Lost’s big final episode aired this Sunday and it’s taken me some time to come to terms with it. Not just to terms with the fact that one of the greatest shows EVER is now over, leaving an empty void in my life, but to come to terms with the conclusion we were ultimately given. It wasn’t what I wanted, not by a long shot, but strangely enough, it was this greatly satisfying end that I would have never seen coming.
I’m going to start with the good solely because the bad, while not necessarily bad in any sense of the word, requires a bit more thought and a bit more reflection. The good was simply the ‘is what it is,’ with no thought beyond the fact that damn, that was a great moment. So we have such moments as the final showdown with Man in Black and Jack, an epic battle that was a long time coming. After disabling whatever power source that fueled MIB’s invincibleness, Jack caught up with him and the duel begins with a more than appropriate leap into the air as Jack’s fists comes down on Locke before…COMMERCIAL!
Okay, I’m going to take a little side note here to say that OF COURSE ABC let Lost have 30 more minutes in the finale because that just means more revenue from commercials. It honestly felt like there was a commercial every five minutes. Perhaps I’m a bit spoiled with how I normally watch my shows via not broadcast, so I’ll stop my complaining. The DVD will be out soon enough anyways.
So, after that commercial break, we come back to the fight and strangely, Jack’s punch turns into this tackle which was completely jarring. But the fight continues, in the rain, on a cliff, in this overly dramatic shot sequence and it was just so damn satisfying. To finally see MIB killed, to see Jack get mortally wounded giving you a sense that yes, this is it. This really is the end, though maybe I’m getting ahead of myself. There were a lot of great on island moments before hand. We get to see Rose and Bernard again with good ol’ Vincent, and these characters that we haven’t REALLY gotten to know are suddenly at the risk of dying and I couldn’t help but think that if MIB kills them, I’m turning off the TV. Fortunately, I got to keep watching.
Another great moment was seeing the light source, or the heart of the island, which goes beyond the water as seen in the episode Across the Sea. This is really a big thing for me because when I saw the light in Across the Sea, my mind went nuts in thinking that how could Lost give us THIS as an answer? Something so abstract that it could be anything. But the moment when Desmond went towards the light source and revealed this cave where there appeared many man-made structures, I thought to myself, thank GOD! Sure, a lot of people might not have been happy at the idea of this pointless hole in the island and the literal cork that plugs it up, but when Desmond removed it and everything turned red, something clicked in my head. Now maybe this isn’t what the writers thought it was, but I suddenly thought that what if the cork plugged up energy generated by the Earth’s core, hence the red color. And maybe, this energy would cause the core to implode, or gravity to shift, or something that would literally destroy the world? It’s possible. And the kind of answer I would’ve liked in Across the Sea. Something that I can come to a conclusion too without thinking, oh, it’s magic. And I do get why Jacob’s mother spoke in the abstract. DHARMA didn’t exist in her time. No scientists came to the island to learn the truth about what it is. The ancient Gods exist because they couldn’t explain why the sun rose or why it rained. The abstract answer exists because his mother didn’t know what it was, but that it could destroy the world if it ever went out.
Other great on island moments include Hurley crying at the knowledge that Jack is going to die. Hurley was such a great character that it’s hard to see him in any kind of pain. But at least he inherits the island and with Ben by his side, they would become the new protector of the island.
Finally, there’s Jack’s final moment on the island. A great bookend as Jack, with death on the horizon, falls into the bamboo forest that he started in at the beginning of the series. Vincent walks out of the jungle and lies next to him and to contrast the beginning of his eye opening, Jack’s eye closes for one last time.
Off island, I couldn’t stop tearing up. I won’t lie, things got pretty emotional. No matter what the sideways were, I took each and every realization as a moment for these characters to appreciate all that has happened to them and for the audience to feel like this journey wasn’t for nothing. As Desmond continues to go about his business reuniting all of the fellow Losties, our first realization of the night would be with Jin and Sun. We finally get to see Juliet as she comes in to check on Sun’s baby and when she does, Sun and Jin start to remember it all and remember how much they’ve gone through. A series of montages show off some of the greatest moments in these characters lives and you can’t help but feel extremely happy that they’re back together.
And soon enough, the rest of the characters start remembering. Next up is the reunion with Shannon and Sayid. Boone has apparently already been awakened, and with his help, Hurley managed to get Sayid and Shannon together. As Sayid comes to her rescue, they touch and immediately the memories come flooding back. I always figured Nadia was the love of his life so it’s hard to say if I wanted to root for this pair or not. The moment was just as touching however so I can let that one go.
The concert that Desmond has been working towards is finally underway and a good amount of people are here. We get a sweet moment with Eloise Hawking, who has always been in the know of things, where she doesn’t want Desmond to take Daniel. The truth of the matter isn’t revealed until the end, so looking back on it now, it’s really endearing to see Eloise making amends with her son in this timeline.
The concert starts and with Claire and Kate sharing a table, Charlie comes on stage looking like he doesn’t want to be there when he spots Claire. He can’t stop staring at her and while Claire feels a bit weirded out, she’s about to feel a lot worse. It’s time to have her baby. Claire, not wanting to draw any attention, exits the concert and she’s followed by Kate. Charlie is soon to follow and suddenly things become very reminiscent of when Claire gave birth in season one. And sure enough, the memories came flooding. As Claire gives birth with the assistance of Kate, they both have their realization. Not long after, with Charlie giving Claire a blanket, Aaron in arm, Charlie’s memory comes flooding back and this is perhaps the most emotional scene for me. Charlie’s death in season three hit me hard so this felt like a huge, long time coming, victory for them. They get to be together after Charlie’s great sacrifice, which by the way, he may have died for no particular reason. Claire NEVER got on a helicopter with Aaron as per Desmond’s vision. Just saying.
Later on, the real John Locke, after being fixed by Jack, is able to feel his legs again and immediately, the memories come flashing back. To his time on the island, to his first steps, to some of his greatest moments on that island. A part of me is sad though that he never got his big movement of redemption while he was actually still alive. Sure, he helped Jack realize his purpose, but only in death. Sawyer and Juliet also finally come to their realization when they meet in the hospital. We learn here that when Juliet said “It worked” before, she wasn’t referring to the bomb but rather this moment. She was channeling this flash sideways Juliet’s moment and what was happening at this time. And to see them back together after her heart wrenching death was so great to see.
I have no great way to segway into this, but I just want to note, before talking about Jack’s realization, that the scene between Ben and Locke outside the church was great. Ben has come a LONG way since we first met him and seeing him apologize to the man he killed was a strange yet rewarding moment. Best of all, Locke accepted the apology. Again, this felt like a great way for these two to confront and give these characters and the audience some closure on their relationship.
So last but not least is Jack. He flashed all throughout the episode. He saw glimpses when he helped Locke and when Kate kissed him, but he resisted each and every time. It wasn’t until he touched the coffin of his dead father that it all came flooding back to him. Everything he’s been through on the island, and he’s been through A LOT. This is where things get weird. His dad isn’t in the coffin. When Jack opens it, his father isn’t in there. Turns out, his father is standing behind him and he starts talking to Jack about death, particularly Jack’s death. He tells him that “Everyone dies sometime” and it’s time to move on. We learn that the sideways isn’t some alternate timeline but rather a place where, when these characters die, they end up here to find each other and to move on. It ends with Christian Shephard walking to the doors of the church, filled with a lot of our favorite Losties (with some exceptions such as Ben and minor characters) and opening it, a bright white light flooding the room.
And that’s where I’m going to stop. The ending left me a bit confused and a little unsatisfied. This is why I mentioned that I had to come to terms with how it ended. Whenver I get around to it, the next Lost post will be about the ending, the unanswered questions, and my thoughts on the series as a whole.
Oh, and Frank is alive! How about that!
