One more week of these sorry-ass misdirections and I might just be forced to send a letter to ABC with the words “JUST HOW STUPID DO YOU THINK WE ARE?” written in black marker. I mean, really, did anyone for a minute think that both Sun and Jin were going to make it off the island alive? The mathematics simply didn’t allow for it. With all but one of the identities of the Oceanic 6 confirmed, Sun was a strong favorite to round out the group. After all, you couldn’t leave both mothers on the island, right?
As for Jin, well, I won’t say that I’m not disappointed. Daniel Dae Kim is one of my favorite cast members, and aside from getting screwed on Day One when J.J. Abrams was handing out backstories, his existence on the show is virtually useless. That’s the problem with killing someone in the future. They’re still alive in the present. Of course, if the writers really wanted to throw us all for a loop, they’d reveal in the final season that Jin isn’t dead at all, but rather just one of the unlucky many who were left behind.
The episode itself was pretty uneventful. The flash-forward and flashback sequences took a major event (Sun’s delivery) and stretched it into a Looney Toons-esque plot that finds Jin trying to buy a stuffed panda for who you’re supposed to assume is his baby. It’s not, but as I mentioned before, anyone who considers themselves a fan of the show probably figured that out right way. (Psst, his haircut totally gave it away).
Their time on the island wasn’t any more exciting. After speaking with Faraday about getting off the island, Sun decides that if they’re not going to be rescued, they might as well spend the rest of their days in Locke’s camp. Juliet tries to convince her otherwise, but when Sun won’t listen, she tells Jin the bad news (about Sun’s condition) and then follows that up with even worse news (about Sun’s affair). Ouch. In the end, however, Jin forgave her – seemingly based entirely on his time spent with Bernard fishing.
Over on the freighter, Sayid and Desmond are finally granted a meeting with the Captain, and he’s surprisingly forthcoming. Not only is he well aware of the saboteur on board, but he also clues them in to the staged wreckage recovery that Faraday and Lapidus were watching in the season premiere. He’s even provided them sleeping quarters (with a complimentary suicidal headshot bloodstain), which spawned the funniest moment of the night from the boat’s doctor – “Damnit, that shouldn’t still be there.” Oh yeah, and they also met another member of the crew: Kevin Johnson… or as Sayid knows him, Michael.
Unfortunately, the moment was completely wasted by rumors and confirmation by the show’s producers (both in interviews and in the show’s credits) of Harold Perrineau’s return. Can you imagine how freaking cool that reveal would have been had Carlton Cuse and Co. actually been able to keep their mouths shut? Sure, there would have been countless theories about Ben’s “man on the boat” regardless of whether they said something, but it still feels like a giant waste of what could have been the season’s coolest mystery. Oh well.
