LOST Rewatch: The Hunting Party / Fire + Water

Credit: tle1lost.wordpress.com

Ever since the Tailies arrived on the beach to share the Island with the original pack of Lostaways, there has been tension. And while that tension has been focused on personality conflicts--everyone hates Ana Lucia, Jack and Locke are bickering over the Button, Claire and Charlie are dealing with couply-type squabbles--the most significant conflict has simultaneously grown in tension and also been shoved to the backburner: what is going on with the Others.

This question has been growing in tension because the Tailies have brought to the front of everyone's mind the idea that the Others are more than just the delusional squawking of Danielle the French Chick. The Others are indeed murderers who have plans and are pretty lethal.

Also, don't forget please about their stealing of Walt--which amazingly has been shoved to the far backburner by everyone it seems--even by Michael (who didn't stomp around screaming WAaaaaaaalllt as much as I remember him doing).

But now Michael has the computer hook up--or so he thinks. And he is pretty sure that he knows where Walt is. So he runs off in search of his boy. So Jack and Locke and Sawyer (and Kate, who can't be told to stay behind) race after Michael. But they encounter the bearded boat captain deep in the jungle and beardo delivers an ultimatum to our Lostaway leaders. This far; no farther. Michael is with us and you can't come any closer. So turn around and head back the way you came. We have suffered your presence on this Island, but don't think that you are in charge here. And beardo reinforced this message with a show of hidden Tiki torch strength as well as holding Kate hostage to keep Jack's bravado at bay. Cowed, our Lostaways slink back to the beach without Michael and with a new rift forming between Jack and Kate.

(What is the Flashback? Well, we learn that Jack's marriage to Sarah the crash victim did not go well. He was distant and a workaholic and she decided to have an affair to be appreciated and also decided to leave him. Jack's obsessive personality was on full display as he attempted another miraculous spinal procedure on an Italian dude with a hot daughter. The surgery didn't work out and Jack was sorely tempted to cheat on Sarah. He resisted, only to discover her plans already in place to leave. Flashback Jack is despondent, but Sarah is right when she says that "He always needs to fix something.")

And now there is plenty for Jack to fix on the Island: his trust in Locke, his relationship with Kate, his status re: the Others. It's all falling apart.

But he's got a plan. He sidles up to Ana Lucia at the end of the episode and casually asks "How hard would it be to train an army?"

Action Jack is getting ready to go to WAR!

***

In the next episode, we watch the slow descent of Charlie Pace into villainy . . . sort of. But it starts with the slow descent of Charlie Pace into a sort of madness. He's having weird nightmares featuring baby Aaron being swept out to sea and Charlie trying to save him. But that always turns into strange sleepwalking events that make it look as if Charlie is trying to abduct the baby. Given Claire's past history with abductors and her current distrust of Charlie due to the Virgin Mary heroin revelations . . . she's not willing to listen to any of Charlie's protestations of innocence.

Also, in Claire and Aaron's new role as protector, John Locke takes this opportunity to beat Charlie up pretty good right in front of everyone. Heck, even Hurley looks at Charlie with doubt in his eyes.

What is a washed-up former rock god gonna do? Well, he'll start blathering on about how baptism is what Aaron needs. And he'll even try to set a small fire in order to divert everyone's attention so that he can take the baby again to get some sort of baptism going. But things just go even worse for Mr. Pace. And he is now a Beach pariah, commiserating with Sawyer in the shantytowns on the outskirts of Lostaway beach.

It's a shame really. We the viewers know that Charlie is confused and just trying to help. But no one will listen to him. And he is not acting normally at all. So things look pretty bad for Charlie--and they're gonna get worse.