So how’s this for bad timing: For the past month or so, there hasn’t been any original television on, yet I’ve had copious time to do my Monday column. Now, pretty much every television show I watch is back, and I’m cramming in time to write this column. You see, we’re getting our basement fixed so that it doesn’t leak whenever anything remotely wet happens weather-wise, so my dad and I spent the entire weekend cleaning the basement. So, while I have a lot I want to say about each show, my comments will probably have to be more limited than I anticipated.
And, just like that, the internet mourns…
LOST:
First off, let me just say that I really enjoyed the hour recap before the new episode, solely because it gave a nice comparison of where each half of the island was at each point of them being stranded. It gave you a nice impression of how much rougher the tailies had it, and how different the methods of survival were for each side. You understood what sort of impact the size of the group had, as well as the fact that the fuselage crew had their baggage.
It was also neat seeing the scene splicing when Boone communicated with Bernard through their communication devices. It was a neat little recap.
Onto the actual episode. I actually quite enjoyed it, although my friend Clelia was not as enamored by it. She actually had some fair and valid criticisms, as she feels that the show would be scarier if it remained more realistic. For example, the polar bear attack was a lot scarier when you didn’t quite know why it was there. When you found out it may have been created from the imagination of a special boy, it, in a sense, lost its impact. She thinks that the show is more interesting when you say, “this could happen to me.” Once again, a fair argument. That’s not to say that she didn’t like the episode, she just had some qualms with it.
Overall, I think I have a different mentality than her (which is not to say that I have the “right” mentality). I’m not sure it’s the show’s intention to be scary, I feel like it’s trying to be a mystery. With that in mind, I think they’re willing to sacrifice realism for the sake of making you say “hmmmm, how’d that happen?” or “why’d that happen?” Along with that, I also think it’s necessary to “sacrifice” certain episodes for the long run. While one episode may not seem especially interesting upon initial viewing, what happens in it may have significance later on.
I’m sure the one thing everybody will remember about this episode is the revelation (for lack of a better word) of the monster. Well, we’ve seen bits and pieces of the monster before (mostly in the finale and the beginning part of this episode), but now we got a much better look of it. What I find interesting is that the two characters that have come face to face with it are Locke and Eko, two characters who many fans have found similarities with. Additionally, the two of them reacted to the monster is much the same way. So, the question remains: What exactly is the monster? Well, if you noticed, a series of images flashed as the camera panned around the monster. Even using my TiVo, it was pretty damn tough figuring out what those images were. However, as best as I could tell (and a few fellow columnists on the IP staff helped me out), the images were (not necessarily in this order) of a young Eko, a church, the Mary statue, Eko holding his brother immediately after he was shot, and possibly a plane. Basically, it’s images from his flashbacks/past. This leads to two potential lines of thinking: The monster is either each person’s own fear (meaning they see whatever it is they fear), or the monster is scanning the thoughts of the person it looks into (which means it sees whatever the person is thinking or what they’ve experienced). Both seem plausible, and I guess we won’t really know until we see more of it.
Before I discuss Eko, I’d like to touch on the Charlie/Claire relationship. Last season, the relationship got a great deal of attention, and it was developed quite nicely. Then this season began, and out of nowhere it seemed like Claire felt a great deal of resentment towards it. Inexplicably, there just seemed to be a lot of tension between them. Even in the first or second episode, when Claire had discovered the Mary statue, there just seemed like an uneasiness between them (even though she had no reason to be weirded out at that point). Then they went several episodes barely even showing them, and again out of no where they two seemed tangibly at odds with each other. It’s almost as if the writers decided they didn’t want Charlie and Claire to be together anymore, and just started to make that happen with very little build up or attention. I mean, next to Kate and Jack, I’d say Charlie and Claire have gotten the most attention, and yet, out of al relationships, Sayid and Shannon are the ones that have already slept together and said “I love you.”
Anyway, regarding Eko. I had a heads up that he was related to the Nigerian drug lords, so I can’t say that was entirely unexpected, however I really enjoyed watching his development as a person. I liked how he essentially sacrificed his soul in order to not make his baby brother experience something so traumatic, and how his brother felt a certain debt to him. I also appreciated that no matter how vicious Eko had become, he would never do anything to harm his brother. I also enjoyed how Charlie immediately assumed Eko was judging him, but then at the end of the episode Eko gave him another statue of Mary to replace the one he had broken (thus showing he was not judging him). It’s definitely interesting that Charlie took a shitload of statues with him, because that definitely goes beyond his story of having one for a safety net.
One last thought. Last season, pretty much all of the flashbacks recalled the series of events that took place, ultimately leading to why each character took the doomed flight. This season, however, takes a look at what made each character the person they are today. So far we’ve gotten two tailies episodes: The one with Ana Lucia, and the one with Eko. We know what happened to each of them, but we’re yet to discover why they were on the flight to begin with.
Oh, and I really liked the end montage, showing the integration of the tailies with the rest of the crew. I especially liked how Jin introduced Ana Lucia to his wife, and then gave her the fish. It was a sweet moment. Also worth noting is how Kate kept eyeing both Sawyer and Jack when Jack came over to give Sawyer his medication. I have no doubt that Kate/Sawyer will happen before Kate/Jack, I’m just not sure if she’ll actively choose Sawyer over Jack, or if Jack just misses out on his opportunity with her.
24:
Wow. Just, wow. Unfortunately, a few months back I accidentally read a spoiler that President Palmer would be assassinated, so that otherwise shocking moment did lose a bit of impact. However, Michelle getting killed was completely unexpected, so it didn’t take long for that discouragement to fade away. Although, I did find it odd that Tony’s name was in the main cast, but Michelle’s was with the guest stars.
Overall, I found it to be an unbelievable premiere, and literally within the first few minutes they effectively made you believe that anybody could die. I was honestly expecting Chloe to get hit by a sniper when she went to meet Jack. I thought they did a great job of bringing Jack back into existence, and I honestly feel like they had their most exhilarating premiere yet. Unbelievable.
My only complaint is that I feel like everybody at CTU came to terms with Jack being alive a bit too easily. I mean, what’s more probable? Jack is really dead, and somebody found a way to fabricate his image, no matter how authentic it seemed, or that Jack faked his death and then viciously murdered his closest friends? It just seemed a bit of a stretch that CTU would so readily make a person previously believed to be dead their #1 suspect. That said, I thought that Audrey’s reaction to everything was fantastically written and acted, between her loyalty to her job and country, and her loyalty and feelings for Jack. I liked how she submitted to telling Logan about Jack, but then immediately came to his defense when Logan spoke badly of him. I’m also normally not a fan of Chloe, but I actually quite enjoyed her last night. It’s interesting to see how her relationship with Jack has developed since we first met her in season three.
It was also nice to see Wayne again, and I thought he did a fantastic job in his scene with Jack in the study. Overall, an incredible scene. Once again, I was blown away by the scene with Tony and Michelle, as it was completely unexpected. Oh, and for those of you wondering, that pun wasn’t intended, but kept even after it was noticed. Oh, and I’m sure a few other IP writers will be glad to see that Tony’s still got his Cubs mug. A very nice touch. I really hope he pulls through.
Overall, looking like an amazing season and Jack looks majorly bad ass with the crew cut. Another interesting thing is that they’re definitely making Logan look like a sniveling coward by allowing casualties with terrorists, but yet Palmer did something just as deplorable when he allowed Chappell to be executed.
Oh, and Jack’s line of “the only reason you’re still conscious is because I don’t want to carry you” absolutely kicked ass.
THE OC:
Was it me, or did the scene cuts seem very abrupt last week? It seemed like one scene ended, and suddenly we were in the next scene without any fading or pause whatsoever. It just seemed very….abrupt. Almost sloppy.
I enjoyed the stuff with Taylor, especially how Seth, in the end, showed he wasn’t simply using her (it definitely came off that way early on). I like that Ryan is being understanding and not overly jealous regarding Marissa’s friendship with Johnny (especially since it’s a far more interesting storyline than the clichéd jealous boyfriend thing), but I have to completely side with him about being upset that his GIRLFRIEND is more concerned about a kid she’s only known for a few months than she is about spending her final semester with her boyfriend and best friend. Not to mention attending a far superior school.
I also like how Julie and Marissa are cool with each other, because Marissa was entirely unbearable all of last season with her constant hostility towards her mother. I enjoyed how both Julie and Summer’s father made their confession to their children, and both of them responded maturely. It’s also abundantly obvious that something will happen between Summer’s father and Julie. Oh, and bonus points to Seth for his dorky cheerleading for Summer’s dad when he came to Marissa’s defense.
Next week Marissa’s sister returns. I know she’s only like 16 or something, but she looks really, really hot. I’m getting old.
Anyway, I’m cutting it off that week. I know I promised the return of the Continuity Police and the TV Fun Fact, but I’ve already written more than I expected to, so they’re getting the cut this week.
Next week, they’ll be back. I promise. Probably. Until then, Case closed.
