We continue with our round-table discussions of Lost. This week, we’re joined by Bridget McGovern and Theresa DeLucci. As always, spoilers abound, so stay away from this post if you haven’t watched the latest episode of Lost, “Some Like it Hoth.”
Bridget: First of all? Best Episode Title Ever. I love that Lost can go balls-to-the-wall nerdcore and not lose a step; in fact, with all the rampant daddy issues ricocheting around, it’s about time somebody finally brought up Empire…I’m just glad it was Hurley. The Hurley/Miles pairing is really one of my favorite things this season; they’re like the Butch and Sundance of Dudes Who Can Talk To Dead People. (That’s right—suck it, Bruce Willis!). I’m also extremely happy that Ken Leung got to stretch a little bit in this episode; much as I love hypersarcastic Miles and his massive ‘tude (and I really, really do), I’m glad he was able to show a bit more range in his interactions with Pierre Chang, his mother, and Hurley. And I’m not going to lie: Pierced, angsty, labret-sporting Alterna-Miles made my week. So awesome.
So, now we know that Miles is now inhabiting the same space and time as his three month-old-self, and his estranged father, Chang/Marvin Candle (Hurley: “Maybe he’ll let you hold Baby You, or let you change your own diaper!”). We’ve got the origins of his recruitment to Widmore’s team (by Naomi), and the fact that the “Do you know what lies in the shadow of the statue?” faction is militantly anti-Widmore. The Dharma Initiative is in the process of building the infamous Hatch, which is already exhibiting the magnetic force that will eventually cause cataclysmic future events. And we already knew that the Ewoks suck.
My major questions involve Faraday—he’s back on The Island in 1977, though we have no idea what’s happened to him since 1973. He doesn’t seem crazed or visibly traumatized, and he recognizes adult Miles; is it possible that he has already been in contact with Widmore, possibly off-Island? Also, who’s leading this other faction—it makes sense to assume they’re in league with Ben, right? As far as the Kate/Jack/Sawyer/Juliet drama is concerned, the heat is obviously on within the Initiative…but honestly, who has time for that when Hurley’s talking about Boba Fett getting eaten by the Sarlacc? This episode was one of my all-time favorites: it furthers the plot, keeping all the important narrative balls in the air and connecting complex dots, while still remaining insanely clever, and most importantly, fun. Watching Lost lately is like getting a preview of nerd heaven…
Theresa: Best. Episode. Title. Ever. (Shite, like an echo chamber here…)
I missed Hurley and had nearly forgotten that Miles was on this show. They’ve been relegated to the background for far too long. I forgot that both characters interact with dead people on a regular basis. However, I think the contest for coolest undead conversations is a tie. Miles can exploit the dead for lots of useful info and milk the living for lots of cash, but Hurley gets to play chess with Mr. Eko. Ken Leung has had my heart since he buddied up to Uncle Junior on the Sopranos, but he really did a good job here. Much like early Sawyer, all that snark is a cover for a soft, gooey center. And yes – multi-pierced Miles was rather awesome.
So is it a requirement for every male on the Island to have Daddy Didn’t Love Me issues? It’s so boring. However, I’m willing to push my annoyance down because we get to learn a little more about smartass Miles and the mysterious Dr. Chang. I loved the horrified look on Hurley’s face when he heard the notorious numbers being read for imprinting on the hatch door. Is he going to try and stop the hatch from being built? I think he’d be better off trying to do that than write the script for Empire Strikes Back. Which was freaking hilarious. Didn’t Hurley see the prequels once he got off the Island? Why would he want to do something “nice” for Lucas? Yes, it was cool that the daddy issue of the Skywalker family provided a strong metaphor for Miles, but when can we see all of Hurley’s script? Will he get to improve other movies, too?
So now perhaps the disjointed stories will tie into each other more as Sawyer’s web of lies unravel all over the island. What lies in the shadow of the statue? Where is the weird viral marketing campaign for this phrase to give us even a hint of what Ilana and co. are up to? Most importantly: how did Faraday get to the Island in 1977? My second favorite character who gets unstuck in time! This was a fun to watch episode and I’m super pissed that we have to wait 2 weeks for a new episode.
