Namaste

Okay, a few thoughts on the latest Lost. As always, spoilers will be involved.

First, it was more interstitial than major, filling in some holes and not moving us too far forward. But it was fun, and it occurred to me that I'm equally interested in what's happening in the present and the past. (Other ground they have to cover is the near past, and why the Oceanic 6 got on the plane--I'm not sure how or when they'll work that in.)

Lots of interesting interaction with the Lost gang getting back together after three years. While the reunion was touching, they had to figure things quickly. Lucky Sawyer is head of security (and Amy is on a baby break)--it gives them the perfect cover. In earlier seasons, fans often complained that they never talked or shared secrets. Now they actually have to keep their mouths shut to avoid being discovered. (Earlier this season Hurley found a shirt in a gas station that fit. Now it turns out that the Dharma Initiative makes jumpsuits in his size, too.)

Maybe the most interesting thing is the new dynamic. In the first season or two, there was a generally jockeying for power, but Jack was considered the leader and Sawyer was often frustrated, trying to prove himself (especially to Kate). Now we're on Sawyer's turf. He's in charge and, though he's saving them, they (especially Jack) have to pretty much take whatever Sawyer offers, as he makes more than clear.

Then there's the question of the Juliet-Sawyer-Kate triangle (I guess you could throw in Jack there, too). Sawyer's always had strong feelings for Kate, but I can't believe the reformed, got-it-together head of security would abandon Juliet at this point. If he did, imagine the gossip from the Dharma bums--"can you believe it? LaFleur is with that new chick."

Sawyer did a decent job getting the newbies integrated into the DI. The show seems to be suggesting both Phil and Radzinky are suspicious, though, and with some loose ends--not just prisoner Sayid, but the whole layout--there might be trouble, and who knows how long the party will last.

There were a few leads missing in action. No Locke, because we saw what happened before he showed up after the crash. As expected, Lapidus landed on the runway. His copilot died. The Island is not a safe place for pilots. Also as expected, Sun took the outrigger to the main island with Lapidus. (We knew one of them would lay out Ben--it was Sun, who's always been crafty. I should also add that I think Ben, for all his cleverness, holds the record for most regularly beaten up TV character.) I'd actually forgotten what was happening on the island in the present. The poor Others, who finally got Locke as their leader, only to have him flash away. For what it's worth, neither Sun nor Ben yet know Locke is alive. Don't know who'll be more surprised.

Sun and Lapidus met up with Christian, who may be a ghost, but can take photos of walls and hand them over. I was glad he told Sun where Jin is. At least she knows he's alive on the island--to bad it's 30 years ago. What was not explained was why Sun was the only Oceanic Sixer not to make the time jump--especially as she wanted more than anyone to meet someone in the past. Is the island just being perverse?

Also no Faraday. Either he's left the barracks or has left the DI completely. We do know he at least worked a while over at the Orchid. Could he be planning to make his escape to Tunisia? Has he already? (Doubt that, though maybe he'll get out, and then need to get out of his time loop, where he cries when he sees the Oceanic flight go down, he'll have to get Desmond to do something for him again.) As I've stated before, I think Faraday will be the cause of "the incident" that Pierre Change has discussed.

We also got to see the Flame in its full glory, and a model of the Swan before it's built.

Another small mystery solved--Horace and Amy's child is Ethan. He'll survive the purge and become one of the Others.

The big question is where do we go from here. The Losties gotta get together and work something out--they can't just hang around forever with the Initiative. (They gotta show initiative.) Also, Locke and Ben can't just hang around on the small island, but what's their next move? We know where Ben wants to go, but will the crash survivors and Locke let him? And finally, who moves where? Sun wants to get to Jin (and Christian says she's got a lot to do) but does she want to go back 30 years (isn't that the plot of Back To The Future?)? Wouldn't it be better to get the other Losties back to the present? Do the Losties want to get back to the present? They don't even know what happened to the plane they were in, much less Sun is back in 2007.

The big surprise at the end was good, but I saw it coming. Two weeks ago, I assumed there was no way Ben could be at the DI yet. But then I thought about it. Here's a guy who always has lots of information and only lets it out when it serves him. The one guy who could know about all the Losties having been with Dharma in the 70s (if that, indeed, is the plan) and not tell anyone would be him. The hardest to explain would probably be Julet, since she's recruited and he later gets sweet on her. On the other hand, does having photos of former DI employees who'd later become Losties tell Ben and Alpert, among other things, who they can't kill? (On the other hand, isn't Juliet in any of those photos? Was she not allowed in the processing building, or were they hidden from her during her time with the Others?)