The Man From
Original
Airdate: March 14, 2007
Writers:
Drew Goddard and Jeff Pinkner
Director: Jack Bender
One of the series’ defining moments came towards
the end of “Walkabout”, where we discovered that Locke had been confined to a
wheelchair before the crash and was unexplainably healed upon his arrival to
the island. The explanation for his
paralysis has been highly anticipated, speculated and predicted to be answered
in each subsequent Locke episode, with the writers teasing us with moments like
Locke getting hit by a car in “Deus Ex Machina” and
his interview with the disability screener in this one. Waiting until the sixth flashback may seem
long, especially for those who have been criticizing the direction “Lost” has
taken lately. However, this slow burn
proved highly effective, as it gave the incident more meaning than if they just
introduced Locke’s bad father, have him wreck Locke’s life and try to kill
Locke all in one episode. It also ties
in to the island’s ability to heal, which is important as Ben struggles in
recovery.
The writers had a daunting task at hand: knowing
that Locke winds up paralyzed, how do they concoct a dramatically satisfying
explanation. As mentioned before, the
previous episodes setting up Locke’s relationship with his father added to the
impact (so to speak) of Cooper pushing Locke out a window. We knew it was going to happen, but it still
caught some off guard. All Locke wanted
out of Cooper was a father figure he lacked growing up, and unfortunately felt
his biological father, a self admitted con man with no redeemable qualities,
was the only route to go. Because of his
openness, Cooper swindled a kidney out of Locke and ruined the only good
relationship he ever had, leaving Locke a broken man. Even afterwards on the commune, Locke was
still drawn to someone who ultimately betrayed him.
Despite all the things Locke has been through,
there is still a sense of hope in him that eventually things will end the way
he wants. Ever since “Walkabout” one of
the key phrases of his is “Don’t tell me what I can’t do,” which is echoed in
the heartbreaking scene when the insensitive nurse carries Locke into his new
wheelchair. When faced with massive
opposition to the things he wants to do, it frustrates Locke, and we’ve seen
that when he’s sabotaged the ways of getting off the island.
With his arrival on the island, Locke felt it
was in part a new start away from his father, where he could learn and become
the great man he’s always thought he would become. However, this comes into conflict with Ben,
another person who is deeply invested in the island and its power, who feels
that it is important that Locke confront his father to achieve that growth and
development. While Locke disagrees
strongly with Ben’s ability to come and go from the island and live comfortably
in the barracks with electricity and chicken in the refrigerator, Ben has the
power to act on his desire (Locke can’t blow up everything yet).
It’s hard to believe that this is the first time
Locke and Ben have been in a scene together since the end of last season
(Locke’s vision doesn’t count). Some of
the best moments of the latter half of the second season were the mind games
Ben played on Locke, causing him to ultimately lose his faith and allow The
Swan to be destroyed. This episode makes
up for that lost time. Seeing Emerson
and O’Quinn, two actors at the top of their game, playing characters constantly
trying to manipulate and outwit each other is a pleasure to behold. Good portions of the episode are dedicated to
the two of them alone talking, which usually never happens on TV.
Although Ben’s honesty is always in question, he
seems genuinely interested in Locke’s condition, a sharp contrast from their
previous encounters, where Ben was constantly undermining Locke’s
confidence. This offers an explanation
for why Ben acted the way he did: he was cruel to Locke out of jealousy because
the island blessed Locke with restored legs and denied him a full recovery from
his cancer. With Ben “in a wheelchair,
and [Locke] not”, Ben is the one in awe, and Locke is callously dismissing all
of it.
After teasing the subject for a few episodes,
this episode delves directly into a major question surrounding Ben: why is he
so slow to heal from his surgery and how did he get cancer on this island known
for its healing properties? Producers
have said that the healing factor on the island is directly proportional to the
personality of the afflicted person, as is the case with Locke, Rose and
possibly Jin. This says a lot about Ben,
possibly his illness and complications are due to his attitude. Perhaps his “cheating” as Locke describes it
cancels out the healing effects of the island.
Ben is aware of his status within The
Others. His fragile state has already
gotten some fragmentation within the group, as Juliet and Alex have started to
splinter. The threat of Juliet and Jack
leaving the island, as well as Locke destroying the submarine, also stand to
undermine his power. He ultimately had
to make a choice of which will affect his status the least. So he went after Locke, who he manipulated so
well in the past and who he has a vested interest. Although there was a snag when he realized
that Locke wouldn’t be bothered by whose plan it was to destroy the submarine. He had another card to play: Cooper. With The Others able to pluck Cooper and bring
him there, Locke no longer has the luxury of running away from this
problem. Now it seems that The Others
want him to confront his father for some reason.
The biggest theory as to why Locke wants to stay
on the island is the fear that leaving the island would negate his restored
mobility. This was explored before with
Rose’s cancer in “S.O.S.” It is in
Locke’s character to want to keep everyone on the island. Back in “The Moth” he knocked Sayid unconscious to keep them from finding the radio
tower. In the past few episodes he’s
destroyed the communication station and now the submarine, the only equipment
that could take someone to the main land.
At the end of “Par Avion”,
Jack’s allegiances were questionable. There
are signs that he may have switched teams, as he is getting along with The
Others and even shaking Ben’s hand.
Considering how we didn’t see Jack for almost three episodes, a lot
could’ve happened and it’s hard to gauge his motivations. Some of his behavior could indicate turning,
like telling Kate to answer Pryce’s questioning. However, it seems more likely that Jack has
only been acting this way because it will ultimately help him. Ben promised him a way off the island so long
as he operated on him and watched over his recovery.
Jack even indicates that he knows that she slept
with Sawyer, but that it doesn’t bother him.
His selflessness that allowed himself to be placed at The Others’ mercy while
she and Sawyer escaped is still there.
Also his rescue to the main land isn’t going to make him forget about
every one else, which would be his major motivation had the sub remained in
tact.
Everything is shot down when Locke blows up the
submarine. Obviously Jack must be
regretting his getting Ben to agree to release his friends after they had left,
as if he could trust Ben to do that without Jack seeing it. Now we have every major leader of the
castaways besides Sawyer in The Others camp with not much in the way of outside
help. It also reignites the feud between
Jack and Locke that hasn’t been an issue since late last season.
Rousseau remains an x-factor in this mission.
Like Locke, she is on her own mission, to get back her daughter, but as indicated
earlier, Rousseau isn’t about to run out of the jungle and embrace her
daughter. As she has learned through
years in the jungle, time is crucial to their reunion. Ironically, Sayid
set the gears in motion by telling her that The Others lied to her about her
mother. Nonetheless, the moment where
Rousseau sees her daughter for the first time in 16 years, knowing in her heart
who she is, is very powerful.
Alex is on shaky ground with The Others, and Sayid pushes that further by remarking about how much she
resembles her mother. Alex apparently
believed that Ben was her real father and her mother died years earlier. The Others have been
starting to splinter and now the castaways captured are picking at those chinks
in the armor the way Ben did while captured in The Swan.
This is the high point of season three so far
and one of the best episodes of the series.
Some long awaited answers are given and are actually worth the wait,
along with some great twists for the rest of the season. Meanwhile the centerpiece of the episode is a
masterful battle between two great actors with some great material (just seeing
Terry O’Quinn’s face when he sees his dad is Emmy worthy). If critics of the early part of this season
weren’t satisfied, perhaps they should just find another show to watch.
Overall
Score: 10/10