Television Review: Greatest Hits (Lost, S3X21, 2007)

Greatest Hits (S03E21)

Airdate: 16 May 2007

Written by: Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz
Directed by: Stephen Williams

Running Time: 42 minutes

The philosophical debate between proponents of free will and predestination has served as a cornerstone of Lost since its inception, but by the midpoint of Season 3, the narrative machinery had unmistakably tilted towards the latter. This shift in the show's ideological compass was made even more palpable after the announcement that 2010 would be the series finale, a revelation that suggested the writers were driving a ship toward a preordained destination. Against this backdrop, the penultimate episode of the season, Greatest Hits, felt less like a standard instalment and more like a solemn farewell to one of the most beloved characters in the cast. It served as the perfect prelude to the departure of Charlie Pace, a figure whose demise had long been written in the stars, leaving the audience to anticipate the tragedy with a mixture of dread and resignation.

Enter Naomi, a representative of the outside world whose arrival brings with it a dose of reality and, quite literally, a dead rock star. Describing Charlie as a "dead rock celebrity" whose apparent death in the Oceanic Flight 815 crash catapulted his band, Drive Shaft, to the top of the charts with a posthumous album titled "Greatest Hits," Naomi provides a meta-commentary on Charlie's own trajectory. While Charlie is obviously alive, the spectre of his death hangs heavy. His fate is sealed—or at least accelerated—by Desmond's increasingly dark visions. Desmond delivers the final, crushing prophecy: that Claire and her baby son, Aaron, will be taken off the island by helicopter, a rescue that can only occur if Charlie drowns in a hatch after pushing a button. The dilemma is agonising: if Charlie prevents his own death, he dooms Claire and Aaron to remain on the island. For Charlie, the choice is almost instantaneously resolved. He chooses to let the vision play out, prioritising the survival of the two people he cares for most above his own. Having reconciled with his destiny, Charlie begins to curate his own "greatest hits," a list of his favourite memories written on a piece of paper, effectively composing his own swan song.

The opportunity to enact this sacrifice arises when Jack unveils a tactical plan to ambush the Others. The strategy involves using tents marked by Juliet to identify pregnant women, filled with dynamite that would explode upon rifle fire. While the majority of the camp prepares to travel to the radio tower to contact the freighter, Juliet reveals a critical piece of intelligence: the tower is jammed by the Dharma Initiative's undersea facility, the Looking Glass Station. Seeing this as the realisation of Desmond's prophecy, Charlie volunteers for a suicide mission. He and Desmond locate the cable leading to the station, and after Desmond attempts to take his place, Charlie dives beneath the waves. He discovers a much larger facility that even includes breathable air, a discovery that should have been a victory. However, this moment of triumph is cut short when two women confront him with guns, leaving the episode hanging on a cliffhanger that feels both tense and perhaps slightly parodic.

The episode also carefully sets the stage for the impending showdown elsewhere on the island. Karl, having been warned by Alex about Ben's plans, rushes to the Losties' camp with an improvised boat to deliver the news that the Others' raid has been rescheduled much earlier than told to Juliet. This subplot adds a layer of urgency to the episode's pacing, ensuring that the audience understands the high stakes of the upcoming conflict.

From a production standpoint, Greatest Hits benefits significantly from strong direction by Stephen Williams. The episode maintains a brisk tempo that prevents the emotional weight of the main storyline from dragging the narrative down. The finale, in which Charlie bravely faces his destiny inside the grand, subterranean structure, remains one of the more visually impressive moments of the series at this stage. Michael Giacchino’s score further amplifies the emotional tensions, providing a sonic landscape that underscores the tragedy of the moment. However, the episode is not without its flaws. The scenes taking place on the beach are relatively unimpressive, with Jack characterised here as almost insufferable. He is driven by a toxic combination of ego-trip and newly found homicidal urges towards the Others, which can be difficult to watch.

Furthermore, the script, as is often the case with Lost, throws a number of red herrings into the mix. Desmond's visions are discussed but not fully shown, leaving the audience to wonder if they were genuine prophecies or some sort of psychological ruse. The cliffhanger, where Charlie does not meet a heroic death but instead faces two gun-totting young women, feels almost parodical in its twist, subverting the audience's expectations in a way that is more confusing than shocking.

Despite these imperfections, Greatest Hits is a very good piece of Lost. It succeeds in delivering a poignant character study of a man accepting his fate, anchored by a stellar performance from Dominic Monaghan. His interactions with the rest of the cast are excellent, particularly the final farewell with Hurley, which serves as a powerful emotional anchor. While the script stumbles with unnecessary red herrings and Jack’s abrasive behaviour, the episode effectively sets the stage for the season's finale and provides a fitting, if tragic, chapter in Charlie Pace's story.

RATING: 7/10 (+++)

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