Episode Report Card Cindy McLennan: B+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT You Don't Know Jack
By Cindy McLennan | Season 6 | Episode 13 | Aired on 04.20.2010
In a hurry? Read the recaplet for a nutshell description! Finished? Click here to close.While watching an episode entitled "The Last Recruit," it was hard not to spend all my time guessing who that last recruit would be. Luckily, I've watched a lot of TV, so I got through the guesswork pretty quickly.
Sideways: Desmond is on his way to see his lawyer, Ilana Verdansky (or some name ending in "sky" that isn't Radzinsky) when he runs into Claire, who's on her way to an adoption agency in the same building. He talks Claire into seeing his lawyer first, to protect her rights. Amazingly enough, Ilana has been looking for a Claire Littleton from Australia. She's been looking for her, because here come Dr. Jack and his young son David Shephard (with whom he enjoys a comfortable relationship), for the reading of Dr. Christian Shephard's last will and testament, in which Claire Littleton is named. There's an awkward, I'm your illegitimate sister moment, but it's interrupted when Jack is paged to the hospital for some emergency surgery.
At St. Sebastian's, Gunshot Sun and run-over Locke are wheeled in side by side. When she gets a gander at Locke's face, poor Korean-only Sun can only ramble to Jin, but it seems pretty certain that she's had the same sort of near-death experience of the other reality as both Desmond and Charlie. When Jack enters the O.R., he recognizes his patient -- Locke (whose dural sac was obliterated in his previous injury).
Cop Shop: Detective James Ford questions Kate, who claims she didn't commit the murder for which she's wanted. Even in the Sideways, Kate has James' number. She figures out he didn't arrest her at the airport because he didn't want anyone to know he'd been to Australia. Ford likes her spunk, but their conversation is cut short when his partner, Miles Straume, pulls him in to investigate a multiple shooting at a restaurant. In addition to the female gunshot victim (Sun), someone has killed a bunch of crooks, including Keamy. Video surveillance tape reveals Sayid's face.
Omer Jarrah's House: Sayid is packing up to leave when Nadia returns. Before he can tell her too much, someone arrives at the door. Sayid tells her to stall their caller, but she only manages to do so for a moment. It's Miles Straume. When he enters, he sees Sayid's suitcase lying out on the table, but Sayid is gone. Fortunately, Sawyer nabs him, out in the back yard.
Islandways: With Hurley's okay, Jack agrees to talk to Faucke alone. Mostly, Faucke fills Jack's head full of doubts, but he also admits to wearing Christian Shephard's meatsuit, and he introduces Jack to his sister. Once they're alone, Claire talks about Faucke appearing as Christian, and how she trusts him, because he's the only one who didn't abandon her. Yeoowch. She also informs Jack that since he let Faucke talk to him, he's now on Team Faucke, no matter what he thinks.
Subsequent reunions are put off when Zoe and the Widmorons arrive in camp, demanding the return of Widmore's package (Des). Faucke never lets on like he knows what they're talking about, so none of the Losties figure out he's holding Des. After Zoe is gone, Faucke dispatches Kate and Sawyer to pick up a boat a ways off, and bring it to a meeting spot from which the whole damn family will sail over to Hydra.
Sawyer gets Jack alone and tells him about Widmore, his sub, and a change in plans. At the first opportunity, Jack should break free from the Fauckers, and bring Sun, Hurley and Frank with him. He can meet up with Sawyer, Kate, and the boat they plan to take to Hydra Island and to Widmore's sub. Jack asks about including Sayid and Claire, but Sawyer says Sayid is a zombie and Claire tried to kill Kate, so their tickets to ride are revoked.
As the Fauckers take off, Faucke tells Sayid to double back and kill Desmond. Sayid's just fine with the doubling back portion of the program, but once he reaches the well, Desmond tries to get to him by asking Sayid what Faucke promised him. When he learns it's a dead woman, he asks Sayid why he'd ever believe Faucke. Sayid says it's because Faucke is the one who brought him back to life. When Sayid takes too long to catch up with the Fauckers, Faucke orders his troops to keep going and goes back to get his zombie. Jack takes this opportunity to lead Sun, Frank and Hurley to Sawyer, Kate and the sailboat. Meanwhile, Faucke meets up with Sayid, who assures Faucke he killed Des, he’s just a little tardy because he needed some personal time after killing an unarmed man. That’s not very zombie-like of him. He offers to show Faucke the corpse, but Faucke believes Sayid, or acts like he does. I don’t believe Sayid at all. Shhhh, don’t burst my hope bubble.
We never saw Desmond die, so I'm assuming he got through to Sayid. But Sawyer, it seems, has had less luck with Jack. Once they get to the sailboat, a lurking Claire reveals herself, and Kate says she'll only leave if Claire goes with. When the bulk of passengers retreat to the galley for something to eat, Sawyer hands Kate the wheel and goes to talk to Jack. Jack thinks they're making a mistake. James doesn't want to hear it and orders Jack off his boat. Jack swims ashore only to meet up with Locke.
Meanwhile, Sawyer and crew arrive at Hydra Island. Jin and Sun are reunited -- finally! She also regains her ability to speak English. Soon though, Zoe and the Widmorons arrive and surround them. Sawyer and his people drop their weapons. Zoe talks to Chuckles on the hand-held and then orders Sawyer, et al to their knees. When Sawyer points out that he and Charles had a deal, Zoe says the deal is off.
Before Jack and Faucke get to debrief one another (dirty!), they're fired upon. Faucke carries a stunned Jack to safety and assures him everything will be okay. "You're with me, now." Oh noooooooooooooooo. Jack! DUN. Bad Robot.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!We're getting so near the end, I feel like I should have some zippy opener, but... we're getting so near the end, you know? I have three brain cells left. I can't wait for the end of this show that I never want to end. You feel me, yes? All right, then let's skip the Previouslies and get right to it. You ready? Okay.
Islandways; Camp Faucke; Night: We pick up right where we left off in "Everybody Loves Hugo" with everybody just loving Hugo, particularly Faucke, who is delighted that Jacob's right-hand man and mouthpiece has led the Jacobites (and Frank) into his clutches. Faucke addresses Jack directly and asks to speak to him alone. Don't do it, Jack. Don't do it. Watch Jack carefully here, and remember that there are rules to this game. Jack doesn't speak to Faucke, he doesn't even look at him head-on. Instead, he walks up to Hurley and asks his permission to talk to Faucke. Hurley: "It's all you, dude." Rifle in hand, Jack nods at Faucke. "All right, let's catch up." His The last time I saw you, I was putting my dead father's shoes on your equally dead corpse remains unspoken.
Once they're alone, Jack notes that his companion looks just like him, i.e. John Locke. Faucke asks if that bothers him. Jack says what's actually bothering him is that he has no idea what Faucke is. Faucke's all sure you do, and that's that. Jack: "Why John Locke?" A good question, considering all the far more handsome (far less moobalicious) men on this island. If I had to be a boy on that island, I think I'd be Jin. Daniel Dae Kim's bone structure is to die for.
Anyhow, Faucke explains what we've known for ages. Stupid Locke (who stupidly thought that all these stupid people wearing expensive clothes were brought to this stupid island for some stupid reason) stupidly pursued his stupid belief until it got him killed, and Jack was stupid kind enough to bring back the body, "in a nice wooden box." Looks like Faucke is all for the timber. (Buffy fans represent!)
Jack catches on quickly and asks Faucke who else he's "looked like." Faucke tells him to ask what he really wants to ask, so Jack asks if it was Faucke who appeared as his dead father, way back in season 1's "White Rabbit." Faucke confirms this. When Jack wants to know why, Faucke says that Jack needed to find water and that all he's ever been interested in is helping him, and more specifically, helping him to leave. "But because Jacob chose you, you were trapped on this island, before you even got here. Now Jacob's dead. [...] We can get on an airplane and fly away anytime we want to [...]" but, "it has to be all of us."