1x21 The Greater Good

[st3v3n]

Lost Rewatch: Discuss "The Greater Good" here.

http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/The_Greater_Good


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I liked this episode because it was such a lead-in to Shannons death. We see how happy she becomes on the island with Sayid while learning how shitty her life at home was. She gets "redemption" with Sayid's words of love, and then dies. Amazing ending.

[CameraOne]

I thought Sayid's flashbacks were interesting but they didn't mesh with the on-island storyline as well.

I thought it was creepy that Charlie sang to Aaron, "Down came the rain and drowned the spider out" when he himself later drowned in the Looking Glass.

[MM0602]

Thus begins Shannon's downward spiral until she's put out of her misery . Quite sad.

At the end of Sayid's flashbacks, when he demands that they switch his flight to the next day so he can bury his friend... he was so close to reuniting with Nadia! Instead he had to wait three and a halfish months. That knowledge had to have torn him up inside real bad.

[faragay4faraday]

Jack jumping Locke is definitely the best Jack scene EVER (and one of Matthew Fox' rare brilliant performances that express anger without looking like a dork)

Locke trying to explain what happened in front of the whole crowd ... amazing acting on O'Quinn's side

Sayid's flashback wasn't that disocnnected from the episode's content:
it asked the question whether the ends justify the means as to be seen in the parallels between Sayid sacrificing Essam for his personal goals and Locke sacrificing Boone for his mission ... both didn't know that it would go awry and end in bloodshed ... and both tried to make things right before it all went down the drain ... but both failed and now their friend's blood is on their hands. thinking they would win, they both played their played their friends as pawns ... and lost them

[Noman]

I thought it was about Sayid sacrificing a friend/the greater good for someone he loved. Essam for Nadia, but he grew and didn't sacrifice Locke for Shannon.

The last line of this episode is why I love Sayid, he just makes you get up and cheer!

[DharmaVan]

I thought it was interesting that Haddad and Essam mistook Sayid's appearance in their lives for fate when it was actually a setup/deception. Just like nemesis' setup/deception is mistaken by Locke to be fate, his destiny.

Some other comments:

1. I wonder why Locke waits until AFTER he addresses the crowd and AFTER he talks privately with Shannon to wash Boone's blood out of his shirt. A bloodied Locke only made him look less redeeming.
2. The writer's touch on free will in this bit of dialogue between Kate & Sayid: "You had no choice." "There's always a choice."
3. I thought the actor who played Essam, Donnie Keshawarz, had a horrid Iraqi accent
4. Locke was just full of lies this episode. Also loved the last lines in this episode as Sayid says to Locke, "...I sense you might be our best hope of surviving here. But I don't forgive what you did. And I certainly don't trust you. And now, you're going to take me to the hatch."

[Mister Derp]

Charlie following Sawyer around with Aaron is classic.

Sayid's terror when the gun is to his neck seems really out-of-character. As much as he has every right to be scared, we've never really seen him break his stoicism so dramatically.

Contrast that with Locke's calmness as Shannon holds him at gunpoint.

Sayid: "Time won't make a difference." (Yeah, that one's a stretch).

[Jack Shephard's twin]

Got to be honest and say this isn't one of my favourite episodes in the Lost calendar, and with it being this close to the season close, doesn't really get my vote. A very revelation type episode in my opinion this one. Sayid really does love Nadia, it makes me wonder what was going on-island with him and Shannon, it clearly wasn't the same thing he felt for Nadia, even going as far as to (not betray, that's too strong a word) but continue to lie to his friend, almost make him go through with a terrorist act just to get some information on Nadia. Going back to the revelation point I made before, Locke returning to the beach for me has to be the standout image of this episode. His T-Shirt drenched in Boone's blood, everybody looking back at him from around Boone's grave with an evil look in their eye, maybe this is the first real time that Locke is almost cast out from the group, as we go on through the show, especially into season's 4&5 we see this happen a lot more prominantly.

Sayid and Locke (maybe that should be Andrews and O'Quinn) work so well during this episode, in the trip out to the beechcraft, Sayid is awesome. "I know when I'm being lied to, and there is a plane". Locke knows and has been through enough to know that this man knows what he is talking about, simply nods along yet still manages to deceive Sayid at first about the hatches on the Beechcraft. Excellent work Locke! Shannon clearly isn't thinking straight about the whole incident with Boone and really does want to go through with killing Locke, although I don't believe Sayid saved him, I honestly think the island diverted any bullet heading for Locke's head (similar to Michael in Season 4). The end part is the real strength of this episode for me, when Sayid doesn't ask anymore questions, or give anymore hints, he simply demands answers about the hatch. Perfect set up to 1x22 and the rest of season 1

[flight316]

Originally Posted by Jack Shephard's twin

Locke knows and has been through enough to know that this man knows what he is talking about, simply nods along yet still manages to deceive Sayid at first about the hatches on the Beechcraft. Excellent work Locke!

Meh. I think Sayid knew all along even if he didn't Locke didn't really deceive him Sayid figured it out very quickly.

Originally Posted by DharmaVan

The writer's touch on free will in this bit of dialogue between Kate & Sayid: "You had no choice." "There's always a choice."[/list]

One of the coolest lines of season 1 imo. The writers throw a lot of little messages throughout the seasons, and this is one that is completely true of life. "There's always a choice."

Originally Posted by Noman

I thought it was about Sayid sacrificing a friend/the greater good for someone he loved. Essam for Nadia, but he grew and didn't sacrifice Locke for Shannon.

Yep I agree the parallel was showing how Sayid sacrificed Essam for Nadia but did it differently on the island by not sacrificing Locke for Shannon.

For me, this is the episode where Sayid shows what he's all about and I think this is exactly when the writers figured out where Sayid's story was going to go. The guy is just so cool, smart, and logical, and serves the middle ground for the science vs faith theme. I think this episode is really underrated.

[Noman]

i'm a huge fan of Shannon and Sayid, so I'm gonna back them up here.

Sayid has always loved Nadia, but after this speech in Solitary:

SAYID: The writing on the back of Nadia's photograph. I know what it's like to hold on to someone. I've been holding on for the past 7 years to just a thought, a blind hope that somewhere she's still alive. But the more I hold on, the more I pull away from those around me. The only way out of this, this place, is with their help. Come with me. You don't have to be alone, Danielle.

Sayid realized how obsessed he was and that he needed to move on. Thus Shannon.