Through the Looking Glass (2)

Season 3, Episode 23, Aired
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Episode Summary

Ben confronts Jack, claiming that Naomi is not who she seems. Meanwhile, Sawyer and Juliet try to come up with a plan to rescue the hostages at the beach.''Inside the Looking Glass, Charlie and Desmond struggle to finish the mission at the underwater station.
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Fan Episode Reviews (220)

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  • Season Shocker

    8.5
    "Great"
    By Nightrider09, Aug 26, 2011 Report Abuse
    We start off with Jack leading the Surviors along with Juilet, Karl, Daneil and Naomi Dorret to the radio statio to turn off Daneil's radio transmisson that has been broadcasting for 16 years, once they do that they can broadcast a signal of their own to Naomi's Ship which is near the island. But before they can do that the under water station codename: The Looking Glass, is jamming any signal from leaving the island, so Desmound and Charlie have to shut it down which seemed easy at first, but they were informed that the station was flooded and no one was in their, which turrned out to be false. And finally back on the beach Tom Friendly and four others have Sayid, Jin and Bernard tied up and at gun point, they areintching to shoot them cause their still uppissed at them for tricking them and blowing up most of their team mates.Back to Jack's group; their almost to the station but no one seem's to be in high spirits because their worrid about the three men they left at the beach and the jamming signal has yet to bt turned of. Jack doesn't want to split into group's for fear of falling into an Other trap, but he does let Juilet and Sawyer head back with Hurrly tagging along. Once they get over a big hill they see the evil leader of the Others, Ben their;He wants to talk.
    He and Jack take their talk in private. Ben tells Jack that the people on the boat arne't who they say they, they are as he puts it the 'bad guys' and ben tells Jack to givehe theRadio phone so Naomi can never contact her ship. Ben's resoning for this is that he must protect the island and that he is, as he put's it a 'good guy'Now here is what I would have said if I was Jack"Well Ben if your such a good guy then whyhave you kidnapping people, ordering your ownpeople to kill each otherbehind their backs, and why have you been holding my new girlfriend (Juliet) hostage for three years without contact to her family, while you sexually harased her and made her try to save pregnete women who were already byond saving. But Ben if you were a Good guy, I mean a real good guy, they why is it you never invited me or myflight 815 crash buddies to your island sububrs complete with homely features and in door plumbing, if you were a good guy home come you never did that!"Now things don't go well for Jack and Ben so Ben orders Tom to shoot Jin, Sayid andBenard over the walkie, three gun shoots are heared and Jack beats the S**** out of Ben and ties him up. The only reason Jack is keeping him alive is so he can see them get off the island and then he's going to kill Benknowing he failed.
    While Ben is not a good guy in my eyes,i have to ammit he isn't all bad since he ordered Tom not to actually shoot the three prisoners but insted to shoot three bullets in the sand. a little while later Hurrly comes to the resue with the DARMAH bus that he,Jin and Sawyer helped fix in episode 'Tricia Tanaka is dead' (which now makes that episode more meaningful), so Hurrly runs over one of the Others, which causes a divergen that allows Juliet and Sawyer to seal theirguns and shoot them, thus saving the day.The funniest and most melow moment in this episode is whenHurrly contacts Jack's group by useingBen's walkie telling them the good news.
    I won't go into detail about what happens at the Looking Glass station, other then the jammer was turned off and Charlie died a hero.
    Just as Naomi is about to contact her ship Locke throws a knife at herwhich renders her either dead or unconsius. Locke says that they should not contact that ship, that its a mistake and that their here for a reason. Jack and Locke have a faceoff, Best one they've ever had thus far, it end with Jacks victory and the ship is contacted and it is on their way every thing works out in the end.
    Or does it? a 'Flashforward' into the futre reveals a druken bearded Jack wanting to go back to the island.This is what as known as an epic season end (and an Ironic end as well)moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0

  • We've got one last shock for you, and this makes it a whole new ballgame

    10
    "Perfect"
    By DavidB226Morris, Feb 13, 2011 Report Abuse
    We'll ignore the flashes for now,, and get right back into the drama. The episode begins with the meeting of Jack and Ben. Both men have had major challenges to their leadership this season, and while Jack's is fragile, Ben's has all but run out of gas. His approach seems a bit absurd. He calls Jack out, tells them that Naomi represented a party who has interests that are very detrimental to the island, and demands that Jack give him the satellite phone, or he will order the murders of the men on the beach. This is Jack's biggest confrontation yet, and he faces up to it, even though he's clearly torn. When the shots are fired, he then proceeds to beat Ben until his knuckles are bloody.

    What Jack doesn't know is how badly Ben's leadership has deteriorated. Ryan has disobeyed orders and has not killed any of them yet. This leads to one of the most joyous scenes in the episode. Juliet and Sawyer have made it back to the island, but they don't have any weapons. So who saves the day? Hurley, in the Dharma-mobile! Driving the van that he kept working all this time, he runs Ryan down like a video game pedestrian.. In quick succession, Sayid executes the second gunmen, and Tom, the sole survivor has no choice but to surrender. Sawyer then cold-bloodedly shoots him in the chest, showing that he has fallen into the darkness after killing Cooper. He will emerge from it eventually, but it's going to take a lot.

    In the Looking Glass, things have reached a climax there. Mikhail clearly doubts Ben's leadership as well, but nevertheless he follows through on the orders, killing Greta, and mortally wounding Bonnie. Before he can finish the job, Desmond emerges and shoots him with a spear-gun. That should be the end of it, but it's not. Charlie then manages to get Bonnie to give him the codes for the transmitter--- and she does so by saying the codes were programmed by a musician. Now we think we know the reason Charlie had to be here. And for a split second, Charlie thinks maybe this has all been a test, and he won't have to die.. Then a transmission comes through--- it's Penelope. But before she can even see her beloved again, she let's a critical piece of information--- she didn't send the boat. Before anything else can be learned, Mikhail emerges like the messiah with a hand grenade, and blows the porthole. The station will soon flood, but when Charlie sees what's coming he doesn't hesitate, and uses his last bit of strength to send Desmond the message. I defy you to watch the scene as poor Charlie's crosses himself before drowning--- it's the most heartbreaking moment of the season.

    (On a side note, what has happened to Mikhail? One would think that the hand grenade would have killed him, but one could have made the same assumption of the spear in the chest? Was he immortal? Probably not, as Ben assumes that he could kill him. Whatever the reason, it seems to be another mystery we'll never see resolved as he hasn't reappeared. Still, it wouldn't surprise me if he popped up in the last season.)

    We also get a pretty moving reunion as Rousseau finally comes face to face with Alex.. They haven't seen each other for sixteen years, but they clearly have a bond, as their first act is to tie Ben up like a dog. They make it to the radio tower at last, and the message that has been playing for sixteen years and seven months is finally taking off the loop. Naomi then begins to finally receive a transmission, when suddenly she gets a knife in the back--- from Locke. Somehow, the island has told him where the radio tower is, and though he couldn't have known anything about Naomi, he doesn't hesitate in trying to kill her. (She isn't quite dead yet, but that's another story.) He then tells Jack straight up, we're not supposed to leave, which is exactly the message that Ben has been trying to tell Jack. Speaking of which, when Ben sees Locke walking, he looks stunned, as if he finally realizes John may be as important as everyone thinks. Locke holds a gun on Jack, and threatens to kill him, but for some reason, like with his father just a few days earlier, he cannot follow through. Jack makes contact with the freighter, we see signs of joy....

    .... and then the episode plays it's little trick. We do one more flash with Jack, who has been degenerated in each one, driving wildly, trying to get a refill on a prescription, and stealing drugs from the hospital pharmacy. What throws us is that Jack mentions his father and speaks as if he's still alive. We still think were in the past, then... Jack calls someone to meet him at the airport. That someone is Kate. And we realize in a moment of shock that this is the future.. Then we learn that every Friday Jack goes flying from LA to the Far East (particularly Australia) each time praying for a crash. The only explanation that comes to mind: he wants to go back to the island. We can't figure out why yet, and Kate is particularly dismissive, but the episode ends on that plea.

    To be perfectly honest when I first saw the last couple of minutes of this episode, I thought that the show had just jumped the shark in the biggest way possible. I thought that (like in J.J. Abrams other series Alias) that he was rewriting the rule book and it would take as well. Clearly, I didn't have the confidence in Carlton and Damon that I do now. They've managed to travel from that point to this with alacrity and upping the stake in each succeeding season, and it is still possible than this will be no better placed than I did with Chris Carter and the X-Files. But maybe they knew what they're doing.

    Right now, the biggest question is who was at the funeral. The article at the paper Jack got in Part One was clearly an obituary. In the opening of the second part, Jack went to the funeral home to find nobody there, and the casket was closed. Asked if he was friend or family, he clearly says: "Neither." When he tells Kate about it, she regards it with even more disdain, leading us to believe that it was someone we've already met on the plane that they both knew. I didn't try to freeze frame the shots with the paper, so I didn't get caught p with those people who try to squeeze every single detail out of each episode, so I didn't try to answer the question. At the time I thought it was Christian Shephard, later that it was Sawyer. Everyone now knows who was in the coffin, but I'll save the surprise--- especially since I'm still not convinced that someone is dead yet.

    Even knowing some of the twists and turns that are ahead doesn't change the fact that this episode is an extraordinary ending, mostly because of the remarkable acting of Matthew Fox. He runs the complete gamut of emotions in this episode, and in retrospect, his scenes in the flash forwards are astonishing acting. He looks angry and disdainful, pathetic and wrathful, and the episodes last five minutes, goes from his point of greatest elation --- the eminent rescue--- to the shell he seems to be when Kate meets with him. Terry O'Quinn and Michael Emerson get the lion's share of the acclaim, but Fox is clearly at their level, and this episode proves it.

    Equally remarkable is the work of Jorge Garcia. Hurley has been feeling useless, but now he emerges as the most unlikely of heroes, up to the point of bragging that he has taken out the Others on the beach. The sad part is, this may be the best moment of Hugo's life, and in a matter of minutes (relatively speaking) he will be struck back to zero
    .
    By the end of 'Through the Looking Glass' Ben is warning them that if this call, it will be the beginning of the end. And this episode is considering that the structure that exists. But one question has been answered--- rescue will come to the passengers of Oceanic 815. However, they probably won't be able to escape the island.
    My score: 10moreless

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    4 1

  • I'm not one to dish out 10's EVER, but I feel like sometimes, there are episodes of television that just set the standard for everything else. This is one of those episodes.moreless

    10
    "Perfect"
    By JaCkKbAuEr2424, Feb 06, 2011 Report Abuse
    As I mentioned in the summary, I've given maybe two 10's to episodes before, and I didn't give them easily. It's hard for a lot of episodes to symbolize perfection, mostly because there's always at least one little plotline that drags it down, or maybe some boring moments. However, Through The Looking Glass, along with a select few other television show episodes, is able to deliver with the intensity, action and mystery that the writers and directors promised, along with rebooting the show in one of the most amazing twists ever.

    Through The Looking Glass focuses on a plot that was introduced a couple episodes previous: Ben and the rest of the Others are planning on raiding the survivor's camp in order to kidnap their pregnant women. However, due to Juliet turning on them, Jack and the rest of the group are able to formulate a plan to kill the Others for good. While Jack prepares this, he also plans on taking the rest of the camp to a radio tower, where they'll use Naomi's phone to call for help on her freighter. While they set up that plan, everything hinges on Charlie, who prepares to face the death that Desmond had been predicting all season. He enters the Looking Glass station underwater only to find a couple of Others who are running the station. While he attempts to disarm the jamming mechanism that is preventing Jack from calling the freighter, he also most deal with these two women who want to stop him at any cost.. Oh yeah, and Ben is furious upon hearing about the freighter and treks across the island to stop them.

    I summarize all of this for people who haven't seen it (or even have seen it) because this two hour season finale never feels as long as it is. Each plot flows effortlessly into one another, and although we're given more questions as time goes on, a lot of them are wrapped up at the same time.. well, not wrapped up, but there's certainly some forward momentum, and that's good for a season that spent a majority of it wasting time doing nothing.

    There are a number of incredible moments that stand out above anything else the show has done, including the entire fight between the survivors and the Others. The anguish on Jack's face as he faces the reality that Sayid, Bernard and Jin may have to die in order for them to get rescued was heart-breaking and it was cathartic for us, the audience, to watch Ben once again get the crap beaten out of him.

    Through The Looking Glass isn't only an example of great television, but it shows how a show can sidestep growing stale by introducing a completely new story telling device. I always knew flashbacks would grow stale, but Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse set up the episode so we would have no idea what was going on. The flash forward was perfect, holding their cards to their chest until the final scene, where it's bookended with the promise of rescue.

    And who can say enough about Charlie's final appearance (at least as a main character)? It was a great death, not over hyped or over done, but filmed in a way that still made us feel great sadness. Charlie, along with Hurley, were always great comic reliefs, and the way the previous episode, Greatest Hits, tied in with this one almost makes me see Greatest Hits as equally important to this one. And the chills I get on seeing Charlie write "Not Penny's Boat" on his hand never goes away, even after a second or third viewing.

    It seems unlikely that Lost will able to one-up this finale, but the fact that a show can still provide impressive episodes like this is a testament to the show's talent. Nothing against the fourth and fifth season finales, but this one was perfect, not hinting at what the twist could be until the last few minutes. For a show that was threatening to grow stale and seemed to be close to losing people's interest, they come along with an episode like this and completely prove everybody wrong. One of the best two hours of TV I've seen, and I can't be budged on that.moreless

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    5 1

  • Season finale,end of lost

    9.5
    "Superb"
    By Porradocaralho2, Jan 22, 2011 Report Abuse
    I can't lie,lost was my favorite show ever,i used to watch everyday,everynight,the characters were awesome,the plots,the misterys,the dialogues,the deaths,the twists,everything.
    Now this season finale ends lost for me,because after this episode lost turns a unreal,cliche,random,forced and weak show,there is no sense anymore,the misterys are just like "because i'm dead,because he is my son,because i'm gonna kill jacob,because i can fly"Where the hell is claire?Some kind of demon just sucked up her soul??!What's with leaving sun alive and killing daniel?She sucks ass!And what's with the death fetish?ALL CHARACTERS I LOVED ARE DEAD!This is a very lame way to destroy a very good show =/moreless

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    4 31

  • It's been three years since this episode aired and I'm still picking my jaw up off the floor.

    10
    "Perfect"
    By JasonGOrtiz, Dec 25, 2010 Report Abuse
    Like Allen Iverson, Lost's writers are the kings of making you feel certain that they're going one way and in a flash go in the complete opposite direction, leaving you dead in your tracks with nary an option but to just sit and marvel at the level of creative trickery in their employ. It's been three years since this episode aired and I'm still picking my jaw up off the floor. By the final episodes of Lost's third season it was becoming fairly easy to predict what any given episode had in store: the unexpected. We all knew that the season finale would answer a few questions, raise even more and brilliantly leave us in anticipation of the next season. But just like watching the launch of a space shuttle, that awe-inspiring spectacle of man's ingenuity, the more times you see it, the less powerful it becomes. You still know it's a beautiful sight and recognize the amount of time and energy that went into it's creation, but the awe and wonder of that first viewing have started to fade. So how to dazzle an audience already desensitized by so many great plot twists? Hit them with something so unexpected that it makes them feel like they're watching it for the first time... again!

    And so, in what will go down as arguably the best cliffhanger in television history, those geniuses at the writer's table penned those famous final words that will be forever etched in my mind: "We have to go back, Kate. We Have To Go Back!!!" It was with those words that my jaw and my living room floor became good friends for the next few days... months... hell, I still haven't gotten over this one! There are very few occasions when something leaves me virtually speechless and in those rarest of moments I'm reduced to a decidedly ineloquent (some might even say vulgar) three word phrase. It's usually reserved for major events in my life that come out of nowhere and strike me with enough emotion that I just simply can't think of anything else to say. This may be the only time that a television show has elicited such a reaction. Indeed, just seconds after Jack reveals that what we have been watching are in fact flash-forwards to the present, I heard myself utter those three words that always signal the screeching halt of my brain functions: "Holy... sh*t... dude..."moreless

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    5 0
 

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • Numbers: The Others who are guarding Jin, Sayid and Bernard are said to have 4 guns when Juliet is talking to Sawyer. Edit
    • If the events on the Island are in fact taking place on Dec. 21 and 22, then that would be the Losties 91st and 92nd days on the Island. Edit
    • When the compartment floods, after Charlie seals the door, it would not fill all the way to the top with water, thus assuring Charlie's death. Briefly, the entire Looking Glass station is pressurized, as is the chamber where Charlie is. The water would flood no higher than the top of the porthole, due to the downward pressure of the air upon the rising water. The air pocket would provide a few minutes of air for Charlie to catch a breath and try to swim out. Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • Music: The song Jack is listening to on his way to the funeral home is "Scentless Apprentice" by Nirvana. Edit
    • This two-part episode was nominated for two 2008 Golden Reel Awards for Best Sound Editing: Dialogue and ADR for Long Form Television and for Best Sound Editing: Sound Effects and Foley for Long Form Television. This two-part episode was nominated for a 2008 Prism Award for Drama Episode. This two-part episode was nominated for a 2008 Eddie Award for Best Edited Miniseries or Motion Picture for Commercial Television. This two-part episode was nominated for a 2008 Excellence in Production Design Award for Television - Single Camera Television Series. This two-part episode was nominated for a 2008 DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series' - Night. Edit
    • International Air Dates: Belgium: November 12, 2007 on VT4 The Netherlands: November 23, 2007 on Net 5 Italy: Monday December 3, 2007 on Fox Spain: Monday December 17, 2007 on FOX TV Spain Finland: Thursday January 17, 2008 on Nelonen Macedonia: Thursday January 24, 2008 on A1 The Czech Republic: Sunday February 3, 2008 on TV Nova Switzerland: Moday, February 4, 2008 on SF ZWEI Germany: Monday, February 11, 2008 on Pro 7 Denmark: June 27, 2007 on Kanal 5 Greece: Tuesday, October 7, 2008 on ET1 Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Jack: He didn't mean it, you know. Kate: What? Jack: Sawyer. When he said he didn't want you to go with him, he didn't mean it. Kate: If he didn't mean it why did he say it? Jack: He was trying to protect you. That's why I asked you not to come back for me. Kate: Why are you sticking up for Sawyer? He'd never do it for you. Jack: Because I love you. Edit
    • Ben: May I have my walkie back? Jack: What? Ben: There's something you need to hear. Please? (Jack hands Ben the walkie-talkie) Ben: Thank you. Tom are you there? Tom: (over the walkie) Yeah, I'm here. Ben: (To Jack) Your plan killed seven of my people. But the ones that you failed to kill are now holding you friends, Jin, Sayid, Bernard, at gun point. Jack: And what's to stop me from snapping your neck? Ben: Tom, unless you hear my voice in one minute, shoot all three of them. Tom: Got it. Ben: (pulls out his watch) Bring me the phone, Jack. (struggling is heard over the walkie) 40 seconds. Jack: No, I'm getting them off the island. All of them! Ben: Let me ask you something, Jack. Why do you want to leave the island? What is it that you so desperately want to get back to? You have no one, your father's dead, your wife left you; moved on with another man. Can you just not wait to get back to the hospital? Get back to fixing things? (Jack moves forward) It's 20 seconds now, just get me the phone Jack. Jack: No. Ben: 10 seconds, bring me the phone. Jack: No. Ben: I'm not bluffing. Jack: I won't. Ben: 5 Jack: do it! Ben: 4, 3 Jack: No! (3 gun shots are heard over the walkie) Ben: I'm so sorry Jack. (Jack attacks Ben and beats him, he then picks up the walkie-talkie) Jack: Tom, are you there? Tom: Yeah Jack, I hear you. Jack: Im gonna' lead my people up the radio tower and I'm gonna make a call. And I'm gonna' get 'em all rescued, every one of them! And then I'm going to come and find you, and I'm gonna' kill ya. Edit
    • Jack: Every Friday night I, I fly from LA to Tokyo or, Singapore, Sydney. And then I, I get off and I, have a drink, and then I fly home. Kate: Why? Jack: Because I wanted to crash, Kate. I don't care about anybody else on board. Every little bump we hit or turbulence, I mean I, I actually close my eyes and I pray that I can get back. (Kate looks near tears as does Jack) Kate: This is not gonna change. Jack: No I'm sick of lying. We made a mistake. Kate: I have to go. He's gonna be wondering where I am... Jack: We were not supposed to leave. Kate: Yes we were. Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Fight Club: In the film the Narrator says, "Everytime the plane banked too sharply on takeoff or landing, I prayed for a crash or a midair collision." This mirrors what Jack says to Kate outside the airport at the end of the episode. Edit
    • "Scentless Apprentice": Jack is listening to this Nirvana song on the way to the funeral home. Nirvana singer/songwriter Kurt Cobain died on April 5th, the date Jack's newspaper was published. Edit
    • Myst: The 'unlocking' of the Looking Glass keyboard is very similar to one of the levels from the computer game Myst, where the player must recreate a tune on a keyboard inside a station on the island in order to unlock a secret world. Edit

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