A bit of a comedown from last week, but since I tend to really love Jin/Sun eps, this one really worked for me. Plus, we got some answers (the reveal of what was in the room on the sub may have been the quickest “important” reveal in the show’s history), some hints at answers and Jin made me tear up, so overall a very successful episode, I’d say.
So Sun and Jin are not married in the Sideways world. This was hinted in “LA X” when Sun was addressed as “Ms. Paik,” and while at first I was sad that they weren’t married, I changed my tune by the end of the episode.
“I don’t feel anything.” – Sayid. And then MIB replied that it will help him get through what’s coming. That was sufficiently creepy and unsettling for me. Still very worried about the ultimate fate of Mr. Jarrah.
“I’m going to find my wife.” Good for Jin; too bad he was interrupted so soon. I like when the characters take initiative and don’t sit around bemoaning their fate (kinda like what’s happened to Sun since she came back to the Island). So I’m glad that when he got his chance, Jin was going to go and get what he wanted. Oh well.
Sun’s garden! I am loving these callbacks to past seasons, and I was especially happy to see Sun back in her garden.
LOVED seeing Jin and Sun together in Sideways world, and Sun standing up for herself. Seems like much more of an equal relationship. Even though I still think that the Sideways world will be rendered null and void, I’ll take this happiness for now.
Sun’s pause in front of the mirror before opening the hotel room door – it looked like she saw something. Could she have seen her Island self? Could she have “flashed” to it? Does Sun start speaking Korean because part of her consciousness shifted from the Sideways world at this point?
Room 23! We finally (definitively) know its true purpose: the Dharma Initiative used it for subliminal messaging. I guess that means that the Others just bogarted it and changed it to suit their needs (“Jacob loves you”).
“We’re taking the outrigger.” (Now they’re just teasing me!) But interestingly, MIB cannot turn into the back smoke to get over to Hydra Island. This lead to this exchange: MIB: “Do you think, if I could do that, I would still be on this island?” Sawyer: “No, because that would be ridiculous!” And that’s my winner for quote of the night, mostly for Josh Holloway’s delivery.
MIB is 3 people short of getting off the Island. Why does he need everyone to leave? So there’s officially no one to replace Jacob? Then he lies to Claire about her name being on the cave wall. And he lies about Kate’s name not being there too. (But I’m just assuming Kate’s name is there because her name was on the dial at the lighthouse.) Can he only leave with the candidates? I’m really not sure what to make of any of this.
“I feel like I’m in a damn Godzilla movie.”- Keamy. I love Keamy.
Mikhail! Finally my attempts to ignore the guest starring credits pay off with an actual surprise!
“Some people just aren't meant to be together.” – Keamy. I certainly hope that this is not foreshadowing. If it is, I will not be happy.
“Why won’t you believe me?” – Ben “Because you’re speaking.” – Ilana (A close second for quote of the night, but Holloway’s delivery wins out.)
Jin and the digital camera pictures of Ji Yeon. Beautifully played by Daniel Dae Kim. Really moving, and as I said before, it brought tears to my eyes.
Whose side is Widmore on anyway? Are we just so hardwired to believe that he’s always been a baddie that I have such a hard time accepting that he’s on Jacob’s team? (I keep wondering if he’s being played by MIB somehow.) But then, there’s this quote to Jin (that I rewatched about 20 times so I could get the whole thing): “I know that what you want – more than anything – is to be reunited with your wife and daughter. But it would be short-lived. If that thing masquerading as John Locke ever got off this Island, all of it – your wife, your daughter, my daughter, everyone we know and love – would simply cease to be. And I came here to make sure that doesn't happen.”
“The package from the submarine” It was at this point I started repeating “Desmond, Desmond, Desmond” over and over in my head. (Like “Candyman” or Beetlejuice,” but more Scottish.)
Jin shot Mikhail in the right eye! Damn, that dude can’t catch an (ocular) break!
Sun pregnant in Sideways! And after Mikhail got off his two shots, I already knew where they landed, but that didn’t make her reveal any less heartbreaking. Very Whedonesque: happy reunions can only last for so long. Once again, this better not be foreshadowing.
Jack continues his awesomeness with his beach scene with Sun (Speaking of Whedonesque, the pad made me think of “Hush.”) Seriously though, this transformation of Jack is one of the things that is working out so well this season for me.
And, of course, there’s the capper to the episode: DESMOND!!!! (All CAPS and four exclamations necessary.) I think that the show has kept him away long enough since we are now on the back 9. I expect that he plays a big part in the rest of the season, but really would have had nothing to do if we saw him earlier. So while I did miss him, I’m glad that the show didn’t just have him there because DESMOND!!!! is awesome. (Even though he really is.)
And DESMOND!!!! is what brings me to my latest thoughts on the Sideways world. So good ol’ Chuck told Jin that MIB leaving is bad. And it seems, from my perspective at least, that there have been a few suggestions that the Sideways world is the world that exists should MIB escape. So, let’s assume that both these things are true. Let’s also assume that Widmore has some knowledge of the actual Sideways world and he needs to use Des as a tool to “course correct” and eliminate the Sideways world.
I’ve mentioned in the past that I think there will be a merge of the two worlds at some point. What if Des has to be used in the Sideways world to bring about this merge? We already know that he is “uniquely, miraculously special” (so sayeth Daniel Faraday). And we now know that Zoey was recruited by Widmore to explore the spots on the Island with energy pockets (like the one under the Swan). What if she is there to make Des go all wonky again, but this time instead of him traveling to his past, he travels to the Sideways world to guide the candidates? We saw him on Oceanic 815 in “LA X,” maybe we will start seeing him in the Sideways world more after his role gets spelled out by Charles Widmore.
This is all assuming, of course, that Widmore is working in Jacob’s best interest. Perhaps Jacob has a “loophole” of his own that will allow him to destroy/permanently trap MIB. Oh, I don’t know, my theories change every week. At least I was right about DESMOND!!!!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Since the beginning..
After having the night to think about it, I don’t think that “Ab Aeterno” is my favorite Lost episode ever, but I do think that it is my favorite season 6 episode so far. This is coming from a season where I have genuinely liked every ep, and while some stand above others (“The Substitute,” “Dr. Linus”), this one really rises above even those.
I try not to read any other reactions of the episode before I write my own reactions – saying pure and what not, but I do go on Twitter, so I usually do see knee-jerk reactions right after the ep airs. And while this week, the reaction has been pretty uniformly positive, the one complaint that I noticed (and I’m sure I will read more as the day goes on) is that it was all too predictable. And I agree with that – there was nothing that completely surprised me last night. But I will say that though predictable has a poor connotation, I don’t always view it as a bad thing. Yes, I saw where the story was headed when we met Richard’s sick wife – it was pretty clear, given all we’ve been told about him, that he was going to end up on the Black Rock as a slave and that would take him to the Island. At least for me, though, watching it all happen didn’t make it any less enthralling. For years now, I’ve wanted to see Richard’s story and even though it played out in a way that didn’t shock me, I don’t think that Lost always has to offer shocking twists and turns to deliver a good episode. I mean, there’s really only so much they could do, and to throw in an artificial twist just for the sake of shocking the audience would be more detrimental than playing it safe (if eternal beings living on a supernatural island that can heal the sick and grant everlasting life is “playing it safe,” that is.)
And now it sounds like I’m getting defensive over an episode that I really loved. (And that’s why I really shouldn’t read reactions before writing this stuff.) Anyway, onto my non-defensive thoughts…
Another eye-shot to open the episode, this time it’s Ilana’s. We saw this first scene in last year’s finale already. Who or what exactly is Ilana? I have no idea if we will get an Ilana ep before the end, but I certainly hope that we learn more about her sooner rather than later either way. Are there more people like her that are tasked with protecting the Island? Why is she so special that Jacob visits her? Why does she know Richard as Ricardus? Is she immortal too? Maybe she’s Jacob’s off-Island Richard?
Jacob tells her that there are 6 candidates left to protect. I would like a definitive answer if Kate is one of them or not. “Austen” was written in the lighthouse, so I’m guessing yes. That would also mean that this meeting occurred after Ben killed Locke, thus negating Locke’s status as a candidate, because with Locke and Kate, that would make 7 candidates. (Jack, Sawyer, Hurley, Jin/Sun, Sayid and Kate)
Thought Richard’s laugh (when they asked him what to do) was pretty amusing.
While it should have been obvious to me (later in the ep, of course) that Hurley was talking to Richard’s wife when they were on the beach, I actually didn’t put 2+2 together, so that was a nice mini-surprise.
When in his cell, the Bible verse Richard was reading was Luke 4:24: “I tell you the truth…no prophet is accepted in his own country.” I know that the Christian imagery was especially heavy last night, but I’m usually one to generally overlook that. (And I think that much of the imagery last night can be explained away as being told through the lens of a clearly religiously devout man.) I don’t really think that Jacob is God/Jesus/an angel and MIB is the devil/a demon, so I don’t think that this line really points to Richard being a prophet of God, but more points to Jacob’s influence on the Island.
The name Widfield (as in the guy who bought Richard from the priest) sounds awfully close to Widmore.
A Magnus Hanso mention! Seeing the Black Rock on the stormy seas! (Does this mean that the ship that Jacob/MIB saw in last year’s finale was not the Black Rock, or that the storm just popped up as storms tend to pop up on and around Craphole Island?)
The shot of Tawaret in the storm was chillingly awesome. (“El Diablo!”)
When Widfield started killing everyone on the Black Rock, I’m guessing that he was “infected” much like Rousseau’s crew. (And Claire/Sayid?)
Speaking of the “infection,” could “infection” = the inverse of Jacob’s blessing? Those that are infected are overcome by MIB’s darkness? If the whole point of this game is for Jacob to prove to MIB that in the fight between good and evil in people, good will ultimately win, could the infected just be those who are too weak to overcome the evil? I’ll briefly mention love later, but it is interesting that Claire and Sayid have lost their loves (Aaron/Nadia) and are infected, and Rousseau was not infected when the rest of her crew was because she had the love of Alex. That would also make Sawyer a logical target for MIB, since he lost Juliet.
Was MIB not allowed to kill Richard? Was he a potential candidate? Or did Jacob bring him to the Island because he needed a consigliere?
When Isabella appeared to Richard on the Black Rock, that was MIB as her, right? (I’m guessing that the smoke “read” Richard earlier when it was killing everyone else.)
Titus Welliver sounded more like Terry O’Quinn as MIB than I remember. And man, he and Mark Pellegrino are commanding presences whenever they are on-screen.
The knife that MIB gives Richard is the knife that Dogen gave Sayid (and the conversation sounded identical to my ears.) So did the knife do something to Locke/MIB or is this all part of their game and it’s inconsequential?
MIB and Ricardo’s conversation is identical (or nearly identical) to the one that Locke/MIB had with Richard earlier this season.
Everything from the moment that Jacob arrived was absolutely riveting. In that way, it was the opposite reaction I had to last week’s ep. This one started out good and interesting and ended Amazing. (Capital ‘A’ intentional.)
Jacob’s bottle of wine – so if the Island is the stopper, is there more evil in the sideways world that we just haven’t seen yet? Will we see, say in Hurley’s sideways world, that things that seemingly are good (like winning the lotto and having good luck) are not truly good, but are just masking the evil? Since this was the midpoint of the season, I wonder if the sideways world stories to come will illustrate more of the bad rather than the good, to mirror the first half of the season.
“If you don't, he will.” – Richard to Jacob about MIB interfering with people’s lives. I think that after hearing this, Jacob reached a turning point. Richard helped him realize that if he just sat idly by, no progress would be made – anyone he brought to the Island would be influenced by MIB and they would die with no resolution of Jacob/MIBs dispute.
I would not be surprised, based on how initially antagonistic Jacob was to Richard, if this was the first human that Jacob had actually encountered. Lucky for Jacob, it was one who truly is good. Not coincidentally, it was a man who had experienced love. As the show has shown us so many times, it’s not the powers of the Island that make people do good; it’s the love that one character has for another. And that’s the one thing that, no matter what he may say, MIB does not understand.
This is how I kinda see it now: Whatever/Whoever Jacob and MIB are, they have this disagreement. Jacob thinks people are by and large good, MIB thinks people are sinners. They agree that Jacob will draw people to the Island to test this theory. MIB wants to leave the Island and Jacob dead, but is stuck and cannot kill him. Jacob just wants to be vindicated. When Richard arrived, I think Jacob realized how trapped he was too and how he truly wanted this all to end.
The entire episode was a perfect blend of a mythology and stand-alone story for one of the most mysterious characters that Lost has offered us.
We got concrete answers to a number of questions: Richard does not age because he asked Jacob for immortality. The statue crumbled because the storm caused the Black Rock to crash into it. (Though I’m guessing that it had more to do with the tsunami-like waves than just the ship.) Also, the symbolism of the statue falling when Richard arrives reinforces my thoughts that his arrival was truly THE turning point in Island history. The Black Rock is in the middle of the jungle because of the storm. We now know that this game that Jacob and MIB are playing truly is about human nature and not just some fun between two omnipresent gods using our characters as pawns. We finally get true resolution that all of the past character action was not orchestrated by Jacob. He believes in free will. And that certainly makes me feel better about where the show is going.
Finally, I have my requisite ‘holy crap that actor totally sold the episode for me” moment. However, this time the praise deserves to be heaped on a little heavier. When Richard first showed up in season 3, I called Nestor Carbonell Batmanuel (because all I really knew him from was the live action version of The Tick). It’s not that I ever really thought he was bad (on The Tick or otherwise) but I guess I used the nickname cuz he wasn’t really distinctive enough to be anybody but Batmanuel. Last night though, but he carried this episode like we’ve seen Michael Emerson/Terry O’Quinn/Josh Holloway do. He sold everything from his time on the Canary Islands to his moment with Isabella/Hurley. (And of course, there was that awesome laugh of desperation from the opening scene on the beach.)
All and all, an all-time great episode to rank along my favorites (“The Constant,” “Walkabout,” “LaFleur,” and “Through the Looking Glass,” off the top of my head) and certainly the best of season 6.
I try not to read any other reactions of the episode before I write my own reactions – saying pure and what not, but I do go on Twitter, so I usually do see knee-jerk reactions right after the ep airs. And while this week, the reaction has been pretty uniformly positive, the one complaint that I noticed (and I’m sure I will read more as the day goes on) is that it was all too predictable. And I agree with that – there was nothing that completely surprised me last night. But I will say that though predictable has a poor connotation, I don’t always view it as a bad thing. Yes, I saw where the story was headed when we met Richard’s sick wife – it was pretty clear, given all we’ve been told about him, that he was going to end up on the Black Rock as a slave and that would take him to the Island. At least for me, though, watching it all happen didn’t make it any less enthralling. For years now, I’ve wanted to see Richard’s story and even though it played out in a way that didn’t shock me, I don’t think that Lost always has to offer shocking twists and turns to deliver a good episode. I mean, there’s really only so much they could do, and to throw in an artificial twist just for the sake of shocking the audience would be more detrimental than playing it safe (if eternal beings living on a supernatural island that can heal the sick and grant everlasting life is “playing it safe,” that is.)
And now it sounds like I’m getting defensive over an episode that I really loved. (And that’s why I really shouldn’t read reactions before writing this stuff.) Anyway, onto my non-defensive thoughts…
Another eye-shot to open the episode, this time it’s Ilana’s. We saw this first scene in last year’s finale already. Who or what exactly is Ilana? I have no idea if we will get an Ilana ep before the end, but I certainly hope that we learn more about her sooner rather than later either way. Are there more people like her that are tasked with protecting the Island? Why is she so special that Jacob visits her? Why does she know Richard as Ricardus? Is she immortal too? Maybe she’s Jacob’s off-Island Richard?
Jacob tells her that there are 6 candidates left to protect. I would like a definitive answer if Kate is one of them or not. “Austen” was written in the lighthouse, so I’m guessing yes. That would also mean that this meeting occurred after Ben killed Locke, thus negating Locke’s status as a candidate, because with Locke and Kate, that would make 7 candidates. (Jack, Sawyer, Hurley, Jin/Sun, Sayid and Kate)
Thought Richard’s laugh (when they asked him what to do) was pretty amusing.
While it should have been obvious to me (later in the ep, of course) that Hurley was talking to Richard’s wife when they were on the beach, I actually didn’t put 2+2 together, so that was a nice mini-surprise.
When in his cell, the Bible verse Richard was reading was Luke 4:24: “I tell you the truth…no prophet is accepted in his own country.” I know that the Christian imagery was especially heavy last night, but I’m usually one to generally overlook that. (And I think that much of the imagery last night can be explained away as being told through the lens of a clearly religiously devout man.) I don’t really think that Jacob is God/Jesus/an angel and MIB is the devil/a demon, so I don’t think that this line really points to Richard being a prophet of God, but more points to Jacob’s influence on the Island.
The name Widfield (as in the guy who bought Richard from the priest) sounds awfully close to Widmore.
A Magnus Hanso mention! Seeing the Black Rock on the stormy seas! (Does this mean that the ship that Jacob/MIB saw in last year’s finale was not the Black Rock, or that the storm just popped up as storms tend to pop up on and around Craphole Island?)
The shot of Tawaret in the storm was chillingly awesome. (“El Diablo!”)
When Widfield started killing everyone on the Black Rock, I’m guessing that he was “infected” much like Rousseau’s crew. (And Claire/Sayid?)
Speaking of the “infection,” could “infection” = the inverse of Jacob’s blessing? Those that are infected are overcome by MIB’s darkness? If the whole point of this game is for Jacob to prove to MIB that in the fight between good and evil in people, good will ultimately win, could the infected just be those who are too weak to overcome the evil? I’ll briefly mention love later, but it is interesting that Claire and Sayid have lost their loves (Aaron/Nadia) and are infected, and Rousseau was not infected when the rest of her crew was because she had the love of Alex. That would also make Sawyer a logical target for MIB, since he lost Juliet.
Was MIB not allowed to kill Richard? Was he a potential candidate? Or did Jacob bring him to the Island because he needed a consigliere?
When Isabella appeared to Richard on the Black Rock, that was MIB as her, right? (I’m guessing that the smoke “read” Richard earlier when it was killing everyone else.)
Titus Welliver sounded more like Terry O’Quinn as MIB than I remember. And man, he and Mark Pellegrino are commanding presences whenever they are on-screen.
The knife that MIB gives Richard is the knife that Dogen gave Sayid (and the conversation sounded identical to my ears.) So did the knife do something to Locke/MIB or is this all part of their game and it’s inconsequential?
MIB and Ricardo’s conversation is identical (or nearly identical) to the one that Locke/MIB had with Richard earlier this season.
Everything from the moment that Jacob arrived was absolutely riveting. In that way, it was the opposite reaction I had to last week’s ep. This one started out good and interesting and ended Amazing. (Capital ‘A’ intentional.)
Jacob’s bottle of wine – so if the Island is the stopper, is there more evil in the sideways world that we just haven’t seen yet? Will we see, say in Hurley’s sideways world, that things that seemingly are good (like winning the lotto and having good luck) are not truly good, but are just masking the evil? Since this was the midpoint of the season, I wonder if the sideways world stories to come will illustrate more of the bad rather than the good, to mirror the first half of the season.
“If you don't, he will.” – Richard to Jacob about MIB interfering with people’s lives. I think that after hearing this, Jacob reached a turning point. Richard helped him realize that if he just sat idly by, no progress would be made – anyone he brought to the Island would be influenced by MIB and they would die with no resolution of Jacob/MIBs dispute.
I would not be surprised, based on how initially antagonistic Jacob was to Richard, if this was the first human that Jacob had actually encountered. Lucky for Jacob, it was one who truly is good. Not coincidentally, it was a man who had experienced love. As the show has shown us so many times, it’s not the powers of the Island that make people do good; it’s the love that one character has for another. And that’s the one thing that, no matter what he may say, MIB does not understand.
This is how I kinda see it now: Whatever/Whoever Jacob and MIB are, they have this disagreement. Jacob thinks people are by and large good, MIB thinks people are sinners. They agree that Jacob will draw people to the Island to test this theory. MIB wants to leave the Island and Jacob dead, but is stuck and cannot kill him. Jacob just wants to be vindicated. When Richard arrived, I think Jacob realized how trapped he was too and how he truly wanted this all to end.
The entire episode was a perfect blend of a mythology and stand-alone story for one of the most mysterious characters that Lost has offered us.
We got concrete answers to a number of questions: Richard does not age because he asked Jacob for immortality. The statue crumbled because the storm caused the Black Rock to crash into it. (Though I’m guessing that it had more to do with the tsunami-like waves than just the ship.) Also, the symbolism of the statue falling when Richard arrives reinforces my thoughts that his arrival was truly THE turning point in Island history. The Black Rock is in the middle of the jungle because of the storm. We now know that this game that Jacob and MIB are playing truly is about human nature and not just some fun between two omnipresent gods using our characters as pawns. We finally get true resolution that all of the past character action was not orchestrated by Jacob. He believes in free will. And that certainly makes me feel better about where the show is going.
Finally, I have my requisite ‘holy crap that actor totally sold the episode for me” moment. However, this time the praise deserves to be heaped on a little heavier. When Richard first showed up in season 3, I called Nestor Carbonell Batmanuel (because all I really knew him from was the live action version of The Tick). It’s not that I ever really thought he was bad (on The Tick or otherwise) but I guess I used the nickname cuz he wasn’t really distinctive enough to be anybody but Batmanuel. Last night though, but he carried this episode like we’ve seen Michael Emerson/Terry O’Quinn/Josh Holloway do. He sold everything from his time on the Canary Islands to his moment with Isabella/Hurley. (And of course, there was that awesome laugh of desperation from the opening scene on the beach.)
All and all, an all-time great episode to rank along my favorites (“The Constant,” “Walkabout,” “LaFleur,” and “Through the Looking Glass,” off the top of my head) and certainly the best of season 6.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Last night this episode was 'meh.' Today it's 'Meh!'
So I thought last night’s Lost had a really strong first half (maybe 2/3s) and a somewhat weak last half (or 1/3). So my notes are so sparse because I was so engrossed by the beginning and unimpressed/really didn’t have much to say about the end.
However, that’s not to say it was bad. After all, while not my favorite episode, it did offer the return of Josh Holloway (who, of course was great) and we saw some fine, fine acting by Evangeline Lilly as well. (Seriously, her stuff on the Island was fantastic.) Onto my notes…
SidewaysSawyer’s code word is ‘LaFleur.’
He’s looking for the real Anthony Cooper. Are we to assume that he still killed someone in Australia? (I’m thinking not.) Are we to assume that Sawyer still equals Locke’s dad? (I’m thinking he has to, but the truth is still hidden from SidewaysLocke.)
How creeptastic was Claire randomly holding Kate hand? (Very.)
When Miles sets Sawyer up on a blind date and says that she “works at the museum with my Dad.” Does that mean Pierre Chang got off the Island too? Who DIDN’T get off the Island?
There’s that missing outrigger that Sawyer takes to Hydra Island. Closer and closer to finding out who the time-travelers were shooting at last season (in ‘The Little Prince’).
Sawyer being sent by MIB to check out the Ajira plane and do recon could mean that MIB, not Jacob, ordered Ben to build that runway. (And my theory that Ben was always working for MIB but didn’t know it looks more plausible.)
Charlotte is still an archeologist. I wonder if she’s still looking for the Island?
SidewaysSawyer on why he is a cop: “I got to a point in my life when I was gonna choose criminal or cop – and I chose cop.” But what makes this life different? He is obviously still obsessed with finding Anthony Cooper; he still wants revenge. Did he never write his letter to the real Sawyer in this timeline? (Because Jacob wasn’t there to give him the pen.) Will he never be able to get over his thirst for revenge because of this? Could the explanation of the timelines simply be that this is what would have happened to their lives without Jacob’s influence?
I’m not sure that Sawyer had a good way of handling this grief – in either timeline it always leads to obsession. Is this the flaw that he must overcome? Interesting that those in MIB’s camp – Sawyer, Sayid, Kate – have not overcome their issues in the Sideways stories. (Not sure about Claire yet.) And Jack and Ben, who are in Jacob’s group, have overcome some of their issues to find peace.
Watership Down on Sawyer’s dresser. Kate’s dress still in the polar bear cages. Sawyer watching ‘Little House on the Prairie.’ Some nice callbacks. (Though many insist they are trash, I still kinda like the 6 episode pod that began season 3.)
And because the ep had a few unsettling moments, how about Sayid just sitting there while Claire attacked Kate?
Liam’s appearance caught me by surprise. That was fun.
“I am not a dead man.”/”My mother was crazy.”/”Problems that could have been avoided had things been different.” – MIB. I’ll chalk these up to intriguing quotes right now and revisit them when I have an actual theory on what they mean. But at least the castaways aren’t the only ones with parental issues.
I’m also wondering if MIB already knew about Team Widmore and just sent Sawyer away to get rid of him, knowing that Claire would react badly to being around Kate, and without Sawyer there to protect her, MIB could “protect” her and would have some one-on-one bonding time with Kate.
Widmore’s team is setting up pylons! Do they want to keep MIB out or trap him in?
What’s in the locked room on the sub? Desmond? Penny? Both?
Widmore did not know about MIB as Locke. Interesting, and makes me think even more that he’s on Jacob’s team. (I shall not use the phrase “Team Jacob.”)
You know, after writing all this stuff down, it seems to me that I actually did really like this ep, but compared with last week’s awesomeness, it was a bit of a let down. The beginning is still much stronger than the end (because I saw Sawyer’s re-re-con coming and also because as soon as we saw someone running, I knew it would be Kate), but still a solid ep.
However, that’s not to say it was bad. After all, while not my favorite episode, it did offer the return of Josh Holloway (who, of course was great) and we saw some fine, fine acting by Evangeline Lilly as well. (Seriously, her stuff on the Island was fantastic.) Onto my notes…
SidewaysSawyer’s code word is ‘LaFleur.’
He’s looking for the real Anthony Cooper. Are we to assume that he still killed someone in Australia? (I’m thinking not.) Are we to assume that Sawyer still equals Locke’s dad? (I’m thinking he has to, but the truth is still hidden from SidewaysLocke.)
How creeptastic was Claire randomly holding Kate hand? (Very.)
When Miles sets Sawyer up on a blind date and says that she “works at the museum with my Dad.” Does that mean Pierre Chang got off the Island too? Who DIDN’T get off the Island?
There’s that missing outrigger that Sawyer takes to Hydra Island. Closer and closer to finding out who the time-travelers were shooting at last season (in ‘The Little Prince’).
Sawyer being sent by MIB to check out the Ajira plane and do recon could mean that MIB, not Jacob, ordered Ben to build that runway. (And my theory that Ben was always working for MIB but didn’t know it looks more plausible.)
Charlotte is still an archeologist. I wonder if she’s still looking for the Island?
SidewaysSawyer on why he is a cop: “I got to a point in my life when I was gonna choose criminal or cop – and I chose cop.” But what makes this life different? He is obviously still obsessed with finding Anthony Cooper; he still wants revenge. Did he never write his letter to the real Sawyer in this timeline? (Because Jacob wasn’t there to give him the pen.) Will he never be able to get over his thirst for revenge because of this? Could the explanation of the timelines simply be that this is what would have happened to their lives without Jacob’s influence?
I’m not sure that Sawyer had a good way of handling this grief – in either timeline it always leads to obsession. Is this the flaw that he must overcome? Interesting that those in MIB’s camp – Sawyer, Sayid, Kate – have not overcome their issues in the Sideways stories. (Not sure about Claire yet.) And Jack and Ben, who are in Jacob’s group, have overcome some of their issues to find peace.
Watership Down on Sawyer’s dresser. Kate’s dress still in the polar bear cages. Sawyer watching ‘Little House on the Prairie.’ Some nice callbacks. (Though many insist they are trash, I still kinda like the 6 episode pod that began season 3.)
And because the ep had a few unsettling moments, how about Sayid just sitting there while Claire attacked Kate?
Liam’s appearance caught me by surprise. That was fun.
“I am not a dead man.”/”My mother was crazy.”/”Problems that could have been avoided had things been different.” – MIB. I’ll chalk these up to intriguing quotes right now and revisit them when I have an actual theory on what they mean. But at least the castaways aren’t the only ones with parental issues.
I’m also wondering if MIB already knew about Team Widmore and just sent Sawyer away to get rid of him, knowing that Claire would react badly to being around Kate, and without Sawyer there to protect her, MIB could “protect” her and would have some one-on-one bonding time with Kate.
Widmore’s team is setting up pylons! Do they want to keep MIB out or trap him in?
What’s in the locked room on the sub? Desmond? Penny? Both?
Widmore did not know about MIB as Locke. Interesting, and makes me think even more that he’s on Jacob’s team. (I shall not use the phrase “Team Jacob.”)
You know, after writing all this stuff down, it seems to me that I actually did really like this ep, but compared with last week’s awesomeness, it was a bit of a let down. The beginning is still much stronger than the end (because I saw Sawyer’s re-re-con coming and also because as soon as we saw someone running, I knew it would be Kate), but still a solid ep.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Dr. Linus, I presume
Just notes this week, no intro:
Ben teaching class and discussing “the island” (of Elba) was a bit too heavy-handed for my liking, what with the exiled, powerless dictator who might as well have been dead.
However later in the staff lounge, Locke and Ben shared a look not unlike the one that Jack and Kate shared in “LA X,” which I found quite intriguing.
Interesting that Ben seemed to know Dogen and Lennon so well.
After Miles reads (the best description I can think of for what he does) the ash, Ilana states that Jacob was the closest thing she had to a father (and Miles hilariously comments “Uh oh!”). Ilana seems to know a good deal more than ANYONE else on the Island right now (save MIB). I wonder since she too is (seemingly) protected by Jacob’s touch, why she isn’t a candidate also. Her crying over Jacob’s ashes later on (before the reunion scene) does reinforce Jacob’s goodness for me.
Miles has been used so sporadically this season, it was nice to see excellent extended use of him. He got off at least half dozen great lines throughout and made a Nikki/Paolo reference, which was just fantastic. I think he called them ‘jabronies’ which makes it even better. (I couldn’t make out the word exactly, but that’s what I heard.)
Roger Workman! Nice to see you again! Also, it’s nice to see that you made peace with your son. He may think life would have been better with Dharma, but I was very happy to see Ben and his father getting along.
Alex! I certainly did not expect to see her at Dr. Linus’ door.
As soon as Richard showed up, this episode went from entertaining and interesting to OMFG. (And for me to use such an acronym in my notes must mean something.) Absolutely EVERYTHING with Richard was awesome.
“I lied.” – Richard (That just made me laugh.)
“Something I need to do…to die.” So we visit the Black Rock again, and we get (further) confirmation that that is how Richard came to the Island.
“Jacob gave me a gift” Jacob touched Richard and gave him immortality. Did Richard have to be party to this act to make it so? Does this explain the names/numbers? A master list of all the people that Jacob has touched? When I rewatched “Lighthouse,” I noticed that ‘Dawson’ was on the list and we know that Michael was not able to kill himself – no matter how hard he tried. I wonder when Harold Perrineau appears if it will be a flashback to when Jacob touched him.
“Now let’s talk.” Well, damn Jack, there’s the hero that you were always supposed to be! I can get behind this Jack and actually root for him. That’s probably the best moment Jack Shephard has ever had on the show.
And Nestor Carbonell really did some great work in these scenes, showing us the desperation of a man at the end of his rope. He’s all out of faith and feels like he’s made some horrific choices to get him to where he is now. (Actually, now that I write that, he strikes me as a more interesting Jack.)
“Pretty lascivious stuff” – Ben to the principal. Don’t get a lot of ‘lascivious’ in everyday conversation, and Ben is probably the only person on the show that could pull it off without me crying BS.
When Ben walks into the principal’s office and looks at his nameplate, I was ready to give up on him. If he had thrown Alex under the bus (again), there really was no saving Benjamin Linus.
I now will reproduce two different quotes spoken by Ben in his confrontation scene with Ilana:
“I had a chance to save her, but I chose the Island over her - all in the name of Jacob. I sacrificed everything for him, and he didn't even care. Now, I stabbed him. I was so angry, confused. I was terrified that I was about to lose the only thing that had ever mattered to me - my power - but the thing that really mattered was already gone. I don't expect you to forgive me because I can never forgive myself.”
(When Ilana asks why he would go with MIB) “Because he’s the only one that will have me.”
And I reproduce those lines because written as they are, I think they come off a bit cheesy. However, in the hands of Michael Emerson, they actually become moving and had an impact. I feel like every week, I gush about a different actor on the show, but when you have a show so full of quality actors, it’s hard not to. And since this was Ben’s episode, how could I not discuss the genius that is Michael Emerson?
Once again, I found myself rooting for SidewaysBen, even though I really should have no investment there. He’s at peace with Roger, he helps provide Alex with a better life, and although he seems like a bit of a cranky fussbudget, he genuinely seems happy in a way that IslandBen never has been. It was his father that was really wistful about the Island, not Ben. Ben seemed more at peace, no matter how snarky he was.
And so, with Ilana’s offer, we take the first real steps toward IslandBen’s redemption. I am pleased that he (presumably) will find some redemption/peace and that he has chosen (presumably) the side of good, but sad that I am 99% certain that it will end with his death.
Oh, and before I finish: Widmore’s on the sub!
Is this the person coming to the Island that Jacob was talking about? (I’m guessing yes and I’m still hoping Des is with him.) If so, does that mean that Widmore was “good” all along? This conclusion is colored by my assumption that Jacob wants/needs the person that he referenced in “Lighthouse.” Maybe this isn’t the case, and Widmore is just another piece of the puzzle and Jacob was just stating that someone was coming to the Island. I hope we find out next week.
Ben teaching class and discussing “the island” (of Elba) was a bit too heavy-handed for my liking, what with the exiled, powerless dictator who might as well have been dead.
However later in the staff lounge, Locke and Ben shared a look not unlike the one that Jack and Kate shared in “LA X,” which I found quite intriguing.
Interesting that Ben seemed to know Dogen and Lennon so well.
After Miles reads (the best description I can think of for what he does) the ash, Ilana states that Jacob was the closest thing she had to a father (and Miles hilariously comments “Uh oh!”). Ilana seems to know a good deal more than ANYONE else on the Island right now (save MIB). I wonder since she too is (seemingly) protected by Jacob’s touch, why she isn’t a candidate also. Her crying over Jacob’s ashes later on (before the reunion scene) does reinforce Jacob’s goodness for me.
Miles has been used so sporadically this season, it was nice to see excellent extended use of him. He got off at least half dozen great lines throughout and made a Nikki/Paolo reference, which was just fantastic. I think he called them ‘jabronies’ which makes it even better. (I couldn’t make out the word exactly, but that’s what I heard.)
Roger Workman! Nice to see you again! Also, it’s nice to see that you made peace with your son. He may think life would have been better with Dharma, but I was very happy to see Ben and his father getting along.
Alex! I certainly did not expect to see her at Dr. Linus’ door.
As soon as Richard showed up, this episode went from entertaining and interesting to OMFG. (And for me to use such an acronym in my notes must mean something.) Absolutely EVERYTHING with Richard was awesome.
“I lied.” – Richard (That just made me laugh.)
“Something I need to do…to die.” So we visit the Black Rock again, and we get (further) confirmation that that is how Richard came to the Island.
“Jacob gave me a gift” Jacob touched Richard and gave him immortality. Did Richard have to be party to this act to make it so? Does this explain the names/numbers? A master list of all the people that Jacob has touched? When I rewatched “Lighthouse,” I noticed that ‘Dawson’ was on the list and we know that Michael was not able to kill himself – no matter how hard he tried. I wonder when Harold Perrineau appears if it will be a flashback to when Jacob touched him.
“Now let’s talk.” Well, damn Jack, there’s the hero that you were always supposed to be! I can get behind this Jack and actually root for him. That’s probably the best moment Jack Shephard has ever had on the show.
And Nestor Carbonell really did some great work in these scenes, showing us the desperation of a man at the end of his rope. He’s all out of faith and feels like he’s made some horrific choices to get him to where he is now. (Actually, now that I write that, he strikes me as a more interesting Jack.)
“Pretty lascivious stuff” – Ben to the principal. Don’t get a lot of ‘lascivious’ in everyday conversation, and Ben is probably the only person on the show that could pull it off without me crying BS.
When Ben walks into the principal’s office and looks at his nameplate, I was ready to give up on him. If he had thrown Alex under the bus (again), there really was no saving Benjamin Linus.
I now will reproduce two different quotes spoken by Ben in his confrontation scene with Ilana:
“I had a chance to save her, but I chose the Island over her - all in the name of Jacob. I sacrificed everything for him, and he didn't even care. Now, I stabbed him. I was so angry, confused. I was terrified that I was about to lose the only thing that had ever mattered to me - my power - but the thing that really mattered was already gone. I don't expect you to forgive me because I can never forgive myself.”
(When Ilana asks why he would go with MIB) “Because he’s the only one that will have me.”
And I reproduce those lines because written as they are, I think they come off a bit cheesy. However, in the hands of Michael Emerson, they actually become moving and had an impact. I feel like every week, I gush about a different actor on the show, but when you have a show so full of quality actors, it’s hard not to. And since this was Ben’s episode, how could I not discuss the genius that is Michael Emerson?
Once again, I found myself rooting for SidewaysBen, even though I really should have no investment there. He’s at peace with Roger, he helps provide Alex with a better life, and although he seems like a bit of a cranky fussbudget, he genuinely seems happy in a way that IslandBen never has been. It was his father that was really wistful about the Island, not Ben. Ben seemed more at peace, no matter how snarky he was.
And so, with Ilana’s offer, we take the first real steps toward IslandBen’s redemption. I am pleased that he (presumably) will find some redemption/peace and that he has chosen (presumably) the side of good, but sad that I am 99% certain that it will end with his death.
Oh, and before I finish: Widmore’s on the sub!
Is this the person coming to the Island that Jacob was talking about? (I’m guessing yes and I’m still hoping Des is with him.) If so, does that mean that Widmore was “good” all along? This conclusion is colored by my assumption that Jacob wants/needs the person that he referenced in “Lighthouse.” Maybe this isn’t the case, and Widmore is just another piece of the puzzle and Jacob was just stating that someone was coming to the Island. I hope we find out next week.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Well that was exciting...
Some follow-up to last week’s ep first:
When I rewatched, I realized that Jacob says that “they” were coming to the Island, not “he.” I wonder if this was just intentionally incorrect English designed to not give any clues or if multiple people need to find the Island. If so, I wonder if he meant the Sideways versions of those that he touched in “The Incident.”
Also, when rewatching the lighthouse scene, I noticed some other interesting names that I missed the first time: Rousseau at 20; Austen at 51; Dawson at 124; and, of course, Wallace at 108 (though I had actually read that before I rewatched). Who knows what that means (if anything) for Kate and #108.
So onto “Sundown”
Funnily enough, before watching, I assumed that this would be a Jin/Sun ep because of the punny-ness of the title.
That Dogen/Sayid fight at the beginning of the ep reminded me of the awesomeness of the Sayid/Keamy fight from back in Season 4. Sayid/Keamy still wins, but Sayid/Dogen was still pretty, pretty good.
The significance of the baseball. I wonder if it fell as a sign from Jacob to remind Dogen of his role.
“Apparently, I’m evil.” – Sayid to Miles
“You were dead for 2 hours.” – Miles. I gotta wonder what he heard in that time (if anything).
The second scene between Sayid and Dogen was very intense. Sayid put on his bad ass pants for this episode.
Dogen calls MIB “evil incarnate.” That seems a bit extreme, no? Everything on ‘Lost’ is shades of gray.
When Dogen tells Sayid that MIB will appear to him as someone who has died, does he know that he can no longer change his face (as Ilana said)? Is Ilana wrong? Or does it not matter because he was lying to him anyway?
“Now why’d you go and do that?” Oh, UnLocke, you crazy bastard. And that’s when I realized that Dogen sent Sayid to be killed by MIB.
“You stabbed me in the chest without even saying ‘Hello.’”
And now I’m wondering if the Sideways world is what happens if MIB wins. Perhaps he (it) creates it and it’s the wishes of the castaways granted. (Jack does not become his father; Kate reunites Claire and Aaron; Nadia is alive; Locke is with Helen and has found peace; Dogen is with his son) Of course, we’re probably heading to it not turning out to be exactly what everyone wanted if this is the case.
When Malkin, the psychic that Claire went to see in Season 1, told her that Aaron must not be “raised by another,” could this be the vision that he saw? (A crazy, dirty, maybe dead version of Claire trapped in a hole, as someone else says that she raised Aaron.) Or maybe he saw/felt the Sideways world and knew that it was “not right?”
Sayid doesn’t deserve Nadia. Is this the point of his Sideways story? He needs her to be happy (and alive), but he has to come to terms with his past before he can deserve her.
Damn, Keamy (Kevin Durand) is still awesome. It was good to see him again. Durand is ginormous, but he’s not just imposing because of his size. His size makes him seem dangerous, but his performance adds a bit of psychosis that make lines like “I make good eggs!” equal parts creepy, funny and (actually) believable.
I’m liking that these Sideways stories are bringing everyone together. Sayid is with Jin; Claire was with Kate and will soon be with Jack (I assume); Locke has contact with Jack, and I gotta wonder if Locke is the key to the Sideways world because of his importance in the Island world.
Dogen’s story about his son dying and his deal with Jacob reminded me of Juliet and her sister Rachel being cured of cancer because she came to the Island.
And the intensity and general awesomeness of the final scenes in the Temple can’t really be overstated. I don’t know if I’m supposed to, but I love DarkSayid and his killing of Dogen and cold-blooded throat slashing of Lennon was great.
Kudos to Naveen Andrews, who was great in both timelines, but especially in his final scenes. His response to Ben telling him that there was still time to escape (“Not for me”) was genuinely frightening.
Additional Random Thought:
So I don’t even know why I thought of this, but what if the Island’s healing power is why those that have died have come back to life? Maybe the healing comes from MIB, not Jacob. It may seem good, but it’s really just a way for MIB to show his power and exert his influence. Locke can walk again when he’s on the Island, but he’s not complete the way he is in the Sideways world off the Island. This could also explain Ben’s tumor: if Ben was (whether knowingly or not) working for MIB, Jacob could have given him the tumor and then brought Jack, the spinal surgeon to the Island. Honestly, all these conclusions make more sense in my head than when I write them out.
I certainly hope that I will be watching Lost in its regular Bat-time on its regular Bat-channel next week. Cablevision is threatening to take it away and that would upset me more than Smokey when he’s gone wild.
When I rewatched, I realized that Jacob says that “they” were coming to the Island, not “he.” I wonder if this was just intentionally incorrect English designed to not give any clues or if multiple people need to find the Island. If so, I wonder if he meant the Sideways versions of those that he touched in “The Incident.”
Also, when rewatching the lighthouse scene, I noticed some other interesting names that I missed the first time: Rousseau at 20; Austen at 51; Dawson at 124; and, of course, Wallace at 108 (though I had actually read that before I rewatched). Who knows what that means (if anything) for Kate and #108.
So onto “Sundown”
Funnily enough, before watching, I assumed that this would be a Jin/Sun ep because of the punny-ness of the title.
That Dogen/Sayid fight at the beginning of the ep reminded me of the awesomeness of the Sayid/Keamy fight from back in Season 4. Sayid/Keamy still wins, but Sayid/Dogen was still pretty, pretty good.
The significance of the baseball. I wonder if it fell as a sign from Jacob to remind Dogen of his role.
“Apparently, I’m evil.” – Sayid to Miles
“You were dead for 2 hours.” – Miles. I gotta wonder what he heard in that time (if anything).
The second scene between Sayid and Dogen was very intense. Sayid put on his bad ass pants for this episode.
Dogen calls MIB “evil incarnate.” That seems a bit extreme, no? Everything on ‘Lost’ is shades of gray.
When Dogen tells Sayid that MIB will appear to him as someone who has died, does he know that he can no longer change his face (as Ilana said)? Is Ilana wrong? Or does it not matter because he was lying to him anyway?
“Now why’d you go and do that?” Oh, UnLocke, you crazy bastard. And that’s when I realized that Dogen sent Sayid to be killed by MIB.
“You stabbed me in the chest without even saying ‘Hello.’”
And now I’m wondering if the Sideways world is what happens if MIB wins. Perhaps he (it) creates it and it’s the wishes of the castaways granted. (Jack does not become his father; Kate reunites Claire and Aaron; Nadia is alive; Locke is with Helen and has found peace; Dogen is with his son) Of course, we’re probably heading to it not turning out to be exactly what everyone wanted if this is the case.
When Malkin, the psychic that Claire went to see in Season 1, told her that Aaron must not be “raised by another,” could this be the vision that he saw? (A crazy, dirty, maybe dead version of Claire trapped in a hole, as someone else says that she raised Aaron.) Or maybe he saw/felt the Sideways world and knew that it was “not right?”
Sayid doesn’t deserve Nadia. Is this the point of his Sideways story? He needs her to be happy (and alive), but he has to come to terms with his past before he can deserve her.
Damn, Keamy (Kevin Durand) is still awesome. It was good to see him again. Durand is ginormous, but he’s not just imposing because of his size. His size makes him seem dangerous, but his performance adds a bit of psychosis that make lines like “I make good eggs!” equal parts creepy, funny and (actually) believable.
I’m liking that these Sideways stories are bringing everyone together. Sayid is with Jin; Claire was with Kate and will soon be with Jack (I assume); Locke has contact with Jack, and I gotta wonder if Locke is the key to the Sideways world because of his importance in the Island world.
Dogen’s story about his son dying and his deal with Jacob reminded me of Juliet and her sister Rachel being cured of cancer because she came to the Island.
And the intensity and general awesomeness of the final scenes in the Temple can’t really be overstated. I don’t know if I’m supposed to, but I love DarkSayid and his killing of Dogen and cold-blooded throat slashing of Lennon was great.
Kudos to Naveen Andrews, who was great in both timelines, but especially in his final scenes. His response to Ben telling him that there was still time to escape (“Not for me”) was genuinely frightening.
Additional Random Thought:
So I don’t even know why I thought of this, but what if the Island’s healing power is why those that have died have come back to life? Maybe the healing comes from MIB, not Jacob. It may seem good, but it’s really just a way for MIB to show his power and exert his influence. Locke can walk again when he’s on the Island, but he’s not complete the way he is in the Sideways world off the Island. This could also explain Ben’s tumor: if Ben was (whether knowingly or not) working for MIB, Jacob could have given him the tumor and then brought Jack, the spinal surgeon to the Island. Honestly, all these conclusions make more sense in my head than when I write them out.
I certainly hope that I will be watching Lost in its regular Bat-time on its regular Bat-channel next week. Cablevision is threatening to take it away and that would upset me more than Smokey when he’s gone wild.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
