Lost Virgin Diary – Is Eko the yin to Locke’s yang, and curiosity almost killed the Kate!

Join me for another Virgin Diary entry on my favorite stranded castaways. This time I’m taking on a little more than the first half of Season 2, from Episode 1, “Man of Science, Man of Faith,” through Episode 17, “Lockdown.”

I was told by a good friend that some Lost fans were not that impressed by Season 2. I was warned to just buck up and delve right through it because better things were in store down the line. But you know what? I actually don’t mind Season 2 so much. I was happy to learn that Rose’s assumption that her husband, Bernard, and others from the tail section of the plane had also survived the crash. I was interested to learn more about them and their struggles on their part of the island. It sounds like things were rougher for them, as “The Others” seemingly picked them off one-by-one.

I find Libby, Bernard and Eko pleasant enough additions to our merry band of survivors, but personally, I’ve had it up to here with Ana Lucia. She is far too “shoot first, ask questions later” for my tastes and she seems like a cocky bully that thinks she always knows best just because she used to be a cop. I don’t really see what Jack sees in her other than her over-abundance of confidence and tenacity. But perhaps her character will grow on me over time. It has happened before.

I loved how it built up until both groups of survivors literally collided in the jungle. I was sad about the death of Shannon, but not nearly as sad as I’d been when Boone died last season. I don’t think she created much of a lasting impression on me. I was probably sadder for Sayid who was just beginning to develop a relationship with her. Back to the drawing board, Sayid – there’s still plenty of fish left in the sea!

I like what the show has done with their recurring imagery of light and dark, black and white. It was apparent to me that Eko is the equivalency of a blacker version of Locke. He’s strong and capable of many things that will help the survivors, although perhaps he’s a little darker judging by his background as a drug trafficker. Seeing the two side-by-side in the hatch trying to splice together the orientation film strip, I began to develop this idea that maybe he was the yin to Locke’s yang (or maybe even the other way around). Maybe the island likes to achieve a perfect sense of balance – dark vs. light, good vs. evil?

I was also thrilled (and a little chilled) to finally see “The Others” in action and learn more about them in the episode “The Hunting Party.” When the “bearded” man gave his little speech to Jack and Locke about it being his island that he lets them live on, I had chills down my spine as they dragged Kate out and threatened to kill her if they didn’t turn back and give up their search to find Michael and Walt. Curiosity almost killed the Kate! What exactly do “The Others” want with Walt anyway? I’ve been wracking my brain and have produced very little input.

It’s becoming more and more apparent to me that “The Others” are not what they seemed at first – they’re very smart and have obviously been on this island for a long time. I no longer think they’re supernatural pirate ghosts from The Black Rock (haha, that was an entertaining theory I never shared before). I’m thinking that the Dharma Initiative is really the entire island itself – the whole place was an experiment, perhaps a scientific Utopia, gone awry – and “The Others” are all leftover scientists from when it began.

The concept of pushing a button in order to save humanity and/or the island seems a bit far-fetched to me. One of the things I liked best about their situation was the concept of being marooned on an island and never having to worry about your job again (until your rescue). I’d be pissed if I was suddenly told I had to sign up for a rotating shift to push a boring button in an underground bunker while everyone else was out enjoying the sunny beaches. I was getting bored with the hatch until I saw the black-lit map of the island’s many bunkers that Locke saw during the “Lockdown” episode.

I’m interested to see how everything pans out now. Until next time, don’t forget your sunscreen and have a “cluckity cluck cluck day!”

WTF Moments (Season 2, Episodes 1-17):

• I’m not sure what to think about The Dharma Initiative. It seems like it’s the key to the polar bears in the jungle, but I don’t think I believe in the “push this button every 108 minutes or the world will explode” business. I did notice the Initiative symbol on a swimming shark around the raft and that piqued my curiosity.
• Does the button keep “The Others” from openly attacking this side’s survivors?
• Perhaps the black mist developed as a mistake of the island experiments, and the vaccinations “The Others” were going to give Claire’s baby would have prevented it from getting sick. Which leads me to wonder, have they all been exposed to something and are not aware of it yet? If so, I don’t see a good outcome for anybody … will they ever be allowed to leave the island?
• Now you see him, now you don’t. What has become of Desmond since he ran off from the hatch? I liked him!
• Who is “Henry Gale” – friend or foe? I didn’t like how they locked him up in the hatch and let Sayid torture him. It felt very primitive, like the survivors are starting to get savage and paranoid. I guess this is probably real, but maybe it’s a little too real for me, as it made me a tad uncomfortable.
• Where is Michael? Has he found Walt yet? God, I hope he does so he’ll stop running around yelling his name!
• I don’t like this “darker side” of Charlie. I have a bad feeling about his fate. Was he trying to save the baby because he can’t save himself? Say it ain’t so!
• I hope Sawyer learned valuable insight from reading Judy Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret because the image certainly made me smile!
• When “The Others” find out Sun is pregnant, will they try to abduct her baby?
• It’s becoming more apparent that instead of an island of misfit toys, this is an island of people with daddy issues! From Kate and Jack to Locke and Sawyer to even Jin and Sun, they all seem to be carrying around some serious daddy issues.
• Are Apollo candy bars a real product? I saw the ABC website featured some sort of a giveaway during the show’s heyday.

Memorable Quotes:

“Tell me, you go over a man’s house for the first time, do you take off your shoes? Do you put your feet up on his coffee table? Do you walk in the kitchen and eat food that doesn’t belong to you? Open the door to rooms you’ve got no business opening? You know somebody a whole lot smarter than anybody here once said, ‘Since the dawn of our species, man has been blessed with curiosity.’ You know the other one about curiosity, don’t you Jack? This is not your island, this is our island and the only reason you’re living on it is ‘cause we let you live on it.” – The Others’ “Bearded” Man

“How long do you think it would take to train an army?” – Jack (to Ana Lucia)

“There’s a lot of bloody secrets and I’m tired of being at the kids’ table!” – Charlie

“How about you put your mangos where your mouth is?” – Sawyer (coaxing Jack into a poker game)

Clacked by Kim Tibbs
on Jul 02, 2012 @ 14:00 EST5EDT