On a scale of one to ten, Recon is a solid 5. Maybe 6, if credit's assigned for what's implied over the course of the episode.
Lost is sometimes criticized for being a show about "people who walk places." The castaways squabble on the beach, walk to the caves, resume squabbling, walk to, oh, say, the Black Rock whilst squabbling. This complaint never made sense to me until tonight, where there were a number of wordless marches through the jungle, or snippets of conversations that seemed almost purposefully circuitous.
I appreciate a good tease as much as the next guy, but you've either got to give me some red meat on the bone - some answers, please - or distract me with something shiny and cool. I don't feel like Recon managed either of those things very successfully. This may he one of those "better on DVD episodes," but I suspect it's more like the Sawyer-goes-to-prison episode. Beefcake for the ladies, another con within in con, MORE new characters....Anyone have a theory on why Sawyer was so sure Widmore wanted to kill Anti-Locke? I can't help thinking that Widmore has something different in mind. Perhaps he wants the MiB's job?
Not a bad episode, but nowhere near what I expect from the show this season. That's not meant to sound snotty or entitled. It's just an honest assessment of my expectations. So far, the season's been meeting/exceeding them. This one kinda let me down.
Original Post:
Tonight's episode of Lost promises to drop us back into the midst of the Man in Black's ominous Island insurrection. Will we learn his plans? Will Kate be "infected"? Will the Island's secrets be revealed? Will we see Sawyer? One thing is certain.
There Will Be Jackface.
Lots and lots of Jackface. Maybe not this episode, but surely the next. Celebrate the Jackface while it lasts, people. Celebrate it like the last unicorn.
Celebrate mad-eyed, poison-pill-popping, Jackfaced unicorns with us here every week! Sign up to follow this lil' blog by clicking HERE.
Ah, Jackface. Not enough Jackface in season 5 for my liking. Looks like the man's getting his mojo back now, though. All hail the Jackface.
ReplyDeleteDamn good blog, fella.
Need to let this one digest, but I wasn't as big a fan of "Recon". It featured a bit too much credulity-straining planning of ways to "get off the island."
ReplyDeleteOddly enough, I really liked the episode. I'm probably very biased as Sawyer is my favorite character, and I feel like there hasn't been much of him in Season 6 yet, but I thought there were some good moments in there with the Smoke Monster/Locke, too. I'll admit, I never really settled into the sideways story, but I felt like it got its point across. I did feel like the Widmore scenes were a little rushed, though. Sawyer was in and out of their "camp" in practically one scene, and they were quite trusting of him for no apparent reason. (Unless they have other plans, and don't care what he does either way?)
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to tell so soon after watching, but I think this is my first time enjoying the sideways story line better than the on-island storyline (which bodes well for re-watching potential, since I think a lot of my increased enjoyment is coming from knowing a little bit more about what to look for). I like that the choice theme keeps getting raised.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Little Scarf Girl about the Widmore scenes, something about them just felt off. It was weird that their conversation was so short - I would have liked to see them try to get a bit more info out of each other, even if they both wound up failing.
I did think it was really interesting that the Smoke Monster's mom had some mental issues. Wasn't Locke's mom schizophrenic?
You know, I got the impression that Widmore was expecting the whole Widmore-Sawyer scene to play out over time as well. Widmore seemed at a loss as what to make of down-to-business,deal-making Sawyer. But he found Sawyer offering up everything he wanted and whether he totally bought it or not, he couldn't seek a way to improve on the opportunity.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, this is roughly the same no-nonsense deal making that Richard experienced with Sawyer in the 70s and Widmore may have learned of Sawyer/Lafleur/James Ford first hand at that time well before the plane crash.
1) If Smoke Thing didn't instruct Claire to attack Kate and then repent, then we sure were supposed to think he did.
ReplyDelete2) So far we have seen several instances where Smokey has lied to people. But I can't think of any example where Jacob lied. The closest is tricking Hurley to take Jack to the lighthouse, but he didn't make up anything. There was someone coming.
3) That Tina Fey is so talented! SNL, 30 Rock, now Liz Lemon is popping up on the island on ABC. What if Charles Widmore was more like Jack Donaghy?
Did anyone else think that they had the woman who played Zoe or Ilana do the running after Sawyer and Miles got crashed into? The woman running away looked very fit, but bigger than Kate.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Miles, that as soon as the scene with Claire attacking Kate was finished, my first thought was "that felt an awful lot like a con."
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the episode and would watch the spin-off show "Ford and Miles, LAPD". Disappointed that I did not see that "sideways" career path coming; very obvious in hindsight.
ReplyDeleteI thought psycho-Claire with the knife was genuinely scary, and even more scary was Sayid's blank expression. I do hope that repentant-Claire is a con, or else she is just one bad zombie.
I also enjoyed Sawyer's trip to Hydra. However, grabbing a random padlock on the sub and drawing our attention to it was forced. Reminded me of adventure video games (Kings Quest, Maniac Mansion) where you have to click on everything in the room to see what's "active". (I guess the apropos game in this case is "Mystery of Atlantis" :-))
After tonight, I get the sense of dread that Aaron is LockeSmoke, and that he holds Kate responsible for his condition and his mother's condition. Their conversation on the beach was an "obi-wan certain point-of-view" moment.
"I'm probably very biased as Sawyer is my favorite character, and I feel like there hasn't been much of him in Season 6 yet, but I thought there were some good moments in there with the Smoke Monster/Locke, too."
ReplyDeleteDefinately. It's not a bad episode, and I enjoyed the same aspects that you did. But it felt curiously slight - insubstantial in a way that the other episodes haven't (at least not for me). I have enormous faith in the show, and from the looks of it, next week is going to pick up the slack in a MAJOR way (is it next Tuesday yet)? This would have been a fine mid-season episode for Season 3 in terms of its heft, but with 8 episodes left I'm a little frustrated that they didn't do more with the time they had on-Island.
"I did feel like the Widmore scenes were a little rushed, though. Sawyer was in and out of their "camp" in practically one scene, and they were quite trusting of him for no apparent reason. (Unless they have other plans, and don't care what he does either way?)"
That's my thinking right now. The only way that their conversation makes real sense is if Widmore is just letting Sawyer talk, recognizing he'll get what he wants, and going along with it.
But I'm at a loss as to how Sawyer makes the assumption that Widmore wants Anti-Locke, and that he wants him dead. How on earth does he arrive there? Shouldn't he assume Widmore wants Ben, given what Sawyer knows about Widmore?
"I did think it was really interesting that the Smoke Monster's mom had some mental issues. Wasn't Locke's mom schizophrenic?"
She was a nut, alright. This was one of the episode elements that I did enjoy. The parallels between Locke and the Man in Black seem to be increasing, which is really interesting to me. More on this in the column.
"If Smoke Thing didn't instruct Claire to attack Kate and then repent, then we sure were supposed to think he did."
That was my thought also, Miles - mostly because this whole "infection" thing has me confused. Sayid's reaction to Claire's attack makes me think that there's something to the idea, but then Claire goes and apologizes for the attack, which suggests that the "infection" isn't some mind-control/Zombification thing at all. If there IS an infection, and its changed Sayid and Claire, then conning Kate makes sense. If there isn't an infection, then we have to assume that Claire's being honest throughout this episode. I just want to know, one way or the other.
"So far we have seen several instances where Smokey has lied to people. But I can't think of any example where Jacob lied. The closest is tricking Hurley to take Jack to the lighthouse, but he didn't make up anything. There was someone coming."
ReplyDeleteThat's true. And yet, we've also see that Smokey keeps his word (though we don't know his motives for doing so - and you're right that he's lied). He's keeping everyone safe, and he makes a point of promising the children that he'll look after them. Part of me wants to have a definitive "side" to support in this conflict, but at the same time I like that this character's behavior makes me question his motivations instead of relegating him to "Pure Evil" status.
"I also enjoyed Sawyer's trip to Hydra. However, grabbing a random padlock on the sub and drawing our attention to it was forced."
Yes it was. I'd have preferred that they hadn't commented on it at all.
"After tonight, I get the sense of dread that Aaron is LockeSmoke, and that he holds Kate responsible for his condition and his mother's condition. Their conversation on the beach was an "obi-wan certain point-of-view" moment."
Me too. I can't help thinking that this is a red herring, but there've been "Aaron is Jacob" theories floating around out there for forever, so it makes sense to consider the opposite - that Aaron is the MiB. Still, I get the feeling that Anti-Locke wasn't being literal when he warned Kate about Aaron now having a crazy mother.
Great thoughts, everyone. Some things I'm pondering: If "Sawyer" is still responsible for James Ford's family tragedy, then does this mean that off-Island Locke is lying in some way about their relationship? Has Cooper since reformed?
We heard Miles refer to his dad tonight - which means that Pierre Chang is alive and off the Island, and was, presumably, a part of the Dharma Initiative. Are we going to see him before the season is over?
Is it really as "simple" as Anti-Locke getting on a submarine/plane and leaving the Island?
I enjoyed the episode quite a bit. It wasn't quite as manipulative like Dr Linus was (no scenes of tearful, Emmy award consideration, confessions). A few things:
ReplyDelete- I think the ending might have been stronger had it just taken place on the sub between Sawyer and Widmore.
- We see Sawyer take a long look at himself in the mirror. Be sure to mention that in your recap ; )
- I like the chemistry between Sawyer and Myles. It's interesting to think that Sawyer has actually known Myles longer than he has Kate, or anyone else on the island for that matter. I'd also like to them spun off into a Miami Vice style cop show.
I'm just happy to see the son from Kate & Allie back to work as one of Widmore's goons.
ReplyDeleteWait...what?
ReplyDeleteThe son from Kate and Allie was a goon?
I'll be sure to make mention of the mirror-moment, Anonymous. It's kinda what I do ;)
Looking forward to re-watching this tonight as I write the column up. I'm hoping that it works better for me the second time around.
I was happy to see Charlotte, and the single sunflower make an appearance. I did half expect him to look in the mirror and say "What you looking at?" before smashing the window.
ReplyDeleteAnd Kate is still on the run from what ever she did.
yep.. the babyfaced dude in the black shirt.. the moment I saw him I was like.. I know him from somewhere.. then I put it together.. it's Frederick Koehler from Kate & Allie.. wonder if his hot sisters will follow..
ReplyDeletealso.. anyone else think Desmond is locked up behind the door on the sub?
ReplyDeleteDesmond was my first thought also, Rodney. Other possibilities: Weapons, a Smokey Containment Device, Eloise Hawking, or the entirety of the '86 Mets.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the episode. There were a few scenes where the acting felt a little flat, but overall it was a good one.
ReplyDeleteI can understand your disappointment, but I didn't share the same reaction. Perhaps hearing about the disappointment ahead of time helped temper my expectations.
There was a lot going on, but there was also a lot of set-up for future episodes. I'm going to watch it again to see how it plays, but I liked it on first viewing.
At any rate, this one will definitely play better "on the DVD" for some people.
So now we all know where Sawyer was... getting a haircut.
ReplyDeleteI'm slightly surprised by the luke-warm reactions. It wasn't the strongest episode of the series by any means, but it wasn't the weakest either.
For me it was a good transitional episode, preparing us for what I expect will be a substantial shift in tone for the latter half of the season.
Morse, the I had the same thought about 'leaving the island'. If it was as simple as hijacking a plane (or a submarine) you would think Smokey would have already done something by now. I also really enjoyed the glimpses into his backstory. Actually there was certainly a lot of hinting at the mysteries that might be answered at some point, maybe, soon, possibly. I can see why that would frustrate people.
Oh and I really hope it is Desmond behind the padlocked door. That hadn't even occurred to me but we really need everybody's favourite Scotsman to resurface sometime soon. Which reminds me, I also loved the hint that we'll be seeing more of sideways Charlie in the near future...
By the way I'm hoping for an entire chapter devoted to Jackface in your forthcoming book...
ReplyDeleteMorse, I was wondering about Dr. Chang...Miles's nameplate on his desk read: DET. MILES STRAUME. So...if Dr. Chang's off-Island, why still Straume? Is this a step-dad? Did Miles's mother remarry a man named Straume? Could Dr. Chang then still be on-Island?
ReplyDeleteLove that people seem keen on a Miles/James cop show...it was my first thought. The reveal of Sawyer's sideways-flash was one of the few surprises in the episode I was really jazzed up about.
Overall, I agree that this episode was a little plodding, but I have to say that I think this comes from the fact that on-Island Sawyer has generally been a more compelling character on than off. However, I did really enjoy the mirror-Sawyer that exists in the Sideways flash. I'm really looking forward to seeing where the Sawyer/Kate relationship goes off-Island.
This episode seems to be a transitional one, giving us some relief and breathing room before we get into the madness that will be AB AETERNO (finally, a Ricardus-centric episode!). I hope that from AB AETERNO on, the show doesn't let up.
Oh, and before I forget, anyone have any ideas as to whether or not Miles still has his ghost-whispery powers? Their origins have yet to be explained. Also, are Charlotte and Miles friends in the sideways flash through Dharma? WTF is going on with THAT particular relationship? And...who is Miles dating? Lastly, during Charlotte and Sawyer's dinner, I got a distinct sense that Juliet's strange "going Dutch" moment would come about at a later point in the season to mirror it...dunno, just a thought. So much still to be explained...is it May 23rd yet?
1) I have no real reasoning other than I'd just like it to happen, but I'd love to see the door on the sub open and have somebody from the sideways universe inside. Either somebody already on the island, or somebody we know to be dead (who we know is returning to the show).
ReplyDelete2) I like the call back to Sawyer watching Little House on the Prairie. I forget which episode it was, but in one of the first seasons he makes a comment about it to Kate and she calls him on it, and he covers by saying he was sick and watched it. Now we know the truth, he's just a big softie.
3) I was wondering about the ferris wheel in the background when he goes to see Charlotte in her room, and happened to watch The Constant again tonight. Minkowski flashes back to some point and says something like "I was just on a ferris wheel." I like the idea that Fischer Stevens is on that ferris wheel right then, even in the alternate universe.
Morse, I had the same thought as you with this episode. I had always questioned why people complained about the show as one where "people walk places", but that really is the best description for this episode. It's like this episode existed primarily to remind us solely of these peoples existence and their motivations. Jin wants Sun, Kate wants reconciliation with Claire, Crazy Claire wants Aaron, Sawyer wants off the Island, MiB wants to be free, Widmore wants to be the supreme ruler of the galaxy, and end of episode: LOST.
ReplyDeleteThe episode didn't even have any kind of cliffhanger at the end (not that I need one with each one, but typically on Lost if an episode is a slower one, they'll put in a cliffhanger to remind you of the overarching mythology.) I kept waiting for something of consequence to happen in the episode, but the only thing was Claire finally making good on her word to try and kill Kate, and even that didn't resolve anything. We definately don't know if either the attack, or the apology were sincere.
I really thought that after last weeks superb episode that the season would kick into high gear. As it has been stated, this episode wasn't a terrible episode, it was just a mid-season 3 kind of episode, and that is frustrating to me this late in the game. That being said, this episode will probably watch better once we have the entire picture in view. My frustrations with this episode were primarily Island related, since we still don't know how the Sideways universe relates to everything else. All that to say, I'm really looking forward to the hour of Richard. Should be appropriately epic.
What we know about Aaron is very special and that he has the potential of being good or evil, depending on who raises him.
ReplyDelete