Lost (Spoilers)

[Parallax]

[Amyral]

I liked this episode. I was waiting to find out what happened to Locke's group, and this episode solved it nicely. And, frankly, I was getting bored with Jack, Sawyer and Kate. I wanted to see what was happening to everyone else.

Desmond makes things interesting. He seems to have some sort of precognition, or he just read ahead of the script. Hurley's re-entrance scene was great. That scene with the knife was great.

But my favorite part of the episode was by far the special guest star, Boone! I loved him as a character, and seeing him in Locke's vision fit so well with the theme. He absolutely made the episode for me.

For the rest of it, Locke going to help Eko out and all, it was pretty interesting. Unfortunately, it opens up yet another question, what happened in the hatch. With every answer seems to come another question, and they've been piling up.

[Noot]

I agree, "Further Instructions" was awesome. In fact, it might have made a better season premiere than the Jack episode, I think.

I love the fact that Locke is trying to right the wrongs he made in Season 2 and prove that he is the hunter once again. There's no doubt about it, Locke was the original bad ass on this show, and in Season 2 he was neutered because of the hatch. But now he's got his knife back, he's got his flamethrower, and more importantly, he's got his spine back. He's going to be taking charge to "clean up his mess", kicking ass and taking names once again. :D

His flashback wasn't particularly good though. It seemed almost random, that Locke would be living in this commune that is secretly growing a lot of marijuana. I mean.. marijuana, John? I never expected him to be one to associate with criminal activity like that. I thought he was one of the "good ones", ya know? Well, anyway... his flashback didn't seem to add much to the story, except to point out that he got himself in a mess before and that it was up to him to get out of it. However, when it came down to it, he wasn't able to pull the trigger (pun intended).

I'm still very interested in the pagan/druid/spirituality of the show, and I'm glad they're trying to expand on it. I think the Island is manifesting itself to certain people in the shapes of things from their past lives that are now gone, so Jack sees his father, Kate sees that horse, Eko sees Yemi, and John sees Boone.

I think it's interesting that John and Eko are the only ones who have had these visions and received messages from them. Jack saw his father but was unable to get a connection. And I think it's also interesting that John and Eko are the only two characters who have confronted the smoke monster face to face. Coincidence? Hmm...

John's vision in the sweatlodge sure was trippy though. :D

As for Desmond's nakedness and psychic-ness... strange. You're right, Amyral, this show likes to pile on the questions, doesn't it? But then again, everything on the show has been explained over time, except for the over-arching mysteries of the show. So I think in time, we'll learn what the real effects of the hatch implosion were and what that means for Locke, Eko, Charlie, and Desmond. The writers definitely want to drive home the fact that Desmond knew about Locke's speech before he gave it...

Also in this show, we finally got to meet Paolo and Nikki, two new regulars on the beach. With the leadership shaken up with Jack gone, I think there will be a power struggle on the beach that will involve those two in some way. I'm really eager to learn what their roles will be on this show (and just what in the hell were they doing for the past two months :P).

Next Week's Episode

S3E4: "Every Man for Himself" (Sawyer-centric)

The synopsis says:

[Barbarossa Rugner]

What a great episode tonight. I really enjoyed it.

I just want to give a few thoughts:

Jack - We finally discover what they need him for probably. Since he specializes in spinal surgery and someone just so happens to have a tumor on his spine.

Sawyer - Well he kind of knows the truth now that it will be a lot harder to escape the "others" island. I think they did this so utilize his strength without having to worry about him running away. For the time being at least. I wouldn't be surprised if he stole a boat.

Kate - She was kind of left in the dark for this episode. We did find out that she loves Sawyer though. Even if it wasn't a big surprise.

Desmond - What the hell is up with that crude lightning rod, and why did it work. Guess we will just have to wait and see.
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The Rune on my Sword, the Dragon King Sword, is protected against any form of magic, Even the rune of the Gate - Barbarossa Rugner

[iscalio]

The "crude lightning rod" is nothing special. The golf club just attracted the lightning because it is made from metal - and Desmond knew that it would strike because he has apparently developed precognitive abilities. I guess if he wouldn't have built the lightning rod, the lightning would have hit Claire's hut instead.


And didn't Kate claim that she only said she loved James so Coleene's husband would stop pummeling him? Of course we can't know if that is true, but I don't think we can be so sure about her feelings yet.

[Noot]

[dark-knight]

oh my. ive just watched the episode The Cost of Living. that was quite a surprise there at the end. and the part where juliet tells jack what to do is still a big question mark. will jack do what he was told? im getting excited. and if im right, tomorrow will be the final episode before the break right? why take a break anyway?
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letters are better sigs than images... i think.

[Noot]

It seems I'm two episodes behind, so I'm going to review both "The Cost of Living" as well as last Wednesday's episode "I Do".

S3E5 - The Cost of Living

This title refers to the bad things Eko has had to do in his past in order to survive. The cost of living was murder. He had a lot of blood on his hands, and even though we know he was pretending to be a priest we all know based on his actions on the island that he was trying to be a better man. It was really sad to watch Eko get killed. I kinda suspected that it was going to happen when he wandered into that field following the vision of Yemi. Mr. Eko, you will be missed. :cry:

Some random thoughts on the episode:

-The reason why Eko was building a church was revealed. Because he killed those three warlords in Yemi's church, it was no longer sacred. So he owed Yemi a new church.

-Paolo is still an a-hole. :D But then again, I think this show needs someone like him. Not everyone has to be dramatically involved with what's happening on the island. Some people just have different priorities (like using a functioning bathroom).

-The actor who plays the guy with the eyepatch is the same guy who appeared in those "Wishmaster" movies. Guy plays a real creep. Supposedly this character will be very important in Season 3.

-The smoke monster read Eko's mind in Season 2, showing quick images of all the people who have died based on his actions. Then it left him alone. Now, in Season 3, it now manifests those people around him. I wonder why it chose to kill Eko though.

-The best line in the episode: "You speak to me as if I were your brother." Then the music shifts and Eko says "Who are you!?" Sent shivers up and down my spine.

-Ben has the tumor. No surprise there (I just choose to be skeptical based on the previews). What was surprising was Juliet's little video for Jack, telling him that Ben is a liar and is very dangerous, and that Jack should purposely botch the surgery. Just what is Juliet's agenda?? :?

S3E6 - I Do

This was a great conclusion. We know that Kate chooses Sawyer, and Sawyer admits that he loves her. When Jack saw the two of them on the monitor together, he sort of resigned himself to sacrifice himself to let the two of them get away. Slicing Ben's kidney during the surgery gave him the first real advantage that he's had since he's been kidnapped, and without knowing it he basically saved Sawyer's life. (Pickett was about to execute him before Tom called him on the walkie-talkie.) Kate at the end screams that she can't leave without him, but Jack tells her that she can. I thought the ending was a bit abrupt, but after watching it the second time I thought it was perfect.

So now we're left hanging for 13 weeks, trying to find out if Kate and Sawyer will be able to get off the island within the hour. (I thought the preview was too spoilery, showing Kate and Sawyer running through the jungle with Sawyer firing a gun behind him. It basically ruined the fact that the two of them get away.)

And the other part of the cliffhanger was Locke'e sign. On Eko's stick, it said "Lift up your eyes and look north." He took that to mean a sign, so now he knows where he has to go in order to save Jack, Kate, and Sawyer.

Also in the preview, it shows Desmond tacking Charlie, screaming "You don't want to know what happened to me!! You don't want to know!!" :shock: Intense. I guess Desmond's powers will be addressed shortly after the break as well.

My review of the first 6 episodes of Season 3

For one, I think you have to look at all six as a whole. Taking each episode individually would make someone say "Nothing happened." But a lot DID happen. And after winding down the events from the Season 2 conclusion, it had to gradually build up to what's going to come next: the escape.

The best episode for me was the season premiere. It showed us a very interesting side of Jack in his flashback, and I think it did a nice job introducing us to the Others. We got hints as to where they were being kept and what they were there for. And of course, the first five minutes of the show, with the Others' village, seeing Juliet and Ben watch Flight 815 split apart in mid-air. That was just fantastic. :D

I've been a bit disappointed with the flashbacks thus far. We got our 6th Jack episode, our 5th Locke show, our 4th Sawyer, 3rd Eko, 5th or 6th Sun and Jin, and 5th or 6th Kate episode. I was really hoping to get to see some Others' flashbacks, or at least explore some of the characters that haven't had as many shows. Can you believe Sayid only had one flashback episode last year? That's just a crime. And the flashbacks didn't do much to help propel the on-island stories this time, although they did answer some questions about our characters pasts' (did Sun really cheat on Jin, why did Kate's marriage fail, why'd Eko need to build a church).

These shows did give us some answers, but in typical Lost fashion, it dropped a tun of new questions for us at the same time.

Things that were resolved:
-Why the Others needed Jack, Kate, and Sawyer
-What happened to Locke, Eko, and Desmond post-hatch explosion
-How Sayid, Sun, Jin, and Hurley returned to the camp
-Further hints about the smoke monsters' function (only saw it once last year)
-Why Eko was building a church
-Where the Others lived
-Who Kate chose between Jack and Sawyer
-Ben's role among the Others
-The location of the Hydra
-How the Others manage to cross islands esaily (they have a sub)
-What happened to Sawyer after he conned Cassidy (and revelation that he has a daughter)
-What happened to Jack after Sarah left him
-What happened to Locke after Helen left him
-What happened between Sun and Jae Lee
-What happened with Eko after the drug plane took off

New questions:
-Desmond is naked and has psychic powers..... HUH???
-Toy dump truck in the polar bear's cave??
-Nikki and Paolo... where were they this whole time??
-Guy with the eye-patch... huh??
-What's Alex's relationship with the Others? She seems to be an outsider.
-Where are Cindy and the kids from the tail section being kept?
-"You speak to me as if I were your brother".... so who/what is taking the forms of people from the survivors' pasts?
-Pickett says "The Doc wasn't on Jacob's list." ....who the hell is "Jacob"??
-What is Juliet's agenda?

The more we learn, the more we learn how little we know. :P

Episode List for Season 3
*Could have spoilers*

1- A Tale of Two Cities (Jack)
2- The Glass Ballerina (Sun/Jin)
3- Further Instructions (Locke)
4- Every Man for Himself (Sawyer)
5- The Cost of Living (Eko)
6- I Do (Kate)
7- Not in Portland (Juliet)
8- Untitled (Desmond)
9- Untitled (Jack)
10- Tricia Tanaka is Dead (Hurley)
11- Untitled (Paolo/Nikki)

General Rumors/Spoilers for the New Season

-In Desmond's flashback, he'll talk to Charlie and predict that it will start raining. His psychic powers may have been present BEFORE he came to the island.

-Juliet's flashback will feature Ethan and a couple of scientists. This will be the first Other flashback, and it just so happens to be the February 7th episode. Supposedly two "bombs" will be dropped on this show within the first three episodes: one a character-related "bomb" and the other a plot-related "bomb". What these could be, I don't know.

-With Eko gone, the cast is down to 15 regulars. This means someone else might be killed off pretty soon. Or someone could take a guest starring role instead (not sure how that would work).

-Nikki and Paolo are rumored to be survivors from the FRONT section of the plane, and they only recently joined up with the other survivors. Paolo will get the 11th or 12th episode this season, and it may be an on-island flashback showing what he was up to through the first 70 days.

-We will see more of the eye-patch guy. We WILL visit the Flame Station sometime this season. (Maybe that's where the eye-patch guy is hiding.)

-In Jack's next flashback, it will be set in Thailand. And it will show how he got his tattoos, and what they signify.

-We WILL learn how Locke wound up in a wheel chair this season!!!

That's all from me. Now I think I'll go freeze myself like Eric Cartman so the wait will be much shorter. :D (I'm only half-kidding.)

[Noot]

Updated Episode List for the new run of shows:

7- Not in Portland (Juliet)
8- Untitled (Desmond)
9- Untitled (Jack)
10- Tricia Tanaka is Dead (Hurley)
11- Untitled (Sayid)
12- Untitled (Claire)

I'm pretty sure that's accurate.

Here's some of the latest news I've read in Spoilerville:

-Cheech Marin has been cast to play Hurley's father in his upcoming episode. :mrgreen: HELL YEAH!!

-Matthew Fox is done filming for at least a month, I believe. Currently they're filming episode 13. There's speculation that Jack will leave the show for three episodes or so (probably after his next flashback), however he will NOT be killed off. In fact, his contract goes for another 4 years on the show. :shock:

-Danielle will return for the next Sayid episode.

-We'll be seeing Penny again in the new run of shows at some point.
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~~Harmonian Tenhei Star~~

It's hard to bargle naudle zauss with all these marbles in my mouth.

[Axiose]

I'm of the opinion that it's the Black Smoke (or at least there are two - or more - it appeared before Locke in season 1 and he said it was beautiful, whereas Eko saw it in season 2 and described it as something else) that is taking the form of people. I don't know why, but there was something not quite coincidental about Yemi (?) telling Eko that he wasn't his brother when he refused to ask for forgiveness and then the smoke killing Eko. I believe that, for whatever reason, the Black Smoke is testing people, and killing those that do not pass (for whatever reason). Of course, this could all be rubbish as Locke believes Eko died for a reason, though it's not like Locke, Mr-Button-Complex, has ever been wrong. Throughout the whole of Eko's episode, I knew that it wasn't Yemi that was appearing before Eko - it didn't seem right somehow. Yemi has appeared before Eko before and not in an aggresive way. Perhaps the hatch being destroyed, well, the phenomenon anyway, caused the switch in the Black Cloud.

It could explain near impossible things that appear on the Island like Jack seeing is father and Kate seeing that daft black horse.

The one thing I've never liked about the Black Cloud is the inconsistency with it. It killed that chap in the opening of the pilot episode by knocking him into the engine. It then went on and killed the pilot - to me, there needs to be a sufficent reason for it not killing Locke and Eko when it came face-to-face with them. I'm of the impression that if there is not two of them, then it kills those it doesn't think worthy (perhaps the pilot was made to fly off track or he was just a moron and that's why he was killed).

Of course, I havn't read much (read: any) of this thread as I've only come up to the timeline with the US airings (as a new station bought series 3 so we're getting it at the same time as you) and didn't want to spoil things for myself. I may have missed much discussion that discredits my theory, but I for one think the smoke is "changing" into people as their visions.

Also, isn't it obvious who the eye-patch man is? I thought it was. Anyone know what happened to Georg Prime after Suikoden II? Hmmm...
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[Axiose] [Fliktor]

[Axiose]

Sorry for the double post, but does anyone else know when the US is getting the second half of series 3? It's starting up where it finished on February 11th.
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[Axiose] [Fliktor]

[Hawk Thanatos]

HAHAHA! As soon as I saw that bus in the background it was so obvious what was gonna happen, and then BAM! Awesome. :P

The episode was a pretty good return to Lost, but it was far from the best episode ever. There were some interesting bits in it, mainly that brainwashing (or whatever it was) going on in room number 23. "God loves you as He loved Jacob", I'm not sure what was up with that. I vaguely know the story in the bible but it's always seemed even stupider then the rest of the stuff in there. Sawyer beating the shit out of that asshole was pretty cool too and then the ol' Wookie prisoner gag. :P Most of the flashback hinted at some big relevance to the main story but I'm not sure what.

I like Tom though. He's funny.

[Deloseth]

It's baaaaaaack. It's funny though, I was talking to a few people about the show yesterday and told them I was actually getting a bit tired of it. But then they go and pull the best episode of season 3 so far out of the bag and my love of it is rekindled.

The bus thing was expected, but still cool. Less expected was Juliet blowing away Danny, and that was extremely cool. Hated that prick. And it was funny when Tom was all like "I'm Tom, by the way" and Jack gave him a 'Do I look like I give a crap?' stare.

Anyway, roll on next week!

[Noot]

First, let me say "welcome to the discussion" to Mr. Axiose. :D I have to agree with your theory on Smokie at this point. I think the smoke monster manifests itself in the form of a person or thing from one of the survivor's pasts, and then it goes about trying to kill the person.

Jack sees his dad then nearly falls off a cliff and dies.
Hurley sees Dave and contemplates suicide.
Eko sees Yemi and then is killed.
Shannon sees Walt and is accidentally murdered by Ana-Lucia.

Are all these visions being manifested by the smoke monster? Who can say? But I think it makes sense... at least until we get more info.

S3E7: Not In Portland

Loved this episode. Juliet's flashbacks seemed kinda random/out-of-place for the purposes of the episode, but it all made sense by the end of the show. It was an origins story to show how she wound up with the Others. And now we know that she is a prisoner there as much as Jack is, just trying to get back home. I think Jack was able to look at Juliet in a new way after that.

(By the way, Juliet says that she's been on the island for 3 years, 2 months, and 28 days, which would make it close to September 11th, 2001 I think. :? I wonder what that has to do with anything??)

Aside from Edmond getting hit by a bus (which was awesome by the way :P), the one part of the flashback that stood out to me was the slide with the 26 year old woman who is degenerating to resemble a 70 year old woman. I can't help but think that that's significant in some way, but I couldn't think of who it might be. Nikki perhaps? Kate? Penny? This might be important down the road...

As for the episode itself, I'm glad Sawyer and Kate got away and that we found out what happened to Karl. The guy gets one scene in the season premiere and then disappears for the next five shows. Kinda sucks. The sleep-deprivation experiment was pretty interesting. That line "God loves you as He loved Jacob" stood out to me, mostly because Pickett mentioned a Jacob in the previous episode on his way to executing Sawyer.

I knew Ben wasn't going to die because he was made a part of the regular cast heading into the season. Why give the guy a pay raise if he was going to get the axe after just 7 episodes? Pickett getting shot was definitely a jaw-dropper for me. Especially because it was Juliet who did the deed. I kinda saw it coming after she confronted him earlier, but it didn't diminish the moment for me when it happened.

Kate's last conversation with Jack while he was fixing up Ben was also moving. Sawyer didn't look none too happy, though, hehe.

Overall, I thought it was a great episode. They really got a lot done in just one 42 minute show. And it resolved the episode 6 cliffhanger quite well. Well worth the wait. :D

Next week's episode: S3E8 - "Flashes Before Your Eyes"

Hopefully it'll give us some explanations on Desmond's psychicness, since this is going to be his episode. :D Yahoo! Desmond rocks!

Future episode lineup (SPOILERS)
E8 - Flashes Before Your Eyes (Desmond)
E9 - Stranger in a Strange Land (Jack)
E10 - Tricia Tanaka is Dead (Hurley)
E11 - Enter 77 (Sayid)
E12 - Untitled (Claire)
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~~Harmonian Tenhei Star~~

It's hard to bargle naudle zauss with all these marbles in my mouth.

[Ujitsuna]

I'll be watching this series when it comes to Europe, although admittingly I haven't seen them all to this date.