"Lost" is chock full with religious symbolism

[Mr. Television]

http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune....-episodes.html

Thoughts on Locke, Starbuck and faith as 'Lost' nears 100 episodes

Scripted shows that overtly dwell on religion rarely do well. One need only look at NBC's worthy yet poorly treated and short-lived 2006 series "The Book of Daniel" for proof of that.

Perhaps viewers—or, more likely, broadcast networks—aren’t quite ready for a series that delves into specific faiths. Because they’re on the margins, genre shows such as “Supernatural” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” usually get away with the use of religious imagery and ideas. TNT’s “Saving Grace” has at least attempted to examine spiritual matters, but the drama has been frustratingly uneven in that arena (among others).

In any case, shows that are meant to be crowd-pleasers are usually skittish when it comes to the hard questions about faith, God and doubt.

Yet “Lost” (8 p.m. Central Wednesday, ABC), one of the most passionately followed shows in the history of television, has freely examined spiritual questions for five seasons. And “Battlestar Galactica ,” the show that most resembles “Lost” in ambition and density, concluded its fourth and final season as it had begun—with characters debating the existence and intentions of God.

Killer robots and polar bears—now I see what “The Book of Daniel” lacked!

In all seriousness, though, you have to give “Lost” top marks for timing. A few days before Easter (on Passover, actually), it broadcast an episode in which a character who had been dead but who had risen again received special orders from the unseen, powerful force that has been manipulating events.

From all indications—not least the beatific look on his face—John Locke (Terry O’Quinn) is now the island’s “chosen one.” To continue along this line of speculation, it’s hard not to see the crafty Ben Linus (Michael Emerson) as a fallen angel—one who thought he was fighting for the right cause but who may have lost his soul along the way.

Whatever Ben is—a fallen angel or just a manipulative man—he’s surely in hell now. The island, which subjected him to its Smokey-style “judgment day,” didn’t kill him, but he must live with the knowledge that he let his daughter die, and now he must serve Locke, whom Ben thinks is pathetic.

There are so many delicious layers of ambiguity when it comes to Locke and Ben, which is why their interactions are always so charged and intriguing. Which one is good, which one isn't? It's never quite clear (which is a testament to the show's writing and the actors' magnificently subtle performances. I wrote more on last week's Locke-Ben episode here, by the way).

Perhaps the island did really want Ben's daughter, Alex, to die, and perhaps Ben was spared because he was (like Abraham) willing to sacrifice his child. But why would the island want Alex dead? And is it necessarily a good thing that Locke is now serving that entity?

And just who or what is Locke, anyway? The title of the April 8 episode was “Dead Is Dead,” but is that really true?

For a man who died earlier this season, Locke has looked hale and hearty in recent episodes. If the title is accurate and he really is "dead," has the island brought him back to a certain kind of "life," in order to use him to for its own ends? Is he only alive when he's on or near the island?

Like Jack’s (Matthew Fox) father, Christian (John Terry), Locke came back to the island in a coffin, but now both are doing the bidding of whatever entity controls the island. That entity either is, or speaks through, the mysterious, unseen character Jacob. Meeting that guy ought to be interesting. I have no inside knowledge but it stands to reason that we'll have to meet Jacob sooner or later (and after we do, no doubt we'll have more questions than answers about him, knowing how "Lost" operates).

Kevin, a commenter on my most recent "Lost" post, pointed out recently that the journey of Kara "Starbuck" Thrace on "Battlestar" paralleled that of Locke -- both were "dead" but returned to the living in order to bring about certain events.

That comment left me pondering the lives -- and rebirths -- of Locke and Starbuck (as I drove to an Easter gathering on Sunday, as it happens).

Both characters sought redemption for their perceived sins. Both have spent time in kind of purgatory -- unsure of their purpose, mistrusted by others, wondering whether their existence has any meaning. Starbuck realized that being the "chosen one" was as much of a burden as a blessing, and Locke may yet find that to be true.

“All this has happened before and will happen again”—that was a phrase often heard on “Battlestar,” and characters on “Lost” have been debating whether they can change the past or the future. (And to digress for a moment, if the show has had one flaw in an otherwise strong and engrossing season, it’s that the time-travel math can be pretty confusing at times.)

But the good news is, even if certain events seem fated to occur (and re-occur), even if some people or civilizations appear fated to destroy themselves, personal redemption is possible. That's what “Lost” and "Battlestar" seem to be saying, to me, anyway. Even within epic time loops in which history seems to be repeating itself, individuals have some free will, and how that free will is exercised matters.

Tuning in every Wednesday? That’s no longer a matter of free will for “Lost” fans. Especially now that time’s running out on for the island drama. A recent ABC press release indicated that the show’s April 29 outing marks “Lost’s” 100th episode. And next season will be the series’ last.

God only knows what we’ll do when it’s over.