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Thursday, 28 February 2008 |
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By John Keegan
Visit Critical Myth for an archive of John's TV Review archives, with more than 1100 entries.
| Ever since his introduction in "Live Together, Die Alone", the producers have noted that the romance between Desmond and Penelope Widmore was at the heart of the Lost mythology. This episode continues to explore the truth behind that statement. For all that the survivors of Oceanic 815 experience the oddities of the island, Desmond's fate has been wrapped around them for years, and his story sheds light on several long-standing mysteries.
His connection to the Widmores, for instance, has led to important revelations about the Hanso Foundation and the man behind the infamous Dharma Initiative. This episode connects some important dots. The Black Rock, the landlocked ship known to the survivors since the first season, now becomes a source of information about the island and its effects. A navigator's journal was found in Madagascar seven years after the disappearance of the Black Rock, and that navigator was a man named Hanso.
The journal is eventually purchased by Charles Widmore, a businessman with ties to the Hanso Foundation, and one would imagine that the approximate location of the island was mentioned within its pages. This continues to add fuel to the flame of the theory that Widmore, who sponsored the race that eventually led Desmond to the island, intentionally wanted him trapped there to keep him from Penny. How he is treated moving forward should put the matter to rest.
Regardless, all the suggestions still point to Widmore, the remnants of the Dharma Initiative, and elements of the Hanso Foundation as the authority behind the "rescue" expedition. One would also assume that Matthew Abbadon's organization is a part of that overall effort. Certainly they knew enough about the island (again, probably from the journal) to include Daniel Faraday on the team.
Daniel's background in fringe physics, as expected, tie into the odd temporal properties of the island itself, stemming from the powerful electromagnetic source below the remnants of the Swan Station. This ties directly into the events of "Flashes Before Your Eyes" and begins to explain, to some degree, Desmond's ability to predict the future. Because he is "unstuck in time" (thank you, Kurt Vonnegut), Desmond's consciousness is not anchored to normal perception.
For example, during the third season Desmond in the "present" was seeing possibilities of the future, all surrounding the fate of Charlie. What happens in this episode seems to be related, though in a more generalized manner. In this case, Desmond in the "past" becomes entangled with the physical presence of Desmond in the "present". Both situations appear to stem from an induced separation between conscious mind and physical body.
In fact, this could explain Daniel's memory issues. Desmond points out that Daniel has been conducted his experiments with time without a shield over his head. Perhaps the net effect of the radiation/EM field exposure has been a dissociation of his memories. He wouldn't necessarily remember meeting Desmond in the first place, despite the warning in his own journal. Desmond is now important to Daniel beyond his field of study; it could get very interesting if Daniel is forced to choose between Desmond and the true goals of the "rescue party".
Henry Ian Cusick delivers another powerful performance, easily handling the difficulty of the material. His devotion to Penny has always been apparent, but this episode goes a long way towards demonstrating her own dedication to him. Whatever might have happened in "Flashes Before Your Eyes", Penny still trusts Desmond enough to overlook his rather stalker-ish behavior. Their phone conversation is one of the most emotional moments of the series, and it is very well earned.
So much time is spent on Desmond that the rest of Team Shepherd barely gets any screen time. The exception is Sayid, who continues to get the kind of attention he's deserved for quite a while. Sayid's loyalty to Desmond is effectively portrayed, and it shows how dedicated Sayid is to his friends and allies. It's also good to see his previously-established technical skills applied to the situation.
Similarly, Juliet continues to support Jack and his authority on the island, especially with the new arrivals. Daniel doesn't seem to be much of a problem, since his personal goals often appear to override his more nefarious orders. Charlotte, on the other hand, definitely treats the survivors as a threat, and her attitude communicates the dubious nature of her real mission as surely as the behavior of the crew on the "rescue boat". The stage has definitely been set for conflict in the very near future.
This episode is the latest evidence of the writing staff's renewed sense of purpose. The narrative has been moving forward at a measured but substantial pace, and now that the format has been expanded to include flash-forwards and other unusual perspective changes, the conventions of the series are no longer an impediment. In fact, this season has shown a very strong start, possibly better than any start to a season since the beginning of the series. Hopefully the post-writers'-strike episodes will maintain the same quality. |
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