Lost: The Man from Tallahassee

Lost has become that guy you date who you don’t want your friends to meet because he’s just going to lie and act like a putz. Then you look bad for liking the guy. It’s just better if you keep his no good, lying pants to yourself. But, you still kind of like him because everything used to be really good and you two still have some nice moments.

I no longer believe a single thing Lost throws in front of me, I don’t believe a single word any character says, and I’ve learned to expect nothing. Expect nothing and I will always be presently surprised. On the other hand, if I expect nothing, then no one has any incentive to put forth genuine effort.

“The Man from Tallahassee” wasn’t a bad episode. I never like the Locke-centric episodes because his life just goes from horrible to more horrible and it’s painful to watch him dig himself further in. Why lie to the kid who came asking about the kidney? It seemed like a perfect opportunity to take daddy down a notch or two. Then why lie to the cops about the kid?

The island is a second chance for Locketo be what he wasn’t in his pre-crash life: a leader and a man with purpose and initiative. Locke didn’t give Ben any ultimatums. He announced his plan and carried it out; pre-island Locke could never have done that. He didn’t give ultimatums last week, either; Locke just pushed the Mad Russian into the sonic, brain-frying fence. I don’t think blowing up the submarine had anything to do with escaping his evil con man dad and staying out of the wheelchair; it had everything to do with maintaining the man he’s become.

Looking back, the island is a second chance for all of the characters. Sun and Jin had the chance to reconnect. Sayid, Kate and Sawyer have the chance to redeem themselves for the crimes they’ve committed. Claire had the chance to take responsibility and be a decent mom. Charlie sobered up. Hurley escaped his notoriety. I don’t know about Jack, though. He’s still a jerk.

I wish Jack had gotten off the island or been in the sub when it exploded. As hot as he is, I’m getting really sick of that guy. He did look ready to kill Locke with his bare hands when the sub blew. Maybe Jack will totally lose it and morph into Kamikaze Jack!