Awkward Polar Bears & Awesome Mancandy: 1.5 - 1.8

I didn't take detailed notes for these episodes of Lost like I did for the first four, so this entry might be shorter than expected. I intend to return to the geeky note-taking for subsequent eps.

Episode 5, "White Rabbit," focuses on our intrepidly bland hero, Jack, and the circumstances that led to him being on the doomed plane. We learn about his asshole father who died in Australia and whose body Jack was transporting back to the US.

• The first scene with his father, when Little Jack is telling his father about the fight he got into made pretty much no sense to me, and I'm not sure if that was intentional or not.
• Please, please give Ian Somerhalder something to do besides be the guy who tries to save everything and constantly fails.
• We again harp on the concept of leadership and how Jack may or may not be one and people may or may not see him as one. Enough already, Abrams.
• Locke: "This place is different...special." Really, dude? I couldn't have guessed. He also says he looked into the "eye of this island and what I saw was beautiful." I'm guessing at some point we'll be revisiting the fact that Locke probably saw The Thing in the Jungle.
• Charlie's tattoo says "Living is easy with eyes closed." Wonder if that is some sort of portent?
• The dolls at the waterfall were damn creepy. Also creepy: the empty coffin. Since the coffin lid was not dislodged, I have to theorize that either Jack's Dead Dad got up and walked away or someone removed the body and put the lid back.

Episode 6, "House of the Rising Sun," focuses on our cute Asian couple, Sun and Jin. They're angsty and in love and from two different social spheres. He was abusive and might have killed someone. She's secretly known how to speak English this whole time.

•  Sawyer had the handcuffs in his pocket? I'm for it.
• When Kate found the corpse in the cave, I thought for a split second that we'd discovered where Jack's Dead Dad went before I realized he wouldn't be that decomposed yet. Well, not unless the writers of Bones had somehow been on the island.
• Kate: Where'd they come from? Jack: Didn't you guys shoot a polar bear last week? Where'd that come from? Heh.
• How long are the batteries on Hurley's Walkman going to last? Who still uses a Walkman with CDs?
• I wonder if the 2 camps will continue to be a thing? Could make for some interesting drama.

Episode 7, "The Moth," is about Charlie and his sad rock star life and his silly little heroine addiction. I found it to be fairly boring, despite my epic love for Dominic Monaghan.

• I couldn't help but wonder what the castaways would have done if Jack had actually died in the cave-in. Would they have turned to Locke for leadership? Or Kate, Sawyer or Sayid? My money is on Locke, but he's just creepy enough that they may have turned to one of the others instead.
• Really, Boone, asking Shannon to do something important? Though she actually did what she was supposed to, it seemed a silly move.
• First shots of Shirtless Sawyer. Yes, please, and thank you. But his not telling Kate about Jack was a big ol' douche-canoe moment. Bad Sawyer! I'll be happy to properly punish you for your behavior.
• I don't know if I ship Kate/Jack. I know that Kate/Sawyer is gonna be a thing, and I'm cool with that, at least temporarily. Still firming up my romantic allegiances.

Episode 8, "Confidence Man," in which we learn more about Pretty Pretty Sawyer. He's a con-man, but he secretly has a heart buried in that sculpted chest, refusing to steal from a family with a young son. Also, he must have a metric fuck-ton of guilt, cause he's masochistic enough to let himself get tortured as punishment for something he didn't do.

• I now need to read Watership Down. Thanks, Sawyer.
• I'm incapable of taking Michael Deluise seriously in a dramatic show. He'll always be Idiot TJ from Gilmore Girls to me.
• I really and truly almost had an asthma attack watching Shannon struggle to breath. That's good acting, yo.
• There's no way it was Sawyer who attacked Sayid last ep, and this episode made me think it was Locke. Or one of the many, many cast members we haven't met yet. My money is on Michelle Rodriguez.
• Sayid on mapping the shore: "I can't think of a better person to do it than the only one I trust." I really liked this line, and I identify with it immensely, as someone who generally will just do something myself before trusting someone else to do it right. You've got my attention, Sayid!

More next week!