LOST Character Review: JACK "DOC" SHEPARD
Jack Shepard is the first character introduced to us on Lost.
Played By: Matthew Fox (of "Party of Five" fame; in one blooper scene, Jack calls baby Aaron "Owen" by accident, who was his younger brother on the late 90's drama.)
First scene: Opening. Jack is lying on the jungle floor. He is injured...but alive.
Luck of the Draw: Jack's reason for flying Oceanic 815 was to bring his father home. Said trip should be easy...except, his father's dead, riding below in a casket in the cargo hold, and the plane is going to crash on a "deserted" island, rendering Jack's initial plight useless.
Everybody On This Island Has Daddy Issues: Jack's issues with his dad seem to have sprung from Jack's need to feel accomplished, but always seeming a step behind from where he wants to be. Shepard Senior is a veteran surgeon, whose secret life has prompted him to become an alcoholic. Makes you wonder as you watch the series: Will Jack fall into a similar fate?
As fate and plausible "flashsideways 'verse" would have it, maybe he would have...
...if he hadn't come upon the island to begin with. And if he hadn't come back to the island....
...AND if he hadn't taken over for Jacob...
...which winds up getting him killed in the end.
Role: Leader
Strength: Looking out for others; trustworthy; capable of taking control of dire situations.
Weakness: Savior complex; Perfectionist; at times, he doesn't trust himself
The question about Jack comes down to this: Does he ever really save himself in the end?
There are two answers to this question and they lie in two seperate 'verses.
VERSE ONE: The Island
VERSE TWO: Mainland
In Verse One, Jack winds up stabbed to death (by the Jacob's brother, the "Smoke Monster Thing"--aka fake "Locke"), after faililng to sustain his new role as "Island Protector". At the same time, he makes the ultimate sacrifice by giving his life for the greater good. (It is really all heresay, depending on how you look at it.)
In Verse Two, Kate finds Jack and helps him to remember their "other life" together. She then takes him to where they can all "move on".
Jack is joined once again with all the people who have changed his life, and vice versa...everyone in this group finds redemption, and gets to move on...does this mean that the first Verse was all for naught?
It is a question that, like many on "LOST", go unanswered.