4:1 The Beginning of the End

Yesterday was my thirtieth birthday. It was a really nice day, despite the evidence that I am rapidly aging and my life is at least one third of the way over (as my dad so lovingly pointed out.) I started out the day by finding my iPod, which has been missing for the past week. It was in a bag I had already checked a couple of times. I think it was the universe's birthday gift to me. My sister Megan took me to The Cheesecake Factory for lunch, then Eric came home early from work (with flowers!) We got takeout from Outback and spent a quiet evening at home.

If the universe's gift to me was my iPod, ABC's gift to me was the season premiere of LOST! The plan was to watch it together after dinner, but Eric was so tired that he fell asleep with Sawyer at 8:00. As much as I love Eric's company there was no way I was going to wait until the next night to watch it (and it's a good thing I didn't, because he just got called into work tonight so I would have had to wait until tomorrow!) So I watched it by myself. I got completely freaked out by the part where Hurley is in the jungle and sees Jacob's cabin. But man, what a great episode! As always, there were a few answers, but a lot more questions. I've spent way too much time today reading on lost-forum.com and trying to figure out what the heck is going on. (Lost Media has a great summary that clarifies a few key points, by the way.)

I love the device of using the flash-forwards, but presenting them backwards, so we're moving from the future towards the present moment. It's a brilliant way to create suspense. I was totally proud of myself when I immediately knew the one driving the car was Hurley - I recognized the car from season three. If I hadn't just watched it, there's no way I would have remembered that, but still - any time I guess right about this show I feel proud.

One cool thing I found out on the boards today: the man Hurley saw in the rocking chair in the cabin was Christian Shepard, Jack's father. It's too dark to really tell but someone took a screencap of it and adjusted the lighting and it's very clear that it's him. Of course, this being the creepy island where crazy stuff happens, that doesn't mean that he's alive, or real, just that Hurley saw him. (Screencap from Screencaps and Easter Eggs)


The big question at the end of this episode: Who are the Oceanic Six? We know Jack, Kate and Hurley left the island somehow. So who are the other three? And why did they agree to leave everyone else behind? It seems that after getting rescued they lied and claimed to be the only survivors of the crash, and this is what is wracking Hurley and Jack with so much guilt. Why would their silence be a condition of rescue? My guess (and hope!) is that we'll continue to see the flash-forwards (going backwards) until we get to the point of the rescue and find out what happened. Next week can't come fast enough.