The next two
episodes are among the most critical in the history of Lost and are in
many ways vital to understand the two characters critical to the show – Locke
and Jack. The revelations in these episodes will have repercussions that will
last throughout the series, both when it comes to the mythology and to how many
of the characters behave going forward until the series ends.
A TV critic I
respect immensely, who had a huge amount of difficulty with how Lost ended,
would pithily dismiss the entire series in one sentence in a review of The
Leftovers (Damon Lindelof’s magnificent follow-up): as about “whether being
conned by your father prepared you for being conned by God.” This is the kind of glib response you often
get from critics who are trying to be clever, and the reason you can’t just
write it off as sour grapes is because there is a certain truth to it in
relation to John Locke. (The God part…well, we’ll get to that, believe me.)
Already at this
stage in the series it is very clear that most of the characters on Lost are
dealing with parental trauma and while there will be occasional rivals for the
title, few would argue then or now that the worst one of all is Locke’s father,
Anthony Cooper. It is the nature of the series that we never know for certain
if this is in fact his real name, or if indeed he is Locke’s actual father but
it is more than enough that John needs him to be one that it counts.
Unlike almost
every other character on the series, from this point on Locke’s flashbacks are
told in chronological order. So it’s significant that the person who leads him
down this rabbit hole is his slightly deluded mother, Emily. Sadly, this would
be Swoosie Kurtz’s only appearance as her on the show and I truly wished we’d
seen more of her. In just a few scenes Emily reveals so much as a damaged soul.
(How much emotional damage did she suffer because of her relationship with
Cooper affected her mental condition? Based on what he does to his son, it’s a
question worth asking.) The PI who sees Locke tells him that its best if he
stay away from his father, but based on John’s motto we know that’s not
something he’s capable of under lesser circumstances.
Kevin Tighe gives
the first of a series of memorable performances as Cooper. Knowing what we know
by the end of this episode, it’s remarkably layered as we realize just how good
Cooper is at what he does. It’s not until we next see him that we know for sure
he’s a con artist but in retrospect, it’s pretty clear that this is his stock
in trade. There’s little doubt he gave his son the wrong time to show up so
he’d see him taking dialysis, he goes
out of his way to assure John he’ll be fine for awhile and then takes him
hunting just so he can be sure to tell his son that he’s glad that they ended
up meeting while there was still time. Even his action at the penultimate flashback
where he tells John “You don’t have to do this” is the classic con’s angle,
which we remembered from the first Sawyer flashback. (This should have been a
tell right there, but because this is a Locke flashback, we’re focused more on
the repercussions to him)
And the
repercussions are significant. Occasionally John has left hints about how his
childhood was troubled and that his ‘dad wasn’t a good guy’ and considering
that he was raised in foster care, we have a feeling he needs love in his life.
(The scene in the toy store is significant in many ways, perhaps subtlest in
the fact that John wanted to have a child of his own to teach his favorite game
to.) That is the reason he reaches out to Cooper, despite the PI’s warning,
that’s why he goes on a hunting trip, that’s why he’s so certain that he met
his father so that he could foster a connection in blood. Instead, he wakes up
in the hospital alone and has to learn from his mother that his parents have
only found him to deliver the worst kind of betrayal. It is typical of John
that he is unable to let go of this to the point that he gets out of his sick
bed, drives to his father’s home, and screams at him over this betrayal. John
was horribly damaged by this event, but it is his inability to move past this
horrible action that will continue him on his trajectory to being in a
wheelchair.
It is because of
what the island has done for him that he is embraced the idea of the hatch. Now
that the island seems to be taking away from him what it gave, he is becoming
increasingly desperate for some kind of sign. Boone, who has been loyal to him
to this point, is justifiably becoming frustrated and baffled by Locke’s
refusal to share either his past (“My story would bore you” he tells Boone,
which in hindsight is hysterical) or with the rest of the camp.
Then he has the
first of what will be several mysterious dreams and visions that he will have
on the island, each of which will mix parts of the present, the past and the
future. Whether he knows what the sign of a bloodied Boone means is something
that the viewer shall have to decide for themselves. That said, they go on a
quest through the jungle and find the first sign in awhile that this island is
even stranger than they thought.
Much of what is revealed by the discovery
of ‘the priest’ is entirely paid off in the next few seasons (except for how a
Beechcraft from Nigeria ended up in the South Pacific). What is worth noting is
the discussion that happens not long after John collapses in Boone’s arms. For
the first time he reveals to anyone that he was in a wheelchair before he got
on the plane. More importantly, he tells Boone why what he feels they have to
do this. “I know it’s unbelievable. Four weeks ago I wouldn’t have believed.
But now I do.” It is that certainty, along with what Locke heard Boone say in
his vision that convinces him to keep going – and leads to what happens.
When Locke learns that all that is in the
Beechcraft is heroin, he says a line that is, sadly, as iconic to him as some
of his others: “I don’t understand.” All of the signs he’s been following have
essentially led to him a precipitously placed Beechcraft that has nothing to
offer them. He actually calls Boone to leave just before the radio goes on –
but it’s too late.
To explain why what happens at the
episode is just as significant, it’s worth discussing what’s going on in the
subplot. Sawyer has been suffering from headaches and eventually Kate finds
out. A reluctant Jack finds himself paying a ‘house call’ on Sawyer. The series
of scenes where Jack ‘treats’ Sawyer are hysterical – in part because Jack is
clearly enjoying using his medical expertise to take his rival down a few
notches and is lording it over him all the way. (The scene where he walks up to
Sawyer and very gently tells him: “You’ve got…hyperopia” and takes as long a
pause as he can before he tells him he needs glasses is one of Matthew Fox’s
most delightful moments.)
But there’s another significance to it
too. Sawyer is highly disliked by most of the camp, and yet everybody comes
together to help him like they would anybody else. Sun confides in Kate about
Sawyer’s headaches, Jack does dick around but still helps him, and even Sayid
is willing to work to weld together a set of glasses for him. (Hurley’s remark
of Sawyer looking like: “someone steamrolled Harry Potter is equally funny.)
The survivors are willing to work together to help even the worst among us.
And at the end of the episode when Locke
appears in the caves carrying Boone’s body, Locke’s attitude is horrible by the
standards we’ve just seen. He lies about how Boone was injured and why and when
Jack begins to question him about exactly what happened to treat his patient,
Locke is gone. Jack’s trust in Locke, always shaky, is more or less shattered
after Boone’s fall, and for the rest of their time on the island, it will only
get worse. By extension, Locke’s decision to not just leave Boone behind, but
essentially disappear for the entirety of the next episode, essentially damages
his reputation with everybody in the camp.
This episode is just as significant for
Locke in other ways. He will never confide in anyone the same way he ever did
for Boone. It will not be until late in the next season that someone learns
that he was in a wheelchair before the crash (and as we shall see that person
already knew). Occasionally he will put his trust in some of the other
survivors he will meet on the island but never as much as he did in Season 1.
It will be awhile before he begins to truly break away from the rest of the
camp; he will still have a position of leadership for a couple of more seasons.
But it is significant that at what will be the moment of the most trauma the
island has experience so far, his reaction is not to stay with the man who died
help him but to return to the hatch and bang on the door, demanding why nothing
has happened even though “I’ve done everything you’ve asked!” (The light coming
on in the hatch he will interpret as a sign. It is, but its not the one he
expects and its not just for him.) It
will take awhile for the effects to be realized, but in the last scene John
Locke has effectively chosen the island over his fellow survivors.
VHS Note: Grey’s Anatomy promo
says that 21 million viewers had watched the first episode. An exaggeration
perhaps, but the third part of the troika that will effectively make ABC the
powerhouse of network television for the rest of the decade is here.
There’s also an ad for a quick-to-fail
but not without merit caper drama called Eyes with Tim Daly as the lead.
I was sad it was cancelled as quickly as it was, though I was surprised to see
a quick scene where Daly is having an argument with a relatively unknown Kate
Walsh. Walsh will make her own splash on Grey’s before 2005 is over –
and she and Daly will be co-starring very soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment