Although nearly all critics who reviewed the first two episodes of the fifth season of "Lost" disagree with me, I genuinely think "The Lie" was the superior episode out of the two aired tonight. "Because You Left" did what it had to do extremely well, but exposition and setup are two necessary evils and not things which usually turn out too well (although "Lost" has been remarkably good at handling both, with some exceptions of course). "The Lie" settles down a bit (both literally since the island didn't shift in time several times) to continue telling the story and telling it well. Some have said this episode felt more like filler than the first. I disagree. In fact, as far as the overall story goes, "The Lie" probably achieved more progress than "Because You Left" did.
"The Lie" is one of Hurley's best episodes as a character. Every action of his here is somehow related to something we know about him already, but at the same time there is new conviction in him, and a loss of innocence which is both tragic and refreshing. Hurley is still great comic relief, but now his character is more than just that. The shift started in season four, with Hurley's several disturbing and depressing appearances where he was all doom and gloom. He's gotten past that now, and there is something oddly touching about the mixture of the comic relief Hurley and the deeply wounded and hurt Hurley, hurt by his experiences on the island and the lie he has been telling since he got off it. A brilliant mixture of the two was on display when Hurley gave his summary of the events on the island. Very funny and sweet, and also a nice acknowledgement by the writers of how ludicrous this show is on paper, but soon tragedy enters the exact same scene when we realize the gravity of what this means to Hurley as a person (we, as detached viewers, can endlessly debate and laugh about the show's labyrinthine plot, but the repercussions for the characters involved aren't anything to laugh about), and laughter turns into dramatic involvement. A brilliant bit of writing, and some great acting as well.
Although most of the focus is on the Oceanic 6, there was much of interest on the island also, especially the attack on the survivors by an as yet unidentified group. I'm guessing they're related to DHARMA or The Others in some way or the other, but I'm not going to bother theorizing just yet. Charlotte and Daniel's interaction is very interesting, and Miles' behavior is as amusingly jerk-like as ever. It's pretty obvious that this season is going to prominently and heavily feature adventure storytelling, and it's a good sign that they mixed that with strong character writing (especially for Hurley) so early on in the season. Even the scene with AnaLucia, so potentially silly, was good. The episode isn't entirely without its flaws, however, Frogurt's scene goes on for a tad bit too long, and doesn't quite capture the Arzt feeling they were obviously going for there, and Ben's stalking around clad in black and looking mysterious started losing its effect near the end. Glad to see Ms. Hawking back, although honestly the convenient fashion choices made by certain characters (in addition to awkward digital masking of their voices) when the writers are trying to keep you waiting in suspense for some sort of reveal are getting a bit tiresome.
"The Lie", while it had a dark and tragic undertone, and while most of what happened was nothing to laugh about, is one of the funniest episodes of "Lost" to date. Hurley's t-shirt, the concise summary of the show's events thus far (proving once and for all that you can explain "Lost" to the un-initiated in a concise manner, although you'll probably put them off watching it for good as a result), and really much of the dialogue here is absolutely excellent. Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz are really slowly turning into two of my favorite writers on TV. It's remarkable how far they've come from their early work, and most notable about much of their work is just how good so much of the dialogue is. Funny, charming, and yet effective in continuing the story and providing some genuine surprises, "The Lie" is perhaps not perfect, but it made for an excellent opening to season five along with "Because You Left", despite being very different to that episode.
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