Lost season 4 rewatch

Rewatching season 4 was such a treat, this is when the writers really upped the ante after the major cliffhanger that was Jack shouting 'we've got to go back'. This is when the end date had been set and you can tell by the purposeful way in which this season begins and that the first episode is also called 'The beginning of the end', I could easily write a page and half on this opener alone but I will try and condense the season in to a series of smaller remarks.

• The Oceanic 6: This was introduced in the season premiere when in Hurley's flash forward he shouts this when he is being arrested. The first mystery of the season was set up in this opener, with the audience already knowing that Kate and Jack were part of this group, but who are the other 3? As the season progressed we found out that these other 3 are Sun, Sayid and Aaron. There was some trickery in the Sun/Jin episode when it appeared that they had both successfully got off the island, until the reveal that Jin's portion was a flashback in the traditional Lost sense and that at the end of Sun's flash forward she visits Jin's grave. What this story device allowed for was much speculation as to how it was just these 6 that got off the island, for example what happened to Claire, how was it these 6 when Hurley spent most of the season with the Locke group? The addition of flash forwards rejuvenated the format of the show and made each episode much more than which character was going to have a flashback this week.
• Another idea initiated in the season opener was the split of the group, those who went with Locke and those who went with Jack. This spilt was further heightened when in the flash forward Hurley says to Jack that he should never have gone with Locke, though now I am still not sure what event caused him to say this (am I being completely dumb?).
• As well as the group split a further change happened with the introduction of the freighter folk; Miles, Charlotte, Daniel and Lapidus who all had different motivations for coming to the island, none of which involved rescuing Losties. The addition of these four characters along with the change in format was another welcome addition to the show, though it is a shame that due to the writers strike these characters were not fleshed out in this season as much as they were going to be.
• Out of the four it is Daniel Faraday that to me was the most interesting, partly because of his knowledge of quantum physics and how things on the island work better but also due to the mysteries surrounding him, why was he crying at the Oceanic 815 crash site news footage? Why is his memory inconsistent. Faraday is also key to the episode 'The Constant' which is one of my favourite episodes in the Lost canon and it is always a pleasure to rewatch this (much kudos to the editing team). The concept of this episode was different from anything they had tried before though because we had experienced a Desmond episode that had played with notions of time, place and conciousness before it made sense that it was happening to Desmond again, this also further lays the ground work that Desmond is different. However the best thing about this episode is the emotional aspect of the story when Desmond realises that Penny is his constant and that he must get in contact with her. The anticipation when the phone is ringing, even when I know what the outcome is still resonates and this scene still gets me misty eyed after multiple views. The revelation the Desmond is Daniels constant at the end of the episode was the classic Lost way to end it, the emotional followed by the huh?

• The return of Michael in season 4 was much publicised so when Ben said he had a spy on the freighter it was always clear that it was going to be him. 'Meet Kevin Johnson' which chronicled Michael's downward spiral since he left the island allowed for a brief appearance from Libby, the action that got him and Walt off the island still haunting him, explaining why he was so hell bent on suicide. It also allowed for the appearance of another recently deceased Other in the form of Tom who in this flashback was happily alive, enjoying his off island time with his boyfriend that had been hinted at in the past (Lost's first and only gay character so far). This episode possibly explained why Jack had not jumped off the bridge in the season 3 finale as the island was not done with him either. Michael's return was set up for his death that would save some but not all, and his actions allowed for the principal characters to get off the freighter before it blew up. 
• It is ambiguous as to whether Jin survived this blast, he looked like he was at the end of the boat when it blew up and we had previously seen his grave stone, though even before seeing season 5 I was convinced that he had survived. This does not take away from the gut wrenching screams from Sun when she thinks her husband is dead, like the Penny/Desmond phone call this scene gets to me every time even when I know the outcome.
• The resolution to the death of Charlie at the start of the season was handled well, first with the sight of Hurley canon balling in to the sea looking at peace and happy to the immediate change in emotional state of this character when he sees Desmond returning alone. when the group is reunited at the cock pit of the plane and the significance of this not being lost on Kate and Jack when they reminisce back to events that occurred in the pilot of the series with Charlie. My favourite Charlie related moment in this episode is when in the flash forward of Hurley back in mental hospital Charlie appears to him telling him that he has to go back, that 'they need you' and that he 'is dead but I am still here'. This plays with the idea that the dead do appear to the Losties but also because we have seen Hurley see people who are not there prior to the island it is hard to know which camp Charlie falls in to. Hurley refers to seeing Charlie to Jack and that he asked to give him the message that 'you're not suppose to raise him' and that he will be getting a visitor himself soon which turns out to be his father Christian.

• Christian becomes important further in the story of Claire when he takes her away willingly whilst Sawyer and Miles sleep, though at this point there is debate as to whether she is dead after the house she was in exploded and Miles makes some cryptic remarks to this point. We still don't know what happened to Claire as she is absent for season 5, this is one resolution in season 6 that I am really looking forward to. Regarding Claire, Jack also finds out at his fathers funereal that he is Claire's half brother making him Aaron's Uncle. This is made all the more bizarre as Kate is pretending that Aaron is her child.
• One of the more heartbreaking scenes from this season is the execution of Alex, which is something that I really did not expect to happen, in this we are in the position of Ben, certain that this is a bluff and won't happen, hence his callous remarks saying that she was a pawn and that he never loved her any way. This back fires, Keamy shows no mercy shooting her, which makes his death in the finale all the more satisfying for both Ben and the audience. Ben is not a figure who commands much sympathy yet here it is in abundance. Rousseau and Karl are also unfortunate casualties in this sequence of events.
• The heritage of Locke is revealed and how there were many missed opportunities for him to go to the island. In this we also see the never ageing Richard Alpert along this journey, who is he really and why does he never change age? My money is on someone from the Black Rock and I would say that this is in my personal top 5 Lost mysteries that I want to be solved.
• Further observations: Sayid ends up working for Ben post island after Nadia is killed, remains bad ass whilst doing so. Gets involved with a girl who he ends up shooting, he really has no luck in love.
• Widmore and Ben go back a long time, do not like each other but for some reason aren't allowed to kill each other. After Alex's death Ben vows to kill Penny, I am not happy about this, neither will Desmond be.
• Penny and Desmond are reunited in person after her actual ship and 'Not Penny's Boat' rescues the folk who were on the helicopter, best reunion in TV history?!

• Jack and Kate are a bad couple, get engaged, he ends up drinking in to oblivion, getting addicted to pain killers, gets jealous and grows a bad beard.
• Kate does not get sent to prison because she was a hero after their plane crashed in to the sea- Jack lies a lot on the stand.
• After all of his disagreements with Locke, Jack actually does what he asks and lies to protect the island and those he left behind.
• Sawyer remains awesome, ditching the helicopter so they can make it to the freighter, taking on Keamy and his men when 'New Othertown' is ambushed. This scene also gets rid of several red shirts.

• Ben can call the smoke monster but not control it.
• Ben turns the frozen donkey wheel moving the island and lands in Tunisia. This sentence really would not make sense to anyone who does not watch this show.
• The Oceanic 6 claim that there was 8 of them alive when they crashed, the other 3 being Boone, Charlie and Libby.
• Miles is officially my favourite ghost whisperer.  
• Oh and importantly Locke is in the coffin, and everyone has to go back 'all of them, including him'.

To season 5...


All photos courtesy of Lost-Media

Lost fan posters

This image is one of 8 posters that were created by Lost fan and artist Ty Mattson and I think that the collection is pretty awesome and can be found over at his blog here. They are not currently available to buy but I'm guessing that as Jorge Garcia has mentioned them on his blog he will hopefully get some more attention as this is where I have just read about them. With a week to go before the new season it is brilliant to see that the anticipation for this new and final season is bringing out the creative side of people. Other images from his collection include these (but you should definitely check out the full set at his site):

          

SAG Awards 2010

No major surprises at the SAG awards this year with the TV categories mirrored the Golden Globes; Michael C. Hall, Julianna Margulies, Drew Barrymore, Kevin Bacon, Alec Baldwin, Glee and Mad Men all walking away with the awards, the only difference was Tina Fey winning for 30 Rock instead of Toni Collette for the United States of Tara. The red carpet was less daring than that of last weeks Golden Globes, and it seemed that there were hardly any major missteps (Julie Bowen I'm looking at you), so instead of analysing the awards as I previously did last week I will be looking at my favourite dresses of the evening, which included:

Christina Hendricks who always looks brilliant in red and the rest of the Mad Men cast looking pretty dapper:

  

Tina Fey made up for her dress that got slammed last week in simple purple, though I loved that she got in a dig about 'Fashion Police' to E! televisions Giuliana Rancic when she asked her if she had taken a steamer on her dress the previous week, it was a suitably awkward moment of TV, though not as awkward as last weeks Anna Kendrick interview when Rancic kept yelling at George Clooney who appeared to be ignoring her. Here is Fey with Alec Baldwin who knows how to wear a suit:

Michael C. Hall made reference to wife Jennifer Carpenter's dress in his speech and she did indeed look amazing in this short white dress and I liked that her accessories were black creating the monochrome look :

Other highlights include my favourite Diane Kruger, her dress was reminiscent of Michelle Williams at the 2006 Oscars which is one of my favourite all time red carpet dresses:

The Glee cast were all decked out well, with special mentions to Lea Michele who looked less swamped than she did at the Globes in her beautiful Catherine Malandrino dress:

All photos courtesy of Just Jared and Socialite Life

Conan's last Tonight Show

Friday saw Conan O'Brien host his final Tonight Show after only seven months, his last monologue was classy and got me all misty eyed:

After this heart felt goodbye Conan, his band, Will Ferrell, Beck, Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top and Ben Harper performed Free Bird which will always be one of my favourite songs to really rock out to (slightly off topic but it was this song that saved Elizabethtown for me). And of course there was cow bell:

Hopefully in seven months time we will be seeing Conan back on the air doing what he does best and in the mean time I wonder who the late night hosts will be talking about now as this has given them much material for weeks now. Also much has been made of the huge settlement that Conan has received and that this should take any bitterness out of the situation, but I'm guessing that the money does not really make up for his short stint on a show that you can tell he cares much about. It will be interesting also to see how and when Jay Leno takes it back over what the ratings will be like for him, I'm guessing Letterman can't wait.

More Lost video goodies- new promo and 815 crash in real time

With the premiere of Lost just over a week away there have been some more video goodies released online both fan made and from ABC, first up an ingenious fan has compiled all footage that relates to the Oceanic 815 crash and edited together in real time, from events on the plane, to those involving Desmond and the Others. The format is a homage to 24 and works really well with the excellent editing that this fan has done:

The other new video is a promo that ABC have released which is basically gearing the audience up to the new season using old footage, that is except for one frame. Now I know that I said that I didn't want to see any new footage before the season airs but I'm going to make an exception for this because it really is just a frame and it only appears for a second and my pausing skills don't allow me to see the image clearly. I'm not going to say what the image is but allow you to watch and see it yourself, I'm not sure what it means or why they have chosen this character for this but I can say that my inner fan girl is very excited right now and is very much looking forward to next week, here it is:

More Golden Globes

Regarding the fashion from this years Golden Globes there seem to be many dresses that are making both best and worst lists (Lea Michele, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Diane Kruger, Zoe Saldana, Sandra Bullock to name just a few). Fashion like TV and film is subjective, however this is the first year that I can remember where there has been such a spilt opinion over the same dress. The red carpet this year was also stricken by an unusually heavy rain day, that some stars took in their stride a lot easier than others (Emily Blunt remarked that because she is from London that this was nothing really, Sofia Vergara from Modern Family also explained to Ryan Seacrest that they are not M and Ms so they won't melt in the rain). This down pour meant that the must have accessory was an umbrella with preferably someone good to hold it:

                        

Kruger's dress was one that has made both best and worst dress lists, I really like it on her but like Maggie Gyllenhaal she is someone who quite often will take a risk for the red carpet and the results are normally good even if it is a dress that would not look good on many other people, this risk taking makes them two of my favourite fashion icons. Joshua Jackson also looks pretty dapper in his role of umbrella holder. Jon Hamm as the other umbrella holder was rocking a grizzly beard, not for a movie role but simply because he can't be bothered to shave (a question that was asked of him several times in the press room). Beards can be good but it definitely depends of the wearer of the facial fuzz and Hamm rocks the beard well, this is another trend that suits the man well so if they ever want Don to really go off the rails then I think it would suit him.
Other than umbrellas, another fashion trend seemed to be rocking the cleavage, some did this much better than others:

                                 

Christina Hendricks always looks fabulous to me because she knows how to work the body she has and it is always good to see a Hollywood actress who isn't starving herself. My only issue with the dress is the colour which I'm not a huge fan of but she still manages to pull it off. Now regarding Mariah Carey I really would not expect anything less from her but holy wow, her boobs are working hard for the 'golden globes' gags that I have heard many utter. Still got to love her for being Mariah, shame there were no bonkers speeches for her to give at this awards show. Others were also wearing revealing gowns with positive results:

                            

My other favourite gowns of the evening were from Maggie Gyllenhaal, Emily Blunt (John Krasinski also looks pretty damn good):

                       

And Amy Adams with baby bump and presenter Kate Winslet, who as Lainey Gossip pointed out knows how to dress when she is not a nominee:

                                   


All photos courtesy of Just Jared

Golden Globes

The 2010 Golden Globes had a few surprise wins and a few that were not so surprising, I'm going to concentrate on the TV winners as this is a TV blog and the debate about whether Avatar deserved to take home best director and film is one that has raged amongst many of my friends. Even though I would've much rather seen 'The Hurt Locker' take the big prize it is the TV winners that I am much more interested in.
It was another good year for Mad Men which won best drama for the third year in a row, this was much deserved as this third season has been excellent. I also enjoyed this award all the more as it was presented by Zachary Levi and Amy Poehler. It was a shame that Jon Hamm and January Jones didn't take home the acting gongs but they were both beaten by formidable talent of Michael C. Hall and Julianna Margulies. Dexter this season was a return to form and it was brilliant to see Hall awarded for his performance and after last weeks announcement that he was recovering from Hodgkin's lymphoma it was a welcome sight to see that he is on the road to recovery. Fellow cast member John Lithgow won best supporting actor for his role as the Trinity killer, another well deserving winner as even though I would've loved to see Michael Emerson win for Lost, Lithgow really was a tour de force in this creepy serial killer role.

                                               

The award for best Comedy/Musical went to Glee which from what I have seen (I am late to this party) also deserved this prize, the comedy was on display when the creator dedicated the award to everyone that had received a wedgie in high school. It was a shame that Jane Lynch was left empty handed in the best supporting category as she is brilliant (I particularly love her in The 40 Year Old Virgin)

The other major TV category for best TV movie/mini series is one where I have more often than not seen most of the nominees, this year was not much different for me, however I did finally get round to watching Grey Gardens last week which I thought was spectacular so I was very pleased to see it pick up the top award as well as Drew Barrymore winning for her portrayal of little Eddie. It really was fascinating and has made me really want to see the original Grey Gardens documentary. Both Barrymore and Lange were excellent so I really didn't mind who won, though I'm thinking that Lange would not have fallen apart with her acceptance speech.

One other award that though it wasn't TV has close TV connections was that of best original score, won by Michael Giacchino for Up. Giacchino is the composer for all things J.J. Abrams, and his Lost scores week in week out are by far the best orchestral TV music that there is so it was wonderful to see him honoured for his Pixar work as well. Another TV face I appreciated seeing being part of a film cast that won was Ed Helms who was in The Hangover, Helms has fast become my favourite cast member in The Office. With him was Bradley Cooper who is another favourite from his TV days in Alias as Will Tippin, who I am glad to see is finally getting recognition.

Overall it was an enjoyable show, not much to say about Ricky Gervais hosting as he was mainly absent and it seems a little odd that they asked him to host any way, I would say that he works much better with presenting one award like he has previously done for the Golden Globes and the Emmys rather that over seeing the whole proceedings, Neil Patrick Harris is definitely my preferred pick for this job.