BEWARE OF SPOILERS OF SEASONS 1 THROUGH 5
In anticipation for the beginning of season 6 next week, I’m gonna re-watch my favorite TOP 10 episodes in the coming days and post my thoughts here. Please join in with your comments anytime and what are YOUR favorite episodes and why?
I really liked Namaste, the forced landing sequence was done well.
Yes, that scene was one of their better CGI effects. Overall Namaste only managed to reach rank 42 out of 97 (under 100 hours because some of the finales I counted as 1 or 2 episodes instead of the 2-3 hours they consisted of) for me. And like Namaste, my Number 10 has much of Dharma in it.
So here we go…
Number 10: The Man Behind The Curtain (Season 3 Episode 20)
Why? First island flashback that went back several decades and gave us
so much about Ben (one of my favorite characters), the Dharma Initiative and the Original Inhabitants. And Alpert in undesignerlike cloths.
An episode with Ben/Locke scenes, always a winner.
Emily? Emily Locke? Is that baby John? Nope, it’s Ben.
And he’s looking as creepy as ever. “You do remember birthdays, don’t you, Richard?”
Jacob!! At least we hear his name again. Liarliarliar!!!
Young Ben really looks like Harry Potter. That was subtle, Roger. Reminding your son about the day his mother died.
Watch the scene in the processing house with subtitles to get the hole content of Pierre Chang’s video. These injections keep appearing again and again. Apollo Bar! Eh, even a doc gets to be a janitor.
Char-leh!!
How Locke beats up Mikhail, I have the assumption that he’s already possessed. Wow that move did make Ben very angry and hurt, Alex!
Dharma school, I wished I had that. Back in 2007 I thought the volcano would have been The Incident. That tumbling…maybe some predecessor of the electro-magnetic anomaly during the building of The Swan or The Orchid.
Ghost mum…another mystery that won’t get solved. Or was that Anti-Jacob?
Oh man, Kate!!! Why do you always have to please Jack?!
We’ll never hear or see Annie again. Felt and feel the same hate of Ben against his father on his birthday.
This all feels like Anti-Jacob’s plan to influence Ben from an early age on, so that he’ll kill Jacob in the S5 finale with all these dead people on the island. 
No Sun, of course Jack would never do something to hurt you. Yeah, what will you do Jack? I hope not something stupid like blowing up trees. 
That bunny will be Young Ben’s first dinner out in the wilderness LOL Whispers, should be explained in the final season! Why is Richard looking so dirty?! I’m scared and confused.
The Cabin! This scene creped me out soo much. Especially the “Help Me!” line. Who was there in the Cabin?!!! Do you know?
Also had the opinion that Ben was completely nuts. Michael Emerson did a fantastic job acting like he was having two conversations at the same time. How happy he is that John can’t hear Jacob (if it’s really Jacob)…but wait.
Whose eye did we see there?
Man, Hawaii must be the most wonderful scenery to shoot a series.
The best version of Ben’s theme = Dharmacide by Michael Giacchino. As horrible The Purge is, the beautiful is that scene with the music. Gets me goosebumps every time, in the van and afterwards.
Uh, the infamous Dharma pit. That one skull had a bullet hole.
Ben!!! You filthy SOB!!! Locke!!! You stupid dude not realizing he took your gun. :mad: One of the most unsettling cliffhangers IMO.
Or did John Locke die there in the pit?!
Please tell me “Expose” and “Stranger in a Strange Land” arent in your top ten, andiminga!
Some of my personal favorites are “Tricia Tanaka is Dead”, “Ji Yeong”, “The Constant”, and “Dave”. Come to think of it, I like pretty much every Hurley-centric episode. I look forward to seeing the rest of your list
A great episode indeed. I would probably rank it a little higher.
Who was there in the Cabin?!!! Do you know?
I don’t of course. I always thought it looked like Locke which didn’t make much sense at the time the episode aired, but with what we know now about anti-Jacob…I still don’t know.
Whose eye did we see there?
The DVD commentary it says it’s Jacob’s eye. My guess is that Anti-Jacob had him trapped there some how.
did John Locke die there in the pit?!
That baked my noodle for a minute, but no…that’s Locke there being coached by anti-Jacob when he leaves the island, and with all the emotional scenes off island (Terry O’quinn is brilliant) it’s got to be Locke.
That was a great scene in the Dharma pit. I thought that was Walt there because he ‘projeted’ himself before to Shannon, but it was probably anti-Jacob again. I used to think He could only animate dead bodies, but like Sun said “If that’s Locke, who’s that in there.”
My favorite scene is when Ben sees his mom at the fence wearing a blue dress while he’s holding the white rabbit.
i acctually just finished rewatching all of season 5 yesterday… HOLY POO… i forgot how much i loved n loathed this show… my brain hurts just trying to figure things out… GREAT SHOW… time travel done well
My top 10 episodes, based on my vague memories and the help of Wikipedia, in no particular order (and excluding season 5 'cause I can’t pick just one)…
“All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues” - Ethan beats down the doc and hangs the hobbit; Locke finds the Hatch
“House of the Rising Sun” - Jin and Sun’s backstory, and the reveal that Jin speaks English; one of the two couples that always brings me to tears
“Solitary” - Sayid’s backstory that introduces us to Nadia in the past and Rousseau in the present
“Do No Harm” - the death of Boone and the birth of Claire’s son, Aaron
“Collision” - Ana-Lucia’s backstory, confrontation with Sayid after shooting Shannon; the ending shot of her facing Jack is just brilliant
“Two for the Road” - the betrayal of Michael and surprising deaths of Ana-Lucia and Libby
“Not in Portland” - Juliet’s backstory, plus Zeljko Ivanek getting thrown under a bus
“Enter 77” - meeting Mikhail in the communications station, Sayid’s flashback meeting a former Iraqi torture victim in Paris
“The Constant” - Desmond. Penny. So much love for this couple.
“The Shape of Things To Come” - Ben confronts Widmore in the future
Danke! I can reassure you that Expose is rank 87 and the Tattoo episode 97 out of 97. Have deliberated to include in my first post that I would do the same as John at the end of Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham if somebody would have mentioned that as one of his favorite episodes.
Yeah, your list also sounds interesting. LOST can deliver so many different stories for as many watchers it has. Besides Dave, all your named are in my top half of the list.
The nuances of ranking LOST episodes are so narrow, that it could have gotten higher very easily.
That’s why we love this show so much, right?
That was also my thot for a long time. But after the end of Season 5 when Illana wanted to burn the Cabin and we found Jacob at the Statue, my opinion changed to that Anti-Jacob was held inside the ash-circle.
Hell yeah, he did! John Locke is my favorite character on the show and Terry O’Quinn does an outstanding job portraying him.
So the “Locke clone” appeared on the island to the survivors of crash #2 and started playing his role?
Walt’s role could have been a story point, but the writers wanted or had to abandon it at some point. Who knows…but both, appearing Walt and Flocke are creepy.:eek:
That scene at the fence was also a powerful scene. I wonder if Michael Emerson was on set that day to watch his wife and the boy, who portrayed his younger self, play that.
congrats! when did you start? I’m trying to do a hole re-watch a few months after the series has ended. Maybe this could be done on the forums here, although…maybe it’s better to fully concentrate on the show and let it linger on oneself. Possibly we could share our thots after watching 1-2, or more episodes per week.
Counting down, Number 9: Dead Is Dead (Season 5 Episode 12)
Why? As with the previous rank, many Locke/Ben interactions. And again more snippets about the history of the island and its inhabitants. Liked it more last year when I still had the impression that we saw John Locke and not an impostor.
The beginning of a great friendship between Ben and Widmore…I think NOT. Wasn’t Widmore a total d*** back in 1954? Here he’s so kind to Young Ben.
Did Anti-Jacob change the rules so that Keamy could kill Alex? Which in turn resulted im Ben’s shock, with him following everything that Alex/Smokey/Anti-Jacob? ordered him to follow everyone of “Locke’s” orders up until the assault on Jacob?
Ben’s wig is really bad, but he seem to know something about the whispers when he tells Rousseau to run the other way every time she’ll hear them.
This time I notice how different the demeanor of Flocke is.
What is it with the shoes that Flocke is always fiddling around since the Ajira plane crashed?! Poor Ceasar LOL
Ahhh, still the Risk game of Hurley and Sawyer lying open in Ben’s house. Good continuity there from Season 4. Ben really has no recollection of the Losties in Dhamatime.
“As long as the dead guy says there’s a reason, well, then I guess everything’s gonna be just peachy.”
There we finally saw where Ben went to summon Smokey to attack the mercenaries who attacked the Barracks. A door with hieroglyphs all over it and a sink hole.
After what he experienced with his father, I’m surprised to see that Ben chose to take care of Alex.
So true: “'I’ve seen this Island do miraculous things. I’ve seen it heal the sick, but never once has it done anything like this. Dead is dead. You don’t get to come back from that, not even here. So the fact that John Locke is walking around this Island… scares the living hell out of me.” Where did Flocke go there in the jungle? I hope not for little boys.
Right, we finally got to see what business Ben had to attend to before joining the 316 flight.
I’m sure that The Temple will play an essential role in the last season. Montand’s arm must have still be rotting around there where they go underground, unless there are more than one such hole.
Drinking, or at least buying milk can save your live! LOL Women with little children are really the soft spot of Ben and he gets another one of his numerous beatings.
Illana should have known that Frank has no idea of no statue…uhhh that was redundant!
I wonder what Sun was doing while Flocke and Ben were in the catacombs…searching for herbs for her old garden on the island?
How very convenient that we only see Flocke OR Smokey, but not both of them at the same time. Man, the Egyptians must have really been gotten around. Or the island has been gotten around. Or the portal from the desert was used millenia ago.
WOW, the scene with Smokey/Alex/Flocke (so sure of it that he is all three entities…well maybe Smokey is it’s own) and Benjamin sold this episode for me. That must have been the scene that secured Michael Emerson’s Emmy win.
All in all my 2nd most favorite episode of the last season.
You mean Sun speaks English! Jin is still yelling at Sun in Korean if she even unbuttons her shirt at that point.
“Do No Harm” - the death of Boone and the birth of Claire’s son, Aaron
“Not in Portland” - Juliet’s backstory, plus Zeljko Ivanek getting thrown under a bus
“The Shape of Things To Come” - Ben confronts Widmore in the future
Those would definitely be up there for me too. “Through the Looking Glass” (the season 3 finale which introduced flash forwards) I’d rank pretty highly too.
D’oh! Yes, I meant Sun. At that point, Daniel Dae Kim was still that lawyer from Wolfram & Hart to me.
“Through the Looking Glass”–is that Charlie’s last one? I was so traumatized by Jack’s beard, I can’t remember.
‘Dead is Dead’ would make my list as well
Did Anti-Jacob change the rules so that Keamy could kill Alex? Which in turn resulted im Ben’s shock, with him following everything that Alex/Smokey/Anti-Jacob? ordered him to follow everyone of “Locke’s” orders up until the assault on Jacob?
It’s funny how you can’t watch an earlier episode now without wondering where Jacob and anti Jacob are “changing the game”. It’s certainly possible. What I want to know is how Widmore and Ben know about any rules and why they seemingly want to follow them when they obviously hate each other so much.
What is it with the shoes that Flocke is always fiddling around since the Ajira plane crashed?!
I didn’t catch that. I’ll have to watch that again. There is a cool shoe motif throughout the whole series.
Where did Flocke go there in the jungle?
I don’t know, but when he comes back, Ben and Sun were thinking it was the monster and were like oh…it’s Locke, which is funny…now.
The swirling smoke/ judgment scene was ossim. It reminded me of the tornado scene from ‘The Wizard of Oz’.
All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues: Had the first scene where I got something in my eye when Jack didn’t gave up and Kate was utterly despaired.
House of the Rising Sun: Solid one but sadly it’s far near the bottom. Still nuances and it isn’t one of the 5 bad episodes that I’ve labeled.
Solitary: Meeting Rousseau for the first time and getting some Sayid backstory, really enjoyed it. Especially when he got caught by her.
Do No Harm: At rank 21 just outside my 20 fantastic LOST episodes. The Live & Death track…ohhh man so much emotions. First big character death and the birth of Aaron.
Collision: AL was meh to until her last episode. But who didn’t like Rose & Bernard’s reunion.
Two for the Road: That ending. OMGWTFPB!!! AL getting it on with Sawyer…well of course the other ending. Number 20 of so far aired episodes.
Not in Portland: Juliet, Richard Alpert, Ethan and of course Zeljko Ivanek getting “terminated” (Did you catch the Apollo bar ad on the bus? Have to use slow motion to see it, and how didn’t he hear the bus??!:D)
Enter 77: Yeahyeah, Patchy and the Flame getting what it’s name suggests. Locke really did something dumb there, so I couldn’t rank it higher. The cat story was moving as well.
Ah, the first season finale I see mentioned here by somebody.
Yes, both of your assumptions are right. And Chuck and Morgan’s beards were much better than Jack’s back then.
Ben and Widmore, only pawns in the game of Jacob and his buddy? What are the rules, who set them and why?
The shoe motif even started back in the Pilot. First Christian’s tennis shoe hanging in the jungle where Jack woke up and then when they pull the shoes from the dead passengers. It’s the shoe cartel using subliminal messages to get us buying their products!!:eek:
Have never seen the movie ‘The Wizard of Oz’. At least we could clearly see what was in the smoke in contrast to the first Monster/Eko encounter.
Alrighty here are a few of my favorites but in no particular order.
The Variable - “She knew the whole time! She knew. I can’t tell if that makes her awful or incredibly bad-azz”
Greatest Hits - The exploration of a man who understands what saving his friends might cost and does it anyway. At the same time we get a great tour though a beloved characters life that nearly makes me cry (I’m a big wuss). But then there’s that final scene…
The Brig - The final showdown is great and allows Sawyer to finally grow a little afterwards. Plus there is a whole Jabba/Leia thing going on there. “I know what you done.” Magic
Lockdown - The map! The blast doors. Is Henry Gale a “bad man”? What did he do while Locke couldn’t get to the computer.
Walkabout - The first Island miracle? The first 3 episodes drew me in but I think it might have been this one that made me stick around. “The Colonel” is awesome.
The Moth - Charlie dealing with his heroin addiction. Locke acting mysterious.
Dave - Just because that guy is awesome
The Variable: Only because I didn’t want Daniel to get killed, it isn’t one of my favorites, although I enjoyed it a lot.
Greatest Hits: In my TOP 30. That episode make me care for Charlie a lot. What an great introduction for his last events.
The Brig: Number 12. It has the Sailbarge strangling shout out to SW as you’ve mentioned, what Locke experienced with the Others and it had a huge impact on Sawyer.
Lockdown: Right, the mind games of Benry. And the Blast door map.
The Moth: YAY! Charlie saving the day and finding his guitar. If it’ll play some role with the guitar case that Hurley took with him back to the island?
Dave: Loooved the scene with Hurley and Libby on the cliff.
and since you’ve mentioned Walkabout, see my next post…
Seems like I’m a bit biased of Locke-centric episodes.
Nummer 8: Walkabout (Season 1 Episode 4)
Why? This episode sold the series for me. The genesis of Locke’s character from before and after the crash. This episode is so different the second time you’ll watch it after you’ve seen its end. All the clues were there that he couldn’t walk. Kudos to TPTB to see us fans as an intelligent audience. Also some funny moments with Hurley and Charlie.
Am missing the opening shots on somebodies eye. The first on-island flashback of the series with the crash.
“Sawyer.” “Right behind you, Jackass.” Good ol’ boars. After the Losties have crashed on the Island, I assume they are extinct now.
Jack when he still had some sense, good idea burning the fusulage. Kate and Sayid scenes, very rare in the last seasons.
Sawyer/Hurley fight, he’s already beginning to get all supplies. He has changed so much.
“You either have very good aim, or very bad aim, Mr. … .” “Locke. His name is Locke.” Best introduction to a scene EVA! He’s so integral to the show.
Kate is a vegetarian, ah that’s why she didn’t eat with Ben in the Season 3 premiere. Haha, Michael trying to communicate with Sun and she has to pretend to understand nothing.
Claire doesn’t see that her half-bro doesn’t like funerals. Can’t wait to see her again. Oh man, Shannon using her wilds to get Charlie catch fish for her.
Randy is such a Jack-sorryBarb! Again another clue of Locke’s disability. And here we hear the word “destiny” for the first time in the series. And “Don’t tell me what I can’t do!”.
Hurley looked so different back then…oh how I miss the Hurley/Charlie combo. Glimpse of Nadia, but you better not be in love with Sayid, it always ends very very catastrophic.
89,95 $ per hour?!! John really must be payed generous by Randy. Evie is really climbing like a monkey, Do you remember when she climbed out the cage at the beginning of Season 3? That was her, no stunt double.
HOLY CRAAAAAAAP! The crazy giraffe again…ähhm Smokey of couse. Monster POV shot. What did Locke see?? He looked a bit scared to me.
Ah, the beginning of Sun’s garden. Where did she learn all that. Surely not cause of her parents.
“Doctor, my husband is not dead.” “Rose, he was in the tail section of the plane. It broke off in mid-flight. I’m sorry, but everyone who was in the rear of the plane’s gone.” “They’re probably thinking the same thing about us.” She’s soo spot-on!
HOLY!!!, that’s NOT John Terry!!! Jack, what have you been drinking to see ghosts?!! “Not big on rubbing it in”?!! Some writers think otherwise of you Jack!
LOCKE!!! You live! :))))) This early in the series, Claire is still cute. I thot that Smokey killed the boar and John only had to take it.
What did you think after watching the scene in the Travel agency office and the flashback to the plane crash?
For me it was the first really jaw-dropping moment I’ve ever seen on a TV series or movie. With the music and Terry O’Quinn’s acting, it is total perfect and I still watch it every once in a while…sorry, got some tear in my eye. Still after watching it that often.
Ending with the wheelchair and the burning fuselage in the background.
Greatest Hits - The exploration of a man who understands what saving his friends might cost and does it anyway. At the same time we get a great tour though a beloved characters life that nearly makes me cry (I’m a big wuss). But then there’s that final scene…
Honestly, apart from Buffy, I don’t think a show has ever brought me to tears as frequently as Lost. Which is a testament to how well-developed these characters are.
And yes, there has to be a reason Hurley brought the guitar case back to the Island. Apart from Mrs. Hawking’s instruction that they had to recreate the details of Flight 815 as accurately as possible, I still haven’t heard a good explanation.
You should see The Wizard of Oz, if only to get the Henry Gale in a hot-air balloon reference.
Still have to jump into the Buffyverse after I got introduced to Joss’s work with Dollhouse and Firefly in the last 12 months. Now seems as good as a moment to get the episodes. Then my Jossformation will be complete. Heard only good things about Buffy, but I was hesitant so far because I don’t really like horror shows. And many of the witty dialogs must have lost their impact in the German translation.
We’ll find out next week. Am soo excited!!!
Will do. Haven’t yet cause I have only watched a few American classics. Although I know the LOST references in it.
BTW, if anyone of you are looking for a great set of companion books about our beloved series, I can recommend you warmly to the Finding Lost books by Nikki Stafford. At her blog she also discusses the most recent episodes and much more.
Number 7: The Man from Tallahassee (Season 3 Episode 13)
Why? Best duo scenes of the hole series between Terry and Michael. Easily forgotten but we finally found out how Locke got paralyzed.
John watching Expose with his crappy TV food. About that Peter Talbot guy, has anyone of you followed the Find 815 ARG?
Why was Jack playing his own leitmotif on the piano?
A scene with Ben waking up with Locke at his bedside, haven’t we see that recently again? “The man from Tallahassee? What is that? Some kind of code?” “No, John, unfortunately we don’t have a code for ‘There’s a man in my closet with a gun to my daughter’s head.’ Although we obviously should.” CLASSIC!!
No, John!! Don’t go to see your father again! Does anybody else think that Damon and Carlton have some serious daddy issues? How many likable dads are on the show anyway?
“I know you spent the four years prior to your arrival on this island in a wheelchair. And I know how you ended up in it. Tell me, John. Did it hurt?” This question can be answered on so many different levels.
Why is Mr. Friendly warning Jack that they’re being recorded in the gaming room? The kids! Yeah, what about the kids from the tailsection?! I betcha you wish that they wouldn’t have come back for you, Jack. Cause then Locke wouldn’t have destroyed the sub before you left.
Did Anthony Cooper maybe place the address of Locke in Talbot’s pockets?
Right, why did Ben get sick in the first place and why wasn’t it heeling that fast on the Island?
And the seed of her mother got implanted into Alex. Do you also wanna see the “two giant hamsters running in a massive wheel at the secret underground lair”? Hearing Ben lying is the normality and he must be happy inside that Locke wants to blow up the sub.
Best dialog of the episode:
BEN: “Why are you so angry, John?”
LOCKE: “Because you’re cheating! You and your people. Communicate with the outside world whenever you want to, you… you come and go as you please… you use electricity and running water and guns… You’re a hypocrite! A pharisee. You don’t deserve to be on this island. If you had any idea what this place really was… you wouldn’t be putting chicken in your refrigerator!”
BEN: “You’ve been here 80 days, John; I’ve been here my entire life! So how is it that you think you know this island better than I do?”
LOCKE: “Because you’re in the wheelchair, and I’m not.”
Does anyone of you know if Ben was lying when he said “The anomaly wiped out our communications. We have no way of contacting the outside world. Which means when that sub leaves, it can never come back. So whether you destroy the submarine or whether you let it go, the end result is the same. No one will find this island.”?
The music in the sub reminds me a lot of the game Medal of Honor which was also composed by Michael Giacchino.
Ben saying “You have my word.” I think I’m gonna have a laughing fit. Michael Emerson’s eyes are such unique.
I still can’t understand why Locke is wet after leaving the submarine. Or has he put the explosives on the outside?
That look right there was when Jack began, wanting to kill Locke.
OMG, here we go between Anthony and Locke. MacCutcheon, always a bad signal. What were your theories how he ended up in the wheelchair?
Seeing that fall again and in the light of the Season 5 finale with Jacob touching him, I’m pretty sure that Locke died there, but was resurrected by Jacob.
That physical therapist is great…and Terry O’Quinn’s acting when he’s put into the wheelchair, unbelievable!
Because Richard Alpert knew John Locke since his birth and when they met in 1954, I still can’t understand why he put up with Ben!
“Dad?!” HHHHHHHWHAT???!!
Walkabout
Seems like I’m a bit biased of Locke-centric episodes.
Me too. I just wonder where ‘Dues Ex Machina’ will place.
What did Locke see?? He looked a bit scared to me.
I hope we find out. Whatever it was it was beautiful. I loved when Eko stared down the monster. That scene was epic.
What did you think after watching the scene in the Travel agency office and the flashback to the plane crash?
I thought “this is the best show ever” (that and when dude got sucked into the engine).
My favorite scene is when Locke throws the knife into the seat right by Sawyer’s head. “We hunt”.
The Man from Tallahassee
Why was Jack playing his own leitmotif on the piano?
Because it’s breaking the fourth wall and it’s f*cking awesome.
Does anybody else think that Damon and Carlton have some serious daddy issues? How many likable dads are on the show anyway?
Damon and Carlton have many issues.
Yeah, what about the kids from the tailsection?!
I’m a little fuzzy on that. I think we last saw them with Cindy and the others in ‘A Stranger in a Strange Land’. If they stayed with that group that would put them with Richard Alpert now.
Right, why did Ben get sick in the first place and why wasn’t it heeling that fast on the Island?
I agree with Locke’s assessment in the exchange that you posted.
Does anyone of you know if Ben was lying when he said “The anomaly wiped out our communications. We have no way of contacting the outside world. Which means when that sub leaves, it can never come back. So whether you destroy the submarine or whether you let it go, the end result is the same. No one will find this island.”?
I thought all off island communications were down because Lock c4’d the Flame Station. He was definitely lying about no one being able to find the island.
I still can’t understand why Locke is wet after leaving the submarine. Or has he put the explosives on the outside?
He must have, but they never showed why he went inside.
That look from Jack was great.
What were your theories how he ended up in the wheelchair?
I agree that Jacob saved his life, but left him crippled till the island.
Because Richard Alpert knew John Locke since his birth and when they met in 1954, I still can’t understand why he put up with Ben!
Ahhh man, the last question is the hardest. I’ll wait until ‘Cabin Fever’ makes the list.