Season 4, Episode 10: "Something Nice Back Home"

Alright, so maybe this wasn't the same action packed type episode that we saw in "The Shape of Things to Come," but I thought it served as a nice respite for us and more importantly - a good set up for what should be a very interesting final 4 hours of the season.

What intrigued me the most about the episode was its "back to its roots" type of feel. Meaning that at the end of the day Lost is a show about these various characters finding their way, and really, finding themselves. Quite literally, they are Lost in their lives. The show has always done a great job at developing their flawed characters, and this episode continued that trend while filling in a few holes in the story at the same time.

Obviously the biggest focus was on Jack. We come to find out that he's living quite the life in the not to distant future. He's back at the hospital, still sober, and finally together with a consistently scantily clad Kate (what, you can't give her a little spending money for clothes, Jack? Not that I'm complaining...), and raising Aaron. All is well. But as he reads little Aaron an all too familiar to Lost-lore bed time story (Alice in Wonderland), we're given a hint of what is to come.



Between the obvious white rabbit and the "Looking Glass" station symbols we've already seen in the show, the underlying message of Carrol's children's novel discusses our ability to imagine wondrous fantasy and horrible nightmare simultaneously. Similarly, it questions our abilities to change who we are over time. Both of these themes are entirely relevant to Jack's flash fowards. We see wondrous fantasy (his love for Kate fulfilled), and we see horrible fears actualized (Hurley: "you're not supposed to raise him"). These revelations lead to his eventual downward spiral as an addicted, troubled person...just like his father.


This leads us to the next issue: can you change who you are? In this sense, the larger question of Fate comes into to play, another recurring Lost theme. As much as Jack wants to live the perfect life with Kate, something is always bringing him back to who he is, and where he came from. Don't forget that as much as he tried to distance himself from his father in the past, Christian's death brought him to Australia, which in turn brought him to the Island. He leaves the Island but still can't escape the fact that he was MEANT to resolve his issues there. Seeing his father's ghost in the hospital just reinforces the point. He MAY be able to change, but in order to do so he needs to make peace with his issues (read: father), and he'll need to do it on the Island. I think slowly, all of the Oceanic 6 begin to realize this point, and as we already know from flash forwards, Jack and Hurley are ready to go back...as they still "have work to do."

Sound crazy? Well, it is a bit, but at the same time look at the facts. Michael can't kill himself cause the Island won't let him. Jack gets appendicitis just as he's about to leave, on an Island that exhibits mostly healing capabilities (as Rose purposefully points out). It can be argued that this was the Island's way of trying to keep him there. Regardless, we know he gets off and we know what happens - he turns into exactly what he was trying to prevent. Instead of being a loving (potential) husband and Father, he turns to addiction and pushes away everyone that loves him, just like Christian did. I believe that the only way to "live happily ever after" is to be in communion with what the Island is directing him to do. And so far, he's been fighting that request. Only in the future (when he unsuccessfully tries to kill himself by jumping off a bridge no less...again, the Island not letting him die), does he realize his mistake. He has to go back.



The other main issue in this episode revolves around Claire - which isn't surprising seeing that technically she is a Shepard...she is Jack's half sister and the Christian's daughter (it's a family affair!). She sees Christian in the middle of the night and walks off with him, leaving baby Aaron behind. Is this how they become separated for good? I doubt it, but I don't really have any insights as to why she would now abandon the baby she has kept by her side for so long. But I think it's clear that Miles will play a large role in finding out what's going on. He may be able to communicate with or even see Christian. Alternatively, some folks believe that Claire is actually dead (that the explosion DID blow her up) and that her ghost has replaced her for the time being...if you notice, she talks mostly to Miles in the last episode. I doubt this to be true, but anything's possible at this point.

All in all, I thought it was a great episode...a thinker for sure. But what is to come should be the best of both worlds; action and mystery. I think it's clear that the finale will show us how they get off the Island - and who knows what other jaw dropping trick is in store for us (Island scene flash forwards anyone??). I know I'm missing some stuff still, but in a nutshell here's a couple of other cool nuggets from the show:

-When Jack is called by his father's ghost in the Hospital, he went out to the lobby initially to turn off the smoke alarm. As in "Smokey" alarm. Remember, it is widely assumed that Smokey can assume shapes and figures on the Island (Eko's brother Yemi; Hurley's friend Dave; the Horse that Kate finds; Ben's Mother; etc). Pretty cool.

-Claire admits to "seeing things" earlier in the episode. Was this Charlie (the first word she mentioned when Sawyer took her from the burning wreckage)? Or maybe her Father? The producers let it be known that this initial scene was shot but had to be cut due to time. I'm sure we'll see it as part of a flashback at some point though.

-When Jack and Kate are arguing towards the end of the episode, she says "I can't have you like this around my child." In response, Jack yells, "Your child?! You're not even related to him!" While this can be taken as a simple (and obvious) hurtful insult, could Jack be insinuating something like "at least I'm actually related to him." Remember, Aaron is his nephew. In current Island time, he does not know this fact. This line could foreshadow that he eventually finds that out (and I'm thinking that may happen soon). Additionally, it could be argued that the reason he initially wants to steer clear of Aaron (when he averts Kate's question of "why won't you see him" outside the courthouse) is because he doesn't trust himself in raising Aaron, cause he's afraid he'll mess him up just as Christian did to him. This lingering fear is voiced by Jack in this episode to Kate (something along the lines of "can I really do this?"). Again, his issues are clearly unresolved.


Alright, I think that's it, but please let me know what else I missed...it's been a long week. Tomorrow's episode is called "Cabin Fever." Look out Jacob, here they come!