SPOILER ALERT! It was a big day for "LOST." A week after a big shoot in Kaimuki, the crew moved to an even bigger stage on the other end of the island. A huge crowd of extras reported to the old Barbers Point Naval Air Station in Kalaeloa, taking over a massive hangar at the Ewa airfield. Inside Hangar 111, home to the University of Hawaii Pacific Aerospace Training Center, a historic scene was unfolding.
It was the return of the Oceanic Six. The moment when Jack, Sayid, Hurley, Sun, Kate, and Aaron arrive back in the real world, a moment that the flash forwards seem to have been building backwards toward since the end of Season 3. Their rescue is as huge a media circus as you'd imagine, with a throng of reporters and photographers on hand as they step off the plane.
A military transport plane. That brought them back to the United States. Via Honolulu.
Actually, the dramatic disembarkation was to be filmed later. But today's filming focused on an elaborate Oceanic Airlines-coordinated press conference. Or, as my two sources put it, "a big press con." The world's media was there for answers, as well as several familiar faces: Veronica Hamel (Margo Shephard), Cheech Marin (David Reyes) and Lillian Hurst (Carmen Reyes). But as "LOST" fans know, the answers they got merely raised more questions.
Ms. Austen, how old is Aaron? Ms. Kwon, what happened to your husband? Mr. Reyes, what of your fortune, and this hefty airline settlement? The answers they give, I dare not tell. But suffice it to say, the press is as skeptical of the official story as "LOST" toughest fans. (And Hurley's hackles are raised by a query that's been raised by viewers and comedians alike since Season 1.) Sayid toes the line, but isn't happy about it.
And yes, the Oceanic Six make surprising mention of some long, lost friends. Three of them, at least, whose deaths occurred in each of the first three seasons.
Hat Tip: M&M and VHS.
