Recon (Lost)
Encyclopedia
"Recon" is the eighth television episode of the American Broadcasting Company
's sixth season
of the serial drama television series Lost
and 111th episode overall. The episode is written by executive producer Elizabeth Sarnoff
and newcomer Jim Galasso and directed by Jack Bender
. James "Sawyer" Ford is the character the episode is centered on.
In 2007, The Man in Black (Terry O'Quinn
) tasks James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway
) to recon the Ajira Airways Flight 316 plane and passengers. Meanwhile, Kate Austen
(Evangeline Lilly
) faces an insane Claire Littleton
(Emilie de Ravin
). In "flash-sideways", Detective James Ford's past issues conflicts with his present life.
) is a detective for the LAPD, along with his partner Miles Straume
(Ken Leung
). He is searching for Anthony Cooper, the man who conned his parents, causing his father to kill his mother and then himself (as seen in "Outlaws
"). He has recently traveled to Australia in his search, telling Miles that he was instead in Palm Springs
. Miles arranges for Sawyer to go on a blind date with Charlotte Lewis
(Rebecca Mader
). The two hit it off; however after having sex, Charlotte discovers Sawyer's folder containing information on Cooper, leading Sawyer to angrily throw her out. Miles confronts Sawyer the next day for lying about going to Australia and decides to stop being Sawyer's partner. After realizing how lonely he is, Sawyer visits Charlotte, who turns him down. Sawyer decides to open up about his past to Miles, right when a car being driven by Kate Austen
(Evangeline Lilly
), a fugitive, crashes into his own. He chases her down, leading him to recognize her from their encounter in "LA X
".
", the Man in Black
(Terry O'Quinn
) leads the Others he has recruited, along with Sayid Jarrah
(Naveen Andrews
), Claire Littleton
(Emilie de Ravin
) and Kate, to rendezvous with his other recruit, Sawyer, who is tending to an injured Jin Kwon (Daniel Dae Kim). The Man in Black sends Sawyer on a reconnaissance mission to the smaller Hydra Island to spy on the survivors of Ajira Airways Flight 316
. Back at the camp, Claire attempts to kill Kate while Sayid watches impassively, forcing The Man in Black to break up the fight. The Man in Black later explains to Kate that he told Claire the Others took Aaron in order to give Claire something to "hold on to". He also compares himself to Aaron, stating that his own mother was crazy. Claire later apologizes to Kate and thanks her for taking care of Aaron.
On the Hydra Island, Sawyer finds all the passengers dead and encounters a woman named Zoe (Sheila Kelley
), who claims to be the only remaining survivor of Flight 316. Sawyer realizes she is lying; a cavalcade of armed men appear and escort him to their leader, Charles Widmore
(Alan Dale
), who has returned on a submarine. Sawyer makes a deal with Widmore: he will lead the Man in Black into a trap in exchange for safe passage away from the island. Sawyer travels back to the main island and tells the Man in Black about the deal he made, stating that he is loyal to the Man in Black. Sawyer later reveals his true plan to Kate: to turn both sides against each other and escape on the submarine while both sides are distracted.
gave the episode a score of 76 out of 100, indicating "Generally Favorable Reviews". The score was down on the previous week's score of 92. Jeff Jenson of Entertainment Weekly
reviewed the episode positively, commenting that although it often seemed to function as a "set-up" episode, it "really worked for [him]" due to the return of Sawyer and "clever, trickster storytelling where every line seemed to have double meaning and so many scenes seemed pregnant with possibilities for what's really going on." Raju Mudhar of the Toronto Star
agreed that the episode felt like "mid-game strategic stage setting", but gave a more negative review than Jensen, deeming Sawyer's off island life "pretty cliché and boring" and writing: "The really terrible thing about it is that it started off so promising." Sam McPherson of TV Overmind wrote that the episode defied his expectations, but was still less than stellar, preferring the main island storyline to the "disjointed" off-island plot. McPherson praised the return of Charlotte, opining that Mader gave a "fantastic" performance, and rated the episode "B+" overall. He felt that while "Recon" had weaknesses in the off-island plot, it was still Lost best ever Sawyer-centric episode.
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's sixth season
Lost (season 6)
The sixth and final season of the American serial drama television series Lost commenced airing in the United States and Canada on February 2, 2010. The sixth-season premiere was the first to climb in the ratings year-over-year since the second season, drawing 12.1 million viewers. The season...
of the serial drama television series Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
and 111th episode overall. The episode is written by executive producer Elizabeth Sarnoff
Elizabeth Sarnoff
Elizabeth "Liz" Sarnoff is an American television writer and producer. She has written episodes of NYPD Blue, Crossing Jordan, Deadwood and Lost.-Career:...
and newcomer Jim Galasso and directed by Jack Bender
Jack Bender
Jack Bender is an American television and film director, actor, television producer and also a screenwriter. Bender was an executive producer and lead director on the ABC television series, Lost. He directed the series finale of Lost. Bender has also directed on other popular shows such as The...
. James "Sawyer" Ford is the character the episode is centered on.
In 2007, The Man in Black (Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn is an American actor, most famous for playing John Locke on the TV series Lost. He made his debut in a 1980 television movie called F.D.R.: The Last Year. Since then, O'Quinn has had minor supporting roles in films and TV movies such as Young Guns, All the Right Moves, Silver Bullet,...
) tasks James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway
Josh Holloway
Joshua Lee "Josh" Holloway is an American actor and model from Free Home, Georgia. He is best known for his role as James "Sawyer" Ford on the American television show Lost.-Early life:...
) to recon the Ajira Airways Flight 316 plane and passengers. Meanwhile, Kate Austen
Kate Austen
Katherine Anne "Kate" Austen is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost, played by Canadian actress Evangeline Lilly. She is the de facto female lead...
(Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly is a Canadian actress, best known for her role as Kate Austen in the ABC drama, Lost.-Early life:...
) faces an insane Claire Littleton
Claire Littleton
Claire Littleton is a fictional character played by Emilie de Ravin on the ABC drama television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of the survivors of a plane crash in the South Pacific. Claire is introduced in the pilot episode as a pregnant crash survivor. She is a series regular until her...
(Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
). In "flash-sideways", Detective James Ford's past issues conflicts with his present life.
2004 (flash-sideways timeline)
James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh HollowayJosh Holloway
Joshua Lee "Josh" Holloway is an American actor and model from Free Home, Georgia. He is best known for his role as James "Sawyer" Ford on the American television show Lost.-Early life:...
) is a detective for the LAPD, along with his partner Miles Straume
Miles Straume
Miles Straume is a fictional character played by Ken Leung on the ABC television series Lost. Miles is introduced early in the fourth season as a hotheaded and sarcastic medium as a crew member aboard the freighter called the Kahana that is offshore the island where most of Lost takes place...
(Ken Leung
Ken Leung
Kenneth "Ken" Leung is an American actor best known for his role as Miles Straume in the ABC television series Lost and roles in such films as Shanghai Kiss, Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Saw.-Early life:...
). He is searching for Anthony Cooper, the man who conned his parents, causing his father to kill his mother and then himself (as seen in "Outlaws
Outlaws (Lost)
"Outlaws" is the 16th episode of the first season of Lost. The episode was directed by Jack Bender and written by Drew Goddard. It first aired on February 16, 2005 on ABC...
"). He has recently traveled to Australia in his search, telling Miles that he was instead in Palm Springs
Palm Springs
Palm Springs is a desert city in CaliforniaPalm Springs may also refer to:* Palm Springs, Florida* Palm Springs, Hong Kong, a residential development in Yuen Long, Hong Kong* Coachella Valley, also known as the Palm Springs area...
. Miles arranges for Sawyer to go on a blind date with Charlotte Lewis
Charlotte Lewis (Lost)
Dr. Charlotte Staples Lewis is a fictional character on the American Broadcasting Company television series Lost, played by Rebecca Mader. Charlotte is introduced in the second episode of season four and is a cultural anthropologist on a mission to the island where Oceanic Flight 815 crashed...
(Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Leigh Mader is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Morgan Gordon on All My Children and Charlotte Lewis on Lost.-Career:...
). The two hit it off; however after having sex, Charlotte discovers Sawyer's folder containing information on Cooper, leading Sawyer to angrily throw her out. Miles confronts Sawyer the next day for lying about going to Australia and decides to stop being Sawyer's partner. After realizing how lonely he is, Sawyer visits Charlotte, who turns him down. Sawyer decides to open up about his past to Miles, right when a car being driven by Kate Austen
Kate Austen
Katherine Anne "Kate" Austen is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost, played by Canadian actress Evangeline Lilly. She is the de facto female lead...
(Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly is a Canadian actress, best known for her role as Kate Austen in the ABC drama, Lost.-Early life:...
), a fugitive, crashes into his own. He chases her down, leading him to recognize her from their encounter in "LA X
LA X
"LA X" comprises the 104th and 105th episodes of the American Broadcasting Company's Lost, marking the premiere of the sixth and final season. It was written by show runners/executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse and directed by executive producer Jack Bender...
".
2007 (original timeline)
Following the events of the episode "SundownSundown (Lost)
"Sundown" is the sixth television episode of the American Broadcasting Company's sixth season of the serial drama television series Lost and 109th episode overall. The episode aired on March 2, 2010 on ABC in the United States...
", the Man in Black
Man in Black (Lost)
The entity referred to most frequently as the Man in Black is a fictional character on the American ABC television series Lost, and is the main antagonist of the...
(Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn is an American actor, most famous for playing John Locke on the TV series Lost. He made his debut in a 1980 television movie called F.D.R.: The Last Year. Since then, O'Quinn has had minor supporting roles in films and TV movies such as Young Guns, All the Right Moves, Silver Bullet,...
) leads the Others he has recruited, along with Sayid Jarrah
Sayid Jarrah
Sayid Hassan Jarrah is a character from the ABC show Lost portrayed by Naveen Andrews.-Season 1:Sayid fixes the transceiver recovered from the cockpit, and leads a group into the jungle in order to send out a distress signal. Instead, he picks up a looping message . He tries to locate the...
(Naveen Andrews
Naveen Andrews
Naveen William Sidney Andrews is a British American actor. He is best known for portraying Kip in the movie The English Patient and Sayid Jarrah on the American television series Lost.-Early life:...
), Claire Littleton
Claire Littleton
Claire Littleton is a fictional character played by Emilie de Ravin on the ABC drama television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of the survivors of a plane crash in the South Pacific. Claire is introduced in the pilot episode as a pregnant crash survivor. She is a series regular until her...
(Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
) and Kate, to rendezvous with his other recruit, Sawyer, who is tending to an injured Jin Kwon (Daniel Dae Kim). The Man in Black sends Sawyer on a reconnaissance mission to the smaller Hydra Island to spy on the survivors of Ajira Airways Flight 316
316 (Lost)
"316" is the sixth television episode of the fifth season of ABC's Lost. The 92nd episode of the show overall, "316" aired on February 18, 2009 on ABC in the United States, and was simulcast on A in Canada...
. Back at the camp, Claire attempts to kill Kate while Sayid watches impassively, forcing The Man in Black to break up the fight. The Man in Black later explains to Kate that he told Claire the Others took Aaron in order to give Claire something to "hold on to". He also compares himself to Aaron, stating that his own mother was crazy. Claire later apologizes to Kate and thanks her for taking care of Aaron.
On the Hydra Island, Sawyer finds all the passengers dead and encounters a woman named Zoe (Sheila Kelley
Sheila Kelley (American actress)
Sheila Kelley is an American television actress. She is best known for her roles as Gwen Taylor on L.A. Law and as Dr. Charlotte "Charley" Bennett Hayes on Sisters.-Early life:...
), who claims to be the only remaining survivor of Flight 316. Sawyer realizes she is lying; a cavalcade of armed men appear and escort him to their leader, Charles Widmore
Charles Widmore
Charles Widmore is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of over forty people after their plane crashes on a remote island somewhere in the south Pacific. He is primarily portrayed as an older man by Alan Dale; Tom Connolly and David S...
(Alan Dale
Alan Dale
Alan Hugh Dale is a New Zealand actor. As a child, Dale developed a love of theatre and also became a rugby player. After retiring from the sport he took on a number of professions to support his family, before deciding to become a professional actor at the age of 27. With work limited in New...
), who has returned on a submarine. Sawyer makes a deal with Widmore: he will lead the Man in Black into a trap in exchange for safe passage away from the island. Sawyer travels back to the main island and tells the Man in Black about the deal he made, stating that he is loyal to the Man in Black. Sawyer later reveals his true plan to Kate: to turn both sides against each other and escape on the submarine while both sides are distracted.
Reception
"Recon" received mostly positive reviews from critics. Review aggregate website MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
gave the episode a score of 76 out of 100, indicating "Generally Favorable Reviews". The score was down on the previous week's score of 92. Jeff Jenson of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
reviewed the episode positively, commenting that although it often seemed to function as a "set-up" episode, it "really worked for [him]" due to the return of Sawyer and "clever, trickster storytelling where every line seemed to have double meaning and so many scenes seemed pregnant with possibilities for what's really going on." Raju Mudhar of the Toronto Star
Toronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
agreed that the episode felt like "mid-game strategic stage setting", but gave a more negative review than Jensen, deeming Sawyer's off island life "pretty cliché and boring" and writing: "The really terrible thing about it is that it started off so promising." Sam McPherson of TV Overmind wrote that the episode defied his expectations, but was still less than stellar, preferring the main island storyline to the "disjointed" off-island plot. McPherson praised the return of Charlotte, opining that Mader gave a "fantastic" performance, and rated the episode "B+" overall. He felt that while "Recon" had weaknesses in the off-island plot, it was still Lost best ever Sawyer-centric episode.