After aligning herself with the minority in being disappointed in last week’s episode, Jen said tonight that she loved “Some Like It Hoth.” We both agreed it was hardly a deep, rich exploration of characters and mythology. It was a generous helping of fan fodder, chock full of little epiphanies and truly golden one-liners to keep us grinning throughout. Wrapped in the comfortable and traditional flashback structure, we finally get some of Miles’ backstory. We cross a few items off the “mystery” checklist. We get a glimpse of the coming “war” and the likely collapse of our survivors’ DHARMA ruse. And at the closing thud, Dan Faraday returns, likely with a hell of a story to tell… in two weeks.
First, the fun stuff. The unlikely buddy team of Hurley and Miles was as great as we’d imagined (and as was hinted during the time travel debate a couple of weeks ago). Miles was the straight man, but still wickedly wry. And Hurley was in top form. From stopping global warming to pre-writing “The Empire Strikes Back,” from possibly bringing us the closest to a “fart joke” we’ve ever seen on this show to his gleeful meddling between Dr. Chang and Miles, Jorge Garcia has never been more funny, and perfectly in sync with “LOST” fans. Was it a bit much? A touch of pandering? Jen doesn’t think so… though I can see how a grumpier fan looking for more forward motion might have felt a bit annoyed.
I thought Miles’ journey was well presented, though necessarily compressed. Tortured by his ability as a child, he grew to exploit it. He was also, like just about everyone on “LOST,” simmering with daddy issues. (Jen and I agreed, young punk Miles was wonderfully depicted.) Bram’s pitch in the black van didn’t penetrate his armor, but Hurley’s “Star Wars” metaphor at the DHARMA van did. And the scene where he sees his father reading to him was powerful. Dr. Chang has consistently been depicted as a grouch (and a “douche”), a reputation that even guarded Miles must have been familiar with. So to suddenly see him genuinely happy, perhaps only when he’s with baby Miles, said a lot. When Dr. Candle comes out to tell older Miles that he needs him? When Miles’ voice falters? Yeah, they got me.
Did Dr. Candle throw his wife and son out, or off the island? I’m thinking no. Perhaps she fled with baby Miles. But from what?
As for the reveals? They were doled out with great efficiency. Miles is Dr. Chang’s infant son. It’s possible to see yourself in the past (but physical contact may still be a problem). Miles wanted $3.2 million from Ben as he was trying, for the second time, to double his money from Widmore. Widmore was genuinely investigating the faked plane wreckage… though whoever was behind it is still unclear. And is that mysterious person or group behind trying to talk Miles out of joining Naomi’s expedition? Because that entity is also behind Ilana’s mission in 2007 (linked by the brilliantly-named Bram).
“The Reconstituted DHARMA Initiative” of the futurepresent is as good a theory as any.
It was a fun ride. But the path ahead looks to be a deliciously treacherous one. First of all, Kate is back to form, flapping her gums and toppling the first domino of doubt that’ll likely lead to our survivors’ expulsion from the DHARMA Initiative. And, yes, Daniel Faraday is back, returning from Ann Arbor as a Swan-assigned DHARMA scientist. How and why he ended off island will be almost as interesting to explore as what he’s ultimately up to. We only know he arrived, broken, in Othersville in 1974, and sometime later got inside The Orchid just as the frozen wheel was discovered. Is he trying to change something? We’re told “whatever happened, happened,” but if anyone’s going to break that particular rule, it’s him.
- Favorite Hurley moment? His interaction with Dr. Chang where they discus polar bear feces. Favorite Hurley line? “It all could have been avoided if they just… communicated.” No truer words are there for “LOST” — or for just about any dramatic story.
- I can’t wait for Jack to find his moment, to be “activated” a la Ilana… because his shuffling around is seriously getting on my nerves. The scene where he delivers his intel to Sawyer then quietly walks out left me scratching my head. And his defense of Kate to Roger was pretty weak. What could he have said to chill Roger out? How about, “She had a son, but lost him. She doesn’t ever want to talk about it. She just feels deeply for Ben, and for you.”
- Lots of numbers in this episode, including (finally) the numbers, being stamped into the hatch. There was the $1.6 and $3.2 million, of course, and the 3:16 on the microwave in the opening scene. Mr. Vonner was found dead in apartment four. They also clearly showed Miles’ older, bedridden mother lived in apartment 7… but earlier it seemed as if she came running from an apartment a few doors down from apartment 104.
- Music was prominent in this episode, too. Albert Hammond’s “It Never Rains In Southern California” and Captain & Tennille’s “Love Will Keep Us Together.” Plus a reference to Miles Davis. Dr. Chang loves country (hence “Shotgun Willie” in the opening scene of Season 5).
- Locations: The apartment complex and the taco stand are both in Aiea, makai of Pearlridge, next to Pearl Kai Shopping Center.
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