We knew it was coming. After all, not even the best season of “Lost” could deliver solid gold each and every week, and if we were going to be subjected to a lackluster episode, it might as well be a Kate-centric one. Seriously, though – am I the only one who finds Evangeline Lilly’s character absolutely dull in comparison to guys like Sayid, Locke and Desmond? Perhaps it’s that silly love triangle she has with Jack and Sawyer, or maybe it’s just that Kate hasn’t had an interesting backstory since season two. Whatever the case, Carlton Cuse and Co. certainly gave it their best shot this week with a last-minute reveal meant to dominate the watercooler talk tomorrow morning.
In her second flash-forward appearance of the season, tonight’s episode followed the ex-fugitive during her long-awaited trial. Charged for no less than six different criminal acts (including fraud, arson and murder), Kate’s fate seems to be sealed, despite her celebrity status as one of the Oceanic Six. When her lawyer suggests that Kate’s son (what?) be in attendance to help persuade the jury to show pity, Kate refuses. Instead, he calls Jack to the stand, who not only lies about the actual crash (i.e. only six survived), but also states that Kate was responsible for rescuing them all. It’s the one mystery that I’m actually curious to find out more about, but it looks like we’ll have to wait a little longer for an actual answer – probably at least until they’ve revealed the other two survivors.
As the trial progresses, Kate’s mother comes to visit, but when Kate refuses to make a deal that would prevent Mrs. Austen from testifying in exchange for allowing her to see her grandson, she doesn’t anyway. And with no key witness, Kate’s lawyer is open to make a deal that includes absolutely no jail time and only 10 years probation. Not bad, especially since that laundry list of crimes could probably include kidnapping as well. What’s that, you say? Well, allow me to enlighten you. You see, Kate’s son isn’t actually hers – it’s Aaron. As in Claire’s Aaron. As in, Claire’s probably going to die real soon. Oh well. One less pointless character to worry about, especially now that Charlie’s out of the picture.
Of course, while the writers’ room was probably covered in goosebumps as they wrote the night’s big twist ending, anyone could have seen it coming – especially since it was more or less telegraphed in the first ten minutes. While helping Claire hang-dry some laundry, Kate is asked to hold Aaron for a bit. She refuses, claiming that she wouldn’t know what to do, but from that moment on, I was certain it wasn’t Jack or Sawyer’s baby (like the dialogue later in the episode suggested), but rather Claire’s baby. It just made sense, in that messed up, “Lost” kind of way.
The other major subplot of the night involved Kate as well. After speaking with Miles about whether or not he knew about her past, Kate makes a deal with the paranormal smartass so that he may speak with Ben. Using Sawyer as a decoy, Kate manages to sneak Miles into Locke’s basement where Ben is hidden, but the discussion is nothing what you’d expect. Instead of barraging Ben with questions (like Locke has been doing for days), Miles simply makes a proposition: in trade for faking his death, Ben will have to pay him $3.2 million. It’s a pretty odd amount (and Ben even goes so far to ask why), but, again, I’m sure we’ll all find out in time. It’ll probably be sooner rather than later, however, since Locke (clearly pissed off that he’s being kept out of the loop) has just shoved a live grenade in Miles’ mouth. Good luck, dude.
