A caring soul wrapped inside a self-deprecating yet wildly amusing wit,
Charlie is an addict on a collision course with mandatory REHAB.
Completely unable to accept the fact that he is a has-been, Charlie
continues to live in the shadow of Drive Shaft. More than a band, but a
surrogate family (albeit a dysfunctional one), the last year has been particularly hard on him as the band unraveled due to the ridiculous
behavior and raging egos of its singer and lead guitarist, a feud Charlie
found himself constantly trying to diffuse. But now the dream is over.
Trapped on the island, Charlie faces not only the specter of violent drug
withdrawal, but also the possibility of resuming his role as the consummate sideman - maybe someday becoming a trusted aide to Jack
and finding in the castaways the family he once thought he had found in
his band.
There are certain elements clearly defined in the pilot episode for Charlie. The guide repeats them with some background clarity. It appears his dream was to be a rock n roll star. He achieved some fame and with fame comes the lifestyle. Things were going well until bad behavior and conflict broke the band. Charlie turned into a drug user. Though he was in a popular band, he was not the center of attention. His ego is bruised; he does not want to be second fiddle. In typical rock n roll fashion, there is a band feud between Charlie and the lead singer (who is not described as his brother).
What was revealing and different is how the writer's perceived a bigger role for the Charlie character (which may have come about because Monaghan was dating Lilly at the time of the pilot episode). Charlie was listed as the Number 3 character, with the story nexus of becoming a close friend to Jack.
Instead of the entire group of the beach castaways becoming his surrogate family, Charlie gravitates towards pregnant Claire, to give her support in the hope that she would take him in as part of her new family. This is probably more closely related to reality since a man with a big secret (drug addiction) would not be a gadfly in a large group dynamic.
But as the series unfolded, Charlie's role took on the nature of being a puppy following various people around the island. He followed Kate, then went to befriend Locke, then goofed around with Hurley, then become attached to Claire, who pushed off his advances especially when Locke intervened to help her with a cradle. He was then mostly on his own, with small connections with Eko and then in the end, with time flashing Desmond, who told him he had to die in order to save Claire and Aaron (which really cannot be confirmed as true).
Charlie's role as a main character quickly eroded once he was paired in an uneasy romance story with Claire. He never became Jack's right hand man who had his back (in some viewpoints, Kate took that role). He never found an extended family within the castaways, just a few friends in Hurley and Claire. He was tolerated by some (like Sawyer) more than liked as a strong personality. His celebrity status had no value or currency with the other castaways. He really did not offer that many survival skills in order to be a necessary, dependable component for the new society that the writer's laid out early in the guide. Charlie served as a "red shirt," giving a cliffhanger twist of dying with the words NOT PENNY'S BOAT on his hand.
There are certain elements clearly defined in the pilot episode for Charlie. The guide repeats them with some background clarity. It appears his dream was to be a rock n roll star. He achieved some fame and with fame comes the lifestyle. Things were going well until bad behavior and conflict broke the band. Charlie turned into a drug user. Though he was in a popular band, he was not the center of attention. His ego is bruised; he does not want to be second fiddle. In typical rock n roll fashion, there is a band feud between Charlie and the lead singer (who is not described as his brother).
What was revealing and different is how the writer's perceived a bigger role for the Charlie character (which may have come about because Monaghan was dating Lilly at the time of the pilot episode). Charlie was listed as the Number 3 character, with the story nexus of becoming a close friend to Jack.
Instead of the entire group of the beach castaways becoming his surrogate family, Charlie gravitates towards pregnant Claire, to give her support in the hope that she would take him in as part of her new family. This is probably more closely related to reality since a man with a big secret (drug addiction) would not be a gadfly in a large group dynamic.
But as the series unfolded, Charlie's role took on the nature of being a puppy following various people around the island. He followed Kate, then went to befriend Locke, then goofed around with Hurley, then become attached to Claire, who pushed off his advances especially when Locke intervened to help her with a cradle. He was then mostly on his own, with small connections with Eko and then in the end, with time flashing Desmond, who told him he had to die in order to save Claire and Aaron (which really cannot be confirmed as true).
Charlie's role as a main character quickly eroded once he was paired in an uneasy romance story with Claire. He never became Jack's right hand man who had his back (in some viewpoints, Kate took that role). He never found an extended family within the castaways, just a few friends in Hurley and Claire. He was tolerated by some (like Sawyer) more than liked as a strong personality. His celebrity status had no value or currency with the other castaways. He really did not offer that many survival skills in order to be a necessary, dependable component for the new society that the writer's laid out early in the guide. Charlie served as a "red shirt," giving a cliffhanger twist of dying with the words NOT PENNY'S BOAT on his hand.
