A Matter of Quality

I just want to digress for a minute from all the theorizing and mystery to talk about why I am a fan of LOST. This show is such a high-quality production. The photography, the post-production work, and, of course, the writing are outstanding. I really like some of the actors as well. I was a big fan of HBO's OZ, and Harold Parrineau and AAA were two of the main reasons why. And Terry O'Quinn! The guy's got a filmography as long as your arm. He was even in a couple of episodes of the X-Files.
Then there's Naveen Andrews, who plays Sayid. This guy has such a broad emotional range. He really can communicate the character's feelings. I'm even going to forgive him for being in The English Patient. Sorry Naveen, but I have to agree with Elaine from Seinfeld on that one.
And Hurley! Where'd they find that guy? He's so great. One of my son's and my favorite things to just randomly blurt out is: "DuWouldjaPleaseRoll". He cracks us up. And that scene at the end of In Translation where Hurley's listening to Damien Rice on his CD player, and it's this beautiful background music for all the happy island couples... Then the batteries die, and he says, "Son of a Bitch"! We completely busted up laughing when we saw that.
I love that about LOST. They are so good at surprising you. Like in the pilot, when some random guy gets sucked into the jet, and it explodes. Or when Dr. Arzt blows up. Should have seen both of those coming. Yet, somehow, they get you to drop your guard. You expect it. Then, you don't expect it. Then it happens, and surprises the crap out of you. I love that.

-Brian

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

I will keep tonight's entry brief. I have seen some buzz in the other LOST blogs about the placement of the book An occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge in the episode, The Long Con. There is a lot of speculation as to the significance of this reference. I am surprised, however, that nobody seems to notice one key point: the context in which the book is presented. Sawyer busts in on Locke who is in the bunker, shaking the book as if to see if there are any surprises in it (like a bookmark). Sawyer asks Locke what he is doing. Locke simply replies, "Alphabetizing".
An occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge would be alphabetized under "O", the FIFTEENTH letter of the alphabet, as in 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42.

-Brian

LOST: Jack's Tattoo

OK. Here's my first theory. I have found some discussion out there about Jack's tattoo. He has the number five (5) tattooed on his shoulder. There was some mention about the fact that the actor who plays Jack, Matthew Fox, got it as some kind of a reference to the TV show "Party of Five". He was a cast member.

That may be true, but the tattoo is prominently displayed on LOST regularly. I also understand that he has other tattoos that have been covered up for LOST. Then in the pilot episode, there is the whole thing between Jack and Kate about counting to five when you are afraid. So, I propose that each character has at least one number associated with them. Some are the row numbers where they were seated on the plane. Others have other numbers. Five is Jack's number. It is also something he has in common with Kate.

The Bigger Picture: Now, I know there has been a lot of discussion about the passengers of Flight 815 being dead and in Purgatory. Some theorize that Sawyer is The Devil. Others say Locke is the Devil. Then J. J. Abrams, in an interview, said "The purgatory one is a great one, I love that theory - but it isn't what it is. I'd be frustrated if that were the answer I have to say."
Well, like life, this show is operating on many different levels. And even LOST itself addresses the fact that rationalists tend to interpret reality in terms of rational explanations; while religious people are quicker to accept supernatural explanations. Hence the episode titled "Man of Science, Man of Faith", and the conversation between Desmond and Jack about believing in miracles.

Nevertheless, you can't deny the HUGE amount of biblical references in the program. And now we have Mr. Eko, who is trying to find redemption for his evil, Nigerian gangster ways by assuming the role of a Catholic priest. This made a light bulb come on over my head. Everyone on the island seems to have something that they need to be redeemed for. They have all committed some transgression, or many transgressions, or a pattern of bad behavior that they want to be saved from.

Now, back to Jack's tattoo: I started thinking about the number five being associated with Jack. And, I was thinking about it in the context of everyone having done something they need redemption for. So I considered things like the Seven Deadly Sins. Then I looked at the Ten Commandments.

Jack's personal Hell is that he betrayed his father. This is the thing he loses sleep over, and has nightmares about. Now, which commandment gets which number depends on who you listen to. I consulted Wikipedia on the subject. In the original, Jewish interpretation, the FIFTH COMMANDMENT is "Honor thy father and thy mother". Coincidence?
And, what about the thing between Kate and Jack with counting to five? Remember, we think any reference to numbers in this program is significant. Kate murdered her father. Right?

So, chew on that thought for a while. I'll post more soon.

-Brian