John's Top 10 Episodes of "Lost"

The end of “Lost” is a few days away.

In the time leading up to and after the finale, there will be countless retrospectives and analysis on the show’s final episode and on the series as a whole.

Before that din gets too deafening, I thought I’d add my two cents as to what I consider to be the very best (and in one case, the worst) of a landmark television series.

A few points before we get into it:

1.) I did my very best to include at least one episode from every single season, but the top 10 is still pretty season 1 and season-3 heavy. (For example, when I was going through the episode list, I nominated the final four episodes of season 3 for my top 10.)

2.) I tried to not have the list be dominated by (the typically-excellent) season finales. I also tried to spread the love among all the characters - but I still ended up with three “Desmond” episodes.

3.) This was REALLY hard. If you were to ask me to compile this list tomorrow, it might be different than it is now – that’s how close it is!

Let’s hand out some preliminary awards before the main event:

MOST POPULAR EPISODE I DIDN’T REALLY LIKE
The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham, season 5: Don’t get me wrong – the scene at the end where Ben kills Locke is unimpeachably FANTASTIC. The problem is everything before it was a major disappointment. This was supposed to be the episode in which we found out how Locke had come to be known as Jeremy Bentham, and how he ended up in a casket in the season 4 finale.

As with this season’s “Across the Sea”, it seems to me like the writers tried to pack two hours worth of story into one. That resulted in Locke delivering a truly pathetic pitch to get the Oceanic 6 to come back to the Island that amounted to, “Guys, you have to come back to the Island.” “Get outta here, you sad old man!” (That basically happened four times.) Also, we didn’t really learn why the castaways had started calling the man they’d always known as “John Locke”, “Jeremy Bentham” in the season 4 finale, other than to gratuitously keep the identity of the casket-dweller a secret. Just not as much fun for me as it should’ve been.

UNPOPULAR EPISODE I ACTUALLY LIKED
Exposé, season 3: Yes, we were all annoyed by Nikki and Paolo. (Or, as Sawyer called them – “Nina and Pablo.”) Fortunately, the people behind the show also seemed aware that the audience wasn’t really grooving to the two characters who were supposed to represent the underrepresented Oceanic 815 survivors that weren’t Jack and Co. So they killed them off in a fun, jaunty episode that featured one of the most creative and chilling deaths on a show that has had its share of memorable deaths.

UNPOPULAR EPISODE I DIDN’T REALLY LIKE
Stranger in a Strange Land, season 3: Aka, the episode that finally solved the (not-so) burning mystery of Jack’s tattoo. Also featured Bai Ling (ugh) and the introduction of Isabel - the Others’ sheriff - who we never saw or heard from again. Alright then.

One last bit of stalling before the top 10.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
The Economist, season 4: I REALLY wanted to include a Sayid episode in the top 10 because I think Naveen Andrews is fantastic. It was between this one or this season’s “Sundown.” I ultimately went with “The Economist” because it showed Sayid at his most suave, cold-blooded badass (assassinating people on Ben’s behalf) and at his most vulnerable (being betrayed by the woman he’d fallen for).

If Naveen Andrews has big screen aspirations (especially in action/romances), he should send this episode out to casting directors.

The Other 48 Days, season 2: “Across the Sea” was hailed as a departure because it didn’t feature any of the show’s regular characters, but to me “The Other 48 Days” (kinda) did it first and better back in season 2. This is the episode where we learned how the passengers in the tail section had spent their time on the Island, and it was really the first (and only?) time Michelle Rodriguez’s polarizing Ana Lucia was somewhat softened. (Or at least we found out why she as such a hardass on the Island.) I remember this being the first of several creative chances (in terms of storytelling) the show would take over the years.

There’s No Place Like Home/The Incident, season 4/season 5: These are excellent in their own right. I still vividly remember Sun’s anguish when she thought Jin had been blown up on the freighter in “Home”, and I recall how the first ever scene between Jacob and the Man in Black at the start of “The Incident” gave me goosebumps. (Unfortunately, both of those events have ever so slightly lost some luster given what we’ve seen in season 6.) As I said before, I didn’t want to include too many season finales in my top 10, so these two missed the cut.

Lighthouse, season 6: The scene where Jack finally bonds with his son David in the Sideways world had me crying like a little girl, so let’s move on.

Ok, you’ve waited long enough. Here’s hoping “The End” will crack this next list.

THE TOP 10

10. LaFleur, season 5: I wanted to include a Sayid episode but couldn’t. I HAD to include a Sawyer episode, and it came down to this and season 3’s “The Brig.” (Where Sawyer killed Anthony Cooper for Locke.) “The Brig” may have been Josh Holloway’s breakout as a tremendous dramatic actor, but “LaFleur” (in which he takes command of the time-travelling castaways stuck in the Dharma days) is the episode where he (temporarily) became the heart of the show. Holloway (and Elizabeth Mitchell) completely sold a Sawyer/Juliet romance that could’ve easily been a disaster, and Holloway’s face at the end of the episode (when he sees Kate) was Emmy-worthy in and of itself.

9. Happily Ever After, season 6: With a little more time and perspective, I can see this season 6 offering climbing higher. You can always count on Desmond to save the day. Not only is he the character currently and cheerfully trying to remind his Island friends of their past lives, but this is the episode that gave the TV-viewing audience renewed faith in the Sideways storytelling device. Also, any episode that directly references two other episodes in my top 10 is a shoo-in.

8. Two for the Road, season 2: This aired back before I had TiVo, so I was watching live. Characters had died on this show before, but none really at the hands of someone we’d known from the beginning and someone who we considered a good guy. Ana Lucia getting shot was bad enough – Michael turning around and shooting Libby took it to another level. (And, wait a minute, did Michael just shoot himself?! Ugh, I have to wait till next week to find out?!)

7. Flashes Before Your Eyes, season 3: We knew something was up with Desmond after turning the fail safe key and exploding the Hatch, but we didn’t know what. Turns out his consciousness had been zapped back to his time before the Island and he’d been given a second chance with Penelope. The only problem is that the cheerfully malevolent Mrs. Hawking got in Desmond’s ear about what he had to do and “course correction” and Desmond ended up back on the Island.

Looking back, Desmond’s “flashback” was a preview of sorts for this season’s flash-sideways. (He wasn’t aware of his Island life at first, but it eventually came flooding back.) On top of that, “No matter what I try to do…you’re gonna die, Charlie” is probably still my favorite ending of any episode of “Lost.”

6. The Man Behind the Curtain, season 3: You can almost never go wrong with Locke and Ben episodes because Terry O’Quinn and Michael Emerson can do no wrong on this show. “Curtain” was our first glimpse at shifty Ben’s Dharma past. (I love that the perpetual liar was outed as a fraud before the end credits even started – he hadn’t been born on the Island.)

One freaky trip to “Jacob’s” Cabin later (in retrospect, what was THAT about?!) and the episode ended with the revelation that Ben had helped murder the entire Dharma Initiative in the past, and with Ben shooting Locke and leaving him for dead in the present. I’m so happy those two are together heading into “The End.”

5. Pilot, season 1: This is where it all started. Although my girlfriend Erica was underwhelmed by this episode to the point that I had to basically BEG her to give this show a second chance (mission accomplished – she’s a big fan!), I don’t think even she could deny the sheer scope and spectacle in the J.J. Abrams-directed pilot.

This episode gave us our first taste of the Monster (which would go on to become the show’s Big Bad), but my favorite parts are the end (“Guys, where are we?”) and the beginning (the iconic shot of Jack’s eye opening in the jungle before he springs into action). Also, how cool is it that the Island’s light source is apparently near the spot where Jack was lying (and where the show began).

4. Exodus, season 1: There have been splashier, more mythologically-significant finales since the season 1 ender. However, this excellent capper to the show’s legendary first season shouldn’t be overlooked.

In the five subsequent years, the sights and sounds of this episode have stayed with me. Those nefarious Others showing up, kidnapping Walt and blowing up the raft? (“We’re gonna have to take the boy.”) Wow. Unsung “Lost” MVP Michael Giacchino’s “Parting Words” theme as Michael’s raft is launched? Chills. Jack and Locke blowing up the hatch and peering down inside only to discover…wait till next season, suckas! (It was such a good cliffhanger, that the season 2 premiere is the show’s most-watched episode – people wanted to know what the hell was in there!)

3. Walkabout, season 1: Whenever I try to convince anyone to watch “Lost”, I tell them to just watch disc 1 of the season 1 DVD to see if they like it. It’s really not fair because I have a secret weapon. “Walkabout” is the last episode on that disc and it is damn near guaranteed to get anyone hooked.

The initial John Locke showcase was the first taste we got of what a singularly fantastic Terry O’Quinn was, conveying the Island badass and the off-Island loser with equal amounts of believability. More importantly, the twist about John Locke being in a wheelchair before arriving on the Island is one of the all-time great WTF moments in TV history. (It doesn’t even feel like I’m exaggerating.)

2. The Constant, season 4: People much smarter than I am have written about the greatness of “The Constant”, so I’ll try to keep it short.

In telling the tale of Desmond’s life-threatening time/consciousness jumps, “Lost” (and maybe no other show) has never been better at mixing provocative and potentially head-scratching science with a big dose of heart without having things become either confusing or sappy. The fact that we care so much about a couple of secondary (they may even be tertiary) characters is a testament to how strong the writing and acting is on this show.

1. Through the Looking Glass, season 3: You may remember me saying earlier that it was really difficult to put this list together. Well, that’s not exactly true. This season 3 finale was ALWAYS going to be my #1.

Not only is it my favorite episode of “Lost”, it just might be my favorite episode of any television series ever. As with “The Constant”, it’s almost obnoxious how much I’ve talked about the greatness of this episode.

To summarize, I laughed (at Charlie’s taunting of his “Looking Glass” captors and at Jack’s ridiculous beard), I cried (at Charlie’s death), and my mind was blown (flashfoward?!) What more can I ask for?

So what’d you think of this list? Please feel free to tell me how wrong I am. More importantly, why don’t you tell me about your favorite episodes of “Lost.”