Official Discussion: 1x20 Do No Harm

[Hollywood Heidi]

1x20 Do No Harm

Original Air Date: April 6, 2005
Centric: Jack centric
Directed by: Stephen Williams
Written by: Janet Tamaro
Summary: Jack tends to a severely wounded Boone after Locke returns him to the caves. In the confusion, Locke slips away to deal with his guilt over the crisis. Meanwhile, Claire unexpectedly goes into labor while deep in the forest. Flashbacks in this episode take place around the events of Jack's wedding with the soon to be Sarah Shephard. (tv.com)
Trailer:

 

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Discuss the episode! Below are some discussion points to get you started.  Feel free to simply copy and paste and insert your thoughts or write out your thoughts however you like.  Constructive comments make for better and more interesting conversations so feel free to elaborate and explain your thoughts, conclusions, and opinions.  Repeat Viewers, answer these as if watching for the first time or what your original answers would have been when you first watched:

What did you think of the episode?

What expectations or theories did you have that either ended up right or wrong?

Who was your favorite character in this episode and why?  Least favorite?

What scenes or situations did you like best?  Least?

What were some of your favorite quotes?

How do you rate this episode compared to the rest?


Repeat viewers
Be mindful of the first-time viewers and give fair warning of spoiler comments by putting spoiler tags (directions below) or at the very least keep them at the bottom of your post with a big texted SPOILER before it.

[spoiler]spoiler text[/spoiler]
What do you think of the episode now that you've seen the whole series?

Did you find anything new you didn't catch the previous time(s) watching?

[Hollywood Heidi]

5 out of 5 stars.  Anything that can move me so emotionally that I'm weeping deserves 5.  Hell, I'm still crying and I've seen this ep at least 5 times before.  Both tears of sadness for Boone and tears of happiness for the island's newest arrival.  The writers were tearing at my emotions, switching back and forth between life and death, happiness and grief.

Just as he was breaking the bonds that tortured him and held him back and starting to find his way with this new beginning, his life came to a painful, tragic end.  Rest in peace, Boone.  You will be missed.

It was unfortunate that it took Boone's death for Shannon to come to the realization of how important he was to her.  I think also she was crying over her guilt at how she'd been treating Boone for the past who knows how many years.  She never got a chance to come around and apologize, which I'm sure would have happened once she fully embraced this new chance at life on the island.

Jack once again shows that he can't let go, as his father had said to him toward the beginning of the season.  You don't have what it takes, the 'it' being able to let go.  Even though he knew that there was no real chance at saving Boone, he grasped at the minute chance that removing the leg would somehow fix things.  Some things can't be fixed.  This is the second time someone said "I'm letting you off the hook, Jack," the first being Rose letting him off the hook of promising to stay by her until her husband returned from the bathroom.  It seems the only way he's able to let go and stop trying to fix someone is if they tell him.

I still can't believe that Locke lied.  I'm not sure if Boone would have lived anyway but it was apparent that the cause of the accident was important to how Jack would have treated it.  Jack straight out mentioned that fact.  If he'd fallen off a cliff, the bones would have been broken but they'd been crushed, creating the compartmentalizing of blood.  If he'd have known that, he'd probably have known that a transfusion would not have worked or he would have attempted to take the leg off earlier.  Maybe he wouldn't have even attempted to set the leg.  Either way, though, I don't think poor Boone had a chance.

On the other side of the circle of life, it was great to finally see Claire have her baby.  She was so scared the baby would know it had been unwanted at one point and scared of what may have happened to the baby while she'd been kidnapped but once she was holding the baby, her fears were forgotten.  How scary that must have been for Kate too!  I can't imagine being put in a position of having to deliver a baby.  What if you do something wrong?  You're taking the life of the mother and unborn child into your hands.  Jin and especially Charlie were hilarious to watch!  Charlie was like a proud papa.  When Jin held out his hand to shake Charlie's, Charlie just grabbed him up in a big bear hug.

Notice how Kate's voice sounded hoarse toward the end of the childbirth?  It was because Evangeline Lilly had gotten laryngitis so the writers wrote into the script the part of her yelling out for help repeatedly, which would explain the strain on her voice.

As far as Jack's flashbacks, I didn't get a very good feeling about Jack and Sarah's marriage.  It didn't sound or feel like they were getting married for the right reason.  Her speeches were about him saving her life and that because of him, she'd be able to dance at their wedding, etc.  He doesn't wear a wedding ring in the show nor does he act married with the way he's been crushing on Kate so something happened somewhere along the way.  Jack and his dad were still on speaking terms so we know this happened well before his previous flashbacks.

His best man, Marc Silverman, is the same kid that he'd been trying to stick up for in the flashback when he was a boy.  Marc was being beaten up when Jack stepped up and then received a thrashing of his own for his efforts.  Guess his heroics created a lifelong friendship.

I liked the Shayid scenes.  I know you're not a fan, Ilona, but I'm definitely warming to them.  It was so heartbreaking to see how happy she was but us knowing that she had no idea her brother was dying.  Oh man, when Hurley taps Jack on the shoulder and Jack goes to talk to them, it made me cry even harder.  No dialogue was necessary and maybe that made it even more emotional.  That amazing music again and just the spectacular acting.  The expressions on their faces and just the subtle way Shannon takes a step back.

Oh man, the very ending!  Jack is so pissed.  He was unable to fix Boone and he's projecting all that anger and disappointment over on Locke.  Kind of rightly so.  Locke didn't even have the decency to stick around to explain what happened.  As I said, I think Boone was a goner even if Jack had known that he was more crushed than just suffered a fall but if there had been a chance and Jack treated the injuries with false information, then I guess it could be considered murder.  Involuntarily, of course, but still, giving false information that leads to incorrect treatment resulting in death could definitely be a form of murder.  Locke's main priority is the island.  He's obviously putting it above human beings.  This man who speaks such wisdom is showing some crazy, cultish obsessive devotion to a piece of land floating in the ocean.  Yes, there seems to be something special about it but this is taking it too far.  Why hide that there's a hatch?  Why hide that they found a beechcraft?


Favorite quotes/moments:


The scenes flowing from life to death and back again.


Shannon: I just need to take it a little slow. Are you okay with that?
Sayid: I had no expectations.
Shannon: (looks at picnic he set up) Right.
Sayid: Hopes, not expectations.


Hurley: (Seeing Jack all pale after giving transfusion) Whoa, dude, you alright, man?  You're looking kinda... goth.

[DarkSideCookie]

5 STARS!! Here my "cry-rule" definitely takes effect! I can still feel the tears in my eyes and the waves of emotions coming up when I watched it last week! It was one of the best episodes so far! One of my crying eyes was with sadness and one was with joy. Boone and Claire. One life taken, one given. So the number of the stranded doesn't change, right? Hm...

Rest in peace, Boone... Seriously, I never thought they would kill him off.

Right! Thanks Heidi, now I know why I had the feeling to have heard the "letting you off the hook" sentence before! Because I really HEARD it before. By the way I hope Rose will become a bigger part at the show at one point, as I really like her, as she seems to be a brave woman and somehow has a charming character.

After this episode I was even more angry about Locke lied. Shame on you, boy! Though it's pretty extrem, how Jack calls him a murderer in the end. But understandable either. Well, where the hell was Locke at the whole time?! Feel sorry for a lot of people in the show actually.

I had to cry at the whole Claire's gets her baby scene either. It was just so emotional and not only sad situations bring tears into my eyes. And I did understand Kate's fear too. I would be the same. I loved how Jin made himself helpful at calling out for help. And it was seeable, that it wasn't easy for him to speak to Sun as his translator, but I'm glad he did it though.

I had a odd feeling about Jack and Sarah's marriage, too. And to be serious, I thought he was going to break up with her, when he realized that he wasn't able to write a vow, maybe right in front of all guests.
Hm but I had the feeling that the bond between Jack and his father was kinda better at this flashback, so at first I got the idea it could take place even after the Sawyer-met-Jack's-father-in-the-bar scene?! But well, this probably wouldn't make sense? I'm not that good at staying at the timeline while watching.

To be honest, I do warm up with Shayid as well. I didn't like Shannon very much so far, but maybe she really is gonna change and deserves a second chance. They are a little bit cute together. Actually I can't blame her because of the fact that Sayid is older than her, as my boyfriend is also eight years older than me. Age is not important, as long as you love each other and of course as long as both parts are adult. And... I had to cry too, when I saw her face, while getting the information that her brother has died. Actually... I just didn't stop crying the whole second half of the episode...

Btw I'm all like Hurley as for seeing blood. I even can't watch it on medical shows in tv. My hands are raising at those scenes, hiding my eyes to watch it lol. But instead I don't have a problem watching blood in horror movies. I don't know why exactly it is so, but probably because it's no so real, not so close to reality. Lol today at work my workmates came to talk about surgeries and injections and I was all like "Whoa guys, please! I'm laying here soon, of you continue!" xD


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Favourite quotes:

Shannon: "I just need to take it a little slow. Are you okay with that?"
Sayid: "I had no expectations."
Shannon: "(looks at picnic he set up) Right."
Sayid: "Hopes, not expectations."
Men... But somehow cute from Sayid lol.

This time Jack's line: "Don't tell me what I can't do!"

Hurley: "Whoa, dude, you alright, man? You're looking kinda... goth."

Claire: "It's not gonna want me."
Kate: "What?"
Claire: "It knows I don't want it and I was gonna give it away. Babies know that stuff."
Kate: "Do you want this baby now? Do you want it to be healthy and safe?"
Claire nods.
Kate: "Ok. Then the baby knows that too."

Boone: "I know you made... a promise. I'm letting you off the hook. Let me go, Jack."

[Hollywood Heidi]

The actress who plays Rose is a pretty famous stage actor so she kinda disappeared for a little but don't worry, she'll be back!

I kind of had that feeling that Jack was going to walk away from the alter but then I remembered, Jack never gives up. He never quits. He just has to fix anything that needs fixing no matter how hopeless the situation. He won't stop until someone "let's him off the hook."

No, Jack's flashbacks in this ep took place long before Jack's dad met Sawyer. Remember, Jack's dad, Christian, took off to Australia right after Jack made him lose his license as a doctor. Jack went after him shortly after but his dad had already died. That was the reason for Jack's flight and we know he was traveling back to America with the body of his father so the stuff with Sarah was definitely beforehand.

I agree though that he and his dad seemed to have a little bit better of a bond in those flashbacks, though still fairly rigid.