Lost Recap: “Confirmed Dead”
by lostofficehero on Feb.08, 2008, under tv
“What is the Monster?” That is the question that John Locke asked Benjamin Linus with a gun pointed to his head in the “oh my God, they are really dragging this story out pretty far” second episode of season four. The answer? “I don’t know.”
Matthew Abbadon rounded together four people from different parts of the world to perform a covert mission. The mission: Make your way to “The Island” to find Ben. These four, “an idiot, a ghostbuster, an archaeologist and a drunk pilot,” found their way onto the Island with a helicopter. A helicopter that landed safely, even though it seemed as if it was going to go down hard.
We learn that each of these four seems to have some kind of personal motive in getting to the Island. Daniel to find his ex-girlfriend, who was an air hostess on Oceanic 815, the drunken pilot whose name I can’t recall was supposed to be the pilot on flight 815, and the archaeologist was interested in Dharma, it seems. She found a dharma logo attached to a Polar Bear skeleton in the middle of Tunisian desert. It’s not clear why the Ghostbuster, Myles, is there yet – but I’m sure we’ll learn soon enough.
Each of these four landed on the Island separately via parachute. Three of them, Daniel, Myles and the pilot, came across Jack and his people, while one, the archaeologist, was discovered by John Locke’s tribe. They knew that Naomi was dead because Naomi had used the code for “a gun is being pointed to my head:” “tell my sister I love her.” So, naturally, they were extremely skeptical of the survivors. Moreover, the rescue team had studied the plane manifest and knew that Juliette wasn’t on the plane. That’s when Myles exploded and told Jack that the real reason they were there was to find Ben.
Back with Locke and the archaeologist, Ben acknowledges that they are here for him. This is after he somehow managed to unload two bullets into the newcomers chest. Lucky for her, she was wearing a vest. She lies to them about why she is here, even though they don’t believe her. Instead of firing more bullets, and with a gun pointed to his own head, Ben does what he knows best: provide information. He lays out the girl’s life history and, once again, saves his ass while at the same time avoiding the “what is the monster?” question altogether. Oh Ben, you’re so smart.
The confusing part here is that back in the real world, the news of the remains of Flight 815 being found underwater is what motivated these people to come together. These four may smell a conspiracy because they immediately start to question the information the media is presenting about the discovery. All 324 passengers on the flight are supposed to be dead, confirmed. Yet Sayid notices that there is no shock or surprise by the rescue team in meeting the survivors. Did they know that they were still alive? What does Matthew Abbadon know and who is funding him? Who is motivating him? Why is he so interested in finding Ben, or even the survivors?
What’s the significance of the ship name Christian One? Will the helicopter be able to take off and leave the Island or will it just float around in circles? Who else thought that they would discover the Island underwater when they saw the rovers floating around in the sea? Did anyone else notice that the tail section of the plane was still attached underwater? Could it be a cover up? A conspiracy? I, for one, believe that it is. The real question is, what are they hiding? And even more, who are they?
Theories galore in the days to come. Theories such as “If Myles can see dead people, then maybe the Losties really are dead!” Nah. This isn’t the 6th Sense now. Or, “did you see that look Ben gave Locke when Hurley knew where the cabin was?! Jacob’s power is spreading to other people and Hurley might be one of them.
Alas, my eyelids are falling, so I must bid you farewell. Farewell.
