"Lost" Deus Ex Machina (2005)

User Rating:

9.0/10   

Director:

Robert Mandel

Writers:

Jeffrey Lieber (creator) and
J.J. Abrams (creator) ...

TV Series:

"Lost" (2004)

Original Air Date:

30 March 2005 (Season 1, Episode 19)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

Plot:

Locke and Boone build a trebuchet in an attempt to open the hatch, but Locke is injured when the trebuchet fails...

Plot Keywords:

Mysterious Island | Labrador Retriever | Plane Crash | Flashback | Survival

Cast

Naveen Andrews	...	Sayid Jarrah
Emilie de Ravin	...	Claire Littleton (credit only)
Matthew Fox	...	Jack Shephard
Jorge Garcia	...	Hugo 'Hurley' Reyes
Maggie Grace	...	Shannon Rutherford (credit only)
Josh Holloway	...	James 'Sawyer' Ford
Malcolm David Kelley	...	Walt Lloyd (credit only)
Daniel Dae Kim	...	Jin Kwon
Yunjin Kim	...	Sun Kwon
Evangeline Lilly	...	Kate Austen
Dominic Monaghan	...	Charlie Pace (credit only)
Terry O'Quinn	...	John Locke
Harold Perrineau	...	Michael Dawson
Ian Somerhalder	...	Boone Carlyle
Swoosie Kurtz	...	Emily Annabeth Locke

Runtime:

43 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Korean

Certification:

UK:15 | Portugal:M/12 | USA:TV-14 | Venezuela:PG-13 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

O'ahu, Hawaii, USA

Company:

Bad Robot

Trivia:

In the toy store flashback at the beginning of the episode, regulation footballs are on aisle 8, Nerf footballs are on aisle 15, referencing Oceanic flight 815.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Locke is shown in his flashback setting up the board game Mouse Trap at Walmart, a boy comes up to see the game. Locke goes over to talk to a women and tells the boy to turn the crank on the game. We see the first half of the trap go off, the scene cuts to the conversation Locke is having and we hear the noises of the Mouse Trap game going off until the last part when the cage drops, but then the sounds of the trap are looped or new sounds are played to make the trap seem longer than it actually is. Then before the flashback ends it cuts back to the board game showing the last half of the trap going off that would have really have been finished after a few seconds of Locke's conversation with the old lady.

Quotes:

Boone: [in Locke's hallucination] Theresa falls up the stairs. Theresa falls down the stairs. Theresa falls up the stairs. Theresa falls down the stairs. Theresa falls up the stairs. Theresa falls down the stairs. Theresa falls up the stairs.

The point where we realize the show has "done everything we wanted it to"

"This can't be happening. This is a misunderstanding. This can't happen to me. He wouldn't do this to me. He wouldn't do this to me!"

The sheer level of tragedy in John Locke's story continually seems to exceed itself throughout the series. It was perhaps most interesting, though, in season 1, during which the rest of the time, Locke was an almost mystical, seemingly all-knowing figure. Attributing moments of vulnerability and weakness to such a seemingly together man made for some of the most tragic moments in the series. "Walkabout" had Locke rejected for his dream trip due to a disability, which magically seemed cured on the island. In "Deus Ex Machina", however, there is less of a contrast; Locke's stories on and off the island both end in tragedy.

"Numbers" is often cited as the episode where Lost "really" began for some fans. However, I think the following episode, "Deus Ex Machina" makes more sense having this distinction in many ways. Firstly, it was the first ever writing collaboration between Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, who would later become the head writer and showrunner of Lost respectively, and would serve as the top two head honchos in all of the show's key decisions. The episode also saw great character moments stem from mythology advancements, and included a fatal injury that led to the first death of a main character. It even introduced the Nigerian drug plane, a key prop that would later impact the stories of multiple main characters. More than anything, though, "Deus Ex Machina" set up a new angle on the hatch storyline that would pave the way for the season's conclusion, and also for the entirety of season 2.

It was a turning point episode for Locke, too. He went from mystic old man to tragic hero, and the loss of Boone at his side hinted at a long journey of solitude to come. Furthermore, in his flashback, we saw the beginning of another legacy: Locke's father issues, the complexity of which rival only Jack's and Walt's. The episode is the earliest adult flashback of Locke we have seen to date, making its events the trigger that resulted in the sad Locke we've seen in most other flashbacks.

There's very little of negativity to say about the episode. Lindelof and Cuse's script is just as indicative as their later hits of their chemistry and talent when writing together. Director Robert Mandel helms a visual masterpiece of an episode, to an extent that was rare in the earlier seasons. Terry O'Quinn puts forth a fabulous, Emmy-nominated performance, offering what many fans including myself would call his most impressive scene to date in the episode's final moments. Swoozie Kurtz is also excellently chilling as Locke's vaguely insane mother, while Kevin Tighe marks the debut of his memorable guest-starring role as Anthony Cooper, and is as flawless and conniving as ever in the role. However, Ian Somerhalder deserves a special mention for his first truly amazing performance, in one of few episodes that gave Boone something of significance to do. His eerie appearance in Locke's dream, as well as all of his interactions throughout the episode with Locke, assure that the episode's A-plot has not a single moment of flaw.

The episode's subplot sees Jack prescribing Sawyer glasses at Kate's recommendation. The subplot is nowhere near as exciting as the main action, and is frankly just a little cheesy and annoying in general. However, it is well-written, and has a few laughs, although Sayid's cameo (in the only season 1 episode in which he remains silent) as the man brought in to make new glasses for Sawyer is almost laughable.

Overall, though, it's hard to find anything worth complaining about in the episode. To me, it's been top 10 material for a long time, and is an absolutely iconic and essential episode in the history of the show. Bringing John Locke to center-stage sets the tone for the remainder of the season, and for the next few seasons of the show. Locke's struggle with his own destiny. For the only time in a long time, Locke's reveals his former paralysis to someone on the island, Boone. Upon being questioned about it, Locke simply shrugs it off, hoping to free himself from his past, but still finding himself occasionally crippled by his memories.

"It doesn't matter anymore. But, but, this island, it changed me. It made me whole. Now it's trying to take it back and I don't know why. But it wants me to follow what I saw."

Standout performances: Terry O'Quinn, Kevin Tighe, Ian Somerhalder.

Standout scene: Locke banging on the hatch in anger.