2004 (flash-sideways timeline)

After being successfully operated on by Jack Shephard (Matthew Fox), John Locke (Terry O’Quinn) awakens at the hospital. Jack tells Locke that he may be a candidate for a new surgical treatment to repair his pre-existing paralysis and asks Locke how he wound up in his paraplegic state. However, Locke declines the offer. In order to find out more about Locke’s paralysis, Jack visits dentist Dr. Bernard Nadler and asks for the dental records from an emergency oral surgery performed on Locke about three years previously. Bernard refuses to breach confidentiality, but tells him that a man named Anthony Cooper (Kevin Tighe) was brought in along with Locke three years ago.

Jack goes to a nursing home to see Anthony Cooper, who is revealed to be in a vegetative state. Helen then reveals that he is Locke’s father.Claire Littleton (Emilie de Ravin) arrives at the hospital to see Jack. She shows Jack a music box that their father (John Terry) especially wanted her to have. Jack then invites Claire to come and stay at his house, stating to Claire that they are not strangers, they are family. As Locke is preparing to leave the hospital Jack approaches him and tells him that he went to see his father so that he could find out why he doesn’t want the surgery. Locke reveals to Jack that the accident that made him paralyzed was a plane crash; he had just qualified for his pilot’s license and his father was his first passenger. Jack tells Locke his father is gone and that punishing himself won’t bring him back. Locke still refuses Jack’s offer and leaves.

2007 (original timeline)

Following the events of “The Last Recruit”, Jack awakens on Hydra Island with Sayid Jarrah (Naveen Andrews) by his side. The Man in Black arrives and tells them that James “Sawyer” Ford (Josh Holloway), Claire, Kate Austen (Evangeline Lilly), Frank Lapidus (Jeff Fahey), Sun Kwon (Yunjin Kim) and Jin Kwon (Daniel Dae Kim) have been taken prisoner by Charles Widmore (Alan Dale). The Man in Black plans to help them escape, run for the Ajira plane and leave the island before Widmore knows what is happening. While Jack agrees to help, he refuses to leave the island.

At Hydra Station, Widmore has Sawyer’s group thrown inside the animal cages. Sayid turns off the camp’s generator, bringing down the sonar fences which had been keeping the Man in Black at bay. The Man in Black then attacks as the Smoke monster, allowing Jack to free Sawyer’s group. After reuniting with Sayid, they head into the jungle to find the Ajira plane. The Man in Black arrives at the plane site before the group, and inspects the interior of the plane. The Man in Black reveals to the group that Widmore has rigged the plane with C4. Unable to take the risk of using the plane, the Man in Black decides to escape using Widmore’s submarine. As they head to the docks, Sawyer asks Jack to stop the Man in Black from getting on board the sub.

At the docks, the survivors manage to board the submarine while Widmore’s men attack from the jungle. Kate is shot during the ensuing gun fight, but Jack manages to get her on board after pushing the Man in Black into the water. In order to prevent the Man in Black from entering, Sawyer has the sub take off without Claire.

On the sub, Jack discovers the Man in Black has planted the C4 in his bag and has set a timer to detonate. Unable to reach the surface in time, Sawyer attempts to defuse the bomb. However, Jack tells Sawyer to let the timer reach zero, believing that nothing will happen to them as the Man in Black is unable to kill the candidates himself. Jack explains that the Man in Black united the candidates because he needed them all dead in order to leave the island, and has come up with a plan that will trick them into killing one another. Sawyer is unconvinced and pulls the bomb’s wires, causing the timer to speed faster. Sayid tells Jack where to find Desmond Hume (Henry Ian Cusick) and runs to the back of the sub with the bomb.

The bomb detonates, resulting in a massive explosion that proceeds to sink the sub. Frank is knocked out by a door as it gives way to the water. Sun is pinned down by fragments of the submarine. Hurley exits the sub with Kate, while Jin, Sawyer, and Jack try to help Sun. After Sawyer is knocked unconscious, Jin convinces Jack to leave with Sawyer. Jin continues to try to free Sun despite her pleas for him to go and Jin says that he won’t leave her. They embrace as water floods the submarine and drown while holding hands.

Jack, Sawyer, Kate, and Hurley regroup at a nearby beach, and mourn the deaths of the ones who died. Meanwhile, at the docks, the Man in Black tells Claire that the sub has sunk and there are survivors. He then departs to “finish what he started”.

“The Candidate” is the fourteenth episode of the American Broadcasting Company’s sixth season of the serial drama television series Lost and 117th episode overall. The episode aired on May 4, 2010 on ABC in the United States.

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