Now this, Tim Kring, is how you do a finale. Where Heroes could not deliver, Damon Cuse and Damon Lindelof, writers/creators/exec producers of Lost, have made television history with one of the best season finales for a serialized show, well, in history. As much as I love to focus on how great I find NBC programming, I really must tip my cap to ABC on this one, for, as I'll explain in a bit, Lost has consistently proved itself to be the most innovative serialized narrative on television, with this finale cementing that statement firmly.
Before I get into the most important aspect of the finale, the "rattlesnake in the mailbox," as Cuse and Lindelof have been referring to it as, I want to do a more typical Media Maven analysis of the show.
Aside from the big twist, what made this episode fantastic was not that it answered a lot of big questions (in fact, it didn't really answer any), but that it had such fantastic narrative momentum. We were swept up in the episode's proceedings in a highly visceral way, perched at the edge of our couches, hearts racing, eyes wide, for the full two hours, though it seemed to fly by in only a matter of minutes. We still don't know a thing about Jacob, Ben's agenda, the monster, Walt, Locke's strange healing powers, and countless other mysteries, and frankly, I don't know that all these questions will ever be answered. But with everything else this episode accomplished, and more importantly, with the implications it has for next season, I don't think anyone (myself included) minds leaving a few unanswered queries by the wayside.
Plot-wise, there are few major issues to touch on:
1. Charlie's Death-- I have mixed feelings about this death. Let me begin by saying that more than anything, I appreciate the willingness of Cuse and Lindelof to pull the trigger on killing off a main character like this, and I think the execution was nearly perfect. Charlie (Dominic Mongahan) had nowhere else to go in terms of character development. We've seen him as an addict, we've seen him drop the addiction, we've seen him find meaning in his life with Claire and Aaron, and though he brings a distinct flavor and energy to the scenes he's in, there just isn't really anything left for him to do. I applaud Cuse and Lindelof for recognizing the needs of the story and choosing to honor those over the conventions of television, something that is nearly unheard of in the world of tv.
In a way, I was very happy for Charlie that he could die like this, with bravery and poignancy. As if it weren't enough to swim down to the Looking Glass, unjam the signal by using his musicianship, and ensuring the rescue of everyone on the island, I loved that with his last breaths, Charlie wrote "Not Penny's Boat" on his hand, delivering a final message to Desmond that I'm sure will play hugely in next season's premiere. For a character I didn't like all that much, these final moments redeemed Charlie in my mind.
The one thing I didn't like about the death? How pointless it seemed! Why did Charlie lock himself in that room? It makes no sense! The water began to pour in, but Charlie surely had the extra .5 seconds it would've taken for him to jump outside the room and slam the safety door shut behind him. I know that Charlie needed to die, and that Desmond's visions needed to be true, but I thought the physical execution of this moment was a failure. I keep replaying it in my head: why did Charlie lock himself in there? Surely the Looking Glass couldn't have flooded in two seconds. And moreover, why didn't Charlie try to swim out of the busted porthole? As the room filled, the pressure of the water pouring in would have decreased, Charlie could've taken one final breath and then made a break through the hole to the surface. However, I refuse to allow these shortcomings to diminish the effectiveness and importance of Charlie's death.
2. Locke & Walt -- WTF??? I was excited for this Walt sighting from the second I saw that Malcolm David Kelley guest star credit in the opening scene. I was a tad disappointed to find that by growing a few inches and having his voice drop a few octaves, Walt wasn't nearly as creepy or engrossing as he has been in the past (best Walt moment-- when Shannon sees him dripping wet and whispering in the middle of the jungle. Speaking of which, what happened to all those barefoot people chillin in the jungle? They got bored after season one and peaced out?) Walt and Locke must have some kind of strange connection, both to each other and the island, and I will be very interested to see how this plays out in the future.
3. Jack -- Welcome back, Matthew Fox. This episode was by far the best performance Matthew Fox has ever had, and the first one in which he's been the central character in a long time. To borrow the cliche, Fox's performance is a veritable roller coaster of troubled emotions, the most powerful of which are on display as Jack makes the decision to let Ben kill Sayid, Bernard and Jin in order to secure the rescue of everyone else. The conflicted pain on Jack's face is gut-wrenching, as is pretty much every moment he's in this episode. The scenes with Jack off the island are just heartbreaking, for once he's home, it seems as if Jack is more "lost" than he ever was on the island. Take away everything else in this episode and it would still be my favorite because Matthew Fox was just so damn good.
4. Ridiculous Action-- Hurley runs a dude over with a VW bus, seven Others get blown up by dynamite, Desmond shoots Mikael in the sternum with a spear gun, Locke nails Naomi in the back with a throwing knife, Sawyer shoots some bro point blank in the chest, and Sayid snaps a guy's neck with his legs. And these weren't even the most exciting parts of the episode! Holy crap was this episode ridiculous or what?! You paying attention yet, Kring?
5. Some other random stuff-- Alex and Danielle reunite by typing Ben? Awesome. Jack tells Kate he loves her? Great. Sayid, Jin and Bernard don't die? Wonderful. Sayid has a sniper rifle with a scope? Where the hell did that come from? Ben gets the snot beat out of him? About time. Penelope makes contact with the island? Sweet. Locke has strange healing powers? Neato. I love this freaking show.
And now, the moment you've all been waiting for. Let's talk about that rattlesnake in the mailbox. When I describe Lost to non-watchers, I often touch on the fact that one of the show's defining characteristics is that each season has an entirely different focus that is determined by the previous season's finale. Season One was about discovering the castaways and The Island, Season Two was about The Hatch, and Season Three was about The Others. And now we've got an entirely new and fascinating focus for Season Four-- The Future.
Though I guessed the twist about ten minutes into the program (once I saw Jack with a beard looking depressed, I knew it didn't fit in anywhere with his past timeline), it doesn't change the fact that it revolutionizes an already revolutionary show. As TV scholar Jason Mittel discusses on his blog, the finale's cliffhanger is less about "what happens next" (the narrative), and more about "how will they tell us what happens next" (the narrative discourse, the way the story is told). Just when it had begun to feel like we've seen just about as many flashbacks as we can handle (we know EVERYBODY'S deep dark secrets and past by now), Cuse and Lindelof have done another 180, and now it looks like we'll be getting flash-forwards from this point on. This is genius. This is television at its best. This is a wonderful example of the operational aesthetic, a concept Mittel discusses at length. According to this notion, the pleasure we derive from watching serialized television shows (basically, shows that have continuing story arcs across a season/series), comes not only from engaging with the story itself, but also through our engagement with the machinery of the storytelling. Think about how much the narrative discourse of shows like 24, Battlestar Galactica and of course, Lost, contribute to our enjoyment of these shows. The way these stories are told is as much a part of the show as the stories themselves. Lost has always been the first to break storytelling and television boundaries, and it should come as no surprise that they've done it again.
The finale leaves us at a point where we know the past, we know the present, and we know the future. The only time left unexplored is the time between the present and the future, which, according to the news clipping in Jack's hand, is about two years later (the clipping is from April 5, 2007). I think the questions left unanswered by this finale are far more interesting than any we've been left with before. There are the more incidental ones (Whose funeral was Jack at? Who is Kate's husband?), but also a handful of mind-blowing, crucial ones: Why does Jack want to go back to the island? Why was it bad for them to be rescued? Where are the other survivors? What happens between the present and the future that brings us to this point?
This is the sort of television to which all other serialized television should aspire. It's highly engrossing on every level: we're invested in the characters, in the narrative, and in the narrative discourse. The show creates new rules, twists them, bends them, and when the time is right, breaks them in favor of new ones. Even when it comes at the price of a few dud episodes per year (which the new 16-episode length and May 2010 end date will hopefully prevent), the show continues to raise the bar higher and higher and is not afraid to take risks on any level. I promise you, this show will go down in history as one of the best ever. You've got 9 months until Season Four. If you don't already watch, you've got plenty of time to catch up, so that as this show continues forward, you can say "I was there when", and be a part of one of television's most important and groundbreaking shows ever.
Episode: A+
Season: B+
Favorite Scene: The standoff between Ben and Jack, when Jack has to bear his choice to let three of his friends be murdered so that the rest of them can be saved. Television acting at its very highest. He better get an Emmy nod for this one.
Favorite Line (tie): "We have to go back, Kate. We have to go back!" --Jack
"That's for taking the kid off the raft." --Sawyer, after shooting Tommy (the Other)
Showing posts with label Lost. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lost. Show all posts
5.17.2007
Lost - Season 3, Episode 21 - "Greatest Hits"
If I were compiling a list of Lost's Greatest Hits, I can assure this episode would NOT be on it. It's a shame too because the last half-dozen or so episodes have been consistently fantastic, and this episode certainly had the potential to continue the streak.
I'll keep this post brief, because honestly, there just isn't that much to say about this fairly run-of-the-mill installment.
THE GOOD:
1. The showdown for the finale has been set up nicely. We've got Sayid, Jin and Bernard (yes, you read that correctly) staying in the camp to blow up the ten Others coming to kill them, while Jack is leading the rest of the group to the radio tower to wait for Charlie and Desmond to unjam the radio signal so that they can use Naomi's satellite phone to contact her boat, which is 80 miles off-shore. Charlie is currently a captive of two women in the strange, underwater hatch known as The Looking Glass, so something must going down there in next week's finale.
2. Ben has flown off the handle. He's making irrational decisions based on secret, selfish motives, and as we all know, when anyone in television has a good plan and throws it out the window in favor of a rash, uncalculated commitment of passion, it's bound to fail. I'm very excited to see how this shakes out in Wednesday's two hour finale (gotta love the two hour finale format. It's almost as good as the two hour pilot format.)
3. Oh wait. That's it. No more good things.
THE BAD:
1. A Charlie-centric episode? What is this, season one? Maybe we cared about Charlie's past when he was a main character, but now, when he's just a whiny Brit who can't stop fawning over Claire (who CLEARLY doesn't love him, but more on that later...), no one gives a twig. It was especially bad because the flashbacks told us absolutely nothing. Nothing relevant at all. Who cares what Charlie's favorite moments in his life were? I wouldn't even care to watch MY favorite moments on tv for an hour, let alone those of an obnoxious fictional character.
2. When will Charlie get it through his frosted tips that Claire doesn't love him and is only using him for his superior babysitting/butlering skills? I've never seen a less appreciative or interested woman than Claire. Charlie has basically adopted her son Aaron as his own, has saved her life several times (risking his own in each occasion), and is at her beck and call at all times. And he gets one reluctant kiss as a reward? I don't know whom to scoff at more: Claire, the Aussie Ice Queen, or Charlie, the Ingratiating Ingrate.
3. This episode was all set up, no action. I can be a little forgiving about this because I understand that awesome finales may require a lot of build-up to really take off, but I can't be too forgiving because as Heroes showed this past week (THREE characters killed off! Are you kidding me?! How could this show possibly be any better?), you don't necessarily need to sacrifice action for the sake of exposition.
As lame as this episode was, I must say I am VERY excited for the finale. If the past two season finales are any indication, this season's will not only be jaw-dropping and action-packed, but the final minutes will most definitely flip the series onto its head and take it in an entirely new direction for season 4 (which, by the way, is only 16 episodes long and will not debut until February 2008. Now would be an excellent time to catch up on the past 3 seasons if you have not yet done so.)
THE UGLY:
Desmond and Charlie were alone on a boat, about to do a dangerous mission from which and what did Desmond say? NOTHING. It was a perfect opportunity for the delivery of one of my all time favorite lines in the history of tv, coined by Desmond in season one: "See you in another life, brotha." But did he say it?! NO.
Something I noticed-- usually, episodes written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, two of the show's executive producers and creators, are of a much higher caliber than those written by staff writers. The premiers, finales and other marquee episodes are all by Cuse and/or Lindelof. It's a pretty good indicator of what the quality of the episode will be. This week's was written by Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis. They sound like they should be my lawyer and my dentist, not writing my television shows.
In hindsight, I like this episode even less than when I watched it. In fact, I hate this episode. It gets a C
Favorite Scene: When Ben returns from his trip to Jacob and moves up the attack to NOW.
Favorite Line: "Tomorrow? No. No, they're coming tonight. They're coming right now!" -Karl
I'll keep this post brief, because honestly, there just isn't that much to say about this fairly run-of-the-mill installment.
THE GOOD:
1. The showdown for the finale has been set up nicely. We've got Sayid, Jin and Bernard (yes, you read that correctly) staying in the camp to blow up the ten Others coming to kill them, while Jack is leading the rest of the group to the radio tower to wait for Charlie and Desmond to unjam the radio signal so that they can use Naomi's satellite phone to contact her boat, which is 80 miles off-shore. Charlie is currently a captive of two women in the strange, underwater hatch known as The Looking Glass, so something must going down there in next week's finale.
2. Ben has flown off the handle. He's making irrational decisions based on secret, selfish motives, and as we all know, when anyone in television has a good plan and throws it out the window in favor of a rash, uncalculated commitment of passion, it's bound to fail. I'm very excited to see how this shakes out in Wednesday's two hour finale (gotta love the two hour finale format. It's almost as good as the two hour pilot format.)
3. Oh wait. That's it. No more good things.
THE BAD:
1. A Charlie-centric episode? What is this, season one? Maybe we cared about Charlie's past when he was a main character, but now, when he's just a whiny Brit who can't stop fawning over Claire (who CLEARLY doesn't love him, but more on that later...), no one gives a twig. It was especially bad because the flashbacks told us absolutely nothing. Nothing relevant at all. Who cares what Charlie's favorite moments in his life were? I wouldn't even care to watch MY favorite moments on tv for an hour, let alone those of an obnoxious fictional character.
2. When will Charlie get it through his frosted tips that Claire doesn't love him and is only using him for his superior babysitting/butlering skills? I've never seen a less appreciative or interested woman than Claire. Charlie has basically adopted her son Aaron as his own, has saved her life several times (risking his own in each occasion), and is at her beck and call at all times. And he gets one reluctant kiss as a reward? I don't know whom to scoff at more: Claire, the Aussie Ice Queen, or Charlie, the Ingratiating Ingrate.
3. This episode was all set up, no action. I can be a little forgiving about this because I understand that awesome finales may require a lot of build-up to really take off, but I can't be too forgiving because as Heroes showed this past week (THREE characters killed off! Are you kidding me?! How could this show possibly be any better?), you don't necessarily need to sacrifice action for the sake of exposition.
As lame as this episode was, I must say I am VERY excited for the finale. If the past two season finales are any indication, this season's will not only be jaw-dropping and action-packed, but the final minutes will most definitely flip the series onto its head and take it in an entirely new direction for season 4 (which, by the way, is only 16 episodes long and will not debut until February 2008. Now would be an excellent time to catch up on the past 3 seasons if you have not yet done so.)
THE UGLY:
Desmond and Charlie were alone on a boat, about to do a dangerous mission from which and what did Desmond say? NOTHING. It was a perfect opportunity for the delivery of one of my all time favorite lines in the history of tv, coined by Desmond in season one: "See you in another life, brotha." But did he say it?! NO.
Something I noticed-- usually, episodes written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, two of the show's executive producers and creators, are of a much higher caliber than those written by staff writers. The premiers, finales and other marquee episodes are all by Cuse and/or Lindelof. It's a pretty good indicator of what the quality of the episode will be. This week's was written by Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis. They sound like they should be my lawyer and my dentist, not writing my television shows.
In hindsight, I like this episode even less than when I watched it. In fact, I hate this episode. It gets a C
Favorite Scene: When Ben returns from his trip to Jacob and moves up the attack to NOW.
Favorite Line: "Tomorrow? No. No, they're coming tonight. They're coming right now!" -Karl
2.17.2007
Lost - Season 3, Episode 8 - "Flashes Before Your Eyes"
Bravo, Lost. After weeks of disappointment, last Wednesday's episode marked a stellar return to form for tv's most mysterious drama. In fact, I thought this episode was so fantastic that for my money, I would call it the third best episode of Lost EVER (behind, of course, the pilot and the season two premiere-- that opening bit with Desmond in the hatch and the Mama Cass song was the best 5 minutes of Lost. Period.) Two Desmond episodes in the top three? Maybe they oughta stick with the Scotsman more.
This episode had everything the past half-dozen episodes lacked: characters besides Jack, Sawyer and Kate (thank God!), relevant backstory, and clever, meaningful, unanticipated plot twists. In fact, as a whole, the episode was 99% flawless (I'll get to the 1% in a bit).
First, we've got the provocative opening, with Desmond suddenly bolting into the ocean to save a drowning Claire. Scary stuff, right? We get some long-needed Hurley chillness, some patented Charlie jealousy/overbearingness, and most importantly, a whole lot of Desmond.
Most important to the success of this episode, in my opinion, is the structure. For only the second time (the first being the Season 2 episode, "The Other 48 Days", where we see what happened to all the Tailies), we get an episode that aside from the beginning and end, is one uninterrupted flashback. I love that we didn't have to get the annoying switch back and forth with that now-irritating swooshing noise that accompanies every single transition.
Also, the content of the flashback was awesome. Not only is Desmond's flashback interesting in terms of finally knowing what went down with Penelope, but for once, the flashback is critical to life on the Island, for it explains why Desmond is so wacky and why he can see the future. This is so much more fulfilling than a flashback like, for example, Jack's, which merely serve to fill in some blanks about Jack's personality rather than to inform his current life on the Island.
Moreover, we get some cool playing with death, a la 2000's Final Destination-- you can keep trying to stop fate, but no matter what you try to do, the outcome is inevitable.
My one gripe about the episode was the atrocious guest appearance by The O.C.'s Caleb Moneybags, a.k.a. Alan Dale. His British accent was perhaps the worst attempt at an accent since my little brother and his drama school did Oliver when he was 7. Atrocious. How could they let this get on tv? If I were British, I would never watch this show again.
I like how the writers, as they did with Locke, use Desmond's last name (Hume), to reflect the similarities between his own philosophies and those of Scottish philosopher David Hume, who had a lot to say about the nature of causation (wikipedia that shit).
The best part of the whole episode, by FAR, was the twist at the end-- that it was Charlie, not Claire, that Desmond had been trying to save. It was a brilliant stroke to have Desmond save Claire from drowning as a way of actually saving Charlie. This is what a plot twist should be-- totally unanticipated, but organically developed in a rational way from the story. Awesome. My stomach totally dropped when Desmond revealed the truth-- it's this visceral reaction that distinguished truly engrossing tv from plain entertainment.
All in all, this was really a fantastic episode and a high mark of what we should be able to expect from Lost when it's at its best. It's going to take more episodes like this to bring Lost to its former glory. For being one of the best episodes ever, I happily give this one an A
Favorite Scene: The final confrontation between Charlie and Desmond on the beach, when Desmond reveals the truth about his precognitive abilities.
Favorite line: "You may not like your path, Desmond, but pushing that button is the only truly great thing that you will ever do." -Ms. Hawking (a.k.a. Judi Dench look-alike)
This episode had everything the past half-dozen episodes lacked: characters besides Jack, Sawyer and Kate (thank God!), relevant backstory, and clever, meaningful, unanticipated plot twists. In fact, as a whole, the episode was 99% flawless (I'll get to the 1% in a bit).
First, we've got the provocative opening, with Desmond suddenly bolting into the ocean to save a drowning Claire. Scary stuff, right? We get some long-needed Hurley chillness, some patented Charlie jealousy/overbearingness, and most importantly, a whole lot of Desmond.
Most important to the success of this episode, in my opinion, is the structure. For only the second time (the first being the Season 2 episode, "The Other 48 Days", where we see what happened to all the Tailies), we get an episode that aside from the beginning and end, is one uninterrupted flashback. I love that we didn't have to get the annoying switch back and forth with that now-irritating swooshing noise that accompanies every single transition.
Also, the content of the flashback was awesome. Not only is Desmond's flashback interesting in terms of finally knowing what went down with Penelope, but for once, the flashback is critical to life on the Island, for it explains why Desmond is so wacky and why he can see the future. This is so much more fulfilling than a flashback like, for example, Jack's, which merely serve to fill in some blanks about Jack's personality rather than to inform his current life on the Island.
Moreover, we get some cool playing with death, a la 2000's Final Destination-- you can keep trying to stop fate, but no matter what you try to do, the outcome is inevitable.
My one gripe about the episode was the atrocious guest appearance by The O.C.'s Caleb Moneybags, a.k.a. Alan Dale. His British accent was perhaps the worst attempt at an accent since my little brother and his drama school did Oliver when he was 7. Atrocious. How could they let this get on tv? If I were British, I would never watch this show again.
I like how the writers, as they did with Locke, use Desmond's last name (Hume), to reflect the similarities between his own philosophies and those of Scottish philosopher David Hume, who had a lot to say about the nature of causation (wikipedia that shit).
The best part of the whole episode, by FAR, was the twist at the end-- that it was Charlie, not Claire, that Desmond had been trying to save. It was a brilliant stroke to have Desmond save Claire from drowning as a way of actually saving Charlie. This is what a plot twist should be-- totally unanticipated, but organically developed in a rational way from the story. Awesome. My stomach totally dropped when Desmond revealed the truth-- it's this visceral reaction that distinguished truly engrossing tv from plain entertainment.
All in all, this was really a fantastic episode and a high mark of what we should be able to expect from Lost when it's at its best. It's going to take more episodes like this to bring Lost to its former glory. For being one of the best episodes ever, I happily give this one an A
Favorite Scene: The final confrontation between Charlie and Desmond on the beach, when Desmond reveals the truth about his precognitive abilities.
Favorite line: "You may not like your path, Desmond, but pushing that button is the only truly great thing that you will ever do." -Ms. Hawking (a.k.a. Judi Dench look-alike)
2.08.2007
Heroes - Season 1, Episode 14 - "Distractions" & Lost - Season 3, Episode 7 - "Not In Portland"
As I predicted in my last Heroes post, this week's episode was off the chain. Action, intrigue, danger, several awesome uses of power, secrets revealed, emotional moments-- it was pretty much everything you could ask for from a television show.
Lost on the other hand, has continued its downward spiral into "I just don't care anymore" land. While last night's episode was certainly a good one, it feels like it just might be too little too late. I'm going to talk about some of the pros & cons of each episode and how these two episodes perfectly exemplify the current state of each show as a whole.
As usual, with Heroes we got some really exciting, important storylines, as well as some not-so-important supporting plot lines. Hiro's Dad? Boring. Everyone else? Exciting. I particularly enjoyed the totally freaky scene between Sylar and Mrs. Bennet, the super emotional reunion between Claire and Meredith, all the scenes between Peter and Claude (who form a very captivating and well-balanced duo), and the reluctant release of Nikki/Jessica back into society. Basically, every storyline but Hiro's was full, interesting, and most importantly (are you taking notes, Lost?), each storyline DEVELOPED-- nothing is the same as it was when the episode began, for no moment is wasted in propelling the story further, taking us closer to its end (thought not all that close I hope).
With Lost, we had the usual binary of plots- on the island and personal flashback. On the island? Not bad. Sawyer and Kate are on their way back to their island, Ben is alive, and Jack is, (what else?), pissed off. It's not a giant leap, but the plot is moving steadily forward, a good sign. Flashback? Eh. I might've enjoyed it more if I didn't find Juliette so damn irritating. If I ever meet her in real life, I will punch her in the face repeatedly until her stupid dumb face has some sort of expression on it for once.
We learned a LOT this week in Heroes. We learned that Claire's father is Nathan (who else could it possibly have been, but an awesome move nonetheless); we learned what Peter needs to do to control his powers; we learned that Simone's father's apartment has some significant role to play somewhere down the line; we learned that Isaac not only paints the distant future, but either the present or the very near future, as evidence by his painting of Peter against the taxi.
In Lost, we learned that Juliette was recruited by The Others for her scientific abilities and that she's been on the island for 3 years. We learned that something funky is going on with her, maybe in Walt-type vein, in that when she wished for her husband to be hit by a bus, he was (I will always love the shock of watching someone unexpectedly get hit by a bus. Call me sadistic, but it packs a mighty powerful punch). Oh yeah, and we learned that Juliette's sister is Calamity Jane from Deadwood and that just when you thought she couldn't get any uglier, she has.
What's the difference between these two types of knowledge? In Heroes, we learn crucial information about what's going on in the present and information that will affect the future. With Lost, we're just given more background information that may or may not be important ever again. This is the fundamental difference between these two shows, and is what makes Heroes such a better choice. With Heroes, I feel as if I'm in good hands. I trust that every week, we'll grow a few steps closer to the endgame in a logical, linear fashion. I know that each moment, each word, each clue, is there for a reason and that those reasons will be explained within a reasonably short amount of time.
With Lost, I have absolutely no trust whatsoever. I'm getting real sick and tired of being jerked around ABC. First we had to wait 3 months to get the SEVENTH episode of this season (what a joke), but they've been stringing us along for months now. It's no surprise that the creators have not had a clear vision of where the show is headed since the beginning, as Heroes certainly does. In Lost, plot elements are introduced and then they're never heard from again (the black smoke monster? Walt's comic book with the polar bear? Libby in the insane asylum? A million other things?) I almost feel stupid for sticking with the show, as if I'm playing right into the hands of some money-grubbing executive who's shaking me down for every last cent, with no intent of ever delivering on the promise of the show's premiere over 2 years ago.
That being said, last night's episode of Lost was certainly a step in the right direction. The plot is moving forward. Let's hope it stays that way.
And what would a Heroes post be without predictions and questions?
Prediction: Nikki/Jessica is going to kill Matt Parkman next week. He's not involved with any of the other heroes, his storyline has nowhere else to go, and no main character has been killed thus far. Sorry Matt, but I think your time has come.
Prediction: HRG, The Haitian and Claude were all part of a past group of Heroes who were called upon to save the world from disaster years ago. HRG was the leader and during their saga, The Haitian somehow became indebted to him and Claude was "killed," though we now know he is alive and well. Just a prediction, but I'm feelin good about this one...
Questions: 1) Why is Sylar afraid of HRG and The Haitian? Why can't he just kill them?
2) If every painting that Isaac has painted has totally come true, why should we expect the painting of a destroyed New York to be any different? How can the Heroes change the fate of that painting but none of the others?
For being a quintessentially very good (but not great) episode of Heroes, I happily bestow upon this episode the grade of A-
For being pretty average, but at least taking a step in the right direction, I give Lost a B
Heroes:
Favorite Scene: When Nikki/Jessica tasers the shit out of that psychiatrists back. Brutal.
Favorite Line: "You get to know people if you see 'em when they think they're alone. You see 'em for what they truly are: selfish, deceitful, and gassy." - Claude
Lost:
Favorite Scene: When Sawyer bashes that dude's head into the machine three times until he gets electrocuted. Brutal.
Favorite Line: "Don't get mad at me just because you were dumb enough to fall for the old Wookie prisoner gag." - Sawyer
Lost on the other hand, has continued its downward spiral into "I just don't care anymore" land. While last night's episode was certainly a good one, it feels like it just might be too little too late. I'm going to talk about some of the pros & cons of each episode and how these two episodes perfectly exemplify the current state of each show as a whole.
As usual, with Heroes we got some really exciting, important storylines, as well as some not-so-important supporting plot lines. Hiro's Dad? Boring. Everyone else? Exciting. I particularly enjoyed the totally freaky scene between Sylar and Mrs. Bennet, the super emotional reunion between Claire and Meredith, all the scenes between Peter and Claude (who form a very captivating and well-balanced duo), and the reluctant release of Nikki/Jessica back into society. Basically, every storyline but Hiro's was full, interesting, and most importantly (are you taking notes, Lost?), each storyline DEVELOPED-- nothing is the same as it was when the episode began, for no moment is wasted in propelling the story further, taking us closer to its end (thought not all that close I hope).
With Lost, we had the usual binary of plots- on the island and personal flashback. On the island? Not bad. Sawyer and Kate are on their way back to their island, Ben is alive, and Jack is, (what else?), pissed off. It's not a giant leap, but the plot is moving steadily forward, a good sign. Flashback? Eh. I might've enjoyed it more if I didn't find Juliette so damn irritating. If I ever meet her in real life, I will punch her in the face repeatedly until her stupid dumb face has some sort of expression on it for once.
We learned a LOT this week in Heroes. We learned that Claire's father is Nathan (who else could it possibly have been, but an awesome move nonetheless); we learned what Peter needs to do to control his powers; we learned that Simone's father's apartment has some significant role to play somewhere down the line; we learned that Isaac not only paints the distant future, but either the present or the very near future, as evidence by his painting of Peter against the taxi.
In Lost, we learned that Juliette was recruited by The Others for her scientific abilities and that she's been on the island for 3 years. We learned that something funky is going on with her, maybe in Walt-type vein, in that when she wished for her husband to be hit by a bus, he was (I will always love the shock of watching someone unexpectedly get hit by a bus. Call me sadistic, but it packs a mighty powerful punch). Oh yeah, and we learned that Juliette's sister is Calamity Jane from Deadwood and that just when you thought she couldn't get any uglier, she has.
What's the difference between these two types of knowledge? In Heroes, we learn crucial information about what's going on in the present and information that will affect the future. With Lost, we're just given more background information that may or may not be important ever again. This is the fundamental difference between these two shows, and is what makes Heroes such a better choice. With Heroes, I feel as if I'm in good hands. I trust that every week, we'll grow a few steps closer to the endgame in a logical, linear fashion. I know that each moment, each word, each clue, is there for a reason and that those reasons will be explained within a reasonably short amount of time.
With Lost, I have absolutely no trust whatsoever. I'm getting real sick and tired of being jerked around ABC. First we had to wait 3 months to get the SEVENTH episode of this season (what a joke), but they've been stringing us along for months now. It's no surprise that the creators have not had a clear vision of where the show is headed since the beginning, as Heroes certainly does. In Lost, plot elements are introduced and then they're never heard from again (the black smoke monster? Walt's comic book with the polar bear? Libby in the insane asylum? A million other things?) I almost feel stupid for sticking with the show, as if I'm playing right into the hands of some money-grubbing executive who's shaking me down for every last cent, with no intent of ever delivering on the promise of the show's premiere over 2 years ago.
That being said, last night's episode of Lost was certainly a step in the right direction. The plot is moving forward. Let's hope it stays that way.
And what would a Heroes post be without predictions and questions?
Prediction: Nikki/Jessica is going to kill Matt Parkman next week. He's not involved with any of the other heroes, his storyline has nowhere else to go, and no main character has been killed thus far. Sorry Matt, but I think your time has come.
Prediction: HRG, The Haitian and Claude were all part of a past group of Heroes who were called upon to save the world from disaster years ago. HRG was the leader and during their saga, The Haitian somehow became indebted to him and Claude was "killed," though we now know he is alive and well. Just a prediction, but I'm feelin good about this one...
Questions: 1) Why is Sylar afraid of HRG and The Haitian? Why can't he just kill them?
2) If every painting that Isaac has painted has totally come true, why should we expect the painting of a destroyed New York to be any different? How can the Heroes change the fate of that painting but none of the others?
For being a quintessentially very good (but not great) episode of Heroes, I happily bestow upon this episode the grade of A-
For being pretty average, but at least taking a step in the right direction, I give Lost a B
Heroes:
Favorite Scene: When Nikki/Jessica tasers the shit out of that psychiatrists back. Brutal.
Favorite Line: "You get to know people if you see 'em when they think they're alone. You see 'em for what they truly are: selfish, deceitful, and gassy." - Claude
Lost:
Favorite Scene: When Sawyer bashes that dude's head into the machine three times until he gets electrocuted. Brutal.
Favorite Line: "Don't get mad at me just because you were dumb enough to fall for the old Wookie prisoner gag." - Sawyer
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