Let wonder replace worry

LOST: John Locke

I have been wanting to write about Locke since Wednesday, but really needed to watch the episode again. I finally got that chance tonight - so here are some thoughts on John Locke's journey off the island and back:

As John Locke sets off on his mission to bring everyone back, he quickly realizes that everyone has moved on. Jack's a doctor, Kate's a mom, Sun has a baby. Sayid joined Habitat for Humanity, and Hurley is content. Not only have they moved on, they have moved on without the island. Locke begins to doubt his own "We are all here for a reason" speeches he was so well known for. The man of faith begins to doubt in the very thing he was prepared to give his life to save.

This leads John Locke into a depression and the only option he has left is what Richard told him back on the island - he must die. I think John had given up on whole island business. He did not care anymore - he just wanted to die. Then Ben knocks on the door. Remember, Ben knows that Locke needs to die to get back to the island. But he does something interesting. He restores him. Tells him that he is not a failure. Says that Jack has booked a ticket, just get Jack and you'll get the rest. Ben talks him down from the ledge. John Locke's faith is restored.

I've read in a couple of different places that when Locke mentioned Ms. Hawkings name Ben snapped and decided to kill him. I don't buy it. Ben had bleach and latex gloves with him for a reason. Everything Benjamin Linus does is calculated, and the mention of a name did not cause him to do something he was not planning on doing. Why not let Locke just kill himself? He had lost his faith. Ben could not let Locke die until his faith in the island had been restored. That by giving up on the island and taking him own life, he would never be raised.  Thereby, Ben restored him, kills him and stages it to look like a suicide. This got it into the newspaper and got Jack to the funeral.

Back on the island, John Locke has risen from the dead. Those from the flight found him standing in the ocean - a symbol of his baptism. He was a loser off the island. No one would listen to him. He was weak, crippled, and manipulated. I'm not sure that outside deciding to kill himself he ever made a decision without being manipulated into it. John Locke on the island is a completely different person than the man he is off the island. Standing in that water with the mango, the old John Locke (Jeremy Bentham) was dead. John Locke is now focused, faithful, and ready to fulfill his destiny.

One thing I can't figure out. Why did everyone only refer to Locke as Jeremy Bentham last season and yet in none of the conversations in this episode did we saw did Locke introduce himself as Jeremy Bentham? I get that was his new identity, but he never told any of the Oceanic 6 to call him that. He did not tell Walt either, who showed up to see Hurley at the hospital last season asking about Jeremy Bentham. How did he know to call him that?

Some other random thoughts:

It took me until the end of the episode Wednesday night to figure out that the plane landed on the smaller Hydra Island we learned about in season 3. That is where they are - I have no idea when they are.

I think that will be the last time we see Walt. Tons of story potential there, but the actor was not into the part at all.

The people from the plane told Locke that the pilot and a woman took off in the canoe. Had to be Sun. They are heading back to the main island to find Jin. Not sure if they will find him, unless they have all landed in the same time.

Who in the world did Juliet shoot in the other canoe a couple of episodes ago?

LOST: Season 5

The beautiful thing about this show is that it is not about being lost on an island at all, but about being lost as human beings. Without being “found“ while on the island, everyone who left fell much deeper into the depravity they lived in before the plane crash. Now (as from the beginning of the series) we see characters in need of and actively searching for redemption both on and off the island.

So far, season 5 has been about reinterpreting the first 4 seasons with the knowledge we know now. The time travel puts everything in question - and the writers have got to be extremely careful here. If they begin answering questions and explaining away inconsistencies with time travel - I’ll lose a lot of faith in the show. Up to this point though, they have handled it well. I’m not a Si-fi person at all - much more attracted to the depravity and redemption woven so deeply into the fabric of LOST - but I’m loving the time travel so far.

What an awesome testimony for Locke. Remembering (and actually seeing) the night Boone dies and he collapsed on top of the hatch. WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME??? WHY??? Looking back later Locke says “I needed that pain, it got me to where I am now.” We all have memories and testimonies like that on our journey of faith.

Sawyer stood in the jungle watching Kate deliver Claire’s baby as a different person than he was when that scene happened in Season 1. We are seeing Sawyer being changed and redeemed from who he was. It was touching.

Both of these things happened as the group was trying to make it back to The Orchid. The Island obviously does not want that to happen. It is throwing everything it can in their way.

Why is Juliet not staying with the rest of the others? Is it because she got “branded” in season 3? I’m starting to think Juliet will never make it off the island. She may be doomed.

The theory from the first episode of this season about Miles being Pierre Chang’s son is all but confirmed now. The bloody noses are getting on my nerves. Daniel knew exactly what to tell Desmond last season during “The Constant” to make it stop - now he can’t finish a sentence. He said the sickness is like bad jetlag, which makes no sense. This is what will eventually kill everyone on the Island if the Ocenaic 6 don’t go back.

Speaking of Daniel, his parents will be Charles Widmore and Ms. Hawking.

How does Sun know that Ben caused the freighter to explode by killing Keamy? Did Locke explain what really happened to her off island? Therefore, Locke must not have known that Jin survived the explosion. If this is the case, how in the world did Locke think this news would make Sun want to return?

How long was Sayid unconscious?  42 hours. Whoever is after him obviously wants him alive.

Seeing Danielle’s crew at the end was cool - not a shocker at all though. I knew who they were as soon as I saw the raft.

The tempo of the show has completely changed since it was decided there would only be 6 seasons. That was the best thing they could have done.

Can’t wait for Wednesday night...

2008 National Spelling Bee

I've never been to a spelling bee and the only time I can remember watching one was when they would make fun of them on that show Cheap Seats that was on ESPN Classic.

So when a high school student told me to watch to watch a YouTube video about a spelling bee, I could not imagine what I was in for.

So what happens when a boy-genius can’t figure out what the announcer is saying? Laughter. That’s what happens.

You gotta see the first minute.

American Idol

Nicole and I did not even watch American Idol tonight. It seems like the longer this season has drug on, the less we care about it. Obviously David Archuleta the best singer in the competition and I am sure he will win it tomorrow night. And I really feel sorry for him.

It truly seems as if his entire life has been directed toward this moment. He is only 17 and clips show him crashing the show years ago; winning his first singing competition at 10, and as a veteran Star Search competitor. Perhaps the saddest thing is that he has a classic over-bearing show-biz dad- who was banned from being backstage a couple of weeks ago.

Its sad to say, but he looks to me like a Michael Jackson in the making: a brilliant talent sacrificed to the cult of celebrity and stardom at so young an age that his own emotional and spiritual development has been frozen. Think about anytime he is asked to speak- he has nothing to say, except a Bambi-style mode of total humility, amazement and innocence.

I feel for him and it is so sad that no one can rescue him from the machine that is about to consume him.

Seinfeld

I used a clip from Seinfeld during Middle School Youth Group tonight and only 2 students knew what the show was. I explained the characters before showing it. Sure, they were not even in school when it went off the air, but man it made me feel old.

They all did enjoy the clip though.

Friday Night Lights

I was excited to read today that Friday Night Lights has been picked up for a third season. I had about decided that the show was doomed.

While it is true that the second season dragged a little, season one should be required viewing for anyone who works in youth ministry. It gave such an incredible look into the lives and struggles of teens today.

LOST

With season 4 a month away, I have been re-watching LOST Season 1 over the past few days.

I am not sure what I am going to do with it just yet, but there are 5 scenes that I have marked in that first season that would fit perfectly into a series of youth ministry talks, especially a summer camp.

I usually speak at 2 camps each summer. How cool would it be to base the whole week on LOST?

Faith, redemption, bad things happening to good people, destiny, running from a past that haunts you, trust, suffering, honor, these are a few of the themes that are packed into that first season. I could definitely build a camp around any of these.

It seems that these themes, especially those of redemption, faith, and destiny are not as much apart of the next two seasons as they are of the first.

Give Dad a call

I saw this clip on a news show tonight. Jenna Bush was being interviewed on The Ellen Show. (Back to yesterday's post for a second, I think it is amazing that Ellen can still do shows without her team or writers. I've never watched her show, but just that she is the only one in the industry doing that is a testament to her talent.) Anyway, Ellen talked Jenna into giving her dad a call. It is easy to see the love and respect she has for her dad and it is fun to seem them interacting as a "regular" family.

Who needs TV? (Or what I've been doing during the writers strike.)

When you only have a few tv shows that you like to watch each week, it does not take long for the networks to run out of episodes now that the writers have been on strike for a few weeks. This has not kept me from staying busy though. Here is what I've been up to:

I have been doing a lot of reading. Both books and magazines. Fast Company and Reason are 2 magazines I cannot get enough of. Along with my regular selection of GQ, Wired, Men's Health, Rolling Stone, and ESPN magazine. As for books, (not ministry related) I just finished a Clive Cussler novel and also found a great book at the library called "The dangerous book for boys." I loved it! This is the first book I am going to buy my son. A perfect father/son book.

I hardly ever get around to playing my Playstation 2, but I have had some extra time the past couple of weeks. NCAA football and Tiger Woods PGA Tour are my addictions at the moment.

Finally, I have been spending time watching a couple of shows over at Revision3. What a great idea to have an Internet TV station where viewers can watch any episode, anytime they want. This is the future. Tekzilla (Tech show) and Web Drifter (Comedy) are the 2 shows I have been watching. I love the idea of free TV coming into my iTunes when released and me watching whenever is convenient.

So, all of this has made me not miss the shows I watch much at all. I wonder if this strike will send a message to the studios, networks, and writers that TV is not nearly as important to people in this age as it was even just a few years ago? We have options, many of them. I say strike on!

Buy Nothing Day

Nicole and I (unknowingly) participated this year.

It was much more fun staying home, watching the guys down home in Arkansas beat the top team in the nation.

Tomorrow is Washington and Washington State battle for the Apple Cup. Neither team has had a great year, but they seem to match up pretty well. Should be a good game. I'm just going to pull for whoever gets behind first.