It’s hard to believe that Lost began 20 years ago, but here we are.
For those who don’t remember when Lost was on the air, it was a time with few equals. The buzz surrounding this show was insane and dominated conversations throughout the 2000s.
One of the reasons Lost was such a hot discussion topic was its unique form of storytelling that slowly pieced together its mystery. Just when you thought you knew what was happening, a twist hit and you needed to wait to learn what it actually meant.
As one who watched the show live, there are many moments that still have me in awe at the reveal. This feeling consumed me, forcing me to write a list on it.
The following are my top five best reveals from Lost and, yes, they are in order.
Spoiler Alert: The following contains spoilers from across the six seasons of Lost (2004-10).
5. The Others Kidnap Walt
The first season of Lost had its fair share of twists that helped viewers understand what they were in for moving forward. The later half of the season had many of the survivors building a raft to leave the island and find help.
During the finale, the group of Michael, Walt, Sawyer, and Jin sail off and come upon a boat. They cheer, thinking they are saved, only for the boaters to say they needed to take Walt before destroying the raft.
This reveal capped off an excellent first season and set the stakes perfectly. You realized that this was no longer a mere survival show, but one with a lot more mystical intrigue. The others attacking the raft solidified that thought.
4. Resurrected John Locke Was Actually The Man In Black
John Locke always had a close connection with the island so it was no wonder that returning to it in 2007 would change him. The problem was that the Locke that was leading the Others to Jacob wasn’t actually Locke.
The reveal came after Ben and “Locke” went in to see Jacob while the rest of the group stayed outside. Ilana arrived and dumped out a crate, which contained the real Locke’s dead body. This caused the group, and the viewers, to grapple with Locke’s true identity, throwing the entire season into question as Locke’s personality had changed.
Jacob immediately saw through “Locke’s” ruse, commenting on how he found a loophole to kill him. Although it was Ben who ultimately did it, “Locke” was the mastermind.
This reveal to send the fifth season off set up the main antagonist for the sixth and final season perfectly. In true Lost fashion, viewers learned just enough to be shocked, but not enough to fully comprehend. This feeling of confusion made this reveal powerful as it left the viewer the summer to speculate and theorize.
3. Ethan Wasn’t On The Plane
The survivors of Oceanic Flight 815 took most of the first season to settle into their new home and slowly began trusting each other. The reveal of Ethan’s true identity really put a hamper on that trust.
Throughout the episode “Raised By Another,” Hurley decided to make a list of all the survivors, cross referencing them with the official flight manifest. Hurley learns that one of the survivors was never actually on the plane.
Not only was this a shocking reveal, but it gave face to the mysterious Others. Ethan took particular interest in the pregnant Claire and this reveal made for a sense of dread for Claire.
Not only did is provide a sense of unease, but it made you question who you could actually trust. This theme would play heavy throughout the show and Ethan’s true origins began that fire.
2. John Locke Was a Paraplegic
It didn’t take the show long to make Locke a mysterious and interesting person. While Jack seemed to approach the situation from a scientific background, Locke opted for a spiritual approach.
The season 1 episode “Walkabout” was Locke-centric and provided out first series of flashbacks of his life. The entire episode baited the viewer into thinking Locke had always been a free spirit, but one of the final scenes revealed he had actually been in a wheelchair prior to the island.
What makes this reveal so great is the manner in which it was done.
Locke is seen speaking to an Australian walkabout leader who won’t let him on the bus for a trip, citing insurance and safety reasons. The leader eventually gets up to leave and an angered Locke moves away from the desk to reveal his wheelchair.
It was such a seamless reveal that it really caught viewers off guard, especially since Locke was hunting on the island earlier in the episode. The show hid his disability in the flashbacks, making the reveal similar to The Sixth Sense‘s end twist. This was a secret in plain sight and it was fantastic.
1. The Show Had Shifted to Flash Forwards Instead of Flashbacks
Lost became known for its flashbacks, which told the stories of the individual passengers. These mixed with the current events of the island to create a unique storytelling device.
At the end of the third season in “Through the Looking Glass,” viewers assumed they were watching another flashback of a disheveled Jack. It wasn’t until the end of the episode that viewers see Jack meet with Kate, imploring her to return to the island with him as part of a flash-forward.
This twist was phenomenal because you believed Jack was hitting a rough spot in his life and this was just another complex view at his life. It wasn’t until the end scene that viewers realized what exactly they were watching.
Many still questioned if it was a flashback revealing Jack and Kate did know each other prior to the island. After all, many of the survivors had previous connections.
This also set a new standard of flash-forwards that continued until the final season. Fans can still picture Jack yelling at Kate as she drives away, proclaiming that, “we have to go back!”
Honorable Mentions
It was really hard to narrow it down to just five top reveals so we had to do an honorable mention list. Below are five other reveals, in no particular order, that just missed the top five.
- The freighter was not Penny’s boat: “Through the Looking Glass” wasn’t only the vehicle for flash-forwards, but it also pulled the rug out on a potential rescue in a brutally emotional way that left Charlie dead.
- Locke’s father and Sawyer’s conman are the same: Many of the survivors had connections prior to the island, but Sawyer and Locke shared a grizzly one. Locke’s conning father ended up being the conman that killed Sawyer’s parents, sending him on a hunt for revenge.
- Kate was in custody on the plane: Early in the first season, the true nature of many of the survivors was still a mystery, but Kate seemed to be a kind soul who helped Jack. The survivors find handcuffs and the viewers eventually learn that the sweet Kate actually had a dark side.
- The tail section survived the crash: Throughout the first season, the survivors assumed the back half of the plane resulted in the deaths of all in that section. The second season showed that not only did they survive, but they had a harder time with the Others than the front-end survivors. Not only was it great to see them alive, but it brought about the emotional reunion of Rose and Bernard.
- Desmond caused the crash: Desmond was a central part of season 2 as he would type in a series of numbers into a computer every 108 minutes. It wasn’t until the season finale “Live Together, Die Alone” that Desmond’s role in crashing the plane becomes clear as he neglects to type in the numbers. This reveal answered a lingering question that dominated season 1.
What are your favorite reveals and twists from Lost? Were there any we forgot to include? Let us know in the comments below or head over to our Discord channel to join the conversation.
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