Lost 1.20: "Do No Harm"
Written by Janet Tamaro
Directed by Stephen Williams
In which Jack struggles to save Boone’s life, going to extremes in the process, while Claire finally goes into labor, forcing Kate and Charlie to help her deliver the baby safely…
Status Report
For quite some time now, the writers have been building up several plot and character threads, slowly but surely setting the stage for several ugly situations culminating in the season finale. An example of one that has been simmering the background since “White Rabbit” has been the dynamic between Jack and Locke. Jack has emerged as the leader of the camp in a “political” sense, while Locke has emerged as something more of a “spiritual” leader. Jack has been questioning Locke’s motives and decisions for some time now, and in this episode, those concerns come to a head.
Which is not to say that Locke is the only one with serious psychological issues. If the previous episode revealed the depth of Locke’s confused self-delusion, fed partially by the many things that seem to happen for a reason he thinks he understands, then this episode is all about Jack and his need for control. Or more correctly, his obsessive need to ensure that he has done everything in his power to resolve a situation. The more traumatic the problem, the more driven Jack is to find the solution or die trying.
Jack’s effort to save Boone’s life continues a trend that has been in place since the beginning of the season. Like the Marshall in the first couple of episodes, Jack goes to extreme lengths, long past the good of his patient, to work some kind of miracle. He can’t give up on anything, and as the previous episodes have demonstrated, a lot of that has to do with his father’s attitude. Jack developed an overwhelming need to make things right, an unwavering moral code that borders on the pathological.
Boone’s condition is too critical for recovery from the moment he arrives in camp. It’s simply a matter of time and how long Jack is willing to let the man suffer in some heroic refutation of reality. Even before the situation goes from bad to incredibly worse when Claire goes into labor, Jack shows a distinct lack of judgment. Part of it is his medical code; hence “Do No Harm”. But most doctors don’t have to deal with a dearth of resources and horribly septic conditions, with no chance of getting more supplies.
It comes down to a question of triage, and all things being equal, most people (including many doctors) would have turned to Claire and her baby instead of spending every moment on a man with no chance of survival. At the very least, Jack should have sent Sun to help Kate and Charlie with Claire, so that someone with basic understanding of health (essentially, a nurse in this situation) could help. Sure, women have been giving birth in natural conditions for millennia, but it’s also quite true that the morality rate is naturally high in return.
So for all that this episode focuses on Boone’s slow death and Claire’s labor, the episode is really about Jack. This is a hero with a serious flaw, and it’s not the kind of flaw that is easily identified. This isn’t “hubris” or “cowardice” or some kind of physical addiction. It’s a deep-seated psychological defect caused by decades of dealing with a horrible father. And Jack has come to identify, over time, Locke as a father figure. Jack sees many of the flaws in his own father reflected in Locke.
This presents the two men with a major problem. Locke has advocated from the beginning a “purging of demons”, the attainment of “tabula rasa” wherein the sins of the past are washed away through the transformative experience offered by the island. For Jack, that involves moving past the psychological control that his father has achieved in his life. With Jack’s father dead, Locke has come to fill that psychological role. For Jack to become the man he needs to be, even from Locke’s point of view, Jack must establish his dominance and independence from Locke himself.
Jack’s obsessive need to save Boone is tied to this psychological drive. Locke, like Jack’s father in “All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues”, dumped a dying patient in Jack’s arms under deceptive circumstances. So like that previous episode, Jack is forced to fight a losing battle. Every moment between Jack and Locke has been leading to this juncture. One moment of narrative beauty takes place when Jack says, without pretense, “Don’t tell me what I can’t do!” It’s a moment that defies simple explanation; the writers are clearly operating on a different level.
That makes the flashback to Jack’s marriage a bit of a non-sequitur. Sure, it relates to Jack’s inability to make a healthy decision for himself, since he marries a woman who he doesn’t really want to marry. He does it out of an inflated sense of obligation, and since he’s not wearing a wedding ring, it’s likely that the marriage didn’t go well. Thematically it works, but it’s almost like the writers felt a need to dump in a flashback and figured that this was a good choice. (In retrospect, wouldn’t it have been better to switch this flashback with the one from “All the Best Cowboys…”?)
So much emphasis is placed on Jack that the rest of the characters could have easily been ignored. If anything, where the plot was less than subtle and oddly straightforward, the character psychologies were incredibly complex. Motivations weren’t plain as day; characters acted like real people, their internal dialogues hidden away instead of dumped on the audience through bad exposition.
Kate is, as usual, handy in a crisis, though even she seemed to be stunned at first. She’s obviously not happy about Jack’s obsessive commitment thing. If there’s a solid reason why she’s failed to attach herself completely to Jack in some form of relationship, that is a major factor. Kate doesn’t like to be tied down and denied options, and if anything, this situation brings out the thing that scares Kate the most about Jack. But when push comes to shove, as shown earlier in the season, Kate finds a way.
Sawyer doesn’t have much of a role in this episode, but that’s because his part of the story is still tied to the eventual completion of the raft, which is almost certainly going to coincide with the season finale. It’s a shock to see him immediately offer what he has to the cause, especially when he asks if there’s anything more he can do. Slowly but surely, Sawyer’s humanity is shining through.
Charlie’s role transitions into the befuddled and intensely shaken assistant for Jack (perhaps knowing how close he’s come to Boone’s situation himself) to the odd role of “expectant father”. In both cases, he’s out of his depth. His character is clearly meant to have more of a role in caring for Claire’s child (at least, as far as his intentions go). This could go in a couple different directions, but two are most probable: either they will get closer when Charlie takes a fatherly role, or he will do something to derail that relationship permanently despite his good intentions.
The latter option looks like it might come crashing down on Sayid and Shannon in short order. Sayid’s little picnic was certainly romantic, but the timing couldn’t have been worse. Shannon is probably never going to forgive herself for not being there at the end, especially since things weren’t very good with Boone since their carnal encounter before the crash. If the writers take the predictable route, Shannon could reject Sayid, transferring her guilt onto him.
Jin continues to display a certain degree of altruism. Some might have found his help in this episode surprising, but he has often shown moments of kindness and community in small bursts this season. This is perhaps the most overt moment yet, where he actually comes close to acting like a member of the gang. It doesn’t change the fact that he still rejects any hint of personal transformation, but it’s a nice change.
Sun, as mentioned, is becoming more and more of a “nurse”, though it’s not quite the right term. It’s more true to say that Sun is becoming the holistic doctor to Jack’s more Western version. Sun should be instrumental to Jack’s future growth, because she can help him find new ways to expand his perspective. Or, alternatively, if he is killed in the impending power struggle, she is gaining ground in becoming a viable replacement.
Michael seems awfully prepared to help Jack lob off Boone’s leg, which is somewhat odd. It’s not very clear from his previous characterization why he would be so willing to go along with something that represents an excessive point of view. Perhaps it’s simply that he doesn’t care, because he’s going along with whatever happens until the raft is ready. Walt doesn’t have much to do in the episode either, though it ought to be fun if he decides, once the raft is built, to resist again.
Locke doesn’t show up at all in this episode, but his presence looms large over everything that takes place. Technically, he’s now the only person who might have knowledge of the outside world, if he overheard what Boone was saying (or found something behind the hatch). If Locke comes out of the hatch with some greater understanding of the island (real or imaginary), he could strengthen his support among some of the survivors. This could feed into a battle between those who support Jack and those who support Locke. Since the two have been essentially on the same side, that would represent a major shift.
This episode presents a new sets of challenges for the survivors (and the series). There’s now a baby in the equation, which is likely to play into future plot threads related to “Raised by Another”. The raft will be complete by the end of the season, which is likely to bring Walt’s plot thread to a head. The impending battle for power between Jack and Locke could drive a massive wedge between the survivors. And overall, the survivors now have few if any medical supplies available should there be another major accident. As expected, the season is coming together in a massive series of highly charged culminations of carefully plotted character arcs, and the result is nothing short of exceptional.
Final Analysis
Overall, this was one of the best episodes of the season. While the events were more or less predictable, especially the symbolism of the final act, the strength of the episode lies in the complex and long-developed psychology of Jack’s character. The writers have been carefully bringing Jack and Locke toward conflict, and this episode is the trigger point. In clever fashion, the writers place Jack and Locke and their relationship into perspective, all while keeping the audience on the edge of its seat.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 3/4
Final Rating: 9/10
Season Average (as of 1.20): 8.0
Directed by Stephen Williams
In which Jack struggles to save Boone’s life, going to extremes in the process, while Claire finally goes into labor, forcing Kate and Charlie to help her deliver the baby safely…
Status Report
For quite some time now, the writers have been building up several plot and character threads, slowly but surely setting the stage for several ugly situations culminating in the season finale. An example of one that has been simmering the background since “White Rabbit” has been the dynamic between Jack and Locke. Jack has emerged as the leader of the camp in a “political” sense, while Locke has emerged as something more of a “spiritual” leader. Jack has been questioning Locke’s motives and decisions for some time now, and in this episode, those concerns come to a head.
Which is not to say that Locke is the only one with serious psychological issues. If the previous episode revealed the depth of Locke’s confused self-delusion, fed partially by the many things that seem to happen for a reason he thinks he understands, then this episode is all about Jack and his need for control. Or more correctly, his obsessive need to ensure that he has done everything in his power to resolve a situation. The more traumatic the problem, the more driven Jack is to find the solution or die trying.
Jack’s effort to save Boone’s life continues a trend that has been in place since the beginning of the season. Like the Marshall in the first couple of episodes, Jack goes to extreme lengths, long past the good of his patient, to work some kind of miracle. He can’t give up on anything, and as the previous episodes have demonstrated, a lot of that has to do with his father’s attitude. Jack developed an overwhelming need to make things right, an unwavering moral code that borders on the pathological.
Boone’s condition is too critical for recovery from the moment he arrives in camp. It’s simply a matter of time and how long Jack is willing to let the man suffer in some heroic refutation of reality. Even before the situation goes from bad to incredibly worse when Claire goes into labor, Jack shows a distinct lack of judgment. Part of it is his medical code; hence “Do No Harm”. But most doctors don’t have to deal with a dearth of resources and horribly septic conditions, with no chance of getting more supplies.
It comes down to a question of triage, and all things being equal, most people (including many doctors) would have turned to Claire and her baby instead of spending every moment on a man with no chance of survival. At the very least, Jack should have sent Sun to help Kate and Charlie with Claire, so that someone with basic understanding of health (essentially, a nurse in this situation) could help. Sure, women have been giving birth in natural conditions for millennia, but it’s also quite true that the morality rate is naturally high in return.
So for all that this episode focuses on Boone’s slow death and Claire’s labor, the episode is really about Jack. This is a hero with a serious flaw, and it’s not the kind of flaw that is easily identified. This isn’t “hubris” or “cowardice” or some kind of physical addiction. It’s a deep-seated psychological defect caused by decades of dealing with a horrible father. And Jack has come to identify, over time, Locke as a father figure. Jack sees many of the flaws in his own father reflected in Locke.
This presents the two men with a major problem. Locke has advocated from the beginning a “purging of demons”, the attainment of “tabula rasa” wherein the sins of the past are washed away through the transformative experience offered by the island. For Jack, that involves moving past the psychological control that his father has achieved in his life. With Jack’s father dead, Locke has come to fill that psychological role. For Jack to become the man he needs to be, even from Locke’s point of view, Jack must establish his dominance and independence from Locke himself.
Jack’s obsessive need to save Boone is tied to this psychological drive. Locke, like Jack’s father in “All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues”, dumped a dying patient in Jack’s arms under deceptive circumstances. So like that previous episode, Jack is forced to fight a losing battle. Every moment between Jack and Locke has been leading to this juncture. One moment of narrative beauty takes place when Jack says, without pretense, “Don’t tell me what I can’t do!” It’s a moment that defies simple explanation; the writers are clearly operating on a different level.
That makes the flashback to Jack’s marriage a bit of a non-sequitur. Sure, it relates to Jack’s inability to make a healthy decision for himself, since he marries a woman who he doesn’t really want to marry. He does it out of an inflated sense of obligation, and since he’s not wearing a wedding ring, it’s likely that the marriage didn’t go well. Thematically it works, but it’s almost like the writers felt a need to dump in a flashback and figured that this was a good choice. (In retrospect, wouldn’t it have been better to switch this flashback with the one from “All the Best Cowboys…”?)
So much emphasis is placed on Jack that the rest of the characters could have easily been ignored. If anything, where the plot was less than subtle and oddly straightforward, the character psychologies were incredibly complex. Motivations weren’t plain as day; characters acted like real people, their internal dialogues hidden away instead of dumped on the audience through bad exposition.
Kate is, as usual, handy in a crisis, though even she seemed to be stunned at first. She’s obviously not happy about Jack’s obsessive commitment thing. If there’s a solid reason why she’s failed to attach herself completely to Jack in some form of relationship, that is a major factor. Kate doesn’t like to be tied down and denied options, and if anything, this situation brings out the thing that scares Kate the most about Jack. But when push comes to shove, as shown earlier in the season, Kate finds a way.
Sawyer doesn’t have much of a role in this episode, but that’s because his part of the story is still tied to the eventual completion of the raft, which is almost certainly going to coincide with the season finale. It’s a shock to see him immediately offer what he has to the cause, especially when he asks if there’s anything more he can do. Slowly but surely, Sawyer’s humanity is shining through.
Charlie’s role transitions into the befuddled and intensely shaken assistant for Jack (perhaps knowing how close he’s come to Boone’s situation himself) to the odd role of “expectant father”. In both cases, he’s out of his depth. His character is clearly meant to have more of a role in caring for Claire’s child (at least, as far as his intentions go). This could go in a couple different directions, but two are most probable: either they will get closer when Charlie takes a fatherly role, or he will do something to derail that relationship permanently despite his good intentions.
The latter option looks like it might come crashing down on Sayid and Shannon in short order. Sayid’s little picnic was certainly romantic, but the timing couldn’t have been worse. Shannon is probably never going to forgive herself for not being there at the end, especially since things weren’t very good with Boone since their carnal encounter before the crash. If the writers take the predictable route, Shannon could reject Sayid, transferring her guilt onto him.
Jin continues to display a certain degree of altruism. Some might have found his help in this episode surprising, but he has often shown moments of kindness and community in small bursts this season. This is perhaps the most overt moment yet, where he actually comes close to acting like a member of the gang. It doesn’t change the fact that he still rejects any hint of personal transformation, but it’s a nice change.
Sun, as mentioned, is becoming more and more of a “nurse”, though it’s not quite the right term. It’s more true to say that Sun is becoming the holistic doctor to Jack’s more Western version. Sun should be instrumental to Jack’s future growth, because she can help him find new ways to expand his perspective. Or, alternatively, if he is killed in the impending power struggle, she is gaining ground in becoming a viable replacement.
Michael seems awfully prepared to help Jack lob off Boone’s leg, which is somewhat odd. It’s not very clear from his previous characterization why he would be so willing to go along with something that represents an excessive point of view. Perhaps it’s simply that he doesn’t care, because he’s going along with whatever happens until the raft is ready. Walt doesn’t have much to do in the episode either, though it ought to be fun if he decides, once the raft is built, to resist again.
Locke doesn’t show up at all in this episode, but his presence looms large over everything that takes place. Technically, he’s now the only person who might have knowledge of the outside world, if he overheard what Boone was saying (or found something behind the hatch). If Locke comes out of the hatch with some greater understanding of the island (real or imaginary), he could strengthen his support among some of the survivors. This could feed into a battle between those who support Jack and those who support Locke. Since the two have been essentially on the same side, that would represent a major shift.
This episode presents a new sets of challenges for the survivors (and the series). There’s now a baby in the equation, which is likely to play into future plot threads related to “Raised by Another”. The raft will be complete by the end of the season, which is likely to bring Walt’s plot thread to a head. The impending battle for power between Jack and Locke could drive a massive wedge between the survivors. And overall, the survivors now have few if any medical supplies available should there be another major accident. As expected, the season is coming together in a massive series of highly charged culminations of carefully plotted character arcs, and the result is nothing short of exceptional.
Final Analysis
Overall, this was one of the best episodes of the season. While the events were more or less predictable, especially the symbolism of the final act, the strength of the episode lies in the complex and long-developed psychology of Jack’s character. The writers have been carefully bringing Jack and Locke toward conflict, and this episode is the trigger point. In clever fashion, the writers place Jack and Locke and their relationship into perspective, all while keeping the audience on the edge of its seat.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 3/4
Final Rating: 9/10
Season Average (as of 1.20): 8.0
posted by John Keegan | 16:48
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