flashbacks this season (each of which only really did one thing for their respective characters), and I’m definitely still sore about that stretch of episodes right in the middle (a LOST tradition, I guess) where ABSOLUTELY NOTHING HAPPENS. “Fire + Water”? Pointless. “The Long Con”? Okay, who cares? “The Hunting Party”? STOP CRYING, JACK.

Fortunately, the show never really sucked (except for those middle episodes), and we owe a lot of that to LOST’s newfound heroes. On this rewatch, I noticed that there are three people we really have to thank for making Season Two so extraordinary: Damon Lindelof, Carlton Cuse, and Michael Emerson. Damon & Carlton are probably LOST’s most prolific writers, mostly because they’re the head writers. But they co-wrote seven episodes of Season Two, and looking back on the list I’m ready to say those were the seven most interesting episodes of the season (an eighth, which Damon wrote alone, also makes the cut). These two guys are the masters of mythology, the artists of the slow tease, and the supermen of the slam-bang reveal. Without them, we’d probably have a season filled with episodes like “Fire + Water.” Yeesh.

Then there’s Michael Emerson. Just when the show was falling fast – right around the time that I was wondering if I should continue through with this rewatch – in saunters this little man calling himself “Henry Gale.” Since this is LOST, we know instantly to question his story, but the way that Emerson plays him is utterly fascinating. We know he’s evil – we just know it – and yet there’s something that tells us, “Well, maybe not...” If Locke is the ideal viewer for the show – the one who believes everything is for a purpose – then “Henry” is the ideal writer of the show; he knows what the endgame is, but he’s not telling us until it’s just the right time. Emerson’s story is Hollywood legend now – a character actor flying out to Hawaii for a three-episode arc that ended up spiraling into a four-season full-time cast member spot. Emerson made the show interesting again, so major kudos to him for keeping me watching.

And now for our Questions roundup: Of our 81 lingering questions, 34 have now been answered, leaving 47 still remaining (these 47 will continue to carry over to subsequent roundups until they are answered). In Season Two, I asked 141 questions, 60 of which were answered within the season; this leaves 76 questions for future seasons to answer. That brings our running total of lingering questions to 123. As with last season, I decided to be a smartass and asked five questions that were completely useless.

Asked and Answered – Lingering Questions:

• It bears repeating – if she’s a fugitive, what did Kate do? Jack implies it was murder, but we don’t know for sure... – Kate murdered her birth father when she learned they were related.
• Did the people in the tail section survive? – Yep.
• Were the bank robberies the reason Kate was wanted? If so, why was she considered extremely dangerous? – (We know they’re not, since the marshal said he was chasing Kate before the bank robbery, but we still don’t know why she was wanted.) She was wanted for murdering Wayne Janssen.
• What happened in Sayid’s past to make him promise never to torture again? – Sayid was forced into torturing after Desert Storm, and it’s brought him nothing but ill fortune.
• What happened to Nadia? – She made it to America, where she met Locke.
• Are there other people on the island? – (Ethan, yes, but we don’t know about anyone else...) There is definitely a large contingent of Others on the island.
• Who’s Ethan with, if he wasn’t on the plane? – The Others.
• Why did Ethan kidnap Claire? – The Others are interested in Claire’s baby.
• Who’s Ethan working for/with? – The Others.
• Who else is on the island...? – The Others.
• Who are “The Others”? – A group of people living on the island, they are more sophisticated than they appear.
• Who are the “they” Charlie talks about? – The Others.
• Why is Sayid’s compass funky? – The electromagnetism under The Swan.
• Where does Rousseau’s map lead? – (The Black Rock, but it could point to other places.) I’m closing the book on this one.
• Where has Claire been all this time? – At The Arrow, where The Others were treating her before they aimed to keep her child.
• How did Claire make her way back to the survivors? – Rousseau brought her back.
• Where’s she been? – At The Arrow, where The Others were treating her before they aimed to keep her child.
• Why doesn’t Claire remember anything? – It could be a self-defense mechanism, or it could stem from Rousseau knocking Claire out.
• What sort of ramifications will there be from killing Ethan? – Relations between The Others and The Survivors are strained.
• If Hurley is coming back to the mental institution, why was he there in the first place? – Hurley blames himself for a deck collapse and is emerging from catatonia and seeing imaginary people.
• Why are The Numbers stamped on the side of The Hatch? – The Numbers must be entered into a computer in the hatch.
• Who were the Nigerians who crashed on the island? – Drug runners connected to Eko; one of them was his brother Yemi.
• Who did Boone reach on the plane’s radio system? Why did they claim to be the survivors of Flight 815? – It was Bernard, with the rest of the Tailies over on the other side of the island.
• What’s down in the hatch that a light could just come on? – It’s Desmond!
• How did Jack and Sarah’s marriage turn out? – Sarah left Jack because he was too busy fixing things to notice she was having an affair.
• Why did Locke lie about what happened, only to have a change of heart? – Locke is waffling between believing that the island has chosen him and fearing that his faith is being abused.
• Why did Kate’s own mother call the police on her? – Kate killed her husband.
• What is the pillar of black smoke? – (It’s smoke from a pyre, but we don’t know who lit it.) Charlie confirms that Rousseau lit the smoke to lure The Others into trading Aaron for Alex.
• Jack tells Ana Lucia he’s not married “any more.” Why? – Jack and Sarah separated after Sarah was cheating on him.
• Who was on the phone with Ana Lucia? – It was her mother.
• Will Charlie relapse? (He has the statue, but we don’t know if he intends to use it.) – Though Charlie possessed the Virgin Mary statues for much of Season Two, he did not relapse.
• What’s inside the hatch – Twinkies or hope? – Mostly Desmond and Dharma supplies.
• Who lit the pyre for the pillar of smoke? – Rousseau.
• Who took Walt? – The Others.

Asked and Answered – Season Two:

• What was Desmond inoculating himself with? – Vaccine for an illness believed to be contracted on the island.
• What is the purpose of the hatch and all the elaborate accoutrements within? – Pressing the button in The Swan releases pent-up electromagnetic energy.
• What’s the source of the magnetism in the hatch? – A cache of electromagnetism under The Swan.
• What does the computer in the hatch do? – Defuses the electromagnetism.
• How did Desmond get into the hatch? – After crashing on the island, Desmond was brought to the hatch by Kelvin Inman.
• How long has Desmond been in the hatch? – Three years.
• Why is Desmond in the hatch? – Desmond is left to push the button after Inman died.
• Did Desmond win the race around the world? – Negatory.
• What the heck happened with the raft?! – The Others blew it up, and the Rafties floated to the other side of the island.
• What is DHARMA? – According to Marvin Candle, it’s “a large-scale communal research compound where scientists and free-thinkers from around the globe could pursue research” in a variety of scientific endeavors.
• Who did Desmond think Locke was? – His replacement.
• What did one snowman say to the other snowman? – “Smells like carrots.”
• Why is Desmond so interested in the timetable of the plane crash? – Desmond believes he caused the plane crash by failing to press the button.
• Why would The Others want Walt? – They believe he is special.
• Does Desmond ever leave the hatch? – Once in three years.
• Are those really The Others? – Nope, they’re Tailies.
• Why would we all die if the computer’s broken? – No one knows what all that electromagnetism could do.
• How did Kelvin die? – Desmond accidentally killed him by bashing his head against a rock.
• What information is in the orientation video’s missing footage? – The computer must not be used for anything beyond entering the numbers.
• Is Jack right in suggesting that the computer is just a mind game? – Nope.
• Who’s the woman in the photograph with Desmond? – Penelope Widmore, his girlfriend.
• Where is Desmond running to? – Physically, he’s going to find his sailboat; metaphorically, he’s running to his honor.
• The supplies in The Swan can’t have been down there since the ’70s. How is the stockroom getting replenished? – Someone is sending periodic supply drops.
• What happened to the rest of the Tailies? – The Others captured or killed them.
• When will Rose and Bernard reunite? – Episode 2.08, “Collision.”
• What’s got the Tailies so on edge? – The Others stalking them.
• The Others have children? – Sort of. The Others abducted the kids from the tail section.
• Is Sawyer gonna be okay? – Oh, yeah.
• What’s Sayid going to do to Ana Lucia? – Forgive her. Boom.
• What’s going to happen when the alarm ticks all the way down to 0:00? – Major electromagnetic malfunction. Purple skies, loud noises, explosion.
• What are the blast doors for? – To insulate The Swan from the outside world.
• What was Sayid doing on the television in Sam Austen’s office? – He was in Desert Storm on the Iraqi side, a war in which Sam Austen served.
• Who edited the Swan video? Why? – Radzinsky edited it, but we don’t quite know why.
• Is that really Walt on the other end of the computer? – Yes (the writers have said so).
• Who’s Geronimo Jackson? – An obscure band from the 1970s. (It seems, based on how fixated characters are on GJ for about five seconds, that it could be important, but I’m not ready to consider this unanswered.)
• Is the Alex with The Others the same Alex that Rousseau’s looking for? – Yep, it’s her daughter.
• Where’s Michael gotten to? – He’s with The Others, bartering for Walt’s freedom.
• Does Hurley know Libby from somewhere? – They were in the Santa Rosa Mental Institution together.
• Is Henry Gale legit? – Haha, no way.
• Was Henry’s wife killed by the same illness that Rousseau says killed her team? – No. The real Henry Gale’s wife never made it to the island.
• Why is Eko cutting down the trees that he marked as trees that he “liked”? – He’s building a church.
• Why did Claire become so instantly trusting of Ethan? – Her mind sort of went on hibernation.
• Why doesn’t Alex share the agenda of The Others? – She’s not one of them; she’s Rousseau’s daughter.
• Does Henry’s map lead to an ambush? – Surprisingly, no.
• What caused The Swan to go into lockdown? – There are two conflicting reports; it could either have been faked by “Henry Gale,” or it could have been triggered remotely during the supply drop.
• Who painted the blast door map? – Kelvin Inman, and Radzinsky before him.
• What does the blast door map show? – A map of the Dharma stations on the island.
• So who is this guy calling himself Henry Gale? – He’s a higher-up with The Others.
• What’s Eko building? – A church.
• Is Hurley’s “Dave” an imagined version of a real person, or is he just a complete figment? – The writers have said he’s a figment.
• Why was Libby in the mental institution? – Damon and Carlton say it’s because she flipped out after her husband’s death.
• Where’s Michael been? – With The Others, negotiating for Walt.
• Does Libby remember Hurley from the hospital? – I’d say she does.
• Why did Michael free “Henry” after killing his fellow 815ers? – Trading Walt for “Henry.”
• Where does the pneumatic tube go from The Pearl? – There’s a tube drop that hasn’t been accessed in a while.
• With The Pearl monitoring other stations, does this mean the other stations are psychological trick experiments? Or are some of them legit with only a few others as placebos? – Well, we know The Swan wasn’t bogus.
• Where does the Pala ferry go? – Michael uses it to leave the island, while The Others use it to move quickly to and fro about the island.
• Has Michael gone absolutely crazy? – No, his plan to free Walt makes sense in a weird kind of way.
• What station are The Others guarding? – Gotcha! It’s not a station at all; it’s a bogus door.
• Who’s on the sailboat? – Desmond.

Still Unanswered:

• Why hasn’t anyone come to rescue them?
• Why doesn’t technology work on the island?
• How the heck did a polar bear get on this island? (Hint: it’s not “Bear Village,” as Sawyer says.)
• “Where are we?”
• Michael promises to find Vincent “as soon as it stops raining.” Immediately, it stops raining. Is this situational humor, or is there something special about Walt?
• Why did the thing in the jungle let Locke live, and why does he lie about it?
• How did Locke become paralyzed?
• Where’s Christian’s body?
• Is the Christian on-island a ghost, a resurrected Christian, or something else entirely?
• What does Locke mean when he says that he’s “looked into the eye of this island, and it’s beautiful”?
• What’s the deal with Jack and his tattoos?
• Who was the original Sawyer?
• What’s the cable for?
• Where is Alex?
• What is the source of the mysterious whispers?
• What does Claire’s dream/nightmare mean?
• Why can’t anyone else raise Claire’s baby?
• Did the psychic know that Flight 815 was going to crash?
• Walt keeps rolling what he needs in backgammon and says he’s the luckiest person his step-dad knows – is there something supernatural at play?
• Why are the tides rising so quickly?
• Why has the monster been quiet the last few weeks?
• There’s a polar bear in Walt’s comic book. There’s more than one polar bear on the island. Coincidence?
• Why is Michael “holding on” – for Walt or for himself?
• Did Walt somehow cause the Bronze Kahuku to crash into the window?
• Is Claire’s black rock the same as Rousseau’s black rock?
• What was the Tampa Job that Sawyer and Hibbs worked?
• What’s the story behind Kate’s short marriage?
• If Frank Duckett wasn’t the real Sawyer, who was?
• Did Sawyer ever get revenge on Hibbs for using him?
• What’s the significance of The Numbers?
• Why does “using” The Numbers lead to problems?
• Where did Sam Toomey learn The Numbers?
• Are The Numbers cursed?
• Who’s been broadcasting The Numbers from the island?
• Why did the island take away Locke’s ability to walk?
• I think this one is between the lines, especially in light of the fifth season’s events: Did Shannon miss, or did the island save Locke?
• How does Walt know about the hatch?
• Why is it so important for Sawyer to be on the raft? He claims it’s because there’s nothing on the island, but there has to be something deeper, right?
• Was it Walt’s thoughts on the hatch that spurred his change of heart vis-à-vis leaving the island?
• Why did Montand lose his arm?
• What infected Rousseau’s team?
• What makes Rousseau claim the monster is a security system?
• How did The Black Rock get all the way inland?
• Michael said it best: “How the hell does a place this big never get discovered?”
• What does Sun have to be punished for?
• Why isn’t Locke afraid of the smoke monster?
• Where did the smoke monster try to take Locke?
• Why is “QUARANTINE” stamped on the hatch door?
• What did Shannon see in the jungle – Walt or something else?
• What’s the significance of the mural in the hatch?
• Why would Desmond think that the world doesn’t exist anymore?
• If Cooper has conned people before, is he the original Sawyer?
• How many Others are there?
• What will the other five DHARMA orientation videos show? – One (The Pearl) shows that the stations are under surveillance, but what of the others?
• What happened in the “incident”?
• Why the numbers – why do those get entered into the computer?
• Whatever happened with Hurley and Starla?
• How did Rose know that Bernard is fine?
• Who is Jae Lee’s American woman?
• How does Locke know so much about babies?
• Why is Shannon seeing visions of Walt?
• How do The Others know the names of those on the plane?
• Who decides who a good person is to put their names on a list?
• What is the function of The Arrow station?
• Who claimed that the island was under quarantine, and why?
• Who does the glass eye belong to?
• Where did the U.S. Army knife come from?
• Where did the mysterious black horse come from?
• Are the ghosts that Kate is seeing connected to the “ghost” of Walt that Sayid saw?
• Are the odd things around Kate – Sawyer as Wayne, the black horse – ghosts, guilt, the smoke monster, or something else?
• How could communication with the outside world lead to another incident?
• Does Eko have a soul?
• Why didn’t the smoke monster attack Eko?
• Who was Sarah’s lover?
• Why is Locke so interested in Sawyer’s name?
• How do The Others know the names of all the 815ers? Was it simply Ethan reporting back?
• What does Sawyer owe Gordy?
• Why are transmissions coming in from 1944?
• Why is Rousseau so convinced that Henry Gale is one of The Others?
• What’s the significance of the hieroglyphics?
• What was The Staff’s original function?
• Where did all the things in Claire’s nursery come from, and why couldn’t Ethan explain them?
• Are The Others members of The Dharma Initiative?
• Why were The Others interested in Claire’s baby?
• Why do The Others pretend to be all grizzly?
• Did Sun and Jae Lee have an affair?
• Who’s the father – Jin or Jae Lee?
• Did the island cure Jin’s infertility like it cured Locke’s paralysis?
• What was Jack doing in Thailand?
• I think it’s also fair to ask whether Dave was Hurley’s imagination or “the island” just messing with him.
• What’s the so-called Henry Gale’s real name?
• Who does “Henry Gale” answer to?
• Did “Henry” press the button?
• Why won’t The Others turn over Walt?
• How does the island heal people?
• Why did Christian choose the name “Sarah” for Ana Lucia? Is this a reference to Jack’s wife?
• Was “Henry” really coming for Locke?
• Who did Christian go to Australia to see?
• Was Goodwin going to kill Ana Lucia?
• Is Richard Malkin genuinely a psychic or not?
• Who salted the question mark?
• Who was in The Pearl recently?
• Why did the orientation film presenter use a different name – Mark Wickmund instead of Marvin Candle?
• Why did Locke have to come to the Pearl?
• Why did Pickett take Michael’s blood?
• What’s in “the room” where Walt was being held?
• Why did Ms. Klugh choose the four survivors that she did?
• Why was Desmond dishonorably discharged from the army?
• Why couldn’t Desmond leave the island?
• Why is Libby’s hair different in each flashback?
• Who was Libby married to? David, but David who?
• What’s the story behind the Hurley bird?
• What’s the deal with the four-toed statue?
• How did Inman get from Iraq to the island?
• Who is Radzinsky?
• Why would Radzinsky edit the video?
• Why did Radzinsky kill himself?
• Why did Kelvin leave the army?
• Did the system failure crash Oceanic 815?
• What happened when the failsafe was triggered?
• Why won’t Michael be able to return to the island?
• Are The Others really “the good guys”?
• Did the two Portuguese men find the island? If so, how did they know to look for electromagnetic activity?

Me Being a Smartass – Season Two:

• Why is there so much ranch dressing in The Swan?
• Who’s the father of Ana Lucia’s baby? OK, Danny, but who’s Danny? – Let’s not be fatuous here. Not everything has a surprise meaning.
• Are the washer and dryer in The Swan really newer than everything else down there?
• If Hurley got on the plane late and Libby was sitting in the back of the plane, how did he manage to step on her toe? – I maintain that she’s a compulsive liar.
• Is there milk in The Swan?

2.23 - Live Together, Die Alone

For some reason, Hulu broke this episode in half, but since it originally aired (on my birthday three years ago, no less) as one unit, I’m putting it together here.


Title’s significance: This episode’s title echoes a statement made by Jack way back in “White Rabbit,” which Jack repeats while heading to The Others’ camp.

Recap: Desmond gets his own flashbacks this episode, introducing us to his dishonorable discharge and his conflict with industrialist Charles Widmore over Desmond’s relationship with Widmore’s daughter Penelope. To prove his stuff, Desmond entered Widmore’s race around the world, with Libby’s sailboat. The sailboat, of course, crashed on the island, where he was picked up by Kelvin Inman – the American soldier Sayid met in Iraq. Inman reveals that his former partner Radzinsky edited the video. Inman shows Desmond the hatch’s failsafe and explains that the button discharges the cache of electromagnetism. Noticing that Kelvin’s Hazmat suit has a tear in it, Desmond follows him out and learns that there is no sickness and that Kelvin’s been rebuilding the sailboat; the two tousle, Kelvin dies, and Desmond takes the failsafe key, but he doesn’t return in time to prevent a system failure and electromagnetic detonation. Just as Desmond is about to kill himself after reading Penny’s note (in which she promises to wait for him), he hears Locke on the hatch in his moment of desperation from “Deus Ex Machina.”

In the present, Jack, Sawyer, and Sayid make it out to the sailboat and find Desmond, drunk off his butt and listening to opera; Desmond says he set out for Fiji but was stuck in the snow globe-like world of the island. Locke and Eko come into conflict about pushing the button, and Kate tells Jack that something doesn’t jive about The Others being hillbillies. Sayid borrows Desmond’s sailboat, and when Michael’s team is attacked by a large green bird that screams Hurley’s name, Michael learns his gun wasn’t loaded. Locke tells Desmond about the Pearl video, and the two agree to not push the button tomorrow; they lock Eko out of the hatch. While sailing, Sayid, Jin, and Sun discover the giant four-toed foot of a statue that has otherwise disappeared before landing at the Others’ village.

After escaping an ambush, Jack confronts Michael about his betrayal, and the truth comes out about his actions in The Swan; Jack reveals he has a plan. Eko dynamites his way into the computer room as Michael’s team is attacked by The Others. Locke gives Desmond the printout from The Pearl, which reveals that Desmond’s system failure may have crashed Oceanic 815; Desmond begins to believe the button might be for real, but Locke destroy the computer in disbelief. Michael’s team is brought to a dock, where they meet up with “Henry Gale,” who releases Michael and Walt when he claims that Walt is more trouble than he’s worth. When the computer system fails again and the electromagnetism goes haywire, Desmond goes down to trigger the failsafe, and Locke admits he was wrong. A large electromagnetic flare fires up, the skies are filed with a loud white noise, and the hatch door crashes in the beach camp. Charlie staggers back to camp, but no one else returns. Ms. Klugh releases Hurley to tell the other survivors never to come looking for their friends. Meanwhile, at an unspecified location, two Portuguese men contact Penny Widmore and tell her, “It’s us. I think we found it.”

Thoughts: Knockout finale. Damon & Carlton hit every home run possible. This might be a perfect episode of LOST; it’s certainly got one of the best sets of flashbacks in LOST history.

Favorite moment: It’s so hard to choose a favorite moment – is it the scene at the ferries, Desmond’s flashbacks with Kelvin, the electromagnetic explosion? Is it possible that this entire episode is a “favorite moment”?

Characters introduced (in order):

• CHARLES WIDMORE, an industrialist with a major hate-on for Desmond
• PENELOPE WIDMORE, Widmore’s daughter and Desmond’s love interest
• RADZINSKY (mentioned), Inman’s former partner in The Swan

What we learned:

• Desmond’s in the sailboat, but it actually belonged to Libby.
• Desmond says the island is like a snow globe, with no possible escape.
• Desmond wants Charles Dickens’s “Our Mutual Friend” to be the last thing he ever reads.
• Desmond was dishonorably discharged from the Scottish army.
• Desmond’s last name is Hume.
• Desmond refers to The Others as The Hostiles, a name he picked up from Kelvin Inman.
• Libby bought Desmond coffee off-island and gave him a sailboat to win Widmore’s race around the world.
• “With enough money and determination, you can find anyone.” (Penelope)
• Penny’s engaged to another man.
• “Smells like carrots” is the answer to Desmond’s riddle.
• Joe Inman’s real first name is Kelvin.
• Radzinsky edited the Swan video.
• Sawyer suggests that The Others are either Dharma holdouts or aliens.
• Inman finished the blast door map that Radzinsky began.
• It’s possible to fake a lockdown.
• Radzinsky killed himself in The Swan.
• The Swan is built over a large quantity of electromagnetism.
• There’s nothing behind the Dharma doors at the Others’ village.
• Though somebody may have been in The Pearl recently, no one’s been picking up the tubes for a while.
• Desmond accidentally killed Kelvin.
• Desmond’s system failure coincided with the crash of Oceanic 815.
• Mr. Friendly’s first name is Tom; Ms. Klugh’s first name is Bea.
• “Henry Gale” is apparently a leader among The Others.
• Heading 325 is the only way off the island.
• “Henry Gale” claims The Others are “the good guys.”

Questions:

• Why was Desmond dishonorably discharged from the army?
• Why couldn’t Desmond leave the island?
• Why is Libby’s hair different in each flashback?
• Who was Libby married to? David, but David who?
• What’s the story behind the Hurley bird?
• What’s the deal with the four-toed statue?
• How did Inman get from Iraq to the island?
• Who is Radzinsky?
• Why would Radzinsky edit the video?
• Why did Radzinsky kill himself?
• Why did Kelvin leave the army?
• Did the system failure crash Oceanic 815?
• What happened when the failsafe was triggered?
• Why won’t Michael be able to return to the island?
• Are The Others really "the good guys"?
• Did the two Portuguese men find the island? If so, how did they know to look for electromagnetic activity?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• The introduction of Charles Widmore sets up plotlines that stretch all the way through Season Five, and what his ultimate role on the show will be remains to be seen. Is he a good person, or is he a bad person who’s worse than his foil Ben?
• The electromagnetic cache down beneath The Swan becomes central to the Season Five finale. Does it really have the capacity to bend time?

2.22 - Three Minutes

Title’s significance: Ms. Klugh gives Michael three minutes with Walt, during which he realizes that the “plan” is the only way to save Walt.

Recap: Michael’s flashbacks cover his time chasing after Walt on the island; captured by The Others, who expressed excessive interest in Walt, Michael was given a list of survivors – Jack, Kate, Hurley, and Sawyer – to bring back with “Henry Gale” in exchange for freeing Walt. In the present, Michael tries to lead the survivors to The Others’ camp, but Hurley wants burial before revenge. Unaware of the significance of his story, Eko tells Michael that hell is not as bad as the murdered victims who wait for their murderer. Charlie gives Claire the vaccine case he found from the supply drop., while at The Swa Eko begins to push the button instead of build the church. Sawyer adds Sayid to the army (Jack, Kate, Sawyer, and Hurley) against The Others, which distresses Michael so much that he bans Sayid from tagging along. Charlie chucks the Virgin Mary statues into the sea and ends up holding hands with Claire. Before the funeral, Sawyer tells Jack that he slept with Ana Lucia, since Jack is “the closest thing I got to a friend.” Locke gets seaside contemplative while Sayid tells Jack that he believes Michael has been “compromised.” At the funeral, a mysterious sailboat appears.

Thoughts: Seriously, Michael, change the record. I don’t want to suggest that this was a bad episode – quite the contrary, I really enjoyed it. But Michael’s such a static character that his only character development depends on how long he draws out the word “WAAAAAAAAAAAAALT!”

Favorite moment: Vincent brings Charlie a Virgin Mary statue, to which Charlie replies, “Are you kidding me?”

Characters introduced (in order):

• PICKETT, an oily and ornery Other
• MS. KLUGH, an Other overly interested in Walt

What we learned:

• The gunshots that the 815ers heard came from a shootout between Michael and The Others.
• Michael was working for The Others to free “Henry.”
• The Others instructed Michael to bring four survivors to their camp.
• Sayid is suspicious of Michael.
• There’s a sailboat out there!

Questions:

• Why did Pickett take Michael’s blood?
• What station are The Others guarding?
• What’s in “the room” where Walt was being held?
• Why did Ms. Klugh choose the four survivors that she did?
• Who’s on the sailboat?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• The Others are very interested in the remarkable things that Walt can do. I’m wondering, though, if Aaron is the child they’re looking for.
• The list that The Others drew up might be just pawns in the machinations of Ben Linus, but there might be something else at play here, especially because we get other lists in future episodes – even Jacob has a list. What are the lists, and do they have anything to do with being good/bad people?

2.21 - ?

Title’s significance: Eko’s dreams direct him to a question mark hidden somewhere on the island.

Recap: Eko’s flashbacks explore his time as a priest (Father Tunde), which he was trying to escape before he was called to investigate a miracle – the apparent resurrection of Charlotte Malkin. Charlotte’s father – the psychic that Claire visited – denied it was a miracle, but Charlotte encountered Yemi while “between places,” which seems to prove the miraculous occurrence. On the island, Eko has a strange dream that prefigures Ana Lucia’s death and features Yemi asking Eko to help Locke find his “way” again by going to “the question mark.” At The Swan, Michael weaves his story about the so-called escape of “Henry Gale” before it’s discovered that Libby isn’t quite so dead, so Locke and Eko go off in search of “Henry,” but Eko is more interested in finding “the question mark.” Sawyer gives up the heroin to ease Libby’s suffering, exposing to Kate the location of his stash in the process, and Sawyer and Kate have to deliver the harsh news to Hurley. Eko finds the question mark – salted into the ground where the Nigerian plane crashed; buried underneath is another Dharma station, The Pearl, filled with monitors watching the other hatches. Disillusioned, Locke says he’s had enough, but Eko says their faith is being tested. Back at The Swan, Hurley apologizes to Libby as she dies – before she can warn everyone that Michael killed her.

Thoughts: This is nominally Eko’s episode, but I think Damon & Carlton are focusing, as they always have been, on Locke and his spiritual oscillation between faith and disbelief. The mythology also gets deepened with a riveting new development – The Pearl. Though this isn’t my favorite Damon & Carlton episode – not by a long shot – it’s still one of the best episodes overall in Season Two.

Favorite moment: I’m a sucker for the orientation videos, so The Pearl scene was my favorite, but Hurley’s last conversation with Libby was a real tear-jerker, too.

Characters introduced (in order):

• JOYCE MALKIN, mother of an apparent miracle
• CHARLOTTE MALKIN, resurrected daughter of psychic Richard Malkin

What we learned:

• Eko took on the name “Father Tunde” when he pretended to be a priest.
• Eko was investigating a miracle in Sydney before boarding Flight 815.
• Richard Malkin says that he is a fraud, not a psychic.
• The Pearl’s function is to monitor the other Dharma stations.
• A dead cigarette suggests The Pearl was still being used recently.
• The Pearl video was made in 1980.
• Libby tried to intervene when Eko and Charlotte were arguing in the airport.

Questions:

• Is Richard Malkin genuinely a psychic or not?
• Who salted the question mark?
• Who was in The Pearl recently?
• Where does the pneumatic tube go from The Pearl?
• With The Pearl monitoring other stations, does this mean the other stations are psychological trick experiments? Or are some of them legit with only a few others as placebos?
• Why did the orientation film presenter use a different name – Mark Wickmund instead of Marvin Candle?
• Where does the Pala ferry go?
• Why did Locke have to come to the Pearl?
• Has Michael gone absolutely crazy?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Some higher power was giving visions to Eko and Locke. Was it the island, Jacob, God, or something else to be revealed in Season Six?
• Mark Wickmund states in the Pearl orientation video, “Careful observation in the only key to true and complete awareness.” That’s pretty much the theme of this rewatch project. (Just thought you ought to know.)
• Locke says, “I was never meant to do anything! Every single second of my pathetic little life is as useless as that button!” I really think he’s wrong on that one; I really do.

2.20 - Two for the Road

Title’s significance: Ana Lucia and Christian drink together – “two for the road” – but the title might also be referring to the two casualties at the end of the episode.

Recap: Ana Lucia gets a second set of flashbacks: her mother learns about Jason McCormack, and Ana Lucia takes a job with airport security where she meets Christian Shepherd, who takes her to Sydney for protection. Christian, we learn, came to Australia to see his daughter, but her mother won’t let her; Ana Lucia views Christian as pathetic and leaves Sydney. On the island, “Henry” attacks Ana Lucia and claims that she’s a killer and a “bad person,” but Locke saves her. “Henry” tells Locke that he came to retrieve Locke because he’s “one of the good ones.” Ana Lucia comes to Sawyer for a gun, and Jack brings Michael to The Swan, where Locke questions the coincidental appearance at the line. Ana Lucia jumps Sawyer and has sex with him, stealing his gun in the process. Meanwhile. Michael wakes up and claims to have found The Others, but Kate feels suspicious of the story; Michael says they can “take” The Others and promises to lead the survivors back. When Jack and the crew go to get the guns from Sawyer, they leave Ana Lucia and Michael alone in the hatch with “Henry.” Hurley gets wine for the picnic while Libby heads back to the hatch for blankets. Ana Lucia menaces “Henry” but decides against it; she gives the gun to Michael, who turns around and kills both her and Libby before freeing “Henry.”

Thoughts: This is one of my favorite episodes of Season two, and it wasn’t even written by Damon and Carlton, so what does that tell you? It’s one of those collisions of great LOST traditions – interesting flashbacks, nonstop forward momentum, powerful character development, and a jaw-dropping finale that irrevocable changes the rules of the game while setting up for what’s next.

Favorite moment: For sheer shock, it’s got to be the ending where Michael reveals his own long con and surprised the heck out of the entire viewing audience.

Characters introduced (in order):

• Christian’s mysterious BLONDE WOMAN

What we learned:

• “Henry” says that Ana Lucia is a killer and that this makes her the bad person, not The Others.
• Ana Lucia went to Australia with Jack’s father but left when she realized she needed her mother’s help.
• "Henry” says that Locke is a good person.
• Christian has a daughter in Australia.
• Michael killed Ana Lucia and Libby before freeing “Henry.”

Questions:

• Why did Christian choose the name “Sarah” for Ana Lucia? Is this a reference to Jack’s wife?
• Was “Henry” really coming for Locke?
• Who did Christian go to Australia to see?
• Does Libby remember Hurley from the hospital?
• Was Goodwin going to kill Ana Lucia?
• Why did Michael free “Henry” after killing his fellow 815ers?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• This episode is more concerned with the season’s plotlines than far-reaching mythology.

2.19 - S.O.S.

Title’s significance: Bernard builds a giant SOS (Save Our Ship) sign on the beach. In this context, though, with respect to Eko’s church, SOS could mean Save Our Souls.

Recap: Rose & Bernard get their own flashbacks this episode: we learn how they met, that Rose had cancer, that Bernard brought her to a faith healer, that Rose lied about Isaac of Uluru healing her, and that Rose knew about Locke’s paralysis. On island, Bernard worries that the survivors have given up on rescue while Ana Lucia breaks the news to Jack that “Henry” is on a hunger strike; Jack worries about the trap that “Henry” had threatened, but “Henry” isn’t speaking, either. Jack and Kate go to the line they aren’t supposed to cross and demand a trade – Walt for “Henry.” Bernard wants to build an SOS sign on the beach, but Rose believes it would only give false hope while criticizing his management style. Before getting to the line, Jack and Kate get trapped in a net but extricate themselves. Locke tells Rose that he’s done with the hatch while they allude to the island’s mysterious healing properties. Jack reaches the line, but The Others don’t show. Rose apologizes for lying about the healer but tells Bernard that the island has healed her; Bernard agrees to stay with her on the island, no matter what. Locke draws the blast door map from memory, and at the line Jack and Kate discover Michael stumbling out of the jungle.

Thoughts: The playful banter between Rose and Bernard, as well as the strong underlying emotion that often passes unspoken between the two, I’m sure were the factors at play when the writers decided to give bit-part cast members a centric episode. I’ve got to give major props to L. Scott Caldwell and Sam Anderson for making what could have been a pointless detour episode an interesting character study.

Favorite moment: Kate’s sheepish “Sorry” after she and Jack are ensnared in one of Rousseau’s traps and the ensuing bickering between the two. (I think this is the first time Jack’s made a “Favorite moment” on this rewatch.)

Characters introduced (in order):

• NEIL FROGURT (mentioned), a survivor who used to make frozen yogurt
• ISAAC OF ULURU, a faith healer

What we learned:

• The Others have a very specific reason for abducting Walt.
• Eko and Charlie are building a church.
• Rose and Bernard were flying back from Australia after visiting a faith healer.
• Rose had cancer before the plane crash, but the island healed her.
• With this episode, we learn that the island’s healing properties extend beyond just Locke.

Questions:

• Why won’t The Others turn over Walt?
• How does the island heal people?
• Where’s Michael been?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• “People are saved in different ways,” Eko tells Bernard. But the island seems to be a unifying constant (no pun intended) in saving the survivors in one way or another. I think ultimately the island is going to save the survivors, but who’s going to save the island?
• How does the island heal people? We still quite don’t know, but I have a sneaking suspicion it has something to do with Jacob and “good people.”
• The eleventh hour appearance of Rose and Bernard in Season Five’s final minutes tells me the writers aren’t quite done with these two. If one Internet theory is correct, we might learn that Rose and Bernard are the Adam and Eve skeletons (thanks to some time travel machinations).

2.18 - Dave

Title’s significance: As tempting as it is to turn this episode’s title into a Cheech and Chong reference (especially in light of next season’s revelation that Hurley’s father is Cheech Marin), it’s actually a reference to Hurley’s invisible friend Dave.

Recap: In flashbacks, we explore Hurley’s time in the mental hospital, with negative influence Dave who didn’t want him to change; while Hurley blamed himself for a deck collapse, he learned that Dave didn’t exist. While jogging, Hurley confesses to Libby that he’s sick – hoarding food from The Swan – and Libby tells him that this is a simple fix by dumping out the food. But their romantic moment is spoiled when Sun and Jin charge in, leading them to the supply drop, where Hurley sees a mysterious bald man. Back at The Swan, Sayid interrogates “Henry” about who he really is; he denies killing the real Henry Gale and expresses fear of the leader of The Others. When Sawyer teases Hurley about being crazy, Hurley attacks him. Dave claims that Hurley never left the hospital and that all of this is imagined; therefore, he suggests, jumping off a cliff will wake him up. Crutches Locke (the hot new variant action figure) asks “Henry” his real name, but he dodges the question by saying he never pressed the button. Libby saves Hurley with a kiss, but a final flashback reveals that she too was in the mental institution.

Thoughts: There’s some surprisingly good acting from Jorge Garcia in this episode, giving depth to a character that a lot of us only look at as “that funny fat guy.” What’s really frustrating about this episode on rewatch is that we still don’t know anything about Libby’s backstory. Heck, even Rose and Bernard get a flashback, but Libby remains a mystery.

Favorite moment: “Great plan, moonbeam, and maybe after that we can sing kumbaya and do trust falls.” That, or Dave proving he exists by throwing rocks at Hurley.

Characters introduced (in order):

• DAVE, Hurley’s invisible friend and a negative influence
• DR. BROOKS, Hurley’s psychiatrist at the Santa Rosa Mental Institute

What we learned:

• Charlie theorizes that the lockdown was connected to the supply drop.
• "Henry Gale” claims that Mr. Friendly is “no one.”
• “Henry” claims he’s “not a bad person."
• Hurley blames himself for a deck collapse.
• Dave is Hurley’s imaginary friend.
• Libby was in Santa Rosa, too.

Questions:

• Who does “Henry Gale” answer to?
• What’s Eko building?
• Is Hurley’s “Dave” an imagined version of a real person, or is he just a complete figment?
• I think it’s also fair to ask whether Dave was Hurley’s imagination or “the island” just messing with him.
• What’s the so-called Henry Gale’s real name?
• Did “Henry” press the button?
• Why was Libby in the mental institution?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• There’s an infinitesimal possibility that what Dave claims about Hurley’s sanity is true. I pray to God that all this isn’t some delusion, but there’s a point-oh-one chance he’s right.
• “Henry” claims, “God doesn’t know how long we’ve been here... He can't see this island any better than the rest of the world can.” The place of God and of faith has always been central on this show, and I have to wonder if “Henry” is telling the truth (and if the identity of “God” can be conflated with “Jacob”).
• Dear writers: we need closure on Libby. Love, Zach

2.17 - Lockdown

Title’s significance: The Swan goes into lockdown mode in this episode; it’s also a pun because the incident pins Locke to the ground – “Locke-down.”

Recap: In Locke’s flashbacks, he attends the funeral of his father, only to learn that his father faked his own death; when his father asked him for help in retrieving some money he stole, Locke complies, but Helen finds out and refuses to marry him. Back at the hatch, Henry says he was just joking about the ambush but continues to try to play Locke against Jack; the searchers find a grave right under the smiley-face balloon. When Locke hears strange noises coming from the speakers in The Swan, he begins to investigate, and The Swan suddenly goes into lockdown. Locke enlists Henry’s help, at the price of promising his safety; they pry the blast door up, but it falls and crushes Locke’s leg. Meanwhile, Jack’s playing cards with Sawyer, with the medicine cache as the wager, and he wins. Pinned, Locke sends Henry to the computer to push the button; black lights come on and reveal an intricate map painted on the blast door, but when they go out, Locke sees that Henry didn’t flee, though he claims he did nothing to end the lockdown beyond enter the numbers. In the jungle, Jack and Kate find a Dharma supply drop just as the searchers return; they’ve found Henry Gale’s balloon, but they also found the real Henry Gale’s grave. So who is this guy?

Thoughts: Damon & Carlton, Locke & Henry. Do I need to say anything else at this point?

Favorite moment: It’s got to be when the blast door map is revealed. Only possible competition is the moment when Sayid reveals who the real Henry Gale is.

Characters introduced (in order):

• No new characters introduced, except the two men that are looking for Anthony Cooper

What we learned:

• Locke owned a home inspection business called “Welcome Home,” where he met Nadia and inspected her house.
• Anthony Cooper stole $700,000 and had to fake his own death.
• Jack learned to play cards in Thailand.
• A map painted on the blast door shows a slew of hatches all around an octagonal shape.
• Locke asked Helen to marry him, but she refused.
• “Henry Gale” isn’t really Henry Gale.

Questions:

• What caused The Swan to go into lockdown?
• What was Jack doing in Thailand?
• Who painted the blast door map?
• What does the blast door map show?
• So who is this guy calling himself Henry Gale?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Jack tells Locke, “What’s done IS done.” Could this be a reference to the Jughead bomb not having worked?
• This episode sets up Locke and Henry as foils for each other; they could very well have been brothers in another life. There’s a long-running connection between the two of them, right down to the fact that their mothers have the same first name. What’s going to be the end result of this connection?
• I get the feeling there are all kinds of things hidden on the blast door map. For that reason, I’m linking to Lostpedia’s hi-res image of the blast door map.

2.16 - The Whole Truth

Title’s significance: Jack advises Sun to tell Jin “the whole truth” about her surprise pregnancy.

Recap: Jin and Sun’s flashbacks let us know that the couple was trying to have a baby in an attempt to fix both their relationship and the domineering control Mr. Paik wielded. While Sun was learning English from Jae Lee, she learned that Jin was infertile (though her doctor lied about it at first) and that Jae Lee was still interested in her. On the island, Jin worries about Sun being attacked again, while Locke asks Ana Lucia to interrogate Henry. Sun falls mysteriously ill, and Locke tells Jack that Henry isn’t motivated enough to tell them the truth; they agree that Ana Lucia should give it a shot, and she asks Henry to draw a map to his balloon. Sun seeks a pregnancy test from Sawyer, while Ana Lucia leads Sayid and Charlie to follow Henry’s map. Sun’s pregnancy test comes up positive, but she doesn’t want to tell Jin. Ana Lucia apologizes to Sayid for killing Shannon, but he says he understands and blames The Others. The searchers find where the balloon should be, but the field is empty; meanwhile, Jin helps Bernard fish for oysters (and pearls) and replants Sun’s garden, at which point Sun tells him she’s pregnant – “it’s a miracle.” Over breakfast, Henry tells Jack and Locke about the map to his balloon, while saying that if he were one of The Others the map would certainly lead to a trap. “You guys got any milk?”

Thoughts: The problem with this episode is that there are two plotlines competing for attention, and both of them are compelling. Of course, my natural inclination is to find the Henry Gale one more interesting (with acting like this, how could one not?), but the Sun/Jin plotline is handled well, and there’s just a smidgeon of mystery left at the end to keep the reader piqued. Episodes like this one start to get LOST back on track and get us ready for a whopper of a season finale.

Favorite moment: Sawyer decrying Judy Blume’s “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret” as “Predictable. Not nearly enough sex.” That, or Henry’s oscillation between threatening an ambush and jovially asking for milk

Characters introduced (in order):

• No new characters introduced.

What we learned:

• Sun learned English from Jae Lee.
• Kate’s taken a pregnancy test.
• Jae Lee was at least interested in having an affair with Sun.
• Jin is infertile.

Questions:

• Did Sun and Jae Lee have an affair?
• Who’s the father – Jin or Jae Lee?
• Did the island cure Jin’s infertility like it cured Locke’s paralysis?
• Does Henry's map lead to an ambush?
• Is there milk in The Swan?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• There’s something just too prescient about Jin’s “A baby will change everything.”
• Henry tells Ana Lucia, “It doesn’t matter what I do. I’m dead already.” Is this a clue that the island is purgatory/hell?
• Ben reads the following passage from “The Brothers Karamazov: - “Men reject their prophets and slay them, but they love their martyrs and honor those whom they have slain,” later asking what the difference is. Something like this just feels super important, especially with respect to Locke’s trajectory over the rest of the series.

2.15 - Maternity Leave

Title’s significance: The mystery behind Claire’s “maternity leave” is finally answered (but in true LOST fashion, the questions it raises are far more interesting).

Recap: In a new twist on flashbacks, this episode’s set explain Claire’s abduction from Season One: as a doctor, Ethan treated Claire’s pregnancy in a full medical facility – The Staff – replete with a decked-out nursery. When Aaron falls ill, Claire begins to worry it’s the same illness that Rousseau worried about. She enlists Libby’s help in remembering her missing two weeks, while Locke asks Jack what the “long-term plan” is for Henry Gale. Meanwhile, Eko is out cutting trees and goes to The Swan to borrow a saw, noticing that someone else might be living down there. Kate and Claire go after Rousseau, who helps them find The Staff again. Claire then remembers that Alex – Rousseau’s daughter and one of The Others – rescued her from being killed by The Others. Curiously, Eko seeks confession from Henry. When Aaron’s fever breaks, all seems well, and Claire tells her baby that they’re “supposed to be together... to take care of each other.” Henry asks Locke if he’s “the genius or the guy who feels like he’s always living in the shadow of the genius,” but Locke dodges the question, especially when Henry tries to play Locke against Jack.

Thoughts: Even though it wasn’t written by wunderkinds Damon & Carlton, “Maternity Leave” was still pretty good, answering a question that I had almost forgotten about at this point in the rewatch. In typical LOST fashion, though, we get twelve questions for every one answer this episode delivers, and an eleventh-hour conversation between Locke and Henry lets us know that there is a larger game of “us vs. them” being played here (while also reminding us that Terry O’Quinn and Michael Emerson are the top dogs of the cast).

Favorite moment: The strange confession of Mr. Eko and the curious literary analysis undertaken by Henry and Locke.

Characters introduced (in order):

• ALEX, Rousseau’s daughter, living among The Others

What we learned:

• Claire’s memory loss might have been a psychological self-defense mechanism.
• Ethan is some kind of doctor.
• There’s a full-service medical facility on the island – a Dharma station called The Staff.
• Ethan was supposed to make a list of the survivors.
• Mr. Friendly’s beard is fake.
• Ethan claims The Others are “good people.”
• The Others were definitely interested in Claire’s baby.
• The whole “grizzly Others” thing is just an elaborate act.
• Alex, Rousseau’s daughter, is one of The Others and helped Claire escape.
• Claire scratched Rousseau when the latter was trying to keep her from calling out to The Others.
• Rousseau knocked out Claire while rescuing her - a possible source of her amnesia.

Questions:

• Why is Eko cutting down the trees that he marked as trees that he “liked”?
• What was The Staff’s original function?
• Where did all the things in Claire’s nursery come from, and why couldn’t Ethan explain them?
• Why did Claire become so instantly trusting of Ethan?
• Are The Others members of The Dharma Initiative?
• Why were The Others interested in Claire’s baby?
• Why do The Others pretend to be all grizzly?
• Why doesn’t Alex share the agenda of The Others?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Pregnancy. ’Nuff said.
• Again, we get shades of this whole Claire/Aaron thing and the implication that there’s something larger orchestrating their destinies – Jacob, or something larger?

2.14 - One of Them

Title’s significance: While Sayid is referred to as “one of them” (i.e., the torturers), suspicion mounts about whether Henry Gale is “one of them” (i.e., The Others).

Recap: In flashbacks, we discover that Sayid learned torturing at the hands of the Americans in Desert Storm, working as a translator under a soldier named Joe Inman. On the island, Sayid finds that Rousseau has trapped Henry Gale, who claims his balloon crashed on the island. Meanwhile, Sawyer finds himself challenged by a noisy tree frog and enlists Hurley’s help in catching the little bugger, but he learns that he’s the new least popular person on the island. While Jack treats Henry, Sayid and Locke debate whether or not the man is an Other; Sayid decides torture is the best route, but Henry sticks to his story even when threatened with violence. When he finds the frog, Sawyer squishes it in his hand. Jack is miffed that Locke’s keeping Henry prisoner and frightened that Sayid might torture him, but Sayid and Henry find common ground over losing the woman they love on the island. When the alarm goes off in The Swan, Locke opens the safe and enters the numbers, just as the counter shifts to 0:00 – and a set of black and red hieroglyphics. Sayid claims that Henry is one of The Others, because he doesn’t feel guilty for torturing him.

Thoughts: I shouldn’t even have to say it at this point, but this episode broke a losing streak on LOST, and – no surprise – it was written by Damon & Carlton, in addition to featuring Michael Emerson, who is by far the best thing to happen to the show since Damon and Carlton. This episode moves at lightning speed, introducing a fascinating new mystery, blending in an interesting subplot and compelling backstory, to boot. Take note, LOST writers: this is how it’s done.

Favorite moment: I’d like to say it’s the moments where Sawyer is hounded by an exceptionally vocal frog, but I’ve got to hand it to Michael Emerson’s debut in this episode, which immediately establishes the ambiguity surrounding his character for the rest of the series.

Characters introduced (in order):

• TARIQ, Sayid’s commanding officer
• HENRY GALE, a wealthy balloonist from Minnesota who crashed on the island with his wife
• JOE INMAN, top brass soldier who taught Sayid to torture

What we learned:

• Sayid met Sam Austen in Operation Desert Storm.
• The Americans pushed Sayid to torture.
• The survivors have locked Henry Gale in The Swan’s gun closet amid suspicion that he might be an Other.
• Henry’s balloon has a big yellow smile face on top.
• When the 108-minute timer runs out, black and red hieroglyphics appear on the timer.
• Sayid made a promise to Joe Inman that he would never torture again.

Questions:

• Is Henry Gale legit?
• Why is Rousseau so convinced that Henry Gale is one of The Others?
• Was Henry’s wife killed by the same illness that Rousseau says killed her team?
• What’s the significance of the hieroglyphics?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• The introduction of Henry Gale in this episode effectively sets in motion the whole rest of the show, and what his endgame is – and how he came to be captured – still remains to be seen.
• The hieroglyphics on the countdown timer suggest an Egyptian connection, something that’s been hinted throughout the series, up to the statue under which “the one who will save us all” lies.

2.13 - The Long Con

Title’s significance: Sawyer engages in a long con (“getting someone to ask you to do something like it’s their idea”) both on and off the island. (In the coming episodes, “Henry Gale” is the focus of a long con, to boot.)

Recap: In Sawyer’s flashbacks, we see another con of his, albeit one that didn’t work – because he fell in love with Cassidy, the would-be victim who figured it all out ahead of him; Sawyer was one step ahead, though, and ended up conning her anyway. Locke changes the combination of the gun closet, but Jack gets the combination and moves the medicine into the closet. Hurley gives Bernard’s walkie-talkie to Sayid, who’s not interested in being cheered up. When a sudden rainstorm hits, Sun is attacked in her garden; the camp panics, but Sawyer says that something’s fishy about this alleged “Others” attack, suggesting Ana Lucia might be conning them to help build the army. Kate grows suspicious of Ana Lucia and directs Sawyer to warn Locke, which he does “to piss off Jack.” Locke asks Sawyer’s help in moving the guns, but Sawyer stays behind while Locke relocates. Sayid patches up the walkie and intercepts a radio transmission – from 1944. Sawyer reveals that it was all part of a long con to get the guns from the leaders of the camp, with Charlie as his Sun-attacking, Locke-shadowing accomplice.

Thoughts: This was close to being another pretty bad episode, saved by Josh Holloway, who’s abundantly entertaining and believable as Sawyer, especially in this episode. Unfortunately, the writers decided to boil all the characters down to petty shells of themselves; Sawyer and Charlie are only interested in vengeance, an unpleasant and unconvincing character turn that is both distasteful and inconsistent with what follows. If “a tiger don’t change his stripes,” as Sawyer claims, why do the characters on this show? I hate to say it, but Jeph Loeb joining the crew for Season Two might not have been the best idea.

Favorite moment: Sawyer to Charlie: “You even made Locke take a swing atcha. Hell, that’s like getting Gandhi to beat his kids.”

Characters introduced (in order):

• CASSIDY, Sawyer’s love interest and simultaneously the focus of his latest long con
• GORDY, a con partner of Sawyer’s who worries that the con artist is going soft

What we learned:

• Sawyer took on an apprentice – Cassidy – while conning before coming to Australia.
• Locke is checking the books in The Swan for video frames.
• Sawyer cons everyone into giving him the guns.
• Sayid intercepts a transmission from 1944.
• Sawyer claims he’s “not a good person.”

Questions:

• What does Sawyer owe Gordy?
• Why are transmissions coming in from 1944?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Locke’s seen with Ambrose Bierce’s “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.” Please tell me this isn’t a clue that the whole thing is a last-second dream aboard the crashing plane.
• Sayid intercepts a transmission playing a Glenn Miller track, “Moonlight Serenade,” from 1944. Miller’s airplane disappeared during World War II; is this a clue that his plane crashed on the island?

2.12 - Fire + Water

Title’s significance: I disliked this episode so much that I don’t even care what the title means. Lostpedia says it has something to do with Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451,” so there.

Recap: Merry Christmas, Charlie – you’re getting flashbacks about trying to save your brother Liam from drugs, getting a piano for Christmas, and appearing in a diaper commercial. Charlie has dreams about Aaron in moments of peril (usually involving drowning), and sparks fly between Hurley and Libby as Sawyer goads him on. Locke confronts Charlie about using heroin again, and after consulting Eko Charlie decides that Aaron must be baptized. Addled, Charlie sets a fire to con Claire into thinking that Aaron is in danger. We learn that Charlie is growing jealous of Locke’s burgeoning role as a foster father for Aaron, which Locke counters with a few punches. Despite Charlie being humiliated in front of the camp, in the end Eko baptizes Aaron – and Claire, for good measure.

Thoughts: Wow, talk about an epic detour. I honestly had trouble paying attention during this episode because there wasn’t an interesting plotline in the whole thing: the drugs issue was handled sloppily, Charlie’s backstory shares nothing new and is inconsistent with respect to Charlie’s history of drug use, Locke’s violence is completely out of character, and the baptism thing hasn’t even been so much as mentioned since Season Two. It’s as though the writers wanted a Charlie-centric episode but didn’t quite know what to do with one. When the only redeeming scene in an episode is Hurley and Libby getting their flirt on and not a cryptic dream sequence that could have had so much going for it, you know you’re in trouble. Unless you’re a diehard Charlie fan, this is one of the worst episodes of Season Two. When the heck does Michael Emerson show up?

Favorite moment: After Hurley asks Sawyer about Libby, Sawyer responds, “Whoa, you got a little love connection brewin’ over there, Jabba?” That, or the downright hysterical “You All Every-Butties” commercial. What’s absolutely priceless, though, is Ana Lucia’s abrupt “You hittin’ that?” to Jack about Kate (“You’re hot, she’s hot...”).

Characters introduced (in order):

• MEGAN, Charlie’s mum and also the name of his niece
• KAREN, Liam’s wife

What we learned:

• There’s a love connection between Hurley and Libby.
• Charlie says he hasn’t been using.

Questions:

• Are the washer and dryer in The Swan really newer than everything else down there?
• Does Hurley know Libby from somewhere?
• If Hurley got on the plane late and Libby was sitting in the back of the plane, how did he manage to step on her toe?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Why is it so important that Aaron be baptized?

2.11 - The Hunting Party

Title’s significance: Jack organizes a hunting party to find Michael.

Recap: Jack’s flashbacks explore a semi-relationship with a patient’s daughter, the professional and personal burden of his reputation as a “miracle doctor,” and his wife leaving him after having an affair with someone. On island, Michael busts out of The Swan to go look for Walt, leaving Locke and Jack in the gun closet, but Kate and Sawyer show up in time to free them. Jack forms a hunting party with Locke and Sawyer to find Michael; they track him, but they hear mysterious gunshots and run across a band of scruffy Others, including the “Mr. Friendly” who abducted Walt; Mr. Friendly claims Michael will never find the Others and revoices thoughts about Walt being special. He warns the survivors about the dangers of being curious and says it’s “our island,” but when Jack calls his bluff, Mr. Friendly demonstrates that there are numerous Others and that they’ve abducted Kate; Jack exchanges his guns for Kate’s safety. Hurley clues Charlie in that he has a thing for Libby, while Charlie voices his interest in Claire. Upon returning to camp, Jack asks Ana Lucia about training an army.

Thoughts: This episode is essentially Season Two in a nutshell: interesting things are on the verge of happening, but the writers pull back on the reins and don’t advance too far into uncharted territory. Consequently, this episode is interesting but ultimately frustrating since it doesn’t do anything beyond putting new spins on old questions, particularly about The Others.

Favorite moment: I’d like to say it’s Charlie’s line about Michael – “Yeah, he’s run after Walt again” – but the fireside chat with Mr. Friendly takes the cake for this episode.

Characters introduced (in order):

• ANGELO & GABRIELA BUSONI, a father and daughter looking for a miracle surgery from Jack

What we learned:

• Sarah is a teacher.
• Michael has scampered off after Walt – again.
• Locke knows that “Sawyer” is a fake name.
• Hurley has a fancy for Libby.
• There are a whole heck of a lot of Others on the island.
• One of The Others is named Alex.
• Sarah was cheating on Jack.

Questions:

• Who was Sarah’s lover?
• Why is Locke so interested in Sawyer’s name?
• Who’s Geronimo Jackson?
• How do The Others know the names of all the 815ers? Was it simply Ethan reporting back?
• Is the Alex with The Others the same Alex that Rousseau’s looking for?
• Where’s Michael gotten to?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• As of Season Five, we’ve got the survivors, the Tailies, the Others, Richard’s Others, Dharma, the Hostiles, the army, Jacob, Jacob’s nemesis, and apparently the Egyptians, too. Whose island is it, anyway?

2.10 - The 23rd Psalm

Title’s significance: Probably the most famous of the Psalms, the 23rd is the one that goes “The Lord is my shepherd...” Eko recites it at his brother’s funeral.

Recap: Eko gets his own flashbacks, in which we learn about his troubled time in Africa as a boy, how he fell in with druglords/warlords, and how his brother Yemi found faith to save his brother; the yellow plane and the drugs inside were meant for Eko’s gang, but it crashed on the island with Eko’s brother aboard. On the island, Eko demands that Charlie take him to the drug plane where he found the Virgin Mary statue; Charlie tells Claire he’s not using, but she doesn’t believe him. While learning to shoot, Michael tells Locke he’s planning to go after Walt. Kate gives Sawyer a haircut, and Michael volunteers to take her shift at The Swan. While hiking to the plane, Charlie and Eko encounter the smoke monster, but Eko stares down the monster without fear until it retreats. At the plane, Eko holds an impromptu funeral for his brother and burns the plane, but when Claire tells Charlie she doesn’t want him around, we learn that Charlie has salvaged at least five Virgin Mary statues.

Thoughts: Yep, no wonder this was a good episode; Damon and Carlton wrote this one. These two are definitely the best writers LOST has, and it’s because of their ability to make an episode that’s about a small conflict (here, Eko’s mysterious past) and end up trickling in so many little nuggets of larger importance that the whole episode is an experience beyond just a standard hour of television. Where a lot of Season Two feels like wheels spinning in the mud, Damon and Carlton somehow find a way to make their episodes drive forward at warp speed.

Favorite moment: It’s gotta be the thirty seconds between Eko and the smoke monster. Even though almost nothing happens on the surface level of the scene, there’s so much room for interpretation that the scene just sizzles.

Characters introduced (in order):

• YEMI, Eko’s brother

What we learned:

• Eko’s giant stick has Bible verses inscribed on it.
• Locke likes silent movies.
• Eko was once a gangster in Africa.
• The Nigerian drug plane belonged to Eko’s brother, who died aboard the plane to save Eko.
• Eko began to serve as a priest after his brother left.

Questions:

• Does Eko have a soul?
• Is that really Walt on the other end of the computer?
• Why didn’t the smoke monster attack Eko?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• This is not the first episode in which Claire says she doesn’t know why she named her baby Aaron. Is there ultimately a significance to the name that maybe even Claire doesn’t understand?
• The smoke monster’s choosiness in who it attacks and who it doesn’t is going to be of the utmost importance when the truth about the smoke monster is finally revealed; this can ONLY come in the sixth season, and I sure hope it has something to do with Jacob’s nemesis.

2.09 - What Kate Did

Title’s significance: The episode title out and out tells us that we’re finally going to learn what crime Kate committed.

Recap: Flashbacks reveal that Kate killed her birth father, who her mother had later married but was abusing both Kate and her mom. On island, a near-delirious Sawyer tells Jack that he loves Kate, while Kate sees a mysterious black horse in the jungle. The survivors hold a funeral for Shannon next to Boone’s grave; Eko and Libby attend, but Ana Lucia refuses to go. Barely conscious, Sawyer attacks Kate, blaming her for killing him; Kate books, but Locke arrives just in time to plug in the numbers. Jack confronts Kate out in the jungle, and the two make out before Kate tells Sayid that she thinks she’s seeing ghosts. Locke shows Eko and Michael the Swan’s orientation video, and Eko reveals that in The Arrow he found film edited from the video, which reveals that the computer must not be used for communication, which could indeed lead to another incident. Kate apologizes to Wayne through Sawyer, who wakes up and believes they’ve been rescued. Back at the Swan, Michael receives a message on the computer: “Dad?”

Thoughts: With this episode, I finally figured out what the problem with the second season is. It’s the weakest season of LOST, by far, and it’s because the storyline is being dragged out. There’s a fine line between mystery and frustration, and this season of LOST is more the latter. Though “What Kate Did” offers a few interesting tidbits, there’s just not enough to sustain a whole episode without characters sitting in the jungle for minutes at a time and crying (seriously, I wish I’d been counting how many times Jack cries). Thank goodness later seasons compress the storytelling into episodes that are more bang than bore.

Favorite moment: Because she’s saying what we’re all thinking, I loved Kate telling Jack somewhat sarcastically that she’s sorry she’s “not as perfect” as he is. I also loved when Eko says he’s going to tell a story but must “start at the beginning”; when he begins with a story from the Old Testament, Locke says, “Boy, when you say beginning, you mean ‘beginning.’” That, or Sawyer’s “You mean the big-ass horse standin’ in the middle of the jungle? Then, yeah [I see that]... you know that horse, Freckles?”

Characters introduced (in order):

• WAYNE, Kate’s birth father
• SAM AUSTEN, Kate’s “father” and her mother’s first husband

What we learned:

• Kate killed her birth father because she hated that she was related to him.
• Kate’s mother worked in a diner.
• Kate’s mom turned her in to the marshal.
• There are blast doors in The Swan.
• Kate saw the black horse when she was in custody AND on the island.
• Kate’s mother never told her that Wayne was her real father, since Sam Austen was in Korea.
• Sawyer reminds Kate of Wayne – Freudian, anyone?
• The missing scene from the Swan video was stashed in The Arrow and threatens another “incident” if the computer is misused.

Questions:

• Where did the mysterious black horse come from?
• What’s going to happen when the alarm ticks all the way down to 0:00?
• What are the blast doors for?
• Are the ghosts that Kate is seeing connected to the “ghost” of Walt that Sayid saw?
• Are the odd things around Kate – Sawyer as Wayne, the black horse – ghosts, guilt, the smoke monster, or something else?
• What was Sayid doing on the television in Sam Austen’s office?
• Who edited the Swan video? Why?
• How could communication with the outside world lead to another incident?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Nothing of mythological significance here.

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.

2.07 - The Other 48 Days

Title’s significance: This episode takes a look at what the Tailies were doing during the first 48 days on the island.

Recap: When the Tailies crash-land on the island, their experience eerily mirrors that of the survivors on the other side of the island; Ana Lucia becomes the leader of the pack, and on the first night The Others abduct some of the Tailies but are killed by Eko. Later, The Others abduct children Zach and Emma, and Ana Lucia finds a list on one of the dead Others. She begins to suspect that The Others might have infiltrated the Tailies; Libby suggests Nathan might be to blame, so Ana Lucia digs a hole and tosses Nathan in to get him to talk, but he doesn’t. When Goodwin kills Nathan, he reveals himself as the infiltrating Other. The Tailies find a DHARMA station – The Arrow – and take up shelter there; Ana Lucia deduces that Goodwin is The Other and kills him while Bernard makes contact with Boone over a radio discovered in The Arrow, but Ana Lucia stops him because she believes it’s The Others trying to lure them out. When Jin washes ashore, the Tailies debate whether he is a threat; they capture Michael and Sawyer, and Ana Lucia plans the “fake prisoner” episode. On Day 48, Ana Lucia hears the whispers and follows them, killing Shannon when she believes her to be an Other.

Thoughts: This might be one of the best episodes of the second season, and my personal favorite Michael Emerson (who I believe saved Season Two entirely) doesn’t even appear in it, so that’s saying something. I keep saying how much I like this episode, but one thing I’m not quite sure how to feel about the fact that the Tailies are essentially the same characters as the survivors on the other side of the island; Ana Lucia is a female Jack-Sawyer hybrid, Eko is a black Locke, Libby is more difficult to place but seems to be Kate for the Tailies, Goodwin essentially IS Ethan, and Bernard might as well be Rose (others include Cindy=Pilot and Nathan=Sawyer). If it’s intentional, it’s clever; if it’s unintentional, it’s unimaginative. Since Damon and Carlton wrote this one, I hope it’s the former.

Favorite moment: It’s tough to pick; I just really liked this episode overall, but I’d have to give props to the scene where we finally learn that it was Bernard on the other end of Boone’s radio call.

Characters introduced (in order):

• ZACH, formerly known as Teddy Bear Boy
• EMMA, Zach’s sister
• GOODWIN, the equivalent of Ethan for the Tailies
• NATHAN, a suspicious survivor

What we learned:

• Libby broke her leg skiing in Vermont.
• Libby spent a year in medical school.
• Eko killed two Others.
• The Others have access to a list of the names of those on Oceanic 815.
• Nathan was sightseeing after a company retreat in Australia.
• The Arrow has a QUARANTINE sign, too.
• Bernard was the voice on the radio talking to Boone.
• Only “good people” are on the list.

Questions:

• How do The Others know the names of those on the plane?
• Who decides who a good person is to put their names on a list?
• What is the function of The Arrow station?
• Who claimed that the island was under quarantine, and why?
• Who does the glass eye belong to?
• Where did the U.S. Army knife come from?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• Nothing of far-reaching mythological significance here, though I do have to wonder if the whispers led Shannon and Ana Lucia to each other on purpose.

2.06 - Abandoned

Title’s significance: Shannon feels abandoned in both her flashbacks and on the island.

Recap: Shannon gets her own flashbacks, which detail her time as a ballet instructor, the death of her father, a stepmother who hated her and stole her inheritance, and her struggle to be believed in. On the island, Sayid builds a love shack for him and Shannon, but she sees another vision of Walt while the Rafties and Tailies discover that they’re lost. Sayid reassures Shannon, but she takes Vincent off to find Walt. While tending to Aaron, Locke learns that Charlie has relapsed when Claire slips that Charlie has a Virgin Mary statue, and Charlie starts feeling jealous about Locke’s relationship with Claire. When the Rafties/Tailies cut through the jungle, Ana Lucia reveals that the Others have abducted at least 12 Tailies; Charlie denies that he’s no longer a recovering addict, and when Sawyer’s gunshot wound takes a turn for the worse while trekking in the jungle, Michael refuses to leave him behind. Shannon follows another vision of Walt, which leads her directly into the path of the Tailies; believing her to be one of The Others, Ana Lucia shoots Shannon.

Thoughts: I think one of the main reasons Shannon was killed is because the writers didn’t know what to do with her after Boone died. She could have been an interesting character, but I think the writers didn’t want to push her in the direction of being the island’s manipulative bitch. Instead, they tried – and failed – to make her a sympathetic character by putting her in an unconvincing relationship with Sayid and by giving her a floppy cardboard backstory. Consequently, the scenes with Shannon are among the least interesting this series has offered, and the only saving grace is the appearance of Walt. The Tailies’ plotline is very interesting, though, and should have been the main focus of the episode.

Favorite moment: The eerily foreboding flashback in which Boone tells Shannon, “Death sucks, doesn’t it?”

Characters introduced (in order):

• SABRINA CARLYLE, Shannon’s stepmother (“the Martha Stewart of matrimony”)

What we learned:

• Libby is a clinical psychologist.
• Locke knows a lot about babies.
• There seems to be some tension between tough leader Ana Lucia and the caring Mr. Eko.
• The Others periodically abducted Tailies.
• The Others are familiar enough with the island to move through it undetected.
• Shannon’s stepmother cut her loose after her father’s death.
• Cindy is abducted by The Others.
• Ana Lucia killed Shannon.

Questions:

• How does Locke know so much about babies?
• Is Sawyer gonna be okay?
• Why is Shannon seeing visions of Walt?
• What’s Sayid going to do to Ana Lucia?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• As of Season Five, I still don’t think it’s clear why The Others are abducting people; the baby thing becomes clearer, but the regular people thing is still confusing. I hope we get a full explanation, but it doesn’t seem like a chief concern at the moment.
• I really hope we find out more about the visions of Walt, though I’d be happy with just a “Walt is special” or “the island was messing with Shannon” explanation.

2.05 - ...And Found

Title’s significance: Get it? “Lost And Found.” Locke tells Sun that, to find what is lost, one must stop looking – a philosophy of serendipity applied to both Sun and Jin’s initial meeting and to Sun’s quest for her missing wedding ring.

Recap: Continuing this season’s pattern of broken engagements, flashbacks tell us that Sun was initially interested in Jae Lee, but the engagement broke off when Jae admitted he was engaged to an American woman. Sun then met Jin (a doorman at a hotel) by chance – bumping into him in the street. Sun discovers that her wedding ring is gone, while the Tailies tell the Rafties that they’re going to the beach camp. While gathering supplies, Libby confesses that the Tailies have encountered the Others, and Michael takes off in search of Walt; Eko and Jin go after him and bond but are forced to hide when a nomadic band of Lost Boys-esque Others trek past them. Michael knows they’re following him, and he confronts Jin, but Eko arrives and counsels Michael into rejoining the Tailies. Sun finds her wedding ring buried with the message bottle from the raft.

Thoughts: “...And Found” felt a lot like one of those “getting from A to B” episodes that LOST doesn’t do so well. The wheels are spinning here; nothing really happens, the flashback doesn’t give us anything particularly revelatory, and the ring plotline isn’t very compelling (especially if you were paying attention to the last episode’s ending, where it’s clear what happens to Sun’s ring). Let’s face it – Damon and Carlton have written better. Just about the only thing I did like in this otherwise boring episode was the touch of destiny surrounding Sun and Jin’s meeting.

Favorite moment: Hurley asking which Korea Sun is from – “the good Korea or the bad Korea” – while waiting for Vincent to crap out Sun’s wedding ring since Hurley’s dog “once crapped out a buck-thirty-five in nickels.”

Characters introduced (in order):

• MRS. PAIK, Sun’s mother
• TAI SOO, Jin’s roommate and a fortuneteller of sorts
• JAE LEE, a Korean hotelier set up with Sun
• GOODWIN (deceased), a member of The Others, known to The Tailies

What we learned:

• True love looks orange.
• There are only five Tailies left – Ana Lucia, Mr. Eko, Libby, Cindy, and Bernard.
• Jack lost his wedding ring once and had a replica made because he couldn’t find it. (I’ll bet he cried when it happened, too.)
• The Tailies have encountered The Others.
• Sun named her puppy “Bpo Bpo,” which means “a kiss.”
• The Others are apparently dirty nomadic people, and at least one of them is a child.

Questions:

• What’s got the Tailies so on edge?
• Who is Jae Lee’s American woman?
• The Others have children?

Things that are going to be important in Season Six:

• “True love looks orange.” Does it?
• It's possible that we'll learn who Jae Lee's American woman was (Libby?), but I wouldn't put money on it.