L O S T : season FIVE, “The LITTLE PRINCE” (episode 4)
Thursday, February 5th, 2009
I’m getting a little concerned already about season five of LOST, and not simply because tonight’s title, “The Little Prince,” referred to baby Aaron and not Ben as I had hoped…
I worry that the season will fall into a pattern of parceling out bits of information and clues at too steady and even of a pace. It seems we’ll be spending the whole season following the “70 hours left” before Ben’s window of opportunity to get the Oceanic 6 back The Island closes. Soap operas spring to mind watching Sun… She gets a package!…There’s a gun!…She sees Ben…Is she going to shoot him?…Tune in tomorrow! Meanwhile, the “left behind” crew are trotting around rather aimlessly, going through periodic time fluctuations. Miles takes over wisecracking duties from Hurley and we’re left with less-than-inspired dialogue from Locke, Sawyer, and even Juliet (“James, GO AWAY!”). How does Locke explain his intentions to find The ORCHID Station? “That’s where all of this started, maybe that’s how we can stop it.” Really? Maybe that’s good enough for Sawyer, but I don’t know if I’m sold.
Just when I was beginning to feel that the writers weren’t taking advantage of the possibilities of time travel on The Island, we’re thrown a bone when Jin washes up and is found by raft full of Frenchies. The impact was dulled though, as they wasted their THUMP/endbeat on the revelation that the pregnant woman that looked like a younger Rousseau was in fact…ROUSSEAU!!! Regardless, having her character (and Jin) back in the mix should bring more interesting storylines. Perhaps Rousseau can enlighten us on her pregnancy (Ben was nowhere to be seen) and the death of the rest of her crew… or perhaps they will vanish into the purple sky and Jin will become just another of the band of characters dragging out that side of the narrative.
One thought I had tonight was that with most of the “redshirts” (the background Flight 815 survivors) dead or not accounted for, there’s fewer and fewer people left to “go back” for. The guilt of abandoning 30 or more people is one thing, but the way things are unravelling, the Oceanic 6 might risk their lives for six or less people still on The Island. Of course, Jack & Co. have no way of knowing this AND conveniently we have Ms. Hawking’s 70 hour deadline to keep things urgent. Can Ms. Hawking keep the show ENTERTAINING, though? Time will tell…
…one more thing…
Faraday’s discussion with Miles about his nosebleed included a hint that Miles had been on The Island before. T.Berger told me about a THEORY this week that all of the ‘Freighter’ characters were born on The Island. The blonde lass from last week, ‘Ellie’ might be Eloise Hawking (who is likely Faraday’s mom). Charlotte seems to have been born there from hints and her own musings. Miles? Perhaps Miles is the baby seen in the season’s opening moments at the home of Dr.Candle/Halliwax/etc. Hopefully, the show won’t spend all season teasing and ultimately revealing these connections…