The LOST Report 3/22
- Written by Chris on Sunday, March 22 2009 and posted in Features
Welcome back, LOST! After a week away, with no explanation given by ABC, LOST returned on Wednesday with a brand new episode - Namaste, in which we saw Jack, Kate, and Hurley finally reunite with their fellow LOSTies they let behind on the island.
Welcome back, LOST! After a week away, with no explanation given by ABC, LOST returned on Wednesday with a brand new episode - Namaste, in which we saw Jack, Kate, and Hurley finally reunite with their fellow LOSTies they let behind on the island.
Namaste
continued the recent trend of episodes featuring two stories running
concurrently throughout the episode; one in the present (2007) and one
in the past (1977,) replacing the traditional flashback system we've
come to know and love. In an effort to streamline the column and make
it easier for me from here on out, I'm going to just seperate the two
storylines and give a seperate not-quite-as detailed synopsis of each,
rather than the long and drawn out description I've been doing.
1977
So
let's start off with the main story of the episode, set in 1977 at the
height of the Dharma Initiative's time on the Island. As we saw the
previous episode, Sawyer and the gang were now working for Dharma:
Sawyer, now known as Jim LaFleur, was Head of Security, Juliet was a
mechanic, and Miles and Jin worked under Sawyer on the security team.
We picked up right where the previous episode left off, with Sawyer
meeting Jack & the Gang. He told them that they were now in 1977,
and he would have to figure out a way to bring them into the Dharma
Initiative so they wouldn't be mistaken for hostiles. Jin, upon hearing
that Sun was with them, jumped in the blue Dharma jeep and drove off
for The Flame station to see if Radzinsky had seen a plane crash
anywhere on the Island.
Meanwhile, Sawyer ran
back to his house in Dharmaville to get Jack & the Gang some 70's
clothing, so they could fit in. As he scrambled around in his closet,
dumping clothes out, Juliet walked in, having seen James on the
security monitor in Miles' station. Sawyer told her about the others
returning to the Island, and she couldn't believe it. He told her he
has to figure out a way to bring them in, and she told him that there
would be a sub coming in with new recruits that afternoon.
Jin
arrived at The Flame station, where he physically threatened Radzinsky
to contact the other Dharma stations about whether they've seen a plane
crash on the Island.
Back in Dharmaville, we
saw Juliet sneak up to Amy, who was sleeping on a hammock. She grabbed
a clipboard, but Amy woke up with a suspicious look on her face just as
she was leaving. Juliet told her that she was taking the sub manifest,
because she didn't want Amy working just yet. Thanking Juliet, Amy told
her that two of the recruits dropped out at the eleventh hour, because
they didn't want to take the sedatives. Juliet noticed Amy's baby, and
picked him up. She asked if Amy and Horace had decided on a name, and
Amy told her that his name was Ethan. With a look of shock, Juliet gave
him back to his mother.
Back on the hilltop,
Sawyer returned with clothes for Jack & the Gang. He told them
about his plan for their cover story being new recruits from the sub,
and gave them the clothes he brought for them. Jack, unsure of himself
or the plan, asked Kate what she thinks they should do, and she told
him that they should listen to Sawyer.
At The
Flame, Radzinsky told Jin that all the stations have responded and
there was no sign of a plane on the Island. As Jin was about to leave,
an alarm sounded, meaning that a hostile was within the perimeter of
the Dharma compound. Grabbing a rifle, Jin ran out of the station, with
Radzinsky not far behind him. As he reached the general area of the
alarm, Jin spotted the hostile.. it was Sayid, still in handcuffs. With
a look of shock on his face, Jin quickly asked him about Sun, but Sayid
didn't know where she was. Radzinsky caught up with them, and Jin had
no choice but to play along and point his rifle at Sayid.
As
Sawyer drove Jack & the Gang back to Dharmaville, Hurley reminded
him that the Dharma Initiative got wiped out in their time. He wondered
if Sawyer was going to warn them. Sawyer told them that Daniel Faraday
had some ideas about what they could and couldn't do to affect the
time-stream, but he was "gone." As they arrived at the Processing
Center, Hurley asked Sawyer how they were supposed to keep up their
cover - wouldn't Dharma ask them questions they didn't know the answer
to? Like.. who is the president in 1977? Sawyer told him that it wasn't
a game show, and he would be in there to get their backs just in case.
As
Sawyer prepared the group for processing, Miles drove up in another
blue Dharma van. With a walkie talkie in his hand, he told Sawyer about
the problem back at The Flame, with the 'hostile.' So Sawyer called Jin
on the walkie, and while Radzinsky was moving the hostile into a locked
room, Jin went around a corner and told Sawyer that the hostile was
their old friend, Sayid.
Inside the Processing
Center, we saw Jack's name get called first. He went up to a table with
a familiar face behind it - Dr. Pierre Chang, also known as Dr. Marvin
Candle, Dr. Edgar Hallowax, and Dr. Mark Wickmund. Chang told Jack that
his file was missing, but blamed it on 'the other side' being
disorganized. After a few questions about his trip, Chang gave Jack his
Dharma jumpsuit. Jack looked at it, and with a questioning look, asked
Chang about the job - Work Man? Chang told him that he would be
performing janitorial duties.
Meanwhile,
Kate was seen still standing in the middle of the room, waiting for her
name to be called. Phil, the Dharma employee responsible for leading
the people to their tables, questioned her, and slowly became
suspicious when her name wasn't on the list, and she couldn't answer
simple questions about who contacted her about the Dharma Initiative.
As Kate struggled to think of something, Juliet walked into the room
and told Phil about the new list she just got from Amy with the last
minute additions to the manifest. Kate and Juliet shared knowing smiles
as were they re-introduced to one another.
Back
at The Flame, Sawyer arrived in the Dharma van, and questioned Jin
about Sayid. They both came to the conclusion that they wouldn't be
able to do anything as long as Radzinsky wouldn't leave them alone.
Radzinsky, we find out, is worried that Sayid saw the model of The Swan
station that he was building and wanted to just kill Sayid and be done
with it. Sawyer told him that he wanted to talk to him first, and as
Jin dragged Sayid out and into a chair, he questioned him in-character.
Sawyer asked Sayid to identify that he was a hostile. Sayid had a
confused look on his face, so Sawyer quickly went over the terms of the
truce, and told Sayid that if he didn't identify himself as a hostile,
they would have the right to shoot him. Sayid said that they do not
call themselves hostiles, but yes, he was one. Sawyer told Radzinsky
that he was taking Sayid back to the barracks.
At
Dharmaville, the new recruits were all gathered around a blue welcome
banner for a group picture when Sawyer's van pulled up. Jack & the
Gang looked on as Sawyer dragged a handcuffed Sayid out of the van and
led him to one of the barracks.
Later
that night, Jack went to what he thought was Sawyer's house, and was
surprised to find Juliet open the door. After a happy reunion, she told
him that he got the right house, and led him in. We saw Sawyer sitting
in the living room, reading a book. Jack asked him what they were going
to do about Sayid, and Sawyer told him he was working on it. Continuing
the confrontational trend in their relationship, Jack told him that it
looked like he was reading a book. Sawyer told him about how Winston
Churchill read a book every a night, even during the blitz. He told
Jack about how when he was leader, he reacted. He didn't think, and
alot of people ended up dead. So,Sawyer said he would go back to
reading a book, and he would think, and he would "save Sayid's ass
tomorrow."
As
Sayid led Jack out the door, we saw Kate pacing the porch of her new
house, looking longingly at Sawyer. He waved at her, and went back
inside.
Meanwhile, at the barracks where Sayid
was behind held behind a cell, a boy walked in with a sandwich or the
hostile. He was very curious about Sayid, and asked if he was really a
hostile. The boy told him his name was Ben. With a look of shock on his
face, Sayid told him it was nice to meet him.
2007
Back
in the present, we finally saw what happened to Sun, Ben, and Lapidus
after the Ajira plane crash. Starting with a scene inside the cockpit,
while the plane was still in the air, we saw Frank's co-pilot
recognizing Hurley as one of the Oceanic Six. After the flash of light
and the turbulence, the plane came through some clouds, and was on a
direct course to crash on the Island. Frank couldn't believe he was
back. They noticed a runway next to the beach on the island, and Frank
took manual control of the plane, convinced that he could land it.
After impact, the plane couldn't slow down enough before reaching the
end of the runway, and it crashed as Frank hit his head and passed out.
When
he awoke, head covered in blood, he saw that his co-pilot was dead -
impaled by a tree limb coming through the front window of the plane.
Grabbing a flashlight, Frank got up and left the cabin to check on the
passengers. It was then that he noticed that Jack, Hurley, Kate, and
Sayid were missing. When he finally saw Sun, he went to her and asked
where the rest of them were, and we heard Ben's voice behind him -
"They're gone."
Later,
we saw Sun on the beach, with her wedding ring. Ilana, the woman who
was accompanying Sayid on the plane, came up to her and asked if she
lost someone in the crash. Sun told her that she was travelling alone.
We then saw Lapidus call for everyone's attention and gather everyone
around. He told the survivors that the radio was not working, and that
they would have to wait for rescue. People would come looking for them
when they realized the plane was not where it's supposed to be. Ceasar
asked about where they were, and Frank told him that the island was not
on the maps. Suspicious, Ceasar told him about there being buildings
and cages on the island. Upon hearing this, Ben snuck off into the
jungle, and Sun quickly went after him once she noticed he was gone. As
Ceasar spoke up about checking some of the buildings for radios or
supplies, Frank took off into the jungle himself, following Sun.
After
following Ben's path through the jungle or some time, Sun eventually
came to a stop. Ben popped out from behind her and asked why she was
following him. He told her that he was going back to their island, and
invited her along with him. He didn't know where Jin was, but the main
island would be where he'd start looking if he was her.
It
was at this point that Frank caught up with them, and told her that she
couldn't trust him. With no choice but to go with Ben, she told Lapidus
that she had to trust him. So the two of them followed Ben to a beach,
where we saw three outriggers hidden beneath some nets and leaves.
After Frank once again expressed his mistrust of Ben, Ben told him that
he had people he had to take care of, and told Frank and Sun about a
dock across the water, that led to a town he used to live with
resources to help everyone get out of there safely. Hearing all she
needed to, Sun hit Ben in the back of the head with an oar.
It
was night by the time Frank and Sun arrived at the main island, pulling
up to the dock Ben was talking about. It was clear that it had been
some time since the dock was last used, as there were broken lights and
railings hanging overboard. As the two walked towards land, something
was moving amongst the trees on the beach, and we heard the
unmistakable sound of the smoke monster in the distance. Sun told Frank
that it was probably an animal or something. After walking through the
jungle some ways, they arrived in Dharmaville, at the Processing
Center. Windows were borded up, and it didn't look like anyone had been
there in quite some time, as it looked like much of it had been
destroyed during the attacks last season.
They
heard whispers around them, and a light went on in one of the houses.
As they looked towards it, the door opened and Christian Shepard walked
out. When Sun asked about Jin, he told them to come inside, and he
showed them a picture from 1977 - the picture of Jack & the Gang as
new Dharma recruits. He tells them, "I'm sorry, but you have a bit of a
journey ahead of you."
Thoughts
There
wasn't much in terms of shock value or big WTF? moments this episode,
but what it lacked in that, "Namaste" made up for with some great plot
progression and character moments. We already saw much of what happened
this episode, or at least the events leading to it, so this episode
basically just tied the pieces together.. but I'm sure I'm not the only
one who geeked out at Christian showing Frank and Sun a picture of
their fellow LOSTies from the 1970's.
We also
saw the introduction of Radzinsky, a character we've known about since
Season 2. For those that don't remember, Radzinsky was Kelvin's partner
inside The Swan station, and he drew the map on the blast door inside
the hatch. According to Kelvin, Radzinsky blew his head off with a
shotgun at some point prior to Desmond's arrival on the Island.
Well,
this episode we also found out that Radzinsky actually developed The
Swan station, and we saw him making a model of it this episode. It
should be interesting to see how his arc plays out - I definitely see
him being a somewhat important character from here on out.
On the O6 front, it was interesting to see the new dynamic between the characters.
On
the one hand, we have Jack. A completely egotistical elitist doctor,
who was used to getting what he wants and being the one people turn to
for help.. he now found himself as a janitor at Dharma. The look on his
face when Pierre Chang gave him his Dharma jumpsuit was priceless.
And
then we have Sawyer. The conman who for the majority of the show has
been a complete dick to everyone and anyone to cover the fact that he
hated himself. He had now spent three years with the Dharma Initiative,
and the changes in his character were obvious.
An
For
once in his life, Sawyer was happy. He was living with Juliet, and it
was obvious the two were madly in love. He was head of security. People
looked to him for some level of authority. He had it all. And then the
O6 return to the island. Sure, he was happy to see them return. But no
scene set up the new status quo better than his scene with Jack inside
his living room.
Old leader vs. new leader.
Jack
did things his way for so long, and an argument could be made that
maybe his way didn't work out so well.. and now it was Sawyer's turn.
The real question is.. does Sawyer WANT to rescue everyone? As I said,
he seemed pretty damn happy in his present arrangement.
And
what of Kate? I know I've been a huge Jate-er ever since the show
started, but disregarding that.. it'd be a horrible move for Kate to
try and get back together with Sawyer at this point. Whether or not
Sawyer is even interested in her at this point is still unknown.. but I
think we've all had enough of the constant love triangle/quadrangle
crap throughout the show's history.
It was
also interesting to note how closely Sayid's present predicament
mirrors that off Ben when we first met him in Season 2. Ironically
enough it was a young Ben who brought him his sandwich inside the cell
after he was captured.
Clearly, older Ben
would have to remember Sayid (and the rest of the LOSTies at Dharma)
from when he was a little boy. So, it stands to reason that Ben knows
exactly where everyone is, and has known about all of this from the
very beginning when Flight 815 first crashed on the island.
Plots within plots..
Theories
Not much in the way of theories this week, but here is one of mine that I've been brewing over for quite some time now.
Jack is Jacob.
There
have been many theories about who Jacob is, ranging from Locke, to
Jack, to even Sawyer or Christian Shepard. But personally, I'm all
aboard the Jack train and I'll tell you why.
- Jack was not on Jacob's List in Season 3. And how did Jacob get a list? I'm sure it's no coincidence that the LOSTies the Others took were the same ones that were stuck with Dharma
in the 1970's. And yet, Jack wasn't on the list. Well.. surely, if Jack
was Jacob, he wouldn't put himself on his own list. Especially if there
was some rule of time travel on the show that forbade the same person
co-existing with his future or past self in the same time period. Thus,
anytime we've seen Jacob, he didn't quite seem to be all there. Almost
as if he was stuck between timestreams, and we just got miniscule flashes of him here and there.
- It would explain why his father, Christian, and his sister, Claire, are hanging out with Jacob in the cabin.
-
This one's a stretch, but roll with me here.. remember the first thing
we heard Jacob say when Locke saw him? "Help me." Well, if Jacob is
Jack.. it could stand to reason that he wants Locke to help Jack accept
his destiny - something that Jack has been struggling with throughout
the show. And Locke has been trying to hammer the concept of destiny
into Jack's head for a long time, no?
- Jack is a leader. Whether he's a good one or not is certainly up for debate, but he was annointed
leader when they first crashed, and despite telling everyone he didn't
want to lead, they still looked to him for guidance. Jacob is a leader,
also. "A great man"...
-
The other major candidate to be Jacob, Locke, has always been built up
as a complete tool. People tell him he's special to get him to do
something for them. We have yet to see any actual proof of Locke's
specialness, other than being healed. All we've seen is him being used
by people left and right. Locke's destiny on the Island should mirror
that. He's not special, but he's pivotal to getting Jack to where he
needs to be.
Another short one:
Where is Daniel?
He
went back to the present, and became a little loopy due to all the time
travelling, thus the crying and being taken care of when we first saw
him watching the wreckage of the fake Flight 815 on the bottom of Sunda Trench.
And he had memory loss due to the time travel, which is why he and Charlotte were always working on his memory.
It's
a stretch, and he's more than likely just with the Others or something
(his mother is an Other, afterall).. either way, I'm sure it's not the
last we've seen of him this season.
The LOST Thread Rating: 8.19/10
Season 5:
1. The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham (9.12)
2. This Place is Death (8.8)
3. LaFleur (8.62)
4. Jughead (8.26)
5. 316 (8.0)
6. The Little Prince (7.954)
7. Because You Left/The Lie (7.4)
8. Namaste (6.96)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ours Favorite LOST episodes, season 3 - current (continued from OldRama):
* 9.3 Through the Looking Glass
* 9.29 There's No Place Like Home, Part 2 - Season 4 finale
* 9.12 The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham
* 9.12 The Shape of Things to Come
* 9.1 The Constant
* 8.9 The Man Behind the Curtain
* 8.8 This Place Is Death
* 8.84 The Beginning of the End
* 8.803 Confirmed Dead
* 8.80 The Brig
* 8.75 The Man From Tallahasse
* 8.71 One of Us
* 8.66 There's No Place Like Home, Part 1
* 8.65 Cabin Fever
* 8.62 LaFleur
* 8.59 316
* 8.58 The Economist
* 8.3 Flashes Before Your Eyes
* 8.26 Jughead
* 8.2 Greatest Hits
* 8.19 Namaste
* 8.13 Eggtown
* 8.06 Further Insructions
* 8.0238 Every Man For Himself
* 8.0232 Enter 77
* 7.98 Meet Kevin Johnson
* 7.954 The Little Prince
* 7.95 Left Behind
* 7.93 Par Avion
* 7.87 A Tale of Two Cities
* 7.8 Glass Ballerina
* 7.74 Ji Yeon
* 7.407 Because You Left/The Lie
* 7.704 Tricia Tanaka Is Dead
* 7.703 Expose
* 7.702 I Do
* 7.6 Something Nice Back Home
* 7.4 D.O.C.
* 7.3 Not in Portland
* 7.1 The Other Woman
* 7.0 Catch-22
* 6.9 The Cost of Living
* 6.2 Stranger in a Strange Land
A Word From Our Sponsors... More Below!
Quite a low rated episode this week, but for the most part, most of us at The LOST Thread enjoyed it. Coming up next week is He's Our You:
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