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Lost Recap: "There's No Place Like Home Parts 2 and 3" Review

A quick warning: this recap is going to include important details about the finale. If the episode is still tucked away somewhere on your TiVo, I suggest you read no further. I’d hate for you to find out Sawyer was killed by the smoke monster.

Are you still there? Good. Now that we’ve scared the hell out of the casual Lost-watchers, us hardcore fans can get down to business. "There’s No Place Like Home Parts 2 and 3" continued the long-line of quality season finales (say what you will about this show’s pacing, but Lost knows how to deliver a pulse-pounding finale). Unlike last year’s "Through The Looking Glass," this episode was more interested in tying up loose ends than it was hinting at what’s to come. This gave me a greater sense of satisfaction that will make the next eight months (!) a little bit easier to bear. Not easy, mind you. Just easier.

The episode started exactly where last year’s finale left off. Right after Jack screams his infamous "We have to go back!," Kate slammed on the breaks and popped it in reverse. Jumping out of the car, she began yelling at Jack for his current lifestyle. She then dropped the first big clue for the episode: the obituary for the man in the coffin was for Jeremy Bentham. Those of you who were up on your philosophers probably could have immediately guessed who was in the coffin.

Back in the present (or past?), the Oceanic Six were more hopelessly spread out than ever. Jack and Sawyer were en route to rescue Hurley, who was off at the Orchid station with Ben and Locke. Kate and Sayid were hanging out with Richard Alpert and his merry band of Others. Sun and Aaron were on the freighter, and Michael, Jin, and Desmond were trying to disarm the C4 Keamy had tucked away in the engine room.

After joining up with Hurley and Ben, Jack and Locke had one final faith vs. science verbal showdown. It was in this scene that Locke set the foundation for the Oceanic Six cover-up. He encouraged Jack to lie about the island in order to protect it. My favorite line of the night came from Locke’s "If you lie to them half as well as you lie to yourself, they’ll believe you." Zing. If there is one statement that could be applied to Jack this season, this one would be it.

With Ben captured, the freighter mercenaries went back to the helicopter, only to find the Others (along with Kate and Sayid) waiting to unleash hell in what was probably the most incredibly choreographed fight scene I’ve seen on television. That fight with Sayid and Keamy was almost worth the price of admission by itself.

On the freighter, Michael devised a plan to freeze the bomb. It wouldn’t actually keep the bomb from going off, mind you, but it would at least give the freighter folk a warning. This led to one of the most intense sequences of the night (a phrase I feel like I’m throwing around like a football lately). The helicopter carrying the Oceanic Six was running out of fuel and had to land somewhere soon. However, landing on the freighter was not an option because of the bomb. Despite Desmond waving his arms like a madman in order to get their attention, Frank decided to land anyway in order to refuel. This allowed Desmond and Sun the opportunity to get on the helicopter. However, in one of the most heartbreaking scenes since Charlie’s sacrifice in the Looking Glass, the helicopter took off before Jin could get on. Yunjin Kim completely knocked it out of the ballpark with this scene.

As it turns out, the Orchid was pretty much designed to allow one to travel through time and space, which might be more plausible than you think (wikipedia the Casimir Effect). However, that wasn’t what Ben was interested in. Located below them was a giant wheel that, when turned, allowed the island to be moved. Now, if you follow what the show runners say in their interviews, I’m sure you had a smile on your face during this scene. Every season they come up with a codename in order to describe the twist that occurs in the finale. In season two, Penny’s discovery of the island was known as the "challah" and last year’s flash forward was known as the "snake in the mailbox." This year was known as the "Frozen Donkey Wheel." Like probably everyone else who read that interview, I just saw this as the producers trying to be funny. However, as it turns out, the "Frozen Donkey Wheel" was actually quite literal.

Because of the events in the Orchid station, the helicopter was unable to find the island. Still running out of gas, the helicopter crashed in the ocean. I liked how even after witnessing the island’s disappearance, Jack remained in hardcore "man of science" mode. Locke was right about him lying to himself.

The last thirty minutes were especially intense for Desmond fans. We knew he was on the raft, but we also knew that he was not one of the Oceanic Six. The writers took this and toyed with us accordingly. However, what was in store for us was not death (thankfully), but a nice reunion between the Great Scot and his long-suffering lover, Penny. Their reunion was years in the making and probably would have made a great episode in its own right.

Finally, the identity of the man in the coffin was revealed. This has been a question that not only lingered over the finale, but over this entire season as well. Thankfully, the reveal in this episode’s final moments did not disappoint. Jack breaks back into the Hoffs-Drawler funeral parlor (in case you missed it, that’s an anagram for flash-forward) to get one last look at the deceased. He opens the casket and, right before we see who is inside, Ben appears. The two have a conversation that is filled with the kind of detail that Lost fans will savor for months. Ben tells Jack that he has not been able to go back to the island because they all have to go back together or none of them can (including the person in the coffin). Jack nods in agreement. The camera tilts down and we see the man in the coffin is John Locke.

Boom. See you in eight months.

Frankly, I don’t know what to say about this. I was shocked, but in a strange way, Locke being the one in the coffin makes a peculiar sort of sense. It fits in with all the clues, but it still provides plenty of places for Lost to go next season. How exactly does Locke go from being the newly-installed leader of the Others to being in that coffin?

Okay, all that aside, here are some things from the finale that I noticed (and, as always, they’re in no particular order).

*I’m not really big into all the shipper stuff, but I have to admit that I really dug the scene when Sawyer jumped out of the helicopter in order for Kate to have safe passage to the freighter. This was a scene that not only continued to develop their relationship, but it also showed how far Sawyer has come as a character. Think of Sawyer in season one. Along with Jin, his character has changed the most. He has gone from an anti-hero to a plain ol’ hero over the course of the past three years.

*If you read last week’s entry, then you now know that I’ve made a jackass out of myself. I swore up and down that Michael was going to live through the finale (hey, even the best of us get it wrong sometimes). Anyway, I hate to see Michael go. Actor Harold Perrineau has expressed frustration over his character’s arc and that’s understandable. When announced at Comic-Con last year, we all assumed Michael was in for a lengthy stay on Mystery Friggin’ Island. However, I do not think this does any injustice to the character. It was a sad death, sure, but one that redeems the character in the eyes of the fans. Prior to season four, I hated Michael (in a good way). But now... the difference a season makes! Now, he’s a tragic hero whose story remains one of the most complex and intriguing of all the castaways.

*I really think Jin is alive. However, I’m not really sure where he is in space and time. Did the freighter wreckage also get sucked up when the island "moved?"

*Speaking of which, where the hell is Faraday and all the red shirts on the Zodiac?

*I LOVED the scene where Hurley was playing chess with an invisible Mr. Eko. That scene was almost a throwaway, but not quite. Anytime that Lost throws in a callback to the previous seasons, I’m on board.

*That scene with Ben, Locke, and Keamy in the Orchid was amazing. The previous two episodes did an excellent job of setting this up, and the scene played brilliantly. It was probably some of the most nerve-wrecking couple of minutes of any Lost episode.

*That scene where Sun confronts Charles Widmore is very interesting. I’m still pretty sure that Lost is setting up a big storyline for her that is going to play out not only in season five, but in season six as well.

*The episode dropped major hints that Charlotte was born on the island. Her conversations with Miles and Faraday hinted pretty strongly at this, I believe. Oh, and Miles’s delivery when he inquired about this was damn near perfection. I’m glad Ken Leung’s character is still around to become a real presence in season five.

*I keep thinking how Jack and Co. are going to take Locke back to the island. What if, like in the first season, the plane with the Oceanic Six crashes and Locke’s coffin, like Christian’s, is empty?

Okay, that about does it not only with this week’s entry, but that also pretty much ends the Lost Recaps for this year. Since its almost a requirement to attempt profundity when something draws to a close, I’ll try that here. I’d like to say that as much fun as this season has been, its been every bit as fun coming online and discussing Lost with you, Dear Reader. Lost is only on once a week, but the story never stops (or at least it won’t till 2010). As fans, the real fun comes in theorizing, arguing, and even the anticipation. There’s a real online community built around the show, and that’s something I think should be cherished. Live together, die alone, right?

And with that, I leave you to wander around in that great void that exists outside the television set. Until we meet again in season five... namasate!

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