mix tapes, monks and milo minderbinder

I think I finally understood the complex symbolism of an episode of Lost. All by myself.

It’s actually kind of scary. Not my understanding — that just occurs because I’m not up on philosophers and pertinent works of fiction that pop up in every other episode — but the implications of this episode, and of the title.

Nothing that appears in this show is accidental, and therefore I have to assume that there is, in fact, a parallel between the events that are coming in the final four episodes and the literary work that inspired tonight’s title: Joseph Heller’s Catch-22.

At first glance, one thinks of the idiom that arose from the book. A catch-22 is basically a no-win situation. So no matter what Desmond did or didn’t do, there was going to be a negative outcome. Either Charlie has his throat bisected by one of Rousseau’s spears or the “picture on the box” changes and Desmond risks not saving — or seeing, as it turns out — Penny.

Furthermore, through his flashbacks at the monastery, it’s evident that some of the themes in Heller’s novel — individual vs. society, loss of religious faith, inevitability of death — are prevalent in his life.

But what kind of creeped me out is the parallel between one of the characters in Catch-22, Milo Minderbinder, and Ben (or Jacob, if we ever figure out exactly who he is and what he does among The Others). He runs something called the Syndicate, and he is described as someone devoid of a conscience and possessing complete and utter immorality, although he is not aware of it.

The majority of Catch-22 is set up and developed through use of flashbacks, which leads up to the last part, in which a horrific attack is launched on an unsuspecting village. What follows are death, the disappearance of some of the main character’s friends, rape, and murder.

Um. Maybe I’m reading far too much into this, but Ben’s ominous “see you in a week” to Juliet, the description by critics that a very Lord of the Flies-esque battle is going to take place, and the jaw-dropping events of the finale lead me to believe that maybe there is something to these parallels.

Anyway. As with every other episode, especially the post-break episodes, I loved “Catch-22.” I really enjoy the easy friendship that exists among Charlie, Jin, and Hurley. And for the record? Jin telling ghost stories in Korean with the flashlight to his face was hilarious.

I’m not quite sure how Desmond and Abraham were supposed to overlap. I mean, I understood the symbolism of the monks’ wine being called Moriah immediately. But God asked him to sacrifice the son he’d waited 100 years for as a means testing his faith. Abraham acquiesced, and because he demonstrated such unwavering faith, God spared Isaac by providing a ram caught by his horns in a nearby thicket as an alternate sacrifice.

I mean, I guess I get the parallel. But it’s an imperfect one.

Anyway, the helicoper and the woman who bailed and ended up suspended from a tree by her parachute were a mystery, of course. And she’s a stranger — but she knows Desmond’s name. That was interesting.

Once again, I felt sorry for Kate. I, ahem, wouldn’t have gone and jumped Sawyer, but the fact that she was crying was really what got me. That was a confirmation, really, because before this we’ve only had the jealous, rather shell-shocked looks she shoots at Jack and Juliet. Also, given Juliet’s real motives, I feel a little sorry for poor, manipulated Jack as well. (Sawyer’s presentation of the Phil Collins “mix tape” was really funny.)

I just hope that it isn’t revealed that Juliet is as heartless and cold as Ben. I hope that she has at least a little bit of a heart underneath her single-mindedness.

Next week: Jin/Sun episode, “D.O.C,” which stands for “date of conception.” Apparently we’ll finally learn who the father of Sun’s baby is, and it seems as if Sun herself will learn about the mysterious anomaly on the island that prevents women from carrying babies to full term.