Lost: Season 2, Episode 6: Abandoned Review
Abandoned
Original Airdate: November 9, 2005
Writers: Elizabeth Sarnoff
Director: Adam Davidson
It will be interesting to see how future Lost viewers, unaware of this episode's promotion, receive "Abandoned". The advertisements hyped this episode as the one we would be talking about for the rest of the season, largely because they promised a major character would become "lost forever". Of course, most things can’t stand up to this type of episode and unfortunately, this episode is one of them. However, the final twist at the end was worthy of such hype and although the character who died didn't offer as much to the show as Sawyer, Locke or Hurley does, the ramifications will be huge.
Shannon has been far from the most sympathetic or intriguing character on Lost. However, her initial snobbery wasn't just to give us someone to hate. It was all part of her arc, transforming into someone much more selfless. We found out that she wanted to be useful, something we wouldn't have thought of when we saw her painting her toenails in the pilot. She knew French, which helped them understand a little bit about Rousseau and bond with Sayid. Following her brother's death, we've seen a lot more maturity from her, which makes her death a fitting end to her arc. Going with cliches, it also works since she made love to Sayid and he professed his love for her, an easy ticket to death in drama.
Perhaps this is why we haven't seen Shannon's flashback episode until this episode. Other than this instance, we've only seen her character in flashbacks as the way she was when Lost started, like when she conned Boone out of some money. Her story of losing her father (to Jack's future wife no less) and being cut off by her wicked stepmother (Boone's mom) makes her far more sympathetic. One person commented that like Boone, she died when she achieved what she wanted out of life. Throughout the flashbacks, others see her as weak and incapable no matter how hard she tried to shake that image. But before she died, she receive some vindication as Sayid believed that she was seeing Walt.
Considering he was shot a few days earlier and has lacked any proper medical attention, Sawyer appeared to be the most likely "lost forever" candidate. While it would've been a gutsy move, it wouldn't have been a smart one. Sawyer, as the sarcastic bad boy, offers a tremendous amount to the show. To kill him off only six episodes into the second season would be a recipe for failure, no matter how realistic it would've been. Shannon is a much safer choice as her storyline is resolved and her contribution to the show wasn't much.
Although she didn't add much to the show, the impact of her death is what makes it worthwhile. Much like her brother Boone, whose death caused a significant rift between Jack and Locke regarding the island, Shannon's death will have a deep effect on both Sayid and Ana-Lucia. Sayid has become much tenderer through his relationship with Shannon. Although Shannon's death was accidental and likely orchestrated by The Others, it doesn’t matter to Sayid. We know that Sayid is a tough man with a dark past and it appeared that he was going to get another chance, but where would the fun be in that?
The last two episodes preferred character development to advancing the storyline of the island, but this week we saw a little more of the island story. The ever elusive Walt appeared once more to whisper backward cryptic messages (this weeks was along the lines of “They’re coming, and they’re close,”) and the whispers returned. Some people have broken down the audio of these whispers and the results appear to be saying things like “Dying sucks” and “Hi sis”. This certainly raises speculation that Boone is somehow involved in the whispers (the "Dying sucks" is similar to something he said at Shannon's father's wake). I recall hearing the faux-Mr. Sawyer’s last words as a whisper in “Outlaws”. Could the dead be involved with the whispers? If so, what is their purpose? Are they leading her to her death or trying to change fate?
When Walt last appeared to Shannon, he was soaking wet. Producers hinted that his wetness could be a hint to what would happen if the button wasn't pressed, but perhaps it was some foreshadowing to Shannon's death. Her obsession with finding Walt led her to being shot in the rainstorm. As Shannon is gone, I'm still not sure what they were going for with her Walt visions, but having Sayid see him too means that it isn't just in her head. We must remember that only a few people, including Shannon, know that something went wrong, but only the raft pack and we know the specifics. So these sightings of Walt must've only confused her more.
Walt's apparition also served as catalyst for the C-plot, involving Charlie and Claire clashing over Aaron. Charlie and Claire are an interesting pairing for television. Shippers have followed this couple since the beginning, but since Aaron was born, their relationship has been more parental than romantic. They haven't even kissed, yet Charlie is acting as Aaron’s father. The situation gets tenser as Locke provides some help for the restless Aaron. We see more of the childish side of Charlie, as we last saw in “Everybody…” as he attacks Claire’s parenting skills while confronting Locke.
Locke’s part in the story also provides some interest to the arc that has largely been dormant since early in the first season. We know Charlie has one of the heroin filled Virgin Mary’s and this news isn’t going to go well with Locke. Locke spent a large amount of time helping Charlie tap into his potential on the island and kick his heroin habit. Now Charlie is teetering towards using again.
Another interesting moment is Locke's moments caring for Aaron. He has had an interest in this child since before he was born, building him a crib last season. As he tucks in Aaron, calming him, he says that babies like to feel constricted and they want independence when they are older. This could easily tie into a lot of the Dharma type experimentation occurring on the island and The Others, who have a high interest in children, as well.
Now we learn a little bit about what the Tailies have been through, as Ana-Lucia tells the raft pack that The Others have kidnapped members of their tribe in large numbers. This helps us finally understand their fear and it is further drilled when Cindy disappears in the short time it took them to climb up the hill with Sawyer. Their problems they hoped to avoid with the Fuselage camp is now right there beside them. Such a quick event drives places Ana-Lucia in a panicked state where she’ll make the fatal mistake.
Ana-Lucia was anxious as the Tailies traveled to the Fuselage camp, butting heads with the calm Eko about whether Sawyer’s life was worth placing the other castaways in danger. Of the Tailies, Eko is the only one who could rival Ana-Lucia in leadership if he wanted. The other three seem content with following. He manages to get Ana-Lucia to go the way that will get Sawyer help, although Ana-Lucia is clear that she doesn’t care about his well being. After what they've been through, Ana-Lucia is focused only on preserving her fellow castaways.
All these pieces bring these characters together: Shannon, who wants to have some leadership and power, but can't because other question her and Ana-Lucia, a leader whose power is being questioned. The collision works rather well, and really nails the point of how important this merge is. Although the episode was hit or miss, the end of this episode is going to have consequences that will ripple through the rest of the season and the series.
7/10
Original Airdate: November 9, 2005
Writers: Elizabeth Sarnoff
Director: Adam Davidson
It will be interesting to see how future Lost viewers, unaware of this episode's promotion, receive "Abandoned". The advertisements hyped this episode as the one we would be talking about for the rest of the season, largely because they promised a major character would become "lost forever". Of course, most things can’t stand up to this type of episode and unfortunately, this episode is one of them. However, the final twist at the end was worthy of such hype and although the character who died didn't offer as much to the show as Sawyer, Locke or Hurley does, the ramifications will be huge.
Shannon has been far from the most sympathetic or intriguing character on Lost. However, her initial snobbery wasn't just to give us someone to hate. It was all part of her arc, transforming into someone much more selfless. We found out that she wanted to be useful, something we wouldn't have thought of when we saw her painting her toenails in the pilot. She knew French, which helped them understand a little bit about Rousseau and bond with Sayid. Following her brother's death, we've seen a lot more maturity from her, which makes her death a fitting end to her arc. Going with cliches, it also works since she made love to Sayid and he professed his love for her, an easy ticket to death in drama.
Perhaps this is why we haven't seen Shannon's flashback episode until this episode. Other than this instance, we've only seen her character in flashbacks as the way she was when Lost started, like when she conned Boone out of some money. Her story of losing her father (to Jack's future wife no less) and being cut off by her wicked stepmother (Boone's mom) makes her far more sympathetic. One person commented that like Boone, she died when she achieved what she wanted out of life. Throughout the flashbacks, others see her as weak and incapable no matter how hard she tried to shake that image. But before she died, she receive some vindication as Sayid believed that she was seeing Walt.
Considering he was shot a few days earlier and has lacked any proper medical attention, Sawyer appeared to be the most likely "lost forever" candidate. While it would've been a gutsy move, it wouldn't have been a smart one. Sawyer, as the sarcastic bad boy, offers a tremendous amount to the show. To kill him off only six episodes into the second season would be a recipe for failure, no matter how realistic it would've been. Shannon is a much safer choice as her storyline is resolved and her contribution to the show wasn't much.
Although she didn't add much to the show, the impact of her death is what makes it worthwhile. Much like her brother Boone, whose death caused a significant rift between Jack and Locke regarding the island, Shannon's death will have a deep effect on both Sayid and Ana-Lucia. Sayid has become much tenderer through his relationship with Shannon. Although Shannon's death was accidental and likely orchestrated by The Others, it doesn’t matter to Sayid. We know that Sayid is a tough man with a dark past and it appeared that he was going to get another chance, but where would the fun be in that?
The last two episodes preferred character development to advancing the storyline of the island, but this week we saw a little more of the island story. The ever elusive Walt appeared once more to whisper backward cryptic messages (this weeks was along the lines of “They’re coming, and they’re close,”) and the whispers returned. Some people have broken down the audio of these whispers and the results appear to be saying things like “Dying sucks” and “Hi sis”. This certainly raises speculation that Boone is somehow involved in the whispers (the "Dying sucks" is similar to something he said at Shannon's father's wake). I recall hearing the faux-Mr. Sawyer’s last words as a whisper in “Outlaws”. Could the dead be involved with the whispers? If so, what is their purpose? Are they leading her to her death or trying to change fate?
When Walt last appeared to Shannon, he was soaking wet. Producers hinted that his wetness could be a hint to what would happen if the button wasn't pressed, but perhaps it was some foreshadowing to Shannon's death. Her obsession with finding Walt led her to being shot in the rainstorm. As Shannon is gone, I'm still not sure what they were going for with her Walt visions, but having Sayid see him too means that it isn't just in her head. We must remember that only a few people, including Shannon, know that something went wrong, but only the raft pack and we know the specifics. So these sightings of Walt must've only confused her more.
Walt's apparition also served as catalyst for the C-plot, involving Charlie and Claire clashing over Aaron. Charlie and Claire are an interesting pairing for television. Shippers have followed this couple since the beginning, but since Aaron was born, their relationship has been more parental than romantic. They haven't even kissed, yet Charlie is acting as Aaron’s father. The situation gets tenser as Locke provides some help for the restless Aaron. We see more of the childish side of Charlie, as we last saw in “Everybody…” as he attacks Claire’s parenting skills while confronting Locke.
Locke’s part in the story also provides some interest to the arc that has largely been dormant since early in the first season. We know Charlie has one of the heroin filled Virgin Mary’s and this news isn’t going to go well with Locke. Locke spent a large amount of time helping Charlie tap into his potential on the island and kick his heroin habit. Now Charlie is teetering towards using again.
Another interesting moment is Locke's moments caring for Aaron. He has had an interest in this child since before he was born, building him a crib last season. As he tucks in Aaron, calming him, he says that babies like to feel constricted and they want independence when they are older. This could easily tie into a lot of the Dharma type experimentation occurring on the island and The Others, who have a high interest in children, as well.
Now we learn a little bit about what the Tailies have been through, as Ana-Lucia tells the raft pack that The Others have kidnapped members of their tribe in large numbers. This helps us finally understand their fear and it is further drilled when Cindy disappears in the short time it took them to climb up the hill with Sawyer. Their problems they hoped to avoid with the Fuselage camp is now right there beside them. Such a quick event drives places Ana-Lucia in a panicked state where she’ll make the fatal mistake.
Ana-Lucia was anxious as the Tailies traveled to the Fuselage camp, butting heads with the calm Eko about whether Sawyer’s life was worth placing the other castaways in danger. Of the Tailies, Eko is the only one who could rival Ana-Lucia in leadership if he wanted. The other three seem content with following. He manages to get Ana-Lucia to go the way that will get Sawyer help, although Ana-Lucia is clear that she doesn’t care about his well being. After what they've been through, Ana-Lucia is focused only on preserving her fellow castaways.
All these pieces bring these characters together: Shannon, who wants to have some leadership and power, but can't because other question her and Ana-Lucia, a leader whose power is being questioned. The collision works rather well, and really nails the point of how important this merge is. Although the episode was hit or miss, the end of this episode is going to have consequences that will ripple through the rest of the season and the series.
7/10
posted by Matt @ 8:59 PM
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