Thank God for the spring, because this year, it means that ABC's 'Lost' is going without any breaks for the rest of the year. Now, as an avid fan, I know that there are lulls each season, but if the season stays up like this, then 'Lost' is going to be on the biggest roll ever, because this episode was fantastic.
Every episode, as any fan knows, focuses on one of the people on the mysterious island, and this week, we look at Desmond. I'm glad that we finally got to see more of his backstory, and more with Penelope, his star-crossed lover. Too bad we didn't get any follow-up on her knowing where the island is (thanks to the second-season finale), but this was definitely a great episode nonetheless.
I had been reading that this episode would be the most unique in awhile, and the producers weren't lying. Instead of getting a few flashbacks from one of the castaways, we pretty much only got a flashback in deja vu form. After some prodding through alcohol from Charlie and Hurley, we found out what happened to Desmond after he turned the fail-safe key that blew up the infamous hatch last season: he went back and relived a few days in his life before he broke up with his girlfriend and entered the Royal Scots Army. The entire episode focuses on how he's slowly figuring out what happened to him on the island and escaping that fate again. Of course, things go as they would normally, and Desmond ends up back on the island, naked after the hatch explosion.
He did, though, pick up some good advice from a mysterious jeweler who obviously has the same gift as Desmond gets on the island, of seeing the future. The jeweler tells Desmond that she can see when and how people will die, and even if she saves someone today, they'll still die, just in a different way. It ties back in the end, when Desmond reveals something big to Charlie: when he made the lightning rod back in the fall, it was because he saw Charlie getting killed; it's why, at the beginning of this one, he saves Claire from drowning, because originally, it was Charlie who would drown trying to save Claire. Desmond then tells Charlie that he will die, and it sounds like it might happen soon.
Maybe it's because I can't stand Charlie (the character, not the actor, Dominic Monaghan) or because it's just nice to get back to big twists, but I really enjoyed this episode, especially the finale. It was a nice change of pace to not see Jack, Kate or Sawyer (who are great characters, but they're not the only ones) on the show and focus more on some of the lesser-known castaways. Also, it was nice to see the Desmond-Penny storyline, but when are we going to find out what Penelope is doing with the info she has on Desmond's whereabouts?
Next week, Jack's got another story for us; I love the character, but doesn't he have, like, eight stories a year? Sheesh. Still, I'll watch, because this show keeps me riveted. Keep your eyes open for another review for 'Lost' next week.
