S.O.S. (Lost)

Plot

Bernard and Rose meet for the first time when he helps free her car from snow; she initially resists his help but eventually accepts, and in return offers to buy him coffee. Five months later, they lunch overlooking Niagara Falls, and Bernard proposes, saying they fell into a rhythm. Rose reveals she has terminal cancer with about a year to live, but Bernard reaffirms his proposal and she accepts. On their honeymoon, Bernard takes her to Australia to see faith healer Isaac of Uluru.

Rose becomes angry, stating she has made peace with her condition, but Bernard persuades her to speak with Isaac. Isaac says his office sits atop a place of great energy, possibly magnetic or geological, and he attempts to harness that energy for others, but tells Rose the energy in Australia is not the right kind for her. He offers to return Bernard's money, but Rose tells him to keep it, planning to tell Bernard that Isaac fixed her so Bernard would stop trying to save her.

At the airport, Rose drops her pills and Locke, still in a wheelchair, returns them. On the island, Rose and Bernard bicker over the DHARMA food drops; Bernard believes other survivors have given up on rescue. Jack approaches Sawyer and Kate with a plan for a prisoner exchange, and Kate agrees to accompany him into the jungle. Bernard enlists Hurley to gather survivors for a meeting, where he admonishes them for losing their will to be rescued and proposes building an SOS sign, citing the supply plane that dropped the rations.

Rose dismisses the plan as false hope. Bernard asks Charlie and Mr. Eko to help build the sign, but they say they are too busy building a church; Bernard storms off, incredulous at their attitude.

Development

In early series plans, Jack was to die midway through the first episode, with Kate emerging as leader; Kate's original backstory involved her husband going to the bathroom before the plane split, and she would insist he was alive. Producers changed their minds about Jack's death, making him the leader and creating a new backstory for Kate, but liked Kate's original backstory and used it for Rose, creating Bernard as her husband. L. Scott Caldwell's husband was experiencing health problems during the first season, inspiring the flashbacks in S.O.S. The couple's backstory was originally planned for season three, but during season two the writers wanted to tell the story of a background character; Rose and Bernard were the most prominent, and fans wanted their backstory, so the episode focused on them.

After the episode, Caldwell did not believe Rose's healing was island-related, stating that if she was cured it was because she willed it herself. Rose does not appear again until midway through season three; the writers cited Caldwell and Sam Anderson's other projects as the reason for their absence.

Did You Know?

• C. K. Sample III of AOL's TV Squad liked the episode for showing two characters' backstories that viewers had longed to see, and found Rose's meeting with Isaac particularly interesting.
• The episode's premiere drew 15.68 million American viewers.