rose_griffes (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rose_griffes) wrote2010-05-30 04:29 pm
rose_griffes) wrote2010-05-30 04:29 pm
Entry tags:
brief DW episode reaction and longer Lost reaction post
I didn't have time to read any remix stories this week, except for the one about Hera, and yup, I sort of had an inkling it might be ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lls_mutant's story, but I wasn't sure. But yeah, no reading stories means no guessing who wrote what, alas.
Long weekend, though! I shall read stories soon! I finally watched Doctor Who's "Waters of Mars." That was depressing. I'm not sure if I liked it or not, but it was certainly thought-provoking. Anyone who was laboring under the misconception that Ten is a cuddly teddy bear has certainly had that ripped away from them. Next up: "The End of Time." As soon as Netflix sends it to me, anyway. Then maybe I can finally start watching the Eleventh Doctor. Looks like I can legally purchase episodes from Amazon, though we're one or two episodes behind in the USA. Obviously that's not a problem right now, since I'm still months behind.
I did make time to rewatch the Lost finale.
Knowing that the alternate timeline is a sort of limbo means that rewatching is a revelatory experience. Having such a big piece of information now neatly turns all of the finale in a different direction. This isn't to say that the season six alt!world is a satisfactory answer for the five previous seasons, but it definitely makes the finale have a different kind of emotional resonance the second time through.
Desmond has always been a big piece of the puzzle, because there's something wrong with him, no matter where/when he is. Or something right, however you want to view it. On the Island he was apparently getting glimpses of the limbo world, while in Limbo he was very self-aware (after Charlie almost drowned him), and very much in charge of making certain things happen. He's an impatient fellow, that alt-Desmond, putting all the pieces of the puzzle into place to make everyone remember.
Limbo world first, then. limbo: an intermediate, transitional, or midway state or place
-When Sun and Jin remembered their real past, I got teary-eyed. (Limbo means their remembered English makes a lot more sense to me.) I have thoughts about Ji-Yeon and her orphan status, but I'll just summarize with the statement that Jin being alive and in his daughter's life wouldn't necessarily have worked out for the better for Ji-Yeon, thanks to Jin's in-laws.
-Alt!Jack says that if he can fix Locke, that's all the peace he'll need. Nicely consistent characterization, even though you're in Limbo, Jack. Also, alt!Jack gets to work out his daddy issues with David, apparently.
-Maybe Juliet needed to 1) have a successful pregnancy herself and 2) see what might have happened with Jack, since she'd been attracted to him. Or maybe she was just looking for someone stable. Alt!Jack seems to be a pretty stable guy. Or maybe the writers just needed something for alt!Juliet to do. Hm.
-Hugo the millionnaire and Boone conspiring to have Shannon and Sayid remember is just adorable. I don't really have any major objections to Sayid and Shannon as a couple. I did like that they were genuinely helpful to each other during their relationship on the Island before.
-Notice it's Daniel Widmore here, not Daniel Faraday. And Eloise Hawking/Faraday/Widmore doesn't seem too keen on having Limbo end for her happy(?) piano-playing son. Charlotte and Daniel meet, but don't remember each other yet, apparently.
-Kate gets teary-eyed as she helps Claire give birth, and OH MY HEART. Her face, y'all! I cannot believe this wave of emotion in me is coming from watching Kate Austen, who was not a favorite after the episode "What Kate did." Oh, and then Charlie remembers too, and, uh... excuse me for a moment. *sniffles*
-"You don't have a son, Jack." Locke tells the truth, but ouch. I liked David. Poor Jack's psyche obviously needed lots of healing for him to create a whole (yet broken) family while in Limbo.
-Alt!Jack sends James Ford to the vending machines and THIS IS ALMOST MY FAVORITE BIT because Juliet is fantastic and she made me actually sort of like Sawyer.
-Jack gets to the concert late. Kate says that she's missed him. Jack, still at his heart a man of science and logic, doesn't understand.
-Alt!Locke takes a taxi to the church. He gets into his wheelchair and as he approaches, he sees Ben. Ben gives him a sincere apology, and Locke says that he forgives him. "It matters more than I can say," replies Ben, and it's a lovely moment between these two characters who have plotted and schemed and hurt each other. Ben tells John that he's staying, because he has things to work out. He also tells John that he doesn't have to be in the wheelchair anymore.
-Even when Hugo invites him, Ben isn't ready to go inside.
-But Jack finally is. The church has multiple religions represented in the stained glass and in the artifacts scattered throughout the room. I'm getting teary-eyed waiting for Jack to see his dad. Huh, the first time I watched I was certain that this wasn't really Christian Shepard for two reasons. One, we've seen lots of representations of him throughout the show, but it was rarely him and two, knowing the kind of father he was made me pretty sure he wasn't ready to move on from this Limbo yet. But for this second viewing I'm sure it's him. For one thing, he says he's real. For another, this Limbo lasts however long it needs to for each person. There is no now, as Christian points out.
-THEY HUG! And I think this is my real favorite part, because it's just lovely. Christian talks about how nobody does this alone, and how the Limbo was a time to remember, and to let go.
On the Island:
-Jack, Sawyer, Kate and Hurley hike upward, and the musical cue is from season one. It's a nice callback to an important moment.
-Frank's survival of the submarine explosion has a useful purpose, since he can pilot the plane off Hydra Island.
-"You disrespect his memory by wearing his face." Quite possibly my favorite line of dialogue ever from Jack Shepard.
-Desmond uncorks the Island and, well, all hell breaks loose. Jack and Smokey were both right. They start to fight, and Smokey clocks Jack with a rock to the head.
-Ben saves Hugo from the falling tree (awwww!), but gets trapped himself.
-Jack wakes up to an Island gone grey.
-"I don't believe in a lot of things, but I do believe in duct tape." Miles and Richard need to become repairmen who have wacky adventures together, don't you think? Personally I'd be a bit uncomfortable riding an airplane that had been repaired with duct tape, but it's not like there were lots of choices at that point.
-Smokey's ready to get on his boat, but instead he and Jack have THE AWESOMEST FIGHT EVER on the rocks, and Jack gets stabbed (no!) and KATE SHOOTS FAKE LOCKE WITH A GUN because she saved a bullet for him!
-Oh, and now we know why alt!Jack has those wounds to the side ("appendix" scar) and neck.
-Jack is going to reset the Island, Ben is going "down with the ship" and Hurley just doesn't want to climb down that ladder. (Well... I'll happily attribute higher motivations to him as well, but I don't blame him. Those rungs looked scary.)
-Sawyer and Kate have to get to Hydra Island fast, so they finally jump down. Kate jumps first, 'cause she's AWESOME. (Again, I can't quite believe I'm rhapsodizing about Kate Austen here.)
-"If Desmond didn't make it, how the hell are you gonna survive?" And then Hugo's eyes fill with tears and we're all saying NOT HURLEY TEARS because they're like a secret weapon to make everyone else cry.
-How fantastic is it that the new protector of the Island is an overweight former mental patient who reads comics in Spanish and loves Star Wars?!
-"I believe in you." Hugo said it to Jack earlier, now Jack says it to Hugo. Jack gives him water to drink, but he doesn't say the magic words, which sort of disappoints me. I guess the magic is in the offering and accepting of the drink?
-Ben and Hugo lower Jack down and we discover that Desmond is alive! Jack takes care of him first before his next task. "I'll see you in another life, brother," Jack tells him. Hurrah for yet another callback. Jack then puts the cork back in the Island.
-Kate and Sawyer find Claire and Kate convinces her to come with them. Awwwww! They get on the airplane just in time! AWWWWW! Frank is nervous and after they get airborne he says, "Amen." *sniffle* Kate holds Claire's hand and Miles actually smiles without sarcasm and James looks sad and hopeful...
-Jack sees water trickling down, and the light gradually fills back up. Hugo and Ben pull on the rope, only to find Desmond. Hugo yells for Jack, who is sitting bathes in water, light and (presumably) electromagnetism.
-Ben and Hugo take care of Desmond, mourn Jack, and figure out what to do next. "I think you do what you do best. Take care of people," Ben tells him. Then Hugo asks him to be his helper, and Ben is genuinely touched, and now I think you all need to write Hugo and Ben's adventures on the Island. (Oh, and you need to write how Desmond got home safely to Penny and baby Charlie, too. Thanks!)
-Jack wakes up, seriously hurt. He finds the bamboo forest and lies down in a small clearing. Vincent the dog finds him and lies down too. I was pretty much sobbing by this point. Jack looks up, sees the plane with Kate and the others successfully leaving, then he closes his eyes.
on characters and so forth:
One thing I've seen referenced about the finale is that the writers kept talking about coming back to the characters. I sort of laughed it off, because apparently writers on shows with multiple seasons like saying that. But there is actually something about that idea that works for me, as long as I include the Island as one of the characters. The Island is a MAJOR character in the show. Whatever power/force it has, it impacts everyone.
Christian Shepard's speech included the idea that their time on the Island was such an important part of their lives that they wanted to find each other again, hence the Limbo they created together. So the Island's influence rippled throughout the rest of their lives, however long those lives might have been.
Bringing it back to the characters, though: the Limbo world is a fascinating idea as a showcase for both what we expected from these people and for new aspects of them.
redemption:
Whatever force or power the Island has, it seems to be into second chances. Maybe that's an unintended consequence of the Island. I'm really curious if the writers always intended all of these people (looking at just the characters with the most screen time) to be so flawed, and so in need of a time-out/reboot from their messed-up lives. But that's what happened to those who got off the Island--their time away was like unplugging the machine and plugging it back in.
what show were you watching?
I mentioned earlier that the season six Limbo storyline didn't really answer everything about this mysterious Island. We did get some answers along the way, but not everything. I never expected everything to be answered, because that's not the show I was watching. Personally I was mostly watching "That crazy show with polar bears on a tropical island with other mysterious stuff" and eventually sort of watching "The Juliet Show," which morphed into "The Juliet and James show."
I think the writers deserve some kudos for keeping us interested for six years, and for making me care (at least somewhat) about these damaged people and wonder what was up with this crazy place they'd landed.
It's been fun, Lost. I've never watched a "cult" show that I've actually been able to talk about with so many people.
lls_mutant's story, but I wasn't sure. But yeah, no reading stories means no guessing who wrote what, alas.Long weekend, though! I shall read stories soon! I finally watched Doctor Who's "Waters of Mars." That was depressing. I'm not sure if I liked it or not, but it was certainly thought-provoking. Anyone who was laboring under the misconception that Ten is a cuddly teddy bear has certainly had that ripped away from them. Next up: "The End of Time." As soon as Netflix sends it to me, anyway. Then maybe I can finally start watching the Eleventh Doctor. Looks like I can legally purchase episodes from Amazon, though we're one or two episodes behind in the USA. Obviously that's not a problem right now, since I'm still months behind.
I did make time to rewatch the Lost finale.
Knowing that the alternate timeline is a sort of limbo means that rewatching is a revelatory experience. Having such a big piece of information now neatly turns all of the finale in a different direction. This isn't to say that the season six alt!world is a satisfactory answer for the five previous seasons, but it definitely makes the finale have a different kind of emotional resonance the second time through.
Desmond has always been a big piece of the puzzle, because there's something wrong with him, no matter where/when he is. Or something right, however you want to view it. On the Island he was apparently getting glimpses of the limbo world, while in Limbo he was very self-aware (after Charlie almost drowned him), and very much in charge of making certain things happen. He's an impatient fellow, that alt-Desmond, putting all the pieces of the puzzle into place to make everyone remember.
Limbo world first, then. limbo: an intermediate, transitional, or midway state or place
-When Sun and Jin remembered their real past, I got teary-eyed. (Limbo means their remembered English makes a lot more sense to me.) I have thoughts about Ji-Yeon and her orphan status, but I'll just summarize with the statement that Jin being alive and in his daughter's life wouldn't necessarily have worked out for the better for Ji-Yeon, thanks to Jin's in-laws.
-Alt!Jack says that if he can fix Locke, that's all the peace he'll need. Nicely consistent characterization, even though you're in Limbo, Jack. Also, alt!Jack gets to work out his daddy issues with David, apparently.
-Maybe Juliet needed to 1) have a successful pregnancy herself and 2) see what might have happened with Jack, since she'd been attracted to him. Or maybe she was just looking for someone stable. Alt!Jack seems to be a pretty stable guy. Or maybe the writers just needed something for alt!Juliet to do. Hm.
-Hugo the millionnaire and Boone conspiring to have Shannon and Sayid remember is just adorable. I don't really have any major objections to Sayid and Shannon as a couple. I did like that they were genuinely helpful to each other during their relationship on the Island before.
-Notice it's Daniel Widmore here, not Daniel Faraday. And Eloise Hawking/Faraday/Widmore doesn't seem too keen on having Limbo end for her happy(?) piano-playing son. Charlotte and Daniel meet, but don't remember each other yet, apparently.
-Kate gets teary-eyed as she helps Claire give birth, and OH MY HEART. Her face, y'all! I cannot believe this wave of emotion in me is coming from watching Kate Austen, who was not a favorite after the episode "What Kate did." Oh, and then Charlie remembers too, and, uh... excuse me for a moment. *sniffles*
-"You don't have a son, Jack." Locke tells the truth, but ouch. I liked David. Poor Jack's psyche obviously needed lots of healing for him to create a whole (yet broken) family while in Limbo.
-Alt!Jack sends James Ford to the vending machines and THIS IS ALMOST MY FAVORITE BIT because Juliet is fantastic and she made me actually sort of like Sawyer.
"It's okay, I'm a cop."-And then she tells him the 'secret' of the vending machines, which is also the secret of the Island. They both remember and they hug and he babbles, just like he always did, and she cuts to the important stuff ("Kiss me, James") because she was always good at that and they kiss.
"Maybe you should read the machine its rights."
-Jack gets to the concert late. Kate says that she's missed him. Jack, still at his heart a man of science and logic, doesn't understand.
-Alt!Locke takes a taxi to the church. He gets into his wheelchair and as he approaches, he sees Ben. Ben gives him a sincere apology, and Locke says that he forgives him. "It matters more than I can say," replies Ben, and it's a lovely moment between these two characters who have plotted and schemed and hurt each other. Ben tells John that he's staying, because he has things to work out. He also tells John that he doesn't have to be in the wheelchair anymore.
-Even when Hugo invites him, Ben isn't ready to go inside.
-But Jack finally is. The church has multiple religions represented in the stained glass and in the artifacts scattered throughout the room. I'm getting teary-eyed waiting for Jack to see his dad. Huh, the first time I watched I was certain that this wasn't really Christian Shepard for two reasons. One, we've seen lots of representations of him throughout the show, but it was rarely him and two, knowing the kind of father he was made me pretty sure he wasn't ready to move on from this Limbo yet. But for this second viewing I'm sure it's him. For one thing, he says he's real. For another, this Limbo lasts however long it needs to for each person. There is no now, as Christian points out.
-THEY HUG! And I think this is my real favorite part, because it's just lovely. Christian talks about how nobody does this alone, and how the Limbo was a time to remember, and to let go.
On the Island:
-Jack, Sawyer, Kate and Hurley hike upward, and the musical cue is from season one. It's a nice callback to an important moment.
-Frank's survival of the submarine explosion has a useful purpose, since he can pilot the plane off Hydra Island.
-"You disrespect his memory by wearing his face." Quite possibly my favorite line of dialogue ever from Jack Shepard.
-Desmond uncorks the Island and, well, all hell breaks loose. Jack and Smokey were both right. They start to fight, and Smokey clocks Jack with a rock to the head.
-Ben saves Hugo from the falling tree (awwww!), but gets trapped himself.
-Jack wakes up to an Island gone grey.
-"I don't believe in a lot of things, but I do believe in duct tape." Miles and Richard need to become repairmen who have wacky adventures together, don't you think? Personally I'd be a bit uncomfortable riding an airplane that had been repaired with duct tape, but it's not like there were lots of choices at that point.
-Smokey's ready to get on his boat, but instead he and Jack have THE AWESOMEST FIGHT EVER on the rocks, and Jack gets stabbed (no!) and KATE SHOOTS FAKE LOCKE WITH A GUN because she saved a bullet for him!
-Oh, and now we know why alt!Jack has those wounds to the side ("appendix" scar) and neck.
-Jack is going to reset the Island, Ben is going "down with the ship" and Hurley just doesn't want to climb down that ladder. (Well... I'll happily attribute higher motivations to him as well, but I don't blame him. Those rungs looked scary.)
-Sawyer and Kate have to get to Hydra Island fast, so they finally jump down. Kate jumps first, 'cause she's AWESOME. (Again, I can't quite believe I'm rhapsodizing about Kate Austen here.)
-"If Desmond didn't make it, how the hell are you gonna survive?" And then Hugo's eyes fill with tears and we're all saying NOT HURLEY TEARS because they're like a secret weapon to make everyone else cry.
-How fantastic is it that the new protector of the Island is an overweight former mental patient who reads comics in Spanish and loves Star Wars?!
-"I believe in you." Hugo said it to Jack earlier, now Jack says it to Hugo. Jack gives him water to drink, but he doesn't say the magic words, which sort of disappoints me. I guess the magic is in the offering and accepting of the drink?
-Ben and Hugo lower Jack down and we discover that Desmond is alive! Jack takes care of him first before his next task. "I'll see you in another life, brother," Jack tells him. Hurrah for yet another callback. Jack then puts the cork back in the Island.
-Kate and Sawyer find Claire and Kate convinces her to come with them. Awwwww! They get on the airplane just in time! AWWWWW! Frank is nervous and after they get airborne he says, "Amen." *sniffle* Kate holds Claire's hand and Miles actually smiles without sarcasm and James looks sad and hopeful...
-Jack sees water trickling down, and the light gradually fills back up. Hugo and Ben pull on the rope, only to find Desmond. Hugo yells for Jack, who is sitting bathes in water, light and (presumably) electromagnetism.
-Ben and Hugo take care of Desmond, mourn Jack, and figure out what to do next. "I think you do what you do best. Take care of people," Ben tells him. Then Hugo asks him to be his helper, and Ben is genuinely touched, and now I think you all need to write Hugo and Ben's adventures on the Island. (Oh, and you need to write how Desmond got home safely to Penny and baby Charlie, too. Thanks!)
-Jack wakes up, seriously hurt. He finds the bamboo forest and lies down in a small clearing. Vincent the dog finds him and lies down too. I was pretty much sobbing by this point. Jack looks up, sees the plane with Kate and the others successfully leaving, then he closes his eyes.
on characters and so forth:
One thing I've seen referenced about the finale is that the writers kept talking about coming back to the characters. I sort of laughed it off, because apparently writers on shows with multiple seasons like saying that. But there is actually something about that idea that works for me, as long as I include the Island as one of the characters. The Island is a MAJOR character in the show. Whatever power/force it has, it impacts everyone.
Christian Shepard's speech included the idea that their time on the Island was such an important part of their lives that they wanted to find each other again, hence the Limbo they created together. So the Island's influence rippled throughout the rest of their lives, however long those lives might have been.
Bringing it back to the characters, though: the Limbo world is a fascinating idea as a showcase for both what we expected from these people and for new aspects of them.
redemption:
Whatever force or power the Island has, it seems to be into second chances. Maybe that's an unintended consequence of the Island. I'm really curious if the writers always intended all of these people (looking at just the characters with the most screen time) to be so flawed, and so in need of a time-out/reboot from their messed-up lives. But that's what happened to those who got off the Island--their time away was like unplugging the machine and plugging it back in.
what show were you watching?
I mentioned earlier that the season six Limbo storyline didn't really answer everything about this mysterious Island. We did get some answers along the way, but not everything. I never expected everything to be answered, because that's not the show I was watching. Personally I was mostly watching "That crazy show with polar bears on a tropical island with other mysterious stuff" and eventually sort of watching "The Juliet Show," which morphed into "The Juliet and James show."
I think the writers deserve some kudos for keeping us interested for six years, and for making me care (at least somewhat) about these damaged people and wonder what was up with this crazy place they'd landed.
It's been fun, Lost. I've never watched a "cult" show that I've actually been able to talk about with so many people.
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Yup. And Lapidus with them. :-D
I think the writers deserve some kudos for keeping us interested for six years, and for making me care (at least somewhat) about these damaged people and wonder what was up with this crazy place they'd landed.
I agree. We all stuck it out and stayed with it for some reason. Don't know if I'd do it for any show similar to Lost coming in the future but I had to be there for the end of this show. Crazy Lost. I won't miss you but I am glad you gave me some closure.
no subject
Ghostbusting Mechanics and Life Coaching!
Ah, Lost. I'm missing it a bit already!