The Quad

Issue date: 3/3/08 Section: Entertainment

The fourth season of "Lost" is well underway. Rescue, perhaps, has arrived. The viewers know Jack, Sayid, Hurley, Kate and baby Aaron have made it off the island, but not how. There are flash-forwards instead of flashbacks as well as a bundle of new and interesting characters. There are answers and there are more questions. If you're intrigued by any of this then this is for you!

"Lost" premiered on Sept. 22, 2004 on ABC. The show follows the survivors of Oceanic 815 after their plane crashed on a deserted, mysterious island somewhere in the South Pacific. Each episode focuses on a character on the island while flashing back or (in the current season) forward to the character's past (and now future) which ties together the themes of the episode.

Many perceive "Lost" to be a show about the island's mysteries but the writers of the show have said the heart of "Lost" is with the characters and how the characters are metaphorically 'lost' in life. Characters' back stories in the first three seasons were explored through flashbacks which helped the viewer familiarize him or herself with each character and connect on some emotional level to the character's past.

The cast is led by Matthew Fox, who plays the leader Jack Sheperd. Fox never disappoints in his role as the reluctant leader who simply wants to help his fellow survivors.

He conveys every emotion to utmost perfection, whether it is trying to get the people to believe the rescue boat isn't there to harm them or telling a fellow survivor about his wife or why he was on the plane (to take his deceased father home).

Another standout is Terry O'Quinn, who plays the island's mystic John Locke. John Locke entered the airplane in a wheelchair because of paralysis but could walk once he woke up on the island.

John Locke considers himself as the island's protector. John Locke has immense faith in the island. However, Locke feels like he is tested often and often struggles to keep his faith. Terry O'Quinn plays the struggle to retain faith with intelligence and communicates the internal struggle of John Locke to the viewer.

The best acting on the show comes from Michael Emerson, who plays the manipulative Benjamin Linus. Ben Linus is the leader of The Others and lived on the island well before the plane crash. Emerson shines in the role because the viewer is never sure of what Ben actually means when he delivers a piece of information to John Locke. Other standouts of the cast are Naveen Andrew (Sayid), Evangeline Lilly (Kate), Henry Ian Cusick (Desmond), Josh Holloway (Sawyer), Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliet), Emilie de Ravin (Claire) and Daniel Dae Kim (Jin).

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