LOST: Across The Sea

And so it begins.  I assume there were lots of things explained in this episode that had come up before, and little references to past episodes.  But seeing as how this was the first ever Lost episode I've watched, I knew absolutely none of that, and just watched it as sort of a self-contained story.  And how was it?

Pretty good, actually.  Not great, but I definitely got into it near the end, and am interested in watching more.  So that's good! :)

This is clearly an origin story, but unlike lots of origin stories in plot-driven shows or stories, there was an enormous amount of mystery surrounding, well, everything, and very little if really anything was tangibly explained.  How did the cycle of protectors of the island begin?  What's up with magnets (I assume this is a recurring theme)?  What the heck was up with the vision of the unnamed twin's, who I guess is The Man In Black, one of the few names I do know from the show, real mother (did that come from the island to try and dissuade The Man In Black from becoming its protector)?  Why was Mother so insane throughout, pitting one twin against the other?  Why did The Man In Black think sailing into the light would work (probably because Mother lied constantly, so why wouldn't she be lying about that as well)?  

Unfortunately, I know that none of these questions are ever going to get answered, but in a way, I like that.  And this is exactly why I wanted to watch the show chronologically.  I had no expectations going into this episode, and am going to use these questions as the foundation for the rest of the show.  I actually think knowing about the protectors of the island concept from the beginning is going to make all the crazy stuff that happens later more powerful in a way.  Sure, I'll lose some "mystery," but I think I'll gain emotional relevance.  I'll make that trade any day.

The writing and the acting in the beginning was pretty atrocious, and I was seriously considering stopping this idea early on.  It was so hokey and simplistic, and the kids, while they looked great, felt like they were reading bad lines rather than talking.  But as soon as they became adults, things suddenly got much much better.  The acting was much deeper, the writing seemed to get subtler (maybe it was just the better acting), and the whole mystery of the island with the glowing light and the protectors started to feel like it actually meant something, like there would be great consequences no matter what.  I especially liked that The Man In Black, after living with the shipwrecked people for a while, discovered that he thought they were evil, like Mother said he would, which made his whole relationship with Mother, and the shipwrecked villagers, much more complex than they could have been otherwise.

So I think the show has a lot of potential going forward after this episode.  The next set of reviews are going to be a bit scattered, as I'm going to be watching all of the flashbacks in chronological order.  Next up is Ab Aeterno, with the flashback from The Incident Part 1 in the 1800s mixed in.  After that, I don't think I'll be watching a full episode for a very long time.  Anyhow, pretty good stuff.  I kind of want to go watch Ab Aeterno right now, actually! :)