Summary: Flashbacks show Dan crying as he sees news about Flight 815 being found. Miles is revealed to be somebody who can communicate with ghosts, which he has adopted for his own business. Charlotte is an anthropologist and she finds a Dharma Initiative polar bear in the Tunisian desert. Frank watches the news of the Flight 815 wreckage being found and realizes that it is fake. Naomi is assigned her mission by the mysterious man from "The Beginning of the End". On the island, Jack and Kate quiz Dan about his intentions. Dan leads them to Miles who threatens Jack and Kate at gunpoint, demanding to be taken to Naomi. After talking with Naomi's spirit, Miles deduces that Jack and Kate are telling the truth about Locke. Juliet and Sayid arrive and turn the tables on Miles and Dan. The group keep walking and they find Frank, who landed the helicopter safely. Upon learning that Juliet is an other, Miles questions her on the location of Ben, who is the group's primary target. Meanwhile, Charlotte is picked up by Locke's group. Locke doesn't want to send her away and starts quizzing her, but Ben steals Karl's gun and shoots her. Charlotte is wearing a vest and is fine. Locke prepares to kill Ben, but Ben reveals that he knows everything about the 4 people who came in because he has a spy on their boat.
The Good: This episode's format is stellar. After the formula break established two episodes earlier, "Lost" grows bold once again and has another sharp change. This time we return to flashbacks, but we divide them between the 5 characters who came from the freighter, giving us an episode that introduces a truckload of characters in an organic and unique way. Right before we get introduced to each new character on the island, we see a brief flashback of their lives before which gives us a rough idea of what to expect while leaving out just enough information to ensure that our interests are piqued. Going around at such a fast pace learning about new characters is a tremendous amount of fun, and the episode adds on to this exciting thrill ride of an episode by throwing in tons of plot developments, dramatic twists, funny moments and even some pieces of mystery that will be essential for figuring out what's really going on with these freighter people. The characters that are introduced are quite fun to watch. This episode's pacing makes it feel like it flies by which is impressive for an episode that does so much exposition and introduction. This is helped by the personalities that these characters possess. Dan's awkwardness is contrasted nicely by Miles' hotheadedness, and they have a really fun dramatic throughout the episode as they interact with Jack and Kate in completely different ways, revealing interesting little tidbits of information as the episode goes on. The characters are also quite fun to watch and the actors do a good job of bringing them to life. While Charlotte and Frank are introduced later in the episode, they still manage to get several scenes to stand out and show us who they are and what to expect from them, while still being shrouded in mystery. That's just the island stories though. Each character gets a gripping flashback scene which introduces some key mysteries that I'm very excited to uncover (see: The Unknown). The Locke half of the episode covers the brunt of the survivors' storyline and it is a joy to watch. Locke's leadership style has always been a joy to watch, and it remains that way here as he communicates openly with everyone and brings up very fair points when discussing plans and making crucial decisions. The writing of his character is superb and it adds a lot more realism to the episode. Ben also has a very entertaining role as the prisoner as he remains unpredictable and extremely effective at manipulation. He has a number of well-written funny lines that allow him to get under the skin of those around him. It makes for an interesting dynamic and it ensures that Ben still remains threatening as a villain, even in captivity. The Bad: I do question why Juliet still hasn't been asked more information about the others. In this episode, Sayid talks to her as if she were one of them and doesn't even so much as hint at how she still has secrets to tell them. Hopefully this can be corrected in future episodes, because the survivors should be much more curious about the others than they currently are. The Unknown: Why was Dan crying when he saw the plane wreckage? Naomi referred to him as a head case. Why? What was wrong with him? He seems to be fine in the present storyline. A little awkward and nervous sure, but he seems normal. What changed? What is Miles' ability? Has the show confirmed the existence of ghosts or spirits? Could this have something to do with the whispers? Is Miles' power even real? He seems to contact Naomi effectively so I'm willing to bet that it is. How did a Dharma Initiative polar bear appear in the Tunisian desert? Where did it come from? How did it get there? Charlotte seemed excited to discover that it tied to the Dharma Initiative. How is she connected to them? Was she looking for this bear specifically? Why? The mysterious man who visited Hurley in the last episode appears again. It seems that he is the one in charge of everything on the boat. Who is he? Why did he hire this specific crew? What's so special about everyone he selected? What are his goals? He also seemed to be fully aware that the Flight 815 wreckage isn't real. How does he know that? Does he have something to do with why this fake wreckage exists to begin with? Why are the freighter people looking for Ben? Who are they? What has he done to them to make them target him? Why did these people bring gas masks? Best Moment: The end of the episode is a wonderful piece of drama. After Ben proves to be more dangerous than expected, Locke gives in to logic and the demand of his people and chooses to kill Ben. But when Ben offers to give him knowledge, he asks him "what is the monster". It's a brilliant moment that shows a character asking a very sensible question (something this show doesn't always do) while also providing us some interesting information as even Ben doesn't seem to know what it is. And to cap things off, the episode ends with a tremendous twist as Ben reveals that he knows everything about the people from the freighter because he has planted a man on their boat somehow. It's a terrific reveal that provides a perfect dramatic climax to the episode that leaves you eagerly awaiting to watch more. Brilliant television. Character of the Episode: It's tough to choose since so many characters are excellent here. I'll go with Ben for that final moment. Conclusion: This is excellent stuff. While there isn't much of an emotional edge to this episode, it does do a remarkably good job of setting the stage for season 4, working at a brisk pace and giving us several memorable moments to leave us desperate for more. This is a near perfect way to get the story moving for the much shorter season 4, and the episode certainly did its job of getting me excited for what's to come. Score: 73
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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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