Lost: Eggtown

“Eggtown” is the fourth episode of Season 4 of Lost, originally broadcast on February 21, 2008. Kate’s need to get information out of the hostage may jeopardize her standing with Locke — as well as with Sawyer.

Contents [hide] 1 Synopsis 1.1 Real-time events 1.2 Flashforward 2 Trivia 2.1 General 2.2 Production notes 2.3 Bloopers and continuity errors 2.4 Recurring themes 2.5 Cultural references 2.6 Episode Name 2.7 Literary techniques 2.8 Storyline analysis 3 Episode references 4 Unanswered questions 5 External links

Synopsis

Real-time events

Locke wakes up in a house in The Barracks. He goes downstairs to makes eggs and slices up a melon. He takes the breakfast down to Ben, who’s locked in the basement in the same room in which Locke’s father was previously constrained. Locke comments that they are the last two eggs at Ben’s house. Ben belittles John for being so desperate, unable to figure out what he should do next. He cites Locke’s recent failure to find Jacob’s cabin as evidence and tells Locke he is now “more lost than he’s ever been” as he is now even asking Ben’s help. Locke tells Ben he knows what he’s trying to do and proceeds to leave the room, with the breakfast, before Ben can manipulate him. However, Ben’s words have already had their effect on John who violently throws the tray of food at the wall. Ben hears John’s frustration from within his cell.

Meanwhile, Kate is sitting on a porch drinking coffee with Claire, when Sawyer appears. Claire goes to make Sawyer coffee, and Sawyer offers Kate a room in his house. Kate tells him she is not moving in with him and at the mention of possible pregnancy, Kate tells him to leave.

Back at the beach, Jin and Sun are trying to decide where to live once they leave the island. Jin is studying a map and mentions Albuquerque and New York. Sun says she wants to “raise [ her ] baby at home,” back in Seoul, Korea. Jin reminds Sun that the the child is “our baby”. Before Sun can respond, Jack, Daniel, Charlotte, and Juliet return. Jack tells them that Sayid and Desmond have left on a helicopter, re-assuring them that rescue will arrive for the rest of the group soon. When Sun asks Jack where Kate is, he admits that she has decided to stay with Locke’s group but does not know the reason why.

At the Barracks, Kate goes to Locke’s house and asks to speak to Miles. Locke declines and warns Kate that while she may think she is living in a democracy, with the way Jack ran things, she is not anymore. Kate seems surprised by Locke’s attitude and calls it a dictatorship, to which Locke tells her that if it were a dictatorship, he would have shot her in the head and gone on with his day. He then tells Kate when dinner will be ready and ends the conversation. Kate approaches Hurley and tricks him into telling her that Miles was moved from the Rec Room to the Boathouse. She promises not to do anything and heads to confront Miles. Once inside, as though in a panicked rush, Kate demands to know if Miles knows who she is. Miles won’t answer her until she does a favor for him. Kate replies that she cannot free him, but Miles says that he is exactly where he wants to be. The favor he is referring to is to have one minute with Ben.

At the beach, Dan observes the various DHARMA boxes as Jack tries to contact the freighter. Juliet asks Jack if he should try another number on the satellite phone, like 911, as no one is answering to the number given by the freighter people. Sun then asks Jack about Sayid, and if he’s made it to the freighter yet. Jack says that he can’t get to the people on the freighter. After Sun starts to wonder if Locke was right, and the freighter people are here to hurt the survivors, Jack quickly replies that Locke has no idea of what he is doing. Sun then asks why Kate stayed with Locke if he’s so wrong.

Over at the Barracks, Claire and Kate hang up the laundry. When Aaron starts to cry, Claire asks Kate if she can get him for her. Kate, visibly embarrassed, says that she is not very good with babies, she doesn’t want to upset Aaron. He is then picked up by Claire as Kate adds that the former is so good with “him“. Claire then laughs and says that it is the last thing she ever thought she would be good at: to be a mother.

At Sawyer and Hurley’s house, Kate appears, and they talk in the kitchen over DHARMA wine. Sawyer notes that Kate has been spending a lot of time with Claire and Aaron. Kate then asks Sawyer if he’ll help her break out Ben.

Sawyer then goes to Locke’s house, at first asking to play backgammon, but then telling him, after having got Locke’s word that he won’t hurt Kate, that she wants to break Ben out so that he can talk to Miles. They go to the boathouse, but find it empty. Miles and Kate are meanwhile breaking into the basement of the house, and Miles goes to talk to Ben. Miles asks Ben if he knows who he is as well as who the man he works for is, to which Ben replies yes to both. Miles extorts Ben and says that he can tell his boss that Ben is dead, and “take care” of Charlotte, the only other one who knows he’s alive, if Ben will give him 3.2 million dollars. Ben wonders why the amount is so precise. Miles first gives Ben two days to come up with the money in cash, but as Ben is a prisoner, he gives him one week. Kate then pins Miles against the wall and demands he tell her what he knows about her. He admits he knows all about her. He then goes on by saying her full name, why she was on the plane, and then listing the various crimes she has committed. They attempt to leave, but Locke and Sawyer appear at the top of the stairway. Locke reclaims Miles, and demands that Kate return to her house.

Later on, at her house, Kate listens to music as Claire arrives. Locke then shows up, wanting to talk to Kate alone. After finding out from her what Ben and Miles said to each other, Locke banishes her and tells her to leave by morning. Kate then goes to Sawyer, who says that if she wants to stay, he’ll protect her from Locke. They begin to make out.

Back at the beach, Daniel and Charlotte are conducting a memory experiment with DHARMA playing cards. After being timed by Charlotte, Daniel can only remember two of three cards, and, contrary to what Charlotte says, he feels he is making no progress. Jack appears, demanding why the line isn’t working and no one answers the phone. Charlotte reveals that she has an emergency number, but only in extreme cases can it be used. Jack replies that it is an emergency and Charlotte then dials the emergency line. She says to Regina that the people want to talk to their friends, Sayid and Desmond, who left with Frank on the helicopter, and make sure they are all right. Regina states that she doesn’t know what or whom Charlotte is talking about even though they left the night before. Regina then adds that she was under the impression that the helicopter was still on the island.

Miles is tied up, back at the Boathouse. Locke enters, and instead of bringing breakfast, shoves a grenade in Miles’ mouth and pulls the pin, so Miles’ mouth is holding down the trigger mechanism. Locke tells him that if he doesn’t talk, or lift his teeth from the trigger, he’ll be fine. Locke then leaves Miles alone with the grenade in his mouth.

Kate wakes up in Sawyer’s bed, and wakes him with kisses. He says he understands that “she didn’t want to go all the way last night” because “she was sad,” but she again turns down his advances and Sawyer wonders aloud if it’s because of the pregnancy. Kate states she is certain she is not pregnant. Sawyer remarks that a pregnancy would be “the worst thing ever.” Kate doesn’t think so and then leaves, after slapping Sawyer across the face when he states that she’ll come running back once she’s mad at Jack again.

Flashforward

Kate and her lawyer arrive at a courthouse. Kate is hesitant about entering and asks if there is a back enterance. Her lawyer tells her that she will go in the front door with her head held high. Kate then puts on sunglasses, they both exit the car and they enter through a throng of reporters and protesters, with Kate’s lawyer refusing to give any comments.

Inside, court is called to session and the bailiff reads a list of Kate’s charges which include fraud, arson, assault and murder. Kate pleads not guilty, which seems to shock the court’s audience. The judge asks to hear arguments on bail, and the District Attorney requests that Kate be remanded (held without bail) for the duration of the trial. Kate’s lawyer argues that she is not a flight risk because she is one of the most recognizable people in America, but the judge agrees with the District Attorney and orders Kate to be taken into custody. Later, Kate’s lawyer meets her inside a prison parlor. The lawyer wants to make the case about who she is, rather than what she has done. He suggests that they bring Kate’s son to the court to create sympathy towards her, but Kate refuses to involve him in her trial.

After admittedly being damaged in the prosecution’s opening statement, Kate’s lawyer calls a cleanly shaved Dr. Jack Shephard to the stand. Kate seems visibly shocked. Once sworn in, Jack states that he knows Kate because he was also on Oceanic Flight 815 which crashed on an island in the South Pacific. Kate’s lawyer asks him if he knew of Kate’s fugitive status and how. Jack replies that it wasn’t via the marshal telling him, as he died during the plane crash. It was Kate who later told him of her status. Jack then adds that, due to her character, he believed it to be a mistake. He also states there were only 8 survivors of the crash, all of which Kate helped get to shore and then to safety and treated them with First-Aid. According to Jack, Kate was the one who helped the survivors. Before he can continue his testimony, Kate interrupts in protest. The DA then cross-examines with a single question: “Do you love the defendant?” Jack answers, “not anymore.”

Later, Kate’s mother approaches her. She asks why Kate didn’t come see her. Kate references that the last time she contacted her, her mother shouted and then called the cops. Her mother tells Kate that the doctor told her she had “6 months to live for the past 4 years.” She is losing the will to testify against Kate. Kate urges her not to indeed testify, but her mother insinuates that she would [ not testify ] if she could see Kate’s child. Kate refuses, saying she doesn’t want her mother anywhere near her child.

Back in court, the DA discusses with her fellow attorneys and then comes to see the judge to tell him that Kate’s mother cannot at present testify due to a health problem. The judge calls recess. During the recess, the district attorney offers Kate a deal of 4 years in prison. Kate’s lawyer objects, claiming that the jury would never choose jail time for her, due to the heroic story and the fact that she was killing her father to save her mother from abuse. The DA then offers a deal of time served plus 10 years of in-state probation. Kate agrees before her lawyer can object, telling the DA to give her something to sign because she just wants the whole thing behind her. She adds that she isn’t going anywhere because she has a son.

When leaving the courtroom out the back door, Kate spots her waiting taxi. Jack, after quickly exiting his big truck suddenly calls out for her. When asked how he knew she’d be there, Jack states her lawyer “owed him one.” He tells her that he didn’t mean what he said in court. She smiles, and offers him back to her house to visit her and her son. He refuses, saying he has to get back to the hospital, but offers to meet for coffee instead. Kate tells him she understands why he doesn’t want to see her son, but that until he does there won’t be any talks over coffee. She reminds him to call her if he ever changes his mind.

Kate arrives to her opulent home and is greeted warmly by a nanny. The nanny remarks that Kate’s baby missed her badly, but he is now asleep upstairs. Kate enters his bedroom and he is revealed to be a toddler with very blond hair. The child wakes up, hugs Kate and calls her “mommy”; she calls him Aaron.

Trivia

General

• Shawn Doyle previously worked with Elizabeth Mitchell in the film “Frequency”. The film involved time travel where Doyle’s character, a serial killer named Jack Shepard, is prevented from killing Mitchell’s character.
• Day 95 is Christmas Day, 2004 and Day 96 is December 26, 2004 - also the day of the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami that killed over 225,000 people in 11 surrounding countries.

Production notes

• Desmond, Michael, and Sayid do not appear in this episode.
• This is the ninth episode featuring off-island events in Kate’s perspective.

Bloopers and continuity errors

• Sawyer sets up the game of backgammon with Locke incorrectly. The column with 3 pieces should be 2 columns away from the median, not 3.

• Locke throws the plate of food at the concrete basement wall after leaving Ben. The wall shakes as the plate hits it.

• When Sawyer is talking to Kate on the bed after their night together, his hair changes from being down in his face to pulled back in between shots.

• Kate was arrested by a federal marshal, faces at least one federal charge (assaulting a federal agent), and is remanded into federal custody; however, according to the court’s seal and court officers’ uniforms, she is being tried in a California state court.

Recurring themes

Recurring themes in Lost
Black and white • Car accidents • Character connections • Deceptions and cons • Dreams • Eyes • Fate versus free will • Good and bad people • Isolation • Missing body parts • The Numbers • Parent issues • Life and death • Rain • Rebirth • Redemption • Sacrifice • Secrets • Time • Nicknames

• The episode opens to Locke’s eye while he is laying in bed. (Eyes)
• Sawyer thinks Kate might be pregnant, although she reveals that she is not. (Pregnancies)
• Kate’s mother wants to make peace but Kate tells her to stay away. (Parent Issues)
• Kate’s mother wants to see Kate’s “son” but Kate refuses. (Children)
• Sawyer refers to Hurley as “Montezuma.”. (Nicknames)
• Sawyer refers to Miles as “Bruce Lee from the freighter.” (Nicknames)
• Jack lies in court about the number of crash survivors and about events following the crash. (Deceptions and cons) (Secrets)
• Kate tricks Hurley into revealing Miles’ location. (Deceptions and cons)
• Kate enlists Sawyer to distract Locke while she sets up a meeting between Miles and Ben. (Deceptions and cons)
• Sawyer tells Kate that she’ll be back when she gets mad at Jack again in about a week (Relationship Issues)
• Locke has Miles imprisoned in the boathouse. (Imprisonment)
• Locke has Ben imprisoned in his basement. (Imprisonment)
• Kate gives up the right to leave California to stay out of jail. (sacrifice)
• The Helicopter with Sayid and Desmond hasn’t reached the freighter after almost a day. (time)
• Jin tells Sun he is learning English for her. Sun learned English so she could get away form Jin. (Secrets)

Cultural references

Cultural references in LOST (direct references only)
Art • Books • Cars • Games • Movies and TV • Music • Philosophy • Religion and ideologies • Science

• Scooby Doo: Hurley says “You just totally Scooby Doo’d me”. (Movies and TV)
• Xanadu: Hurley is watching this movie when Kate comes over to talk to Sawyer. While it is a clear reference to the cult movie of 1980, in which the main character crosses over into another dimension to be with his muse, it also refers to a famous poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The poem is about a famous tropical paradise. Xanadu is also the name of Charles Foster Kane’s mansion in “Citizen Kane”. (Movies and TV) (Books)
• Through the Looking Glass, And What Alice Found There: One of Daniel’s playing cards is a Red Queen. (Books)
• VALIS: the book Locke that gives to Ben is this novel by Philip K. Dick. VALIS is an acronym for Vast Active Living Intelligence System, which is the author’s gnostic vision of one aspect of God. Dick’s novels often feature protagonists immersed in dissolving or fluctuating realities. (Books)
  • Notably Dick throughout his life claimed to see ghosts of his twin sister who died five weeks after birth, i.e. “The Bad Twin”
  • The edition of VALIS shown in the episode was published by Vintage in 1991.
• The Invention of Morel by Adolfo Bioy Casares is the book Sawyer is reading. The story is about a fugitive who hides on a deserted island somewhere in the South Pacific. (Books)
• Backgammon: Sawyer and Locke play this game at the Barracks. (Games)
• Montezuma: Sawyer refers to Hurley as “Montezuma”. Montezuma was the ruler the ruler of the Aztec empire at the beginning of the Spanish conquest of Mexico (1502-1520). Many sources describe him as weak-willed and indecisive. Additionally, in Mexico traveler’s diarrhea is often referred to as “Montezuma’s Revenge.” Sawyer uses this nickname as we hear Hurley flush a toilet.
• Bruce Lee: Sawyer refers to Miles as “Bruce Lee from the freighter.” Bruce Lee (1940-1973) was an American-born martial artist.

Episode Name

Egg-town is a pejorative term that refers to the days of bartering, during the Great Depression. A traveling salesman would have to barter his candy or tobacco or shoelaces for different commodities. A poor exchange would be for eggs, a relatively common item that is also highly perishable. Nobody wants to trade for eggs from a traveling salesman because they have their own, so the salesman who accepted an egg in exchange was forced to accept a bad deal. Salesmen would use the term like “If I were you I would stay away from Bogart. That’s an egg-town.” Of course, the lack of trust among salesman was also high, and it was likely that one salesman would lie to another about the quality of a town’s customers to keep them for himself. Invariably, the second salesman ventures into Bogart only to find it is truly an egg-town. He is either persuaded to not visit a town that has good customers or is tricked into visiting a town that can only offer eggs. The term “egg-town” represents a deal with undesirable outcomes in either case. ^{[source needed]}

References in this episode include:

• The inability of Locke to makes any progress with the interrogation of Ben or Miles.
• The deal Kate made. She is now forbidden to leave the state and thus can’t legally go back to the island for any reason for at least ten years.
• The barracks turn out to be Egg-town for Miles; He tries to extort 3.2 million dollars from Ben and ends up with a grenade in his mouth instead.

• The episode starts with literal eggs: Locke preparing an omelet breakfast for Ben. He tells Ben these are the last two eggs.
• Kate’s preoccupation with the chance that she might be pregnant, and the continuing references to her child in the episode’s flashforwards.
• Locke’s inability to establish any communication with Jacob.
• Locke kills a chicken (no more eggs).
• Kate’s decision whether to leave the island and go to jail or remain on the island and die (from her hinted-at pregnancy).

Literary techniques

Literary techniques
Flashbacks • Flashforwards • Irony • Juxtaposition • Archetype • Mindf*ck • Plot twist • Symbolism • Foreshadowing • Cliffhanger • Redshirt • Unseen character • Regularly spoken phrases

• It is revealed that Kate is raising Aaron and calling him her son, despite the fact that Claire is his mother. (Mindf*ck) (Plot twist)
• Kate mentions that she’d do a terrible job of raising a baby like Aaron, but in the future ends up raising the very child that sparked the topic of conversation. (Irony) (Juxtaposition)
• Kate deceives Locke in order to find out whether it is safe to leave the island or whether she should stay, but when she finds out that it will be dangerous for her to leave (because everyone knows she is wanted), Locke won’t let her stay because of the deception. (Irony)
• Ben finds himself being held against his will in his own basement. (Irony).

Storyline analysis

Storyline analysis
A-Missions • Crimes • Economics • Leadership • O-Missions • Relationships • Rivalries

• Locke says that his group “isn’t a democracy”. Kate accuses him of being a “dictator”. (Leadership)
• Kate and Sawyer talk about a possible pregnancy. (Children) (Relationships)
• Kate and Sawyer set out on a mission to get Miles and Ben together. (A-Missions)
• Locke kills a chicken and invites everyone to dinner. (Leadership)
• Jack tells Kate he lied when he said he didn’t love her. (Relationships)

Episode references

• Ben mentions how his current situation is just like “old times” referring to when he was held captive at The Swan. (”One of Them“).
• Ben frustrates Locke which results in Locke once again throwing things in anger. (”Maternity Leave“)
• Locke once again plays backgammon, this time against Sawyer–only this time he’s playing with the black pieces. (”Pilot, Part 2“)
• Claire was told by Richard Malkin that it would be crucial that she raised the child herself. (”Raised by Another“)
  • Malkin also convinced Claire to get on Flight 815, to give up her child for adoption to a couple in Los Angeles, who he says are “good people“. Kate ends up with the baby, living in Los Angeles. (”Raised by Another“)
• Faraday displays some form of memory loss when tested with playing cards. He seemed to have trouble remembering his name when first introduced (”Confirmed Dead“)

Unanswered questions

Unanswered questions
Do not answer the questions here. Keep the questions open-ended and neutral: do not suggest an answer. More details…

For fan theories about these unanswered questions, see: Eggtown/Theories

On the Island

• Where is the helicopter?
• Who is Miles working for?
• Why does Miles want exactly 3.2 million dollars?
  • Why is he so sure that Ben is able to get such a large sum of money?
• Why is Daniel having difficulty remembering the three cards?
  • Why does Charlotte consider this “progress”?
• Why isn’t Minkowski answering the ship phone?

In the Future

• Who are eight initial survivors of flight 815 according to the story told by the Oceanic 6?
• Why was Kate tried in California, and not Iowa?
  • And why is the D.A. insisting that she stay in the state as part of her probation deal?
• Why is Kate telling people that Aaron is her son?
  • What happened to Claire?
  • Why doesn’t Jack want to see Aaron?
    • Does Jack know that Aaron is his nephew?
  • Is Aaron considered one of the Oceanic 6?
  • Who does Kate claim to be the father?
  • Does Kate claim to have been pregnant before the crash, or after it?
  • How is Kate able to pass Aaron off as her son based on the age of the child and the fact that she wasn’t visibly pregnant at the time of the crash?