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Friday, April 25, 2008

I Waited Through the Writers’ Strike for This?

posted by on April 25 at 0:07 AM

lostjackhurley_1.jpg

Someone posted on Slog a coupl’a weeks ago about being a closet Lost fan, but I don’t see any reason to mask it, though that’s only because I made the mistake of getting my hopes up for the show’s return this evening. My thoughts on tonight’s episode are below in invisible text. Highlight it to read it. This is done to protect the four of you who TiVo’ed it or whatever—yer welcome.

The opening bullshit exchange between Jack and Kate didn’t seem like a crowning achievement for the WGA’s winter stalemate. Her response to a stomachache: “You should eat some crackers” ?? “I thought your gut was sick” ?? Boy. And the episode-ending showdown between Bad Guy A and Bad Guy B was some Young & Restless shit if I’ve ever seen it.

But Lost campiness is to be expected from time to time, lest you not notice tonight’s scene where Sawyer ran through a full 30 seconds of semi-automatic gunfire without a scratch. What I don’t expect from Lost are breakdowns in character. The thing that gets me through the show’s random plot twists are how the full personalities collide and survive together—that’s what made the show matter in the first place, not a glowing hatch or an ancient, beeping computer. But if tonight’s pace keeps up, I may be done before the season finale. (I assume the whole show’s going to end with aliens beaming down and raping the cast, anyway, so it’s not like I’m hanging around to find out the final secrets.) Sawyer goes 180 on his “I’m survivin’” selfishness, complete with a gun-drawn showdown to “protect” a fellow castaway, and calm/calculating Sayid decides at a low point in his life to take a supervillain’s word at face value. When a show has to bend its characters for the sake of the story, rather than the other way around, you’re begging for an 11 a.m. timeslot.

I figure the only reason I even posted about this is because the show is pretty much the only plot-driven thing I’ve kept up with on network television in a long time (thank goodness HBO’s stellar John Adams has filled the gap for worthwhile television in the meantime, by the way). And having bitched and moaned, of course I’ll still watch Lost next week like a sucker—because Lord knows there’s nothing to ignite the TV possibilities like Jack’s appendi-fuckin-citis.

Or maybe he’s just pregnant with Claire’s second baby?

RSS icon Comments

1

I've only ever watched about 10 minutes of an episode in the first season and that was enough to tell me I needn't bother to watch any more.

Dumbest. Show. Ever.

Posted by monkey | April 25, 2008 6:41 AM
2

As one of the 4 people that tivo'd it...thank you for the spoiler proof post.

Looking forward to being disappointed.

Posted by Lost Addict | April 25, 2008 7:29 AM
3

The Sawyer running from gunfire was just insane! One thing that has always bugged me about the show is how people are constantly being knocked unconscious from being hit on the head with guns. It's as if a gun is a magic wand that immediately puts you to sleep when it touches your head.

Posted by blargh | April 25, 2008 7:33 AM
4

you expected the writers to produce quality after the strike? THAT is FUNNY!!!!!

Posted by Andrew | April 25, 2008 7:41 AM
5

Glad to see I wasn't the only one who loved the shit out of some John Adams. What will I do with my Sunday nights now??

Posted by switzerblog | April 25, 2008 7:43 AM
6

Ha ha, man you people are a tough audience. Isn't this the same blog that breathlessly hashes out all the retarded drama in whatever goofy 'reality' show was on the previous night?

I thought the joke in that Sawyer scene was that it was a white picket fence that saved him...

John Adams was an asshole, but I'd never be able to watch Paul Giamatti in anything again after "Lady in the Water", anyway (I allow it's my fault for even renting that one to begin with).

Posted by Peter F | April 25, 2008 8:00 AM
7

Plot-driven? You don't say.

Posted by Mr. Poe | April 25, 2008 8:02 AM
8

There were a few DRAMATIC! moments, but I agree it was a little weak. Nowhere near as good as the previous episode with Michael.

Posted by kid icarus | April 25, 2008 8:13 AM
9

I'm so glad I never started watching this show.

I'm trying, and failing, to not become one of those smug, I-hate-TV hipsters. Maybe it's because I'm at my mom's house in MN right now and my dying mom and her boyfriend watch TV from the moment they wake up in the morning until the moment they go to bed. Yeah, that's probably it.

Posted by Big Sven | April 25, 2008 9:01 AM
10

After seeing a smoke monster whirling around, their problem isn't going to be guns or bullets anymore. This isn't some SVU program, it's a scary island where people can go back in time and a lot of other screwed up shite. I'm going to keep watching it until it's off the air no matter how cheesy it gets. I'll just make sure I have a box of crackers handy at all times from now on.

Posted by realitybites | April 25, 2008 9:33 AM
11

Try Battlestar Galactica.

Posted by Rotten666 | April 25, 2008 9:41 AM
12

Ugh to some of you people.

"Sawyer ran through a full 30 seconds of semi-automatic gunfire without a scratch"

Perhaps the shooters *purposely* avoided killing or harming him. As was pointed out a little later, they could have been using him to toss Ben out.

"Sayid decides at a low point in his life to take a supervillain’s word at face value."

Well, you have no idea what has happened between last night's "present" time and that 2005 iraq scene. So possibly he had a reason to take him at face value.

Geeze, just enjoy the show for an hour a week. Don't get all upset with it.

(Having said that, the Ben/Whitmore dialog reminded me of the lame chess game plot from Twin peaks.)


Posted by stinkbug | April 25, 2008 10:01 AM
13

Fuck Lost. Having just finished season 3 of Battlestar Galactica, I want to know if they really did jump the shark or if they managed to recover with Razor and season 4.

God, season 3 finale was terrible. Wretched even. Fucking Bob Dylan?

Posted by w7ngman | April 25, 2008 10:08 AM
14

them's fighting words, Sam...

1)to start with, I WILL agree with you about Sayid very quickly agreeing to working with Ben to become his personal avenger. It WAS a little rushed. (much like Kate's ridiculous trial in the episode, "Eggtown")k. And the B story, Jack getting sick on the beach, was a little ham-handed, but that's often the case with the B story in episodic television.

2)but you're way off about Sawyer...his character has progressively changed over several seasons and episodes and has been relatively well handled. He's not the same Sawyer from the first season; it's not some random, sudden thing. As for the gunfight, pretty much EVERY gunfight in tv and film is ridiculous, and to be honest, Claire surviving the cabin explosion was far more far fetched for me. But to explain both improbabilities, both Claire and Sawyer might be 'protected' by the island. We've seen in past episodes that certain characters the Island is protective of, are immune to being harmed.

Or, it could be over the top tv writing...

3)It's a fuckin' comic book tv show; if you want realism, go watch PBS documentaries. Lost has ALWAYS been ridiculous and over the top.

4)are you kidding? the end exchange between Ben and Widmore was fuckin' GREAT!! Two delightfully rotten characters played by two great actors spouting classic comic book dialogue. Michael Emerson's Ben is one of the great roles on television and it's a brilliant ham performance.

5)as for your aliens theory, Jimmy Kimmel recently asked the producers if everyone on the island was from planet earth. After a long pause, they replied, "yes" and remarked, "when you get asked questions like that, you have to be very careful how you answer."

Posted by michael strangeways | April 25, 2008 10:14 AM
15

Um, @13 if you thought the end of Season 3 was "terrible" than you can give up on Galactica, though I have no idea why you would have sat through that much of it, considering.

It's like someone watching three years of Sportscenter and declaring that they're not really into gameday highlights.

Posted by Peter F | April 25, 2008 10:15 AM
16

Dude -- it was one sub-par episode. It'll get better. I promise.

Posted by whatevernevermind | April 25, 2008 10:36 AM
17

As for the whole no gunfire hitting Sawyer thing, hav eyou forgotten just last episode it was made clear the island won't let anyone die that it still needs? Obviously the island needs Sawyer.

Posted by sawyer | April 25, 2008 10:37 AM
18

LOST fights are fucking boring. Listen to you tards. You could be fighting over Gossip Girl and sound more enthralling.

Posted by Mr. Poe | April 25, 2008 10:41 AM
19

Mr Poe,

People who whack off over William Hurt in Children of a Lesser God need not cast any aspersions on anyone else's taste in filmed entertainment.

OMG, Gossip Girl RULZ!!!

Posted by michael strangeways | April 25, 2008 10:48 AM
20

I bet you do watch Gossip Girl. Fag.

William Hurt FTW!!11

Posted by Mr. Poe | April 25, 2008 10:52 AM
21

Thank you for making it clear what an inept and short-sighted reviewer you are. Now I can ignore your posts and save time for important things like a second cup of coffee.

Posted by Eileen Donovan | April 25, 2008 11:18 AM
22

I love POE!

Posted by Bellevue Ave | April 25, 2008 11:19 AM
23

None of this should be surprising to anyone who has been paying attention to the show.

Their devotion to character fidelity went straight out the window when they killed off Eko in a way that completely contradicted everything they had built up about him. That was a season and a half ago.

Not to mention that their solution to pretty much every plot dilemma now is "kill somebody." Sure, you never know who's going to survive from one week to the next--but isn't that a really cheap form of manufactured drama? And when you know they'll kill *anybody*, whatever characters they do kill doesn't have as much of an impact. (Hence I did not find Alex's fate in any way a shock, even though my husband was sitting there with his mouth hanging open.)

The only character/story worth a damn is Desmond, and that's largely because Henry Ian Cusick is somehow managing to be absolutely real and heartbreaking even when the writing lets him down.

I think it is simply not possible to manage an arc-driven metastory type of series over the long haul, especially one with a huge cast. Too many threads get out of the creators' grasp and too many things develop lives of their own and can't be managed effectively. I'll likely keep watching out of some perverse sense of completeness, but I don't expect it to get any better and I don't expect to be happy with the eventual outcome.

Posted by stresskitten | April 25, 2008 11:25 AM
24

Lost is running at breakneck speed right now because they had to cut down the number of episodes but they still have to reach a certain point in the story. The showrunners said it won't move so fast next year: http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20194903_2,00.html


However, this doesn't explain the boring Juliet episode from before the break.

Posted by bek | April 25, 2008 11:27 AM
25

I will acknowledge that 80's era William Hurt has a Brooks Brothers charm and a delicious set of pinkberries, but I draw the line at being accused of Gossip Girl fandom.

I'm a Top Model/GoldenGirls/SexintheCity brand of Fag, and have never dipped my toe into the fagarific world of the faux soap operas of the 90210/Melrose/DawsonsCreek/OC/GossipGirl ilk.

Word.

Posted by michael strangeways | April 25, 2008 11:28 AM
26

The sudden Eko death wasn't the writers/producers fault; the actor was very unhappy and wanted off the show.

The producers have said that Eko had considerable more story left to tell and an important role to play in the master plot, which had to be transferred to other characters or omitted.

Posted by michael strangeways | April 25, 2008 11:31 AM
27

@26: The suddenness of the death was not the problem. (See also Ana-Lucia, killed off partly because of problematic real-world issues. These things happen.)

The fact that they abruptly tossed out a season's worth of character development in the process of killing him off was. They were not skilled enough to figure out how to deal with the loss of a major storyline without saying "Um, okay, so we'll just say none of that stuff actually mattered." Sloppy and disappointing, which is pretty much the overall problem with the show.

Posted by stresskitten | April 25, 2008 11:58 AM
28

#15, come on, really? You can't recognize a fundamental difference in writing/plot quality between the rest of the show and the season 3 finale? I admit season 3 as a whole kind of slipped, but I'm not talking about the "feel good" lameness that I've been willing to overlook from episodes like the Tylium refinery episode (and was obviously in full force here).

Seriously though, Bob fucking Dylan? Quoting song lyrics? That was the stupidest cop-out resolution to the "final five" plot line they could have possibly dreamed up. They even picked terrible characters to make Cylons. Starbuck's line was really stupid too.

This is why I ask if they recovered.

Posted by w7ngman | April 25, 2008 12:21 PM
29

The reason that Sawyer was the only one who could "magically" run through automatic weapons fire at close range is that he is alive in the future.

It's a closed time loop - and dying doesn't happen in it if you're alive outside of both ends - just ask Hurley.

Now you know why a certain evil genius isn't worried about dying - he's alive at the end of the loop and can't die inside of it.

Which means ... his daughter and her mother aren't actually dead.

Yeah ... think about what THAT means.

Posted by Will in Seattle | April 25, 2008 1:12 PM
30

Interesting theory Will, but I still think Sawyer's miracle run was probably just action adventure hyperbole.

I don't think Rousseau is dead. I think she'll emerge as an avenging angel next season; also, the producers have said they have more of her story to tell. Alex, though, is toast. Ben's surprised reaction to her death, and his new vendetta indicate that she wasn't supposed to die, but the fact she did indicates that "the rules can be changed".

note to Sam: I'm hoping that Jack isn't carrying Claire's baby since Jack and Claire are half-siblings and have the same father, Dr Christian Shephard. Also, your title is odd; the current season of Lost began at the end of January and they broadcast all 8 pre-strike filmed episodes. We had a four week break and the first post-strike episode was last night and there's 5 more hours to come. Did you somehow miss those first 8 episodes, or is your title a little misleading?

Posted by michael strangeways | April 25, 2008 1:41 PM
31

Lost Apologist

Ben was very specific as to why Sawyer survived the hail of bullets. Ben told everyone that the bad-guy's strategy was to get Sawyer into the house so he would kick Ben out.

Sayid wants to kill. First Shannon and now Nadia have been murdered. Did the whole shooting a man in the back until he ran out of bullets and then pulling the trigger another dozen times not tip you off that he’s a bit unstable? You can't have followed Sayid's arc, and not believe that he'd go completely insane with rage if Nadia was murdered. He’s angry, and will take any excuse to get to act out on that rage. Also, keep in mind that Sayid knows how bad Whitmore’s people are. He probably knows better than the audience since he’s somehow got off the island.

Posted by Lost Apologist | April 26, 2008 10:49 PM
32

Lost Apologist

Ben was very specific as to why Sawyer survived the hail of bullets. Ben told everyone that the bad-guy's strategy was to get Sawyer into the house so he would kick Ben out.

Sayid wants to kill. First Shannon and now Nadia have been murdered. Did the whole shooting a man in the back until he ran out of bullets and then pulling the trigger another dozen times not tip you off that he’s a bit unstable? You can't have followed Sayid's arc, and not believe that he'd go completely insane with rage if Nadia was murdered. He’s angry, and will take any excuse to get to act out on that rage. Also, keep in mind that Sayid knows how bad Whitmore’s people are. He probably knows better than the audience since he’s somehow got off the island.

Posted by Lost Apologist | April 26, 2008 10:57 PM

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