YOU SUNK MY BATTLESHIP

(SCREENCAPS FROM LOST-MEDIA.COM)
John Locke descended into yet another hatch in "The Man From Tallahassee," a well-written hour -- one of the most graceful we've seen in a while -- that provided us with some startling new information about John, and also gave us a big "HUH?" moment at the end that can't be easily explained.

Let's not kid ourselves, though: This was an episode constructed around two recurring characters for whom lying is an art form.

We probably should have guessed that Ben and Locke's father "Anthony Cooper" would cross paths eventually. Or...did that happen a long time ago? Or...is Cooper's presence on the island some sort of trick, hallucination or Otherly sleight-of-hand?

Whatever was behind Cooper turning up behind Door Number One, it was hard not to notice that he'd changed. As near as we could tell, he had no arms. As for his legs -- well, if they were still attached, they were never seen on camera.

As Ben explained it, the island's Magic Box can deliver just about anything you dream up. With that in mind, we're guessing that the LAST thing John wanted to see in...

...his own private paradise was the man who had paralyzed him. But...what about being able to see the old codger as a paraplegic?

The scene ended too abruptly for us to tell if the sight of Cooper seemingly chopped up and helpless could possibly make John gloat. But, just the fact that he referred to Cooper as "Dad" leads us to believe that, no matter what Cooper did to John through the years -- and in a show filled with dastardly patriarchs, Cooper really is the Old Man from Hell -- John STILL needs his father to love him.

DECEPTION: As is almost always the case, the flashback in this episode reflected the "live action" on the island. Both storylines dealt with multiple layers of deception. And, in both instances, it was Locke being played. And played. And played.

Perhaps it's time we finally faced at least one unshakeable "Lost" fact of life: For a guy who often seems so intelligent, intuitive and resourceful, John Locke is a big fat idiot.

All tragic heroes have at least one fatal flaw, but John has two. And they're dillies: He always seems to think he is one step ahead of the people around him -- especially when he isn't. And, his cockiness, naivete, and gift for trusting no one -- uh, except for the people who can (and will) take advantage of him -- has cost him just about everything.

All of this has to make us wonder if one of this season's central mysteries -- why Ben became sick while the island has seemingly made Locke well -- is some other sort of trick.

WHO'S ZOOMIN' WHO? In the "Tallahassee" flashback, Locke thinks he can undo the sins of his father by spilling the beans (to Peter Talbot), and then confronting the old man and telling him what he's done.

Result: Talbot winds up dead, although we don't know precisely what happened to him; and Locke winds up getting pushed through a window and falling a (Lostly) eight stories to the ground.

In "live" time, Locke enters Ben's quarters brandishing a gun, and pretty much makes it clear that he is going to blow up The Others' submarine, despite Ben's faux objections -- AND the tip-off from Alex that Ben is a manipulative old so-and-so.

Result: Locke does blow up the sub, which -- as fate would have it -- is precisely what Ben wanted him to do.

But all of this falls precisely into the pattern of John Locke's depressing life. Is he ever going to learn his lesson?

WISHBONE: From Ben's description of it -- after John devoured his leftover chicken -- the Big Magic Box is some sort of New Age wish machine. You see something in your mind, and Poof! -- it appears out of nowhere. Or...somethin' like that.

Remove the walls from the equation, and you pretty much have a description of Walt: the talented youngster and erstwhile 815 castaway, who seemed capable of doing magical things with his mind.

After capturing the boy at sea, The Others said that they got even more than they bargained for with Walt, who they apparently did some sort of experiments on.

Was Walt the creator of the Magic Box? Or, was he the spark that got it working?

And, can we really assume that a gagged Anthony Cooper was something that John WANTED to see? Remember, before any mention was made of the box, Ben told an underling to get him "the man from Tallahassee." (A city, incidentally, to which both Kate and Sawyer have previous ties. Is it possible that Cooper is the REAL Sawyer?)

COMMUNION: From their earliest days on the island, Walt and John seemed to bond in ways that suggested John was some sort of spirit guide for Walt.

When Walt wasn't around, John was pretty much a loner. He had some meaningful interludes with Boone, Charlie, Jack, Claire and Eko. (And let's not forget Rose, who like John, has become healthy in Lostville.) But John's only real friend on the island has always been the island itself.

Commenting on this peculiar phenomenon, Ben notes that Locke has some "special communion" with the island, and adds that, "in time you will have a better understanding of this."

Presumably, we will also come to the same understanding. But...will we buy it???

In the last two seasons, the island has shown itself to be a respository of incredible technology: hatches, computers, satellite dishes...even a bleepin' submarine. And yet in the midst of all these shiny gadgets and gizmos is ANOTHER island -- the purgatory-like isle from Season One -- that other-worldly oasis with the ability to restore and redeem.
At the moment, we're having a hard time reconciling these two worlds, and we're not only wondering how the writers are going to tie the two together, but whether or not we'll be able to believe it when they do. (Should we keep our fingers crossed?)

THE NEIGHBORS: What we would also like to see in the next few weeks -- and certainly by season's end -- is a decent reason for why The Others and the 815'ers are at odds. When you come right down to it, all of this good guy/bad guy stuff doesn't really cut the mustard. The two camps aren't fighting over land, food or some limited water supply.

Sure, The Others have their little secrets. And maybe even a few BIG ones. But if the 815'ers can't leave the island, and no one from the outside world can find them, then why not come clean with who they are, and what they're doing there?

It's rather vexing to say, after all this time, that we still have no idea who The Others are, what their relationship is to Dharma, and what is actually going on on this wacky island.

JACK'S STORY: In the evening's other storyline of note -- the mission to save Jack -- we were amused to discover that the noble, perpetually stubbly Dr. Shephard hadn't been brainswashed at all. Instead, he made a shady deal with Ben to leave the island (with Juliet) and then return, somehow, with the cavalry.

At a seemingly appropriate moment, Jack whispers into Kate's ear that he'll be back for her -- even though he has no idea where they are -- and then makes a dopey doomed deal with Ben.

If nothing else, this turn of events pretty much brings us back to where we started at the beginning of this season: with 815'ers in custody.

The big difference this time -- if we may hope -- is that we'll finally get some of the information we've been waiting for with regard to the abducted tailies, and to how the Others live.

HE'S BACK: The return of Richard, the creepy Anthony Perkins-ish Mittelos Bioscience agent who recruited Juliet, was good for an OOH! And if the island is, indeed, a post-Dharma place, then perhaps it was the Mittelos people who made it that way.

SHE'S GONE, AND BACK: Once again, Rousseau managed to disappear at one suspicious moment and turn up again at another. Will she and Alex ever come face to face? How will Ben cope with that reunion?

I have no problem giving this episode an A, because it was a perfectly constructed piece. Even the lighting was gorgeous. (So much so, that it reminded me more of a movie than a TV show.)

The story moved along, and the big back-to-back action MOMENTS (the sub blowing up and Locke's being pushed through the window) were very nicely done.

As for the year to date: Unlike most Losties, I preferred Season Two to Season One...but I'm still not sure how I feel about Three. Frankly, there is SO MUCH going on -- and so much of it seems to happen indoors -- that the show only barely resembles the first dozen or so episodes back in -- gasp! -- 2004.

I worry all the time that the writers are going to lose me, disappoint me, or throw the action so far off the mark that none of it will work anymore. But if the rest of this season's episodes work as well as this one, I don't think we have too much to worry about.

Comments

[Chris]

Another good episode that finally answered "How did Locke wind up in the chair?" I give it another solid A. I think I can say LOST is back.

Bill said it looked like Dad lost his arms. I don't think dear old dad is armless, I just think his hands are tied behind his back. And I don't think he's in a wheelchair. Just some lighting tricks. I hope I am wrong, I would like to see Locke's face at the sight of that.
I do think lots of other questions were asked last night.
How did they get Locke's "Dad" to the island?
Why did Rousseau disappear again, to where, and how if she had never been beyond the fence?
And how did she know where to see Alex?
Isn't Sawyer The Man from Tallahassee? Or Does that now mean Locke?
Why did Ben want the Sub gone? And why is he in a wheelchair? I never had back surgery, but if all goes well, I didn't think it put you in a wheelchair.

Why were they so OK with Juliet leaving when she killed Danny? Is everyone on these islands Expendible?

I need to watch this again.

[Barry Smith]

It was a great episode, and Bill, I agree with pretty much everything you said. I especially like the idea that Mr. Cooper is the real Sawyer.

My son pointed out to me this morning that in the Season One Hurley-centric episode, "Numbers", Hugo goes back to the mental hospital to talk to Leonard, tells him that he used the numbers to win the lottery, causing Leonard to be very upset and say (paraphrasing): "You used the numbers? Now you've opened the BOX." Could this be Ben's Magic Box?

[Chris]

Good point Barry about the box. I watched the episode again. I watched it on-line, so I had to pay attention and noticed the following. Some of it may mean something, some of it may not.

Anyone else notice all the Military Badges on the wall behind locke in his apartment?
How exactly did Locke open the submarine and know exactly where to go to turn the lights on?
Did Christian or Jack
operate on Locke? Locke broke his back, and both are back surgeons.
Was Locke also in an institute w/Hurley and Libby?
What song was Jack playing on the piano? Music seems to be a recurring theme in Lost.
Mr. Cooper was drinking the same scotch that Desmond's father in law drank, and that Des, Hurley and Charlie drank.
Where have Rose and Bernard been?
My random thoughts of the day.

[Bill Ervolino]

FROM BILL. Thanks for the early posts, guys. I'm intrigued by the "you've opened the box' comment from numbers, but in that episode didnt hurley also see a man fly out a window while he was talking to his accountant? Maybe we should look at that again....

[Dianna]

Another interesting thing that was pointed out by a friend to me, is something that was in Hurley's flashback a season or two ago. It really isn't a pivotal plot point, but it IS interesting.

In one of Hurley's flashbacks, he is talking with a man named Randy - said boss from Mr. Cluck's I thought.. - and they're discussing the curse of the numbers. When out of nowhere, a man is seen presumably jumping from the top of their building. However, my friend decided that perhaps that man was actually John Locke falling down the 8 stories from being pushed by 'dear 'ol daddy'! I thought it was an amazing thought, which is why I thought I'd share.

Overall, this episode was fairly good. I wouldn't go so far to give it an A, but maybe a B+. To be honest, I was kind of let down at the whole situation that led to Locke's paralysis. It was too obvious. Viewers - or at least I - could tell that the moment he walked into his father's apartment, all you saw were WINDOWS. It's plain and clear that he was going out one of them. I thought that it could have been more suspenseful and creative. Maybe it would have caused a bigger "OH!" That's just my opinion though.

Since Locke's dad is now on the island, and it's almost clear that he's the real 'Mr. Sawyer'...

Well I mean come on. He mentioned at least TWICE something about "conning" or being a "conman"!

...I would really like to see Sawyer come face to face with him.

[Dianna]

Ah right. I guess I see now that Bill, you've caught the whole relativity in Hurley's falling man and Locke.

[John Hill]

Barry might have something here. I will have to re-watch this one, but if there are military patches on Locke's wall and he did "joke" to Ben about "being a Commander in the Navy" perhaps there are things about Locke that even Ben doesn't know. Excellent episode and I hope they keep the suspense to this level for the rest of the season, with of course some nice answers by the end of season 3.

[Michelle]

I give this episode an A. We wonder why Locke is so messed up - His father pushed him out a window! That's got to mess with your head a little. And I agree his father has to be the original "Sawyer".

Although I agree this episode was good, it did raise some questions for me that don't make sense.

If the sub and underwater beacon are the only way to get to the island - then how does the plane that dropped the food and supplies find it?

Also if the "barracks" are surrounded by the pylon secutity system - where exactly was the sub? Inside or outside the pylons?

The other thing that bothered me was when Tom took Jack to see Kate in the "game room". He told Jack to be careful then pointed to his ear, meaning someone was listening. But who was listening and what did Jack have to be careful not to say? His reply that the ones that were taken were "safe" - hinted that he knows something. But how much does he know?

Nice catch with the connection to Hurley with the box and the man falling past his window.

[xenomus]

Just to clarify this issue: as cool as it would be for Hurley's man-who-fell-from-the-top-of-his-accountant's-building
to be Locke, the chronology doesn't match. Locke was in a wheelchair for 4 years before arriving on the island. Hurley won the lottery "about a year ago", and the meeting with his accountant would have been sometime in the year before the plane crash. Sorry to burst the bubble but yeah, it would have been a really sweet connection. It's one thing to look at the details/evidence and find a connection. It's another to assume a connection and work backwards.

Anyways, I was blown away by this episode. For the time being it has restored some of the faith that I had lost in the show. A+.

P.S. This isn't something I discovered, but someone at The Fuselage posted that 'Anthony Cooper Adam Seward' (2 names that Locke's father has gone by) is an anagram for 'Sawyer, the con man, a poor dad'.

[Edward]

I agree – VERY good episode. I think we all thought that John’s dad would somehow be responsible for his paralysis, but I assumed it would be the result of some scheme or set-up gone wrong, not outright attempted murder!

Great catch Barry on the box reference.

Bill, you’re right about Locke’s flaws. He is either a glutton for punishment or the worlds biggest Loser. During the episode I was thinking about how he has transformed in the flashbacks from the first time we see him. When he was working in the toy store he was a reasonably normal, straight-up guy. By the time of his “accident” he was the type of guy you try to avoid eye-contact with while walking down 8th Avenue.

One thing struck me regarding Ben’s approval of blowing up the sub. I have never understood why back in his Henry Gale days he was manipulating Lock to not push the button in the Swan. He must have known that not pushing it would be a bad thing. There have been frequent references to things not working since the anomaly of the magnetic surge (communications with the outside world down, underwater beacon inoperable, etc.). Now it looks like this and the destruction of the sub is working toward the same goal – to completely isolate the island and eliminate any means to leave. Why he would want to do this is another mystery.

[Bill Ervolino]

FROM BILL: Ed, you make good points about Ben. I think we've always wondered precisely what his motivations were for getting into the Swan bunker and then blowing it up -- or at least planting the seeds that allowed it to be destroyed. Maybe I should explore this in another post.
I've also been wondering if Richard is the key to understanding this. Did his Mittelos Bioscience group somehow usurp Dharma on the island? If the sub was really the only way to leave, then Ben obviously had other reasons to go along with its destruction aside from keeping Jack and Juliet on the island. But this begs another question: If there is some group or whatever in the outside world who has lost contact with the island, won't they eventually pop by to investigate?