jack dies with a “click” not a boom
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By chevy3232
- jack dies with a “click” not a boom
- Created: Apr 15, 2008
- Last updated: Oct 9, 2008
- After episode: 4.1: The Beginning of the End
- Status: Current
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most people believe that season 4 started off with a bang, but i want to talk about how season 4 started off with a “CLICK”. i have read a lot of the theories on the board and a great number of people talk about jack and how important he is and how did he become the man we see in the flashfowards but i havent’ seen anyone discuss the fact that when he was given the chance jack pulled the trigger on locke. now was jack ready to pull the trigger? now that’s a question that is up for discussion.
it had become clear during the events of season 3 that jack was becoming a bit more edgey a bit less patient, everything that had occurred on the island had taken it’s toll on him and he was only one bad incident away from snapping. that incident happened to be the fake deaths of sayid, jin, and benard (sp?). after he believes they are dead we see a side of jack that we have only seen in small, measured, calculated bits (ex. grabbing locke, confronting sawyer, demanding kate and sawyer free from the others). in these examples jack has always been in control, but once he believes that the three are dead he snaps. the beating he gives to ben is something associate with sayid or sawyer not jack. it’s his first real act of violence without caring what it results in.
a large portion of our island friends have been involved in the killing of people, and i’m talking hands on killing. as matter of fact the only person i can think of who hasn’t killed anyone is jack. jack is the only one who hasn’t shot, stabbed, ran over, choked, drowned, or break dance killed anyone since we’ve met him. and up until the last few shows of season 3 and the first showing of season 4 we didn’t think it was possible for him to do so. but the beating of ben, the threat to tom (“and then i’m going to kill you”), the talks of having ben watch the phone call and then killing him were all new takes on jack that we maybe started to believe. that maybe jack had been pushed far enough that he meant what he said about killing.
but there was still doubt. for again this is our jack, the man who is always in control of everything surely it wouldn’t be possible for him to kill anyone. well sadly the jack from the seasons 1,2, and some of 3 is dead and gone. and that jack didn’t die with a bang he died with a “click”.
it has been discussed to death how jack and locke are each one side of a coin so i don’t feel that i really need to get into that right now, i assume that we have an understanding of that. so are we so suprised that when jack finally chooses to pull the trigger and get his hands dirty it’s against locke? the answer to that question is yes we are still suprised. we’ve seen jack angry before we’ve seen jack pushed to the point of breaking but still stay true to himself, to what he believes. but his hatred of locke, his hatred of what locke stands for is the final straw to break the back.
when jack pulls the gun from locke and puts it soundly against his head we still hold on to a belief that it’s jack that he could never do anything like this… and for a second the old jack, the jack we know, wins out. and then there’s the “click”. now i think this is the most important scene yet in lost, i think this scene helps to set up the jack we meet in the future (drunk, scared, full of doubt, not in control).
if you look closely jack makes a face of disbelief after he pulls the trigger. now some will argue that it’s suprise that the gun didn’t go off but i disagree. i think the face that we see is that of disgust and down right fear. i think it’s jack coming to an understanding or seeing something we should all being seeing to. that by pulling the trigger on locke, his first act of actually trying to kill somebody (and i will argue that he would have never let ben die on the surgery table) does result in a death but not the death he intended.
in that scene we watch jack die. not physically obviously but the jack we have met and learned to love is gone. he died with a “click”. and in his place we have the mold of a man who will leave the island, lie to himself and others, bury his pain with pills and drinks, who will throw everything he has worked his entire life for away. a man who has become lost. i think the most important part of tlg parts 1 and 2 is that jack no longer knows who he is. and he believes that the only way to find himself again is to return to the island. the island that damned him from the start.
now i believe that jack pulling the trigger is only the first even that leads to his down fall. i believe that before season 4 ends jack will be forced to “pull the trigger” again but this time i’m not talking about a gun. i think jack is made to decide who leaves the island, who becomes part of the oceanic 6 and it’s that final decision that starts the snowball effect. once jack pulls that trigger i wonder if even in returning to the island can jack save himself?
Key characters
| Short Name | Full Name | Episodes | Theories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jack | Jack Shephard | 1.1, 1.5, 2.11, 1.11, 1.16, 1.20, 3.9, 3.22, 3.1, 4.10, 4.12, & 3” href=”/episodes/theres-no-place-home-parts-2-3/”>4.13 | 1505 |
Key episodes
| # | Title | Aired | Central character | Theories |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.1 | The Beginning of the End | 1-31-2008 | Hurley | 76 |
| 3.22 | Through The Looking Glass | 5-23-2007 | Jack | 1265 |
| 2.23 | Live Together, Die Alone | 5-24-2006 | Desmond | 344 |
| 2.1 | Man of Science, Man of Faith | 9-21-2005 | Shannon | 207 |
| 1.11 | All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues | 12-8-2004 | Jack | 96 |
A joy to read! An excellent character assessment. And one I couldn’t agree more with. Some excellent writing. Well done! +1
Very well done +1
I enjoyed it too+1
Outstanding! Though I’m not sure I agree with Jack having to choose who leaves the island (at least not directly) this is a great read on the development of Jack’s character.
Only one BIG problem…
Why the hell didn’t I think of this!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
:-)
A+A+A+A+A+A+
nice, you’re right there, i think that is the point where jack begins his downward descent.
pulling the trigger on Locke or anyone for that matter, is a huge step for a guy who does all he can to help people.
+1
I like this a lot. You’re spot on with “jack makes a face of disbelief after he pulls the trigger…the face that we see is that of disgust and down right fear. i think it’s jack coming to an understanding”
This is also similar to what happened to Sawyer after he killed Anthony Cooper.
Also, does anyone else think that some of the main original characters are being “killed” in the sense that they are not being developed any more as more screentime is being devoted to the Freighties and Flash forwards? Sawyer has been verging on the irrelevant this series, Jack and Kate have been dull, and Claire only pops up sporadically. Thanks goodness for Ben and Desmond…
Ps. +1
I agree, too! Good job! +1
Great theory. I see one mistake though. You said Jack is the only one to never kill anyone, but I don’t think that is true. Didn’t Jack kill Ethan? This was a very similar situation, where Jack thought Charlie was dead, and he lost control and killed Ethan. I think this adds to you point that Jack would only do something like this when he is not in control of the situation.
love it. explains why jack needs to go back to the island. he wants to be in a situation where he can put things right/become the old jack/need to be in control of something.
awesome!!!!
great theory!! thanks!! +1
Scoot - Jack beat down Ethan but didn’t kill him. Charlie shot him
+1—great character analysis. Great theory title too
I also think this is a very spot on characterization of Jack ! I agree also that when he pulled that trigger he had every intention of killing John. That was “The Beginning of the End”, for the Jack we all knew as the leader we thought him to be.
It was not Jack that killed Ethan,it was Charlie.
That’s true, it was Charlie who killed Ethan, but we could surely see that Jack was getting pushed. Jack has been getting pushed this whole time. He just wants to leave the island. He had a ticket out through the submarine, but Locke blew it up (after being easily coerced by Ben). I agree that the Jack we see now is not the same Jack that we met in the pilot.
Here’s an interesting point as well. Jack has been the noble saver his whole life. He has saved peoples lives and this is what he lives for. Does it pay off? Has he been rewarded in life for all of the un-selfish acts that he has done? Has he been rewarded on the island for his un-selfish acts? Hell no…at least not to a point where he can see it and appreciate it. Maybe he wants to gain a little more of a “bad-boy” side. He loves Kate and it really tore him apart to see her in the cage getting it on with Sawyer. Maybe he thinks that this is the man that Kate wants, so he is willing to change for her. Maybe he’s using Juliet to make her jealous. Maybe he is a scorned man. I think this scene, much like the “click” scene, was also very significant in causing Jack to change. He’s a man pushed to the edge! (plus, he hasn’t gotten any REAL action in a while, so I’ll bet all the teasing helps to make him frustrated too)
Oh, and a big +1
We’re forgetting the US Marshal! After Sawyer shot the Marshal in the chest and punctured his lung, Jack said it would take hours for him to die. Jack goes in the tent, comes out and the screaming is over. I think this might be another big turning point. Jack killed the Marshal! I know it was done to put the guy out of his misery, but he had been avoiding it the whole beginning of the series…
If you listen closely in season 1 episode 3, it sounds like jack smoothers the federal agent in the tent. To put him out of his misery. Sawyer shot him, but when jack came out of the tent just a moment later he looked like he was out of breath. He said it would take hours of days for it to “bleed out”
Listen closely. I swear
+1 great post
Wonderful and well though out +1
I agree wholeheartedly. Especially with what you said about the title of the episode it is the “Beginning of the End” for Jack on a different level than it is for the losties, because we all know that the writers love double entendres, especially in titles of episodes.
+1
Yeah, Jack killed the Marshall - but it was a mercy killing as he was man just suffering until death.
I like the idea that the turning point in Jack’s head was this moment with Locke (basically, cold-blooded killing is the point - he was happy to set up plans - like tents full of dynamite - that would result in deaths but this was the one time he committed to it coldly himself).
Probably the sucker punch will come when, whatever happens, Locke turns out to be either right, or do something great, and therefore make Jack exile himself for almost killing the one man he really should not have misjudged.
+1
Great theory—we needed a good one like this!
+1
That is a very cool theory. Jack has definitely changed his ways from the guy we met on day 1. And I kinda like the part about him have to choose who stays and who leaves. That would be intense…
Awesome, I agree about Jack’s downward spiral starting with the “click”. +1
I do want to bring up one point about the Locke vs Jack camps. Sorry. Maybe someone else can make sense of it but there was one thing that didn’t add up this season for me. We find out via Bernard that Rose chose not to go with Locke to the barracks because he’s a murderer… but… if it weren’t for the unloaded gun, Jack would have murdered Locke. Bernard’s other reason was because going with Jack was the right thing to do (and then he begins his weak speech about karma to Jin). But I don’t get it.
Great post, +1 However, instead of Jack having to chose who is getting off the island, the scene could go like this. Jack has to make a choice about whether or not to “pull the trigger”. That is he will have a similar decision as he had when Ben asked for the radio (either listen to Ben or someone gets killed). As a result of whatever action Jack decides, Claire dies (this scenario assumes Claire dies). Then Jack finds out that Claire was his half-sister. This would explain why he would become suicidal and why he doesn’t want to see Aaron in the flashforward.
Lost will be absolutely great show if all the major characters and up becoming bad guys, either in the service of the Shaitan island or in service of the darker self. And end like that without any optimistic relief.
I just like noir.
There were a lot of dualistic points . Walt was taken from Michael in the same episode Aaron was returned to Claire. Lock get accepted conditionally by Ben’s camp in the same episode Juliette got accepted conditionally by Jack’s camp. Both turned out to be hurting the camp the join (Lock really and Juliette only as part of double game). Both get truly accepted in the same episode (or close).
Lock gets transformed by the death of his father as well as Jack got transformed by the death of his father (much more subtly).
Science vs faith obvious.
By the way, many people know how negative I am about most of the crap written on this forum, but this is actually good crap. +1
Fantastic! ++++++++++1
And I am on the same boat with ya Real…I would LOVE for everyone to become “bad”. lol
Again- great job on your theory , chevy!
My favorite character has been Jack but I would love it if he turned out to be a “bad guy”…..like the final scene has him with an eerie grin….that would be sooooooooooooocool +1 from me!
yes, Jack did kill the U.S. Marshall but I think that may have made pulling the trigger on Locke just a bit easier…Maybe murder is like Lays potato chips, you can’t stop at one (I am an awful person :)
Great theory and great comment DC Lostie: As a result of whatever action Jack decides, Claire dies (this scenario assumes Claire dies). Then Jack finds out that Claire was his half-sister. This would explain why he would become suicidal and why he doesn’t want to see Aaron in the flashforward.
Nice all round. Good writing, good character drill down, and clever use of the ‘click’. I for one will be doing so on the +1 button.
Excellent analysis of a character’s mind and brilliantly written!!! I’ve been visitting this site for some time without registering cuz I still don’t have a theory to be worth posting; I joined today just to give you a +1 and say: well done!
Excellent!!!!
Wonder if it was the Island who provided the “click”????
Wonder how many shots Jack firest in TTLG Part 2?
It will be Jack’s fault that Claire, Jin, Sawyer, or Michael dies.
Jack also “killed” Libby. He knew she would never survive the bullet wounds, so he gave her an overdose of the heroin Sawyer had in his stash.
Just pointing that out.
jack didn’t kill libby michael did… there was no way to save her so he made her numb to the pain i wouldn’t say that was a “killing” so much as it was being a dr
Jack killed the Marshall also, but only after he tried to save his life. It was only to end his misory.