First order of business: Rest In Peace Jin/Sun, Sayid and Lapidus.
We can cross a few more names off the cave wall now, thanks to an episode that definitely brought the emotional painfulness back to Lost as well as brought things full circle to the notion of family and the bonds between these characters. When Lost first began, it was essentially a story of survival as a group of strangers–united by tragedy–had to discover a way to stay alive, deciding whether to live together or die alone.
Over the course of six seasons and countless threats to their survival, these disparate characters have grown into something akin to a family. A highly dysfunctional one, granted, but one nonetheless. The invisible threats of fate that linked them at the beginning have been replaced by strong emotional tethers. When Lost-X Jack calls Claire “family,” it’s not just about their newly discovered sibling bond but about all of the characters on the series.
Family, after all, is what you’re willing to lay down your life for, to make the ultimate sacrifice, to stay to the bitter end as the waters rise up over your head. What’s united these castaways all along is love.
With only a handful of episodes remaining, I wanted some real emotional impact, some major stakes raised, rather than just another trek through the jungle or another double-cross of ol’ Smokey. Fortunately, the Lost writer gods must have been listening to me because the last twenty minutes of “The Candidate” packed in more plot twists and unexpected tension than several entire episodes.
And, thanks to the death of three major characters (and the assumed death of another), we saw the castaways shattered in a way we haven’t seen them in a very long time. Escaping from the wreckage of the submarine, they’re scared, shaken, and very sad. Those moments on the beach bring it all home. There’s been so much talk of supernatural entities, candidates, and greater purposes that it’s become easy to lose sight of the true battle going on here: survival. The deaths of Sun and Jin and of Sayid are an inescapable reminder that they–and we–are just all too mortal. When your time is up, it’s up. You don’t always get to have the happy ending that you deserve.
I thought that the submarine sequence was gorgeously shot and that the entire last twenty minutes or so–from the time they arrive on the dock to the very end of the episode–had me on the edge of my seat, either gasping in shock (Kate’s shooting) or sobbing (Sun and Jin’s death). I had a feeling, as soon as I saw that the Man in Black had removed the C4 explosives from the plane that something awful was about to unfold but even I couldn’t have predicted that the producers would be killing off three major cast members in one fell swoop. (As well as leaving the fate of poor Frank Lapidus so ambiguous, though I can’t imagine that the pilot survived.)
Sun is trapped in the wreckage of the sinking submarine. Faced with an impossible decision, Jin can either escape and save himself or they can die together. The fact that the Kwons were always represented with a single candidate number–42–is a poetic foreshadowing of the way they exit the world: bound together, united, hands intertwined. Their moment of unity is heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time: an undersea ballet of billowing hair and clasped hands, a blue-hued postcard of the power of true love. These two never get their happy ending but they also get to die together, in each others arms, beneath the sea. It’s only in death that their hands are separated…
(Sigh. I’m getting choked up just thinking about it again.)
I was glad to see the old Sayid again, even if it was just one last time at the end of his life. For too long, we’ve seen a cold, emotionless Sayid, a walking zombie, who cared little for anyone else. But this week, Sayid seems to spring back to life again, recalling the Sayid from the earlier seasons, with his knowledge of defusing bombs. A zombie wouldn’t willingly sacrifice themselves for the greater good, but Sayid–now once again alive, it would seem–does just that. He tells Jack about Desmond’s location and instructs him to find Desmond and tells him that he is the one, the candidate of the title. And then he runs with the bomb and is blown to smithereens. He redeemed himself with that one act, proving that redemption is possible for anyone, regardless of their past actions.
The most heartbreaking scene in the show was when the survivors of the sub explosion washed up on the beach and had a good cry. Those who had fallen deserved to be mourned and Hurley did a nice job of expressing what us Lost die-hards were certainly feeling.
The end of the episode is akin to The Empire Strikes Back. The heroes are left decimated and defeated. It looks like the bad guy won. But, the good guys rebounded come Return of the Jedi and eventually balance was restored to the universe.
Me thinks Jack has all he can stands and he can’t stands no more. I for one can’t wait to see how this pans out….
But we will have to wait a week to see the ramifications of the sub explosion because tonight is an episode thousands of years in the making.
Across The Sea tells the story of Jacob and The Man in Black. Every question we have had about them is apparently answered tonight.
I’m about to make some predictions so if you don’t wanna possibly be spoiled then stop reading right now…..STOP
…………………………
Jacob and MIB are brothers. Twin Brothers. They grew up together and somehow ended up on the island. While there MIB became corrupted somehow. Seduced by the darkside possibly? And Jacob assumed the role of island protector and jailor of his evil Twin Brother.
Could it be true? Maybe. Possibly. I guess we’ll see.
I can’t tell you how long I’ve waited for the episode that finally explains the mythology of the island.
Across The Sea. This is the big one.
Like this:
Be the first to like this post.
This entry was posted on May 10, 2010 at 2:52 am and is filed under Lost . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
First order of business: Rest In Peace Jin/Sun, Sayid and Lapidus.
May 11, 2010 at 7:20 pm
POSSIBLE SPOILER…..MAY NOT WANNA READ…..POSSIBLE SPOILER!!!!
“I think we’re prepping for the big Season 3 twist all over again. I think we’ve been watching the end of Lost all season and not realizing it. Sideways-verse didn’t start the second the bomb went off. Why did Jack have the blood on the plane? Why did he have the appendix scars? Why are they remembering the island?
Sideways-verse is not the universe in which they never went to the island. Sideways-verse IS THE FUCKING EPILOGUE OF THE SHOW! The finale will create sideways-verse. Instead of making a new candidate and starting the cycle over, they will sink the island, permanently trap or destroy smokezilla, and the universe will fold into sideways-verse. El fin. Search your feelings. You know it to be true. This dark, fucked up show where no one seems to have happy endings will in fact really have a happy ending.”