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Friday, May 04, 2007

The “Lost” island, paradise or purgatory?

by Jennifer Squires Biller

They’re all dead.

That’s the scuttlebutt making its way around the Lost island this week.

Sawyer, Jack, Kate and the rest of the “survivors” didn’t actually survive anything, according to the two newest Lost characters, parachute girl and Locke’s daddy. They claim that flight 815 was found at the bottom of the ocean floor near Bali, bodies inside.

Last week, when parachute girl told Hurley this unsettling news, it didn’t cause me much concern. I chalked it up to more lies i.e. if we were in elementary school, her pants would have been on fire. (“Liar. Liar.”)

But this week, when Locke’s daddy told the same story, I had a Depends moment.

Could it be that everyone did die, and that they’re killing time in purgatory, suffering their penance and waiting for their shot at redemption before moving on? The real “Sawyer” implied as much, when he said he was in a car accident and woke up on the island. And then he threw out that line that the island was a little hot for Heaven.

I floated the purgatory idea back in season one, due to the numerous Biblical/spiritual/philosophical references. But, the show creators shot it down. Could they have changed their minds?

We’ve been screaming for answers for two years for some explanation about the “magical” island. Now that we have an answer, few believe it. Here’s why: It’s hard to buy dead people walking, talking, and getting busy in Sawyer’s tent. (Although, you have to admit the latter isn’t a bad way to spend the after life.)

If they are in purgatory, it truly would be a unique writing concept never seen before on television. It would certainly explain why we saw Jack’s dad in season one walking through the jungle, despite the fact that Jack had picked up his dead body in Australia, and why crippled Locke can suddenly walk.

The show has to come to an end at some point, and honestly, it doesn’t seem like most of the folks on the plane have much of a life to go back to. So, perhaps, purgatory is the best solution.

Hey, as long as the show doesn’t end with someone shaking a glass snow globe, I’m open to anything.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I know the show writers have said it isn't Purgatory, but it sure would make sense when nothing else seems to. Other theories include cloning and scientific experiments.

Robert Rouse said...

Pay attention to details. Why do the others know so much about everyone? Because they were in on the plan to bring everyone to the island. They pushed every button possible to get the people they needed for some kind of experiment together on the same flight. Once in the air, they faked an emergency and when everyone put on the masks, they were gassed. The plane landed, everyone was taken off the plane and put on the island with a replica of the wreckage. The real plane was then crashed into the ocean. The only people left on the plane were the ones who ended up on the flight but were not needed. This way, when the robotic sub discovered the "wreckage", they would see some bodies.

Hey, at least it's a theory!

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