Once again the LOST writers/producers faced a unique challenge: how do you follow a three-hour finale with a one-hour opener and address both major cliffhangers?
Damon Lindelof's answer: you don't.
MOSMOF is a very good episode with some truly brilliant moments, but I don't necessarily agree with decisions about its structure. Season 1 featured so many episodes with parallel storylines that spun around each other in a graceful literary dance. We have dual storylines in MOSMOF as well, but the fate of the raft crew is left completely unaddressed. So instead of the usual dance, we get a solo performance and then wait a week for another.
The first example of brilliance is one of the most mind-blowing moments of the series: the opening scene. It wasn't until an explosion shook this stylish apartment-type-thing that I had any inkling on what was going on. As soon as Desmond started aligning the mirrors my mind was officially blown.
The second example of brilliance is when Kate counts to five while being lowered into the Hatch. There were already a ton of emotions coursing through the audience at that point, so to offer a throwback to Pilot was icing on the cake.
Yet more brilliance: the "wiggle my toes" scene with Jack and Sarah. In the episode commentary Lindelof suggests this is his favorite scene in MOSMOF and I'd have to agree.
But now, on to the structure problems. Carlton Cuse admitted that they faced a major problem in addressing all of the Exodus material in the opener, but with some adjustments I think it could've been pulled off.
After the Hatch is blown open, Jack returns to the caves and settles everyone down with an anticlimactic speech (sorry Damon, but people were going to compare this to his White Rabbit speech even as you were trying to demonstrate his personal growth in doling out hope). Despite this speech, Locke, Kate, and ultimately Jack return to the Hatch after all. This trekking back and forth strikes me as a wasted opportunity, some unnecessary fat on the skeleton of the story.
Another example of bloating the script: Hurley's long exposition on the Numbers. I understand the need for it and I thought it was handled nicely given the circumstances, but this was more time that could've been better served addressing the elephant in the room (the raft).
My only other nagging problem is the timing on Desmond's introduction. I believe it was Javier Grillo-Marxuach who stated in S1 that the goal is to plant seeds as early as possible, so it's disappointing to see that Desmond is introduced twenty minutes before the showdown in the Hatch. As a result, the cliffhanger fell flat for me.
In a perfect world we would've seen the Jack/Desmond stadium meeting back in "Do No Harm", but that's easy to say in hindsight. But with just a few tweaks in the flashback scenes, their meeting could've occurred in the first ten minutes of MOSMOF and that still would've salvaged a bit of the impact at the end.
Any time I hear/see people doubt the acting capabilities of Matthew Fox, I direct them to the final flashback scene of this episode. To see a character so deeply affected over such a short time, transitioning from tears of sorrow to tears of elation in just a few minutes, is a testament to Fox's unbelievable talent.
His speech in the caves is an anticlimactic, almost awkward moment but I don't blame Fox for it. I really don't think Lindelof gave him much to work with in that case.
Bonus points for Evangeline Lilly's performance in the scene where she's being lowered into the Hatch. This was almost on par with her "count to five" scene in Pilot.
Julie Bowen puts in an extraordinary performance as the down-but-not-out patient. She's just the right mix of vulnerability and feistiness and it plays very well in contrast to Jack. The "wiggle my toes" scene is an all-out emotional rush and it couldn't have happened without Bowen's masterful performance.
This was a solid (albeit brief) debut for Henry Ian Cusick, though I think he gets noticeably more comfortable as the season moves along.
Jack Bender and Kevin Blank really understood what was needed to sell the opening sequence in the Hatch, and the result is about as perfect as it gets. I love the quick cuts of what appears to be another mundane morning in someone's apartment in the 70s, from cherries being tossed into a blender to some guy on an exercise bike.
It just gets better from there, with a series of sharp angles and mirrors transporting us through a murky hallway and up the shaft of the Hatch. It would've been easier just to have us looking up shaft the whole time, but they added a twist to make it exponentially better. We look down as we ascend the shaft, then about half-way up the view twists and points upward to show Locke and Jack.
Major bonus points for the now-iconic visual of the light shining out the Hatch opening, just moments after Desmond snatches Kate.
Other highlights of Bender's work include: 1) the frenetic scene in the hospital as Jack assesses Sarah for the first time, 2) the long shot of the stadium as Jack and Desmond ascend the steps, and 3) Jack's methodical exploration of the Swan, particularly the discovery of the "magnetic wall."
True confession: the Swan is my favorite mythology-based element of the series, so any episode that's heavy on Swan exploration is going to do very well in Longevity. Given the vast majority of Season 2 is set in this mysterious underground station, as well as the ongoing theme of science versus faith, the importance of this episode in the context of the series can't really be understated.
As stated above, I do have some problems with the overall structure of the episode and can't help but think there were missed opportunities, but it's still a very enjoyable episode that stands the test of time.
The island storyline has a thick and foreboding atmosphere, accentuated by the fact that it's entirely shot at night. There was a genuinely chilling and claustrophobic feeling while we lowered ourselves down the shaft right along with Kate.
In its own weird way, the inclusion of Mama Cass' "Make Your Own Kind of Music" took the atmosphere to a whole new level. The contrast of the song's positive vibe with the darkness and mystery everywhere else was cognitive dissonance at its best.
The emotional impact of Jack/Sarah's final flashback can't really be understated. I have no shame in admitting that the waterworks were on full blast the first time around; even today it still manages to put a lump in my throat.
