Lost
Outlaws
original airdate: 02-16-05
This episode is so well constructed most fans will likely
forgive the recent slow pace of overall plot development
and, more specifically, that pesky unopened portal. (Where’s
the spiffy news graphic: “Portal Watch: Day 3”
?)
The storylines are compelling, the acting is solid, and
even the camera work is above average. For an episode that
centers around a boar, it’s anything but boring (sorry,
couldn’t resist).
Both
the front and back stories involve Sawyer seeking revenge.
On the island his target is a boar that seems to be personally
harassing the one-time con man, who is also hearing voices
in the jungle a la Sayid (though these become understandable
by the end of the episode in a rather clever way). And in
his memories, the target is the real Sawyer, the man who
brought about the death of his parents, and, presumably,
his less than humanistic attitude towards others.
In the
flashbacks Sawyer first runs into a former partner, Hibbs,
played by an underutilized Robert Patrick. Though much less
compelling as a main character, e.g., The
X-Files, Mr. Patrick has done some outstanding
work in small roles within big shows, e.g., his portrayal
of a gambling addicted sporting goods store owner on The
Sopranos.
So it’s
a shame we don’t see more of him here (though the
brevity of his appearance may have also been a necessity
to keep more fans from guessing the ending).
What
fans do see more of, however, is a character actually seen
before in other flashbacks. This infusion works very well
and adds more credence to the theory that the lives of the
castaways had all intersected somehow before the crash.
In the
present Kate accompanies Sawyer on his boar hunt. This leads
to two outstanding scenes. The first involves a game of
“I Never” involving airline bottles of alcohol.
The second involves Locke, presumably on his way to or from
the PP (that’s pesky portal, for short). As he has
before, Locke counsels through story before concluding with
one of his trademark smiles that’s the perfect combination
of knowingness, warmth, and creepiness.
The
integration of the foreground and background stories in
this episode is perhaps the best yet. What helps is that
some of the flashbacks and present time segments feature
multiple scenes. In past episodes flashbacks sometimes seemed
jerky or cut-off.
There
is also a secondary present time story involving Charlie
dealing with the taking of a life (BTW, where the heck is
the autopsy of Ethan?!). While not especially interesting
on its own, the plotline results in some excellent exchanges
among Charlie, Sayid, and Hurley (the latter being so consistently
amusing, it’s too bad the writers haven’t yet
treated the fans to a Hurley-centric episode). There’s
also some foreshadowing via a brief glimpse of the raft’s
rapid development.
Kudos
for the camera work and direction, too. There are many shots
that add to the emotional context of the scene. That’s
especially important to augmenting the tension surrounding
what Sawyer is going to do about the boar and about Frank
the Shrimper.
Like
the last episode, not a lot happened on the island. But
unlike last episode, most fans will be just fine with that.
|
