Lost Episode 4 Recap and Review

Lost Episode 4 Recap and Review
Disclaimer: Spoilers, duh!

The Lighthouse (a Jack-centric episode)

I’ll start this blog with my review and feelings of this episode overall. At the end of my episode recap I’ll have my general thoughts about what has happened, and things to come, so please read on for those most enlightening tidbits. Let’s get things squared away. This episode is pretty weak in my general opinion. It is certainly weak by the standards of what Lost is/has been capable of. My only guess is that it was a bit of a filler episode as a segway to next week. Note: The preview for next week’s episode was wild and confusing and better live up to the hype it has created. Alright, so this wasn’t the most “engaging” of episodes, but there were some revelations, some explanations, and some what the bloody hell moments.

Flashsideways: A Father and Son

Our episode opens in our flashsideways timeline. Jack is in his very white and bright flat. He washes his face and inspects a scar on his belly. Mama Shephard gives him a ring, and Jack asks his mom when he had his appendix taken out (after further inspection of the scar) His mother says it was when he was a child, but obviously this is the first time Jack is noticing this scar. Remember, we know Juliet took Jack’s appendix out on the island! Anyways, Mama Shephard cannot find Christian’s damn will, so Jack agrees to pop on by to look for it with her.

Later in the day, Jack drives up to a prep school, where he picks up his SON, DAVID! (This is one of those what the bloody hell moments if you didn’t catch my drift). David seems to be a moody teenager; quite a lot older than I would have imagined any son of Jack’s to be, but I digress. They arrive at Jack’s place and moody David immediately goes into “his bedroom” and unpacks some books. Jack tries desperately to make idle conversation with David, who has his mp3 earbuds in (how disrespectful!) They seem like strangers to one another. David says to Jack, “We only see each other once a month, can’t we just get through it?” That’s a kick in the face if I ever saw one! Jack leaves to go round his mum’s to sort through his father’s affairs (no pun intended!)

At Jack’s family home, his mother and he feverishly search though Christian’s papers, files, and desk. Mrs. Shephard asks how David is doing, as he was quite a wreck at his grandfather’s funeral. They move on to discuss Jack’s relationship with his son, in comparison to Jack’s relationship with his father when he was a boy. Mum gives Jack some obvious motherly advice about trying to communicate better with David. Eventually, she spots the will! She begins to read it. Suddenly, with a very confused look on her face, she asks Jack if her father has ever mentioned a “Claire Littleton”. (Gasp!) An obvious look of familiarity is in Jack’s eyes upon hearing the name. Jack does not answer, and we don’t see any more of this scene, so as to what the Will had said specifically, we do not know. I’m sure it was dictating some of Christians personal affects / money to go to Claire. But we MUST remember that the hydrogen bomb altered so many things, and merely assuming that Claire is still Jack’s half-sister in this timeline may be risky.

Jack returns home with a pizza in hand for him and David. Course, David is nowhere to be found. Jack calls David’s cell phone, apologizing for possibly hurting and upsetting him. He then drives over to David’s mother’s house to see if he is there. After locating the house key and entering the empty house (of which I can only assume is breaking and entering; Oh Jack you bad boy!) he goes up to David’s room. David’s room is filled with posters and piano music and lo and behold there is a photo booth picture set on his mirror of David and Jack. *Oh the tears in my eyes! Committing a serious breach of personal privacy, Jack listens to the messages on the answering machine. There is a voice message to David from a music conservatory, confirming his audition (which of course, is that night! I wonder where David is…). The next message plays, and it is from himself. A distraught Jack calls from Sydney and just wants to hear David’s voice. *Sad face*

Jack goes to the music conservatory only to walk in right as his son is playing the piano (quite expertly I might add). Might I point out here that the sign at the conservatory says “Welcome All Candidates” (oh the subtleness of hints!) Jack listens and looks upon David in such awe and pride. His son finishes. A little Asian boy tells Jack that his son is really good! His Asian dad gives his Asian son a hug. The Asian dad turns around and it is none other than our good Temple Other Genghis Kahn impersonator, Dogen! Dogen talks to Jack about his son’s gift.

Outside the conservatory, Jack goes up to David, whom had no idea his father had been there. Jack tells him how great he had played. David explains to Jack how he didn’t want him to know he still played the piano, because Jack used to make such a big deal about it. He says he did not want Jack to see him fail. They have a tried and true heart to heart (it reminded me of Full House heart to hearts when Danny sits down with one of the girls and tells them how special they are or some horseshit whilst violins play in the background!). Jack tells David how Christian used to tell Jack that he did not have what it takes. It’s all very emotional and they reconnect on some level. Then they decide to head back to Jack’s for some pizza. And that, folks, is our flashsideways of the week.

The Lighthouse Quest

Back at the temple, Jack and Dogen discuss topics such as honesty, and the fact that Sawyer, Kate, and Jin probably will not be coming back. Meanwhile, Miles and Hugo play some tic tac toe on the ground, and then decide to search for some grub. Hugo sees a man hunched over the fountain. It’s Jacob, of course! Jacob tells Hugo to get a pen, because he needs his help with a few things. Apparently, someone is coming to the island, and he needs Hugo to “help him find it” (Okay, so we’re implying that whomever is coming to the island, is a ‘him’).

Sayid approaches Jack, and asks him why all these Others be grilling him. Jack informs him that the pill was poisoned and they had intended for Jack to kill him. When clearly confused by this information, Jack explains that the Others say that this infection has happened to someone else too. (We all know this to be Claire, but more on her story later!)

Hugo walks along a very old and creepy passageway, with writing all over his arm. There are hieroglyphics along the wall, and he is clearly looking for something specific. Dogen finds him creeping, and tells him to go back out into the courtyard. Jacob appears behind Dogen (of course only Hugo can see him) and tells Hugo to say that he is a candidate. Hugo does so, and Dogen leaves him alone and walks away. Jacob then urgently reminds Hugo that he MUST get Jack to go with him before finding this secret passageway! Hugo is hesitant to believe that Jack will accompany him.

Out in the courtyard, Hugo comes up next to Jack and talks to him very stealth and ninja-like. He tries convincing Jack to go with him, but Jack adamantly refuses at first. Hugo then tells Jack that “Jacob says you have what it takes; he said you’d know what that means”. Jack, and the audience, knows that is a reference to his father. Upon hearing this, Jack demands to speak with Jacob. Hugo reminds jack that Jacob is “dead, but just shows up, like Obi Won Kenobi”. He says that wherever it is they’re going, they can talk to Jacob when they get there. Jack consents to go with him.

Hugo and Jack walk through the woods and come across Kate, whom is all alone. She tells them that Jin was headed back to the temple and Sawyer is on his own now. Kate says that she is going to go look for Claire. Jack explains that the Others think “something” has happened to Claire. Jack impresses that Kate come along with them, but Hugo dissents. Kate rejects the invitation and departs. See ya, Kate! They continue to walk through the forest. Hugo apologizes for wrecking his game with Kate, but Jack says there is nothing to wreck. Hugo wonders what ever happened to Jack and Kate; he thought they’d have a family and Jack would make a great dad! Jack says he would have made a terrible dad. They come across an asthma inhaler, and reminisce on Shannon. Suddenly, they realize that they are back at the caves where they used to live. Hugo looks over the Adam and Eve skeletons that have been there from Season 1. Jack explains how he found the caves when he was chasing the ghost of his dead dad (White Rabbit, S1). He points out the coffin that he smashed to bits because his dad’s body wasn’t in it! As they walk through the Jungle, Hugo is reminded of good old times. They both ask each other why they came back to the island. Hugo simply says that while in LA, Jacob got into his cab and told him to, so he came. Jack says, “I came back because I was broken, and I was stupid enough to think that this place could fix me.”

Finally, they come out onto the shoreline. In front of them stands a very old lighthouse (oh, now we get it!) They approach the lighthouse door. Jack asks if Jacob is in there, and Hugo says he assumes so, but first they have to go inside and turn the beacon on. The door is jammed. Rambo Jack kicks the door in, and they proceed. They reach the top of the lighthouse, which is full of mirrors, controlled by movement of a massive dial! Jack asks where Jacob is, and Hugo says he isn’t there yet. Hugo informs Jack that he’s got to pull on the rope, until the dial points to 108 degrees (who didn’t see that coming?) Jack looks at the mirrors while Hugo pulls the rope. Suddenly he sees a very strange reflection and tells Hugo to stop. They inspect the dial. All around it there are hundreds of names circling it. Every degree has a corresponding name, most of which are crossed out (remind you of somewhere else?) Jack sees Shephard at 23 degrees (obviously we know what names are at degrees 4, 8, 15, 16, and 42!). He turns the dial to 23 degrees and looks in the mirror. He sees his childhood house! Jack then asserts that Jacob has been watching them all, since they were kids! He angrily asks one last time where Jacob is. Hugo says he assumed Jacob would be there. At this point, Jack is super fucking frustrated. He grabs a handy and well-placed telescope blows a gasket. He smashes all the mirrors.

Outside the lighthouse, Hugo and Jack sit far away from one another (Jack’s in a time out!). Jacob appears to Hugo, yet again. Hugo freaks out about how Jack broke all the mirrors, thus making their mission completely pointless. When Jacob stands there silent with his smug smile, it dawns on Hugo that Jacob obviously wanted Jack to see what was in the mirror. Jacob tells Hugo that he wants Jacob to learn just how important he is, and Jack has to figure that out for himself! Then dramatically, Jacob says he also had to get them as far away from the temple as possible. “Someone bad is heading to that temple and you can’t do anything about it!”

Crazy Claire-sseau

Jin’s leg is in a giant bear trap set by Claire, Claire checks to see that one of the men she shot is dead, and then frees Jin. Talking with Jin, Claire realizes she has been out here for 3 years. She tries taking Jin to her domain, but Jin faints.

When Jin comes to, he finds himself in Claire’s crazy jungle lair (very reminiscent of Rousseau’s crib piece). His leg is all sorts of fucked up and he begins to freak out and look around. He sees a box of explosives, probably from The Black Rock. He also sees a super old looking crib. Peeking inside the crib, he sees a dead animal skull and gross pelt baby inside it. WHAT THE FUCK?!

Claire returns with one of the men she shot, who obviously, is not dead. She whacks him down and ties him up. She begins to interrogate him about the whereabouts of her son! Jin asks if she has been out here all by herself. Claire tells Jin that she isn’t alone! She leaves to fetch some medical supplies and sharpen her axe. The captured Other tells Jin that homegirl is crazy and if they both don’t escape, she will kill them. The Other tries to convince Jin to set him free so they can both kill her. She returns.

It’s very unnerving to kooky to see Claire speak genuinely sweet and completely normally to Jin, and very vicious and crazy to the Other. The is convinced They took her son The Other says they never had Aaron. Jin asks how Claire knows They took Aaron. Claire gets super creepy here, explaining “First my father told me, and then my friend told me” Jin asks who her friend is. Claire says “Just…my friend…you’re still my friend, Jin, aren’t you?” He replies, “Of course, Claire”. (Meanwhile, I love how Claire never once says, “Holy tits, Jin! You speak fluent English now! Then again, she is nuts so it probably never occurred to her). Happily, she stitches him up. She turns to the Other and says “Now it’s your turn” She holds up her axe and has a seriously demented look in her eye.

Crazy Claire interrogates the Other about Aaron’s whereabouts. She brandishes the axe, and Jin pleads with her to chill. She tells Jin of how They tortured her and branded her (just like They’ve done with Sayid) but she escaped. Right before she is about to axe this fool, Jin hurriedly tells her that Kate took Aaron when she left the island. He says Aaron is 3 years old now and has been with Kate all the time. The Other confirms this story. She ponders this new revelation, then axes the fool anyway because, as I may remind you, she is NUTS. She walks away, and the camera closes in on Jin, with what can only be assumed as a mental monologue of “What the fuck is wrong with this crazy ass bitch?”

Later, she asks Jin why he said that Kate was raising Aaron. Jin tells her that he was lying, in hopes of saving the Other’s life. He blatantly lies, and tells her that the Others have her baby, and he is at the temple right now. He even says that he saw Aaron there! He tells Claire that she needs him to get into the temple, because he knows a secret way to get inside. In all sincerity, she thanks him, and is relieved to know Kate didn’t have Aaron. In the most normal-but-psychopathic way, she says “If she did, I’d kill her.” Who should pop in for a visit but Flocke! Jin is absolutely shocked to see John. But Claire assures him, “This isn’t John, this is my friend!” El Fin.

My Thoughts

While it wasn’t a very impactful episode, it did stir up a whole new slew of questions. So here are my thoughts and questions about what’s going on in Lost:

First, who is David’s mother? Are we to assume that Jack’s ex wife, Sarah is David’s mother? I have a feeling it may be some startling revelation as to David’s mother, which is why she is never shown or mentioned by name in the episode.

Who the bloody hell is coming back to the island? There has been lots of fan-spec about it being Desmond or Charles Whidmore. I’d say if Charles Whidmore came back, it would be a pretty monumental feat, as he was banished oh so many years ago, and he’s been trying to find it forever. My vote’s for him.

What is the true meaning of 108? It appears in so many places. It haunts my dreams! Obviously in the basic sense, that is how many minutes they had to push the button in season to, and if you add up our favourite numbers 4+8+15+16+23+42 you get 108. That’s old news. We have learned that every number on the dial in the lighthouse is signified by a person. Hugo was supposedly turning it to degree 108, which would obviously have a corresponding name. After hunting down a screenshot of the dial, it looks like 108 – Wallace. It is also crossed out. Who the bloody hell is Wallace?

Obviously that Lighthouse has much more meaning to the island than what we saw. I think this is verified by the fact that Jacob intended Jack to go apeshit and smash the mirror to pieces. Lighthouses are used as beacons of sorts to help us find places. Destroying the mirrors in the lighthouse = destroying a way to help find the island for “whomever is coming”. Jacob wanted Hugo to help this person find the island, yet was intending Jack to ruin those chances. I have yet to discern if this mysterious person coming to the island is friend or foe. Then again, I really don’t know who on the island can be considered “friend” or “foe”. It’s all relative.

Jacob also told Hugo that he had to get Hugo and Jack as far away from the Temple as possible, because someone is coming. Obviously, as Jack and Hugo are both candidates, he wants to protect them (I’m assuming). The audience is led to believe that this horrible person heading to the temple is none other than Claire-sseau, as she now believes that Aaron is there, and Jin can help her get in. Now is a good time to remember that Sun, Ilana, Ben, and Frank are heading to the temple also. Curious!

Speaking of Jin, why did Jin lie? I could see him lying to protect Kate and save his own ass, but why would he go as far as to say he’d help her get into the temple? Obviously he is confused, a bit concerned about Claire’s mental state, but why deliberately lies to her and agree to help her get into the temple?

Also, can we be under the impression that Christian Shephard...zombie/ghost he may be, seems to be on the side of The Man in Black/Smokey/Flocke? He’s obviously on Claire’s home team, and Claire seems to play ball for Flocke.

Lastly, I’m glad Kate didn’t join Jack and Hugo. She’s off to go roam the jungle by herself. She generally annoys me, so be gone with her I say. Who knows, maybe something will happen to her (Kate, meet axe-wielding Claire?). After all, she isn’t one of the candidates!

Anyways, that’s the nub of my jist. I’m looking forward to next week’s episode, which, in promos, looks to be fantastic! Details on that below and Happy Viewings!

Next Week: Tuesday, March 2 at 9pm/8c
Episode Title: Sundown (a Sayid-centric episode)
Summary: Sayid faces a difficult decision, and Claire sends a warning to the temple inhabitants.