Lost 3/14/07

Who knew that Claire was a goth chick back in the day? That was one of many interesting bits of information that was revealed on Lost this week.

I should probably start with what should have been the most shocking. That is, Claire and Jack are step-siblings. That reveal landed with a thud, mainly because I pretty much knew it was coming from reading random speculation and spoilers. I know, this should tell me not to be such a spoiler junkie, but I can't help it. This site, in particular, makes it way too easy to find info about certain shows.

I really enjoyed the subplot with Claire realizing that those were migratory birds (even though they just looked like plain old seagulls to me). It tied in nicely with her backstory, and showed that she still wants to get off the island. Also, I liked how it tied Desmond into today's episode and got one more person in on the secret that he's psychic, at least when it comes to Charlie.

As an aside, the rock where Desmond found the bird looked very much like a beach I went to when I went to Oahu just over a year ago. I couldn't tell for sure if it was the same one, but it did look very familiar. That's one of the bad parts of this show. It makes me miss Hawaii, or beaches in general. Seeing all the big waves crashing onto shore last night made me very nostalgic for both Hawaii, and home. (I used to live near Lake Michigan.) Although, it is kind of fun to really watch the show closely to see if I've been anywhere else that they feature. One place I know for sure is when they filmed Locke's sweat lodge daydream, the airport was actually the convention center in Honolulu, which is where I had a conference.

Anyway, I digress. Back to the show.

Was it just me, or did anyone else think that as the birds flew over the Others/Hostiles compound the one carrying the note was going to get shot? It just seemed like something that would happen, since the Island itself seems to foil every escape attempt they try. I was very happy that my fear didn't come true.

I thought the note that Claire wrote and attached to the bird was very well-written. It was a nice summary of what's gone on with the Losties. It also feels like a major plot point. I'm not sure where it will come back, but I feel like it's going to be brought up again either later on this season or in the coming seasons. Perhaps Penny is the one studying the birds? Or am I just grasping at straws?

I'm not sure what Claire's backstory was telling us, besides that she's related to Jack. Sure, she cares about her mother, but beyond that, I don't really feel like we learned much about Claire. I will say that the last scene of Claire's flashback with her apologizing to her mother was very touching, and well-acted.

I also feel bad for Desmond. It's gotta be hard for a guy to see the various ways that Charlie is going to die, and to know that Charlie's going to look at him in a somewhat nauseous manner whenever he's in the vicinity.

Oh, and before I delve into the other part of the episode, I'm curious if I was the only one that thought Charlie telling Claire that she's the one he wants to do some day-seizing with was dirty. I'm guessing probably I am. I really need to get my mind out of the gutter.

The other part of the episode with Kate, John, Sayid, and Rousseau definitely made up for the lack of action in Claire's story. I think my favorite part of that story was the scene when Kate asked Rousseau why she hasn't asked any questions about Danielle. I've never really given all that much credit to the actress that plays Rousseau, but she did a phenomenal job with that scene. I really felt bad for her, and completely understood her position.

I'm really starting to think that John is trying to sabotage any effort to get off the island, especially given the events of the last two episodes. He blew up the communication station, he clearly knew that the house was lined with explosives, and he killed Mikhail. Granted, he said he didn't know that was going to happen, but I'm beginning to wonder about him. How he's been acting lately is very curious.

The last shot with Kate seeing Jack and wanting to run to him, and then noticing that he seems to have become an Other was very interesting. It'll lead very nicely into next week's episode, I think. This is actually the first episode in a long time where I'm really anticipating the show next week, not so much for Locke's backstory, but for what's going to happen between the Losties and the Others.

Speaking of Locke's backstory, I'm a bit leery about the preview stating that it'll be shocking. I'm going to try to keep my expectations low, so maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised next week.

As typical with my Lost entries, I have a list of questions I'm thinking about after watching this week's episode.

- Has Jack really been converted to an Other? If he has, was it by brainwashing via the Clockwork Orange type rooom? Or has he just accepted the fact that he'll probably never see his Losties again?
- The fact that Mikhail and the other Others know so much about the Losties brings up the fate issue again. Were the passengers that survived Oceanic Flight 815 preordained to arrive on the island? And is that why all the attempts to get off the island, except for when Michael and Walt left, always lead back to the island?
- How can the Others possibly know all this information about the Losties? Given the first episode of the season, all the Others seemed pretty surprised that a plane exploded right above them. Do they have some way to communicate with the outside world to get this information? Or are they all psychic? Or is the island a metaphor for purgatory, and all the cast is reliving their past in order to make amends? I know the writers have specifically stated that that's not the case, but evidence keeps trying to lead me, anyway, to that conclusion.
- What will Claire do with the information that Desmond is psychic? Will she help him try to prevent Charlie's death? Will she be able to prevent Charlie's death? It all comes down to the fate issue again.
- Is Claire's mother still alive?
- Is there any significance to Sawyer reading an Ayn Rand book?
- What did Mikhail mean that Kate and others were "flawed"? Is it that they have done some terrible things in the past? Or is it something more fundamental?

Wow. I didn't expect to think up so many questions just from this episode. It's definitely one that made me think. I'm looking forward to hearing other people's thoughts on the episode, and if everyone else is as excited as I am for next week.