TBG TV: Lost -- "Everybody Loves Hugo"

Three Things I Dug:

La Misma Madre: I've never been a fan of the Hurley character, but I've always gotten a kick out of the infrequent appearances of his parents. There was no Cheech Marin this week, but Lillian Hurst returned for a cameo as Hurley's mom in the sideways-reality. She was only onscreen for a few moments, but struck a tone of acerbic condescension that only a well-meaning, matchmaking mother could reach. Aside from the Puerto Rican accent, she sounded a lot like my mother during the assorted awkward, obese or baseball card collecting chapters of my life.

Equipo de Ricardo: I'm not all that attached to this new "red-ass Richard" character and his half-baked "blow it up" plan to protect planet Earth from the threatening ambiguity of ol' Smoky. But, I did appreciate his passionate refusal to hitch his wagon with Hurley's ghost-whisperer brigade. In an especially nice touch, Ben and Miles -- both of whom have seen Dark Locke at his murderous worst -- aligned with Richard, as well. Sometimes, the most sensible choices can be the most entertaining.

Happy Gilmore: [groaning] "Volkswagen...": Obviously, I'm reaching for Lost love this week, but the final sequence of this week's episode was terrific. Sideways Ben Linus is so endearingly charismatic that I actually have mixed feelings about his eventual island epiphany. His pointed -- but polite -- interrogation of Desmond outside the school was appropriately tense. It built towards a great payoff with Sideways Locke on the business end of a hit and run. And, so ends the things I dug about this week's episode.


Three Things I Didn't Dig:

Ilana Goes Boom: Two years ago, the mysterious "Rousseau" character was killed off by means that didn't fit the way the she'd been written (an island-smart survivalist whose paranoia was only exceeded by her intelligence). Ilana met a similarly inexplicable fate this week. Since the moment she debuted, her résumé includes (but, is not limited to): kicking Sayid's ass, leading the Flight 316 survivors and running right into the belly of the beast as the Smoke Monster's destroying the temple. THIS icily confident character is now a skittish, sloppy spitfire who treats 100-year-old dynamite like a sack of trash? And, she goes out like Arzt in season one?! Boo. BOO! There aren't enough "boos" in the world.

Not Everybody Loves Hugo: Hurley's been positioned as obese comic relief for so long that it's nearly impossible to take him seriously as the voice of reason. And, Jorge Garcia is r-e-a-l-l-y stretched when asked to do more than "dude". He was so over-the-top in his attempts to convey his secretly scheming ways (think: immediately after Hurley changed course and professed approval of Richard's plan to procure more dynamite from the Black Rock ship) that he was shifting his eyes back and forth in an unintentional imitation of this dog. Meanwhile the sideways Hurley/Libby stuff was groaningly unwatchable at times with its magical kisses and helpfully marked minivans ("MENTAL HEALTH INSTITUTE").

Sayid: I think I'll mention how the writers have ruined this character every week until he's finally killed off. Cool? Cool.


The Verdict: M'man Movie Joe summed it up perfectly -- "Lost is back to season one form. Meandering episodes filled with frustrating characters capped by a corker of an ending to keep you running back".

Oh, the meandering.