Top 10 LOST Episodes

Here it is, my top 10 favorite episodes of LOST!

10. Lighthouse (Season 6)

Jack and Hurley take a stroll down memory Island as they head towards Jacob's Lighthouse. There, Jack discovers that Jacob has been watching him and the others for years. In a fit of desperation and anger, he destroys the Lighthouse mirrors. This episode, which also features a wonderful Sideways tale of Jack reconnecting with his estranged son, is a major turning point in his character arc and one of the most poignant episodes of season six.

9. The 23rd Psalm (Season 2)

It's a shame Mr. Eko had to die because this episode established an extremely unique character with an unparalleled backstory. We had seen a lot of unique character stories up to this point on LOST, but nothing prepared us to learn about Mr. Eko, who became a Nigerian drug lord as a means to save his younger brother's innocence. In addition, we are treated to the beautiful journey through the jungle with Eko and Charlie, in which both of their faiths are tested.

8. Orientation (Season 2)

Jack and Locke fight over whether or not they should continue to push the button of the Hatch's computer. Locke has learned to take a leap of faith as revealed in his poetic flashback, but Jack wants no part of it. We get our first glimpse into the history of the Dharma Initiative, and we're also introduced to Desmond. On the other side of the Island, Sawyer gets his ass kicked by Ana-Lucia and the Tailies.

7. The Incident (Season 5)

Season five had a whole slate of amazing episodes, but The Incident was easily the best. Jack plans on detonating the Jughead in order to reboot time and needs Sawyer, Kate, and Juliet's help to do it at the site of the Swan Station. The episode runs high on both emotion and mythology as we are also treated to a prologue featuring the first conversation between Jacob and the Man-in-Black speaking to each other in cryptic ways. The final moments give us Ben stabbing Jacob and Juliet detonating the bomb before a fade-to-white. For a show that had given us tons of WTF moments, The Incident found new ways to do it all over again.

6. Walkabout (Season 1)

For most fans who weren't already obsessed after the Pilot, this was the episode that did them in. Here we are introduced to one of television's most intriguing and original characters, John Locke, a knife-wielding, boar hunting survivalist on the Island who was a weak, pathetic paraplegic off of it. The end moments are among the best of the series when, after learning Locke is in a wheelchair, we cut to his waking moments on the Island where he wiggles his toes and discovers he can use his legs again. Sublime!

5. Ab Aeterno (Season 6)

The story of Richard Alpert is about as stand-alone an episode that LOST has created, yet it gives us answers to some of the biggest mysteries, namely that the Island is a massive cork withholding pure evil from the world. Richard's story is heartbreaking. He is unable to save his wife, Isabella, from dying of Tuberculosis, and his efforts get him imprisoned and subject to hanging. Because of shady backroom dealings, Richard is spared death and taken as a slave and sent packing on the ship the Black Rock. After the ship crashes on the Island, Richard finds himself in the middle of the struggle between Jacob and the Man-in-Black. What grounds this fantastic tale, though, is Richard's self-torment over the death of his wife, which is put to rest in the closing minutes as Hurley brings Richard into contact with his wife's spirit. Heartbreaking, inspiring, and breathtaking!

4. Through the Looking Glass (Season 3)

So much happens in this episode, but ultimately it boils down to two of the most iconic LOST moments: Charlie's death and the revelation that Jack and Kate get off the Island. Season 3 is oft accused of being the weakest LOST season, but the last half of it beautifully set up this awesome finale that had fans shell-shocked for the next nine months.

3. Pilot (Season 1)

It seems to get better every time I watch it. The Pilot episode of LOST is fast, furious, and enthralling. We are introduced to so many elements of the show: the central characters, the Monster, Polar Bears, the transmission. Not only is this still the most expensive television episode ever produced, it's arguably the best.

2. The Shape of Things to Come (Season 4)

I loved everything about this episode, from the opening images of Locke, Sawyer and Hurley playing RISK to the closing epilogue of Ben visiting Widmore in the midnight hour. But, it's the story of Ben Linus sacrificing his daughter, Alex's, life to save his own that gives this episode its brilliance. The writers did not shy away from something so awful, and this episode certainly did show us glimpses of the shape of things to come during the remainder of the series.

1. The Constant (Season 4)

One of my favorite books is Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five, and here is LOST's version of it. Desmond and Penny's love story is brought to the forefront as Desmond seeks her out across space and time to ensure that he doesn't die from time traveling sickness. Much like Ab Aeterno, this episode can stand alone for the most part, and features the best climax in the history of the show -- Desmond's Christmas call to Penny.

That's it. My final LOST list. I'm sure once tonight's episode is done I will be re-evaluating what I loved most about the series, and maybe I'll even have a new favorite episode. I hope we all do.

Enjoy the finale, folks!