'LOST' ON MYSTERIOUS ISLE
TV's latest phenom is awash with theories, questions and very few answers
By PHIL KLOER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/19/2006
It's not just Jack and Kate and Mr. Eko who are "Lost."
It's everyone who watches ABC's addictive TV series, which has moved past mere hit to flat-out phenomenon. And the more you watch, or think about it — or if you're really nuts, the more hours you spend trolling the Internet trying to figure it out — the more lost you are.
Like Seth Miller of Smyrna. Every week that there's a new episode (9 p.m. Wednesdays), Miller, 29, takes notes on the show. As soon as it's over, he posts his theories and observations on his Web log,
www.mostlymuppet.com.
"It really challenges you," he says. "Part of the fun of the show is who can come up with the craziest theories or connect the weirdest dots or find the double meanings."
At its simplest level, "Lost" is about several dozen survivors (sometimes called "Lostaways") of a plane crash on a tropical island where the laws of reality have gone off the rails. We don't know what is and isn't a clue, or what is and isn't significant to the big picture: The polar bear? The lottery numbers? The logo on the shark? The Dharma Initiative?
In an attempt to hack through the jungle of the show's mythology, we offer the "Lost" Lists, a partial guide to the different ways the show has viewers hooked.
Significant names
1. John Locke. Named for the 17th-century English philosopher who wrote about the state of nature and the need for civilization to administer laws through a social contract, paralleling in some ways the character.
2. Rousseau. A crazy Frenchwoman on "Lost" and a famous French philosopher in history. Rousseau, like Locke, wrote about the need for a social contract to overcome the brutality of our natural impulses.
3. Jack Shephard. The doctor looks after the Lostaways as if they were his flock of sheep; the name has a benevolent symbolism (although Jack's need to save everyone is portrayed as a compulsion). His father was named Christian Shephard (Christ as shepherd), yet Christian (the dad) was a pretty nasty guy.
4. Aaron. Claire's baby, possibly named for Moses' brother. In the Old Testament, Aaron was instrumental in leading the Hebrews out of captivity in Egypt.
5. Mr. Eko. Possibly a homage to author Umberto Eco. Eco's 1995 novel, "The Island of the Day Before," is not much like "Lost" but does involve a shipwreck, survival issues, a character with a mysterious brother (like Mr. Eko) and confusion over what is real.
Father issues
Is it significant or just coincidence that so many of the Lostaways had serious problems with their fathers?
1. Fugitive Kate thought her father was her stepfather and killed him; he may have abused her.
2. Jack's father was an emotionally abusive alcoholic.
3. Locke's father conned him into donating a kidney, then rejected him.
4. Shannon's rich father died but didn't leave her any money.
5. Sawyer's father killed his mother, then committed suicide.
6. Walt's father, Michael, signed away his legal rights and didn't see the boy for nine years.
7. Baby Aaron's father (Claire's boyfriend) split before he was born.
The big picture: Theories
1. Purgatory/afterlife. They all died, and this is some form of afterlife. The producers have said this is not the case.
2. The Experiment. It's a social psychology experiment being run by the Dharma Initiative that went wrong, or something like that.
3. It's the End of the World as We Know It. Maybe the entire outside world was destroyed, and these people were brought here to start anew. By God? A cabal of scientists? Unknown forces?
4. Electromagnetism mumbo jumbo. Some science-minded fans think electromagnetism is the key to a lot. There's something to this, but a lot of the Internet discussions will make your head hurt.
5. Time/space/dimension jump. The flight may have started in Australia in 2005, but there's been nothing to indicate events on the island are happening in our world, in the present time. "Lost" is a sealed, self-referential world.
6. It's all the dream of one character. No way. If this turns out to be the case, the outcry will be deafening.
Unsolved mysteries
When it's all over, these had better be explained:
1. How everybody is connected.
2. Where the island really is.
3. The polar bear.
4. How Locke can walk after being in a wheelchair.
5. The lottery numbers.
6. Exactly how the pilot (of the plane) was killed in the pilot (episode).
7. Why Hurley doesn't lose weight, week after week.
8. The monster or monsters, aka "Lostzilla."
Lostaways who killed someone
1. Sayid
2. Mr. Eko
3. Ana Lucia
4. Jack
5. Charlie
6. Sawyer
7. Kate
Recurring motifs
1. Eyes. Many episodes open with an extreme close-up of an eye. Locke said he had looked into the eye of the island. Etc.
2. Games. Kate and Jack played golf, Walt and Locke played backgammon, Kate and Sawyer played the drinking game "I Never," Locke played Risk in a flashback. Maybe the whole thing is one big game. Discuss.
3. Leg injuries. Locke was a paraplegic before the island healed him. Boone's leg is crushed when the plane falls out of the tree. Jack's wife almost was a paraplegic after her car crash. Michael hurt his leg badly before he was on the island. And so on.
Those weird whispers
Transcriptions are supplied by fans who record the jungle whispers, analyze them and post them on the Net. Believe 'em or don't.
1. Before Ana Lucia shoots Shannon: "Shannon, she likes the guy, she likes the guy. Shannon, your life and time is up. Help me. Meet me on the other side. Her song. ... I don't think you should tell her when she comes ... Who's the guy? Fire Lucia. The brothers that help us. Are you done with it? Her song."
2. When Ana Lucia and Mr. Eko are in the jungle: "Who's this in the woods? Sawyer, Ana. I'm in someone's dream. Ich weiss nicht (German for "I don't know"). She's heavy. Black rock. Bring the boy."
Back story connections
1. Hurley owned the box company Locke worked for.
2. Shannon's father was in the SUV that hit Sarah, the woman who became Jack's wife. Jack chose to save Sarah's life in the ER, and Shannon's father died as a result.
3. Jack's dad met Sawyer in a bar, and they exchanged philosophies.
4. At least twice, one character appears on a TV set in the background during another Lostaway's back story. (Hurley appears in Jin's story, and Sayid appears in Kate's story.)
5. Kate's waitress mom served Sawyer in a diner.
'Lost' tunes
1. "Make Your Own Kind of Music" by "Mama Cass" Elliott. Played in the Season 2 opener inside the hatch.
2. "La Mer." Sung by now-dead-character Shannon. It's best known in its English version "Beyond the Sea" by Bobby Darin and others. The lyrics were also written on a map of the island.
3. "I Shall Not Walk Alone" by the Blind Boys of Alabama, played over the final scene in a first season episode about Sawyer.
4. "Walkin' After Midnight" by Patsy Cline. Kate played it on the turntable in the hatch.
5. "Redemption Song" by Bob Marley. Sawyer sang a few lines when he was on the raft trying to escape.
6. "You All Everybody" by Drive Shaft. Charlie's fictional rock band's one big hit, it's come up several times.
The 'Lost' Library: Extracurricular reading
1. "The Third Policeman" by Flann O'Brien, an obscure Irish surrealist, shown briefly in Desmond's belongings in the hatch. The book is very strange with possible but tenuous connections to "Lost." Plus, the hero turns out to be dead, adding fuel for the (discredited?) theory they're all dead.
2. "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" by Ambrose Bierce. A short story in which reality is really a fantasy of a man who is dying. Major clue, said some when it popped up. Nah, the writers are messing with us, said others.
3. The Bible. Mr. Eko found one on the island that turned out to contain a piece of film; in a later episode, he recites the 23rd Psalm.
4. "A Wrinkle in Time," the classic children's sci-fi novel by Madeleine L'Engle, and "Watership Down" by Richard Adams. Sawyer was seen reading both; significance unclear.
5. "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad and "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding have been referred to in dialogue.
6. Fans think a number of books have partly inspired "Lost," including "The Stand" by Stephen King, "The Island of the Day Before" by Umberto Eco and "Mysterious Island" by Jules Verne.