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marinessI don't know whether to bless or curse you all of hooking me on to this damn show.
1. All right, pretty awesome intro, but does anyone else think that honestly, Jacob and Other Guy really should be speaking in an at least slightly more Victorian manner?
2. And ten minutes in, I've finally discovered the point of Lost I have finally discovered the point of Lost - to make me hate Kate, at all ages! And here we thought that would be a mystery. It's not enough that she's a thief. But she has to be stealing New Kids on the Block Triple points for bad taste, doubled for later breaking a promise to a mysterious island god that she'll never steal again, although, since this is Jacob, I'm willing to give her a bit of a pass on this last one. BUT NOT MUCH.
3. "Does it matter?" YES, KATE, the reasons behind blowing a hydrogen bomb matter. See point two above.
4. "Jack wants to blow up the island – good for Jack!" But not so good for the final and contracted season of Lost, I'm thinking. Sawyer, you gotta consider these little details too. But yay for not giving into Kate.
5. Eloise, I'm on Richard's side here. I mean, yes, we kinda know that you'll survive until 2007, but that's just assuming that this is the past you actually experienced and not a past you didn't experience, which is a sentence that made more sense in my head than it ever will on the page, but anyway, point being, they give pregnancy tests to women before mammograms, for crying out loud, and I have got to assume that a thermonuclear device gives off slightly more radiation than that.
6. I'm so glad that somebody's coming down on Radinsky. If somebody would just shoot Radinsky I'd feel so much better. Even knowing that he's going to be trapped in the Swan station for years before committing suicide is just not helping me here. And while we're at it, Radinsky, can we please get a grip? An energy source that strong is still going to be there once your current emergency is done, assuming that no one tries to blow it up with, say, a thermonuclear device or anything. Which not incidentally would be your current emergency. Prioritize, dude. No wonder you ended up in a little underground hatch pushing a button every 108 minutes.
7. I have to agree with the, um, Ajira group of people who are hitting people on the head? What are we calling them? Second Losties? Anyway, my point being, when you're dealing with an island with this level of stress/frustration, you'd probably start hitting people on the head as a friendly sort of gesture too.
8. Ah-ha. So, the connection between all the Losties is that they never keep childhood promises. Can I just note that getting stuck on an island with roaming polar bears, serial killers, smoke monsters, sonic alarms, freaky temples and plane crashes may be just a little overkill on the punishment side for this sort of thing?
9. Sayid has such beautiful arms. I'm just saying. I know we were all thinking it, but sometimes, such thoughts need to be repeated.
10. However, I don't know about you, but if I were taking about a thermonuclear device, I'd want considerably better lighting.
11. "Yeah, I know him. And if I were you, I wouldn't give up on him." Jack, I'm not sure any of us know how to deal with you when you're not being a jerk. Unless you are thinking that John Locke deserves all the crap he'll be getting from the Others and telling this to Richard is the best way to ensure that Locke will later get captured and half tortured and shot and very painfully break his leg. Actually I kinda like that interpretation. Jack the Jerk is back!
12. OHMIGOD, Nadya's death was –
(I can't snark that. Jacob, you suck.)
13. Holy crap. They put a thermonuclear core device in a CANVAS CARRYALL? I take back everything nice that I ever said about these people. (Although in Sayid's defense I am assuming he's still dead inside from the evil that is Jacob.)
14. So, um – Dharma managed to build houses with basements and never happened to dig into the freaking Temple and associated passaged located what, eight feet under them? Anyone else find this slightly suspicious even for a seriously screwed up island?
15. Wait, Richard – you're taking out a pregnant unconscious women through a water filled tunnel? DOES ANYONE ON THIS SHOW EVER THINK?
16. You're….carrying a thermonuclear bomb through the Dharma Initiative barracks? IN A CANVAS CARRYALL? A bomb that not that many years ago was LEAKING RADIATION ALL OVER THE PLACE and just might be unstable? I think the worst thing about this is that you are now making me agree with Kate!
17. DON'T POINT A GUN AT THE THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE! This may literally be one of the stupidest ideas I have ever seen enacted on television. And I watched Three's Company once upon a time, so I know what I'm talking about here.
18. "DON'T FIRE THAT WEAPON!" See, Sayid agrees with me. Although, admittedly, he's the person CARRYING A THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE ON HIS BACK!
19. Roger, both Sayid and I told you NOT TO FIRE THAT WEAPON. Were you not listening to us? It's just fortunate for you that Sayid's beautifully sculpted, hard as nails chest was there to intercept your little bullet. On a less fortunate note this means that Sayid's beautifully sculpted, hard as nails chest might not make it to next season, and if that happens, we are all SO KILLING YOU, Roger.
20. Uh, Roger? You have a rifle. Jack has a handgun. Why are YOU running? For the record, your lousy work attitude and atrocious parenting skills had already convinced us that you seriously suck. No need to add to your record here.
21. Jack, it is only fair for me to point out that had you not become a drug abusing alcoholic, you would not know be stumbling around the Dharma Initiative carrying a wounded man who is carrying a THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE ON HIS BACK. Which is all to say, as much as Roger sucks, this is ALL YOUR FAULT.
(Maybe a little bit Jacob's fault.)
22. Was anyone else seriously hoping that Juliet had sunscreen for the raft ride back to the island?
23. VINCENT MADE IT!!!!! THE MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTER ON THE SHOW! Oh, I'm so happy. I thought the show had forgotten all about him.
(I'm blogging this live, so, naturally, I'm expecting the smoke monster to eat Vincent in the next half of this episode.)
24. By the way, when Bernard and Rose say, "They found us," and "Son of a bitch," in such disappointed tones, I am assuming they are referring to Kate.
You are too.
No blame, Rose, Bernard. We feel the same way.
25. "Is that a bomb?" And worse, Miles, did you SEE WHAT THEY'RE CARRYING IT IN? Not to mention all of the bouncing over dirt hills – anyone else shocked that this island survived to 2007?
26. Ok. I am in love with Rose and Bernard. And not just because they are the ONLY INTELLIGENT PEOPLE on this entire island.
27. Although, ok, here are Rose and Bernard – but weren't other Losties also fleeing from flaming arrows and all that?
28. "It's always something with you people. And now you say, 'Jack's got a bomb.'" I cannot deeply express my love for Rose enough here. "You've travelled back 30 years in time and you're still trying to find ways to shoot each other?" Again. Love.
29. You know, Frank, instead of calling it, "this damn box," you could tell us what's in it.
30. But, Frank, it's nice for SOMEONE to think about the dangers of forest fires. Especially in forests containing a mean nasty smoke monster because how could you tell between the fire smoke and the smoke monster smoke? Well. I guess the smoke monster would be more likely to pick you up off the ground and thump you, which would be one clue.
31. Speaking of forgotten crash victims – what about the other people on Ajira Flight 316, huh? Did these supposed "good guys" at least have the common courtesy to ensure they had plenty of food and water and all that before starting to set the jungle on fire? This show is so mean to its extras.
32. You know, between this and Fringe, I'm getting the idea that J.J. Abrams is obsessed with people who are obsessed with just happening to be near major traumatic incidents of high significance to the major characters.
33. Put like that, John Locke….yeah, we all would want to kill Jacob. But, on the other hand, let's keep in mind that Jacob has kept Michael Emerson happily employed for a few years. So, lose a daughter, gain a major salary for your alter ego – I'd say it's a tradeoff.
34. Wait – Jacob doesn't just sit by as men get pushed out of office windows by their psychotic fathers, he also crashes weddings? Let's kill him.
[Part two]
35. I personally think that Jack and Sawyer should go off for some sweaty man love. But that is definitely just me.
36. Ah. Jack. Good to see we're back to whining again.
37. So, Jacob assists in robberies, helps little boys dream of killing their fathers, lets grown men fall to their dooms, crashes weddings – but is nice enough to give Jack, of all people, his candy bar. I could forgive this, except that he's giving the candy bar to Jack, of all people.
38. Uh, Jack, you do realize that if your utterly insane idea, backed only by an immortal dude to whom it won't matter, a psychotic woman, an insane physicist, and a man stupid enough to put a thermonuclear device on his back (hell, NO, we haven't mentioned the stupidity of this enough), actually works, you won't actually see Kate since she'd be marched directly to a nice federal prison and you would go directly back to surgeoning, so, as attempts to fix relationships go, this seriously lacks something?
39. I have to agree with Sawyer here. Using Juliet as a mere plot device, whatever her motivations, sucks.
40. Look. I wasn't a fan of the whole Sawyer/Juliet relationship to begin with. (Although the way Kate's been this season, I don't particularly want her with him either, although I did in earlier seasons.) And ok. I get, more than get, the "if I never meet you, then I never have to lose you." I even get the "maybe going through a nuclear bomb would be easier than this," because, well, I've had moments like that. Days, even. I get how those significant looks of Sawyer's, that use of "Freckles," would have killed Juliet. I certainly get that even if the writers were willing, in no way would the Disney-owned ABC be up for embracing the whole poly thing, eliminating the foursome concept.
I'm still not buying Juliet walking out on this, just because Sawyer's given Kate a few significant looks.
And then I flashed back to Georgette Heyer's A Civil Contract (one of her very few realistic romance novels), and I really wasn't buying it.
And honestly, how deeply am I supposed to believe that Jack and Juliet really love Kate and Sawyer if they're willing to walk away this easily? (Well, in the sense that getting shot at/carrying a thermonuclear device is easy…never mind! Jack, you are in Tru Wuv.) You guys should have spent much longer at Rose and Bernard's place for clues.
While I'm at it, exactly what makes this Juliet's decision anyway? If I'm counting correctly, we have Miles, Jin, Hurley, Kate (well, we know where she stands), Jack, Sawyer, Juliet, Sayid – eight people, at least three of whom have no idea what's up. How about getting their input?
41. Yes, Kate, wiping off Jack's blood with your dirty fingers infected with loads of strange island bacteria is the best way to treat Jack's injury. Not anyone else injured like that, but Jack, yes. Keep doing just that.
42. For people on a deadline for setting off a thermonuclear device, they sure waste a lot of time talking, don't they?
43. But Jack, you two wouldn't just be saving Claire – you'd also be saving Boone! Did you think of this? Nope. Didn't think so.
44. Ok, and Kate changed her mind….Never mind. I don't really want to understand the motivations of Kate. Incidentally, writers, you need to do some serious rehabilitation – Juliet style rehabilitation (remember how we all hated her at the beginning of season three) if Kate's going to make it with the fans to the end of the show, because, ridiculous.
45. Why, with armed men around, are they CONTINUING to put a thermonuclear device that will "detonate on impact" on a canvas sling on someone's back? I mean, at least Sayid has, in theory, had basic military training, which I presume includes things like "Don't carelessly swing the thermonuclear device against your back."
46. This is just a curious question: if the island can only have one leader at a time, what was going on with the Dharma Initiative, since by definition that would have forced the island to have at least two leaders at a time?
47. Richard Alpert, pusher of stone walls! I think he was cooler in previous episodes, but that may be just me.
48. Thank you, Miles! See, Juliet, this sort of thinking is exactly why this whole "let's set off a thermonuclear device" should have been more of a group decision.
49. This has nothing to do with the show, but I love it when my cat is all draped around my legs and not, to pick something at random that continually happened throughout this show, trying to get on my lap blocking the screen. Good cat. Although admittedly, most of his screen blocking attempts occurred when Kate was onscreen. I think this means something.
50. SHOW! CAN WE STOP SHOOTING GUNS AROUND THE THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE ALREADY!
51. Also, while we're at it, I'm assuming that shooting guns around the Swan Station given that they know nothing about the energy system below is probably not the brightest of moves either.
52. :: watching the carnage around the Swan station :: You people all deserve to die. Except Hurley and Miles and Jin.
53. Do we not SEE the flaming sparks around a drill that IS ALREADY OVERHEATING?
54. I'm not sure why the previously sensible Miles is participating in this, unless a) the writers want him to die, or b) he just likes to shoot things.
55. I'm not sure if the lack of thermonuclear explosion there was meant to be a commentary on the competency of the U.S. military, or just another illustration of why people suffering from severe gut wounds should not be allowed to reset thermonuclear devices. Although I guess it also shows that shooting guns around it was, you know, just fine!
56. And I repeat: Lost is really mean to its extras.
57. YAY! PHIL DIED! BY IMPALEMENT!
58. And once again, Kate proves her utter, utter uselessness.
Writers, I repeat, and more seriously this time: if you are planning on keeping Kate in the show, and not seriously losing your audience, you are either going to need to rehabilitate Kate to make her at least somewhat sympathetic, or, failing that, make her useful to the other characters/the plot from time to time, instead of making things worse for everyone, or, failing that, at least make her interesting to watch (i.e., Ben, Eloise, Vincent the dog.) This ongoing "me first" coupled with general uselessness coupled with lack of great lines is making it very difficult to watch when she's on screen.
Some anger from Sawyer over this last little failure would be a nice start.
(Were we meant to guess that Juliet was doomed from the start because, you know, "Juliet," showing us that no one should ever name their daughters Juliet, or just doomed for coming to this island?)
59. Oh, good, show. I was worried there for a minute that you were about to forget mysterious group number umpteem carrying around the big box (I guess, less mysterious, now that we know they're working for Jacob.)
60. I am so sorry to say that I recognized Richard's bloody Latin quotation. I am even sorrier for the reason why. It's a gaming thing, natch.
61. Um. Wait. Locke IS dead?
I'm completely with Sun here. I'M SO CONFUSED!
62. And another point of confusion – what the hell is keeping all of these torches in all of these ancient temples lit, and why isn't that what the hell at all concerned about the ongoing risk of fire? What's wrong with setting up a couple of nice electrical lines to the Dharma Initiative's generator, hmm?
63. It's Classics night, isn't it? Alas, my Greek is not up to my Latin at all. I don't know what's on the wall, but I'll bet anything the internet will help me out. Nice nod to the merging of Mediterranean cultures there although I suspect it's less that and more the writers going, "oooh, Greek would look awesome here plus send everyone scrambling to the internet for clues!"
64. "What was so wrong with me?" Oh, Ben, Ben. Where do we start, except to say that clearly your little encounter with the smoke monster did not give you the self insights we might have expected.
65. Jacob, I think I liked you better when you were just crashing weddings.
And, "They're coming?" Lost, surely we have an overabundance of mysterious groups with concealed purposes on the island already?
66. Other things that you should not do to a thermonuclear device: HIT IT WITH A ROCK. And can I just point out, SAWYER JUST SAID THAT HE LOVED YOU AND CALLED YOU BLONDIE! Is this really the time to be setting off thermonuclear devices?
67. Wait, I HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL 2010 TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS?
A few other questions:
1. I thought Jacob lived in the cabin? Why the sudden change to the statue? Does either spot have a decent bathroom?
2. I really, really try to avoid reading racial issues into Lost – but is it bothering anyone else that the deities turn out to be two white guys, on a show that has generally not, to put it mildly, been kind to its black characters? (Ok, yes, Walt and Rose are alive. The others, not so much. And while you can say that the show hasn't been kind to most of its surviving characters, the surviving major characters have been white and Asian, with one Hispanic. And Rose was never a major character.) I guess I'm also mildly bothered since I just praised Abrams' other show, Fringe, for avoiding this problem.
1. All right, pretty awesome intro, but does anyone else think that honestly, Jacob and Other Guy really should be speaking in an at least slightly more Victorian manner?
2. And ten minutes in, I've finally discovered the point of Lost I have finally discovered the point of Lost - to make me hate Kate, at all ages! And here we thought that would be a mystery. It's not enough that she's a thief. But she has to be stealing New Kids on the Block Triple points for bad taste, doubled for later breaking a promise to a mysterious island god that she'll never steal again, although, since this is Jacob, I'm willing to give her a bit of a pass on this last one. BUT NOT MUCH.
3. "Does it matter?" YES, KATE, the reasons behind blowing a hydrogen bomb matter. See point two above.
4. "Jack wants to blow up the island – good for Jack!" But not so good for the final and contracted season of Lost, I'm thinking. Sawyer, you gotta consider these little details too. But yay for not giving into Kate.
5. Eloise, I'm on Richard's side here. I mean, yes, we kinda know that you'll survive until 2007, but that's just assuming that this is the past you actually experienced and not a past you didn't experience, which is a sentence that made more sense in my head than it ever will on the page, but anyway, point being, they give pregnancy tests to women before mammograms, for crying out loud, and I have got to assume that a thermonuclear device gives off slightly more radiation than that.
6. I'm so glad that somebody's coming down on Radinsky. If somebody would just shoot Radinsky I'd feel so much better. Even knowing that he's going to be trapped in the Swan station for years before committing suicide is just not helping me here. And while we're at it, Radinsky, can we please get a grip? An energy source that strong is still going to be there once your current emergency is done, assuming that no one tries to blow it up with, say, a thermonuclear device or anything. Which not incidentally would be your current emergency. Prioritize, dude. No wonder you ended up in a little underground hatch pushing a button every 108 minutes.
7. I have to agree with the, um, Ajira group of people who are hitting people on the head? What are we calling them? Second Losties? Anyway, my point being, when you're dealing with an island with this level of stress/frustration, you'd probably start hitting people on the head as a friendly sort of gesture too.
8. Ah-ha. So, the connection between all the Losties is that they never keep childhood promises. Can I just note that getting stuck on an island with roaming polar bears, serial killers, smoke monsters, sonic alarms, freaky temples and plane crashes may be just a little overkill on the punishment side for this sort of thing?
9. Sayid has such beautiful arms. I'm just saying. I know we were all thinking it, but sometimes, such thoughts need to be repeated.
10. However, I don't know about you, but if I were taking about a thermonuclear device, I'd want considerably better lighting.
11. "Yeah, I know him. And if I were you, I wouldn't give up on him." Jack, I'm not sure any of us know how to deal with you when you're not being a jerk. Unless you are thinking that John Locke deserves all the crap he'll be getting from the Others and telling this to Richard is the best way to ensure that Locke will later get captured and half tortured and shot and very painfully break his leg. Actually I kinda like that interpretation. Jack the Jerk is back!
12. OHMIGOD, Nadya's death was –
(I can't snark that. Jacob, you suck.)
13. Holy crap. They put a thermonuclear core device in a CANVAS CARRYALL? I take back everything nice that I ever said about these people. (Although in Sayid's defense I am assuming he's still dead inside from the evil that is Jacob.)
14. So, um – Dharma managed to build houses with basements and never happened to dig into the freaking Temple and associated passaged located what, eight feet under them? Anyone else find this slightly suspicious even for a seriously screwed up island?
15. Wait, Richard – you're taking out a pregnant unconscious women through a water filled tunnel? DOES ANYONE ON THIS SHOW EVER THINK?
16. You're….carrying a thermonuclear bomb through the Dharma Initiative barracks? IN A CANVAS CARRYALL? A bomb that not that many years ago was LEAKING RADIATION ALL OVER THE PLACE and just might be unstable? I think the worst thing about this is that you are now making me agree with Kate!
17. DON'T POINT A GUN AT THE THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE! This may literally be one of the stupidest ideas I have ever seen enacted on television. And I watched Three's Company once upon a time, so I know what I'm talking about here.
18. "DON'T FIRE THAT WEAPON!" See, Sayid agrees with me. Although, admittedly, he's the person CARRYING A THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE ON HIS BACK!
19. Roger, both Sayid and I told you NOT TO FIRE THAT WEAPON. Were you not listening to us? It's just fortunate for you that Sayid's beautifully sculpted, hard as nails chest was there to intercept your little bullet. On a less fortunate note this means that Sayid's beautifully sculpted, hard as nails chest might not make it to next season, and if that happens, we are all SO KILLING YOU, Roger.
20. Uh, Roger? You have a rifle. Jack has a handgun. Why are YOU running? For the record, your lousy work attitude and atrocious parenting skills had already convinced us that you seriously suck. No need to add to your record here.
21. Jack, it is only fair for me to point out that had you not become a drug abusing alcoholic, you would not know be stumbling around the Dharma Initiative carrying a wounded man who is carrying a THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE ON HIS BACK. Which is all to say, as much as Roger sucks, this is ALL YOUR FAULT.
(Maybe a little bit Jacob's fault.)
22. Was anyone else seriously hoping that Juliet had sunscreen for the raft ride back to the island?
23. VINCENT MADE IT!!!!! THE MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTER ON THE SHOW! Oh, I'm so happy. I thought the show had forgotten all about him.
(I'm blogging this live, so, naturally, I'm expecting the smoke monster to eat Vincent in the next half of this episode.)
24. By the way, when Bernard and Rose say, "They found us," and "Son of a bitch," in such disappointed tones, I am assuming they are referring to Kate.
You are too.
No blame, Rose, Bernard. We feel the same way.
25. "Is that a bomb?" And worse, Miles, did you SEE WHAT THEY'RE CARRYING IT IN? Not to mention all of the bouncing over dirt hills – anyone else shocked that this island survived to 2007?
26. Ok. I am in love with Rose and Bernard. And not just because they are the ONLY INTELLIGENT PEOPLE on this entire island.
27. Although, ok, here are Rose and Bernard – but weren't other Losties also fleeing from flaming arrows and all that?
28. "It's always something with you people. And now you say, 'Jack's got a bomb.'" I cannot deeply express my love for Rose enough here. "You've travelled back 30 years in time and you're still trying to find ways to shoot each other?" Again. Love.
29. You know, Frank, instead of calling it, "this damn box," you could tell us what's in it.
30. But, Frank, it's nice for SOMEONE to think about the dangers of forest fires. Especially in forests containing a mean nasty smoke monster because how could you tell between the fire smoke and the smoke monster smoke? Well. I guess the smoke monster would be more likely to pick you up off the ground and thump you, which would be one clue.
31. Speaking of forgotten crash victims – what about the other people on Ajira Flight 316, huh? Did these supposed "good guys" at least have the common courtesy to ensure they had plenty of food and water and all that before starting to set the jungle on fire? This show is so mean to its extras.
32. You know, between this and Fringe, I'm getting the idea that J.J. Abrams is obsessed with people who are obsessed with just happening to be near major traumatic incidents of high significance to the major characters.
33. Put like that, John Locke….yeah, we all would want to kill Jacob. But, on the other hand, let's keep in mind that Jacob has kept Michael Emerson happily employed for a few years. So, lose a daughter, gain a major salary for your alter ego – I'd say it's a tradeoff.
34. Wait – Jacob doesn't just sit by as men get pushed out of office windows by their psychotic fathers, he also crashes weddings? Let's kill him.
[Part two]
35. I personally think that Jack and Sawyer should go off for some sweaty man love. But that is definitely just me.
36. Ah. Jack. Good to see we're back to whining again.
37. So, Jacob assists in robberies, helps little boys dream of killing their fathers, lets grown men fall to their dooms, crashes weddings – but is nice enough to give Jack, of all people, his candy bar. I could forgive this, except that he's giving the candy bar to Jack, of all people.
38. Uh, Jack, you do realize that if your utterly insane idea, backed only by an immortal dude to whom it won't matter, a psychotic woman, an insane physicist, and a man stupid enough to put a thermonuclear device on his back (hell, NO, we haven't mentioned the stupidity of this enough), actually works, you won't actually see Kate since she'd be marched directly to a nice federal prison and you would go directly back to surgeoning, so, as attempts to fix relationships go, this seriously lacks something?
39. I have to agree with Sawyer here. Using Juliet as a mere plot device, whatever her motivations, sucks.
40. Look. I wasn't a fan of the whole Sawyer/Juliet relationship to begin with. (Although the way Kate's been this season, I don't particularly want her with him either, although I did in earlier seasons.) And ok. I get, more than get, the "if I never meet you, then I never have to lose you." I even get the "maybe going through a nuclear bomb would be easier than this," because, well, I've had moments like that. Days, even. I get how those significant looks of Sawyer's, that use of "Freckles," would have killed Juliet. I certainly get that even if the writers were willing, in no way would the Disney-owned ABC be up for embracing the whole poly thing, eliminating the foursome concept.
I'm still not buying Juliet walking out on this, just because Sawyer's given Kate a few significant looks.
And then I flashed back to Georgette Heyer's A Civil Contract (one of her very few realistic romance novels), and I really wasn't buying it.
And honestly, how deeply am I supposed to believe that Jack and Juliet really love Kate and Sawyer if they're willing to walk away this easily? (Well, in the sense that getting shot at/carrying a thermonuclear device is easy…never mind! Jack, you are in Tru Wuv.) You guys should have spent much longer at Rose and Bernard's place for clues.
While I'm at it, exactly what makes this Juliet's decision anyway? If I'm counting correctly, we have Miles, Jin, Hurley, Kate (well, we know where she stands), Jack, Sawyer, Juliet, Sayid – eight people, at least three of whom have no idea what's up. How about getting their input?
41. Yes, Kate, wiping off Jack's blood with your dirty fingers infected with loads of strange island bacteria is the best way to treat Jack's injury. Not anyone else injured like that, but Jack, yes. Keep doing just that.
42. For people on a deadline for setting off a thermonuclear device, they sure waste a lot of time talking, don't they?
43. But Jack, you two wouldn't just be saving Claire – you'd also be saving Boone! Did you think of this? Nope. Didn't think so.
44. Ok, and Kate changed her mind….Never mind. I don't really want to understand the motivations of Kate. Incidentally, writers, you need to do some serious rehabilitation – Juliet style rehabilitation (remember how we all hated her at the beginning of season three) if Kate's going to make it with the fans to the end of the show, because, ridiculous.
45. Why, with armed men around, are they CONTINUING to put a thermonuclear device that will "detonate on impact" on a canvas sling on someone's back? I mean, at least Sayid has, in theory, had basic military training, which I presume includes things like "Don't carelessly swing the thermonuclear device against your back."
46. This is just a curious question: if the island can only have one leader at a time, what was going on with the Dharma Initiative, since by definition that would have forced the island to have at least two leaders at a time?
47. Richard Alpert, pusher of stone walls! I think he was cooler in previous episodes, but that may be just me.
48. Thank you, Miles! See, Juliet, this sort of thinking is exactly why this whole "let's set off a thermonuclear device" should have been more of a group decision.
49. This has nothing to do with the show, but I love it when my cat is all draped around my legs and not, to pick something at random that continually happened throughout this show, trying to get on my lap blocking the screen. Good cat. Although admittedly, most of his screen blocking attempts occurred when Kate was onscreen. I think this means something.
50. SHOW! CAN WE STOP SHOOTING GUNS AROUND THE THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE ALREADY!
51. Also, while we're at it, I'm assuming that shooting guns around the Swan Station given that they know nothing about the energy system below is probably not the brightest of moves either.
52. :: watching the carnage around the Swan station :: You people all deserve to die. Except Hurley and Miles and Jin.
53. Do we not SEE the flaming sparks around a drill that IS ALREADY OVERHEATING?
54. I'm not sure why the previously sensible Miles is participating in this, unless a) the writers want him to die, or b) he just likes to shoot things.
55. I'm not sure if the lack of thermonuclear explosion there was meant to be a commentary on the competency of the U.S. military, or just another illustration of why people suffering from severe gut wounds should not be allowed to reset thermonuclear devices. Although I guess it also shows that shooting guns around it was, you know, just fine!
56. And I repeat: Lost is really mean to its extras.
57. YAY! PHIL DIED! BY IMPALEMENT!
58. And once again, Kate proves her utter, utter uselessness.
Writers, I repeat, and more seriously this time: if you are planning on keeping Kate in the show, and not seriously losing your audience, you are either going to need to rehabilitate Kate to make her at least somewhat sympathetic, or, failing that, make her useful to the other characters/the plot from time to time, instead of making things worse for everyone, or, failing that, at least make her interesting to watch (i.e., Ben, Eloise, Vincent the dog.) This ongoing "me first" coupled with general uselessness coupled with lack of great lines is making it very difficult to watch when she's on screen.
Some anger from Sawyer over this last little failure would be a nice start.
(Were we meant to guess that Juliet was doomed from the start because, you know, "Juliet," showing us that no one should ever name their daughters Juliet, or just doomed for coming to this island?)
59. Oh, good, show. I was worried there for a minute that you were about to forget mysterious group number umpteem carrying around the big box (I guess, less mysterious, now that we know they're working for Jacob.)
60. I am so sorry to say that I recognized Richard's bloody Latin quotation. I am even sorrier for the reason why. It's a gaming thing, natch.
61. Um. Wait. Locke IS dead?
I'm completely with Sun here. I'M SO CONFUSED!
62. And another point of confusion – what the hell is keeping all of these torches in all of these ancient temples lit, and why isn't that what the hell at all concerned about the ongoing risk of fire? What's wrong with setting up a couple of nice electrical lines to the Dharma Initiative's generator, hmm?
63. It's Classics night, isn't it? Alas, my Greek is not up to my Latin at all. I don't know what's on the wall, but I'll bet anything the internet will help me out. Nice nod to the merging of Mediterranean cultures there although I suspect it's less that and more the writers going, "oooh, Greek would look awesome here plus send everyone scrambling to the internet for clues!"
64. "What was so wrong with me?" Oh, Ben, Ben. Where do we start, except to say that clearly your little encounter with the smoke monster did not give you the self insights we might have expected.
65. Jacob, I think I liked you better when you were just crashing weddings.
And, "They're coming?" Lost, surely we have an overabundance of mysterious groups with concealed purposes on the island already?
66. Other things that you should not do to a thermonuclear device: HIT IT WITH A ROCK. And can I just point out, SAWYER JUST SAID THAT HE LOVED YOU AND CALLED YOU BLONDIE! Is this really the time to be setting off thermonuclear devices?
67. Wait, I HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL 2010 TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS?
A few other questions:
1. I thought Jacob lived in the cabin? Why the sudden change to the statue? Does either spot have a decent bathroom?
2. I really, really try to avoid reading racial issues into Lost – but is it bothering anyone else that the deities turn out to be two white guys, on a show that has generally not, to put it mildly, been kind to its black characters? (Ok, yes, Walt and Rose are alive. The others, not so much. And while you can say that the show hasn't been kind to most of its surviving characters, the surviving major characters have been white and Asian, with one Hispanic. And Rose was never a major character.) I guess I'm also mildly bothered since I just praised Abrams' other show, Fringe, for avoiding this problem.