LOST DISCOVERIES

LOST:

Numbers

Created by: J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof

Story by: David Fury and Brent Fletcher

 

Air date: Wednesday, March 2nd, 2005

 

I Guess It’s Just Your Lucky Day

By Lola

 

A Soulful Spike Society Review

www.soulfulspike.com

 

I start my review gratefully acknowledging the contributions made by all the s’cubies. I freely admit that I’m stealing many of your thoughts.

 

Good Ol’ Fun Time Hurley

It’s been mentioned by many – Hurley is the “ordinary” guy among the survivors, the one the audience can most relate to. I’d go so far as to say that Hurley often actually represents us, the audience of the show. And, riches and curses and wildly improbable coincidence aside, l think we are still meant to see Hurley in this light.

 

In Numbers we are finally given the long-awaited back story for Hurley and it’s definitely not a disappointment. Fast food drudge, back at home with his loving but nagging mom after putting his family “through a lot lately”, vegging in front of the television instead of going out to find himself a “nice woman”, winning the lottery using mysterious numbers obsessively muttered by a psychiatric patient and thereby unleashing a curse upon his nearest and dearest. Hey – who hasn’t had one of those days?

 

Seriously though, our clue that Hurley is still the voice of the audience comes in one of the finest scenes in the episode. Confronting the French survivor Danielle Rousseau, Hurley finally gives voice to his own frustration in an opening speech that could have been taken right out from a fan’s mouth. “You don’t know?! Okay, that thing . . . in the woods. Maybe it’s a monster. Maybe it’s a pissed off giraffe – I don’t know. The fact that no one is even looking for us? Yeah, that’s weird. But I just go along with it, ‘cause I’m along for the ride. Good ol’ fun time Hurley. Well, guess what! I want some friggin’ answers!!!”

 

We all do, Hurley. We all do!

 

But don’t be distracted by cursed numbers, $156 million dollars, or Australian bean counting contests. We’re getting these flashbacks to learn about the people on the island – what they are like, what their history is, why they were on the Plane O’ Doom. And what we learned about Hugo Reyes is that he really is the smart, practical, straight-forward, people-savvy, good person we’ve seen on the island. The guy who won the lottery and just wanted to take care of his family – to send his Grandpa Tito on his first vacation in 52 years and buy his “bashful beauty” mom a nice home. The guy who said: “That’s really what it’s all about for me. To be able to do things for the people I care about.”

 

And when we’re talking about amazing acting come Emmy time? Put Jorge Garcia’s name right at the top. In this one episode he shows us grim determination hidden behind his usual easy-going façade as he heads off to find the French woman; subtle growing suspicion as the bad luck piles up; fear and wonder as Mrs. Toomey’s story unfurls (another time I feel he is the viewer’s stand-in); bravery – love – anger; we get it all in this one ep.

 

4 – 8 – 15 – 16 – 23 – 42

So what do you think the numbers really mean? Read what folks are posting, search the internet, chat with your buddies around the water cooler. You’ll find more theories than you can shake a stick at.

 

The final number 42 seems important – the ultimate meaning of Life, the Universe and All That, if we are to believe Douglas Adams, and why not?

 

8 and 15 – well, as Sara so wisely points out, 815 was both the castaway's flight number and the number of the safety deposit box that Kate wanted so badly.

 

Vlad neatly brought in 1942 and the Philadelphia Experiment, successfully bringing together the elements of invisibility, time travel, mind control and demagnetization. Well, that certainly hits most of the plot points we’ve seen so far.

 

Karen evilly pointed out that 4 + 8 + 15 + 16 + 23 = 66 and 4 + 2 = 6. Thanks, Karen, we’ll all sleep better now.

 

Add them up, divide them, reduce them, try them in different combos, drop off the last number and discover actual coordinates in the Pacific, and so on and so forth. We can find a dozen different meanings. Heck, maybe Patti is right and when we add them up and divide by number of episodes we’ll get the date Dawn arrives on the island.

 

This was a tricky and potentially deceptive episode. We learn so much that we’re temped to think we’ve actually got the island mystery by the tail, and yet, when you really examine it, we’ve also been handed a whole bunch of new questions.

 

Connect Four

Connections are being drawn with each episode. Boone is talking to the police as Sawyer is dragged through the station. Sawyer shares a drink with Jack’s dad. Jack’s drama at the airport causes a delay that is part of the reason Sun doesn’t leave Jin. As Jin assaults a man in his home we see Hurley on TV. And Hurley . . . well, Hurley owns a box company – Locke’s box company, have no doubt.

 

Leonard plays Connect Four at the Institution. We play our own game of connect the dots to follow the trail of the numbers to Hurley. Someone sets up the broadcast of the numbers from the island; Sam Toomey and Leonard Sims hear them; Sam uses them to win a game of fortune, or perhaps misfortune; Hurley hears them from institutionalized Leonard. (As a side note, did anyone else go – oooh, Sims game people! Ah. Just me then. Never mind.)

 

Leonard introduces us to more mysteries. Unresponsive until he hears that Hurley has used the numbers to win the lottery, Leonard goes wild and is dragged off, but not before presenting us with three new tidbits to chew on. Using the numbers has “opened the box” (no – not the Locke boxes). Now it will “never stop”. And Hurley has to “get away”.

 

Hurley’s visit to Sam Toomey’s widow produces some concrete facts but does not really resolve the issue of the numbers. Sam and Leonard heard them 16 years ago. They were overheard on long wave broadcast transmissions out of the Pacific. Sam used them and won money. Bad things happened around Sam, but not to him directly. But do a series of bad things mean a curse? Mean that the numbers are somehow responsible? Hurley thinks so, and the information from Mrs. Toomey just confirms his fear. But she doesn’t think so, even after losing her leg. “You make your own luck. You’re looking for an excuse that doesn’t exist.”

 

Screw That! You Guys Stay.

Ah. Hurley, Charlie, Jack and Sayid trekking through the jungle looking for Rousseau. Half Stooges movie, half high adventure.

 

First we have tenacious Hurley – determined to find the Crazy French Lady who has been using his numbers. His bravery and determination really struck me. Dodging swinging death clubs, crossing dangerous rope bridges, holding his own against the Crazy Armed French Lady. An interesting mixture of a dangerous belief in his own invulnerability (that’s gonna come around and bite him later) and true ability and agility. The pressure switch trap was most dangerous because of the surprise factor. Once spotted, it was not really that crazy to realize it could be successfully dodged.

 

Jack was deep into his usual role – concerned, reasonable, just “there to help”. Sayid was . . . well, frankly, Sayid was cranky. Not wanting to go after Rousseau again, (and after what he went through last time who can blame him), but ultimately willing to help. And if he was a tad annoyed by Hurley’s success where he had failed before, well, I guess that’s human nature too.

 

Meanwhile, Charlie alternated between puppy-like enthusiasm (wanting to go along with Hurley, bounding across the bridge after him, sharing his addiction story) and snarky backbiting (multiple mentions that Hurley is “looney”, “replace his weight?” “if he can do it”). My opinion? Charlie is bored to tears and desperately looking for anything to replace the rush he used to get from heroin.

 

Good At Putting Bits And Pieces Together

And what of the rest of our merry band of island misfits? Well we had Sawyer sniping at Michael. Michael bonding, sort of, with Jin. Kate commiserating with Sun about Jin. Walt not really helping as much with the boat as he should.

 

But of course the important B story was Locke and Claire. Oh, I could be all serious and deep, I suppose. Talk about the caring and sweetness displayed – Locke once again sensing what a fellow survivor needed. Something to do, distract her from non-memories of her abduction. Listening to her, offering comforting words about the baby. The really very touching gift of the cradle. Or I could discuss the growing evidence of Locke’s mystical and ambiguous role. “I believe in a lot of things.” “Maybe I can help, I’m good at putting bits and pieces together.”

 

But I’m bored with serious. So instead, I’ll give you the lines that made me giggle and go “eeeeeep!”

 

“I’m almost nine months pregnant.” Sh-yeah. A year and nine months, maybe.

“Is it a trap?” Yes! It’s a trap for your mutant spawn!

And my personal favorite.

“Can you move your hand back and forth?” Biting my tongue here.

Not gonna say: if she could do that, she wouldn’t be pregnant, would she? Nope. Not me.

 

 

What Worked?

·       “She says ‘hey’.” “Yo! French chick!” “Well, yeah!” “I’m spry.” Hurley rocks my world, dude – pure and simple.

 

·       The wonderful black humor and growing creepiness of the cascading disasters. I thought the writers hit their peak with the plummeting body, but then they gave us the bean guessing contest and the missing leg. Bravo!

 

 

What Didn’t?

 

Questions

·       Who was there before the French team? Who built the radio tower and the metal bunkers and started the initial transmission? Were they the instigators of the mystery or were they also drawn to and trapped by the island? As Locke said in a previous episode about the metal bunker (our parting shot of this episode): “Right now, this is our priority”.

 

 

 

 

The Missing: Update

 

Jack Shepard – Matthew Fox

Caretaker Jack. Always looking out for everyone else.

 

Kate – Evangeline Lilly

Beach Blanket Buddies.

 

Sawyer – Josh Holloway

So are you planning to travel on the raft or not, Sawyer? And will you take off your shirt if you do?

 

Sayid – Naveen Andrews

There, there. It’s not your fault CFL liked Hurley better than you. We still love you. And you found your picture of Nadia again.

 

John Locke – Terry O’Quinn

Not sure if that cradle was up to all the safety codes, but it’s the thought that counts.

 

Charley – Dominic Monaghan

Dude, you so blew your chance at getting any of Hurley’s $156 million.

 

Claire Littleton – Emilie de Ravin

Happy birthday, Claire!

 

Hurley (Hugo) Reyes– Jorge Garcia

So it looks like you have one of the big ol’ keys to the island mystery. Gonna share that info with the others?

 

Boone Carlyle – Ian Somerhalder

and

Shannon Rutherford – Maggie Grace

Awwwww. Sweet Shayid. Or Sayannon. But what did you do with Boone?”

 

Michael – Harold Perineau

and

Walt – Malcom David Kelley

Michael, face it. The boat is doomed. Even if Walt doesn’t set fire to it, you ain’t getting off the island that easy.

 

Sun – Yunjin Kim

and

Jin – Daniel Dae Kim

You two have a lot of things you need to discuss. Too bad you’re not, you know, talking to each other!

 

Vincent – The Dog

Woof! Woof!

 

 

 


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