Jack, Hurley, and the Real Hero of Lost

 Lost is an interesting show. It's not a story that gives away all it's secrets at once, heck. Some of it's secrets aren't even explained at the end.

One place where it's surprising though, is the hero.

The beginning of the show, we have Jack Shephard.

Jack is obviously the hero. He's a doctor with daddy issues, he's the de facto leader of the survivors, and he's vaguely good-looking to boot, ladies! You think that you know exactly who Jack is, and where his story-arc is going. You know, because he's the designated hero.
But as the series goes, you (or at least I did) start to get really irritated with Jack. His actions are selfish, haphazard, and ultimately self-serving. Gradually, the squeaky voice and compulsive head-bob that you initially found funny start to get grating. And eventually, you just want to smack Jack for his bottomless stupidity.
I think that Rose put it best when she chewed Jack out in Season 5.

It's been this long, and you people [Jack, Kate, Sawyer, The Others, etc...] are still trying to find ways to kill each other!

What makes it worse is that, for all his guilt issues and sorrow, there's about a hundred more pounds of Hero Complex.

You don't even have to think about it that long to realize that Jack is not the hero we thought he would be in the beginning. So if Jack isn't the hero, then who is?
In our main cast we have, among many others Kate (a convict on the run for blowing up her abusive step-dad), Sawyer (a jerk who nobody likes, and he's cool with that), Charlie (a rock star with a drug problem), and 'Hurley'.

Like Jack, at the beginning, you think you know exactly who Hurley, or Hugo Reyes, is. He's the funny fat guy who arranges golf tournaments and faints at the sight of blood. And you know, for a while he is. Then as you learn more about Hurley, you see that there is WAY more to him than what meets the eye, and that's what makes him such an awesome character. One of the first things you learn about Hurley is that when he makes up his mind- he is a force to be reckoned with. There is absolutely no stopping him once he's set his mind to something. He's a total determinator.

I mean look at that smile. Who could resist that?

Hurley's also one of the few characters who hasn't done anything really horrible or sinful in his past. Kate had understandable and sympathetic motivation, but she still committed murder. Charlie has a lovely redemptive ending to his story arc, but he was still a drug-addled rock star. And Jack spent most of his time arguing with his Ex-Wife. I won't even get started with Sawyer or Ana Lucia.

Aside from Rose and Bernard Nadler and probably Claire, Hurley is the only character who led a relatively good life. By 'good life' I don't mean he was always happy or had a perfect family life (he wasn't and didn't), but I mean he was a good person doing his best. He's very normal, and very relatable.

Because Hurley is normal when compared to the rest of the cast, you're tricked into thinking that there isn't anything special about him, and that he won't be that important in the long run. As it turns out though, Hugo Reyes is one of the most important characters in the entire story.

I mean, there's a reason you look forward to Hurley Episodes like Everybody Hates Hugo, and dread Jack episodes like Stranger in a Strange Land.

Desmond and Charlie

:)



I hope I rendered Charlie Brown decently. XD He belongs to Charles Shultz, by the way. Just in case some internet busy-body comes along and accuses me of stealing a beloved character that's older than I am.
Cheers,
Xochitl

Lost (Season One) Original Television Soundtrack [2004]

It's not secret that I really like Lost. It's not a flawless show, and there are quite a few things I would change about it, but one of the things I would keep exactly the same is the music. Michael Giacchino's score for the show is one of the best soundtracks I've ever heard (in my relatively short time on yon earth), better than some movie scores I've heard. The music really is the soul of the show.
Because the soundtracks are quite long, I thought I'd just pick my favorites to ramble drunkely about.
Just kidding. Don't drink, kids. ;)

Track 4: Credit Where Credit is Due
This is the music that plays over the opening credits in the pilot episode, while Jack is walking through the wreckage. It's a very mellow, sort of wistful melody that pops in lots of different tracks, kind of serving as the main theme.That's something I love about Mr. Giacchino- his use of leitmotif. It feels like the music develops with the characters. I know a few people who say that repeating a theme is just lazy musicianship, but I think it's beautiful.

Track 9: Crocodile Locke
Rather ominous and dark sounding, this track uses some interesting percussion(sounds kind of like water droplets) and sounds like the persona that John Locke is trying to project- the Mr. Confident Super Survivor type. Hence the title. XD

Track 10: Win One For the Reaper
This is sort of a lighter, more upbeat sounding version of the Life and Death theme, heard later on the soundtrack. I love this one because there's some very nice guitar work in the background. Mr. Giacchino mostly uses piano, strings, harp, and percussion in his music for Lost, so it feels kind of special when there's a track with guitar or ukulele.

Track 12: Charlie Hangs Around
This track has some classic 'Lost' sounding action music. That is, pounding drums, shrieking violins(I mean that in the best possible way), and booming brass. Later in the track is another version of Life and Death, with a harp playing part of the melody.

Track 16: We're Friends
Otherwise known as 'The Claire Theme'. This song is very gentle and bright sounding, and the melody is carried mostly in the strings.

Track 18: Thinking Clairely
I think this plays after Claire escapes from the others, but has lost a lot of her memory. Then Charlie and her take a walk and my sister goes "Awww, they're together!!". It's got the same kind of feel as We're Friends, but with a slightly more up-tempo melody.

Track 19: Locke'd Out Again.
Remember Crocodile Locke? Well this song sort of represents what a sad, hurt man there is underneath Mr. Confident Tough Guy. Even though he becomes more ruthless and even kind of evil as the series goes on, Locke just strikes me as a very sad character. he desperately need something to trust in, something to hold onto and grasp, and at this point he's just lost. In every sense of the word. I think that his later lapse into evil is largely influenced by that. This song really gives us a look into the sad, confused mind of the character. Aside from being intense and powerful, this is a very gorgeous song.

Track 20: Life and Death
This song plays over the first major character death, but also right after Claire gave birth to her baby. Hence the title. Ahem. The Life and Death leitmotif plays over nearly every character death in the series, and appears in every season. It's beautiful and bittersweet, and perhaps best of all- easy to play on the piano! :D

Track 22: Shannonigans
This one is basically a reprise of Locke'd Out Again, but softer and less intense sounding.

Track 23: Kate's Motel
After listening to various tracks and seeing where they play, I have deduced that this is the Kate theme. The title might also have something to do with it. ;) [Hooray for Psycho puns!]
This track is kind of suspenseful, and I thought it sounded kind of like the Latin funeral hymn Dies Irae. Not the version by Mozart, but the plainchant version.

Track 24: I've Got a Plane to Catch!
Whoa, this one is a really abrupt change from the past few tracks. I've Got a Plane to Catch plays in a flashback sequence that shows Hurley rushing through the airport to- you guess it. Catch his plane. There's guitar in this one, and it's just a very playful sounding song.

Track 27: Oceanic 815
Here's the song that finishes out the season, so it's a combination of suspense and emotion. There's a very beautiful reprise of the Life and Death theme (how many times am I going to be saying that in these reviews? XD), and a little bit of Credit Where Credit is Due.

The Verdict: A+
Top Three Favorite Tracks: Locke'd Out Again, Life and Death, and Kate's Motel.







...It's fun to embed videos.
Adios Amigos!
-Xochitl

Peanut Butter

There's a sweet little scene Lost that involves Charlie trying to find Claire some Peanut Butter. Well, he fails. He comes back to Claire with an empty jar, and acts like it's full of peanut butter. Claire of course, is charmed and thinks it's really sweet. But for comedic purposes- what if Claire hadn't been so touched? ;D

I fail at drawing hats. :P

The Cast of Lost

Here's the (most of) the cast of Lost as of Season One. I forgot Rose, Danielle, and Ethan. But who wants to see an Ethan Chibi, anyway? XD

Jack: Well... Here he is. I don't think I really did anything special with him. You know, he's Jack. He doesn't really have a distinct 'look'.
Kate: Kate came out really well. I don't know if you can tell, but I gave her a backpack. XD
Charlie: Hmmm, I drew his mouth open. Probably singing "You all everybody!!"
Sawyer: He's got a gun. And he just shot himself a Polar Bear.
Sayid: I like how Sayid came out. I wasn't too sure about how his facial hair looked, so I made a wild guess.
John Locke: He's covered in blood and sweat from his last boar hunt. And he's apparently taken Boone in as his Padawan Learner, or something.
Jin: Urgh... I am not too pleased with this chibi... Let's move on as quickly as possible...
Sun: Sun looks a lot better. I tried to draw her face looking kind of nervous, but she just looks depressed. :P
Michael: Yikes Michael, that shirt with those pants? Bad coloring job on my part. XD I swear though, I think he was wearing that outfit in one of the episodes.
Walt: Without Vincent. I wish I could draw animals, but the last time that was attempted, it ended in disaster.
Claire: She's got her hat, so she's happy. Yes. That's supposed to be a hat.
Hurley(Hugo): Aww, I love Hurley. He's looking typically anxious. I guess the poor guy just doesn't want to be the one around when Claire has more 'baby stuff'.
Boone: Is it just me, or does Boone have kind of... creepy eyes? Well, even if it's just me, I'm still drawing him with these weird blankish eyes.
Shannon: "Ugh! Boone! Stop being such a load! Hey, hey Charlie! Catch me a fish! C'mon Sawyer, give me back my inhaler! Never mind. Sayid! Kiss me, baby!"
Ahem. I drew her in that pink outfit that I think she was wearing on the pilot.

So there they are. As the series goes on, I'm probably going to have to cover Ben Linus, Juliet, Miles... Urgh... I have a long journey ahead... XD
-Xochitl

Don't Tell Locke What He Can't Do

Anybody else seen the show Lost? We're currently plowing our way through Season 1.
Anyway, looks like Boone the creepy-eyed sister kisser has just gotten on John Locke's bad side. Again. Probably not for the last time.

 



Sorry about the strange blue quality of this picture. I honestly have no idea why the picture came out that way. But I let it lie, because the colors in this one aren't too important, and you can still clearly read the dialogue. :)
Cheerio!
-Xochitl