The episode centers on the character of John Locke (Terry O'Quinn), who in flashbacks is revealed, in one of the first plot twists of the show, to be paralyzed from the waist down as he attempts to join a walkabout tour.
Problems involving the usage of real boar caused the producers to use computer-generated replacements and shots that suggested the animals' presence.
Later, in Australia, one of the walkabout guides refuses to let Locke join, saying that he is too big of an insurance liability and had not properly informed them of his "condition."
Kate is also seeking to set up a makeshift antenna in the jungle at the behest of Sayid, who hopes to use it to help triangulate the French transmission they picked up two days before.
That night, the fuselage is burned while Claire leads a memorial service for the dead using information she found in their passports, wallets, and luggage.
[3] Lindelof wanted to embrace how "what you think these people are is actually entirely different", particularly since "Tabula Rasa" did not have many developments on Kate's backstory or why she was a fugitive, "the Locke thing was a huge, big, reveal".
[5] To enhance the contrast between Locke's pre and post-crash life, director Jack Bender decided to put very little green and blue imagery in the flashbacks since the two colors are the most present in the island – being the jungle and the sea, respectively.
The flashbacks were also shot with fixed cameras and wider lenses, "Godfather-style", to display the bleakness and sterility of Locke's world, and objects such as vending machines were put to remind of the "things taken for granted" that the castaways lack on the island.
The scenes where Sayid looks at the photos were reshot when production of "Solitary" began and Andrea Gabriel was selected for the role, as the original pictures depicted a different actress.
[3] Robert Dougherty writes that the episode possesses similar themes to "Tabula Rasa" – "Walkabout" is about "being able to overcome the past and start over.
Chris Carabott of IGN in his "flashback reviews" gave "Walkabout" a 9.5/10, stating that "Terry O'Quinn puts in an exceptional performance", and commenting that showing Locke, who "seemed like a confident and resourceful man with a mysterious and intriguing past", to be a "shell of a human being that is trying desperately to find his place in the world" was "a perfect juxtaposition of the differences between Locke off and on the island".
He also praised the supporting stories, claiming that "Matthew Fox does a great job of playing the uneasy leader" as Jack Shephard and that the Shannon-Charlie storyline "does supply a little comic relief".
[17] "Walkabout" comprises a significant chapter in Lost's history, persuading viewers of the series' ability to exist in the long term.
[19] IGN ranked "Walkabout" as the fifth best Lost episode ever, behind "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham", the Pilot, "Through the Looking Glass" and "The Constant".
To the actor, "Walkabout and the fifth season episode "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham" are the two installments which "sort of (summarize) [Locke's] whole trip.