The Lost Diary

I took off Thursday and Friday from work so I can stay home for four days straight and watch nothing but college basketball. Now that "Lost" is on, I kind of don't know what to do. Who would be the four number one seeds in the "Lost" tournament? I go with Ben, Locke, Jack and Sayid -- I think they best represent what "Lost" is about. I'd have to put Widmore in my Final 4 though somehow, he's becoming more and more of a player as things go on.

For all you "Lost" Diary newbies, here's how it goes: I gather with a group of friends watching "Lost," writing what happens on the show as it happens, and throwing in my two cents along the way. I am watching tonight's episode of "Lost" alone as Lauren is MIA and Ari wanted to wait and watch with her. Lauren's commitment to "Lost" is embarrassing these days and frankly I think it's time I take the show on the road once "Lost" comes back from hiatus. Anyone got room on their couch for me? I'll bring the chips! Let's roll ...

9:00 -- Previously on "Lost" is as a season 2 greatest hits package -- since that's the last time we saw Michael.

9:01 -- Locke is hosting a tupperware party of sorts as he brings every up-to-speed on what's been going on. Another scene where people tell other people things we already know.

9:02 -- "We kinda, like, knew that forever ago." -- Hurley to Miles when Miles says the freighter is there for Ben

9:03 -- "My spy on the freighter is Michael." -- Ben. To quote Hurley, We kinda, like knew that forever ago.

9:04 -- "I'm here to die." -- Michael to Sayid when Sayid asks him why he is on the boat. Michael, could you be a little more specific?

9:09 -- Ben is giving Alex (who, along with Karl and Rousseau, looks weird in actual clothes) a map to the Temple. Perhaps finally we'll see what the rest of the Others have been up to.

9:10 -- Did anyone notice that like EVERYONE is listed as being a guest star tonight -- including LIBBY??? I don't even know what to make of this info right now.

9:11 -- We're flashing back now -- hopefully to explain how Michael ended up on the boat. Or maybe we're flashing forward, I don't know.

9:12 -- Did Michael just pin a suicide note to his jacket?

9:13 -- Yes, yes he did.

9:17 -- Didn't work though, as Michael wakes up on a hospital, looking a little worse for wear -- and dreaming of Libby.

9:18 -- The note pinned to Michael's chest was written to Walt. Something obviously happened to him, the question is what.

9:19 -- Apparently Walt is just fine, living with Michael's mom. Not showing Walt is a clever way to cover up the fact that he he's like a foot taller than he should.

9:21 -- "I want a gun. I want a gun with bullets." -- Michael. He wasn't kidding when he said he wanted to die. If at first you don't succeed by driving into a shipping container at high speed ...

9:22 -- Another ghost of island past -- it's Tom. Is he actually real? Can't be ... right?

9:27 -- Seems real enough. Oh right, this is months ago, so he's not dead yet. Totally forgot about that.

9:28 -- Tom tells Michael that the island won't let him kill himself. Did the island cause the car crash that kept Jack from jumping off the bridge at the end of last season? Hmmm ...

9:29 -- Others get to stay in penthouse hotel suites?

9:30 -- After Michael tries and fails to shoot himself in the head, a conveniently-timed newscast reveals the wreckage of Oceanic Flight 815 has been found. What fantastic timing!

9:31 -- According to Tom, it wasn't Ben that staged the plane crash -- it was Widmore. Either way, the point of the fake plane crash is the same -- to keep people from finding the island.

9:32 -- Tom even has and entire file -- complete with cemetery photos where Widmore got the the 324 bodies. Details, details, details.

9:33 -- Tom is guilting Michael into being Ben's "guy on the boat" -- and he's doing quite a good job of it. We're just past the halfway point of this episode and I have to say, while it's interesting to see how Michael got onto the freighter, it would have been more interesting to see how he got from the island back to NY.

9:38 -- Not only is Kevin Johnson on the boat, but so are Minkowski and Naomi. What are the odds Kevin and Naomi ended up getting together? Thought I picked up on some vibes there from Naomi.

9:40 -- Is Miles ever NOT creepy?

9:41 -- Man, Tom would make a great football coach -- his motivational speeches are awesome.

9:43 -- Lawnmower Man is giving Michael his theory that Oceanic Flight 815 is really out there somewhere. Michael is probably more inclined to believe him than most.

9:44 -- What's in the box? Fax machine? Laptop? Camera?

9:45 -- The conveniently-timed random gunfire gives Michael all the motivation he needs to open the box, where he finds ...

9:46 -- ... a bomb ...

9:47 -- ... and Libby's ghost ...

9:48 -- ... and a note that reads "NOT YET." Watching Michael try and kill himself all these times is like watching "Groundhog Day" with Bill Murray.

9:53 -- Michael has a call from the mainland -- and it's Walt.

9:54 -- But it's actually Ben, trying to explain how he's different from Widmore and how he didn't kill Libby and Ana Luca -- Michael did. Michael already feels bad enough -- does he have to rub it in?

9:55 -- Ben is giving Michael the game plan for taking down the freighter. Sounds easy enough (and apparently it was).

9:56 -- And now we're back to now ("Spaceballs" reference) and Sayid is outraged that Michael is working for Ben. That's like the future pot calling the kettle black, no?

9:57 -- Sayid is selling out Michael to the captain, and I'm imaging the captain will shoot him in the head and grant Michael his wish. This is the act that will begin Sayid's downward spiral that leads him to go work for Ben.

9:58 -- Rousseau, Alex and Karl are making their way to the Temple. Almost forgot about them.

9:59 -- R.I.P. Karl.

10:00 -- R.I.P. Rousseau.

10:01 -- "I'm Ben's daughter!!!" -- Alex

It's important not to think of this episode as a season finale or anything like that -- it was just intended to be the 8th episode out of 16. So I don't want to hold it to the same standard that I would a finale of some kind.

That said, this episode fell a little short for me. As I mentioned before, I feel like we were kind of robbed of half of the "What Happened to Michael?" story. It was interesting to see how far into depression he sunk over killing Ana Lucia and Libby. And they did give him a pretty good reason for working for Ben, when really I never thought they'd have a real good one. But I can't shake the feeling that we missed a good opportunity (but I understand that they pretty much can't show Walt ever again).

All in all, I'd say we got a solid, but not spectacular episode of "Lost." I give it a C+. While there are plenty of things I liked about the episode, if I had said to you going in, "Tonight we find out what happened to Michael since he left the island and how he ended up on the freighter" -- wouldn't you have expected an unbelievable episode? I know I did.

As for the ending, there are two possibilities: 1) Lawnmower Man took the helicopter back to the island with some people and now they have Alex (just like Ben didn't want) or 2) Ben knew that Richard and company would never let Rousseau and Karl in the Temple, and they killed them (in which case Ben sent them out there to be killed -- assuming they're really dead).

Well it looks like we're off for about a month. I absolutely, positively promise I will do a question answer column on Monday -- I am way too far behind. Click here to send me a question.

Til then ...

Posted by Daniel at 12:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (1204) | TrackBacks (0)

After this episode, we only have one more left until we go on Writers Strike hiatus. It's been a good run so far and I will be curious to see how the writers adjust after the hiatus. Here's a suggestion: Answer some questions. Just a thought.

For all you "Lost" Diary newbies, here's how it goes: I gather with a group of friends watching "Lost," writing what happens on the show as it happens, and throwing in my two cents along the way. Ari and Lauren are with me tonight -- and it's Ari's birthday! What will the producers of "Lost" get him? Let's roll ...

9:02 -- Lawnmower Man brings Desmond and Sayid lima beans to eat. Yet another reason why it's better to be on the island.

9:03 -- Has anyone ever learned English faster than Jin?

9:05 -- Time again for my favorite game -- flashback or flashforward? Sun is preggers galore -- so it has to be a flashforward.

9:09 -- Jin is toy shopping, presumably in the future, so it looks like maybe he gets off the island too. That makes six, as in Oceanic 6 -- so I guess Aaron doesn't count.

9:10 -- Kate is trying to explain what went on with Faraday and Charlotte. I hate when people on this show explain things to other people on the show. Can't we just skip all that?

9:12 -- A cryptic note was just passed through the door -- things are getting good.

9:13 -- DON'T TRUST THE CAPTAIN.

9:14 -- Jin and Jack are talking English over breakfast and I am bored.

9:15 -- Sun wants to head off to Locke's camp. Maybe things will finally get good.

9:19 -- "I know that I have been less than truthful about certain things ..." -- Juliet. I'll take "Understatements" for $200 please, Alex.

9:20 -- Any doubt about flashforward or flashback has been removed as Sun was ID'd by a nurse as an Oceanic 6. This whole pregnancy thing is so boring, the only thing than can spice this up is if the kid comes out black.

9:22 -- Jin trying to make his way to the hospital is getting silly. Am I watching a Nora Ephron movie here?

9:23 -- "I need the panda." -- Jin. He can make anything sound menacing sometimes.

9:24 -- "Wherever Sun I go, I go." -- Jin

9:25 -- Juliet just told Jin that Sun had an affair and Sun slapped her. Lauren cheers.

9:29 -- Jin is about to go off on a fishing trip with Bernard and I am more excited about this proposition than I should be.

9:31 -- Time for Bernard to dispense some sage-like advice. Bring it on, my man.

9:32 -- How does Jin understand the concept of "karma"? Did that come up in Sun's lessons already?

9:33 -- How is catching a fish karma?

9:34 -- "The captain would like to see you now." -- creepy doctor guy.

9:35 -- The illiterate woman just jumped over the side of the boat with chains wrapped around her -- and no one seems to care except for Sayid and Desmond.

9:40 -- The captain opens up with "So what can I do for you?" Gee, let me think. How about starting with getting me off this damn boat and back to civilization?

9:41 -- Desmond just found out that they are on Charles Widmore's boat, and he took it in stride. Little strange.

9:42 -- The captain just gave a whole long spiel about the fake plane crash, the 324 bodies and Ben. This guy just gave more of an answer in 10 seconds than most people on this show so far.

9:43 -- Juliet is painting a pretty picture for Sun's future -- if she stays on the island.

9:44 -- Sun is still having her baby. Is there going to be something interesting about this? If all she does is have a baby I am going to be seriously let down.

9:45 -- For the record, Lauren thinks Asian babies are the cutest -- followed by black babies.

9:46 -- "Johnson, is that you?" -- The doc.

9:47 -- "Nice to meet you, Kevin" -- Sayid. Ok, "Lost" has had several "big reveals" this season and none of them have been actual surprises.

9:52 -- "I made dinner." -- Jin. He can really do no wrong in my book. Definitely the most underrated character on the show.

9:54 -- Jin is far more forgiving than ... well, anyone.

9:56 -- Jin finally makes it to the hospital -- but not to see Sun. Hmmmmm ...

9:57 -- Looks like we've been watching a Jin flashback this whole time.

9:58 -- Hurley shows up at Sun's door to see the baby, which was nice of him, considering ...

9:59 -- Hurley and Sun go to the cemetery to see Jin's grave.

10:00 -- That's it?

11:23 -- Right now I am hating this episode. I feel like they purposely manipulated us with Jin's flashback and the reveal really wasn't even all that interesting as a result. And the reveal of Michael being the man on the boat was as un-suspenseful as it was predictable. I need to sleep on this one a bit before I just come right and call it one of my least favorite "Lost" episodes ever. See you in the morning.

5:30 AM -- I still don't see it. Here is what is bothering me:

We had three reveals tonight, if you will. Let's throw out Sun being one of the Oceanic 6 since they've revealed who is an Oceanic 6 person the same way every time. That leaves two reveals:

1) Michael is the man on the boat.

I never like to assume I am smarter than anyone else, but I really think we all saw that one coming. And the way in which it was revealed, at least among the people I was watching with, didn't exactly leave us stunned. So it wasn't just what the reveal was, it was the way in which it was done as well that left me underwhelmed.

2) Jin is dead (though apparently this open to interpretation).

This one angers me. I feel like the show purposely manipulated us (again) to do a reveal. You'll remember in the season finale, Jack spoke about his dad for two reasons -- to prove he was a little nuts and to cover up the fact we were getting a flashforward and not a flashback. Ok, fine. I'll give you that one.

But now you have Sun screaming for Jin in her delivery as a way to make us think he's alive when he's really dead. That's just lazy and deceiving in a way that isn't interesting to the story -- it was done purely to throw us off. In Jack's case, when you look back at it, it's a way to show us just how far off the deep end he has gone. But with Sun, sure you could argue she's distraught over the death of her husband, but that's not why they did it -- they were trying to cover their tracks, pure and simple. Been there, done that.

It all comes down to what we were told and how we were told it. If you had said to me before the show starts, "We find out who the man on the boat is and that Jin doesn't make it off the island" -- I probably would have slapped you. NEVER RUIN "LOST" FOR ME!!! But then I would said alright, that's cool -- should be a good episode. But I'm sorry, I just can't get behind it. When the most surprised I was all episode was when Juliet told Jin about Sun's affair, something isn't right.

I give this episode a D, even though I am really having a hard time finding anything I liked about it.

One last quick point -- Jin's grave. Is he actually buried there? If so, he could be one of the two people that makes up the difference between Jack's story that eight people survived the plane crash, but then we are left with the Oceanic 6. If he isn't, and he died on the island and the body in that grave is one of the 324 bodies the captain talked about, then I find it a little odd that Sun would visit him -- but a grave is a grave, I guess.

One last, last quick point -- If Jin is actually still alive and on the island, they better have a damn good reason for it. Already, I am getting worried about too many "not really dead" moments on "Lost" in seasons to come.

I get the feeling as I write this (and talk to a person or two about it) that I am a bit on my own in not liking this episode (to be read: hated it). So here is my task to you: Can you give me a good, concise reason why this episode was good? I am flexible here.

I do a question-and-answer column every week. I had to skip this week (again) but I just got my laptop back from the shop, so I have all the emails and I am ready to roll. Don't feel like you have to ask a straightforward "Lost" question. Have fun with it. Click here to send me a question (and make sure the subject says LDQA -- I get so much spam on that account it's insane).

Posted by Daniel at 06:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (884) | TrackBacks (0)

"So because last week's 'Lost' was so good, does that automatically mean that this week's has to suck?"

That was the IM I got from my friend Chris on Thursday morning and now I have the fear of God in me. Is it possible? Can "Lost" be that good last week and this week too? One can only hope ...

For all you "Lost" Diary newbies, here's how it goes: I gather with a group of friends watching "Lost," writing what happens on the show as it happens, and throwing in my two cents along the way. I am watching tonight's episode of "Lost" alone as Ari and Lauren are in Las Vegas. How is it I get emails from total strangers wanting to watch "Lost" with me and my own friends bail on my constantly? Let's roll:

9:00 -- Time for my new favorite game: flashback or flashforward? Now, I know all we have had so far this season are flashforwards, but I don't think we're done with flashbacks just yet -- at least I hope. I'm going flashback, but I know I'm probably wrong.

9:01 -- Hang on a sec, isn't Tom dead? Has to be a flashback.

9:02 -- "Welcome to the island." -- Harper to Juliet. Winner!!!

9:03 -- "We want you to feel at home." Ben to Juliet. As always, even the most gracious words sound ultra-creepy when Ben says them.

9:04 -- Faraday and Charlotte have gone missing, and on cue it begins raining, the island starts whispering and Harper appears out of nowhere. I'm assuming she's real, but you never know with "Lost."

9:07 -- Ok, so Faraday and Charlotte are headed to the tempest (whatever that is) to release the gas and kill everyone -- or at least that's what Ben thinks.

9:08 -- "Ben is exactly where he wants to be." -- Harper. Didn't Miles say the same thing when Kate had him tied up in that shed?

9:09 -- Under the cover of whispers (yes, I said whispers), Harper disappears. Seriously, WTF?!!?!??

9:10 -- All our favorite dead Others are back this week. Good times.

9:11 -- Apparently Harper is Goodwin's wife. Now, we know Harper is still alive and we know Goodwin and Juliet got it on -- so I guess that means Juliet is a slut.

9:12 -- Once again, Jack asks someone a really, REALLY important question -- but when they don't answer, he just let's it go. Jack might be a great doctor, but he'd make a shitty cop.

9:13 -- Based on their conversation, it sure seems like Faraday and Charlotte are planning on doing what Ben thinks they are planning on doing. Ben's never really wrong.

9:17 -- Kate, for a change, is not acting like an idiot and asking all the right questions.

9:18 -- Wait, scratch that.

9:19 -- "It's very stressful being an Other, Jack." -- Juliet

9:20 -- Goodwin busts in on Ben and Juliet with the offer of an egg salad sandwich -- that sly dog!

9:21 -- Harper knows Juliet has been sleeping with her husband and apparently Harper is afraid of what Ben would do. And did you catch Harper's "You look just like her comment"? Has to be Annie, right?

9:22 -- Claire wants to interrogate Miles to find out why he and his crew are really on the island -- and she's actually making sense, which confuses me. Charlie dying has done wonders for her.

9:23 -- "Don't you want to know whose boat it is?" -- Claire

9:24 -- Ben and Locke are throwing out so many good quotes, I can't even keep up.

9:26 -- Another fantastic Ben/Locke scene. First off, why doesn't Locke see that Ben is right? They are on the same side in this. And secondly, the man the freighter people work for has to be Penny's dad, right?

9:30 -- Juliet in a bikini. Not bad. Not bad at all.

9:31 -- "What's Ben gonna do?" -- Goodwin. Hmmm, something tells me we are about to find out.

9:32 -- Apparently what he can do is send Goodwin off to die.

9:33 -- Jack and Juliet find Kate passed out in the bushes -- and Juliet uses that as an opportunity to leave Jack behind.

9:34 -- I need silence please -- Locke and Ben scene, Locke and Ben scene, Locke and Ben scene!!!

9:35 -- "I taped over the game." -- Ben. Has the playing of any tape on "Lost" ever not been completely awesome? I am downright giddy right now.

9:36 -- Ladies and gentlemen, Charles Widmore.

9:37 -- "If 5,000 people came out to see a piece of mold, how many people do you think would come here to see you?" -- Ben to Locke

9:38 -- Ben just told Locke that the Widmore file is "the last bargaining chip" he has left. Now that I don't believe.

9:39 -- Last chance -- who is Ben's man on the boat?

9:43 -- Hold the phone -- Jack just got a straight answer out of Kate!!! First time for everything.

9:44 -- Out of all the creepy things Ben has said and done, where does cooking a ham rank? It's got to be up there.

9:45 -- Zach and Emma are on the list, apparently. I love all the "list" talk, but when do we actually get to find out something about it?

9:46 -- WARNING: MANUAL ENTRY OVERRIDE DENIED

9:52 -- Faraday is trying to say that he's trying to make the gas inert. He'd be more convincing if he weren't wearing a GAS MASK!!!

9:52 -- Cat fight.

9:54 -- Ok, so Faraday succeeded in making the gas inert so that Ben couldn't use it against them later. I'm having some problem figuring out what to make of all this.

9:56 -- Ben couldn't just tell Juliet that Goodwin was dead, he had to show her his rotting, decaying corpse.

9:57 -- "How could you possibly not understand that you're mine?" -- Ben to Juliet. That's not creepy, it's just kinda sad (with a touch of crazy thrown in).

9:59 -- Jack and Juliet finally kiss. I don't have Lauren hear to gauge the female reaction, but let me try. "That slut!"

10:00 -- "See you guys at dinner." -- Ben

"So because last week's 'Lost' was so good, does that automatically mean that this week's has to suck?"

Eh, guess so.

Look I can't flat out declare this episode a clunker, but it really did only one thing for me and that's question my undying love for Ben. I know he wants to protect the island at all costs, but I am starting to doubt how pure his intentions really are. Is he really all about the island -- or is he all about himself?

The rest of this episode (I think we all suspected the freighter was Widmore's) I could have done without. I give it a C+. The Ben/Locke scenes were great and Juliet in a bikini did not disappoint. Hey, I'm still a guy here!

Here's my question to you this week: Even though "Lost" has cut its season down to 16 eps (and even less after the strike) we're still getting dud episodes. Is "Lost" better served with even fewer eps, say 12? Works for HBO, Showtime and FX. Just a thought.

I had to skip the LDQA this because my laptop is in the shop and I can't get to all the email. Don't feel like you have to ask a straightforward "Lost" question. Have fun with it. Click here to send me a question.

Posted by Daniel at 07:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (529) | TrackBacks (0)