Aug 23 2009 at 9:42 PM wrote
0 replies post #1
Paul Artisan is a small-time NYC private investigator who is not confident if he has the talent and dedication to expand his professional aspirations beyond their current scope. He gets a surprise visit one day from a well-dressed and aloof man he learns is Clifford Widmore, one of the heirs of the wealthy and influential Widmore dynasty. His twin brother (Alexander, nicknamed "Zander") has gone missing, and Cliff wishes to hire Paul to find him. Zander is known for his passionate, maverick style, which at times brings him in contact with shady dealings, and everyone who knew him seems to believe this is what got him in trouble. Though they are identical twins, they are as different as night and day, with Clifford known as the more straight-laced, responsible, and cold one. He is also the CEO of Widmore Corp., which his father, Arthur--an eccentric and opinionated (but benevolent) elderly man--heads.
With such a high-profile potential client on the line, Paul begins to doubt himself and goes to his older best friend and mentor, Manny Weissman, for advice. Manny is a philosophical intellectual, who frequently quotes literature and advises through metaphorical stories, while taking walks with Paul and Argos (the dog that the two of them "share").
Paul chases leads about Zander all over the world, from Cape Cod, to Key West, to Cuba, to Luna Valley (Cal.), to the coast of Australia. Along the way, he meets colorful characters, such as Zander's pot-smoking friend "Moth", a yoga instructor Zander was once involved with named Sky, a crusty boat captain named "Crunch", Clifford's pill-popping wife Shannon (who also apparently loved Zander), and Elio, the founder of a cult-like nudist colony called the Helios Foundation. Many give Paul hints on where to chase Zander's trail next, but some are either killed or threatened with death along the way.
While flying to Australia via Oceanic Airlines, he sits next to a woman named "Pru" (short for Prudence), and they instantly hit it off. Paul and Pru end up having a fling once they get to the hotel, but upon wakening, Paul sees that she has a gun in her purse, and confronts her with her lies. Pru then admits that she is also a P.I. for a large firm called Intercontinental, and that she was once hired to tail Vivian Widmore, the nymphomaniac, ambitious younger wife of the family patriarch (she had even tried to seduce Paul on their first meeting). Vivian was suspected of having an affair with a man nicknamed "Mr. Thursday". Pru relates that she was then hired to follow Paul and make sure he didn't come too close to finding Zander. Paul then realizes he was set up by Clifford for failure, and hired simply because they had profiled him as someone who didn't have the gumption and commitment to succeed in his mission. This angers and focuses Paul on the task of proving himself. He and Pru agree to work together to find out the truth.
They follow Zander's trail to Lizard Island in the Great Barrier Reef, where they learn Zander was pursuing a start-up business in black pearl farming when he was last heard from. They masquerade as a honeymooning couple looking for real estate, and find Zander himself under the alias "Cameron Purdue". When they go out on his boat together, all three barely escape being killed by assassins. Paul and Pru then reveal themselves to Zander, and tell him his life is in danger. They convince Zander to fly back to NYC with them.
When they arrive back in the States, they learn Clifford has been recently killed during a 'robbery'. Zander is reunited with his aging father, and they go to Clifford's funeral. At the funeral, a car comes out of nowhere and starts shooting everyone. Paul and Pru return fire and kill the shooter, who turns out to be Vivian's first husband, a mafia boss named Monty Alban. He was Mr. Thursday, the man Pru was sent to uncover. He and Vivian had planned to kill off the Widmores one by one to get at their money.
It turns out that Zander was not such a "bad twin" after all, just misunderstood. Manny suspected the elder Widmore had been planning to leave all his money to him (as the eldest born twin, by a matter of minutes), according to Scottish tradition. Manny was wrong, and the inheritance was to be split with the exception of a small portion going to Vivian. However, Zander had planned to invest his money in the pearl farm with the profits going to the indigenous Australians who ran it and donate the rest of his inheritance to a Cuban medical relief aid. By liquidating his stock in the family company, Zander would have left the Widmore family with not enough control of their company, and Cliff would have lost his position as CEO. This had made him a target for his Cliff. In the end, Vivian goes to jail for her plotting, and Paul and Pru end up together.
i always felt that the stories told by the characters n the books said or shown in the show hold a specific purpose. i can DEF. c certain people in lost within the book. obviously pru would be ilana, sounds to me that zander could possibly be "flocke" not bad...just misunderstood, n everyone thinking cliff was the good guy but really he wasn't...n that could possibly even be...jacob.
