1.9 Solitary
Nadia: "You'll find me in the next life, if not in this one."
Instant karma for Sayid. Okay, slightly delayed karma. And I'm sort
of not kidding about the karma thing. The survivors are definitely working
through their issues.
This episode kept putting Sayid in the same situation, but on opposite
sides and with parallels galore: Sayid showed compassion toward his
prisoner, Nadia; Danielle showed compassion toward her prisoner, Sayid,
and so on. In the opening scene, Sayid said that the prisoner would
lose his hands or his life; on the Island, Sayid kept telling Danielle
that he needed his hands to fix the music box. It reminded me of that
old saw about slavery: the chains are on both the enslaved and the enslaver.
And this episode also contrasted government-sponsored evil with the
lack of civilization on the Island, which made the Island look pretty
darned good in comparison.
Although Sayid's backstory was fascinating, we really didn't learn much
that was new about him. We already knew he was in the Republican Guard
(that's Iraq a few years ago, not the Bush administration), and that
he had committed acts of torture for the sake of his country. We already
knew he was a man of deep feeling, character and depth. Sayid may be
the most interesting character on the Island -- with the possible exception
of Danielle Rousseau.
Danielle's advent gave us more questions than answers. Is she insane,
or was everything she said true? Who is broadcasting her distress signal,
and why? What did she mean by, "It was them. They were the carriers,"
and "They were already lost." Is this an invasion of the body-snatchers
situation? (She also referred to the Black Rock. As in "Bad Day
at?") Danielle also said, "If we're lucky, it's one of the
bears." Does she know what the Monster is?
The impromptu golf game was just marvelous. "Welcome to the first,
and hopefully last, Island Open. It's two holes, three par, and no waiting."
Hurley had the right idea. They can't just sit around and wait; it's
time to start building a life. Aqueducts are fine, but what about building
houses? Is a rainy season coming?
Kate told Sawyer to make an effort, and he made an effort. But he's
not fooling anyone but her. I'm annoyed with the way Kate is acting
with Sawyer (Josh Holloway must be a good actor, because he's punching
all of my buttons). It's possible that Kate's lack of self-esteem is
making her fall for Sawyer's line of bull, which makes me feel a little
sorry for her. She probably feels that she deserves a guy like Sawyer,
and doesn't deserve a guy like Jack.
As good as this episode was, I was reluctant to write about it. I think
it was the torture. Dramatically sound, but not my favorite thing.
Bits and pieces:
-- It's two days after the last episode, making it 16 days. And with
Danielle's presence confirmed, our people count is again 47. It's actually
been 47 all along. Unless someone else is on the Island.
-- Mira Furlan (Danielle Rousseau) is one of my favorite sci-fi actresses;
she played Delenn, an alien leader, on Babylon 5. I've been fantasizing
about her joining the cast for two days now.
-- Jean-Jacques Rousseau was the name of a famous French philosopher.
Rousseau and Locke were both philosophers associated with the French
Revolution. I don't think that's a coincidence. I don't think anything
on this show is a coincidence.
-- Two new survivors were introduced: Rash Guy with glasses, and Ethan
the junior hunter ("Rodent. Yum.") Emilie de Ravin was, again,
not in this episode.
-- Sayid stole Danielle's map of the Island. I probably would have,
too.
-- What was that power cable connected to? The ship Danielle was on,
still generating power after sixteen years? The alien lords of the Island?
The trans-Pacific cable?
-- Young Walt is still intrigued by Locke, and Locke is ready to pass
his wisdom on to Walt. I think it's time for Michael to let it happen,
because it's gonna happen anyway.
-- We still don't know who knocked Sayid on the head. It wasn't Danielle.
-- Sunscreen on the Island must be like cigarettes in prison.
-- Charlie still seems to be fine; no withdrawal pangs at all. Dan thinks
the Island made Charlie better sooner. I'm reserving judgment.
-- We still don't know why Sayid was on the plane. We also don't know
what happened to Nadia. We didn't see her die, and Sayid said she wasn't
on the plane. Hey, if she shows up, that's proof that they're experiencing
an afterlife of sorts.
-- Jack: "Things could be worse." Hurley: "How?"
-- Michael: "Polar bears?" Charlie: "You didn't hear
about the polar bears?"
-- I must mention, if I haven't already, that Naveen Andrews (Sayid)
is a major league cutie pie. Love the curls.
-- This week's title song title was most likely "Solitary"
by Yearning. (If you think I'm wrong, please let me know!) The lyrics
are very interesting and seem to apply to Sayid.
Three out of a possible four polar bears,
Billie
©Billie
Doux