LOST Revisited: 6-7 “Dr. Linus”

Ilana asks what he wants, and he just wants to leave to join up with Look-a-Locke “Because he’s the only one who’ll have me”, and it’s the most honest he’s ever been. Put aside the alternate timelines and Smokey and the literary allusions and the numerology for just a minute. When you strip away all of that, Lost has some of the best character work you’ll see on television. This is just a heartbreaking moment, when the master manipulator reveals himself to be fragile and human and alone. The fact that they’re getting this emotional reaction from a character who’s lied and murdered his way through the last five seasons is a testament to the skill of all involved.