I'm so happy to have Lost back... Although it is a little bittersweet, knowing we only get a few episodes before we catch up with where the writers strike left our stranded characters.... well, stranded, I guess. But in the meantime I'm just going to enjoy each complex, rich, beautifully crafted and shot, and exquisitely confusing episode we get. Good lord, I love this show.

I can't tell you how jazzed I was in the 3rd season finale when I realized our parallel Jack story for the episode was a flashforward instead of our usual flashback. Genius. Seriously, JJ, you rock. Have my babies! Woo!!

No, but seriously, after three seasons of teasing out the backstory of these characters and wondering desperately if, how, and when they would get off the island, I was starting to worry that Lost would get stagnant and they'd run out of storylines, or worse--that they'd have so much detail in each flashback that they'd end up with continuity errors because they couldn't keep it all straight. Starting flashforwards with no warning or explanation was brilliant. Especially as a season finale. Now we know some survive, and we also know there is a major problem with their survival. Bad news bears, people. Plus, didn't the pharmacist refer to Jack's father in the finale flashforward? Way to drop a crazy hint and then make us wait indefinitely for the pay off! Evil genius.

So now I can't wait to see if they continue with the flashforwards in every episode. 4x01 makes me think they will. From the beginning JJ has said he doesn't want Lost to ramble on forever, with the writers inventing new ways to keep the castaways on the island season after season just to make bank off a successful show, especially if the quality ends up suffering as time goes on. He's apparently got a 6 year plan. Which means we're effectively tipping over just barely from the midpoint right now. Sounds like a fabulous time to switch from past information to future information in the parallel storylines.

I know we were supposed to think Nascar!Hurley was actually Kate, but come on, the minute his baseball-mitt-sized hand came out of the door you knew it had to be Hurley. I'm horribly glad he made it off the island and doesn't die there, though. I handled Charlie's demise alright (although drowning is my worst nightmare, so I admit I plug my ears and close my eyes during his final seconds every time), but I think I'd lose it if Hurley died. Jorge, I adore you.

And six? Only six? So based on the rest of the rest of the episode I'm assuming the six who get rescued or manage to escape or whatever are covering for more of the survivors who elected to stay on the island. So who would want to leave? We know three of them: Jack, Kate, and Hurley. We know Locke wants to stay, and I think Rose and Bernard (side note: I adore this couple) would stay. I'm on the fence about Jin and Sun, though. She'd want to get off the island in an attempt to live through her pregnancy, but would want to stay "dead" to escape her father and his organized crime ties. Then again, she might just die on the island. I can see that happening. What about Sawyer? Is he the "he" Kate was referring to in the 3rd season finale? And what about Claire and Aaron? They get off the island, I'm sure, because their storyline is going nowhere, and they've already set it up with Desmond's vision and Charlie's sacrifice. So do they count as 4 and 5? Only one spot left. What ever happened to Walt and Michael? Did they make it off the island? Sayid? Would he choose to stay, given the choice? I personally think he'll give his life protecting someone or securing rescue for the group. He seems like a character that would have a heroic death scene. And Juliette? She wasn't on Oceanic, can she be part of the six if she got rescued? Does she die? There's no way she'd elect to stay.

How crazy is Hurley, really? He was in a mental institution before he crashed on the island, and he had several hallucinations on the island. Is he crazy at all? He saw Charlie several times posthumously, but then again, seeing dead people happens more on this show than in The Sixth Sense. He "saw" Jacob, but since we don't know anything about Jacob, the fact that Hurley has "seen" him can't be put definitively in the Crazy column or Not-Crazy column.

Naomi was dying, and there was no way she was going to live... And yet with her last breaths she covered for them and made sure The Boat People could find them all. Was she a minion? Did she know what was going on and who she was working for? Was she under forced contract like Juliette, and they were holding her apart from her sister ("I'm sorry... tell my sister I love her")?

So let me get this timeline right: the six get back to civilization, and Hurley is the first to break down and start freaking out about needing to go back to the island. Jack seems like the next one to flip and figure out that the island was something special for them all. Am I the only one who thinks now that the funeral in the 3rd season finale flashforward might have been Hurley's?

Bits and Pieces:

* Harold Perrineau was in the opening credits. Am I crazy, or was he not in this episode? Did I miss him? Or does this mean he's back as a series regular this year and just not in the season premiere?
* Did anyone else expect to see flashes of Libby at Hurley's new mental hospital? I wish we'd seen more of her backstory. She looked interesting. And Hurley deserved some play.
* I like the mention of Ana Lucia, as well as the nice continuity of having her partner arrest Hurley for the high speed chase.
* I love that Ben was so worried for Alex. Just when you think he's an unredeemable bastard, he says something that shows he's a daddy that cares for his little girl, and it makes it just a little hard to continue hating him. Speaking of Alex, I love the casting.
* Silly little thing: I don't think it gets too much more adorable than Hurley running on the beach and cannonballing into the water.
* Funny Ben line: "Better call the boat... tell them she's getting a really big bundle of firewood..."
* What was Locke doing back at Jacob's cabin? Talking to Jacob some more? Without Ben this time?
* Acting misstep: I can usually count on Jorge for top-notch delivery of his lines, but the sorrowful "Charlie's dead" came off forced and almost kinda funny. His first "he's dead" was fine--was perfect--but the follow-up was way off.
* I love that when everyone started siding with Locke and agreeing to stay on the island Rose adamantly refused to leave Jack. Her delivery was wonderful, her facial expression and body language were perfect: "You said you'd never leave the island... If you, uh, if you want to go with Locke, I'll be right behind you." "I'm not going anywhere with that man."
* I love Charlie with short hair. Dominic is such a cutie in his final scene here. And the slap was perfection. Now, the big question: what does Charlie want Hurley to do? "They need you, Hugo!" Who?? Need you to do what??
* I'm excited about next week: Ken Leung is one of The Boat People! (Kid Omega in X-Men 3... He was also in Inside Man.)
* And who'da thought Ben would turn out to be the one with all the funny lines in this episode? "Jack, with your permission, I'd like to go with John."
* Cute: Jack telling Hurley he's thinking of growing a beard, and Hurley telling him he'd look weird. True to form, Hurley's right and no-one pays heed.
* Another foreshadowy gem from the HORSE scene was Hurley's apology for not sticking with Jack and going with Locke instead. Uh oh. What happens?

Til next episode, friends, or else check out my profile and my website for more of my reviews!

GoldenGait