So last night was the Season 3 premiere of Lost, hyped by one TV Guide reviewer as being the best single episode since the pilot (meaning it topped such gems as "Walkabout" and "The Long Con"). Was it, in fact, a five-star episode, as Ain't It Cool News boldly declared? Was it, thanks to the pensmanship of JJ Abrams and Damon Lindeloff, a modern TV classic?
Well, all in all it was typical LOST. 50% killer, 50% filler.
I mean, that opening - wow. For 5 minutes, they totally had me. The Others in suburbia, debating the merits of Stephen King (just as King, via EW, debates the merits of LOST ... cool!), as everything goes to hell as the plane carrying our heroes fatefully crashes on Fantasy Island. Friggin' sweet.
Oh, who am I kidding here. For just about all of this episode, I was totally sucked in, on the edge of my seat, hanging on every word spoken by Jack, Sawyer, Henry Gale, and new character Juliette. Hell, Evangeline Lilly didn't even have to say anything and she had me at hello. And seeing Lost again after all this time made me appreciate a number of things about this show all over again, in the wake of so many wannabe shows that just don't get what makes Lost so special in the TV drama landscape.
First of all, this cast is ridiculously good. The three actors featured in this episode, and their characters of Jack, Sawyer, and Kate, are, by themselves, better than any other trio on any other TV drama. Compelling characters, great actors brimming with charisma ... classic. Nevermind the fact that some of the show's best and hardest-hitting actors, Terry O'Quinn as Locke and Naveen Andrews as Sayid, for example, didnt even appear. After seeing shows like Heroes, Jericho, etc struggle with the transition from the page to the screen, with characters that fail to pop and actors that fail to captivate - Lost came back and completely schooled them on what it is that makes great television characters and how said characters should be cast.
Secondly, Lost looks amazing. This episode was directed with theatrical flair, which meant epic shots, atmospheric lighting, and bold closeups. Each scene looked different, from the bright, serene beaches of the island to the rustic camp where Sawyer was imprisoned to the dank, grimy hatch where Jack found himself, this is how a show of this nature should look. If only a show like Heroes could recognize that there's a power in the bright, the bold, the fantastic when appropriate to the subject matter.
Finally, the dialogue in this episode crackled with energy. Despite all my criticisms about the plotting and, occasionally, about the characterization, no one can say that Lost has not had some pretty snappy dialogue over its two year run. And give credit to Josh Halloway, for instance, who has created a great character in Sawyer, who delivers each line with flair.
But as much as this was a cool episode, as much as it had me on the edge of my seat, it kind of came unglued for me at the end, when once again the show seemed to inch forward only to take two steps back into yet another mess of ambiguity and pointless lack of logic.
Take the exchange between Jack and Juliette - Jack finally, at one point, seems to blurt out the questions we've all been wondering. Who are the Others? Are they connected to Dharma? And most poignantly - What the hell is going on here?
Finally! A character had come to his or her senses and asked the most obvious question of all! But just as the show itself poses these questions, it fails to ever follow up. So I have to wonder - why pose them at all? Be vague, be mysterious - whatever. But you can't have it both ways. You can't continually set up the expectation that something will be addressed only to not address it. The writers and producers COULD have decided that, hey, it's all just one giant head trip and we'll never answer anything and just really mess with everyone's heads (think David Lynch). Fine, that could work. But the show can't seem to decide if it wants to reveal anything or not. I don't know if I'm supposed to be breathlessly waiting for some answer as to what the smoke monster was, why Locke can walk, who the Others are, why there was a Polar Bear, why there was a giant four-toed statue, et al, or just address each new mystery by saying something to the effect of "Oh, a giant four-toed statue - interesting. Next!"
That inconsistency in tone reared its head yet again in this episode. One minute Jack seems to have a breakthrough, finally daring to ask the Big Question of what the hell is going on. Moments later, when presented with the proposition that Julliette and The Others are somehow all-knowing (of course, how they are all-knowing is yet another mystery!), Jack forgets his previous curiuosity and merely asks the extremely subjective question, with regards to his ex-wife: is she happy?
Is she happy? IS she HAPPY? Whaaat?!?! Now, obviously in the context of this episode, where we were shown a number of flashbacks about Jack's falling out with his wife, it makes contextual sense that Jack would ask about his wife. But unless there's some metaphysical craziness going on that we don't know about, it's not as if these characters are actually RELIVING the episodes they flash back to! Sure, WE as viewers are given these flashbacks because they thematically relate to the story at hand and flesh out the main characters. But let's look at Jack at this moment in time, at this point in his narrative:
He's been imprisoned against his will by a seemingly malevolent group of Others, on a strange island that is home to Polar Bears, smoke monsters, and four-toed statues. His friends are also captured, the other survivors may be in danger. He's looking for something, any reason to trust his captor, or any validation of his instinct that she is NOT to be trusted. At this point in time, his main thoughts are of escape, of his safety, of his friends, and also, a creeping, horrible realization that his whole situation is really, really messed up. Remember, only we as viewers have relived Jack's past - he has been locked up in a strange prison, left to contemplate, as he himself wondered - what the hell is going on.
So of all the things to ask, of all the things to wonder about - it's is his ex-wife happy? Thematically, I see how it makes some kind of sense. Logically, narratively, it is totally ridiculous.
UGH. That one moment took me out of the show. I was expecting a grand revelation about the identity of Jack's wife's new man that would tie everything together, some shocking statement from Henry Gale that would lend credence to his claims that the captives were about to experience a prolonged period of pain. Maybe even a return to the captivating intro scene - some new insight into how or why the Others anticipated the plane crash or what, exactly, they intended to do about it.
So there you have it. One step forward, two steps back. In almost every way, Lost is head and shoulders above most everything else on TV. Amazing cast, top-notch production, and an uncanny ability to create tension and prolonged instensity that keeps even us critics continually coming back for more. It's just that, when it comes to plotting and advancing the story and mystery in a way that makes sense, this show can be absolutely maddening. But yeah, I'll be there next week. At this point I'm hooked.
My grade: B+
- But anyways, who cares how last night's Lost was - the real story here is that on ABC on Wednesday nights - the legacy of Party of Five lives on! Matthew Fox at 9, Scott Wolf at 10. Now get Neve Campell and Lachey Chabert in a 24-meets-Charlie's Angels-style spy thriller at 8 and we'll really be in business. Do you hear me ABC? Do you?!?!
- But yeah, what about THE NINE ...
Well, damn, the NINE has the most unintentionally funny premise ever, which for a show that takes itself deadly seriously, can't be a good thing. It's too bad, too, because the cast on this show is superb. Sorry not to name names, but basically, we've got the pricipal from Boston Public, the funny guy from Out of Time and Enterprise, the Voice of Superman, and Audrey from 24. Niiiice. But I don't get this show. Why am I supposed to care about any of these characters? And how does keeping the supposedly horrible events that took place while they were hostages a mystery make this show any more compelling? As it stands, the fact that we are left to imagine the atrocities that went on during the nine's time as hostages leaves, well, A LOT to the imagination. And so every time a character whispers, in hushed tones, about how they'll never be the same after the events of those two days, about how they still can't get over what THEY made HER do to HIM and what HE did to HER when no one was looking, and so on, well those of us with active imaginations can only think of some pretty absurd stuff. I mean why leave this to the imagination, so that I am now led to picture the bankrobbers forcing everyone to strip, dress in clown uniforms, and hop on one foot for three hours while singing Michael Bolton songs for seven hours straight? I mean, what could possibly have gone on in that room that is a.) not sick, perverted, or just gross and b.) interesting enought that I should care. I mean, the whole thing is stupid.
Just a way overqualified cast stuck with a terrible idea for a show that gives you zero incentive to tune in past the pilot.
My Grade: C -
Oh, and yeah, I watched one more episode of JERICHO, likely my last since next week 30 Rock and 20 Good Years premiere in this timeslot. But wow, Jericho takes the word trainwreck to whole new levels. This show is just mediocre on every level. The sad part is I love the premise and it has moments, however small, that give us a glimpse of the potential power of the premise. Take this episode. It had ONE cool moment - when everyone is gathered around the TV and a seemingly Korean broadcast comes on, an interesting development that has all kinds of intriguing implications. But sadly, the small problem of NUCLEAR HOLOCAUST and AMERICAN INVASION BY A HOSTILE NATION is quickly forgotten, in place of the pressing issues of teen crushes, awkward tension between Skeet and his ex, and an overzealous citizen who rubs the mayor the wrong way. And oh yeah, let's not forget the SHOCKING CLIFFHANGER, where our outcast teen hero amazingly discovers a giant food supply truck, since, you know, after ONE DAY of isolation, the people of Jericho are all starving to death and ultimate salvation takes the form of a truck full of canned goods. As amusing as this show can be in a so-bad-it's-watchable kind of way, enough is enough. Please, stop watching it. It's not worth it, even to satisfy morbid curiousity about just how many cities were blown up and who did it. Right? Please tell me I'm right.
My Grade: D+
- Tonight - The Office, Earl, and Green Arrow comes to Smallville.
OTHER STUFF:
- Great Zeus! The trailer for 300 is KICKASS. Bring on March 'o7, this is now at the top of my most anticipated movie list. Check it out ASAP and commence drooling:
http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/300/
- Bring on the Halloween season! The next few weeks promise trips to Knotts Scary Farm, the annual Horror Movie-thon, and more.
- And I have more to say, but I've got to jet. Until next time ...
You are SO right on Jericho. Please stop watching this show, people! It is idiotic.
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