‘Lost’ recap: OK, so we met Kevin Johnson …
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- March
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…and honestly, I don’t think last night’s introduction to Kevin/Michael was really all that interesting.
In fact, my reaction to most of those revelations could kind of be summed up by Hurley’s line of the night: “Um, we kind of, like, knew that forever ago.”
Because while we got a couple of new nuggets—like “the island won’t let you die,” even all the way in Manhattan!—last night mainly confirmed a bunch of stuff we fans had already figured out.
Like, Michael is Ben’s spy on the boat so he can save his friends and ease his guilt over killing Ana-Lucia and Libby? Well, seeing that Michael isn’t evil—his misdeeds on the island were to save his son—I’d kinda guessed that was the reason he was on the freighter.
And the “he said-he said” game that Ben and Charles Widmore are playing over who staged the 815 wreckage?
Um, we get it. We don’t know who’s telling the truth yet: You don’t have to beat us over the head with a six-inch-thick dossier with that one. (P.S. Why does everyone on this show believe whatever someone says if it’s supported by a folder stuffed full of paper or a videotape? Haven’t the castaways heard of Photoshop?)
Oh, and Mr. Friendly’s gay. We were clued into that one when he laughed at Kate getting undressed last season and said, “You’re not my type.”So basically, we waited through 53 minutes of not-much-excitement for the answer to the question everyone was asking: Who dies?And while the double-death that came was slightly surprising, in the end, it was pretty disappointing.I thought that the one to die might be Miles or Claire, but the writers apparently decided to trim the show’s budget and get rid of some dead weight, a.k.a Karl.
It was time for Brainwash Boy to go, seeing that he hasn’t done much since he was busted out of Room 23.
But Rousseau? I thought she had some more to contribute (if she really is dead, and some folks are convinced she’s not), but maybe that’s the point.
Ben obviously orchestrated the shooting, under the guise of leading Alex to safety with the Others at the Temple station (how many stations ARE there?).
In one clever move, he got his daughter all to himself again. Karl’s permanently out of the picture, so Alex won’t get pregnant—and he no longer has to worry about what Danielle might reveal to the Losties once all the freighter drama died down. (After 16 years on the island, she HAD to know more about Ben and the Others, right?)
If Rousseau is dead, I bet she shows up again in a Ben flashback to give a little more intel.
Otherwise, what did we learn?
Michael made it back to New York (mini-surprise) and is suicidal (no shocker there).
We did get a quick look at Walt standing at his grandmother’s window, and it looked like he was young Walt, not the “taller ghost Walt” from Locke’s vision. So that discrepancy hasn’t been answered yet. Yet somehow, even though getting another glimpse of Walt had been highly anticipated, I didn’t feel like the scene had a lot of impact.
Even the return of Libby was a bit of a snore.
I was hoping for a true crossover connection, like she had with Hurley and Desmond. But she came back as a ghost (BTW, apparently you get better hair and makeup when you’re a ghost), appearing to Michael once in the hospital and then as a warning not to blow up the freighter.
Ghost Charlie—heck, even Ghost Boone—had a way better post-death appearance.
But really, the biggest confirmation of the night didn’t even come in the actual episode: It was in the trailer for the next new installment, which doesn’t arrive until April 24 (the show is taking a month-long break to churn out five more post-writers’ strike episodes before the season ends).
Anyway, ABC—not the show itself—gave us the full identities of the Oceanic 6, which had been questioned. And yes, indeed, Aaron, Claire’s boobeleh, is a Sixer.
So no more recaps until next month, Lost-philes! I’ll be back before then with more advance scoop, of course.
In the meantime, post your comments below: Did you think last night’s ep was a disappointment?
(Photos courtesy of ABC)
This entry was posted
on Friday, March 21st, 2008 at 8:36 am by Heather Salerno.
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“Did you think last night’s ep was a disappointment?” Yes I did, Heather, and for all the reasons you listed above. I just didn’t feel like it was as gripping as some other episodes this season (namely, “The Constant,” which felt like old-school S1 LOST to me). I just didn’t think last night was all the interesting, or even well-executed. And I sincerely hope that Danielle is not dead, she was one of my favorite characters.
And come on, the island doesn’t let you die if it still needs you?? That feels like a too-handy plot device, doesn’t it? That just leaves it open for every dead person on the island EVER to return to life. I’m all for the suspension of disbelief, but I think that’s taking things a little too far.
I agree with much of what you have to say, but here’s one thing I think it did answer: Who’s in the coffin. I’ve said from the beginning that I thought it was Michael and now I’m 99.9 percent sure it is.
After the Oceanic Six get off the island, it seems that whatever the island still wants Michael to do may be finished and he’s finally able to kill himself. Remember that Michael’s mother comments how he is going by a different name (but doesn’t say what that name is) and also he’s in Manhattan, which is where the guy who killed himself lived in that obit that Jack read.
Again, there’s been a lot of speculation from the beginning that Michael was the one in the coffin, but I’m positive now.
Also: I don’t think she is, but I’m not 100 percent sure — was Michael’s mom the woman whose house Miles went to before he went on the freighter?
I’ve thought for awhile Michael is the one in the coffin, too, and last night gave more evidence to support that theory, didn’t it?
As for Michael’s mom, she’s not Mrs. Gardner (the woman Miles visited whose grandson was murdered). Mrs. Gardner was played by actress Azure McCall; Michael’s mom was played by Starletta DuPois.
The coffin/Michael connection occurred to me too, and apparently we are not the only ones thinking that: http://www.thefuselage.com/Threaded/showthread.php?t=92542
Personally, I think this idea that the island is some sort of time machine has some merit. If Ben and the Others know this, and know that Michael doesn’t die until later, then they know he can’t die now…not necessarily that the island won’t let him, but that the universe won’t. It’s sorta like the ‘you can’t go back in time and create paradoxes’ thing. Similarly, Charlie was going to die somehow.
See, the whole “the island won’t let you die if it needs you” thing made some sense to me, as much as anything does with Lost. It sort of “explains” why Mikhail has nine lives (well four and counting). If the island does, in fact, resurrect people it “needs” to protect it, the it makes sense that Mikhail would have survived getting a spear through the chest in the Looking Glass, only to swim away, don a scuba mask and blow up Charlie with a grenade.
I dunno. I thought it was pretty cool that Michael actually did make it back. Maybe I had too little faith that he would. The fact that Ben was watching him/them wasn’t a big shocker. That it was Tom who retrieved him was pretty cool.
Though I’m just not clear on how he could have done everything he did in such a short span. Sailing away, making it to NYC, planning his suicide, recovering from the accident, getting to Fiji and then spending at least a couple of days on the island. There’s something about time – not consciousness time like Faraday, but real physical time. Perhaps the bearing Michael and Walt followed was one that brought them back and they’ve been home for longer than we realize? Could be an easy out for Walt’s age/height when they bring him back even though the Faraday thing seemed to discredit this possibility.
We’ll see.
Yeah, the Libby thing was pretty dull, but they probably couldn’t go all sentimental cuz Michael killed her and the theory that she worked for Dharma or Widmore.
Angela I kinda agree with you. As for Patchy was dead as we thought and came back. Wasnt Mr Friendly dead too? Please refresh my brain.
Yeah, I was thoroughly unimpressed with last week’s episode. The whole Island not letting someone die theme is pretty silly. And no flashbacks from Rousseau? Drat—I was looking forward to those. Perhaps we’ll see her pop up in a Ben flashback sometime soon.