Lost: Why Ian Somerhalder's Boone Was The First Major Character To Die
In ABC’s Lost show, Boone Carlyle (Ian Somerhalder) was the first of many major characters to get killed off. The former lifeguard and step-brother of Shannon (Maggie Grace) was the only member of the core group who didn’t survive past season 1. Several more key deaths – Shannon included – followed in season 2.
Boone met his end in Lost season 1, episode 20, titled “Do No Harm”. His tragic death occurred as a result of a secret excursion that he was involved in with Locke (Terry O’Quinn). After finding a small plane stuck on a cliffside, Boone tried to climb up alone. Unfortunately, the plane fell with him inside, leaving Boone critically injured. Jack (Matthew Fox) struggled desperately to save him, but all of his efforts proved to be in vain. In the aftermath, Boone’s death was mourned by the Flight 815 survivors. What happened to Boone turned out to be the first of several tragedies to occur on the show. By the time Lost ended, well over a dozen main characters had lost their lives trying to survive on the island.
Some have wondered why out of all the available options, Lost had to kill off Boone first (or at all). Firstly, it’s important to note that Lost had put itself in a position where killing a major character had become necessary. Somerhalder said himself that Lost was “boxed into a corner” by promises of a character death and all the talk about no one being safe [via New York Post]. Previous fakeouts with other characters worsened the problem and forced the writers to kill off a member of Jack’s Lost group. When it came time to pick one, Boone was chosen because of the effect his death would have on season 1’s story.
Lost executive producer Carlton Cuse explained at the time that Boone’s death was a “narrative imperative”. According to him, Boone’s fate had to happen because of the emotional impact it had on both Jack and Locke. Cuse went on to say that Boone’s death was needed to set up a “chain of events” tied directly to the season 1 finale. This explanation makes sense, considering how this moment fueled much of the conflict that existed between the two characters, particularly in the first two seasons. It was ultimately Boone’s death that triggered their quarrels over Locke’s decision-making, approach to Lost's many mysteries, and the ideological differences between the two characters.
Boone’s accident escalated the tension between them and added a great deal of drama to the group’s problems. Jack – for understandable reasons – blamed Locke for Boone dying. It was Jack’s belief that Locke not telling Jack the details of Boone’s injury prevented him from taking the correct measures to save him. Jack deeply resented Locke’s secretive behavior and the fact that he hid the hatch from him for so long. This was a big factor throughout season 1’s final episodes when Jack and Locke had to work together to get the hatch to the Dharma facility open. It also laid the groundwork for other issues they had later on down the road in Lost.