Beautiful. Absolutely Beautiful. I feel a good finale coming up. The episode really emphasized family. These survivors have become a family. We saw them work together and we saw them cry together. To finally say good-bye to a few is hard. The raft has sailed and the Others are coming. I haven’t even seen them yet and they already freak me out. The episode also felt like an appetizer to what is yet to come. Jack and Locke want to break open the hatch using dynamite found at The Black Rock. This show has my head spinning.

          This episode felt different mainly because it focused on all the characters rather than one. We learnt what each was doing before the flight. We haven’t seen them all, but I’m sure it’s coming. I really enjoyed the Shannon/Boone scene. Now we know why he’s still listed in the cast. Like I said a few reviews ago, Shannon probably still feels bad. She knows she treated her brother like crap and she never had the time to forge a strong relationship with him. Sleeping together doesn’t count. Boone looked down on Shannon forever. He kept stating that she’s useless. She in turn says she can do anything she wants. It’s ironic that the person she gets in trouble turns out to be the person she later loves. Life has a funny way of doing that. Then, we met a wonderful character named Ana-Lucia played by Michelle Rodriguez. She likes to flirt. Something tells me the tail-end survived the crash. I have a feeling. This is all based on Rose’s statement that her husband is alive and the fact that the writers introduced Ana-Lucia. It’s just a hunch. Also, I enjoyed watching the Michael/Walt scenes in the hotel. I’m glad Michael finally put his foot down and told Walt to shut it. We also learnt what happened with Sawyer, why he was arrested. He was on the flight because he was being deported.

          The most interesting flashback was Kate’s. We learnt that it had been two years before Tom’s death. She had tracked down the safety deposit box and stolen the airplane. I liked when the marshal said that the plane was all Kate cared about. It might not be true, but it certainly is possible. She’s been on the run for three years. She got cold. She got ruthless. She became a fugitive. Her memory of Tom was her only motivation to keep running. What did she run from? We’ll find out soon I hope.

          Walt was interesting this week. For a child, he really is mature. He helped Shannon get over Boone. He also freaks me out. It was right to give Shannon Vincent. He’s the only person (or animal rather) than can truly help her. Walt’s speech about his mother’s death was powerful and mature. He had no one to speak to after her death and Vincent was there. It also hit me when I watched the episode that Walt could have killed his mother. He has control over animals, psychic abilities…What else can he do?

          Rousseau’s return was greatly appreciated. By me for one. She scares me. She’s dark and mysterious. She’s also adamant that the Others are coming. It’s time they showed their faces. Furthermore, she brought the group to the Black Rock. Why isn’t she part of the cast? Everyone likes her.

          There were also a lot of touching scenes throughout the episode. I love these things. Jin and Sun had an excellent one. I always knew Jin wasn’t angry at Sun. He wants to rescue her. What’s wrong with that? I really liked when Sun gave him a list of translations. Very Nice. Vincent going after the raft was also heart-warming. I guess a dog really does know what love is. Vincent wanted to stay with Walt. Now of course, the most touching scene was between Jack and Sawyer. This will remain a classic forever. I found it nice that Sawyer said what he said. It really gave Jack some sort of closure. He didn’t even know if his father loved him. I think Sawyer somewhat calmed that thought.

Spotlight on…The Losties

-          Walt and Michael are staying at a hotel room. Their flight is in a few hours. Walt wakes up in the middle of the night and starts watching tv. Michael wakes up and tells him to turn it down. Walt grabs Vincent and leaves. Michael catches him in the elevator and drags him back.

-          Jack is drinking at the airport bar and a woman walks up to him. She had heard him yelling at the check-in counter. Her name is Ana-Lucia and she’s booked at the back of the plane. They flirt together and she tells him to have a drink with her in the plane.

-          Sawyer got into a bar fight and he’s being deported by the Australian police. He got into a fight with the Minister of Agriculture.

-          A customs officer is investigating the marshal and Kate. He questions him on his case with five guns. The marshal tells the customs officer about the toy plane Kate carries around with her. She attacks him. He gets her on the ground.

-          Shannon is waiting for Boone to return and Sayid asks her to watch his stuff. Boone returns and tells her they can’t sit in first class. She gets angry and calls an officer in the airport. She tells him that an Arab man left his bags unattended.

-          Sun is bringing food to Jin. An American couple watches her tend to Jin. The woman makes fun of Sun and she doesn’t say a thing. Sun accidentally spills some coffee on Jin. He leaves to clean up.

Quotable Quotes

-          Locke: “Where did you get those marks?”
Danielle: “Bush.”
Locke: “Mean bush.”

-          Charlie (describing the "message in a bottle" theory): “You know---'Dear Mom', I'm on the island, everything's fine---unless, of course, the black smoke people turn up---love, your-name-here. It's for when they get rescued, so they can contact your family.”

-          Locke: “Where did you get your explosives?”
Danielle: “Dynamite, at the Black Rock, in the Dark Territory.”
Hurley: “Well that's three reasons to go there.”

-          Cop: “You're a blight. A stain. You prey on the weak and needy. Tell me James, how do you live with yourself?”
Sawyer: “I do just fine.”

-          Danielle: “You have three choices: run, hide or die.” The best quote of the night.

Some Final Notes

-          Sawyer’s real name was James Ford.

-          I like the team that went to Black Rock. I keep wondering though why Hurley keeps joining. I think it’s to keep up the morale.

-          The Black Rock is a ship. Didn’t see that one coming.

-          Jack divorced Sarah. I loved Sarah.

-          Arzt is a fun character. I liked when Hurley kept bothering him about his name.

-          The whole episode looked dark. I don’t know what it was, but it felt like the Apocalypse.

-          That black smoke is scary. The Others are coming!

-          I hope we get to see what’s inside the hatch. Knowing J.J., he’ll make us wait a whole summer before we find out.

-          Those scratches on Danielle’s arm looked like an animal did it. Or a human.

-          When I first read the title “Exodus,” I thought everyone was going to escape. That’s how I think sometimes.

-          One of Danielle’s team members lost his arm because it was infected. Infected with what?

-          I liked the idea about the bottle. Charlie tried reading what Hurley wrote. It must have been something very personal.

Perfect. 5 stars

-          Next episode

-          Lost season 1

-          Lost main