A thinning of the herd on LOST

So... We got some answers on LOST. Or rather, FLocke eliminated some possibilities with his trickery. Anyone still think that he is somehow the good guy and Jacob isn't?

First things first - It was oddly satisfying to see Kate get shot. As in, I laughed like a madman when it happened. Unfortunately though, it seems pretty clear that she will survive, as a bullet, dynamite and sinking submarine aren't enough to kill her.

Tackling the deaths in order of occurrence, it was neat to see Jack's faith in Sayid being redeemable actually pan out. When it became clear that FLocke double-crossed them with the C4 and the submarine, Sayid was the one who tried to swallow it, Mask style. This did create another unintentionally funny moment though, when Hurley said he was going after Sayid, even though he had been blown to bits with the explosives.

Second, the scene with Sun and Jin was pretty gut-wrenching. It wasn't at the level of Desmond and Charlie, because I haven't formed as much of an attachment to them, but the scene was still really well done. However, it does make me think that somehow, Bizarro LAX will be the "real" world when all is said and done. Things are ending up a bit more "happily ever after" in that world as opposed to the Island, where people are now dying left and right. I don't see the creators of LOST being comfortable with just killing off half the cast for reals.

Speaking of Bizarro LAX, there was some interesting stuff going on in it. Locke is now responsible for his and his father's paralysis; they were linked before, but it wasn't Locke's fault before. It seems like Claire and Jack are going to do some bonding, which is sweet. And there are still some interesting tangles out there to be undone, such as what happens to Kate, Sawyer, Miles and Hurley.

However, the super-duper most tantalizing thing out there remains Desmond in the well. Sayid confirmed that he left him alive instead of killing him, and with Jack, Sawyer, Kate and Hurley managing to escape the submarine, and possibly Frank as well, Desmond would seem to be their #1 target. He wasn't on the candidate list, so it's not exactly clear what role he will play. But Desmond seems to be affected by the theory Jack stated - FLocke can't directly kill them.

Grade: A

The photo of Sun and Jin is from this awesome, awesome LOST blog.

TV Review: Mostly "meh" episode of LOST

LOST was a bit disappointing last night, as half of the episode was a solid snorefest. In a flip-flop from most of the early season episodes, the parts featuring the Island itself are now pretty stale, while the real drama going on involves Bizarro LAX / the tangent universe / the side-flashes, whatever you'd like to call them.

Going from the good to the bad, pretty much everything that happened in Bizarro LAX this week, I found pretty interesting. As I thought, Desmond smashing Locke with his car resulted in Jack being the specialist that would see him, although we didn't find this out until the end of the episode. For the rest of the episode, Desmond worked on getting Claire to see his lawyer - Ilana, it turns out - who magically was the same one handling the Shepard will reading, so there was a brief reunion until Jack got called into surgery.

Outside of this, in Bizarro LAX we also had the plot thicken a bit with Sawyer, Kate, Miles, Sayid and Sun. Sawyer and Kate's flirting is still just as annoying, but it was cool to see him catch Sayid the Killing Machine when everyone else had failed throughout various seasons of LOST. Miles continued to be solid in a small role, and Sun and Jin were cute, and thankfully, their baby is still OK. All in all, I was happy with the brisk pacing in Bizarro LAX, even if the results of Hurley knowing about his past on the Island still haven't been revealed.

In contrast, the Island portions had lots of crap going on that I found uninteresting. FLocke was doing his usual lying and tricking and misleading, such as denying that he had Desmond, then sending Sayid to kill Desmond. Of course, I don't think this actually happened, which is sweet, because Desmond is the best thing going on the show right now. Widmore got seriously pissed off that FLocke wouldn't turn him back over though, and bombed the shit out of FLocke's camp, which I kind of liked.

A couple of FLocke's group - Jack, Sawyer, Sun, Claire, Hurley and Kate - managed to make a break for it on the boat. However, Jack willingly left the boat, since he had a nagging feeling that they weren't meant to escape. My friend Nikki and I agree - I don't think LOST ends without them killing FLocke, as opposed to just running away from him. Once the rest of the group got to Widmore's camp, they were held hostage by his second-in-command, presumably because Desmond either 1) wasn't with them or 2) turned over by FLocke.

Anywho. While this wasn't the most scintillating episode of LOST, I am very interested in seeing how it all ends up, especially in Bizarro LAX.

Island portion grade: D
Bizarro LAX grade: A
Combined grade: B-

Belated but never imitated LOST commentary

Oh Desmond, you beautiful bastard!

Ahhh - I know everyone has been waiting with bated breathe for this oft-delayed LOST commentary. Well, relax. After many promises by me, it is finally, finally here. You can cease writing your local representatives in Congress. As an aside, I think I'm finally, fingers crossed, done with a lot of the heavy flood coverage I've been slammed with the past two weeks, so I believe I will be back to a more normal blogging schedule.

Anyway, enough with that; let's talk LOST. I thought the most recent episode, "Happily Ever After", was the second-strongest of this season, behind only "Lighthouse." However, that was a Jack-centered episode, so I imagine I might be in the minority who thought it was the best of the season.

"Happily Ever After" followed Desmond, who is definitely the best "cool" character on the show, since he has the least amount of drama. While Sawyer gets some snappy lines, he is also constantly crying about his daddy, his mommy, Juliet, Kate and how he stubbed his toe in fifth grade. And while I love Miles, his screen time has shrunk further this season, and I doubt he is going to get his own episode, unfortunately.

Therefore, Desmond is definitely my pick for the coolest character of the cast. He has the most straightforward and uncomplicated love story with Penny, which is a nice contrast from the doom and gloom misery of the rest of the cast. Even though they have apparently been separated at this point, I can't help but think that things will be fine for them at the very end. (Not so coincidentally, the final episode of LOST is simply called "The End", and I'm a fan of the simplicity.)

Focusing on the episode itself, Desmond was doing cool Desmond stuff, like surviving elctromagnetic pulses and being able to switch between Bizarro LAX and the Island at willing seemingly because of the presence of his constant, Penny. At least, that's the impression I got from the episode. After Widmore's wacky experiment that exposes Desmond to a bunch of electromagnet energy, the story rapidly switches to Bizarro LAX, and later in the episode, when Desmond meets Penny, he finally switches back.

In earlier episodes, it is suggested that Desmond is unique in his ability to switch back and forth - this is especially evident in the time travel episodes, since almost everyone but him dies from the switching. However, it does seem like the only other person completely knowledgeable about the split universes is Eloise Widmore, a.k.a. the mother of Daniel Farraday / Daniel Widmore. Like Miles, I think it would be quite interesting if she got her own episode this season, but with only six episodes and seven hours of programming left, that seems unlikely.

"Happily Ever After" did end a bit ambiguously, with Sayid killing Widmore's man accompanying Desmond through the jungle. Desmond easily agreed to Sayid's request to go with him, which makes me think he has a trick or two up his sleeve. His name wasn't seen on camera in the Cave of Candidates, and it doesn't correspond to a number, so he seemingly isn't one. Yet, this doesn't mean he isn't, and it doesn't preclude him from having special abilities either. After all, Miles can talk to dead people, and he's not on the candidate list either.

I will say that I don't think it is a coincidence that my favorite episodes of this season have been written by the show's executive producers, Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse. And thankfully, I have noted that they wrote the final episode, "The End." While some people have been down on the show, I still have hope that a good portion of things will make sense at the end, and I like what they've done so far this season.

Grade: A+

The picture of Desmond is from the episode summary of the excellent LOST Wiki site, which is accessible here.

TV Review: LOST + shirtless Sawyer = happy women

This week on LOST... We get to see a lot of Sawyer without a shirt in the first five minutes, which surely made all of my female friends happy. In Bizarro LAX, he is now working as a cop with Miles, and they are kind of buddy-buddy. It is a weird but welcome development for me, since I've always liked Miles.

To add to the oddness, Miles sets up Sawyer on a date with Charlotte in Bizarro LAX, who we last saw on the Island making sweet with Daniel Farraday. Their date goes really well seemingly, as Sawyer (James, in this timeline) admits that there was a fine line between becoming a cop and becoming a criminal in his past life. However, he freaks out and throws Charlotte out of his place when she stumbles upon the folder detailing his childhood, which has apparently not changed. Later, Sawyer covers up his trip to Australia, causing Miles to ask for a different partner.

Also in Bizarro LAX, Charlie's brother is haunting around the police station, asking where he is. Sawyer tries to make amends with Charlotte, but she rejects him despite this. However, this spurs him into talking to Miles about his past. In this timeline, Sawyer doesn't find Anthony Cooper in Australia. Then, in a jarring moment, a car smashes into Sawyer and Miles as they're sitting and chatting – It is, of course, Kate on the run. Sawyer catches her.

Back on the Island, Fake Locke sends Sawyer on a recognizance mission to the Hydra station. There, he finds the sole survivor of the second plane crash, a woman in glasses named Zoe. Of course, she's not actually alone, and eventually springs a trap on Sawyer when she calls his bluff. This new group is apparently financed by Widmore, since she brings Sawyer to his submarine. Sawyer proposes double-crossing Fake Locke with Widmore. They shake on this, but with Sawyer and Widmore, who the heck knows if either is being honest? For what its worth, Sawyer seems to double-cross Widmore, telling Fake Locke about his plan with Widmore. He then tells Kate that he and her should escape on the submarine as Widmore and Fake Locke fight it out.

In other Island business, Claire attacks Kate for the whole Aaron thing. Sayid just sits and watches it go down, which lends credence to the idea that he and Claire are “evil” and controlled by Fake Locke. He tells Kate that he gave Claire something to hate – The Others – in order to keep her alive. He reveals that like everyone else, he had a Mother, who he had some problems with. He talks to Claire, who laters apologizes to Kate and hugs her.

All in all, this was another strong episode of LOST. “The Lighthouse” still remains my favorite of the season, probably because of its heavy reliance on Jack, but this is among the better episodes so far.

Grade: A-

TV Review: Even more answers as LOST progresses

I'm also thinking deeply about this episode, Jack.

Before I start, the usual LOST caveats apply for this post - Big time final season and Tuesday night spoilers are in the following post. Read at your own risk!

Anyway, I thought the season's fifth episode, "Lighthouse", did a great job at continuing to provide some answers, at least from the perspective of Jacob as opposed to FLocke (Fake Locke / Old Smokey / The Man In Black). Of course, my main Jack figured heavily into the episode, as he was at the crux of the Island and Bizarro LAX stories. This was also a surprisingly strong episode for Hurley, who I don't normally like, and a surprisingly weak episode for Claire and Jin, who I'm normally more into.

Hitting on the big part of the episode first - Apparently in Bizarro LAX, Jack has a kid with a similar relationship between himself and his father. By the end of the episode, they have patched things up. While it seems like some of the people in Bizarro LAX are destined for more misery, such as Charlie the Convicted Drug Addict, Locke and Jack have both carved out seemingly-happy niches for themselves. Neither one has a perfect life - Locke is still crippled, and Jack is still divorced or separated - but they both clearly have relationships with people they love.

Using this as a springboard to talk about the Island, I think this is the biggest difference between Jacob and FLocke's methods. I ultimately think they represent good and evil, and the show is not pulling a swerve on us.

Jacob's method of "pushing" the characters relies on manipulation, and it requires them to make tough decisions and deal with emotional trauma. Are the characters being manipulated? Sure, you could say that. However, there is a sort of paternalism to his actions. They have to have trust that what they're doing is correct. While I'm not into religion, I am into trusting my instincts and gut reaction, which often suggests I have to do things that will be a pain in the ass.

I think this all contrasts vividly from FLocke's game, which relies upon more heavy-handed manipulation and outright deception. FLocke essentially turned Ben Linus, the evilest character on television for close to four years, into a blubbering, whiny idiot that you could actually feel sympathy for. He's also providing tantalizing "answers" for Sawyer and (apparently) Claire that paint Jacob as the enemy.

To me, it reeks of a classic distraction technique - FLocke is so busy pinning the woes of the Island members on Jacob that Sawyer, Ben and others don't have the presence of mind to grill him on his own plans. To again parallel this to real life, I don't like people who insist on blaming others, whether it be a boss or some other force, for something that prevents their own happiness. Jacob and the Bizarro LAX scenes seem to suggest that hard work, trust and introspection can lead to happiness, regardless of the initial genetic hand or stumbles you might have along the way. FLocke is too busy assigning blame and gaining revenge to be concerned with happiness. (And, for this reason, I think Sawyer eventually comes to his senses and screws up the entire plan for FLocke, ultimately fulfilling Jacob's goal.)

DON'T READ THIS: Blogging LOST, Week 3

In keeping with last week, here is another running diary of LOST. Of course, huge spoilers on this week's episode follows, and as always, Amanda and Tom will be providing some commentary as well.

9 p.m. - A short recap this week, and we're apparently going to be following Locke (and hopefully Fake Locke) for a bit. In Bizarro LAX, he's getting out of his van with the fancy ramp, which stalls and makes him fall down on to the lawn, with the sprinklers smacking him in the face. How farcical and morbidly funny! And hey, Peg Bundy is back as his girlfriend! That's nice that he has love again. She finds the card from Dr. Jack Shepard in his clothes, and says maybe it's destiny that they ran into each other. Nifty, huh?

The scene shifts to the Smoke Monster. It hovers outside of a building in the Others' village for a bit, and then finally forms around a machete, which Fake Locke takes. He had Richard tied up in a trap, but finally chops him down. First commercial break.

9:07 p.m. - Short break, as we're back to Locke in his office. And his evil boss Randy is harassing him about his walkabout, and then shitcans him for lying about attending the conference. Aw, poor Locke.

We move to Fake Locke on the Island. He mentions that he knew Locke's appearance would gain him access to Jacob, because Locke is a "candidate." Fake Locke tries to appeal to Richard by saying that he'll tell him everything as opposed to keeping him in the dark, but Richard refuses to join him. Fake Locke is then seemingly going to kill him, but gets distracted by something, and lets him go.

Flash to Ben on the Island. He's talking to Alana or Illana or whatever her name is - Amanda and I don't know. Amanda comes up with the name Wannabe Jackass, which seems appropriate. WJ says that Fake Locke is now "recruiting."

Fake Locke is now going through the cottage with the music from earlier; a vinyl is playing on a record. In another room, James (Sawyer) is drinking himself into a stupor - It seems like Fake Locke has his first recruitment target.

Amanda: Oh God damn it he is sexy. Even as a brooding alcoholic with a broken heart. And absolutely NO good can come from this. Well I mean, really. Locke is clearly this insane Smoke Monster with a plan. And Sawyer is VERY vulnerable and angry right now. He's got a hairline temper and is liable to fly off the handle at any second. If Locke starts devising crazy plans, Sawyer could go along with it. And shit will go down.

9:18 p.m. - Back from the second commercial break, we're sticking with Sawyer and Fake Locke. (Sawyer is in his underwear and a wife-beater, hence Amanda's great like.) Amanda says, "How'd Sawyer get so dirty? ;) I think that LOST and Intervention could have an amazing crossover episode."

Wow, Sawyer catches on right away that Fake Locke is fake. Fake Locke says he can answer the most important question in the world - Why Sawyer is on the Island. And even drunk, Sawyer gets in some good zingers, but agrees to go .

Amanda: NO. 1) Don't go with him. 2) NO PANTS!

We flash to Bizarro LAX. Hugo Reyes, the OWNER of Locke's company, has a confrontation with him outside of his (former) job. He offers him a new job with his temp agency.

Now we're on the beach. Wannabe Jackass covers up the corpse of Locke, and says they should go to the Temple, luring Sun with her by saying that Jin might be there. They postpone their plans though to bury Locke.

Flash over to Fake Locke and Sawyer, and Fake Locke sees a kid in the jungle. He chases after him, eventually falling at his feet. In an eerie similarity to Real Locke, the kid tells him that he knows the rules and can't kill, which causes Fake Locke to scream, "Don't tell me what I can't do!" Third commercial break.

Tom: Tween Jacob. Can't wait for LOST babies - It'll be better than Muppet Babies.

9:28 p.m. - Back on the Island, Richard catches up to Sawyer and warns him that Fake Locke will lie to him. Richard runs, and Fake Locke and Sawyer have an awkward exchange.

In Bizarro LAX, Locke and Rose has a short exchange. She runs the temp agency, and apparently, she still has terminal cancer. Aw. But she convinces Locke to take a more realistic job, as opposed to construction foreman.

Back on the Island, Sawyer and Fake Locke are walking through the woods. Sawyer talks about Of Mice and Men, which Fake Locke has no recollection of, and Sawyer pulls a gun on him, asking him what will happen if he pumps a slug into his brain. Fake Locke says he used to be a man, like Sawyer, and lures him into further intrigue and not shoot him.

9:38 p.m. - Apparently, according to a conversation between Wannabe Jackass and Ben, Fake Locke is stuck in his current form for some reason. They stick Locke in the ground, and Ben does a short eulogy. "John Locke was a... believer. He was a man of faith, he was a much better man than I will ever be and I'm very sorry I murdered him." The Pilot gets in a pretty nifty line right after, "Weirdest damn funeral I've ever been to." Nice.

We flip to Bizarro LAX, and Locke is calling for Jack. But he gets the secretary and doesn't talk! Eeck. Locke confesses to Helen that he got fired, and of course, right as he does, the doorbell rings. The airplane company found his baggage. Locke tells Helen that he lied about the conference, and has her open the case, which was full of his knives. He says he wasn't allowed on the walkabout. "I'm sick of imagining what my life would be out of this chair." Helen and Locke kiss passionately, after she rips up Jack's card. nooooooo!

Flash over to the Island with Fake Locke and Sawyer. They apparently have to climb down a ladder on a cliff, to God knows where. One of the steps snaps as Sawyer tries to climb down it, and then, the ladder detaches from the face of the cliff. Fake Locke grabs Sawyer as he dangles, and they manage to make it to the outcrop they were shooting for. It is a small cavern with a scale, with a black rock and a white rock balancing each other. Fake Locke throws the white rock out into the water, and then lights a torch to show him why he's there - There is some sort of mural on the wall, with his name and various others. Shocking! And we hit another commercial break.

Tom: I hope they're going to explain something in the last 10 minutes.

9:53 p.m. - In Bizarro LAX, Locke is somehow watching kids run laps, and then teaching them about... the human reproductive system. I guess he's a substitute teacher. And Ben Linus teaches European history! What a weird turn of events.

We flip over to the Island, where Fake Locke is showing Sawyer around Jacob's cave. Each main cast member corresponds to a number, and Fake Locke says that Jacob was pushing all of them toward the Island. Fake Locke says they are all "candidates" to become the protector of the Island, and then says that there is no need for a Protector. Fake Locke also crosses out Locke's name on the wall. Fake Locke asks Sawyer if he's ready to go home, and Sawyer says, "Hell yes."

Amanda: I'm not buying it, Locke. If it's that easy, why are you still there? Sorry. There's more to it than this.

DON'T READ THIS: Blogging LOST, Week 2

In keeping with last week, here is another running diary, albeit belated, on this week's edition of LOST...

First segment: Hippie Richard tells Kung Fu that “he's alive,” referring to Sayid. This seems to get a big smile out of the Drunken Master. Then we switch to the gang, and Sawyer, that rascal, is already planning on running.

Next, we're back to the Bizzaro LAX, where Kate is holding the taxi guy hostage with a gun, and Claire is in the backseat. The taxi driver looks suspiciously like the puppet master from Heroes, but I'm not positive about that. He runs from the car, and then Kate steals Claire's purse before ordering her out of the car.

We switch again to the Temple, with the gang explaining to Sayid what is going on. I love Miles, who arguably has as many good, snappy lines as Sawyer at this point. “As you can see, Hugo here has assumed a leadership position, which is... really great.” There is a confrontation between Jack and the Kung Fu Master, who might not realize that Jack can probably speak whatever language he's using, because of his experience with the wacky Chinese lady in past seasons.

Anywho, Sawyer has magically procured a gun, because he's Sawyer. He decides to leave, and Kate offers to track him and bring him back, convincing the Tribal Others (my name for them) that she can do so.

Now we're back to Kate in LA, presumably, where she at first pulls a gun some fat, sleazy but kind of charming mechanic. (Think Bud from Kill Bill Volume 2.) She pays him $200 to break her handcuffs, and then goes into a restroom to change, at which point we get a stomach-punch scene with Kate going through Claire's bag. She has a picture of her pregnant, and a big stuffed Shamu doll. A really, really powerful scene.

We switch scenes again to Jack and Kate planning for the trip into the jungle to find Sawyer. Jack grabs Kate like he wants to kiss her, but doesn't, and she doesn't lean in for the lip-lock either.

On to the Kung Fu Master and Sayid, as the Master blows some sort of dust on to Sayid, before hooking up electrodes to him. He begins to shock him, getting a scream out of Sayid, and then he prepares a red-hot poker, scorching his skin with it. Hippie Richard tells him that he passed the test, but apparently, he did not, as Kung Fu says that Sayid didn't pass the test.

Back to the Bizarro LA, Kate somehow finds out where Claire is and gives her back her stuff. Then amazingly, she offers Claire a ride to the adopted parents house, which Claire seems to accept! (This whole turn of events strikes me as completely and utterly impossible – Kate just held her up at gunpoint, and then dumped her on a random street, and then she somehow finds Claire again, AND convinces her to not be very, very uncomfortable with this whole ride thing.)

Now we're on the Island again, and some member of the Tribal Others is leading him. And shockingly, it is Mac from It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia! Wow! What an inexplicable bit of casting! Anyway, Rousseau the French Woman has apparently been dead for a couple years now, according to Mac, but then Kate manages to overpower Mac and the other guard (again) to escape.

Jack goes inside to talk with Kung Fu and Hippie Richard, and they say that Sayid is “infected” with something. They're trying to convince Jack to get Sayid to take a pill. If Sayid doesn't take the pill, Kung Fu said that he would be dead. Sayid and Jack then have a heart to heart.

We cut back to Kate and Jin in the jungle, with them breaking up a bit, and Kate trying to chase after Sawyer. Then another quick cut to Claire and Kate as they ride to Claire's baby adopted momma. It turns out that her husband dumped her, and she didn't tell Claire, and the shocking news causes Claire to start going into labor.

Another cut to the Others' village, which Kate is exploring. Sawyer is ripping up the floorboards in one of the houses, to reveal a shoebox with... Well, it's not really revealed, but I assume it is something of Juliet's that makes Kate change her mind that Sawyer could ever be her's. She tries to sneak out, but Sawyer discovers her, and they exchange awkward words.

Back to Bizarro LAX, Kate manages to take Claire to a hospital, and who is the doctor? Ethan, of course. Claire is given the option of having her baby at that time, or postponing it, and she chooses to postpone it. LOST teases that she'll have to deliver the baby anyway, and also, Kate seems to show some faint glimmers of recognition when Claire reveals that her baby is named Aaron.

On the Island, Kate and Sawyer are chatting, about how she wants to find Claire to reunite him with Aaron. Sawyer has a teary scene with Kate, and the item is revealed to be an engagement ring for Juliet, which he throws into the water.

Kung Fu is spinning a baseball, and he and Jack have another chat. You know, mostly about trust. Jack tries to swallow the pill instead, and Kung Fu has to attack him to force him to not swallow it. You see, it is full of poison.

In Bizarro LA, Claire covers for Kate as two cops come looking for Kate. (Lilly looks pretty in this scene, for some reason, and I'm not usually a fan of her.) Kate encourages Claire to keep Aaron.

Back to Kate and Sawyer at the village – they exchange looks, but that is all. Back again to Jack and Kung Fu, as they talk about why they wanted to kill Sayid. Kung Fu thinks that Sayid has been “claimed” by a darkness that is growing in him. Jack wants to know how he can be sure – And Kung Fu says it happened to Jack's sister! (For those of you not keeping close attention, I believe that would refer to Claire.)

Mac and the Black Dude stumble upon Jin, and threaten to shoot him for the ambush earlier. Jin tries to run away, and gets his leg caught in a bear trap! As Mac hovers over him, about to pull the trigger, he and the Black Dude are shot by... Claire! Dressed in plaid, and looking all woodsy and whatnot! So she IS alive!

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And now, Amanda's comments on the episode. You can find her full blog on all matters pop culture and Boston, Amanda.Jean, here.

Alright, Greenwell. Here's my take on this week's episode:

I'm going to start off by saying that I don't like Kate. I wasn't thrilled that this was a "Kate" episode, but I'm starting to like dopelganger Kate.

I like how doppelganger Claire is still forced to keep Aaron. Can we please get back to the psychic? WHY does she have to be the one to raise Aaron? Are we about to find out? Probably not, they'll keep us waiting for a Claire episode. I know this because she showed up at the very end of this one.

Sayid. What's up? Who is he? John Locke is now Old Smokey, would they really have two characters technically dead with "possessed" bodies? That's not like LOST to rehash storylines like that, so I'm guessing there's more to it. As far as this "infection" maybe we'll finally figure out what happens to people on the island. But maybe this is a different infection, because Sayid is not, as far as I know, pregnant.

Jack is still an arrogant ass.

Sawyer is still charming as hell. I liked how he went back to his old house with Juliette. He really is a softy at heart! This guy makes me believe in romance (that and I'm on a bit of a sappy-love-story high thanks to the upcoming Valentine's Day weekend). I am glad he and Kate made peace. Even if she's a whore. And yeah, I went there.

Is it me or is Hurley taking more of a backseat than usual? Then again, with such a large cast, it may be too early to really tell.

Where is Ben? Where is Desmond? Where did Locke take Richard Alpert? Where is Aaron? Where is Penny? TOO MANY QUESTIONS and still no answers.

So that's about it from me. Let's do this again next week.

Lost predictions from the catacombs

So, I finally caught up on Lost, powering through all of season five in a two-day session this weekend. (WARNING: Huge spoilers immediately proceed!)

Predictably, the season ends on a ridiculous cliffhanger, as Juliet falls down the drilling hole, but she is able to smash the thermal nuclear core, making it detonate and executing the plan of Jack and Daniel Farraday.

I have to be brief, because I'm typing this in the 10 minutes before the Providence College game tonight, from the catacombs / basement press area of the Dunkin' Donuts Center. However, based on the past events of the show and the events of season five, I think the plan to “fix” time will work.

Why? Because for the most part, Daniel Farraday is correct on the show. If he thinks this has a chance to “fix” the timeline, then there is a good chance it will. Locke (or the being that possesses him) and Jack and Ben are sort of locked in an endless ideological struggle, and all of them seem to be right and wrong at various times. To steal terminology from Farraday and mathematics, his science is a constant of correctness on the show... at least so far.

With that in mind, I imagine the timeline of the fifth season will “start” when the original Oceanic plane crash occurred, except that it won't crash this time. From there, who the heck knows what will happen?

As far as the island goes, it wouldn't surprise me if Locke / Thing in Locke's body was in some sort of split timeline, or if he and Ben manage to be on the island and struggling over it anyway. Charles Widmore is also still presumably in the picture, and he might think of some ways to get the main cast (Jack, Kate, Sawyer, etc.) back on the island somehow.

Getting Lost with Lost - Season 3 and 4

Note - Don't read on if you're not interested in Lost and planning to be at some point, because there are extensive spoilers (at least I think) for the first four seasons. Warning you straight up, peeps.

I recently dove back into Lost after taking a bit of a hiatus because I've been too busy with work. In the past three days, I've managed to power my way through about a season's worth of episodes, stretching from the last six or seven of season three to the first six of season four. Some observations on the show...

- According to Amanda Meyer, who has a new, fantabulous blog of her own here, by the way, I'm pretty decent at judging some of the plot developments of the show. I don't think this is because of any special ability I have with Lost specifically; I think it is more of a function of Lost itself being a quality drama, and thus, sharing traits with other well-made movies and television shows.

By this, I mean that well-made content shares certain traits. For example, it is surprising and shocking without being totally out of left field. One of the more recent episodes that I watched, "Eggtown", teases throughout that Kate is pregnant based on the "flash forward" segments in the episode. Only at the end is it revealed that it is actually Claire's baby; the whole issue of Sawyer being a father and the tension it creates with Jack is a diversion.

This is a good, simple and logical plot point. A lot of Lost operates similar to a street magician - While you are focused on Major Plot Issue A of an episode, the actual important plot details are in the small but apparent details.

And like most good content creators, it is important to remember that J.J. Abrams doesn't introduce characters just for the sake of having someone new on the show. If you learn a character's name, it normally means they're going to keep popping up, at least until...

- Everyone on Lost either dies or deals with death. At one point or another in the show, every character either: 1) dies 2) kills someone or 3) watches someone die, either on the island or in a flashback. This is an important thing to keep in mind, because if you're ever wondering what's next for a certain character, a safe bet is bleak misery. Even some of the best "sweet" moments are founded on the backs of truly depressing scenes - Charlie's entire death montage, Desmond finally being able to connect with Penelope in "The Constant", Sayid's dismal luck with love yet his eagerness in pursuing it, etc.

If someone isn't dealing with death, then the other common theme of the show is betrayal. By the fourth season, you can really see the intense paranoia sinking into all of the characters, especially Locke. I'm only halfway through season four, so I'm not sure how valid his fears are, but his actions are manic and panicked. Also, the sheer skill of Ben at manipulating Locke and others is terrifying at times. This leads a bit into my third point...

- Jack is still awesome to me. I know, from the flash forwards, it seems like he's going to go nutty very shortly. However, I still feel more empathy toward him than other characters because he is willing to sacrifice his own desires for the good of the group on a consistent basis.

Things got a little too weird for me at points of season three. Too many of the scenes with The Others are shrouded in completely secrecy, so it was hard to have any clue about the true intentions of Jack, Ben, Juliet, Locke, Sawyer and practically every character on the show.

Jack lost some of his moral fortitude, but I think he has reclaimed it - at least so far - with his strong decision to go after the radio signal at the end of season three, as opposed to succumbing to his lust for revenge. I've made this comparison before, but I think Jack parallels Luke Skywalker from Star Wars. A lot of people dislike the character because it doesn't have the flair or ambiguity of someone flashier (Han Solo / Sawyer), but you still need his presence as a sort of "rock" of morality, like Ralph in Lord of the Flies. If everyone is some swash-buckling asshole, there isn't enough contrast among the characters.

This all dovetails into my final point...

- I have a visceral dislike of Locke now. I have an up-and-down relationship with him; in the premiere episode of season one, I initially thought he was evil, which gradually gave way to ambivalence and like as more of his background was revealed.

However, I am now firmly in the dislike column because of his actions in seasons three and four. At best, he appears to be like a suspicious native, given his intense belief in mysticism and coincidence. At worst, he is a poor man's version of Ben, manipulating innocent people in order to selfishly preserve his access to the Island's healing effect on his paralysis.

Of course, this opinion could change as I watch the rest of season four and all of season five, in preparation for the Tuesday, February 2 premiere of season six. I think this of one of the strongest points of Lost: It is masterful as creating a sense of paranoia, in the viewer, that mirrors that of the people on the island at times. I intensely dislike Locke right now, and Ben as well, but I still have to be guarded and open to the idea that there is really is a good explanation for their actions. The character motivations are almost constantly shifting, meaning there is the potential for surprise in every episode.

Anyway, this is all I have for now on the topic. I might post another entry on this later in the week on some of the excellent accessory characters if I feel up to it.

Storytime with Amanda Meyer: The best crushes ever ever

Every weekend, my friend Amanda Meyer writes an entry. This week's concerns her celebrity crushes.

The more I talk to people, the more I realize that I have entirely too many celebrity crushes. It needs to stop, though I do not imagine that it will. What follows is a list of my Top Five actual celeb crushes and Top Five fictional celeb crushes.

Actual People That Should Fall in Love With Me:

1)Leonardo DiCaprio. Leo has topped this list since I first saw Titanic in theaters at the age of nine. He has been faithful ever since, only getting better looking as he ages and continuing to pick characters I can’t help but fall in love with. Furthermore, he’s got class; this guy cleans up real well, is very active with charity work, and he’s a good actor, not just a pretty face.

2)Milan Lučić. If I ever needed a guy to fight for me, he would be it. This guy kicks ass. He is also Canadian and plays hockey. What’s not to love? His ONE drawback is that he’s six months younger than me. And he gets a lot of broken noses, which takes away from looks. Slightly.

3)Bobby Flay. Bobby and I would get along great, and I would always have a great meal to come home to. The only downside here is that he is my parents’ age. Eww.

4)Matt Damon. A local boy, he and I have the streets of Dorchester in common. What girl can’t resist a Boston accent? Besides, he’s dreamy. And look, he loves the Sox. ‘Nuff said.

5)John Cena. Don’t even ask. I don’t watch wrestling, his acting career is miserable. But he’s HOT. And he can fight.

Fictional Characters Who Would Love Me if They Were Real:

1)Jack Dawson from Titanic. If you haven’t seen this movie you need to. There really is no reason why I should even need to explain this. In three days he waltzes in, turns Rose’s world upside down and gets her to fall head over heels in love with him. She wasn’t the only one who fell.

2)Jim Halpert from The Office. Jim has a goofy smile, makes amazing facial expressions, gave the PERFECT wedding toast this season, and is all-around adorable. What a great guy. Also the actor is from Brighton, my current digs. I like it.

3)James “Sawyer” Ford from Lost. If I ever get stuck on an island, I hope Sawyer is there to save me. He’s sarcastic, a huge wise-ass and obsessed with condescending nicknames, but after a few episodes, it’s just endearing. He also kicks ass, takes names and has a heart. He might not ever say it back, but Sawyer, I love you.

4)Billy Costigan from The Departed. Boys from Boston. What can I say? Us local girls love our boys. The accents, the badass persona, the Irish Mobster boss... We love it all. Sure. Billy had issues, but at the end of the day, all he wanted was to make it out of the Southie projects and be respectable. How can you not fall for that?

5)Chuck Bass from Gossip Girl. Chuck is arrogant. He only loves himself. He owns more Dior than I do (and that’s saying something). He’s 18 (creepy). He’s a pompous mutli-billionaire Upper East Sider. But GOD is he gorgeous. His one-liners are almost as good as Sawyers, and sometimes he has a heart. He makes me want to leave Boston for NYC, and that is saying something.

The picture of Crush soda is from here.