Through the Looking Glass

“LOST” has spawned a million theories. A show grounded in simple, human drama, but swirling with so many mysterious and supernatural elements that you know anything can happen. And yet, I don’t think anyone could have imagined where tonight’s episode has taken us. We were promised a “game changer,” and a game changer we’ve got. We know we’re only halfway through the grand arc of “LOST,” yet we’re given a glimpse of what we thought was the natural endpoint of a “stranded on a tropical island” story. Suddenly I’m willing to entertain even the most ridiculous, crack-pot theories. Because I have no idea where “LOST” will take us next.

I admit, I’m a spoiler fiend. And even Jen, who valiantly went spoiler free the last few weeks, couldn’t resist. We read about the big twist, “the snake in the mailbox,” last week. Tonight’s season finale, fortunately, was still powerful enough to leave us speechless. But we do somewhat regret depriving ourselves of the chance to have our minds totally blown. Lesson learned. At least for Jen.

Alas, Charlie’s reprieve last week was short-lived, and he dies… having passed on one of the biggest twists yet. His character’s journey was a roller coaster, with some seriously deep dips… but the writers did well by him in the waning weeks of this season. It’s tough enough to lose someone who has been aboard since the beginning, but he met an especially bittersweet end. No, it didn’t look like Charlie had to die. That burst porthole would have taken half an hour to flood The Looking Glass, more than enough time for him to stroll over to Desmond and help him into some SCUBA gear. So he chose to die. On the debate over “free will versus destiny,” I guess he falls in the latter camp.

Hurley’s bus-powered rescue was spectacular. His moment of triumph was extra sweet, after he was cruelly rebuffed by his friends tonight (and last week as well). And when he called Jack with the news? That he saved everybody, including Sayid, Jin and Bernard? Probably one of the best rushes I’ve ever felt with “LOST.”

Speaking of great moments, Alex and Rosseau’s reunion was something we’ve been waiting for since Alex surfaced in Season Two. It was as powerful as we’d hoped, and one that hopefully opens the door to some great character development in the seasons to come. I dare say never in the history of television have a mother and daughter been more perfectly cast than Mira Furlan and Tania Raymonde.

Wonder of wonders, Walt returned, ushered in by the mysterious whispers. He restores Locke’s hope at the very moment he’d lost it all. It was good to see David Malcolm Kelly again… but he’s definitely not a kid anymore. The odd angle and strange voice effect didn’t help. Still, he made sure Locke survived and remains a central character in the “LOST” master plan. His return, in the midst of Ben’s collapsing authority, is a tantalizing tease for Season 4. And his line to Jack, resigned over his making contact with the ship, seemed to strike the deepest of any uttered on this show:

“You aren’t supposed to do this.”

And Penny’s brief conversation with Charlie proved that Naomi isn’t who she said she was (and proved that Ben wasn’t entirely lying). Ben’s desperate last pleas to Jack, that making contact would be the “beginning of the end,” also seem to have been borne out, when we see Jack — OFF THE ISLAND! — broken and desperate and now yearning to return.

I… I don’t know what to say. Jen?

So they’ve been rescued.

My biggest fear is that the series would end MASH style: with tears and hugs and emotional dialogue about fear and destiny. I could see them all getting on the boat and riding off into the sunset, and it scared me.

It’s safe to say that that’s not going to happen now.

We’ve thought we were headed somewhere, but we were wrong. I admit, this season took forever to get started. I was wondering what the whole point of the six-episode “pod” was, and while I think it might have been dragged out a little bit far, I can still see in retrospect where they were going. Ben and company might be the “good guys” after all. The finale made me reexamine everything we’ve learned about all the characters so far, especially The Others.

Season three of Lost, to me, is one of the best seasons of television ever.

Notes & Notions:

  • Who died? Whose funeral had no visitors? Who’s neither family nor friend to Jack (and elicits a sneer from Kate)? Benjamin Linus seems a likely guess. Looks like this will become one of the key mysteries of the seasons to come. And I suspect the journey to the answer will be even more delicious than learning how Locke ended up in a wheelchair.
  • Jack’s crack about his dad being drunk, and presumably alive, was very, very curious. Was he just so whacked out on drugs that he forgot Christian Shepherd was dead? Or is dad… not dead? (Jack also seemed rattled when the pharmacist said she’d call Christian to verify the prescription.) In fact, Jack’s sorry state seemed to be a continuation of the downward spiral we’d seen in his pre-crash flashbacks. Kate, meanwhile, seemed to have settled down with someone, and didn’t appear to be in prison or on the run. I’m not a “time loop” fan at all… but these are pretty juicy morsels for someone to suggest that some of the things we’ve seen happen now didn’t happen.
  • The code to disable the jamming signal was “programmed by a musician.” Was that a big clue, or just another way to cement in Charlie’s mind that it was his destiny to do what he did?
  • Some fantastic lines. Rose threatens, “If you say, ‘Live together, die alone’ again, Jack, I’ll punch you in the face.” And Juliet’s quip about building runways for aliens was priceless.
  • What is the deal with Mikhail? (Cyclops!) He just won’t die. At this point, I’m fairly sure we’ll see him again in Season 4.
  • Links: “Through The Looking Glass” discussions at TheFuselage.com, Lost-Forum.com, and Pop Candy
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188 Responses to Through the Looking Glass

  1. John Fischer says:

    Less than eight hours to go till the show airs here on the east coast. I can’t wait. Usually I tape it and watch it in the a.m. but not this week. I’ve read the big spoilers but I still am eager to see how it plays out on the screen. I know we’ll all have a lot to talk about tomorrow and for the next 8 months. Gosh 8 months till the next episode. That seems like an eternity.

    I read somewhere from an unconfirmed source that Lost will be doing most of its filming in California from now on with just some exteriors shot in Hawaii. I haven’t read that anywhere in the Hawaii papers as I would think I would if it were true. I think people tied that together with Terry selling his house which I’ve read conflicting stories on also. Some say it’s just not true.

    Ryan and/or Jen have you heard anything about principal production relocating to the mainland? I’ll only believe it when I hear it from official ABC sources. The Hawaii TV/film industry would be taking a major hit.

    John

  2. steven says:

    I have litterally scratched all the hair from the top of my head. How can this be the most confusing thing I have ever seen, but yet be THE BEST SHOW EVER!!!!

  3. Pete says:

    I saw it. Good episode W00t

  4. Bill says:

    Mind Blowing.

  5. Lizzie says:

    I just got finished watching and I am stunned, and reeling and I LOVE how they give us these mind-blowing puzzles to mess with us over the summer and I cannot say enough about the scene at the beach with Hurley!!!!!!! The most exciting part except for the very very end reveal.

    Holy cow. Well played. What a /wonderful/ payoff!

  6. George says:

    Holy crap!!!!

  7. darby says:

    that was incredible! cheers to the producers, actors and writers who make this kind of show possible!!!

  8. Dean in Chicago says:

    What was in that newspaper?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

  9. John Fischer says:

    I can’t wait to discuss this episode once our friends in Hawaii have seen it. So many wonderful scenes and so many hard to watch scenes. It played out exactly as the spoilers had indicated but I still am not sure what to make of it. Great acting by so many of the actors. Jack was amazing and I don’t usually like his character. What a great job by Dominick. Wow, I can’t even imagine where to begin. So many questions. So much to think about.

  10. John Fischer says:

    Tom,

    Don’t spoil this for those who haven’t seen it, but I also am waiting for a screen shot of that paper. Someone has to have it.

  11. Alan says:

    Hurley killed someone? Dude, no way. Still pretty cool moment though, I was cheering when he appeared in the Volks. Locke killed someone? Dude, no way. I hope that chick had it coming to her. I guess Locke can always say, “Walt made me do it.” Speaking of Walt, was it the island that made him grow up so fast when it’s been like, what, a couple of weeks? The island kills pregnant women and causes premature puberty. I’ve just given away The Secret.

  12. John Fischer says:

    Tom,

    I actually know Jen and Ryan personally. Heck, I jusy had dinner with them two weeks ago. They don’t want spoilers here especially right before folks on the west coast and Hawaii see the episode. Please stick to their rules.

  13. Andrew says:

    DON’T READ IF YOU HAVE NOT SEE THE EPISODE

    Do we assume that the appearance of Walt is an apparition?
    Who is Kate with- obviously not Jack?
    Personally I think that this was a great episode, a real game-changer, however will people still tune in in the long run now that the losties are off the island? Maybe, well obviously for the season premier next January, I cringe at the thought but for me LOST is LOST on the island. How are they going to transition to the real world or post-rescue in 2005

  14. Gabe says:

    honestly, it was great but i was disappointed with it. It didnt strike me silly like the season 2 finale. I mostly enjoyed Locke’s performance. Jack’s “scenes” were amazing. Downright amazing!!!!

  15. Kwon says:

    DON’T READ IF YOU HAVE NOT SEE THE EPISODE

    Anyone have an idea about why Kate’s freckles were gone in the future?

  16. george says:

    guys…i hate to say this…but where i can i download the podcasts. I haven’t been to the site in months, but do not see where i can DL the podcasts to listen to. please help me out

  17. John Fischer says:

    Gabe,

    I think the problem we’re all facing is that we’re used to cliff hangers on continuing dramas, but normally we only have to wait 4 months not 8. I think most Lost fans will be crazy waiting to see how they deal with tonight’s big change in the show.

  18. Bryan says:

    Potential spoiler alert below. Do not read if you dont want vague references. I’m trying to be really vague though, but I wanna know what other people think about this one part.

    About halfway thru the ‘flashbacks” I started wondering about when they were occuring. Then as soon as Jack made the call at the end, I KNEW who was going to get out of that car. I was yelling the name at the TV. But what i didnt see coming, was what he told them about leaving the island.

    WOW, my mind is BLOWN.

    On another note, to me the most confusing part of this episode was, (im censoring this part for spoiler protection), why is Jack telling the other doctor to call his father?

  19. Andrew says:

    SPOILER

    I must also admit my friend and I were watching the episode and when Jack said to the new chief resident, ” You don’t know what I have been though” got my friend thinking that this flashback was in the future. Also I thought the producers confirmed that Christian Sheppard was dead? How could Jack make references to Christian twice in the episode that would insinuate the opposite?

  20. patrick says:

    why would somone click through to here if they had not seen the episode yet??
    andrew called it, an absolute game-changer. brilliant. “heroes” inspired?

  21. Bryan says:

    patrick:

    Heroes doesn’t hold a candle to this show. I watch Heroes. I know Heroes.

    This is no Heroes.

  22. John Fischer says:

    Tom.

    I don’t set the rules here. Jen and Ryan do. It’s sad that you refuse to post according to their requests. I’m not trying to impress you, but since you raise the issue, have YOU actually been to the beach camp site on O’ahu? Have you stood in the middle of the village of the Others?

    I haven’t just “met” Jen and Ryan. They are friends and that’s more than you can say. All I’m asking is that you stick to their rules…not mine.

  23. Jennifer says:

    One question, or thought rather…I was confused as to how Naomi could know about Penny and Desmond after Penny told Charlie she knew nothing of the sort- could Penny’s Father be behind Naomi’s crew? Similar to how he paid Desmond off during an earlier flashback?

  24. Jim says:

    As much as I like reading it..I guess it’s time to find a new board..John, can you take another step up on your ladder..not high enough..bye bye

  25. John Fischer says:

    Jennifer,

    Thanks for being vague enough to abide by the rules here. I think you are right on target. I think that there’s a Paik/Widmore connection that we’ll learn more about in the upcoming seasons. Ben has always claimed that he’s one of the “good guys” and I’m not convinced that in the end he’s not telling the truth. As we saw last week the folks who controlled Dharma must be pretty nasty and yet, powerful.

  26. Jackb says:

    John Fischer you seem to be coming off as a spoil sport. The Numbers Forums and the Fuselage are currently down. Lostpedia “has a problem” and millions of us fans are dying to discuss this absolutely mind blowing finale. I don’t see anyone checking this site out who A) hasn’t seen the episode or B) doesn’t know to be on the lookout for spoilers.

    I know you are merely doing your “job” but it almost seems a bit overboard considering the momentous impact of this episode. I’m sure you are a great guy and have good intentions, but I’d caution against being so hardcore. On that note, how hardcore is Sawyer for his cold hearted promise kept to Tom and how about Super Ninja Sayid with the double ankle neck snappage. Dayum. Love this blog and the show and any audio/spoilers I get from Ryan or Jen- many thanks.

  27. patrick says:

    bryan- i meant as far as the flash forward (and hurley reminded me of hiro). love both shows. totally different but both taking tv storytelling to new interesting places. was really impressed by matthew fox tonight. the dark future jack.

  28. John Fischer says:

    Jackb,

    I apologize if I seem to be coming off as a spoil sport. It’s just that spending as much time as I do in Hawaii I know how hard it is to resist reading spoilers.

    It’s definitely a tough decision that each of has to make after viewing Lost. I have no “power” to stop anyone from posting spoilers. I just know how I felt a couple of weeks ago when the episode was spoiled for me here when it was just 5 p.m. in Hawaii.

  29. XLH says:

    So the cast aways are going to be “LOST” in the world. How did Dharma get Jack’s father back? Or replicate him? Or earse the minds of everyone at the hospital who knew him? Did anyone in the States know Christain had died?

    Who’s funeral? Lockes?

    Kate and James Ford? Is that who she’s with?

    And now that (at least) Kate and Jack are off of the Island, are they being monitored?

    Wow.

  30. Ryan says:

    John, I appreciate your consideration, but we’ve always encouraged folks to post here as soon as they’ve seen the episode, fully understanding that we wouldn’t get to enjoy it ourselves for five more hours. Heck, I love that the discussion here is well underway before we even start to process what happened.

    I’m certainly not spoiler averse (I was all over AICN the moment that hit the wires), and Jen usually can’t resist reading here… but we still enjoy the show, and we love the conversation.

    So, everyone, let ‘er rip!

  31. John Fischer says:

    Ryan,

    My apologies then to all. I sincerely thought you didn’t want spoilers here. I’ll retreat to my normally comfortable background.

  32. shannon says:

    Who is in the casket?

  33. jlk says:

    awesome finale
    heroes finale suxd
    this is how you do it

    time anaomaly
    wow

    great episode…

  34. Troy says:

    Anyone seen a screenshot of the obituary clipping? They show it close up near the end but I haven’t found it online yet. I feel like you might be able to make out the headline/name.

  35. Andrew says:

    SPOILER

    I think it is Ben who is in the casket because it was a relatively small casket plus he is the only person from the island who I could think of that no one would want to see after the rescue. Moreover, Jack would go and visit him out of respect, for Ben was right about Jack regretting leaving the island.

  36. Fernando says:

    Despite the facts that I also read the spoilers a week ago, I found the episode mind-blowing and pretty exciting. It was quite touching to see Charlie go as well as to see Danielle touching Alex’s face for the first time. I also found it incredible when Hurley ran over Ryan, and when Ben got beaten both by Jack and by Alex.

    I have the same question Andrew has: what’s up with the Christian Shepherd references? The producers have assured us that he is dead. Was Jack so out of it, with the pills, that he did not know what he was saying?
    My other question is about Naomi: who is she really with? Could Ben be telling the truth about other people being the bad guys? He and other Others have said that before.

    To me, the fact that the show might move forward in time, to events happening off the island after ‘some’ of the Losties have returned home makes perfect sense. I have always been confident in thinking that the show could not end (in 2010) with the Losties being rescued. So, this was a very nice way to introduce that other chapter of the story. However, I do not expect the next season to happen competely off the island, after ‘the rescue’. It will probably continue jumping through time to flashbacks before the plane crahs, on-the-island event, and after the ‘rescue’ scenes.

    My only disappointment: Jack is still alive and will continue so for a long time. Despite the wonderful performance of Matthew Fox, I dislike Jack very much. Even after being a “hero” for getting off the island, he is still a very disturbed individual, and even became irresposible and selfish (he was not like that before the plane crash). I would have loved it if the episode would have been Kate-centric instead; and it would have been great to see her meet someone else at the end (BTW, I am convinced the “he’ she refered to was Sawyer; they make it off the island and start a life together). But LOSt is still my favorite TV show, and I find it very thought provocking.

    The thrid season is over. Many more new questions have been posed. We will starve for answers for eight months. AWESOME!!!!

    Namaste,

  37. Sally from Arizona says:

    The funeral is Ben’s…He is not friend or family to Jack. And Jack was upset because he wouldn’t be able to get back on the island. He was hoping Ben would help him find a way back. Kate’s freckles are gone because she is wearing makeup.

  38. Troy says:

    I think it’s Ben’s too. That’s the only significant person we know of that makes sense so far. But there are three more years…

    So what. We think Kate’s with Sawyer in real time then? Craziness.

  39. jim says:

    Wow. Pardon me while I put my brain back together.
    Who is in the casket? Who could it be other than Sawyer? Who else could elicit such a strong reation from Kate? Isn’t it plausible that James/Sawyer would revert back to his antisocial persona, and push Kate away? (Plus, he’s been acting really wack since he exorcized his Sawyer demon…) Andrew suggested it was Ben in the casket, but I truly doubt Jack would shed tears for Ben — and let’s hope his demise is sooner rather than later!
    OK, everyone, break into discussion groups till February…

  40. Fernando says:

    I forgot to ask: Why can’t Mikhail die for good? When he first met Charlie, Hurley, Jin and Desmond ( afew weeks ago), he said: “Go ahead. Kill me. I already died once this week.” I thought it was funny then. Now, I just think he is creepy.

  41. Yari says:

    Great episode. Crazy future flashed with Jack…had me until the end, even then, with makeup, took me a bit to realize it was Kate.
    Can’t wait till next season…should be good.

    Aloha

  42. Mike says:

    OK… I got the part where they have been saved and are now off the island where the real-world rules apply. So, how come Kate is not in prison or on the run? I guess we have to wait to find that out, too.

  43. Troy says:

    So all I got from checking out the frames of Jack holding the newspaper clipping was “Los Angeles” as the headline and “Man found…downtown…” then “The body of a man…” and then I have no idea. So it seems less like an obituary and more like a straight up story from the paper. Even with the bluriness, I couldn’t make out any proper/caps names.

    Also, my theory is, since Sawyer’s now killed Sawyer and realized his life’s goal, he’ll start putting things in persepctive and turn out to be Kate’s guy at home, real time. Also, she’s totally pregers with his kid. Remember what Juliet said about the chances of getting impregnated on the island?

    Ah. Seven month wait. Best.

  44. Connie in Alaska says:

    And what happened to Richard Alpert, Cindy, the kids and the remainder of the Others? Was the whole Island evacuated? Did they force Locke to leave the Island? Did they take Ben?

    Charlie could have saved himself, IMHO, by swimming out the broken window or simply exiting the radio room and closing the door behind him. It seemed to have a wheel lock on both sides. At any rate, even if he had left the door open it would have taken a whuile to flood the entire hatch and he and Desmond would have had plenty of time to don scuba gear and escape. What say you all everybody?

    I think it was either Ben or Locke in the coffin. Clever Damon, Carlton and the rest of the stellar cast of writers and producers. Since now we are all psychologically in the “future”, think of all the story telling left to be done…is 48 episodes going to be enough? How did they actually exit the Island? What happened (and how long has it been) to drive Jack to suicide? What is the state of our other Losties and even rescued Others like Karl and Alex? Was Kate pregnant? Will we ever see Walt and Michael again? Wow…brilliant, just brilliant!!!!

  45. Connie in Alaska says:

    One more thing, I think that the world they return to is not the world they left. That is why Jack refers to his dad as if he were living and Kate is not on the run. Also notice that Oceanic Air has apparently given them all “Golden Passes” that must be good for anywhere, anytime for life.

    Was Jack wearing the beard as a disguise. If you notice, people recognized Jack not as one of the survivors of Oceanic 815, but as the “hero doctor”. I wonder if their rescue was covered up or if people still think that the plane went down and there were no survivors.

  46. Connie in Alaska says:

    George, sorry to tell you this, but Ryan and Jen haven’t podcasted for Lost in over a year. It was a sad sad day…the day the Transmission died. People still beg them to resume, but we all respect their reasons for stopping the podcast and are thankful that they keep up this forum. They do a great job!

  47. ayama says:

    even thought it seems it was ben on the casket, since it seemed to be small, and since no one where there. i thought it would have to be one of the losties for jack to think kate would be there. think about it, why would she go to ben’s funeral. i could be either sawyer or locke, since they are the ones without family, but i highly doubt kate would be so cold about it if it was sawyer’s funeral. actually, from the things she says, it seems she ends up with sawyer.

    i think it must be locke, kate is a bit indiferent, cause in the end, at least in the eyes of the losties we get crazy locke, that doesnt want them off the island. it would explain why jack was emotional as well, now he can see locke’s point, he wishes he was on the island as well.

    as for kate, she seems to be doing fine. apparently still living as a fugitive but now with sawyer by her side. and she doesnt seem to have any doubts about going back to the island.

    a great episode. i wish i hadnt read a few spoilers before. next year i’ll be 100% spoiler free!!

  48. ray says:

    The newspaper was about the memorial services for Ben…I’m just guessing but it makes you think. Any ideas as to what the heck is going on on this show???

  49. Stuart says:

    Given the shift in perspective at the end of this episode, I’m going to say maybe Ben IS one of the “good guys”, although at the moment he is in a desperate state because the island is now vulnerable to as yet unknown forces, unknown to us at least. The shift in time (reveal at the end) is also a shift in space. I mean this: the show all started with an extreme closeup of Jack’s eye and the camera has been zooming out to reveal more and more of the island ever since. Up until now once the plane crashed all the story arc has taken place on the island. The only time we’ve seen the larger world has been in flashbacks, and once when Penny’s guys in the arctic station picked up the energy surge. Now it seems possible the Lost story will continue to include the island but go beyond it as well. Whether it’s Penny’s father or whoever, forces, larger forces in the world at large may be descending on the island and Ben knows it. See ya in 8 months!

  50. ayama says:

    how can ben be one of the good guys?? really? he shot locke. and he ordered tom to kill sayd, jin and bernard.

    thats not a good guy. ben’s out of his mind. he may have a point about not wanting them to leave the island. but a good guy? i dont think so.

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