'Lost': Back to the island

We've been building to this moment since the last scene of Season 3 -- in the episode titled "316," Jack, Kate, Hurley, Sayid, Sun, Ben and Frank returned to the island. So why did it feel so anti-climactic?

I think it was because so much crucial action was left off-screen, presumably to be revealed in a future episode. How did Hurley get out of jail and become so willing to fly back to the island? How did Sayid end up in the custody of law enforcement? Who beat up Ben?

It's a shame we have to wait for those answers, because now that we know the Oceanic Six (three of them at least) made it back to the island, the questions of how they came to be there seem much less important. Somehow Hurley got out of jail, yes, but wouldn't you rather see the series spend more time dealing with Smokey the Smoke Monster instead of expanding on scenes we don't really need to see?

Meanwhile, a few lingering questions from earlier in the season were answered. The Ajira airlines wreckage Sawyer and Co. came across a few episodes ago surely came from Jack's flight. But which flight members were chasing the Losties? That remains to be seen. We also got final confirmation that Ms. Hawking is Daniel Faraday's mother, but to what purpose? Here was a woman who could explain the whole enchilada to Jack and friends, but instead of getting the full explanation, they just listened to her semi-elucidating answers. Yes, this is nothing new on the series, but come on. Just once, I'd like a confused, disoriented Lostie to cut the crap and ask exactly what the heck is going on here.

The flight that brings the escapees back to the island is numbered 316, which any astute "Lost" viewer and maybe Rainbowhead can tell you is a reference to the biblical passage John 3:16. The passage goes something like this:

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

What's the significance of this passage? Your guess is as good as mine, but I'd wager it refers to John Locke, the only person on the whole show willing to sacrifice himself in the name of what he believes in. John said in his suicide note to Jack that he wished he would have believed him. Something tells me John isn't fully dead, only mostly dead. We'll see him alive again before this series is over.

The religious themes that always have bubbled under the surface on this series came to the fore in the early scenes of "316." There was Ben informing us of the story of St. Thomas (a.k.a. Doubting Thomas), who wouldn't believe in Jesus' resurrection until he had actually touched his wounds. This information was delivered in a church, where both Ben and Ms. Hawking were shown lighting votive candles to pray for loved ones. (The painting over the votive candles, by the way, is "The Incredulity of Saint Thomas" by Carravagio.)

A couple minor things: When Jack asks Ben on the plane how he can read, Ben says, "My mother taught me." Is this just a joke, or is Ben referring to a different mother? (His own died giving birth to him.) Since it appears Jack, Kate and Hurley have arrived on the island during the time of Dharma (see Jin's Dharma-issued jumpsuit), we're likely to learn the real answer to this question.

Secondly, did anyone notice the date of the U.S. Army photograph taken of the island in 1954? It was taken exactly 50 years before Oceanic 815 went down on Sept. 22, 2004. 1954 is also the year in which Sawyer, Faraday and the rest of the small group of Losties first encountered Widmore, Ms. Hawking (then called Eloise) and Alpert.

Next week, it appears we'll see what exactly happened to Locke after he got off the island. After that, I think I'll have all my outstanding questions answered about our principal players. Until they start telling me who Faraday's daddy is (I'm guessing Widmore) or where Alpert buys his eyeliner, I'll be finished with the flashbacks. Our remaining time with "Lost" is growing short, and to quote the 19th century English hymn, "Onward Christian soldiers!"

--Patrick Kevin Day

Photo: ABC

Comments

[Bill Negrelli]

Very good writing - I enjoyed the 'mostly dead' comment (The Princess Bride).

I like how they chose Faraday and Hawking as names (Faraday named after a famous 1800 atomic scientist and Hawking after Stephen Hawking)

I finished watching the episode asking myself the same questions - and I actually thought I missed an episode. im looking forward to those answers and hope they just dont leave them dangling.

[txrus]

I would add to the 'mostly happened off camera' the really big ones-what happened to Aaron & what about Sun's daughter???

[Biff]

FYI, on Hurley, we know Ben put his lawyer on it (getting Hurley out). Not sure how they convinced him to get on the plane.

As for Ben, the blood, the injuries, etc, it seems obvious that since he spoke of a promise to an old friend, and he was at a marina, he was there to kill Penny. He had promised Widmore that he'd kill his daughter, and Penny would have been on the boat at the marina.

Further, presuming Desmond is indeed supposed to return, he'd need to do it in a similar way to how he first went to the island (by boat). He's got a good reason to go to the island now (revenge).

[Biff]

My bet is Kate gave Aaron to his grandmother.

Also, on Hurley, we know Ben's lawyer was goign to get him out of jail, but who knows how they convinced him to return to the island.

Also, on Ben - he more than likely was there at the marina killing Penny. Either she fought back, or Desmond was there and hurt him. Desmond came to the island by boat, so that's how he'll have to go back, and what better reason than to get revenge on Ben?

Best moment of the episode? Frank comes out of the cockpit on the plane, sees Jack, then sees the other 4 of the Oceanic 6 (minus Aaron), and realizes, "We're not going to Guam, are we?"

[pietro]

excellent commentary! this article has answered questions i had during the episode and i will re-visit this recording tonight. thank you.

[R]

typical lost, they answer one question and then give you ten more....

great article/blog posts keep 'em coming. how about doing more than one post a week?

[txrus]

Bigg-thanks for bringing up Frank; completely forgot about him. LOVE that character, though I admit I like scruffy Frank better than spiffy Frank.

I hope Ben didn't do anything to Penny, but now that I think about what the other posters said above, it would explain things :-(

[Carol]

From Nestor Carbonell's wikipedia page
Eyeliner issue:

The producers of Lost actually confirmed[citation needed] once that those are just Nestor Carbonell's eyes. No eyeliner, just genetics.

"When we first saw dailies of Nestor, we were, like, 'Someone's gotta talk to him about the eyeliner situation,'" Lindelof said. "And he does not wear any mascara, no eyeliner, nothing. He is completely 100 percent sans makeup. That's the God's honest truth."

Following the make-up fiasco, there were further speculations that the Lost star had in fact had surgery to increase both the volume and general condition of his hair[citation needed]. As these allegations are based largely on the look of the hair alone, they remain unproven and yet unfounded.

[Bob]

I don't think Ben did anything to Penny. There's no way they could have sailed from England through the Panama Canal up to Los Angeles in that short of a time frame.