In the first episode after the mini-hiatus, Lost focused all of it's attention on one thing:
Turning Ben from a villain to a hero.
Yes, yes, I know he's still smirking at his own manipulative genius, looking out only for number one. Turning him into a hero doesn't necessarily require that he have his figurative nads cut off. He'll always be a bit of a creep, but he's a creepy good guy. Don't believe me? How bad did you feel for him when he said goodbye to his daughter? How cool did you think it was when he clocked the guy with his telescopic baton? Who were you most sympathetic to in the final scene?
All along, he's been saying that he and his group are the good guys. In keeping with my new "everything at face value" Lost philosophy, I'm ready to believe him.
Gee. I hope someone takes this kinda terrorist looking guy down.
(Before we begin sidenote: This week's episode is entitled "The Shape of Things to Come" which is the title of an H.G. Wells novel. The book details a "future history" which includes a world wide dictatorship, submarine based warfare and an eventual collapse of government which leads to the rise of a Utopian state in its place. Wells was eerily prescient about many of the world's troubles in the late 20th Century. I suspect the only Lost connection is the idea of a "future history". The novel itself is supposedly the edited notes of a man who dreams about a history text created in the future. Lost writers seem obsessed with variations on the time travel theme.)
On the beach, Kate is giving herself a sponge bath when Jack strolls by. She gives him a sexy little wave which he halfheartedly returns. He then wanders over to the supply tent and doses himself up with a handful of tablets. Kate sneaks up behind him and half jokingly asks if he has a prescription for the meds. It seems Jack has a stomach bug and is trying to calm it with some anti-biotics.
Kate changes the subject and asks about Sayid and the freighter. He reminds her that Sayid told them that the engine on the boat was down and that they are now unable to communicate with the boat. In his gut, he's sure that rescue is only a matter of time.
"I thought your gut was sick."
Before Jack can reassure her further, Vincent's barking interrupts them. As everyone knows by now, that can't be good. Sure enough, it's not.
After a panicked moment where Bernard is frantically calling for help, the assembled group pulls a body from the surf. When they turn it over, we see a familiar, if somewhat pasty, face.
Someone got new headshots!
It's Ray! The freighter's doc seems to have met with a helluva shaving accident.
Back in the barracks, Hurley seems concerned.
"We're all gonna die."
Sawyer is less concerned.
"Calm down Chicken Little. The sky ain't fallin' just yet."
"This is exactly what he wants. To fight amongst ourselves. You're making a big mistake, dude."
Locke interjects. "It's his to make, Hugo. Let's get on with it."
Sawyer makes the fateful choice. "Right. I'm attacking Siberia."
Yes, the newest game on the show is my all time fave, RISK.
After Sawyer wins his chosen battle, Hurley has a few more choice words for the gamers. "I can't believe you're giving him Australia. Australia's the key to the whole game."
(Risk addict side note: Two things are striking here. "We're all gonna die," is an odd thing to say when three people are playing. I can see him saying "We're both
gonna die," but "We're all gonna die" was obviously a line for effect. Personally, I don't mind being suckered like that, but I prefer it to be done honestly which this wasn't. More interestingly, "Australia is the key to the whole game" could be a little message to the audience. I've said all along that there MUST be a reason that they went to the trouble of setting the show in Australia originally, since with a very few minor tweaks the story works just as well if the plane takes off from L.A. rather than Sydney. The expense of location shooting, reversed shots of cars and such are unlikely to be "just because". Of course, in RISK, Australia often IS the key to the whole game.)
Jacob
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Comments (12)
I didn't understand why Ben & Locke were taking Hugo to Jacob's cabin when Ben clearly knows how to get there on his own. I don't get the logic there. Was Ben lying to Locke about why they needed Hugo?
1 of 12 | Posted by kellyt | Posted on April 30, 2008 7:27 AM
On a previous episode, Hurley pointed out that the cabin was "the other way", earning a big time stink eye from John. Perhaps Hurley has been granted the ability to "see" the cabin that neither John nor Ben currently have . . .
2 of 12 | Posted by SOCKMONKEY | Posted on April 30, 2008 8:47 AM
kellyt: Jacob's cabin has moved since the time we saw Locke and Ben visit. Hugo was the one to stumble across its new location. Apparently, Ben does not know where it is at the moment. Which is puzzling, if Jacob's cabin moves all the time, does Ben spend a lot of his time looking for it?
What a great episode! Lots of action, the return of the smoke monster, and a Ben centric!
Kinda bummed that Alex died, but holy cow, it's worth it for Ben's reaction. I saw someone say that they would only read the transcripts of episodes now because the show "had become a bloodbath". *sigh* Ya know, we're kinda running out of time for Libby and Daniel's backstories. I have trouble imagining how they are going to fit them in without it looking really shoehorned in.
The Ben/Widmore scene at the end was extremely intriguing.
The first scene of the flashforward - Oh ma gaw, how awesomely weird was that? My little theory is that there's some sort of teleporter in the Arctic. Just as a polar bear mysteriously appeared in Tunisia, I think Ben got that arm wound via an angry polar bear. And hey, according to Wikipedia, polar bears live in some parts of Siberia, which was also mentioned in this episode! Perhaps the symbol on Ben's coat is for a hatch in Siberia?
One question: Do you all think the "Freighter Four" are going to be regular characters, or just recurring roles? It seemed like we were going to see quite a lot of them at first, but they've had little to do the past few episodes. Miles and Faraday certainly seem to have more characterization ahead, but Charlotte and Frank?
3 of 12 | Posted by Merick | Posted on April 30, 2008 8:48 AM
I found this little tid bit on the net and thought it was pretty cool. Gotta love google earth
There is a time portal/wormhole that connects Tunisia to the Island. That's how Ben ends up seemingly fallen from the sky in the Tunisian desert. That's how a polar bear skull is excavated from the Tunisian sand. And that how a small prop plane can take off from Nigeria and end up on the island. The proof: according to Google Earth, the coordinates for 'Tunisia' are: 33 deg, 53 sec N and 9 deg, 31 sec E. The polar opposite of those coordinates is: 33 deg, 53 53 sec S and 170 deg 29 sec W. If you follow those coordinates, you end up....just NE of Sydney, Australia in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, enroute to LA, and not far from Fiji.
4 of 12 | Posted by pauliewalnutz | Posted on April 30, 2008 9:26 AM
I love Ben. I don't care if we were meant to think of him as a 'bad' guy from the beginning, I still loved him lol.
He deserves any and all awards this show gets from now on. No one can deliver a line quite like him =)
5 of 12 | Posted by pixi-stix | Posted on April 30, 2008 9:55 AM
Great recap Grey. Worth the wait!
Someone got new headshots LOL!
I suppose it's not surprising that she'd see a munchkin...er, hobbit after having a house dropped on her. OMG LOL!!!!
I never thought of Ben as the hero. He always seemed so evil to me. But I look forward to more of your hero hypothesis.
6 of 12 | Posted by akgirl7 | Posted on April 30, 2008 10:30 AM
Interesting theory pauliewalnutz. I understand Ben in the desert and the prop plane, but don't see how this theory explains the polar bear excavation. Polar bears wouldn't typically be found on an island in the south pacific or in the desert in Tunisia. Am I missing something?
7 of 12 | Posted by Bryant92 | Posted on April 30, 2008 11:26 AM
so many gigglez taday:)
coconut radio jokes, fuk'n ninja jokes...
shaken not stirred...
sigh :)
aha! nobody else has mentioned.. i know iknow it's really nothing.. but noone noticed the painting, back wall bedroom (of the 'black rock' that widmore won at the auction, when confronted by dez during an episodic timetrip.....
yah.. and whaz up w/the 'we need hurley to find jacob's shack?
sounds like pfffft ta me....
great review.. i have sorely missed these..
how many more shows do we have left in the season....anybody?
8 of 12 | Posted by kikz | Posted on April 30, 2008 12:21 PM
I've been looking forward to this recap all week and you did not disappoint me!!! It was great once again and the comments from everyone were quite insightful. Thanks you guys. I've always loved Ben and those horrible eyes.... Ben deserves the Emmy!
9 of 12 | Posted by chooch850 | Posted on April 30, 2008 12:47 PM
I've been looking forward to this recap all week and you did not disappoint me!!! It was great once again and the comments from everyone were quite insightful. Thanks you guys. I've always loved Ben and those horrible eyes.... Ben deserves the Emmy!
10 of 12 | Posted by chooch850 | Posted on April 30, 2008 12:50 PM
Bryant92:
I'm pretty sure they kept polar bears in the Dharma Zoo, where Kate and Sawyer were kept. They weren't native to the island, but they were there.
11 of 12 | Posted by puregold | Posted on May 9, 2008 3:26 PM
Bryant92, I'm pretty sure they kept polar bears in that Dharma Zoo where Kate & Sawyer were held. They aren't native to the island, but they were there!
12 of 12 | Posted by puregold | Posted on May 9, 2008 3:27 PM