The Rewatch Columns for "Namaste" and "He's Our You" have been assigned to the shed for your reading pleasure on Chud.com.
Thursday, January 28
Namaste & He's Our You (S5, eps. 9 & 10)
The Rewatch Columns for "Namaste" and "He's Our You" have been assigned to the shed for your reading pleasure on Chud.com.
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Awsome Morse, Thanks again.
ReplyDeleteCouple of things:
Locke's emergence in Tunisia: When Widmore met Locke in Tunisia, he showed him a newspaper with a story about the Oceanic Six and told Locke that for them, it has been three years since they left the island. So the events of the Jeremy Bentham episode preceded Jack's flashforward in Season Three (suicide attempt/"we have to go back, kate") by just a short period of time. So Locke emerged from the donkeywheel wormhole roughly 2.5 years after Ben did (although he turned it sometime in the distant past of the island when the Statue was complete). He pretty much did not exist anywhere (that we know of) from late 2004/early 2005 until sometime in 2007 or 2008. (It's interesting that the show never has provided any definitive dates for the events of the Oceanic Six, just milestones. I.e. What date did Ajira 316 take off from LA?)
Ben remembering Sayid: In the next episode, Richard warns Kate and Sawyer that after he fixes Ben, Ben won't remember "any of this." I took that to include being shot by Sayid and probably the events that led to being shot by Sayid. I was a little disappointed in this because i think that in retrospect, Michael Emerson's performance could encapsulate a pre-existing knowledge and recognition of Sayid. And the ramifications of that were pretty cool. But the writers seem to have pointed out pretty clearly that Ben has no memory of that event. Though I'd accept that he has an innate caution or inexplicable (to him) fear of and dislike for Sayid.
Long Beach Docks: I admit to listening to the official ABC podcasts with Damon and Carlton after the episodes air and last season, after they had shown a few episodes with different versions of the Long Beach scene, someone sent in a question on it and the official comment was that the viewer was very astute and that the variations in scenes were deliberately chosen. So I see no reason to doubt your assumptions. Even if this scene is (and the photos in Miles' flashback) are never referenced again as a point in the story with a larger pivotal role than we've seen, it's a good setup for what i believe we have all come to expect next Tuesday.
Widmore's Men and Sayid: Wow, I have never thought of this until you mentioned it, but seeing as Ben sent an attorney after Kate and killed Locke, it's pretty easy to believe he put the men outside of Santa Rosa for Sayid to find and then sent an assailant after Sayid as well. That would also explain why a follow-up assailant in the hospital had a piece of paper with Kate's address on it. The whole goal was to create fear and bring the O6 together and get them to return. That said, even if he did fake these attacks, that doesn't mean he wasn't having Sayid eliminate true threats before. It's very Lost-like for it to be not one or the other, but both.
Jin: I think it's sort of funny/odd/interesting that even though he speaks fluent English now, he doesn't really say any more than he used to.
Morse,
ReplyDeleteGreat job as always. One comment. Miles already mentioned Ben's forgetting everything when he goes in the Temple. Still, simply by putting him on the path to the Temple, Sayid has influenced Ben to become the man he will loathe.
Another person who bears responsibility is Jack, who will shortly refuse to treat Ben's wound. As the last option before the Others, Jack must also bear responsibility for what he chooses.
One last comment. After child-Ben does disappear into the Temple, he isn't seen again this season. Yet we know he somehow ends up back with Dharma to assist in wiping them out years later. I'm not sure we will ever get an answer to this, but it always stood out to me.
need more recaps! must have my fix!!
ReplyDeleteGreg, that's a great point about Ben's reintegration into the DI. We actually do see him briefly as a child recovering after the temple talking to Charles Widmore, who tells him he has to return to the DI. But how, when and why - or how on earth they react given the incident and everything else that has transpired since he disappeared - we definitely don't know. I agree that we may not actually see this, as I understand that our close look at the DI is pretty much over, but certainly interesting.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't considered all the nested complicity on behalf of the other castaways.
One other question: Accepting that Sayid was blocked from young Ben's memory, how about Sawyer, Juliet, Jin and Miles? Surely Ben saw them around. He knew he LeFleur was. There weren't that many people floating around. But he probably would have remembered Juliet pretty clearly, seeing as she later was so important and "looked like her." Hey, i wonder if Juliet was important to Ben because she looked like herself whom he had a mother figure crush on from afar as a kid? Anyone have any thoughts as to who young Ben recognized or didn't once he was a grown up in 2004?
Whatever Happened Happened & Dead Is Dead up on Chud! Morse just made my day! Less than a week to go now and the anticipation is killing me.
ReplyDeleteI think that one thing that has been driving me nuts about "Whatever Happened, Happened" is little Ben's bullet wound. In the previous episode "He's Our You" the bullet was on the side of his heart, and in this episode it clearly has moved to the right side of his body. Very unusual for Lost to make this much of a change, and I am also surprised that nobody alse has mentioned it.
ReplyDeleteTo touch on everyone's point about Ben recognizing the O6 later in life. The Others, including Ben later, had Daniel Faraday's journal. I am sure they knew that these people would be showing up. Explains the quick reaction of Ben when he saw their plane fall from the sky. He could have been thinking "They're here!". Also how he was able to get all of the info about the castaways so quickly. He knew their arrival was iminent.
"Namaste":
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that Ghost Christian tells Sun, "You have a bit of a journey ahead of you." She really doesn't. James' group returns to that time period just three days later. And yes, the Dharma signs are an inexplicably new detail.
"He's Our You":
I love Sayid's laugh after he says "You used exactly enough!" It's very maniacal.
The score playing when Ilana and Sayid enter the hotel room is great. Reminds me of lounge music.
Ilana has an unusual line after they board the plan: "Sorry about the handcuffs, but at least we're in business."
Why does Jin want to double-check with James about Sayid? Wouldn't he just want his friend to get out of harm's way?
I enjoyed the small appearance of Ben's theme after he's shot. Just four notes, but it's amazing.
Resident01, I think that maybe the journey Ghost Christian referred to was the behavior he asked of her in his next breath.
ReplyDeleteIt was certainly something to the effect of:
"You're not going to like it, but for the next 10 episodes or so, you're just going to follow people around, preferably John Locke. While you are doing it, you must take every opportunity to ask exposition-provoking questions from everyone you encounter. But for God's sake, be casual about it. Oh, and don't mention your daughter or think about her much."
Nice.
ReplyDelete