Hmmm... I thought they said he was right out of the academy. I see the "1995 Outstanding". I guess that means it is at least 1996.

Finally had time to watch this online last night (got stuck at the office and missed it Wednesday).

An ok episode, but not nearly as good as the first 2. I didn't like Locke getting sucked into a cult family commune. That weakened his character a great deal and was just kind of lame in general.

The island stuff was somewhat pointless, but did serve to make amends between Locke and Charlie, and Desmonds precog or whatever was interesting. But it was pretty much the classic stall episode. They could have handled all that without the dumb "Eko was dragged off by a polar bear" plot line IMO.

[QUOTE=maxfisher]I was expecting to come in here and see everyone going on and on about how great this episode was, but instead it seems to be the complete opposite. I personally thought it was the best episode of season 3 so far. It made me really want to see what happens next, something the first two eps of the season failed to do. It's nice to see a newly humbled Locke returning to the way he was in season 1, instead of being the self-doubting, blubbering cry baby that he seems to have been for a lot of his life.

I'm really looking forward to Locke, Eko, Desmond, Jin, Sayid and whoever else going after the prisoners. I can't see the show having Kate, Jack and Sawyer permanently separated from the rest of the survivors, and I'm really hoping we get to see the Others have their asses handed to them.

QUOTE]


The same here, this episode rocked!! Now I can't wait to see what happens next.

Ok, I know I'm probably way off here, but was the Asian guy from the Hanso hatch films on the computer screen in the greenhouse when Locke went in to talk to the two leaders of the group? It's more likely it was a picture of Eddie but I could swear it was that guy from the films.

it was at least 4 years before the crash, based on locke's ability to walk.

it was eddie

What happened to all the children that the Others grabbed? Are the skulls 'n' bones in the cave of the Polar Bear small enough to be kids? Just asking because of the toy truck that Locke found in there. Man, that would be horrible. I feel sick for asking.

They seem to take a big interest in children... the only real interaction they've had with Jack and Locke's group has been through the children... stealing Walt and kidnapping Claire to get to get ahold of the child she was carrying.

They didn't feed Walt to the bears... buy maybe they were "testing" him to see if the bears wanted to eat him.

And we can't forget about Alex, who seems to have escaped becoming bear food.

Look at the comparisons. I don't think it's that ridiculous of a mistake.

I'm starting to think that the island is some sort of prison like rehabilitation for people whose lives have gone astray. We're starting to see really shady sides of people whom we thought had just made some mistakes. Locke going from a guy who simply wanted a relationship with his dad to being involved in a somehwat huge pot distribution that might possibly support other (terroristic) activites. As well as Sawyer's background that we dont know everything about yet and is supposed to contain something that will put him down further on the bad guy scale. Even Kate has things in her past that will supposedly be revealed to make you wonder if we have yet to see what she is really made of. Jack seems to be the least of a problem causer and the closest to getting off the island of the three.

Why ABC's Lost Is Losing It

ABC has a winner in its Emmy-winning mystery suspense series "Lost." The show had 19 million viewers for its season three premiere, making it the champion of Wednesday nights. So, why has the show lost 4 million viewers since the last season premiere? That’s according to TVSquad.com, and seemingly Variety has information that supports this. They also state that the ratings for the third season premiere were the highest since January, so it’s a logical conclusion that "Lost" started losing a significant chunk of its audience mid-way through its second season. So, what happened?

The first season of "Lost" was revolutionary, like discovering a modern-day serial version of "The Twilight Zone" with a touch of "The Prisoner." The characters were interesting and mysterious, and the island was a sci-fi wonderland. Many would argue that this has changed a lot in the last year. As the series trudged through a muddy second season, several "Lost" fans began to complain about the evolution of the story, or lack thereof, as well as the de-evolution or sidelining of key characters. While plenty of fans still enjoy or at least continue to watch the show, disenchantment has swept through a spreading patch of the "Lost" audience, and if these numbers are accurate, the ratings can be taken as confirmation of this.

Characters have always been a major piece of the puzzle, each with his or her unique part to play and flashbacks to provide meaningful insight into character background and history. In the first season, these flashbacks were spellbinding and shocking, and the characters themselves were compelling and diverse. However, as episodes accumulate, so does backstory, and the relevance of some flashbacks is questionable. It’s a particularly noticeable flaw when some characters’ pasts are revisited with more frequency than some who still have more to tell us. Michelle Rodriguez had portrayed probably the most disliked character on the program, and while her story was told, we still don’t know how Locke ended up in a wheelchair. Then, Rodriguez’s Anna Lucia was killed off randomly in the same season where she became a regular. And, in the same moment, Libby (Cynthia Watros) was killed off too, not long after we saw her in the psychiatric ward with Hurley, a baffling and well-conceived revelation, and that thread remains blatantly dangling without any guarantee it will be followed anywhere. All indications were that it would lead to something, but that was before she was taken out of play and removed from the show.

Such frustrating omissions are also the cause of disillusionment with the overall premise. The island is becoming less mysterious, in some ways detracting from the magic and science-fiction aspects of the show’s appeal, as they very slowly reveal more. But, it’s not any reveal that is boring some viewers to the point where they no longer care what the truth is; it’s the bottomless hole the reveals are digging. There seems to be no limit to the complexity of the details being unveiled, and with that kind of purposeful prolonging comes needless convolution. The plot has spun so many times, endlessly winding, as if this is a sign of brilliance and an infinite amount of planning on the part of the creators and writers. Perhaps, that is actually the case, and millions of fans have faith in the show and believe it is all going someplace. But, as the road curves and leads the audience in circles, answering one question only to disappoint and bring up a dozen more questions, a growing segment of viewers are losing interest and wondering why they should care. Some have even accused the series of being afraid to give anything away, either for the sake of the show’s ratings or longevity.

But, what about the people who love the show and believe it is going somewhere? Well, there is no shortage of loyal fans, and the "Lost" following is strong and determined, constantly cooking up conspiracy theories and trying to figure out the big picture. Mainstream news media has set its collective brain to the same detective work as fans. "Entertainment Weekly" alone has run several articles about the potential outcomes and future twists that "Lost" might have in store. However, the 19-million-viewer question is this; will the payoff be worth all this build in the end? When all is said and done, will "Lost" have lived up to its hype? Can it be making promises with the web it spins to an exponential degree of intricacy that it can keep? What final result, what answer, what end could possibly justify the means to the satisfaction of all the desperate fans out there who spend every Wednesday night trying to crack the code that is this island and its secrets? Or, has the question become too tangled up in itself to make anything short of an apocalypse a gratifying answer? Will hundreds or thousands or even millions of fans be deeply disappointed and disgruntled if it just turns out a group of scientists started a Garden of Eden that went awry? Or, can anything as mundane be worthwhile when compared with the monumental journey to the climax? Or, will as many "Lost" aficionados give up if it turns out that this is such a grandiose scheme that it rivals "The X-Files" in complication but lacks the fundamental cohesion and consistent quality to make J.J. Abrams the next Chris Carter.

No one can say whether or not the truth is worth waiting to discover until the arrival of that point. But, I do not speak only for myself when I say that Abrams is no Carter, and I certainly don’t expect "Lost" to blow me away this season or any season coming as it did the first season at this rate. If "Lost" suffered a sophomore slump last season, then it is off to a poor start making up for it this season. The major explosion that concluded the last seconds of the season two finale was not even acknowledged until the third episode into the new season, and even then, it was sublimated and the characters directly involved in it are still being sidelined. Another complaint disenchanted fans see carrying over from last season is that a few characters who were dynamic and compelling in the first season have since turned stale and unlikable; Locke, Charlie, Kate and even Jack for example. They are not only trapped in ruts, but some fans feel focus on Jack as well as Kate is being forced because they are perceived as the big stars of the series. No one should forget that this show became popular by using all members of its ensemble cast in meaningful and intelligent ways. It is good to see flaws in our protagonists and zero in on a select few of them at times. But, among the fans "Lost" is on the verge of losing there is a general sense that the method in which the story is being presented, not to mention extended, in conjunction with the character spotlights, is counteractive to the plot and the unfolding mystery that seems to be getting lost along the way.

"Lost" is one of the great, most popular shows on television today, and there is no disputing that fact. There is, however, a clear and considerable decline in the ratings that cannot be marginalized and should be explored, especially since speculation has already surfaced that if the numbers continue to drop in tune with this trend, "Lost" could be cancelled within a year or two. That might sound a bit extreme, but it’s not unreasonable to ask why there is such a marked difference in the ratings, because if that large a portion of an audience is so quickly deciding not to watch one of TV’s hottest and best shows, there is something causing them to change the channel, and that should not be ignored. There is much of the show that fans feel is still very good, and all I can say is that "Lost" should be careful to stay true to the things that made the series fantastic in the beginning.

MOVIESONLINE.ca

I still like Lost and I look forward to watching it every week, but it's hard not to agree with some or most of that.

Wow,,and that is an understatement directed at all of the hate that is spewed out on this forum. For eight years now I have read these forums and nothing that is said here will ever affect the way I feel about what entertains me. So what if you dont like Lost. So what if you have a problem with Charlie or Claire and SO what if your answers are just questions.Maybe the best thing for all the haters of this show could do is find something else to watch OR better yet maybe this thread should be split into the Lost lovers and the Lost haters.
I can name a dozen shows that I personally dont like BUT you know what. It doesnt matter to you. What does matter is a decency that seems to have dissappeared on these public forums. Have a heart, not everyone comes here wishing to pick a fight about a television show that none of us made but are taking it to heart like we did. I commend the makers of this show for a very unique vision and some absolutely outstanding ideas that we wont see anywhere else on tv.
With all that TV out there I find it amazing that LOST is the only show that gets this much bashing on these forums and for three years now its kind of kept me from posting partially because I really despise being reprimanded for liking it as much as I do.
But even that doesnt matter, I'll still have my family and friends over every wednesday. We will still make a killer dinner, have our 'Lost' dessert from a pastry chef(ME!) and we will all still have a blast being together watching a show we all look forward to.
After that I will go upstairs and count my lucky stars as I stare at the 27x41 one sheet from season two signed by everyone from the cast and smile knowing for fact at how hard these people work just so you guys can belittle thier talents on a show you will probably miss after its done.
last weeks episode was spectacular,,and so was the cake.
Oh yeah and one more thing. To Damon and Carlton and JJ
Write what you want and make it your way but learn to run real fast from all that hate.
A revised bit of wisdom from this years most beautifully conceived show,'Ugly Betty'
Goodnight.