(S03E11) Now that was an episode! Writers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse deserve serious kudos for achieving such a perfect balance of plot and character development. "Enter 77" combined action and humor, and utilized a majority of the cast instead of focusing on a core group of characters. We learned the identity of Eye Patch Guy, and he just might be my new favorite character.
The Flashback
Was it just me, or did it seem like there were fewer flashback scenes in this episode? I actually thought that the presentation of Sayid's flashback proved that less is more with regard to character back story. There were no filler moments, just a close examination of Sayid's time in Paris. While posing as a cook named Najeev, Sayid was set up and held captive by one of his former torture victims.
Amira had been falsely accused of harboring an enemy of the state, her arms permanently scarred by hot oil used during her interrogation. Part of me did not want Amira and Sami's accusations to be true, but Sayid's tearful confession was moving. I genuinely hope that Naveen Andrews gets more screen time, because his performances are always memorable. Amira ultimately forgave and freed Sayid, but he may have learned more about mercy from her cat, which mysteriously ended up in the Flame station.
The Beach
The ping pong scenes were hilarious, and it's nice to know that Lost episodes can include both drama and levity, instead of just one or the other. Jin discovered a ping pong table during his search for firewood, and the survivors determined that it came from the now-destroyed hatch. Ever the opportunist, Sawyer saw the game as a chance to get "his" stuff back (according to Sawyer, it was his when he stole it). He challenged the beach group to a game, with some pretty high stakes. If Sawyer won, he would get "his" stuff back; if he lost, no nicknames for a week.
He lost, of course, to Hurley and his Forrest Gump-like ping pong skills. I hope that Sawyer's penalty extends through the rest of Season Three, because I am on nickname overload after the last few episodes. The man can certainly pout like nobody's business, though. Even after Hurley returned some of Sawyer's "reading materials," the con man was unable to show a little gratitude. You're welcome, James.
The Flame Station
After following Locke's bearings for two days, the jungle group (Sayid, Kate, Locke, and Danielle) came upon a high-tech farmhouse, complete with cattle and a satellite dish. The farmer was none other than Eye Patch Guy from "The Cost of Living," also known as Mikhail Bakunin (see below for the significance of his name). Mikhail claimed to be "the last living member of the DHARMA Initiative, a rogue member who had refused to take part in a war with the hostiles. DHARMA supposedly lost "The Purge," and Mikhail was offered a truce by the hostiles.
The Flame Station was as well-equipped as The Swan, containing furniture, DHARMA liquor, ammunition, and a chess-playing computer. Amira's cat was also a resident of The Flame, and Sayid learned that it was named Nadia, after the famous gymnast. On a side note, I thought Amira mentioned that the cat was male--why give it a female name? The only down side to The Flame was that the satellite dish was broken, and the station was wired with explosives.
Sayid demonstrated his brilliance once again by deducing that Mikhail was not a DHARMA member, and that he was not alone in The Flame. Kate and Sayid were able to subdue Mikhail after an impressive fight sequence. The Others might not be the best liars, but they do know how to fight. Anyone who can hold his own against a violent fugitive and an Iraqi torturer is pretty awesome in my book. Where was Locke during the fight, you ask? Playing chess on the computer. That's right, playing chess.
Apparently Locke did not learn his lesson from the first DHARMA computer, because he kept playing chess with the Flame computer until it led him to the Manual Override. I like computer games, too, but I think that the discovery of a new DHARMA station and an Other are more pressing matters than setting up one's own personal War Games scenario. Even when charged with watching Mikhail, Locke couldn't keep his eyes off the game. What is going on with Locke this season? His actions used to make sense to me; now I just want to scream at him.
During Locke's chess match, Kate and Sayid found a familiar Other hiding under the trap door: little ol' Ms. Klugh. Kate scored one for the beach survivors when she punched out her former captor, but the victory was short. Mikhail had already taken Locke hostage, and a standoff ensued. Klugh, speaking Russian to her colleague, apparently ordered her own death, but left no contingency plan for Mikhail. The Other was left at the mercy of Sayid, Kate, Locke, and Danielle. After some discussion, Sayid decided to let Mikhail live, but only to accompany them to the Others' camp. Unlike Locke, Sayid made good use of his time in The Flame, and found a map to The Barracks.
Locke, deciding that one screw-up per episode was not enough, actually performed the Manual Override. I am not sure why he believed Mikhail's "hostiles" story even after Mikhail was exposed as an Other, but he did. Locke followed Dr. Marvin Candle's video instructions and entered 77, which caused The Flame Station and all of its communication capabilities to explode. Strange game, Locke. I guess the only winning move is not to play. How about a nice game of backgammon?
A few thoughts:
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Was anyone else suspicious of Danielle's motives when she ditched Sayid, Kate, and Locke outside The Flame?
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I hope there are some Lost fans who are fluent in Russian, because I am curious about the Russian documents found in the station.
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Mikhail claimed that Nadia the cat was named after Nadia Comaneci, with whom he shared a birthday. Comaneci was born on November 12, 1961. Also born on November 12: Mikhail Chigorin, Russian chess player.
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Add another name to the list of Lost's philosophy references. Mikhail Bakunin was a Russian revolutionary, credited as one of the fathers of modern anarchism.
See you next week for "Par Avion," the Claire-centric episode!
Giveaway Tuesday: Signed True Blood promo poster
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Giveaway Monday: The Shield season six DVD - VIDEO
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
3-08-2007 @ 8:04AM
Dr. Funbags said...
Nadia is the name of Sayid's lost "Flame". Don't think the cats were the same from the flashback though - one was a cat, the other was a kitten - and as you said, one was a male, the other was female.
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3-08-2007 @ 8:07AM
Tele-Toby said...
You can find the translations for that novel Mikhail was writing, as well as for his conversation with Ms. Klugh, at:
http://losteastereggs.blogspot.com/
I'm still torn as to whether or not Locke knew what he was doing when he triggered the explosion. Perhaps he guessed it would cause a self-destruct sequence which would bring the Others out into the open? Not sure....
So weird the amount of research they do for the most trivial info, like the common birthday of November 12th.
I think the type of cat had to be one of the show's cosmic coincidences and not the exact same cat, thus the difference in gender.
I guess the horse and the cow got blowed up real good. Based on what Kate found in the food coolers, Locke wasted a lot of good meat that could have been used by the survivors back on the beach....
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3-08-2007 @ 8:16AM
Mrs.MGA said...
I was screaming at my television! Thank you Lost, I totally needed that!
The screaming was my hoping that Locke would get blowned up good. I understand the draw of computer stimuli, but come on! That's rule #1-Never leave a captive unatteneded-no matter how dead, how tied up, or how knocked out.
I may be out of the death pool, but Sayid's still in mine. I think the loster is just waiting patiently for it's chance.
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3-08-2007 @ 8:28AM
Beagle said...
Sayid found all the manuals on how the Dharma initiative works, and the only thing he leaves with a one page map? Of course the rest of the manuals conveniently gets blown up.
Lame.
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3-08-2007 @ 8:29AM
dpmorri said...
great episode - line of the night - Sawyer sayikng to Paulo - "who the hell are you?"
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3-08-2007 @ 8:35AM
Losties said...
312: Par Avion Trailer:
http://www.dharmasecrets.com/forum/index.php/topic,9971.0.html
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3-08-2007 @ 8:59AM
LC said...
I think you are being unnecessarily hard on Locke. Once Mikhail was captured, Locke knew that there was more to the computer than just a simple chess game and wanted to find out what he was hiding. It makes sense to pursue a win in the game.
It also would have helped if Sayid and Kate shared the information of the C4 wired Flame with him. It is completely reasonable for him to have believed that 77 was a code for a third, yet undiscovered, form of emergency communication. Maybe if he knew about the booby traps he would have realized it was a self distruct code.
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3-08-2007 @ 9:07AM
Gordy said...
Last night was just good TV. Where do I start?
Locke bugged the hell out of me. He used to be so focused. It was odd that he seemed entranced by that computer--especially when they had a prisoner in the next room. After winning, I understood why he stayed at it, since there was a chance he could connect with the outside. But, as already stated, why would he think any good could come of it? The others killed everyone and probably destroyed their connection with the world.
Sayid's flashback was brilliant. I could not get over how beautifil Amira was. Wow.
Kate knocked the hell out of Klugh. Loved it!
Sawyer's thing with 'his stuff' is getting old. I hope last night's episode wraps up that whole thing.
No mention of the van. What gives? I figured they would 'A-Team' it and make a jungle wrecking machine.
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3-08-2007 @ 9:21AM
Jake said...
Loved the episode. One question. Why is it that when the beach survivors encounter the others one on one and away from their camp they're so much smarter, cunning, duplicitous and just plain creepy? When Jack, Kate and Sawyer were at the others camp, the others were brutish, boring, and did not come across as the same menacing creepy people.
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3-08-2007 @ 9:29AM
Thomas said...
They so need to work in some reference to the name Joshua in relation to the Dharma computer systems.
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3-08-2007 @ 10:19AM
Brian said...
Very good episode, at least that was the first impression that I had. I liked seeing Lost get back to its "action" genre roots. Throw in a little humor and some insight to Dharma, and it makes a lot of people happy.
But then I thought about how the whole station was blown up with all of the answers to everyone's questions inside. Why exactly did the whole crew walk away from the station after the threats were subdued (black woman was dead, Mihail was captured, again)?? Wouldn't you think they would be inside the station planning their next move? Examining the contents of the station? Answering questions that must be burning their brains even more than Lost viewers? I guess it was more important to find Danielle...
Lame that they were all a safe distance away to avoid the explosion, and explosion that destroys info to solve everything.
Lame. Too convenient. A slap in the face by the writers.
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3-08-2007 @ 10:25AM
Joel said...
Excellent episode! Maybe even good enough to quiet some of the naysayers.
Backgammon? I thought it was Chess? Maybe your right, my memory may be failing me- that movie was many moons ago.
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3-08-2007 @ 10:32AM
beanspants said...
this was another of those episodes that i didn't think was that great. the losties are a collection of idiots -- that really drags on my enjoyment of the show. even though alot happened, their stupidity in the face of plot-advancing events just kills me.
bummer too, because the last few episodes were pretty good.
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3-08-2007 @ 10:34AM
Erin Martell said...
Joel--I changed the War Games quote a bit, since Locke was into backgammon in Season One.
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3-08-2007 @ 10:38AM
Joel said...
got ya... plus I suppose the fact he was playing chess in the first place would have kind of made the reference a bit confusing.
can't wait for next wednesday!
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3-08-2007 @ 10:44AM
das_klaun said...
A great return to form. But no doubt about it, Locke pulled a Gilligan by entering 77. I hope this is part of Locke's arc; he's been shown as a hapless screwup in his flashbacks, and ever since refusing to enter the numbers (and that priceless look he gave in the season finale) he's been full of self-doubt.
Having said that, could it be that Locke knew EXACTLY what would happen? He's never exactly been in a hurry to get off the island, so maybe he deliberately screwed their chances. Sayid'll be really happy about that...
One last note; could Hurley's Ping Pong prowess be the reason he's known as a "mighty warrior" back home?
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3-08-2007 @ 10:44AM
stephen said...
Since Locke knew Mikhail was indeed a "hostile" as opposed to a Dharma member, it makes sense that he would "enter 77". Even IF Locke had set the station to self-destruct on purpose...Locke now lives in a world where he can use his legs. Do you really think he wants to be found?
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3-08-2007 @ 10:54AM
JC said...
Danielle has been on the island how long and had never seen the farmhouse? What in the heck has she been doing all that time, working on her P.H.D.? Torture the woman, get out the truth and let her sit around her camp picking ants off her rump.
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3-08-2007 @ 11:01AM
Joel said...
Okay, so if some of the stuff patchy was saying was true it would tie a few other things together. If the others (aka hostiles) were on the island long before the Dharma Initiative came, it could explain how Ben was born on the island. Maybe they just overthrew them and took over their stations/barracks? Ideas?
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3-08-2007 @ 11:13AM
Akbar Fazil said...
I too found it suspicious about Danielle staying back and then later her quick demands to kill the guy. I say she is in on the whole thing one way or another.
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