Summary: Flashbacks show Ben telling Locke that he must kill his father to join the others. Locke is unable to do it and so Ben decides to leave him behind. Richard goes to Locke and tells him that he could go to Sawyer to get him to kill his father. In the present, Locke finds Sawyer and takes him into the jungle, telling him that he kidnapped Ben and needs Sawyer to kill him. Sawyer reluctantly goes with Locke and finds himself in the Black Rock. Locke locks him in with Anthony and Sawyer realizes that Anthony is the Mr. Sawyer he has been hunting all along. After Anthony tears Sawyer's letter, Sawyer strangles him to death with a chain. Locke goes to return to the others but leaves Sawyer proof that Juliet is a mole. Meanwhile, Hurley, Charloe, Jin and Desmond decide to bring Sayid into the loop regarding Naomi but don't want to let Jack in. Sayid fixes the satellite phone but can't find any available channels. Kate sees Sayid at work and Sayid tells her the truth, asking her to keep it secret. Kate ends up telling Jack and Juliet anyways out of frustration.
The Good: Locke and Sawyer's storyline in this episode is fantastic. It's a perfect blend of mystery, drama and character work that builds up patiently and intriguingly before delivering one of the most memorable sequences of the show so far towards the end of the episode. The way the mystery is developed early in the episode is perfect. Locke's arrival raises plenty of questions, and his claim that he kidnapped Ben with plans to kill him immediately sounds suspicious. It's difficult to uncover what exactly is going on, but the intrigue makes it exciting to figure out. In the present, we're with Sawyer as he tries to figure out what is really going on, while in the past we get to see the timeline get closer to the present, making the mystery steadily grow clearer and clearer. It's a wonderfully slow paced delivery of information that is executed perfectly to get maximal drama. Now most astute viewers will figure out the Mr. Sawyer twist well before the climax of the episode. But somehow taking away the shock element actually benefits the episode hugely. With the amount of clues this episode subtly gives us towards figuring out why Locke is taking Sawyer out into the jungle, it's very easy to figure out the twist, which leads me to believe that the moment was not written to be a surprise. We are meant to discover the reality of the situation before Sawyer, and the drama from the episode comes from the anticipation of Sawyer confronting the man he's been hunting all this time rather than wondering what happens next. Removing the surprise from the moment of the Mr. Sawyer reveal actually benefits the scene as well. Instead of feeling meaningless shock, we are allowed to spend the entire scene in Sawyer's shoes, getting to appreciate the emotional reaction he has to finally meeting the man responsible for the deaths of his parents. And Josh Holloway does a superb job of making the most out of the moment. The entire sequence in the Black Rock is some of the best television that this show has produced. The focus is almost solely on the three characters of Sawyer, Locke and Anthony and they completely steal the show. Everything Anthony says in the scene is excellent, adding more and more intrigue to the scene. He reveals Locke's paralysis to Sawyer, confirms that Flight 815 crashed, fuels the possibility of the island being a sort of hell, and finally reveals to Sawyer who he really is. It's tremendously entertaining stuff that escalates in tension the further it goes on. Everything after Sawyer learns Anthony's identity is somehow even better, being a masterclass of tension and drama leading up to Sawyer murdering Anthony in cold blood (see: Best Moment). The fallout from this scene is also excellent. It's great to see Sawyer and Locke bond a little more with this experience and they share a brilliantly written scene following Sawyer murdering Anthony. I really appreciate the detail of Sawyer vomiting after his exhaustively emotional ordeal, and Locke thanking him was really good. I liked that they addressed Locke's paralysis and Juliet's status as a mole, ensuring that the entertainment did not come to a halt following Anthony's death. The episode went to its logical conclusion, and went the extra mile to make it more meaningful. The side story involving Naomi was also very well done. I really like the decision not to tell Jack about her due to his affiliation with Juliet, and the possibility of rescue is far too important to risk. The decision to rope Sayid in was pleasingly logical, and I love that he immediately interrogated Naomi with suspicion of her being an other. I thought the interrogation scenes were very good as they gave us the necessary exposition in an interesting way. I enjoyed getting a better look at the others through Locke's flashbacks. There are still plenty of details the show seems to be avoiding but it was nice to get some more hints at who they are and what they do. The Bad: The one big problem in this episode is Kate. Kate stumbles upon the fact that Sayid and co. have found a potential rescue and so she knows to keep it quiet from Juliet. But then she inexplicably marches straight to Jack and Juliet and openly tells them both about Naomi, a move that makes no sense whatsoever and seems so incredibly stupid. Surely rescue is more important to Kate than expressing frustration towards Jack. I wasn't happy about Ben telling Locke about how Juliet is his mole. Why would he divulge such important information to the man who was working against his interests mere days ago? The Unknown: Is Jack trustworthy? What did Juliet want him to tell Kate about? Does he have some kind of plan in place? How did Anthony end up on the island? Did the others somehow bring him? Is there any weight to Anthony's theory of everyone being in hell? Anthony confirms that Flight 815 was actually discovered, so Naomi isn't lying about that. How is that possible? How do you get initiated as an other? Did everyone else go through a similar process of proving themselves like Locke did? Also what is the purpose of the others? Richard seems discontent to be working on fertility. What other things do the others want to be working on instead? What was Rousseau doing at the Black Rock? What was the dynamite for? Best Moment: Upon learning who Anthony Cooper is, Sawyer carefully probes him to ensure that this is the same man who killed his parents. Anthony remains cocky and confident despite Sawyer's obvious change, creating a very unique and intense dynamic. Slowly, Sawyer gives Anthony the letter and gets him to read it. Anthony discredits everything and refuses to take responsibility, getting under Sawyer's skin more and more. The tension boils and boils throughout this scene until everything explodes when Anthony callously tears Sawyer's letter. The music halts, and we get an outstanding moment as Sawyer angrily and aggressively chokes out Anthony, unleashing all of those years of pent up rage. It's a thoroughly satisfying moment and one that hits all of the emotional beats it tries to. Near flawless television. Character of the Episode: Sawyer. Conclusion: This was a brilliant episode that gives us emotional closure to one of both Locke and Sawyer's defining storylines of the series. Not only does that make this episode significant and suspenseful, but it also makes it emotional and unforgettable. This is "Lost" doing what it does best. Despite the slow start, the back half of this season looks to be picking up a lot. I'm very excited for what comes next. Score: 83
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Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
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