(Spoilers, durrr.)
Last night, the creators of Lost and the marketers at ABC once again revealed their amazing ability to oversell themselves. The "Mid-Season Finale" (referring to an odd scheduling move in which the show, after six consecutive new episodes, is taking a break until February when it will pick up with thirteen more consecutive new episodes) was essentially billed as the "Best Episode of Lost Evar," and promised a truly shocking cliffhanger that would change the feel of the entire show. What the network delivered was an hour devoted to finding out more boring details about Kate's past and more tedious Jack-Sawyer-Kate developments.
While the Jack plot of the story was somewhat interesting, in the end it submitted to the unbearable Kate-Sawyer storyline. The Locke-Sayid-Desmond storyline, if it can be called that, was really nothing more than a set-up for the mystical adventures these folks are going to have in the latter portion of the season. And yet, the two or three scenes involving these characters were hands-down the most compelling portions of the episode.
So, what do we learn? During her life as a fugitive, Kate assumed a false identity, married a police officer (who was played by a guy that everyone seemed really excited about -- I guess he was on Firefly or something), decided she couldn't be a housewife after all and ran away again. She's so conflicted!
The big shocker? KATE AND SAWYER HAVE SEX!!!! The creators of the show seem to be missing out on something big here. Lost isn't Dawson's Creek. The amazing development that will alter the course of the show's universe can't be two characters hooking up. In the long list of mysteries that Lost foists upon its viewers, the mystery of whether Kate is in love with Jack or Sawyer ranks very, very low. Making this the centerpiece of the show's hyped-to-death mid-season finale is profoundly cheap.
As for the Jack story, while it had some nice moments ("At least you won't have to be disappointed for long," punching out the guy in the operating room, etc.), in the end it did nothing more than add a love-triangular element to the independently proceeding Kate-Sawyer plot. After Jack is allowed to "escape" so he can see Kate and Sawyer in the aftermath of their humping, we're led to think that he's willing to remove Ben's tumor because, now that he has no chance with Kate, he may as well leave the Island. Instead, OMG, he goes Bakersfield chimp in the OR to free Kate.
But will Sawyer get shot? Hopefully not. Will they shoot Kate instead? One can only dream.
snort. i missed this till now as it got buried under that other post, but kristen pointed it out to me. i have two things to say. possibly three. who knows.
1. when lost comes back on it's going to be SIXTEEN new episodes in a row with no repeats, not 13.
2. his name is nathan fillion. and he was on firefly. and i am absurdly crushing on him. maybe he'll be in more episodes where she can rufie him! i can only dream of giving him rufies and tying him up to my bed!
3. locke/sayid/desmond? so boring. jack? equally boring. i almost exclusively only find kate and sawyer hot enough to look at anymore. so naked, sex-having kate and sawyer was almost too much for me. i'm just pointing this out to show that some viewers of lost like things that you don't like.
4. you know who they should show more of? those new stupid people that are following locke around in the jungle now. who the hell are they? one of them is a blonde female, so i don't have much hope of her surviving the trip. plus her boyfriend guy is retarded.
5. favorite part is the cliffhanger and jack yelling, "go, kate! just go!" and kate yelling back, "i can't! i can't!" and then it ends. i like that the cliffhanger is her not yet getting to tell him that they're on the wrong island. when it starts up again she can be all, "jack, it's physically impossible for me to go anywhere! i can't swim that far!" and he can reply, "dammit, woman! i cut a spleen sack for you!" sawyer in the background can grumble, "i wish i had a fish biscuit. this floor show prelude to my death would be better if it was flavored with fish." ("you taste like fish biscuits." hee!)