501: 'Because You Left'
Wr: Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof
Dr: Stephen Williams
Synopsis: Several of the Oceanic Six survivors come to grips with their need to return to the island... on their own terms; the fate of those left on the Island is revealed.
Review: Good evening television viewer, and welcome to one of the most mentally exhausting exercises in goggle watching since the day your remote stuck you on BBC Astrophysics. If you've never before dipped your toes in the river of ABC's finest madball kookathon of a show, I suggest you turn over now. Really. Put Celebrity Big Brother back on. Don't even bother. You won't get anywhere. Lost has reached the point where it is absolutely impossible for the casual viewer to tune in and understand a single thing that's going on. The narrative relies far too much on established mythology, past events and, most importantly, the kind of completely bonkers science fiction that will only frustrate those without an interest in the machinations of the fantastical. So I'll say it again: switch over. Now. You'll be a darn sight happier. And less confused.
Done that? Good. Now to the rest of you hardened Lost fanatics. Welcome back to the greatest television series currently airing on our all too small screens. Lindelof and Cuse's show was undoubtedly the best thing about TV in 2008 and from the evidence provided by this season opener, it looks set to be the the best thing about 2009 as well. From the off, the show pulls no punches, dumbs nothing down and holds nothing back. The playful opening sequence fools you into thinking you're watching Ben (slightly podgy guy, short black hair) when, actually, we're being treated to Marvin Candle/Edgar Halliwax/Mark Wickmund/Pierre Chang (whichever you prefer), filming the orientation film for The Arrow (score! no. 1 for Lost fanatics: we finally find out what that station that Ana Lucia and her cohorts discovered in season two is actually for). The significance of this sequence will arguably be lost on those who haven't been paying close attention for the last four years but no matter, we're into the more complex and mature chapters of our story now and if you haven't been keeping up, that's your problem. Then Farraday turns up as they're tapping into the 'energy' where that crazy old wheel is and we're all left scratching our heads in bemusement: could this have something to do with the remark in his book that we saw at the end of 'The Constant' last year? Was Daniel with the DHARMA Initative before? Or is this a time travelled Daniel from after? Who the frack knows?
After you've digested that juicy morsel, Cuse and Lindelof get straight down to showing us exactly what happened to the Islanders after Ben 'moved' the thing and, lo and behold, it suckerpunches everybody. Oh, you mean move through time, right, yeah, of course. A brilliant twist that and the 'gimmick' works absolute wonders for the narrative. It's an ingenious way of treating us to some answers regarding the history of the Island. What's the betting that this is how we discover who the natives are? Rousseau's past? The four toed statue? Seen through flashes of bonkers characterial time travel in which our protagonists swing backwards and forwards along the Island's 'time-string' (to paraphrase Farraday), unable to affect anything that has gone before. It's a completely unique approach to storytelling and, consequently, it's a thoroughly engaging, and rewarding, experience. Seeing the Nigerian plane crashing into the trees and the Virgin Mary statues falling out of it is a delightful nod to all of those who've been with the show since the beginning and it really gives you a satisfying (for want of a better description) 'tingling' feeling... like you're finally getting to the good stuff.
It certainly helps that the remainder of the narrative's construction is utterly haphazard too. We begin when the DHARMA Initiative is first active on the Island, move to the Oceanic Six off-Island, flit to three years prior to this when the Island moves and then skip and jump through the Island's history while also returning to the O6 for brief periods. There is no chronology to the story whatsoever but it works better for it: the uncertainty of the Islanders' situation is heightened as the viewer's narrative-reading experiences are our equivalent. And, of course, there's the added bonus of a fantastic Bond-esque fight sequence involving Sayid, Hurley and some really bad men, which ends in the most delightfully disgusting way imaginable, and Alan Dale pops up later on and scares the bejesus out of everyone again. Marvellous stuff; one hell of a kickstart to the season. Lost is on absolute top form and has been for a solid year now. Let's hope they can keep this kind of oddball, addictive momentum going right until the very end. 9.5
502: 'The Lie'
Wrs: Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz
Dr: Jack Bender
Synopsis: Hurley and Sayid are hunted down by the cops. Jack and Ben try to bring everyone together as a team. Kate recieves help from an old friend to hide the truth.
Review: Okay... eh? Just... what the hell? What in the name of Alvor Hanso was that? Well, a church with a big underground pendulum swinging backwards and forwards across a floor and making indents in it, I suppose. With the added bonus of a cloaked Ms Hawking writing some complex looking equations and calculations onto a chalkboard and entering figures into an old school Apple computer. Yeah, that'll be it. I'll say it again... what the hell? For those of you who don't pay attention to every single detail of every single episode, Ms Hawking is a vaguely familiar face: she's the woman from the season three Desmond-centric spazout 'Flashes Before Your Eyes'... you know, the one that told him he couldn't buy the wedding ring from her because he wasn't ordained to do so and then proceeded to accurately relate the minutiae of future events. We haven't seen the batty old 'temporal agent' (as show creators Cuse and Lindelof refer to her) in two whole seasons and now she crops up at the very end of the episode, warning Ben that he only has 70 hours to gather the Oceanic Six (why?!) and get them back to the Island or, and I quote, 'God help us all'. Well... there's something of a pickle, right there. Goodness only knows quite why the timeframe is so short or, indeed, exactly what it is Hawking is doing down in that basement with a bloody Star Wars/Lord of the Rings-esque cloak over her head while she does her maths, but one thing's for sure: it looks damn cool. And the air of off-kilter, sinister mystery that the whole thing is imbued with provides a stark contrast to the somewhat lightweight nature of the remainder of the episode. It's an unequivocally fantastic cliffhanger because it comes out of nowhere and, therefore, completely derails you from your 'comfort zone'. And as an aside, before we go on to pick apart the rest of 'The Lie', I will offer a logical theory, just for kicks: if Ms Hawking is a 'temporal agent' and it is her job to ensure that the 'timeline' of the Island (and those whose destiny is tied up with it) remains on the correct course, then if Locke is correct and the Six should never have left, it would be her duty to assist in getting them back. And given that she seems to have a rather special relationship with time, it would seem that the best way she can achieve that is to map out its minutiae and, perhaps, determine when there is a moment (or, possibly more accurately, an alignment) that will allow for the Six's return without disturbing the Island's fluctuating timeline. The words 'event window determined' flash across the computer screen, which would seem to give weight to this interpretation. Although, there again, I could be barking up completely the wrong pine tree; unpredictability and Lost come hand in hand and really, we wouldn't have it any other way.
Aside from a brief dalliance with temporal physics then (and a rather nifty scene in a butcher's shop in which Ben talks with a woman called Jill about the Oceanic Six, seemingly hinting that she is an Other of some sort and that there's something deeper going on here), 'The Lie' is a far more traditional episode of Lost than 'Because You Left'. Kitsis and Horowitz's episode is effectively a character piece for misunderstood old Hugo Reyes, whose continual, unfortunate position as a (rather large) fish out of water makes for compelling, and often rather amusing, entertainment. Take his haphazard, amateur attempts at covering his tracks and remaining 'off the radar' as an example: he returns home for God's sake, which is the first place any self-respecting law enforcement officer would think to look. And then there's the pulling over when he hears a cop car's siren - which, thankfully, is all in his head and is accompanied by a neat little visit from a very much dead Ana Lucia - and, of course, the completely inconspicuous T-shirt that he buys in the store. Priceless. The script contains a significant amount of wry humour and it's a testament to the calibre of the cast involved that it comes across so successfully. Watch Jorge Garcia showing up at his father's door with Naveen Andrews slumped across his back and tell me you didn't at least raise a smirk. Witness Hurley's mother exclaim "why is there a dead Pakistani on my couch?" and I challenge you not to laugh. The episode doesn't let the comedic elements obscure its point, however: as we reach the climax, there are some wonderful, introspective emotive sequences that open the viewer's eyes somewhat as to the extent of Hurley's plight. The scene in which he confesses to his mother that the O6 have been lying for three years is of particular note, as Garcia is unquestionably wonderful throughout. He exudes defeatism: his bodily position, broken delivery and tears successfully convey a man worn down by the need to do something he so vehemently disagrees with. And then there's his confrontation with Ben, which has an entirely different outcome to what the narrative appears to telegraph and is all the better for it. Michael Emerson is predictably amazing in this scene, conniving and manipulating Hugo with his words and demeanour in order to achieve his end.
There is much else to savour in 'The Lie' too; Kate and Sun's scene turns from mild-mannered friendly pleasantries to dark, introspective soul-searching with the click of a finger, which makes the trajectory that the two characters are on all the more disturbing (although it's arguably Ms Quon we should all be worried about). The Islanders get a fair slice of the action as well, although this episode is arguably the counterpoint to 'Because You Left', flipping the balance between the two narrative 'parties' almost completely. The flaming arrow ambush is excellently realised; the horror of the situation is starkly conveyed by the relentless nature of the assault and the constant cutaways to unfortunate souls being pierced, and then set alight, by the oncoming weaponry. The DHARMA (I think) people's abduction of Sawyer and Juliet is nicely sadistic too: for a brief second there, I actually believed we were going to have a handless Elizabeth Mitchell for the next 46 episodes. And then there's poor Charlotte who seems to be being rather affected by their jolts through time. Curious that she is the only one thus far: could this have something to do with the hints in season four that she was born on the Island? This doesn't necessarily run counter to the theory that the reason why Richard and co. are not 'skipping' through time is because they are natives (i.e. they were born there). It has been suggested that she has been separated from the place from a long time; perhaps the bond she once held with it has been severed. I dunno, I'm merely conjecturing... but it's fun to think about, nonetheless. And that's a good way to summarise the episode, really: it's damn fun. Comedy, action, psychological ennui and kooky temporal agents in Sith hoods. Perhaps not as mind-bendingly engaging as 'Because You Left' but another fine, fine episode all the same. 9.0
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