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by Frederic Germay
Richard is seemingly incapable of aging. Richard and Ben wiped out the Dharma Initiative. Locke is no longer the peaceful island shaman that we used to know. Jacob is one odd character… And, yeah, Ben is one terrific actor/liar!
Those are just a few among many eye-opening, mind-bending, and heart-grabbing questions/answers posed in tonight's episode. It feels as though I have to rethink almost every theory I ever had about Lost. My head feels ready to explode right about now!
The subplot involved the beach boys (and girls) finding a certain recording containing info regarding Juliet's apparent deception. According to Juliet, she told Jack everything she knew a couple of days ago, and he was 'deciding' what to do. Even if she is telling the truth, this whole thing with Juliet and Jack smells fishy (I don't trust either of them, I mean where were they all this time?). At the very least the castaways know that there is going to be a raid on the beach -- this could lead a very entertaining standoff between the others and the castaways!
Personally, I was hoping for more of a showdown between Sawyer, Sayid, and Juliet. In "One of Us," Juliet manipulated them into a resentful silence, and I guess I was kind of hoping for one of them to gleefully take advantage of this newfound information and spark a fight. It really did seem to me that Sawyer and Jack were actually coming close to blows, but Sayid seemed rather uninterested by this turn of event. Sadly, Naomi played an even smaller part in this episode. I really like her character, and I hope that she becomes a permanent fixture in this show.
As for Matthew Fox, I really enjoy his character and if previous episodes are any indication, he is a very talented actor. Although Lost is really regaining its footing through the final part of the season, I really feel as though one of the show's greatest strengths is taking a back seat to the action. Fox really seems to be a guest actor in the show now, and I can only hope that the alleged 2-hour Jack-centric season finale will do his character justice!
Concerning the highly engaging main story line about Locke and Ben, this was one of the reasons why I loved Lost so much during its first season. This episode was so beautifully written, and the scoring throughout this eppie was above spot-on! There were scenes that made me sit on the edge of my seat, not knowing what the heck was about to happen. I guess I'm a bit of jaded TV viewer, so it really takes a lot to get me on the edge of my seat, let alone provide a series of completely unpredictable plot twists!
Ben's past was, in many ways, heartbreaking. A neglectful father, and a dead mother is going to lead to a few mental issues. It didn't help that Ben's father blamed him for his mother's death. In the end, this flashback provided the answer for the mystery that many people probably forgot. Ben killed his own father, Roger "Workman" Linus. If that doesn't make you a pathological control freak liar mastermind…
Speaking of lying, the entire sequence with Ben and Jacob was incredibly fascinating. I thought that Ben had really lost it when he started talking to the chair, but when that mini-earthquake happened, I could've sworn I saw someone in that chair. When that creepy voice uttered "Help me," I thought that this scene couldn't be done any other way. Crazy me, I was actually expecting this Jacob to be a person, and in retrospect it probably would have quite disappointing if 'Darlton' put a face this guy too early. For example, Linderman from Heroes was a highly anticipated character, and part of that was due to the inability to attach a face to this villain. People let their imagination of him grow into many possibilities, and when he was revealed, I felt as though the character lost a bit of its luster.
I was so sad when Ben shot Locke. The Lost writers are making a serious mistake if they get rid of the Emmy-nominated Terry O'Quinn, because he is responsible for delivering some of the most important Lost mysteries ever (plus, he's a good actor). Then again, taking into consideration Ausselio's revelation about the season finale's mortality rate, there is a distinct possibility that Locke could be one of the casualties.
I have to praise Michael Emerson right now -- imagine how tough it is for a great actor to be playing a great actor. All of his scenes are the gems of each of their corresponding episodes. I enjoyed his little breakdown when the recorder went missing, I felt chills when the fear in his eyes was clearly visible as he approached Jacob's residence, and I laughed out loud at the look on Ben's face when Locke called him out in front of the others. What takes the cake, for me, is when he was talking to the chair. He almost had me convinced that there really was someone there, and there really was, except he didn't know that and was just making it all up. Confused yet?
Overall, this was a terrific episode of Lost and perhaps one of the best of the season! I give it a 9/10.
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