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« on: April 07, 2010, 09:38:09 AM » |
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OBS RECAP & REVIEWS: LOST S6 EPISODE 11 ‘HAPPILY EVER AFTER’
Brought to you by OBS staff member Rose
This Desmond centric episode jerked its audience to attention and brought the series back to its true form, making it the best episode of Season 6 thus far. How this episode differs is once the story line veers to the Sideways World it stays there till the very end.
Recap and Review:
Desmond finds himself at he mercy of Charles Widmore, who wants to use him in an experiment. Obviously, Desmond is seething about the fact that he has been brought back to the island and attacks Widmore once he is told where he is. Widmore tries to explain to him the severity of the situation and the need for Desmond to help him.
Widmore’s associates scramble to test the generator for the experiment but there is a causality when someone gets stuck in the room and they switch the generator on. This was shown purely to ascertain the fact that only Desmond can withstand and survive a cataclysmic electro-magnetic event, as he did when the hatch blew up. For when Desmond is strapped down in a chair and the experiment begins…Desmond doesn’t die…he enters back in sideways world. This is where it gets tricky.
We have always seen sideways world as two separate entities thus far, with the Losties having merely a sense of deja vu when meeting another Lostie in that world. Nothing more. But with Desmond, the worlds are about he collide.
Desmond is told by Hurley were the baggage claim is after he exits form Oceanic Flight 815 that has landed in LA. Desmond then helps Claire retrieve her luggage from the carousel and tells Claire her baby will be a boy. Desmond then gets into a chauffeured limo and is taken to his employer, which happens to be Charles Widmore. He is put to work immediately with the task of babysitting the bass guitarist of Driveshaft (a band his son is also a member of) who was arrested on Flight Oceanic 815 and making sure he shows up to play at Widmore’s wife charity benefit. Widmore breaks out a 60-year-old scotch the toast to Desmond who is indispensable.
When Desmond picks Charlie up form the police station, Charlie takes off for the nearest bar. Desmond has a drink with him as Charlie explains what happened to him on the flight. Charlie also divulges the fact that when he laid eyes on a woman on the plane, (presumably Claire), he felt the sense of an overpowering love and saw a life with her, as if it had happened already. He believes it to be real and the truth. Charlie knows Desmond is unhappy and feels there is something missing and asks if he has ever felt that love. Desmond never has and is just there to do his job, and believes Charlie’s story is merely hogwash.
Desmond is driving Charlie when Charlie tells Desmond he will show him what he is talking about, the choices in life and how unhappy Desmond really is. Charlie grabs the wheel and forces the car off a dock into the ocean. Desmond frees himself and comes around the side of the car to help Charlie but the door is stuck. Charlie raises his hand to the car window, (just like he did when he was drowning off the island in Season 3 Episode 23 "Through the Looking Glass" Part 2.,) and Desmond sees a flash, and Charlie’s hand reads “not Penny’s boat”.
Desmond saved Charlie and at the hospital he is having an MRI performed when his entire life with Penny flashes before him. He stops the MRI midway and is now bent on finding Charlie for an explanation but the nurses refuse to give him any information.
Desmond sees Jack and tells him of his dilemma and Jack is perplexed that someone from the flight is in the hospital. Suddenly we see Charlie running down the hall and Desmond gives chase. When he catches up with him, Desmond questions Charlie about trying to kill him. Charlie says he was only trying to show him something. Desmond wants to see his hand. Charlie mentions to Desmond that he has seen something. Charlie believes none of this world matters since he has ‘seen’ what he saw. What matters is the feeling they felt. Charlie tells Desmond he must find out who Penny is.
Because Charlie refuses to play at the benefit, Desmond is forced to tell Mrs. Widmore this news. Desmond meets with Mrs. Widmore as she’s prepping for the event on a massive lawn. It is Eloise Hawking.
Desmond tells her the bad news and Mrs. Widmore supposed wrath never shows. Light on his feet with a sense of happiness he passes a few people discussing the guest list and hears them mention Penny. He asks for the list but Mrs. Widmore comes over and says it is confidential. She tells Desmond something has effect how he sees things and it is a violation. She urges him to stop looking for what he looking for. He is not ready yet. This throws Desmond for a loop.
Sullen, Desmond is about to drive away when he is approached by Charles Widmore son…Daniel Widmore…aka Daniel Faraday. Faraday proceeds to tell him of his experience seeing a red haired woman a few weeks back. How he felt an overwhelming love for her. Faraday confides to Desmond that after that experience, he wrote a quantum mechanics formula in his notebook. He was told it is so advanced, only someone studying it for years could possibly write it. But he’s in a band and knows music, nothing else. Faraday reveals that the formula is an equation by which in order to stop a major catastrophe, a huge amount of energy needed to be released, equivalent to a nuclear bomb. (This formula was the same formula Faraday had on the chalkboard at school in the Episode ‘The Constant’.) Faraday continues and tells Desmond that he believes has already set the bomb off and this has changed what their life would have been. Desmond speaks of Penny and Faraday gives Desmond information on where exactly Penny will be and what time. How does Faraday know this? Because Penny is Faraday’s half sister.
At a stadium, Desmond sees Penny running for exercise around the bleachers (just as he and Jack had met in a season past). He introduces himself to her and shakes her hand. She too feels as if they have met before.
Desmond awakes, and Charles Widmore and his team enter the experiment room. Desmond asks how long he was unconscious for and it was merely a few seconds.
Widmore wants to explain why he is vital and needed, but Desmond doesn’t need the explanation. He understands and wants to help. Widmore is taken aback by his enthusiasm. As they ware walking through the jungle, Zoe and the team are attacked by Sayid, who knocks all but Zoe unconscious. Sayid tells Zoe to run and tells Desmond the people he is with are dangerous and he should come with him. Desmond quickly agrees and follows Sayid.
Desmond had blanked out in Sideways world and collects himself and apologizes to Penny for fainting. (This is reminiscent of when Desmond use to time jump.) Desmond asks her out for coffee that evening and she agrees.
Back in the chauffeured limousine the driver, George, asks if he found what he was looking for and Desmond ecstatically replies he has. Desmond then asks George if he could obtain the Ocean Flight 815 passenger list, for he needs to show the passengers something.
So many questions come to mind after seeing this episode. Is Eloise Hawking aka Eloise Widmore, aware of all the worlds? She must be considering what she told Desmond. And why is Desmond not ready to see the truth? Is it because he won’t believe it? Was Charles Widmore relying on Desmond to get thrust back into the sideways world to encounter all he did, and in turn have it change his mind about the task on the island? Or was it mere coincidence? But nothing is coincidence on Lost.
Speaking of which, did it not seem as if the experiment thrust Desmond into Sideways world? However at the end of the episode he found himself once again in Sideways world, recovering from fainting after shaking Penny’s hand, which is exactly what happens to Desmond in Season 4 Episode 5 ‘The Constant’ when he was time tripping. He was initially subjected to a huge dose of electro-magnetic energy which caused him to time trip. Remember too, Penny was his constant.
Did the experience of almost dying allow Charlie to see ‘the other life’ he had? What are the prompts that lead to ‘seeing’ their other life? It seems when they set eyes on the ones that they truly loved in their other life; something clicks inside them that they can’t brush off. But why then, did this not happen with Kaye and Sawyer?
Why did Desmond readily follow Sayid? This really made no apparent sense. Does anyone have any theories they’d like to share?
What is on the passenger list of flight 815 that Desmond wants to show the passengers? Does he understand there is an alternate time line now? Now that he realizes what he is missing and the alt universe is not all it’s cracked up to be…does he want to show the Losties they need to realize this as well?
What questions and theories do you want to share? LET'S DISCUSS.
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