"..you’re free to leave whenever you want; but I’ll shoot you in the leg..."

We all knew that The Island in Lost was special; that it had healing powers, and that there were many things about it that are strange indeed. I never realised it had the power to move bullet wounds. Next time you watch the latest episode of Lost, episode 11 of the fifth season, Whatever Happened, Happened, pay heed to the side of the chest that Sayid shoots Young Ben (it's in the recap of the previous episode) and then compare and contrast with where the would is when Jin turns him over... 

Anyhow. Small potatoes...

Much of the last few episodes has been relatively sedate, doing what Lost does so well; really getting under the skin of the characters. However, this episode is clearly a transitory one. Going from the character stuff, building up to the season finale. 

This is one of those episodes that mixes the emotions so well. Any scene this episode with Miles and Hurley is practically a sit-com. Miles' efforts to explain how the time travel to Hurley are brilliant. Though, really, it's hard to fathom how Hurley isn't grasping how it's all working. Young Ben can't die as they know he lives to become Big Ben. But any of the characters who've gone back in time can, as their fate is not known. Hardly rocket science...

So, Young Ben can't die. Jack clearly knows this, as he refuses point blank to save Ben. He's ascribing to the Faraday theory that "whatever happened, happened". So, whatever Jack does or does not do, Ben lives. So Jack refuses to help. Kate, and Sawyer, however have to help; he's just a kid, and you don't let a kid die; no matter what he grows up to be. 

And, yet, whatever happened, happened. The way things are going it's obvious that the way how Big Ben turns out is a direct consequence of the actions (or inactions) taken here by Sayid, Jack, Kate and Sawyer. When Ben's handed over to Richard, and taken in to the temple, that's where he becomes the Ben we know of old. And what exactly will happen to him in the temple? And what will Smokey have to do with things? It just gets more and more intriguing...

Intriguingly just before he's taken in to the temple, one of Richards people notes that Ellie and Charles will freak out if they find out; Richard retorts that he doesn't answer to them. Are Ellie and Charles somehow in charge of Richard's people - the Hostiles? And is he less than impressed at this? We know Ben will eventually lead these people, overthrowing Charles (and presumably Ellie?) and banishing him (and her?) from the island. Could this all be at Richard's instigation?

Other aspects of the episode were a little predictable; Aaron being left with Claire's mum was pretty much the favourite explanation for where he was. The only really surprising thing was that Kate's reason for going back was, essentially, to rescue Claire and bring her back. The sheer effort it must have taken for her to come to that conclusion, and to give away the child she'd been looking after the last three years must have been overwhelming. No wonder she orders Jack never to mention Aaron's name. 

So. 11 down. 6 to go this season (and 23 more overall). Next week's looks like a corker. It's centred around Ben - both small and big - and we get to see Smokey again. 

"...take a look at the law man..."

Earlier today, I saw one of the funniest things I've seen in ages; the conclusion to the US version of Life on Mars. Now, I had reservations about the ending of the UK version... but they were minor in comparison to how the US version ends.

For the most part, the last episode is relatively straightforward. Some guff about Sam's dad, who gets shot dead by Gene Hunt (who, here is played by Harvey Keitel; who would have been about the right age for the part circa when he filmed Reservoir Dogs, but now...?). And all is going well. The plot threads are resolved. Sam & Annie get together, and she gets promoted. Then Sam and Gene embrace and the picture breaks up.

To start with I think it's the file. But no.

Oh, and before I go on; I really should point out that from here on in there are spoilers.

Really big spoilers.

And, if you do decide to read on, I promise you that all that follows is what actually happens. I am not winding you up.

So... the picture breaking up is a proper part of the episode.

We see Sam wake up, and he's in some kind of a pod, and he's in a blue uniform. And he's on a spaceship. Just arriving at Mars...

...you see, it turns out he's an astronaut, in 2035, on mission to find life on Mars; looking for genetic material. They're on a gene hunt. No, really, that's actually used as a genuine line in the show.

Whilst they've been in some kind of a suspended animation, they've been using virtual reality simulations to stimulate their minds. Sam's was to be a cop in 2008, but there was a glitch when they went through some asteroids and the program transposed him to 1973...

...and get this; his fellow astronauts are the characters from 1973; Ray, Chris, Annie, and Gene. But they're all a little different to how they appeared in 1973. It's almost as if someone had seen the Red Dwarf episode Back to Reality.

But there's more.

It turns out that "Gene's" real name is...

...and no, I'm not making this up...

...really...

"Gene's" real name is... Major Tom. And the absolute cherry on top of the cake is that Tom is Sam's real dad... (which is clearly supposed to resonate with Gene killing Sam's "1973 dad" earlier in the episode; unfortunately this is subdued by the peals of laughter.)

I promise; I'll never criticise the UK version again...

"...awaiting an audience..."

Ah... Skins... what were they doing with that ending...? That last episode (which rather annoyingly completed excluded the twins, Naomi, Panda and Thomas) ended with somewhat of an anticlimax. The first had ended with that wonderful Tony gets hit by a bus (or was it a car? I forget now) cliffhanger, and the really odd "Wild World" moment. Season 2 ends with you just willing Sid to find Cassie, with that moment where they're so close to each other... and you just don't know if he's going to turn his head (and, of course Time to Pretend - but more on music in a minute)... and there's that cut to Effy in bed with a smile that oozes the same kind of charm and menace as Malcolm McDowell at the very start of A Clockwork Orange... but Season 3...

That last episode was actually a very good one. It brought to a head all of the things that had been bubbling throughout the season. Seeing Cook's dad really helped you understand the reasons as to why Cook is the way he is; the two Cooks were two peas in a pod, behaving in essentially exactly the same manner as each other. Cook Sr even tries to hit on Effy. There were so many things that were right about the episode. Perfect blend of drama and humour throughout (the Granny steeplechase was a partcicular highlight). But the ending... the boat speeds away.No-ones saying anything. They've reached some kind of understanding, and appear to have all made up. Though Cook looks a little contemplative. And finally Freddie says... "So, what do we do now?" And that's it. It just felt so underwhelming. It's almost as if they weren't confident of getting a Season 4, and decided to leave all the storylines at a place where if this occurred there would be some kind of a conclusion. It just felt a weedy way to end the season, and if there's one thing Skins never normally is, it's weedy. Even when there are things that are utter wank, it's never weedy.

Oh, and the last line is (almost) the same as the last line of the last episode of the last season of Buffy...

One thing I must also mention about Skins is the music. Back at the end of Season 2, the last couple of minutes of the action (from Sid arriving in NY) and over the end credits, they played a wonderful track; that was Time to Pretend by MGMT. And I found myself adoring, so I went out and bought the album. I immediately wished I hadn't as most of the album is tosh. Time to Pretend remains the only track from it I've ripped to my MP3 player. 

So, at the end of the first episode of this season when I heard the track playing over the end credits, I downloaded the album to see if the rest of it was any good. Within a day, I'd ordered all three CDs that band had released, so impressed I was with the one I d/led. This band is Asobi Seksu, and you must buy all three of their albums. Though, if you want to try just the one, get Citrus. I haven't been this excited about a band in ages, and the more I listen to them, the more I love them. Sheer beauty!

(Note; if you're waiting for my regular Lost post, it'll be up here when I've seen the episode a second time. There's a few things to say about this one...!)

"...Namaste, new recruits..."

I actually find myself with very little to say about the last two episodes of Lost, Namaste and He's Our You, as they're both relatively straightforward episodes. Just, really, a handful of points;

It was good to see Radzinksky at last, and even better to see his model of The Swan, which in 1977 had yet to be built. However... Pierre Chang, in his introduction to new Dharma recruits which we saw in Season 3 when Ben arrived on the island as a small boy (now dated to 1973), was wearing a Swan patch on his clothes...

Another point is that Sayid is meant to be trained in the art of the assasin. We see him giving the Russian bloke a double-tap (that is, two shots in quick succession). Yet, when he shoots the young Ben, he just shoots him once. Why not a double-tap? And knowing how slippery a fellow Ben is, and how he keeps on getting out of sticky situations etc, why not also just make sure with a shot to the head at point blank range...

...'cos there's no way Ben's dead from that shot. Not a chance in the world. 

"...others, others, others, OTHERS..."

Okay. So, in some sort of effort to pretend that this blog isn't really just a Lost blog at the moment, here are some thoughts on TV shows other than Lost:

Skins

My opinion (see previous posts) of Cook really hasn't changed. I'm still hoping for something bad to happen to him. I just can't work him out, though. He's odd. His reaction to when Naomi spurned him was unexpected; I expected anger, but instead he was very calm and cool, and even indifferent. Odd. Still, we're clearly building up to something. 

Whilst I'm still loving this season, I'm finding I'm loving it less than previous seasons. I do still miss Cassie et al, and although this new lot are a decent enough bunch, I'm not really sure they gel as a group. Like previous seasons, it does veer between absolute genius and utter wank. The episode with the school elections at one stage seemed to be heading towards making a point about how politics these days is all about personalities and not policies; but it never quite got there. We just got a riot, which didn't work at 

Still, overall it remains well worth watching...

Battlestar Galactica

BSG is nearing the end of its run now; three episodes to go by my reckoning. Again, this is a show that veers between absolute genius and utter wank, and I've never quite been able to figure out why. Until a day or so ago. Broadly speaking you can tell how good an episode is depending on which of these categories it fits in;

1 - militaristic episodes where either the Cylons are on the attack, there's a threat of attack, or there are factions within the fleet causing trouble; episodes like 33, or the Pegasus 2-parter, or the New Caprica arc, or the recent mutiny. They have all been stunning examples of great drama. Episodes that have kept you on the edge of your seat, and left you gasping for breath at the audacity of the things that are happening. The second of the mutiny episodes was breathtaking, it completely floored me. This is BSG on top form.

2 - any episode that focuses on prophecies, or Caprican Gods, or the Cylon God or any kind of mystical gumph. Sometimes I lose the will to live when watching these. They're not always all bad, but there always seems to be way too much padding. I mean, how many times do we have to see sodding visions of a Six taking Hera away...? Puh-lease!

And this is the fear I have for the forthcoming finale; that it will veer too far towards the latter, and not close enough to the former. 

Law & Order: UK

Strewth! This moves at one heck of a pace. There's enough plot in each episode for a 4 hour Lynda La Plante style mini-series. Sometimes you can blink, miss a scene, and miss a vital plot point. Still, for what it is, it's enjoyable hokum. 

Neighbours

I'll miss Harold. Ramsey Street won't be the same without Jelly Belly... : (

Lost

Oh, okay, I know I wasn't meant to speak about Lost here, but... 

...the promo pictures that have been realeased for the next episode of Lost are very intriguing...

 (Those of a really sensitive disposition towards spoilers should look away; even though what I'm about to say isn't really what I would call a spoiler; it's what I would call a teaser, in that it will tell you a little information about the episode, but gives no context.)

...they show Sayid, as expected in 1977. However, there is a shot showing Sun with Ben and Frank. So, she must somehow be in 2008 in the same time frame as the Ajira plane. Now, the question that this raises is this; why did Kate, Hurley, Jack and Sayid get caught in the time-flash that occurred as the plane approached the island, and Sun didn't? My presumption was that the time-flash affected the O6, which was why Ben wasn't caugt in it. Locke didn't go either as at that time he was still "dead". But an O6 split... that puts a different spin on it. It couldn't be at all contrived to give a delay to a Sun & Jin reunion, could it...? 

"...wow..."

It is a very rare occasion when an article in The News of the Screws makes me gleefully happy (mainly 'cos I never buy the rag), but my attention was drawn to this article:

http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/showbiz/xs/208641/DR-Who-Celeb-XS.html

which does inded make me gleefully happy.

If it proves to be true, I shall indeed probably explode with excitement. The prospect that The Moff might give Hannah Murray the companion role in Dr Who is just too exciting to contemplate. I would go so far as to say that in terms of excitement, and Dr Who, only the return of Dr Who in 2005 would have been more exciting.

I just hope it turns out to be true...!

"...we're the good guys..."

So... Another week, and another Lost blog post... Season 4, episode 8, La Fleur, was a rather straight forward episode, but none the less it was another quite compelling one. 

First of all, we have an end to the time-flashes, leaving the Losties stranded in the seventies - the episode flits between 1974 and 1977 (another Star Wars reference...?). I was somewhat surprised by this, as I was sure that when time was stabilised they'd end up in the late 80s, shortly before The Purge, and circa when Danielle's lot arrvied on the island... 

Still, like I said, although straightforward, it was an epsiode that raised many interesting points and questions;

* - just before the last time-flash we get a glimpse, albeit from behind, of what appears to be the four-toed statue first seen at the end of Season 2. Based on this glimpse, and endlessly pored over screen grabs, many theories have been posited as to what the staue is of. Most have talked of Egyptian gods such as Anubis, Set et al (after all, this would tie in with all the hyroglyphics that are dotted all over the island), but there is one rather out there suggestion that the statue is of Juliet...

* - after being told they were not "Dharma material" after arriving at the DI in 1974, how did the Losties ingratiate themselves with the DI to the point that Sawyer managed to get himself made Head of Security? I would guess it started with the encounter with Richard, which probably meant that the truce that there had been was maintained. 

* - very interesting that the sonic fence around the DI camp doesn't keep Richard and the "Hostiles" out... It's been seen to be effective on people before, so what does that make Richard et al? Must mean the fence has been built for one specific purpose; keeping Smokey out. Which means he's nowt to do with the DI... 

* - despite that the women of the DI "always give birth on the mainland", Amy manages to give birth on the island, and there are no ill effects. She lives, the baby lives. Now, we know from earlier, or in temporal terms later, events that any woman that gets pregnant on the island dies. So, this problem must have occurred since 1977. Well, either that or Amy got up the duff at some point when she left the island for a short while. Also, is the pregnancy problem one that only came to light after the Purge... or is it tied in to the discovery of the Frozen Donkey Wheel...? And is Amy's baby going to grow up to be someone significant...?

* - oh, and of course, being in 1977 there's a number of people who should be on the island that we've not yet seen; notably Ben and Widmore. We're seeing young Ben in the next episode (don't whinge about that being a spoiler; it's not. It's not. It's obvious we're going to see him), and for a few more epsiodes. Widmore certainly should be on the island as well at this time, as he said that it was Ben who banished him from the island. He says to Locke that he was on the island for 30 years. He was there in 1954, but we don't know how long he'd been there then. Could the reason why, when Ben visited Widmore at his home last Season, Widmore referred to Ben as "boy" be that it was when Ben actually was a boy that he manipulated Widmore in to leaving the island...?

* - and where are Rose and Bernard? And the other red-shirts. I would assume that's who Jin's looking for when he's saying his grid searches haven't found anyone yet. Could they all survive on the island for three years? Could R&B et al have stumbled across Richard's lot...?

* - oh, and someone who shouldn't be on the island; Charlotte. She wasn't born until 1979, so unless young Charlotte was doing some time hopping, the red head Daniel saw wasn't her. Either that or he was seeing things. Wouldn't be the first time someone's seen someone that wasn't there in this show...

* - also, is it coincidence or fate that the 06 were off island for three years, and that Sawyer et al have now been with the DI for three years also? The only one that three years hasn't passed for is Locke... (and if you really want to be picky, Ben, but for him it's circa 2 1/2 years...).

* - okay, returning to Ben. Young Ben is around in 1977. Juliet is around in 1977. Ben in the 21st century is obsessed with Juliet (there are plenty of episodes which bear this out). Could the reason be because she had some sort of efffect on him in his formative years? Will she do something to save his life? Who can tell...?

But, yes, it's going to be very interesting to see what's going to occur in coming weeks. Will they stay in 1977? I doubt that very much. I reckon we'll see them figure out some way to shift themselves in time again. Locke, (adult) Ben and Frank are seperated from the rest of the cast (well, bar the noobs Cesar and Ilana) by over 30 years. That won't last long. Also, Desmond... he's not even on the island at the moment. I can't believe (bar the forthcoming "what happened after he stormed out of the Lamp Post" flashbacks) we've seen the last of him... 

...but we're going to have to wait. There's no episode next week. Grr! And there's another week long break after episode 13... Grr...

"...we're going to need to see that again..."

For what is increasingly turning in to a Lost blog, I completely forgot to post at all about last week's episode, 316. So, this one's going to have to cover that, and The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham... So;

316

In which the Oceanic Six finally got back to the Island. Well, apart from Aaron. And Desmond, but he doesn't really count... 

The most intriguing thing about the episode is how they had to recreate the circumstances of the original crash to ensure the return to the island. So, Jack once again was escorting a dead body, only this time it was Locke's rather than his dad's. There is a theory that all the others were tasking on the circumstances of other characters, albeit unwittingly, to aid the returm;

Sayid was taking the role of Kate in the original crash, in that he appeared to be under arrest and handcuffed to some sort of marshall.

Hurley was taking on Charlie's role; he came on board with a rock and roll guitar.

Ben took Hurley's role in that he almost missed the flight.

There is a suggestion that after Kate and Jack's night of passion she's pregnant, and thus she's taking on Claire's role.

The only doubt is which role Sun is taking... the only one that appears to fit is Rose, as initially she was seperated from her husband, but that occurred after the original crash, so doesn't really fit. 

Then, of course, the fact that we saw events solely from Jack's point of view meant that there were many unanswered questions;

• Who beat up Ben? (My money is on Desmond.)
  
• Who told Hurley about the flight? (I reckon he had another vision of Charlie, who told him to take the guitar...)
  
• Why is Sayid is custody?
  
• What happened to Aaron? Where is he? Who has him? (I reckon she's with Claire's mum.) 
  
• Where did Desmond go to, and is he going to return to the island?

Still... I guess these are all things we'll find out in forthcoming episodes...

The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham

This episode did answer one question that was dangling from the previous episode; did Jack et al get back on the island via a time-flash or the plane crashing...? 

The appearance of Jin in Dharma gear made it obvious that at least Jack, Kate and Hurley were caught up in a time-flash, but it's clear that this isn't the case for all of them. We know that at some point after the O6 rescue the Ajira plane arrives on the island, as we can tie this in with the earlier episode with the canoes. And here we see the Ajira plane landed on the Hydra island. Remember at the start of Season three where Sawyer and Kate were clearing a path of some kind... and Sawyer joked it was a runway for a flying saucer... well, he was half right; it was a runway. But for this plane. 

So, now we have the question as to why some time-flashed and others didn't. We know Jack, Kate and Hurley time-flashed, and we can assume Kate and Sayid did. So... if these 815ers time-flashed, why didn't Locke...? It's odd.

This whole episode was quite something. We had more of Abbadon in this one episode than we've had in all of his appearances put together. And just as we get to know him... BAM... gunned down. Mind you, I guess Lance Reddick is busy with Fringe these days... There were some very intriguing things...

There's the whole timescale of events. It appears that from Locke seeing Jack in the hospital there is little time passed between that and his death, but then that should mean there's little time between his death and when Jack sees his coffin, and corpse, at Hoffs Drawlar. But that can't be the case as it's Locke's visit that causes Jack to start taking flights in the hope that one will crash him back on the island, and going by his beard growth that's got to be a good couple of months. So, the times don't seem to add up unless... there are events we've still to be shown. Which, knowing Lost, wouldn't surpise me in the least.

Also, you have Widmore and Ben on opposing sides, yet both are trying to get the O6 back on the island... this seems odd, as you would think that this would aid one side over the other yet both seem to be wanting the same thing. Curious. 

But the oddest thing... after spending all that time talking Locke out of killing himself, at the mere mention of the name "Eloise Hawking", Ben strangles him to death. It is really most odd indeed. We see a different side to Ben when he's speaking to Locke. He's tender, compassionate even. And then, with the mention of the name it all turns on its head. It's a sudden, and shocking moment. Yet, when Ben apologises afterwards you know he genuinely means it. What is it about her that caused that reaction...?

You really have no idea what is going to happen next.

This is the best thing about this show; you make assumptions about what the show is about, and where it's going and it cheerfully leads you one way and then... oh, it takes you another. I mean, the assumption from the start was that the show would just be about how they got off the island... the end of season 3 smashed that assumption. I am really quite sure that any guess as to where the show will end up by the end will be somewhat way off the mark. It's very interesting to note that apparently one of the titles considered for the show before they settled on Lost was The Circle. I only read this recently, and in light of recent events, the whole time-flash malarkey, it does throw some light on things. Oh, and then you have Mrs Hawking's brooch from the first time she appeared; an ouroboros symbol. Now, Lost does have a habit of hiding things in plain sight, so I think this brooch is significant. Really, I can't help but think that the whole show will end where it began; with the crash of 815. How, I don't know, but it does seem like a distinct possibility...