Tonight's 100th episode of LOST broke my heart. I think that this recap will be a bit disjointed, but tonight's episode was once again, a strong thread in the fabric of the LOST story. SPOILERS BELOW
This episode attempted to put together all the bits and pieces we had of Daniel Faraday's life and how he came to be on the island. This episode is heavy on foreshadowing and watching it a second time, very painful foreshadowing.
Summary and Recap
Back in the 70's, Daniel had just shown up on the island. He believes he has a purpose. He believes that perhaps he can change the future and save the 815ers from ever crashing. He tells Jack that his mother was wrong to send him back. He attempts to explain to Dr. Chang who naturally thinks he's completely nuts and having a bit of fun. So he tries to persuade the group to take him to the Others so he can talk with his mother.
Daniel has always had a strained relationship with his mother. Despite the fact that I thought he was quite good on piano, she felt it was a distraction from nurturing his mind towards math and science. As an adult, he continues to feel pushed by her. She insists his life should be nothing but work. In a heartbreaking scene, a broken Daniel Faraday asks her if she'll be proud of him if he goes to the island. She answers in the affirmative.
The group has decided to split. Hurley, Miles, Sawyer, and Juliet have decided to start over on the beach, while Jack, Kate, and Dan head to the Others. Before they get there, though..gun fight! A bullet grazes Daniel, giving him the chance to have the conversation with Jack about how any one them could die.
They make it to the camp of the Others and Daniel holds a gun on Richard Alpert demanding to speak to Eloise. Before he can take his threat any further...he's shot. By his very own mother. "You knew..." he whispers as he lays dying, "You always knew. You knew this was gonna happen and you sent me here anyway." "Who are you?" she asks coldly.
"Your son" he answers. LOST
A few other key points:
Desmond lives and we got another sweet Desmond/Penny scene!
Sawyer and Juliet seem to be on a bit of shaky ground.
Charles Widmore was Daniel Faraday's father as I suspected giving us another set of half siblings in Penny and Daniel.
Analysis
LOST can really give us the emotional deaths! For some reason, Daniel's death reminded me a little of Shannon's, where we saw the sad history throughout the episode and the surprise shooting of great consequence. But I simply cannot imagine being Eloise Hawking and willing to go on with my life after shooting my son! Which brings up something...it seems that everyone is highly concerned with making sure that the past as it happened stays that way. It doesn't seem that Eloise felt she could do anything to change Daniel's course. Instead of nurturing him and giving him the happiest life possible, she seems resigned to his fate and encourages him to head right back into that same fate. She doesn't try to talk him out of going to the island but uses all the resources at her disposal to make sure things happen the same way. Whereas Daniel tried to warn Charlotte from ever coming back to the island, she tried no such thing. Why? Is Daniel some sort of necessary sacrifice, right down to his dying words?
I thought this episode was really sad, and I'm sorry to say good-bye to the character of Daniel Faraday. Having said that, I'm curious to see how everything else will play out and next week looks incredible.
Tell me all your thoughts!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
LOST Recap and Discussion: The Variable
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14 comments:
No one is ever dead on lost! he will pop up again...everyone who's "died" has. well except for paulo and nicki.
something else i was a little unsure of. if it's 1977 and ellie is on the island, where is little daniel? obviously daniel is older than charlotte (but he can't be THAT much older than her) or does that version of daniel not exist? and if he does exist, does he die now that present day daniel has died?
i'm so confused.
Yes, it was terrible. What an awful mother Eloise is! I too am wondering where Young Daniel is. Is he in the camp with The Others? If so, why wouldn't he remember? I think he's not on the island but where ever people go when they leave there. Maybe he's with his Dad at the moment.
The Desmond and Penny moment was precious.
And if all of our survivors hung out on the beach for 30 years, would they run into themselves and watch their plane crash? (I love time travel stuff, but it always make my head spin....)
I was SO sad that Daniel died... My husband will tell you I was yelling "Nooooooo" at the TV. And until this episode, I rather liked Eloise's character, but now that's all been turned upside down.
But yeah, this time travel stuff is definitely confusing sometimes. And Amy, I too suspected that Charles Widmore was Daniel's father...
Anyway, in terms of furthering the story, it was a great episode, but I just hated to see Daniel die.
Great post! I couldn't believe Daniel really died, and I liked him. It seems like no matter how much he tries to change the future... well, that may have been their present, but it was also his past, too. Charlotte remembered him telling her to leave, so he had tried to change the future in HER past. Wow, this is confusing, lol. I love it. ;-) I've always been fascinated with the concept of time travel and what it could change, etc.
I think if I had been Eloise I would have done everything I could to change the future. I would have let him be a normal little boy. Play piano all day long. Eat ice cream. Drink coke. He probably still would have been at the island, but maybe he would have had some fond memories instead of his mother pushing him all his life for THIS. Ugh. If he had to go back to the island, I would have gone back and stopped my younger self. Guess you couldn't really murder your younger self to save your son, though, could you? That would kill both of you. Supposedly. Anyway. Great post! Great episode!
I recapped it as well, would love if you could come comment! :-)
I totally agree with Deborah that I don't think the time thing quite works out... I actually mentioned that in my post too. :P
As for Eloise going on with her life and knowing and all -- I honestly think she didn't know that sending to the island would result in her shooting him. In fact, sending Kate, Jack, and the others back was the variable that set that chain of events in motion (Dan saw the photo and hopped a sub from Ann Arbor) -- I think it was that new variable she was referring to when she said she didn't know what would happen now. If my theory is correct, she's oblivious, and will have a "memory" of it pop into her head the same way Desmond did, after encountering Dan in the past.
And I don't think he'll die either, I think they'll do the magic-healing-temple thing with him.... only in that case, what would it mean for him as a person??
Would love to know your thoughts! :)
I think they had to get rid of Daniel because he was mucking up all the tim-space continuum. The scenes w/ his mother broke my heart, too, especially the piano and telling him she'd be proud. I hope we find out why she is so cold.
Hurley is always the sanest one, to me!
I am thoroughly confused. And sad about Daniel. I haven't a clue what comes next but I'll keep watching to find out.
Another head spinner! I did have to think of you during that sweet Desmond/Penny scene. It seems we are heading to a very exciting season ender. And then a LONG wait once again.
I know! Mrs. Hawkings actions make sense if you think you have to make sure the past doesn't change... but she believes it's all fate anyways, so she shouldn't have to TRY to make it happen at the expense of making her son miserable. It doesn't make sense - there must be something else that we're not getting.
I wrote about it here: http://kaciesmixedmedia.blogspot.com/2009/05/lost-thoughts-is-it-all-determined-or.html
I'm really going to miss Daniel Faraday. I'm glad that the idea of "the variable" has finally been introduce - things can be changed.
I loved Daniel. I'm really hoping the Island heals him and that Eloise knew that would happen, otherwise she is one bad mother!
And I want Sawyer and Juliet to stay together I like them as a couple.
My head was totally spinning after this episode. I will miss "Twitchy" or whatever Sawyer called him. Oh and that scene with Penny and Desmond totally made me cry. I just LOVE them together!!
I was very sad to see Daniel die. His mom is such a B----! I don't have kids, but come on...how could you?
Juliet is very shaken with Kate being around, and it's sad they came back, especially when they didn't have too. Every one was just doing fine.
It was nice that some things were explained or reminded, why the hatch and the button, reason for 815 crash, etc. but I'm supre curious about the Others and their story. How did they wind up there? How come what his name doesn't age?
Excellent recap and episode.
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