DEStiny

A couple weeks ago I wrote about how Lost's Richard-centric "Ab Aeterno" was like a Desmond episode. Richard's story is separate from the rest of the characters and so his story had little to do with present-day Island stories. Now we finally get our Desmond episode, "Happily Ever After," and it proves my point. Des, though he interacts with the Losties, has always played by his own rules, and has always been in his own world.

It's intriguing that a guy who wasn't even introduced until the second season is linked to the central romantic relationship of the entire show (sorry Sun/Jim, Sawyer/Juliet and even Jack/Kate). But it's a sign of how strong a show Lost is that episodes that could seem to be off-series are often its strongest. For one thing, though this whole season is about the war brewing, we spent no time on the main island and didn't see any of Flocke or Ilana leading their groups. Furthermore, if somone had only watched the first season--which takes place at approximately the same time as "Happily Ever After"--they would have been completely confused, since the story was almost entirely carried by a set of characters who didn't appear until later.

But then, that's the point of watching Lost. For all the flaws of this season, it's a show that rewards the constant (and "Constant") viewer. There was hardly a scene, or even a line, in this episode that didn't echo something earlier, so while those who don't regularly watch might have enjoyed it, they'd miss much of the resonance.

Lost tends to feature (intentionally or not) a mid-season game changer, something that sets the show in a new direction. Discovering the Hatch, capturing Ben Linus, taking the Ajira flight, etc. Well I think we just had our game changed again, and not a moment too soon. Next week's show features Hurley, and if it were just another "consequences-of-Hurley-getting-a-wish-come-true" it would look like the show were stuck in a rut. Instead, we now have some hope that things are heating up in the altaworld, and progress is being made.

Before the show even started, there was a good sign. No, not the end of Dancing With The Stars (though I hope that show's ratings help out Lost), or the lack of a V countdown clock. There were no previews for the upcoming show or even those unnecessary recaps to brings us up to date. Instead, we start with a classic Lost shot--the eye opening. But this time it opens slowly. It's Desmond, and for him it wasn't that long ago he was shot by Ben. Zoe, the geophysicist who last week was a commando is now playing nurse. Can't Widmore hire more people? I guess only so many fit on the sub, and most need to be science nerds.

Des wants to see Penny, but not a chance. When he was on the freighter, he refused to go back to the island for a second, but, as Eloise foretold, the Island isn't done with him. Widmore needs him, so has brought him back. (We'll get into this more, but did Widmore know from the start Hume was special? And so he sent Desmond on a path that would get him to the island originally? Or was that coincidence?)

Des doesn't take it well and attacks Widmore with his IV. Widmore takes it pretty well--I guess he understand how pissed Des is. Ben tries to kill his familyand shoots him. Next thing you know, he wakes up and his other great enemy has done the one thing he prayed would never happen.

Jin is curious as to what's happening, and Widmore (who used to kill people for insubordination) is doing the best he can, off schedule (the Des experiment was supposed to come in a few days), and brings Jin along to watch.

The science nerds are using the old Hydra electrical equipment and have a shack that houses a generator. One of their guys gets fried by mistake in the crossfire. (This is classic dramatic writing--kill a lackey to show what the stakes are.) This shack has been there all along, or was it built by Widmore? I'm guessing the former--it's an old DI deal, and they were aware of some of the magical qualities going on. (We still have more to learn about the origins of DI--they weren't just some fun-loving hippies, they were founded by people who knew more than they were letting on, I bet.)

Anyway, they put Des in the shack. It's a cool set. Is it supposed to evoke Jacob's Cabin, but with the technology he hates so much? Hey, the MIB hates those electronic pylons, is that related? We still don't know if the first visit to Jacob's Cabin (which seemed to have a complete ash circle) featured Jacob or was MIB in full fake-out mode.

Widmore and Desmond have words. Widmore explains all the pain he's gone through to get to this point, and says if Desmond doesn't help him, everything will be for nothing. Everything will be gone, forever. I still think this means the alternate world will exist, but everything they know won't be there--not simply pure destruction.

He also tells Des he'll be asked to make a sacrifice. That doesn't sound good. Last time we heard that, it was when Locke was told he'd have to die. And that he did. Will Des have to die? Will he have to give up Penny? Will he and Penny become Adam and Eve?

They turn on the juice, with Widdy quickly explaining to Jin that Des is the only person he knows who's survived a catastrophic electromagnetic event. This sort of surprised me. Did surviving the event show he was special? I thought Des was made special by being at ground zero of the Hatch explosion. But, as noted earlier, perhaps Widmore had pegged him as special earlier. Anyway, if Des can't survive, they all die--according to Widmore. They turn on the flux capacitor. (Couldn't Widmore have checked Des out on the mainland, or did he have to come to Hydra island to do the experiment right? Or was there just had no time?)

We flash to AltaLAX (sounds like a stool loosener). And Des is looking at his reflection in an Oceanic display. This surprised me a bit. If anyone didn't need to follow the rules and look in a mirror, you'd figure Des would be the one to break the mold.

So I guess Des was on the plane. There have been theories he flashed in and out, so quick was his appearance as Jack's seatmate at the beginning of the season.

Anyway, it's a well-dressed, well-groomed, newly confident Des. Interesting, since he's generally been so tortured. Henry Ian Cusick gave a great performance, showing new sides of Des. He meets up with Hurley and then Claire, in passing. He notes to Claire he doesn't like to be surprised--too bad.

His driver picks him up. It's Minkowski, last seen dying of time-disease on the Freighter. Des was in Sydney closing a deal, and Mink is a bit of a dealmaker himself, promising reservations, even company for Des, if he wants. He notes Des has no wedding band. Aha. Des, turns out, is the boss's "right-hand man," which removes the band from his left hand.

He walks into the office and to no one's surprise, the boss is Widmore--even if he has relocated to LA. Still these are the scenes that tell so much to long time fans. Widmore's art alone fascinates--an old boat (the Black Rock?) and a painting of scales with black and white rocks.

Widmore talks about his son the musician and his gorgon of a wife. I think most of the audience assumes it's Eloise and Daniel (who in the original world was thwarted from his musical ambitions). Widmore's bringing in a Driveshaft musician to play at their party. So that's what Charlie was doing on the flight. Des has to babysit, first bailing him out of jail for the drugs he was holding.

They talk about how Des has the life--no family or commitments, just plenty of money and the freedom to do what he wants. These words ring hollow to us, of course, who knows Des as the man with the essential love affair. Widmore offers him a drink of his scotch. Once again, if you're new to the show, it's just a sign that he trusts his best fixer with his best alcohol, but fans remember the scene where Widmore tells Des this very Scotch would be wasted on him.

Des goes to pick up Charlie (and we see Desmond's reflection in the door). Charlie seems to be acting at his rock star worst. He walks across the street with no concern for his life, as cars screech to a halt to avoid hitting him. It reminds us of those episodes where Des tried to spare Charlie's life, even though he saw his death was inevitable.

But it turns out Charlie isn't just a spoiled celebrity. They have a drink at the bar and Charlie explains how he's seen another world. Des, somewhat smugly, says he's happy with money and freedom, but Charlie says he's never truly been in love, so he's not happy. That's what happened to Charlie on the Oceanic flight. He went to the bathroom to swallow his stash to avoid trouble (from the federal marshal). As he choked, he saw a beautiful blonde that he loved more than anything. He doesn't say it, but we know it's Claire. (I guess he didn't notice Claire was actually on the flight.) The question is, did it take a near-death experience to feel this? In any case, it changed his life. Even though he was about to die, this was the world he wanted to live in, not the present (alta)world, which now seems as fake as Socrates' cave. He's had a glimpse of the new world, and so nothing here means anything. That's why he was so angry when Jack saved him.

Which raised the question if you "die" in the altaworld, are you transferred back to the other one? We're starting to see more about this altaworld, but we still don't know quite what it is. Is it imaginary or real? Is it manufactured by MIB so he can get off the island? Is it what happened when the timelines split after the bomb exploded? Is it the world with the island sunk and Jacob not meddling? Is it the world where wishes come true, but they don't always work as expected? And is it just a world for the Losties and their memories, or is everyone equally alive in it?

Des says Charlie has a choice. He can stay and drink and lose his career, or come with Des, have fun, get rich and have Widmore on his side. Des says there's always a choice, which is interesting, since he sort of learned on the island Charlie didn't have a choice--he had to die. Des is actually sounding a lot like Jacob here.

They're driving to the hotel where Charlie will be put up, and we get to hear "You All Everybody." Never thought that would come up again. Charlie still says it's not real, this whole world. But he offers Des a choice--jump out of a moving car or see what I saw. He grabs the steering wheel and flies them off into the harbor. Des saves himself, then dives back for Charlie. As he's opening the door to save Charlie, we knows we've seen this before at the Looking Glass. But it goes further. Des sees on Charlie's hand "Not Penny's Boat." This is his first glimpse of something different, and it scares him.

We get another eye shot--Des is being checked out in the hospital. Was he hallucinating? He needs to get his brain scanned. At the MRI, they make sure he's got no metal on him--same as for Widmore's experiment. And getting all that electromagnetism conjures up all sorts of images in his brain--especially of Penny, a girl he'd never heard of until today. He even sees his kid.

He needs to get out and find Charlie Pace. He even grabs seatmate Doctor Jack to help him out. Then Charlie runs down the corridor screaming nothing matters. Des chases him down, and Charlie realizes it's not just to corral him for Widmore. He tried to show Des something, and he succeeded.

Charlie moves on and a new Des figures it'd be better to find this Penny than to protect his position as Widmore's trusted fixer. Speaking of whom, Widdy isn't happy. Hell to pay with the wife, don't you know? Des better break it to her. He's off to stately Widmore manor, where they're holding the big musical event, to tell the missus. (Once he's there, we hear Chopin, of course.)

Minkowski doesn't envy him the task. She's a dragon lady, apparently. Des has never met her. As we expect, it's Eloise. She seems to be a firebreather, but laughs off Des failing in his job--those crazy, unreliable rock stars. But it's soon obvious she knows more. She says "it about time" they met, and "what happened, happened." On the way out, Des hears a "Penny" will be appearing at the party. Penny "Milton" (paradise lost?).

He needs to know more, so Eloise pulls him aside. She always does this when he doesn't play along--just like in the jewelry store so many episodes ago. She also always does it to keep Des and Pen apart.

What does she know about this altaworld? Does she like it? Does she run it? Does she want it destroyed? (It is a world where her son is alive--that might be enough to have her support it. Interestingly, everyone in this show who helps Des along is dead inthe other world.) Is she working on her own, or does Widmore know, too (he seems fairly clueless in this world--are they working against each other in the other world)?

She says Des's curiosity is a problem even a "violation" and he's got to stop looking for this woman. She says he's got the perfect life, which includes what he wants--Widmore's approval. She says he can't look for Penny because he's not ready yet. Does this relate to Widmore back on the island hurrying things? And does this imply people like Eloise are trying to set up this alternate reality so it holds together. Things keep popping up that threaten to blow it apart--little things like Jack's appendix scar, but true love is really hard to tamp down.

Before he can drive off, Widmore's son--Faraday (now named Widmore), as we expected--pulls him aside. He still wears a loose tie, by the way. (And maybe Des is still his constant, even in this world.) They need to talk. He's a musician, a fine one, but he knows something's going on. He heard how Des wants to see a Penny and figures he's dealing with the same issues. "Do you believe in love at first sight, Mr. Hume?" He saw a beautiful woman at a musem, blue eyes, red hair, eating chocolate. Clearly Ford's date, Charlotte. But Daniel loves her, and next thing you know he's writing fancy quantum mechanics that he doesn't understand. (Is it about Schrodingers Cat, living in two states at once?)

Daniel suggests it's all about something terrible about to happen that can only be stopped by releasing a huge amount of energy, like a nuke. Daniel thinks maybe this world they're in wasn't supposed to be their life, and maybe he already set off the bomb and changed things. (What was the terrible thing they avoided last time? Flocke taking over? Did Daniel even know about that?) Pretty good for a few scribblings. The question is can this altaworld hold, or is it flying apart? And why?

Des admits he doesn't know anything about this mystery woman. But Danny boy tells him it's her half sister and he can tell Des where she'll be. She's running up and down stadium steps for exercise, just as Des did when Jack met him. He goes to her and they meet. It's a bit awkward, but clearly this is the special woman. They shake and Desmond faints.

Now he's back on the island. He survived the experiment, but he's a changed man. He was only out a few seconds (so how long is this altaworld existing in "real" time). Widmore apologizes for putting him through it all, but now Des, not unlike his altacounterpart, is with Widmore. No need to apologize, Des gets it. He won't tell us exactly what he gets, but he seems to be a man with a mission. Has he realized the part he must play? Including the sacrifice?

On the walk back from the shack, Sayid, who we know from last week has a mission on Hydra Island, snaps a few necks, lets Zoe run away, and takes Des. The odd think is Des goes willingly, happily. Zoe thought they fried his brain. Sayid thinks he's saving Des (or does he?). Does Des realize this is part of the plan? Is their dialogue one zombie to another?

Back to Des in altaworld, who awakes from his fainting. He and Penny talk, and he invites her out for coffee at Sweetzer and Melrose. That's up the block from where I live, and there's no coffee shop on that corner. Either Penny's lying to get rid of that creep, or the Lost lawyers dont' want to be sued.

Back in the limo, Des gets the driver to take him to the non-existent coffee shop. He also asks Mink to get the Oceanic flight's manifest. Get it yourself, fixer, I just drive the car. No, George goes along. Des is apparently going to show everyone on the plane (or, I assume, just the main Losties) what they're missing.

LOST

I get the feeling this episode is being thought of as the best in the season so far. More important, though, it finally gives us a sense of mission. First you've got Widmore, the only guy on the island who's fairly clear about what he wants to do. MIB only slowly reveals what he wants while Jacob is entirely tight-lipped. But the real point is we now have a sense of moving forward in the altaworld. We understand it better (we think) and now Desmond seems ready to do something there. Perhaps the show took too long to get to this point, but I'm guessing if I were watching this on DVD, it wouldn't be so bad to see these touching altaworld stories knowing I had another hour coming up next.

The fact that certain people connect in altaworld suggests it can't be held together that easily. Some may get their wish (though not as they expected), but the fabric is torn when the Losties meet someone who meant a lot to them earlier. Not Sawyer and "Ginger" making a love connection, as we saw, but recall how Jack seemed to have a moment with Kate on the plane. What will happen when Sawyer sees Juliet? Speaking of whom, she was close to death when she said "it worked." Just like Charlie started seeing things when he was close to death. Does that somehow give you the proper vision of what's going on? It helps you flash?

How much does Eloise know and understand? And what does she want? Back when she had Daniel's notebook, she knew exactly what would happen up until she sent Daniel away (to be shot). Then she admitted she wasn't sure where things were going. But all-knowing Eloise seems to be back in altaworld.

The episode was given extra power, I think, because it played into a common feeling. Des believed he had what he wanted, but had intimations of something missing. Except for people who lead the perfect life, I suppose everyone can be haunted by choices they made, and wondered if things had gone along a different path, their life would be different, and maybe better.

What will Des do once he meets all the Losties and shows them another world? Is that enough, or will they all need to get back on that plane one more time?