TBG TV: Lost -- "The Candidate"

Three Things I Dug:

(End) Game On!: Dark Locke's meticulously despicable plot to kill off the remaining Oceanic survivors was just the kind of storyline acceleration I've been waiting 13 weeks for. It wasn't the most airtight piece of storytelling (Sawyer's comically unconvincing declaration of loyalty to Dark Locke; the first wave of the submarine capture effort being led by the mortal characters, instead of the immortal one), but I can't complain too much about the path down any road that ends with Dark Locke's campy "I'm gonna finish what I started!" exclamation. You've only got three weeks to follow through on your comic book quality bombast!

Trust Me!: The interaction between Jack and Sawyer -- while immersed in a terse debate over the pros and cons of bomb disarmament -- was predictable, but still well done. Matthew Fox conveyed the proper "I know you've got NO reason to trust me, but...trust me!" sense of urgency and restrained panic, while Sawyer's exasperated reaction to his failed bomb-stopping stunt wasn't so much "I've doomed us all" as it was, "Dammit, Jack was right".

Sideways Locke!: This is another storyline that I'm not entirely enamored with, but of all the flash-sideways "survivors", Locke is easily the most interesting. Setting aside the silliness of "miracle paralysis-reversing surgeries" and a sedated "sideways Locke" muttering "island Locke" lines from three seasons ago; I'm digging the role-reversal here with Locke as the self-loathing martyr and Jack as the self-righteous man of faith.


Three Things I Didn't Dig:

Don't Shoot! (Seriously.): I know that the viewers are more familiar with the smoke monster than its assortment of victims who are seeing it for the first -- and, often, last -- time. That said...stop having people shoot at the smoke monster, Lost writers! We know it's not going to work even if the characters don't know this. It's as tired as the climactic scene of EVERY episode of The Adventures of Superman from the 1950s: three guys in bad suits and fedoras firing pistols right at Superman's chest. And, then Superman wins. Again. Like always.

RIP, Sayid: Soooo...Sayid was "infected" by the same darkness that corrupted (Killah) Claire. This was established. Sayid was, in fact, SO evil that he scared off an amoral monster like Ben with just a knowing glance and one line of dialogue ("It's too late for me...") earlier this season. But, after a talk with Desmond down at the ol' wishing well, Sayid is, what...cured? His sacrifice seemed especially contrived to me, at least without any explanation for his motivation. I'd been counting the days until Sayid was killed off, yet this still made no sense.

RIP, Everyone Else: The demise of Sun and Jin did nothing for me. Their relationship had gone as far as it could (from kinda-sorta abusive to Hallmark card effusive) three seasons ago and their separation/reunion felt like 10% of the powerful Desmond/Penny storyline. And, I don't wanna be that guy, but not ONE mention of their daughter -- by either Sun or Jin -- as the sub's filling up with water? If Mrs. Bootleg was in Sun's position and I was in Jin's, she'd beat my ass in the afterlife if I'd left our child alone. Of course, the one death that did resonate with me (Lapidus) came off as an afterthought. Did none of the survivors have any tears, sobs or overacting moans left for Lapidus as they congregated on the shore?


The Verdict: Can we agree that the significant plot movement here makes up for what's been, at times, a nonsensical and unsatisfying season? OK, then.