It’s no secret that in a show rich with character, John Locke is my favorite. It goes back to the pilot episode, where Locke was first seen with his sinister scar freshly etched across his eye. As Kate stared at him across the beach - he locked eyes with her and opened his grin to reveal an orange peel - sinister shades of The Godfather. Of course, in the third episode of the fledgling series - the Locke-centric ‘Walkabout‘ - we discovered a surprise fact about Locke. In flashback, we learned that this rugged hunter was in fact, crippled in the real world. He crash-landed on this fantasy island tethered to a wheel chair - and through the island’s mojo - recovered the ability to walk.

I often look forward to the Locke-centric episodes. It’s in these installments that we learn more of this wonderful character, enjoy some fine acting on behalf of the woefully underrated Terry O’Quinn and often times, the island’s mysteries deepen - as we journey further into the secret bond shared between Locke and his Eden.

That what makes this past episode so hard to write about. For the first time, a Locke episode disappointed me. In my review of ‘A Tale of Two Cities’, I remarked that I had been so enthralled by learning how the ‘Other’ half lives, that I had forgotten all about Locke, Desmond and Eko. It takes a pretty compelling tale to erase a massive electromagnetic pulse from one’s mindscape - but that’s just what happened. So, perhaps my lack of affection for ‘Further Instructions’ has more to do with antsy feet. Let’s get back to Jack, Sawyer and Kate already. C’mon, we got big mysteries hanging over there. I mean, seriously, what team is Mr. Friendly batting for???

Still, mediocre Lost is better than most of what’s on television - but with only 6 episodes in this mini-arc, I hate to waste one precious second. Next week looks to be back on track, with Sawyer receiving the business end of ‘big’ Ben’s fists.

1.   Was it just me or did that flashback resolve nothing? I’m not talking about the need for more insight into Locke’s life - although we got next to nothing there. Early in the episode, Locke warns Charlie that bad things happen to young guys around him. We’ve seen it first hand with Boone’s demise (although technically, Boone brought that upon himself by boning his own sister). So, when Locke’s flashback paired him up with the young hitchhiker Eddie (Justin Chatwin), I figured Eddie was a goner. When it was revealed Eddie was a cop, paired with Locke due to a strong likelihood of coercion, I figured Eddie was a goner. Locke had him in his sites and then… BLAM… the flashback ended. While I doubt Locke fired, I would have liked to have seen what happened to erase Eddie. Did the Geronimo Jackson groovin’ Ma and Pa Pot Growers smoke ‘em? Who the hell knows? All that build up for nothing. It didn’t even comment on what was happening on the island. Really, the flashback made no sense. You could have plugged that into any Locke episode. What a waste!

2.   Regarding Geronimo Jackson, that’s two appearances for the fictional folk band. Desmond had their album in heavy rotation down in the hatch last season and now Eddie’s faded shirt. While I’m no faux-Dead Head, anything’s gotta’ beat “You All Everybody“. Wait!!! What if Driveshaft’s one-hit wonder is revealed to be a Geronimo Jackson cover tune?

3.   At least this episode got Locke back on the hunt, which is always a good thing. I like having him out in the jungle - exploring the island with a purpose versus hunkered in a bunker pushing a button all day. His faith in the island has been reaffirmed; he has a new objective (find Jack, Kate and Sawyer and ‘restore the family’). Great line when he seized his big ass knife moments before the Polar Bear tussle. “I’ve missed this.”

4.   Speaking of the polar cave - what was up with that Tonka truck in there? Was a kid eaten? If so, that’s some dark stuff. It looks like a member of the Pearl was pulled into there at some point as well - as evidenced by the Dharma uni laying on the ground.

5.   The dream sequence will probably be dissected for weeks to come. The big things that I pulled from it: When Locke motions to Charlie, Claire and Turnip Head, Boone reassures him “They’ll be all right… for a little while anyway.” Bad news coming? Also, he mentions that Desmond is helping himself. What’s that all about? And what to make of Benry as airport security? We’ve been told the smoke monster is the island’s security system. Is there a connection? BTW A little off topic (for this episode) - my theory on Juliet’s extensive file on Jack: It comes from the smoke monster. Last season we saw it ‘download’ Eko’s memories. Maybe, it’s compiled a file on everyone it has encountered. I know - That’s WAY out there!!!

6.   So, what’s the big reveal in this episode? After being doused in electromagnetic waves, Desmond is psychic. This may be a clue to what the Dharma Initiative was doing on the island - as the orientation video referred to ‘parapsychology and the unique magnetic characteristics of this island’ as Initiative concerns. Perhaps they were researching ways to enhance the human condition - to unlock latent abilities using the energies on the island - and that blast did just that to Desmond.

Well, that’s it for this week. I’ll be back later in the week with my observations of Wednesday’s ep.