The 23rd Psalm

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"The 23rd Psalm"
Season
Episode

2
10
Airdate
January 11, 2006
Flashforward
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Flashback
Days
Directed by
Special guest star(s)
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Guest starring
Uncredited
{{{uncredited}}}

Episode transcript
[[{{{transcript2}}}|Part Two]]


"The 23rd Psalm" is the tenth episode of Season 2 of Lost. When Eko finds a Virgin Mary statue, he demands that Charlie take him to where he found them at once. Elsewhere, Michael continues to communicate on the Swan computer without the other survivors knowing.

Contents

Synopsis

Flashback

The guerrillas taking Eko
The guerrillas taking Eko

Nigerian guerrillas descend upon a small village. They grab a small boy and try to force him to shoot an old man. The boy hesitates, so his older brother takes the gun and shoots the man himself. The guerrillas are pleased with this and ask him his name, to which he replies, "Eko." The leader says that "Mr." Eko is a "born killer," and takes him, leaving his brother, Yemi, and the other children behind. Eko's cross is torn from his neck by the leader, who says, "You won't need this anymore." Eko's younger brother picks up the cross as Eko rides away into the distance.

A few years later, Eko has become a powerful warlord of Nigeria. He meets with another drug dealer who is trying to get his heroin out of the country. Eko offers to do him a "favor" - buy the drugs at a ridiculously low price and spirit them out of the country. The drug runner reluctantly agrees. Before he leaves, however, he tells Eko, "It's true what they say about you. You have no soul." Eko proceeds to slit the throat of the man and his assistant, but lets the man's son live, saying, "Tell all your friends that I let you live, that Mr. Eko let you live".

Mr. Eko "taking care of business."
Mr. Eko "taking care of business."

Now a grown man, Eko visits the church in the town that he was taken from. A woman outside is trying to sell statues of the Virgin Mary to raise money for polio vaccines for the village. Eko's brother Yemi, who has become a priest appears from the church and greets Eko. Eko asks him for a plane, because only foreign and missionary aircraft are allowed to fly out of Nigeria. He claims that he will fly the drugs out of Nigeria (and away from their people) and give his brother the money for the polio vaccine. His brother tells Eko that he loves him still, but refuses to help.

Eko later approaches his brother again, asking simply for his brother to sign papers that make Mr. Eko and two other men priests so that they can fly a plane themselves. His brother refuses at first, but Eko tells his brother that if he does not obey, Eko whispers that his two friends will burn the church to the ground. His brother reluctantly signs.

Eko putting his brother's body in the Beechcraft
Eko putting his brother's body in the Beechcraft

Eko and his two friends, dressed as priests, prepare to board the plane a landing strip near the village. However, they are interrupted as Yemi drives up to the plane and tells Eko not to leave. He is soon followed by the Nigerian military. Eko's two friends open fire onto the military, and one dies when the military fires back. Eko's brother tells them to stop, but they shoot him. Eko carries his brother into the plane and tells his friend to get in. His friend does, but kicks Eko away from the plane before he can get in. As Eko watches the plane carrying his wounded brother fly away, the military approaches, asking "are you alright Father?", mistaking Eko for a priest.

On the Island

Claire introducing herself to Eko
Claire introducing herself to Eko

Claire introduces herself to Eko, and sees that he is whittling scripture into the head of his club. Upon seeing this, she mentions to him that he should talk to Charlie about religion, given the Virgin Mary statue that he has been carrying. Eko becomes panicked, and immediately demands to see the statue. Though Claire tells Eko that it's "just a statue", he breaks open the statue and shows Claire the heroin inside. Believing Charlie to still be an addict, Claire begins to lose faith in him. Eko demands that Charlie take him to the place where he found the statue. Charlie takes him to a tree and claims that he found the statue under the tree, though Eko becomes upset and demands that Charlie take him "to the plane." Charlie also notices the scriptures on the stick Eko carries.

Michael aiming at a bottle of DHARMA ranch dressing
Michael aiming at a bottle of DHARMA ranch dressing

Meanwhile, Locke teaches Michael how to use a gun. Michael then asks Kate if he can have her shift at the computer, to which she agrees. Michael tries to get the computer to turn on. The computer then comes on by itself. Someone at the other end says "Dad?", then asks if Michael is alone, and finally claims Michael has to come for him. The person then says that "they are coming back," but, before he can say anymore, Jack appears. Jack talks to Michael, saying that everyone cares about Walt, and that as soon as they can, they will go out to "bring him back". When Jack walks behind Michael on his way out, the conversation has disappeared from the monitor.

Michael communicating with Walt on the Swan's computer
Michael communicating with Walt on the Swan's computer

Charlie takes Eko further into the jungle, complaining that Eko ruined his relationship with Claire and that Mr. Eko shouldn't judge him because it was his brother that got him addicted to heroin. Eko and Charlie find a parachute in a tree, which leads to the corpse of the Nigerian man dressed as a priest that Boone and Locke found. He opens the man's shirt. The dead man wears no cross but instead has one gold tooth, which Eko touches. When he realizes it's not his brother, he says a prayer, telling Charlie that the man "saved his life". Charlie loses his way, and Mr. Eko tells him to climb a tree. Charlie reluctantly obliges. While he is in the tree, there are explosions in the jungle then the black smoke that Jack, Locke and Kate once saw arrives. Mr. Eko faces the black smoke as John Locke did, despite Charlie telling him to run. The black smoke approaches Eko, who stands his ground. Eko stares fearlessly at the cloud for a few moments, and as the camera passes through the cloud, there is a chattering noise. There are dark images flashing inside the cloud, images which are from Eko's past: the man he shot, his mother, his brother, a church, and a crucifix. Suddenly, the cloud pulls back and disappears.

The cross on Yemi's dead body
The cross on Yemi's dead body

Eko and Charlie find the plane. Eko finds another corpse inside, opens the shirt, and finds the cross around the body's neck. Eko tells Charlie that the man inside is his brother. He gives Charlie a Virgin Mary statue "for the one he broke" and burns the plane, reciting Psalm 23 from the Old Testament.

The Beechcraft burning
The Beechcraft burning

Charlie asks Eko if he is, in fact, a priest himself. Eko pauses, then smiles softly and puts the cross around his neck. "Yes," he replies, "I am."

In a pre-closing scene, several survivors are shown progressing with island life. Kate gives Sawyer a haircut, Jin introduces Sun to Ana Lucia and presents her with a fish, and Hurley helps Libby set up shelter, both glancing flirtatiously at each other. Finally, Charlie apologizes to Claire, but Claire tells him to leave her and Aaron alone. The episode ends with Charlie in the jungle, opening a hiding place to reveal that he has five additional Virgin Mary statues. He places the one that Mr. Eko gave him with the other five.

Trivia

Production notes

  • This is the third episode this season where all credited cast members appear.
  • All of Eko's African flashbacks are shot with a yellow tinted lense, to give an odd third- world look.
  • When played very fast, one can hear someone saying "Wah Wah Wah" to generate the growling sound of the smoke cloud. [source needed]


Bloopers and coninuity errors

  • Even though the line of the 23rd psalm that Eko recites with Charlie is supposed to be "the valley of the shadow of death," both clearly say, "the shadow of the valley of death." When the writers created this scene, they made that mistake, but upon reflection believed that the error was appropriate as Eko was never a proper priest. (Said by producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof on the commentary for this episode on the Season 2 DVD)
  • The DHARMA Ranch Composite shows the word "DHARAMA" on the label, instead of "DHARMA"


  • Eko's dangling earring switches ears before he enters Yemi's church. It starts on his right when he's talking to the woman selling the statues, then moves to the left when Yemi greets him.
  • The military truck is missing the bullet hole in the windshield in a close shot. In the next shot, it's there again.

Recurring themes


Recurring themes in Lost
Black and white • Car accidents • Character connections • Deceptions and cons • Dreams • Eyes • Fate versus free will • Good and bad people • Imprisonment • Isolation • Life and death • Missing body parts • Nicknames • The Numbers • Parent issues • Pregnancies • Rain • Rebirth • Redemption • Relationships • Sacrifice • Secrets • Time
  • Boone found the plane which contained the body of Yemi, Eko's brother. (Character connections)
  • The Nigerian guerrillas tell each other to "get the children". (Children)
  • Young Yemi is told to kill the old man, but young Eko runs and takes the gun and shoots the man for him. The Nigerian guerrilla told Eko he was a "born killer" and ripped off the cross around his neck. (Life and death)  (Religion)
  • Referring to the biblical "Aaron", Eko called him a "great man". (Good and bad people)
  • In flashback, Mr. Eko killed two people, but released the child that was with them. (Life and death)  (Children)
  • Charlie tried to convince Claire and Eko that he didn't know that heroin was inside of the statues. (Deceptions and cons)
  • Charlie said it was his brother's fault he started heroin. He says of himself "I was a good person". (Good and bad people)
  • The title of the episode is the 23rd Psalm. (The Numbers)
  • Eko burns the beechcraft out of free will while it was fate for him to find Yemi's body. (Fate versus free will)
  • The kids in the flashbacks were playing soccer. (Games)


Cultural references

Cultural references in Lost
(direct references only)
Art • Books • Cars • Games • Movies and TV • Music • Philosophy • Religion and ideologies • Science


Unanswered Questions

Unanswered questions
  1. Do not answer the questions here.
  2. Keep the questions open-ended and neutral: do not suggest an answer.
For fan theories about these unanswered questions, see: The 23rd Psalm/Theories
  • Why did the Monster not attack Mr. Eko?
  • What is the nature of the flashes of Mr. Eko's life seen in the Monster?
  • Why was the Beechcraft flying over the Pacific?
  • Was it really Walt communicating with Michael?


Eko
Portrayed by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje 		v • t • e
Flashback episodes "The 23rd Psalm" • "?" • "The Cost of Living"
Flashback characters Amina • Blind woman • Caldwell • Daniel • Emeka • Goldie • Lead soldier • Libby • Charlotte Malkin • Joyce Malkin • Richard Malkin • Valerie McTavish • Dr. Ian McVay • Monsignor • Moroccan No. 2 • Nigerian priest • Nigerian woman • Nun • Olu • Shooting victim • Thug captain • Ticket Agent • Tough Moroccan • Trader • Yemi
Items Cross • Passport • Stick • Virgin Mary statues
See also: Main Characters
Retrieved from "http://lostpedia.com/wiki/The_23rd_Psalm"