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The Brig
From Lostpedia
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| --- | "Lost: A Tale of Survival" | (recap) | #07 | "Not in Portland" | (Juliet) | #16 | "One of Us" | (Juliet) |
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| #03 | "Further Instructions" | (Locke) | #10 | "Tricia Tanaka Is Dead" | (Hurley) | #19 | "The Brig" | (Locke) |
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| --- | "Lost Moments" | (preview) | #14 | "Exposé" | (Nikki & Paulo) | #22 | "Through the Looking Glass" | (Jack) |
| --- | "Lost Survivor Guide" | (recap) | #15 | "Left Behind" | (Kate) | |||
Episode transcript
[[{{{transcript2}}}|Part Two]]
"The Brig" was the 19th episode of Season 3, and was originally broadcast on May 2, 2007. The Others offer Locke the chance to join them if he shows his commitment. Unable to do what they ask, Locke recruits Sawyer to do it for him. Meanwhile, Desmond questions whether or not the Flight 815 survivors trust Jack enough to tell him about the woman they saved.
Contents |
Synopsis
Flashback
8 days ago (Day 81)–Locke looks through the doorway at Cooper, gagged and tied to a chair. Locke asks Ben what's going on; Ben replies "You tell me, you brought him here." Locke denies this, and despite Ben's warning to be careful, un-gags a very distressed Cooper, who viciously bites Locke's hand until Tom zaps him with a tazer. Cooper roars, "Don't you know where we are?" and Tom shuts Locke and Ben out of the room before he can say more. As Ben escorts John away, he tells him that they are leaving for a new place, then corrects himself, saying that it's actually an "old place." Ben invites Locke along, and after some hesitation, John agrees. "Good," Ben says, then suggests that Locke might want to say goodbye to Kate.
3 days ago (Day 86) (day)– The Others are setting up tents in a valley. Cooper is there, tied to a large pillar which seems to be part of a larger ruin or folly. Locke helps Cindy set up her tent; Others nearby are openly curious, glancing at Locke. "They're excited you're here. They've been waiting for you," Cindy explains. Tom tells Locke that Ben is asking for him.
Ben is listening to the tape Juliet left for him at the Staff. When Locke approaches, Ben switches the recorder off and leaves it on top of a wooden chest of drawers. He reveals to Locke that Juliet has infiltrated the camp to determine if any of the women are pregnant, so the Others can go in and take them. Ben tells John not to worry, that they have done this before and no one will get hurt. Ben asks John to pass him his cane, and stands up, casually putting the tape recorder in the top drawer; Locke watches closely. Ben says that a week ago he couldn't move his toes, but that when Locke arrived, suddenly there were "pins and needles." "I can't wait to show you what this island can do," Ben says, but tells him that John isn't ready yet. He tells John that he won't be free until he releases himself from his father's hold. John asks if he is talking about the magic box. Ben says that is just a metaphor, and that when people join them on the Island they must of their own free will make gesture of commitment, and that's why John will have to kill his father.
3 days ago (Day 86) (night)–The Others' tents are all lit from inside. Ben wakes Locke, who is sleeping outdoors, and tells him it's time. He brings John to the pillar. Cooper is still gagged and appears distressed. Ben hands Locke a knife and suggests that although it won't be easy, "the quicker, the better." Cooper's gag is removed and he mocks John. John stalls, saying he has to think. Ben baits Locke, suggesting he is hesitating due to part of him feeling there might be some reasonable explanation for Cooper stealing his kidney and throwing him out of an eight story window. Ben talks about Locke being thrown off his Walkabout in Australia because he couldn't walk. Cooper addresses Ben as Bug-Eye and suggests John won't kill him because he is spineless. Slowly, a crowd of silent Others, adults and children, gather. They watch as John holds the knife up to Cooper's neck, but then finally backs away. Cooper starts to gloat but Ben knocks him out with his cane. Ben takes the knife from John and announces to the Others that he's sorry, but John is not the man they all thought he was; John walks away through the silent observers.
2 days ago (Day 87)–The next day, Locke is taking in the view of the encampment from the hillside. He looks down towards the pillar where Cooper is still bound and gagged. He takes the bandage off of his hand, discovering that his wounds have already healed. Richard Alpert approaches, remarking on the beautiful scenery and saying that he never gets tired of that view. He introduces himself to Locke. He tells John that Ben knew Locke wouldn't kill his father, and had put him in front of the camp so everyone would watch him fail. When John asks Richard why Ben would do that, Richard explains that Ben was worried because the Others were starting to think Locke might be very special. Richard says Ben has kept them occupied with 'novelties' like fertility issues, wasting their time, and that Locke could remind them of the more important reasons they are there. Richard wants Locke to find his purpose. For that to happen, his father "has to go." Richard knows that Locke won't kill him, but suggests that he could enlist someone else to do it. He hands him a file on Sawyer. Locke is confused as to why Sawyer would want to kill Cooper, but Richard tells him to keep reading. Locke looks down at the file as Richard leaves. The page he is looking at is an INTERPOL[1] report written in French.
Yesterday (Day 88)–
John wakes to the sounds of the Others packing up. When he asks, Ben explains that they are moving on and leaving John and Cooper behind. John says they can't leave him behind; "Don't tell me what I can't do, John," Ben replies. "But I thought I was special," Locke pleads. Ben says that everyone makes mistakes. They will leave a trail for John to track, but he shouldn't bother unless he arrives carrying the dead body of his father on his back. John does not attempt to follow the Others as they leave.
At the Black Rock
At night (Day 88), Locke reads the contents of a red folder by fire light. A muffled voice struggles to make itself heard but Locke tells the man to save his breath because no one will hear him. He throws the folder and its contents into the fire.
Shortly before sunrise (Day 89), at the beach in Sawyer's tent, Kate gets restless and starts to dress. Sawyer stirs and asks where she's going. Kate says that she can't sleep unless she's in her own tent. Sawyer replies "fine." Concerned that she's upset Sawyer, Kate gives him a smile and tells him it's nothing personal, just "old habits." Sawyer smiles at Kate and tells her, "Fine then. Scram," and playfully pushes her away. Sawyer offers to walk her home, saying that he needs to pee anyway; Kate declines, kisses him goodbye and leaves. Sawyer picks up his gun and follows her out, to find Hurley and Jin acting suspiciously outside a tent. He asks them what they're doing; they ask him the same question. He says he's going to take a leak; so are they. Sawyer ends the standoff by going off to urinate, and while doing so hears footsteps. Sawyer pulls his gun, and Locke emerges from the jungle, shining a flashlight. Locke addresses Sawyer as James and tells him to zip his pants. Sawyer aims his gun at Locke, accusing him of joining the enemy and asking angrily if he's back from his "blow up everything that could get us off the Island tour." Locke explains that he has infiltrated the Others and kidnapped Ben. John asks Sawyer to kill Ben. Sawyer claims he isn't a killer, but Locke says he has read the Other's files on him, which reveal his murder of the man in Sydney. Locke tells Sawyer that the Others have files on all of them. When Sawyer continues to defend his innocence, Locke starts to leave. Sawyer orders him to stop but Locke ignores him; ultimately Sawyer follows him, barefoot, into the jungle.
As they walk through the jungle together, Sawyer asks about his file. John says it contained high school transcripts and criminal records for con jobs but didn't explain why his father shot his mother and then turned the gun on himself when Sawyer was a child. He asks James why he chose the alias "Sawyer." Sawyer knocks John to the ground with the gun and demands to know at knifepoint what con Locke is trying to pull. He wants to know why Locke won't kill Ben himself. Although Sawyer is furious, Locke remains calm and, continuing to address Sawyer as James, insists he is telling the truth. Sawyer screams at John to stop calling him James. Locke says and that he brought Sawyer because he can't kill Ben himself. Sawyer agrees to come with him, but says he won't kill him, he'll only bring Ben back to the camp. Locke says he believes Sawyer will change his mind when he hears what the captive has to say.
In the jungle, Locke and Sawyer rest at a river. Holding his knife, Sawyer stands in the river to soothe his bloodied feet. Sawyer asks John what Ben would say to make him want to kill him, but Locke says it isn't his place to tell. Sawyer tells Locke he didn't mean to kill the man in Sydney, that he thought he was someone else. Locke asks who he meant to kill. Sawyer asks if they are almost at their destination and Locke says they are.
Later, John and Sawyer arrive at the Black Rock. Locke tells Sawyer it's a slaving ship from the mid-nineteenth century, and that Ben is locked up in the brig. He speculates that the captain brought the slaves to try to mine the Island. As they enter, Sawyer investigates a box which Locke informs him is full of dynamite; Sawyer moves away. There is a human skeleton chained to the wall of the ship. A muffled voice cries out and Sawyer is surprised that there is actually a prisoner. He reiterates his refusal to kill the captive and Locke replies, "Whatever you say, James." Leaving his knife outside, Sawyer enters the brig; Locke suddenly slams the door and locks Sawyer inside. Sawyer beats on the door, then turns around and takes off the bag covering the prisoner's head, revealing not Ben but Cooper, who Sawyer doesn't recognize.
Sawyer bangs on the door and demands to be let out. Rousseau enters the ship. Locke and Rousseau do not seem too surprised to see one another. They calmly greet each other by name, ignoring Sawyer's shouting, and Locke asks her what brings her to the Black Rock. She tells him she is there for dynamite, and asks why he is there. He doesn't answer, just points her towards the box with his torch, warning her that it's unstable. She takes a crate labeled 'EXPLOSIVES' and leaves. Sawyer continues to bang on the door, unaware that Rousseau has been in the Ship.
Outside the Black Rock, Sawyer vomits. Locke tells him he can go back now. Sawyer asks why Locke did it. He says Cooper ruined both of their lives and had it coming. Then he reveals that Juliet is a mole, and that the Others will raid the beach in three days. He tells Sawyer to go back to warn them, but that he himself won't be returning. He explains that he was never under cover, but rather that he's on his own journey now. Sawyer is worried he won't be believed, but Locke gives him the tape recorder as proof. Sawyer asks if Cooper really threw Locke out a window, paralyzing him. Locke responds, "not anymore," and disappears into the jungle, carrying his father's dead body in a bag on his back.
At the beach
During the day, Charlie hurriedly piles food from the kitchen area into a suitcase lid. Jack arrives and asks him about his camping trip. Charlie affects nonchalance, nervously telling him they were exploring, male bonding, and just got back early this morning. Jack tells him to sign him up for the next time. Charlie goes back to a tent and gives the food to Jin, who ducks into the tent. Charlie suggests to Desmond that they should tell Jack. Desmond doesn't trust Jack: Jack was with the Others too long and is too cozy with Juliet. Desmond is protective of their secret; he points out that Naomi is their best chance of getting off the Island. Desmond tells Charlie to bring them someone they can trust. Hurley finds Sayid digging in the jungle with a shovel, asks him if he can keep a secret, and brings him back to the tent. Sayid is relieved to hear that no one has told Jack yet. Sayid goes inside introduces himself to the parachutist. She speaks with an English accent, and tells Sayid that her name is Naomi Dorrit. She flew the helicopter from a freighter 80 nautical miles west, as part of a search and recovery team. When he asks her about Flight 815, she says the entire plane was found off the coast of Bali in an ocean trench four miles deep. Submersible robots explored the wreckage with cameras, which showed that all of the bodies were there. Her company was hired to find Desmond by Penelope Widmore, who she never met, and who only gave them a set of coordinates in the middle of the ocean. They had been conducting a differential GPS grid search, but considered it a fool's errand because they knew of no land in the area. Three days ago she was heading back to the ship when the clouds parted and she spotted land. The instruments started spinning and she knew the helicopter was going to crash in the ocean so she grabbed her parachute and bailed out. Sayid asks Desmond if he actually saw the helicopter, and Desmond confesses he did not. Naomi asks if Sayid thinks she's lying. He asks her if she had any communication device. She asks Sayid to confirm his name again before she shows him the satellite phone, and tells him to remind her not to rescue him.
Sayid is attempting to use the satellite phone. He tells Hurley that he's never seen such sophisticated equipment. He manages to turn it on, but can't find a channel and hears only interference. Kate discovers them and Hurley tries to make up a story about finding the phone in the luggage. Kate is incredulous, and Sayid asks her to keep her discovery quiet.
Trivia
General
- A brig is a compartment that serves as a jail aboard a ship, especially on a warship.
- Cooper claims the Island is hell. A popular (debunked by producers) theory is that the Island is not hell, but purgatory.
- Locke's hand was injured and wrapped in "Left Behind" because his father bit him in this episode's first flashback.
- The "column" that Cooper is tied to may be what was referred to by Ben as an "old place", suggesting it has been on the Island for a very long time.
- The files that Richard gives to Locke include a police report in French, labeled "Ford, James (aka. Sawyer)".
- Zack and Emma, the kidnapped tail section children, are shown in the Others camp along with Cindy.
- When the satellite phone searches for a channel, it shows its point of origin as being on the West Coast of North America.
- Locke suggests the Black Rock is a mid-19th century ship. This is consistent to what was revealed in the Lost Experience, about the Black Rock illegally transporting slaves and having disappeared in 1881. It's also consistent with the facts that the abolition of slavery in the UK occurred in 1807, and that dynamite was invented in 1866.
Production notes
- Claire and Sun do not appear in this episode.
- A podcast rehash for the episode was released on May 04th, 2007. (Official Lost Podcast/May 4, 2007)
- This is the fourth episode that takes place completely on the island.
- Naomi's name is revealed onscreen in this episode, although ABC had placed it on press releases for the previous two episodes. She even mentions her full name as being Naomi Dorrit.
- The bonus feature "Lost in a Day" from the season 3 DVD boxset includes a meeting in the writers' room, in which they are discussing early ideas for the plot for what would eventually end up as "The Brig". Details regarding Sawyer's confrontation with Anthony Cooper still differed vastly from what ended up being in the actual episode. One of the early ideas for this scene was that Sawyer and Cooper were to meet inside a well rather than in the Black Rock's brig, and Richard Malkin would be there as well. The idea for that scene was that no explicit reference to "Raised by Another" would ever come up, and remembering Malkin from earlier episodes was supposedly irrelevant as well. However, Sawyer was supposed to vaguely remember Malkin from somewhere, thus implying that Malkin might have been intended at one point to be revealed as the "Real Sawyer".
- This episode was the final episode with Kevin Blank as a visual effects supervisor. He was replaced by Mitch Suskin. (Season 4 Arrives!)
Recurring themes
- Cooper claims he was abducted after a car accident. (Car accidents) (Abduction and kidnapping)
- Ben and Juliet's plan is to find out which women are pregnant at the survivors' camp, and kidnap them. (Abduction and kidnapping) (Pregnancies)
- Locke's father is the same man who conned Sawyer's parents, causing his father to kill his mother and then himself. (Connections)
- Locke tells Sawyer about Juliet's mission, whilst Jack and Juliet publicly demonstrate to Kate that they are hiding something. (Secrets)
- Locke lied to Sawyer with the ultimate intent to make him kill Cooper. (Deceptions and cons) (Life and death)
- Ben tells John he has to make a gesture of free will. (Fate versus free will)
- John locks Sawyer in the brig of the Black Rock in order to force him to do his dirty work and kill Anthony Cooper. (Fate versus free will)
- Sawyer calls Locke "Tarzan," "bald bastard", and "Johnboy". Cooper calls Ben "bug-eye", Sawyer "friend" and Locke "Bald headed bastard". Interestingly, Sawyer and Cooper come up with similar nicknames (Sawyer has referred to Ben as "bug-eyed" in the past). Locke uses Sawyer's real name, James. (Nicknames)
- Anthony Cooper discovers James Ford used his alias on "... some kind of revenge kick." It turns out the name Cooper used, Tom Sawyer, was also taken from the character by the same name, and is not his real name as well. (Irony)
- According to Naomi, the wreckage of Flight 815 was found in an ocean trench 4 miles deep. (The Numbers)
- Ben says "don't tell me what I can't do, John." (Regularly spoken phrases)
- According to Ben, Locke has to kill Cooper so he can move on from the person he was before the Island. (Rebirth)
- Locke hates his father, but can't bring himself to kill him. (Parent issues)
- Sawyer became the man he is because Anthony Cooper is indirectly responsible for the deaths of his parents. (Parent issues)
- Locke is faced with the possibility of killing the person who ruined his life, but can't do it. Sawyer finds in that same person the enemy he's been after his whole life. (Rivalries)
- According to Cooper, he has conned James Ford's father and took US$38,000 from him. 38 = 15 + 23. (The Numbers)
- Anthony Cooper tells Sawyer "Don't tell me I'm your daddy" to tease him about his questions. In more than one way, Anthony Cooper is more of a father to Sawyer than to Locke, he even inherited the same "nick name/last name". (Irony) (Parent issues)
- Kate wakes up in Sawyer's tent after having sex with him. (Relationships) (Sex)
Cultural references
| Cultural references in Lost (direct references only) |
|---|
| Art • Books • Cars • Games • Movies and TV • Music • Philosophy • Religion and ideologies • Science |
- The books in Ben's tent include:
- "The Oath", John Lescroart's 2000 novel about a doctor who murders seriously ill patients for financial gain. (Books).
- "Word Power"
- a book published by Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.
- Tom Sawyer. Anthony Cooper used the alias Tom Sawyer, a reference to the fictional character in the book of Samuel Clemens (pen name Mark Twain). (Literature). Titles include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), Tom Sawyer Abroad (1894), and Tom Sawyer, Detective (1896). He also appears in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884). Cooper jokes that he took the name because "Huckleberry Finn" was already taken
- Sawyer leaves with Locke without putting his shoes on, most likely an homage to the fictional character who was almost always barefoot.
- One of the best-known episodes from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is the scene where Tom tricks other people into doing his work for him (painting a fence). Appropriately, in this episode Locke is the one playing the same kind of trick on Sawyer.
- Star Wars: Sawyer strangles Anthony Cooper with a chain, the same way Princess Leia kills Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi. Producer Damon Lindelof is known to be an avid fan of that series of films.
- Ben pushing John to kill his own father was reminiscent of the Emperor taunting Luke Skywalker to kill Darth Vader (his father) in 'Return of the Jedi'. The aim was the same - to turn Luke/John over to the 'Dark Side'/'Other side'.(Movies)
- Little Dorrit. The helicopter pilot's name is revealed to be Naomi Dorrit. Amy Dorrit is the name of the protagonist of this serial novel by Charles Dickens published originally between 1855 and 1857. It is a work of satire on the shortcomings of the society, government and corrupt patent offices of the period.
- This is the fourth reference to Dickens in the series. The others are Our Mutual Friend, A Tale of Two Cities and Oliver Twist. (Literature)
- Tarzan of the Apes. Sawyer calls Locke Tarzan, after the protagonist of this 1914 novel written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, its two dozen sequels and many adaptions for movies and television. Tarzan ("White Skin" in the ape language) is raised by animals in ignorance of his human heritage.(Books) (Movies and TV)
- The Waltons. Sawyer calls Locke “John Boy” after the very sensitive young man in this American television series (1971-1981). John-Boy is a bit of a wimp, very family orientated but stubborn enough to do what he feels is right.
Literary techniques
| Literary techniques in Lost |
|---|
| Comparative: Irony • Juxtaposition • Plotting: Cliffhanger • Plot twist • Stock Characters: Archetype • Redshirt • Unseen character• Story: Flashbacks • Flashforwards • Regularly spoken phrases • Symbolism • Unreliable narrator |
- This is the fourth episode to have all events occur on the Island, after "The Other 48 Days," "Maternity Leave" and "Three Minutes." Several other episodes, including "Walkabout," "Live Together, Die Alone," and the introductory portion of "A Tale of Two Cities," have featured on-island flashbacks to the crash. (Flashbacks)
- Nearly his whole life, Sawyer has pursued the man that indirectly caused his parent's deaths. The twist: the man Sawyer pursues is a man the Lost audience is already acquainted with: Locke's father, Anthony Cooper. Sawyer's sudden discovery of Cooper's true identity is called Anagnorisis. (Plot twist)
- Cooper's death actually frees Locke and Sawyer from the bitterness they kept for a lifetime against the same man. (Irony)
Episode references
- Anthony Cooper biting Locke's hand explained the bandage seen in an earlier episode. ("Left Behind")
- Ben referred to a previous conversation with Locke when he said that the magic box was just a metaphor. ("The Man from Tallahassee")
- The episode bears some structural similarities to "Three Minutes." Both episodes begin with a character burning a piece of paper, the contents of which are revealed later on. Both episodes have flashbacks showing what a missing character has been doing with the Others for a large chunk of time. Both episodes came late in the season. ("Three Minutes")
- Sawyer dreamed about the events that led up to his own parents' deaths, which Kate had figured out earlier. ("Outlaws")
- Locke was unable to kill Cooper on his own. This was foreshadowed when Eddie told Locke that he was "not a murderer." ("Further Instructions") Of course, Hibbs told Sawyer, "We both know you ain't the killing type," ("Outlaws") but since that time Sawyer killed at least three men (Duckett, Cooper and later Tom).
Unanswered questions
| Unanswered questions |
|---|
|
- For fan theories about these unanswered questions, see: The Brig/Theories
- How did Anthony Cooper get to the island?
External links
