LOST---the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Part V---With Special Guest Purgatory!

So this week, LOST felt like the Road Runner, in that the plot sped up and got the Oceanic 6 back to the destination quickly(as promised). The dialogue remained pretty much okay this time around, and the only thing that was a plague here were the same consistencies as always. Moving right along:

The good:

1. Frank Lapidus looked healthy and rather optimistic with his clean-shaven, innocent face. What I liked about his appearance in this episode is that his bit did what I have been begging these writers to make the whole show do for weeks now: get on with it! I must admit when Jack approached him and looked as though he was about to tell him everything, I thought Frank would resist the idea and a wrestling match at the helm of the plane between him and Jack would ensue. And while that plot strangely teases my mind in a good way, I’m glad it did not go that route, and Frank simply accepted his circumstances.

2. Jack and Locke’s not-so-routine “meeting” in the cooler. The energy of that scene was just fucking awesome, not to mention Jack’s comedic insecurity.

3. Maybe I do not remember too much from the first three seasons, but it seems as if the recent two seasons are opening up more to humor. These last few episodes have certainly had their shinier, partly-sunny-rather-than-p

artly-cloudy moments of laughs. One thing I do really like about LOST is how it has always managed to avoid becoming a depressing tragedy.

The bad:

1. Why the fuck do these writers insist on character consistency? Aren’t they allowed to grow even a little bit? Jack: “So we’re just supposed to hope it all goes right?” Yes, Jack, yes! For Christ’s sake, are you seriously going to go on like this? After four-and-a-half seasons of weird skeletons, time-traveling islands, smoke monsters, and pushing a button Jack is still going “Well, I don’t know…”. I think the LOST writers needs to make a special needs recap just for Jack.

2. Jin in a Dharma Englelbert Slapdyback Humperdinck Association uniform. That means that we’re going to see more of that wonderful, show-destroying organization in future episodes, which I’m not looking forward to.

3. If Ben killed Penny, then I am going to kill the writers in revenge.

The ugly:

1. One of things that Justin’s article suggested about LOST is that the show is about the “meaning of existence.” I think one of the reasons I find LOST to be ugly sometimes is that it occasionally goes against the set of beliefs I have on the meaning of existence. But bear with me here, I will explain why LOST is a bit of a bastard in its OWN right if it is indeed after the meaning of existence. And it boils down to simply: What about the other people on the plane, the ones that died? Both planes? What about the pilot that got smitten by Smokey? Did the island really kill them because they were not needed to fulfill other people’s supposed “destinies”? I find this presentation of the “meaning of existence” very disturbing; for one because I’m afraid that people will take it mean that some people are more important than others(as if our society needs more people like that). I may be thinking too much into this idea, but I figure if a show is probing the “meaning of existence” then it wants to be taken seriously. I hope that doesn’t happen in this case.

2. LOST seems to be suffering from a very contagious disease called Multiple Importance Disorder. It mainly afflicts the writers, taking away their ability to create subtleness, and causing them to build temples to honor every story-telling aspect of their show. This time it was Locke’s letter. We all knew its content was going to be interesting, so why just have Jack open it in the cooler instead of heightening its importance only to have it be something completely redundant? We already know Jack’s character refuses to do things he is afraid of, so why not have him find some courage the first time around instead of waiting for something, or somebody, to convince him? This is what I’m talking about when I say to hell with character consistency. We’ll believe the changes, don’t worry.

Purgatory:
This category might only be temporary. It’s for things like that hydrogen bomb that appeared a few episodes ago: things about LOST that I’m not quite sure about yet.

1. Desmond Crazy Eyes. I guess some can say that the actor was really into his character, but was any one else freaked out by how bulbous his eyes got when he was talking to Jack?

2. Ben praying. He never struck me as a religious fellow. He’s a leader, not a follower. Although that surprise twist might be good for Ben’s character.

3. The whole electromagnetic pocket thing in that room with the pendulum. It reminded me of Lay Lines(sorry if I spelled that wrong), something my friend Jackie told me about a couple years ago that has more to do with the spirit world than the real one. Hopefully, the LOST writers will fill us in on why the Dharma Sex Education for Polar Bears College wants to find these magnets so badly. If it turns out to be a “take over the world” ploy, I’m going to be really pissed.

Overall, this episode was very well done, though not as good as some of the previous season 5 episodes have been. The good news, though, is that it starting to move along much quickly than before.

Ciao.