Michael Emerson on The Soup and Jimmy Kimmel

Michael Emerson (Ben Linus in Lost) appeared on The Soup and Jimmy Kimmel this week to promote the new season of Lost. Both are pretty humorous and he mentions that he started out doing comedy which plays out here and in Lost as well. First up, The Soup which contains a spoilerific clip of the new season of 24 if like me you are a season behind, though having just seen this clip I don't think it really ruins too much, though I am intrigued as to why Jack is wearing glasses now (yes out of this entire clip that is what I pick up on which might be why I am a season behind):

Next up Micheal Emerson on Kimmel which is another good, funny interview where they discuss the show and of course he can't reveal much except that they only have four more episodes to shoot and how people react to him in public. Jimmy has a nice photo collection of the many beaten up faces that he has had throughout his five seasons on Lost. I'm very much looking forward to the scenes with Locke that he mentions and if only there would be a Lost spinoff sitcom called 'The Ben and Hurley Show', I'd definitely watch. There are some spoilers though for those that haven't seen the new episode 'The Substitute' so watch only after you have seen this (interview in two parts):

Lost eyeballs

In honour of the excellent new Locke centric episode of Lost I am going to post yet another excellent fan made video. This time it is a collection of the famous Lost eyeball shot that the first episode and many others after opened with. It is strange how some of them are much more identifiable than others and that it is the Locke eyeball close up that appears to have been used the most in the show and that Claire is the most used female eye, not sure what any of this means, if anything at all but it definitely makes for a cool montage video:

The Pacific extended promo

With less than a month to go the promo people over at HBO are working hard to further hype the start of The Pacific. Not that I really need to be further excited as other than the Lost final season this is my most anticipated TV season, I really can not wait and this longer promo shows that the scope of this series will be hopefully just as broad and amazing as Band of Brothers was. Enjoy:

Flu season

It comes to that time of year when I have finally succumbed to flu season, much like Barney in the episode of How I Met Your Mother above. I have spent much of the last week sniffling and coughing which has not been much fun though I have managed to catch up on much TV. I finally started watching How I Met Your Mother properly (which is why the above picture is appropriate). Not sure why it has taken me so long to get aboard this train but I'm glad I finally have as it really is funny and I'm enjoying the group dynamic even if I am spoiled for relationship developments further down the line.

I have also finally finished Gossip Girl season 2, which once I got back in to I felt that the season was quite good overall but definitely lacked something that the first season had, not sure if it is because some of the characters go in relationship cycles so it does not appear as fresh and is sometimes predictable but I did certainly relish in some of the ridiculous scheming and plotting. Also on a completely base level it always looks nice and is easy to watch which is perfect flu TV. I always enjoy the pop culture references as well.

In a similar vein I have also finally managed to get in to Vampire Diaries, I'm up to episode 4 and it is this one that has got me hooked. Think it is because the plot seems to be going somewhere beyond a love story and that the show like Dawson's Creek (Kevin Williamsons other TV hit) and Gossip Girl is aware of the shows that have preceded it and use this. There was a nice mention of the Twilight series in this episode of Vampire Diaries where Damon Salvatore longs for the vampire writings of Anne Rice and it is nods like this that show that this doesn't take it self too seriously and is aware that there are many in the vampire genre that pre-dates them (not that the Twilight books do, but the film does before the show). My intrigue has been peaked, so I look forward to what it to come.
I've used my ill time to catch up on the shows I have either lagged behind on or wanted to get in to and I would say that these three are definitely worth seeing with or without the flu. They are all fun and easy going and I'm glad that I have shows that tax my brain (I'm looking at you Lost) but also ones that let me switch off.

A quick thought on the Chuck 'controversy'

After Monday nights Chuck (Chuck vs the Mask) it appears that a somewhat crazy storm has occurred over an episode that featured some of our characters hooking up with other characters that aren't who the audience wants them to be. As far as I am concerned I thought that the pairings of Shaw and Sarah, and Hannah and Chuck were always inevitable and that both were brought in to be an obstacle to the Chuck/Sarah pairing.
Some of the outrage appears to be from the out of character actions of Sarah regarding Shaw though I would say that this isn't the case, like she says she has a type and someone like Shaw who is a pro in the spy world (rather than someone like Chuck who is still on his spy training wheels) so if she does become romantically entangled with him then she won't have the same concerns for Shaw's safety as she does Chucks. Also she obviously put herself in a position with Chuck where she was vulnerable, Shaw also appears to have done this and lost his wife in the process, both are broken in the love stakes and so it would make sense for them to be drawn together.
Would this reaction have occurred if the show wasn't taken a three week break for the Olympics? I'm not sure if it would and as this wasn't originally meant to be an episode that was meant to have a cliffhanger I can kind of understand why people are annoyed with how it ended. I also understand that because this is a show that was saved by the fans that there is a certain resentment to certain story lines, I thought I would resent both these characters but it has been quite the opposite. Whilst I want to see the eventual hooking up of Sarah and Chuck, I am both happy and surprised by the how much I like the new characters of Hannah and Shaw and I'm looking forward to where this is heading.
The episode as a whole was one of the weaker of the season but I think much like last nights Lost it was a table setter for what is to come, laying down the ground work. I will say that the budget cuts this season which means that we see less of the side characters is one thing that is annoying, annoying because I am missing these characters but it also was inevitable so to save the show from cancellation. I do hope that when Jeffster do make an appearance it will be awesome.
For more on the Chuck storm and reaction from Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak check out Alan Sepinwall's blog here.

Lost 815 side by side

spoilers for Lost season 6 episode 1

An awesome person has already uploaded a video putting the original flight 815 conversation between Jack, Cindy and Rose versus the new season 6 version. It's kind of like a nerdy spot the difference:

Lost season 6 LA X parts 1 and 2

Warning spoilers ahead for Lost season 6 LA X:

Wow.

What a way to start the new season though I'm not sure where to start this recap except once again to say wow. This was perhaps my favourite season premiere (excluding the pilot of course) because the end of last season left the show with so many different directions that it could go in and I only guessed half of it. And the half I guessed wasn't even completely correct; I figured they would be on the original 815 flight but I hadn't really thought about the slight changes to character and actions that would occur. I must also say that I enjoyed the premiere because I watched with many more friends than normal, we got pizza, had wine and really enjoyed the show. There was much discussion after we had seen it as to what had occurred and I have done my usual post Lost ritual of reading Doc Jensen over at EW who as always blow my mind. Over at EW there is also a good interview with Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse regarding the premiere. I am going to look at these openers in much the same way that I have reviewed the previous seasons and look at the moments that stood out to me and what these might mean. 

The name that has been given by the producers for the reality where the plane didn't crash is flash-sideways and I will just refer to the other reality as island present. 

First up: Flash-sideways

• The episode kicks off on flight 815, with a conversation between Jack and Cindy the flight attendant much similar to the one they had in the pilot, though this time round she only gives him one extra bottle of vodka instead of two- I guess he doesn't need the other one for his wound. This is followed by an equally similar conversation between Rose and Jack, though this time it is Jack that is feeling nervous during the turbulence, could it be that he has some recollection of the crash.
• Kate is still handcuffed with the air marshal, who in this reality takes a blow to the head from Kate rather than his case when she escapes him in the airport. She ends up hijacking a cab that has a familiar face in it; Claire who we cannot see if she is pregnant in this place. It is relevant that Kate ends up with Claire I think as she is the reason she gave for going back to the island, though this time Kate has the cab driver at gun point, this cannot end well.
• Boone is without Shannon having unsuccessfully not got her back from Australia, some asked if this was because they couldn't get Maggie Grace back, the producers deny that this is the reason.
• Also missing on the plane were Michael and Walt, why is the question. Did Walt's mother never die in this universe?
• Charlie is also on the plane, though this time instead of flushing his drugs down the toilet he swallows them, causing him to almost die and for Jack to save him. This action displeases him, he states that he was suppose to die, is this something he inherently knows? Instead he too gets carted off the plane in handcuffs, so much for the Driveshaft comeback.
• Hurley refers to himself as the luckiest guy in the world, no numbers curse for him. Sawyer shows in him when he hears that he is a lottery winner, is a con coming?
• Sawyer seems relaxed and happy, not like someone who has just killed an innocent man so it would be safe to assume that he has a different path in this life. He does enjoy some flirting with Kate and even offers her a helping hand when she has escaped the marshal.
• Locke still paralysed seems a lot more content than the Locke we saw before in his pre island life. He has accepted his condition and it appears that he was allowed to partake in his walkabout. He converses with both Boone and Jack, both which are poignant considering the events that we have seen between these characters; Boone says he would stick with Locke and Jack explains that nothing is irreversible. The conversation between Locke and Jack occurs in the lost luggage claim, Locke's knives have been misplaced, though more telling is that the airline has misplaced Jacks fathers coffin, could this be the link between the two realities? 
• Rose and Bernard are very much in love and are the couple that we have seen throughout the seasons, does Rose have cancer in this reality? Her longer hair would suggest otherwise.
• Not so happy are Sun and Jin, with Jin being just as douchey to her as he was when we met him in the pilot demanding that she do her top button up; how I don't miss this Jin. They problem at the airport with the large amount of cash in his luggage could suggest that they were going to start a new life in the US, not sure how long he will be detained for though. Also is Sun lying when she says she doesn't speak English?
• One person on the plane who wasn't on there before is Desmond, who ends up sitting next to Jack prompting another recollection from Jack, is this because they have met before at the sports stadium? Des seems pretty upbeat, does this mean that he managed to win Widmore's race and win back Penny? Maybe he proposed to her in this life? Eagle eyed viewers have said that if you slow down his scene you can see a wedding ring on his finger, is this further proof that all is happy in this universe for Penny and Des?
• The cut on Jack's neck also prompts him to have a look of confusion, is this from the other world? Lost  expert recapper Vozzeck69 points out that you only see the cut in the mirror and that maybe the cut can only be seen in the mirror reflecting to Jack what is really there.
• Red shirt alert: Froghurt and Arzt.
• Missing: Ana Lucia, Mr Eko, Libby (or unseen).
• Greg Grunberg alert: reprising his role of doomed Captain Norris we get to hear his voice in this episode so he still ended up flying even though Frank was meant to.
• Also in this world we see that the island is underwater including the Dharma barracks and the four toed foot, not looking good for someone like Ben or Richard in this universe.

Island present- on the beach:

• Jacob's body has disappeared, where it has gone to is anyone's guess though I'm thinking that it has to disappear so he can maybe inhabit someone else.
• NotLocke is now seems to be the smoke monster. When Bram and his men (Jacobs bodyguards) shoot at him, he disappears and returns as Smokey, killing them all. He apologises to Ben "I'm sorry you had to see me like that." At this reveal Ben was astounded and so really had no idea what the monster actually is. At this point I'm thinking that he is really sorry that he killed Jacob. He is also confused as to why Jacob didn't fight back which to me suggests that this is all part of Jacobs plan.
• We also find out that Locke's last thought as Ben killed him was "I don't understand", NotLocke calls Locke pathetic but that his redeeming feature was that he did not want to leave the island. NotLocke reveals that he wants to go home, not that we know where he calls home. This description of Locke being pathetic and what his final thought was makes me sad for this character and I really hope that out of everyone that his resolution is something positive and that he does get the answers he desires.
• Richard is noticeably horrified when he realises who NotLocke really is after he says to him that it is nice to see Richard 'without your chains'. This I'm thinking must refer to the Black Rock slave ship that Richard might have come from. NotLocke promptly knocks Richard out with some rather unfair blows to the neck and hoists him over his shoulder. He proclaims that he is very disappointed with everyone, I'm guessing for choosing Jacob over him.

Island present- the hatch and the Temple:

• The group who were stuck in 1977 and who were present when Juliet detonated Jughead all wake up in the jungle in the same time period as those who are at the statue, making this 2007.
• All is not well with Sawyer blaming Jack for killing Juliet as his plan does not appear to have worked.
• This is until a faint cry can be heard, Juliet is buried alive under all the junk from the hatch which looks the way it did after Desmond turned the fail safe key, in this universe it seems that all is as it was for the Losties.
• We get to see another heartbreaking farewell between Sawyer and Juliet which I found to be a little unnecessary after the end of last season but served the purpose to suggest that Sawyer and Juliet will meet in another life (when she asks about the coffee) and for Miles to show his dead speaking talents. Juliet communicates to him that 'It worked' meaning the bomb resetting time I would imagine. This message seems wrong to Miles and Sawyer considering where they are.
• Dead Jacob appears to Hurley giving him important instructions that he tells him will save Sayid's life who is still bleeding to death after Roger shot him last season.
• These instructions take our gang to the Temple, the often previously mentioned place that we have only seen the outer wall and the tunnels for. It is an impressive place and there are rather a lot of Others inhabiting this place including Cindy the flight attendant and Emma and Zach the kids from the tail section. Dogen (Sunshine star Hiroyuki Sanada) appears to be the leader of the Temple folk and seemingly tries to save Sayid by putting him in their big bubbling pool which I would imagine usually has healing powers but lacks them now I suspect because of Jacobs death. Instead it seems that Sayid ends up drowning.
• When they inform the Others of Jacobs death the whole place goes in to a kind of emergency procedure, sprinkling black ash every where and setting of warning flares. Whether this means that everyone in the Temple is protected remains to be seen as Bram had protected himself with the ash but old Smokey managed to get to him still. Also can Smokey get under the Temple as this is where the French guy was dragged?
• The episodes end in the temple with Sayid waking up, however is this still Sayid? When he says "What happened?" it does not sound like Sayid but he has what seems like a British accent. Speculation has ranged from it being a slip by the actor which I doubt and that he is now inhabited by someone else, someone like Charlie. The most popular theory is Jacob but that wouldn't explain the accent. Not that I think that it is Charlie but there were strong echoes when Jack was trying to resuscitate Sayid with when Jack resuscitated Charlie back in season 1, including the dialogue with Kate.

Overall, I was very pleased with how this season started and I think the two time lines could prove to be great from a story telling perspective. Once again I am going to not watch the episode promos for each week as I like going in to each episode not knowing anything. Also the finale date has been set as Sunday 23rd of May which as it happens is when I will be in New York. This means no big Lost viewing party for me so I will have to make the most of those before going away. I am however looking forward to what will happen between now and then and am enjoying all the post episode chatter.

Photos courtesy of ABC

Top 5 Lost questions I would like answered

With the sixth seasons start imminently upon us one thing I did want to do is outline the top 5 Lost questions that I would like answered this season, these range from minor mysteries to the more overarching questions that have been posed over the past five years. These mysteries are ones that I personally would like to see answered and I am sure that there are many more questions that others would want to see being wrapped up. I know that all the mysteries will not be solved and I am happy about this as I would much prefer to have some mysteries remaining especially in a show that is based on an enigmatic location. In no particular order here are my top 5 questions I would like to see answered:

1. Who is Richard and why does he remain ageless?

2. What did Claire's psychic really see?

3. What is the significance of the numbers?

4. Who do the Adam and Eve skeletons belong to?

5. All things Christian; who is the dead version and why does he appear to so many of the Losties?

With the exception of Richard Alpert all of these questions derive from season 1 showing that there are mysteries that were started in the beginning that have flowed through these five seasons and it is this that I believe to be one of the strengths of Lost, that even when there was doubt that the producers knew where the story was heading the basic elements of the show have always been there. I for one was never in the camp of 'they don't know what they are doing' and knowing that US television does not tend to allow a series to end of its own accord it was understandable that there were stumbling blocks along the way and that as soon as the end date was given the show was allowed to become a fully realised idea. That is not to say that there have been missteps on the way and that what the show was in the pilot and how it is now was a complete picture but as a feat in television it has been exceptional to me and whilst I am excited that the new season will  be starting sooner than soon, I will also be incredibly sad when it is over.

Also to reiterate something that Alan Sepinwall has said in his column today, it is the writing of the characters that made this programme what it is, would we care so much if the concept was what it is if these characters were not so fleshed out and if we weren't so invested in the fates of this group of people that we have been following for five years? He names FlashForward as a show which focuses more on the big picture rather than characterisation and I would say that this is the reason that I only like FlashForward  and don't love it, whereas I love Lost and character has a lot to do with it. 

So lets head back to Craphole island and enjoy the rest of the ride.

Photos courtesy of Mattson Creative and Lost Media

Lost subway map

In anticipation of tonight's premiere today will be another all things Lost day (as will the next few I am sure, though I may manage to get some other shows in here as well). This was printed last week and was created by John Cabrera and is another example of how this season of Lost has really got peoples creative juices flowing in many different ways which is really positive and inspiring to see. I would also like to dedicate this to my friend Joe who loves all things Lost and tube/subway maps (as well as John Krasinski):

Lost Cuatro promo with Terry O'Quinn narrating

The break out promo for Lost season 6 was from the Spanish network Cuatro. Here is the new version with Terry O'Quinn narrating and it is even better. I'm glad they kept the Radiohead track the same. One more day...

Thanks to Dark UFO

Lost season 5 rewatch

With one day to go before the start of season 6 I am glad to say that I have completed my Lost seasons 1-5 rewatch.
Season 5 goes to a whole new level of crazy, with time travel being an important component in both the manner of story telling and to the narrative of the show. Instead of having just flash forwards and flashbacks there are also flashes through time for those who were left behind on the island. Once again I will analyse this season through a series of bullet points and as a whole I would say that this is definitely the most complex of the seasons so far but it also gave answers to some questions pertaining to the origins of some of the elements of the island.

• The first episode chronicled all of the characters, those on the island and the Oceanic 6 (along with Ben) starting where the previous season had left off; Jack at the funeral home with Ben, Sayid breaking Hurley out of the Santa Rosa mental hospital, Sun in London and Kate with Aaron. By including all the characters it meant that we were propelled straight in to the story and meant that even though distance and time separated the characters they were not isolated from the audience.
• The first episode started as previous ones did, not knowing when or where we are or initially who the person is. It turns out to be Dr Pierre Chang who we have only previously seen in the Dharma Initiative videos (a task he is performing in this opener). We also see that he has a baby who it was speculated was Miles and this is who it turned out to be. The record getting stuck in a grove was later used as a metaphor what is happening to those on the island, that it is like a record that is skipping, they are skipping through time.
• The skipping through time allowed for stories to be told that had only been hinted at; seeing the drug plane crashing, the complete statue that is now only a four toed foot and most importantly seeing what happened to Rousseau and her team. This was told with Jin as the witness, he survived the freighter blowing up to be rescued by Rousseau and he was present when she shot her lover and he saw the one   of the team being dragged under the temple, getting his arm pulled off in the process. It is Jin that stops Rousseau from going down in to the temple and saves hers and Alex's life in the process.
• An event that we have seen but that Sawyer was not originally present for was the birth of Aaron, as Locke takes the group away from the light of the hatch they here screaming which turns out to be Claire. Getting to see this again was pretty awesome especially in the context that Sawyer thinks that Kate is dead.
• Other interesting encounters involve a young Charles Widmore and Eloise Hawking as well as the never ageing Richard Alpert who we get to see in the 1950s, 1970s and the present.

• There are more family connections and children speaking to their parents without their parents knowing it is them- Faraday speaks to two ages of his mother (in the 50s and 70s) and Miles to his father with the baby version of himself living in the same area ("That douche is my dad" is one of my favourite lines in the season). It could be said that Charlotte had to die from the constant time flashes as the version of herself that lived in Dharmaville was of speaking age and this is why Miles did not have to die. Also Faradays theory suggested that those who had been on the island the longest would feel more severe side effects.

• Seeing Ethan shoot Locke was also an interesting scene, the inclusion of Richard giving Locke instructions as to how to save the island took an interesting turn when we see that it is 'not Locke' that gives Richard these instructions, telling him that he has to die to save the island.
• Off island and in the present we see Ben attempting to gather those who left the island to get back, this mission is one that Locke failed and in 'The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham' we see him going from person to person in a wheelchair getting turned down by them all. This leads to him about to commit suicide which Ben interrupts but he ends up killing him anyway. Though is Locke required to die by another to make the journey back to the island possible. I thought it was so he could be resurrected on the island but as with the reveal at the end of this season this was not the reason.
• Ben intends to deliver on his threat to kill Penny, but ends of shooting Desmond and taking another beating. It is only because Penny and Desmond's child Charlie (yes I awwed when I first heard that they had called him that) that really stopped Ben from pulling the trigger, followed by the beating.
• The result of Jack, Kate, Hurley, Sun, Sayid and Ben taking Ajira flight 316 with Frank Lapidus flying the plane results in some being sent back in time with others staying in the present. Those who end up in the past (Kate, Jack, Hurley and Sayid) turn up in 1977 which is where Sawyer et al have been living since Locke managed to fix the island flashing through time. 
• The 1977 crew are living in Dharmaville and have been for the past three years and it is through this that we get to see more of the Dharma operation including the buliding of several of the hatches. The truce between the hostiles and the Dharma folk is also emphasised, especially when Sayid is mistaken for one of them.
• A young Ben visits Sayid on multiple occasions and when he helps bust him out he thanks Ben by shooting him, thinking that that is why he is there and that if Ben never grows up then this will change everything. This event seems like it is the thing that caused him to actually be the way he is, oh Sayid, thinking he has helped but really is he the cause.

  

• Eloise Hawking shooting her own son Daniel Faraday (RIP Daniel, you were awesome and I hope you will be in the next series) whilst being pregnant with him was also one of the sadder moments, especially as he dies he realises that his mother must have known what was going to happen to him if he did go to the island. His mother must have know his entire life that she was going to kill him which must put a strain on any relationship.
• I enjoyed seeing more of Ben's past regarding Widmore and the moment that he stole Alex from Rousseau which weirdly saved both her life and her mothers. Ethan was his helper who turned out to be the son of Horace Goodspeed one of the heads of the Dharma Initiative on the island, got to love these family connections. It is not just Ben who turns on the Dharma folk. Ben does not look good with his hair in the flashbacks, once again though the kid who plays young Ben really does look like him, kudos to the casting director for the kid who played young Kate in the finale, she really does look like Evangeline Lilly.
• In the finale we get to see Jacob going around and being present in several of the characters lives both in the distant past and the recent past. With Sayid we see the hit and run that kills Nadia that Jacob may or may not have caused, we see Jacob giving the guitar case to Hurley (what is in this?), he touches Locke after he is pushed out of the window by his father, he pays for a lunchbox that Kate has stolen (the same lunchbox that she will bury years later), talks to Jack at the hospital after his first major surgery (that inspires the count to five story), he is at Sun and Jin's wedding, he gives young Sawyer a pen to finish his 'Dear Mr Sawyer' letter and he visits a heavily bandaged Ilana in hospital. What all of this means exactly I don't know but he physically touches them all is some manner, all except Juliet who we see also at a young age being told by her parents that they are getting a divorce. If many of these have already occurred why were they never on Jacobs lists?

• With Jacob being stabbed by Ben at the end provokes the question of what does this mean now regarding the balance of the island between Jacob and the man in black. Michael Emerson said it was great to allow Ben to do something childish and impulsive after all his calculated and manipulative actions- "What about me?"
• The moment in which it is revealed that Locke is in the casket still and that the version that is walking around is not Locke is so great especially when rewatching and knowing that the Locke that comes back to the island is not the Locke the audience knows. This also makes me sad as he never really got to be the man he wanted to be, his life really does seem like one tragedy after another. Also we don't still know much about Illana and her group (except that they tried to recruit Miles away from Widmore) and I'm guessing that this is something that will be expanded next season.

• "It's not the fall that will kill you but the hydrogen bomb" (a facebook status that a friend had after the season finale). The season ends with the attempt to reset history after Faraday hypothesises that people are the variable and so if they set off the hydrogen bomb at the swan station to stop the electromagnetic energy that will eventually crash flight 815 then none of it will ever happen. The bomb is detonated by Juliet who after the most heartbreaking goodbye with Sawyer (a couple I never thought I would be on board with but loved) manages to do the deed. The screen fades to white and we will find out what happens tomorrow...

All photos courtesy of Lost Media

A plug

I'm going to do by best Don Draper pitch:
This weekend saw the launch of a new film website called 'This film is on' which as the title suggests will be a film site primarily, looking at all things film from new releases to classic movies. It also delves into literature and television (which is where I come in). As there are many different contributors opinions range as does the content, which will cover big and small releases, blockbusters and independent cinema as well as any other exciting news that is occurring in the film industry. We are a passionate bunch when it comes to film (and obviously I am when it comes to matters of the small screen) so if you would like to read a site that really does care about the subject that they right about come on over to:

http://thisfilmison.com/

Photo courtesy of AMC