Paul Zbyszewski makes his LOST writing debut in Jughead, teaming up with Elizabeth Sarnoff for a pretty solid episode.
What's interesting about Jughead is that it's technically a Desmond-centric yet Desmond is a vehicle to reveal more information about Daniel Faraday. Desmond's brief "time-flash encounter" with Faraday at the Swan station has convinced him he needs to return to Oxford and track down Faraday's mother.
This leads him back to Faraday's old lab featured in the Constant, then the eventual reveal that Faraday's ex-girlfriend, Theresa, has become an invalid as a result of his experiments. Ut oh. Faraday's got some baggage.
Things really start to speed up on the island, which is currently set in 1954. Even though young Widmore escapes from Locke's group they track him back to an Others camp. It just so happens that young Eloise Hawking is holding Faraday's team hostage there as well. Before everyone can reunite, Eloise takes Faraday to an unexploded hydrogen bomb (Jughead), hoping he can disable it. His instructions are clear: bury it.
An example of clever writing occurs next, when Locke brazingly enters the Others' camp demanding to see Richard Alpert. Richard isn't buying Locke's story that he's a leader from the future, so Locke extends an invitation:
LOCKE: May 30, 1956 — 2 years from now — that's the day I'm born. Tustin, California. And if you don't believe me, I suggest you come and visit me.
We saw Richard in Cabin Fever, looking through a window at baby Locke just after Emily gave birth to him. Brilliant!
So now my attention turns to a scene later in Cabin Fever where toddler Locke fails Richard's test. Locke selected a compass, a vial of granules, and a knife. The compass makes sense, but the knife apparently triggered Richard's displeasure and at this point I can't remember if Season 5 explains why. I'll know within a few days and update this review.
For a Desmond-centric this episode was surprisingly light on Henry Ian Cusick. His opening scene is vintage Cusick, frantically running through a Filipino village searching for a doctor. And of course, nobody seems to nail that sense of bewilderment during an investigation quite like Cusick.
It's been said that Jeremy Davies is meticulous in his preparation for any acting role, and I think it shows in Jughead. As much as his propensity for muttering can sometimes irritate me, he's undoubtedly a gifted actor overall. Check out his scene at Jughead the moment he discovers the crack in the casing. His reactions to that, and Eloise's refusal to put down her rifle, are simultaneously comical and plausible.
Bonus points to Terry O'Quinn and Nestor Carbonell for their scene at the 1954 Others camp, which can't be overstated in its importance in setting up Season 5.
Deductions for Tom Connolly (young Widmore) and Alexandra Krosney (young Eloise)'s performances, both a bit stiff.
This was one of two directorial contributions from Rod Holcomb, the first being Hearts and Minds. I've started to pick up on the tendencies and "signatures" of the different directors, particularly Jack Bender and Tucker Gates. But what amazes me is how different directors can take the helm and things still feel very much like LOST.
Well, Jughead still feels like LOST but Holcomb definitely takes a few risks — some good, some bad. Sometimes even the same SCENE has a mixture of good and bad.
The introduction of young Eloise might be the best example. When we (the audience) face Eloise, she's framed in your traditional menacing manner. But then we switch to looking down the barrel of her rifle as she sidesteps toward Faraday. It is an absolutely horrible, cheesy shot that completely took me out of the moment.
Another gripe: after Faraday reveals that he loves Charlotte, he's taken out of the tent and we focus on her sitting at the table. That shot is a full two seconds too long, leaving Rebecca Mader to start improvising on her emotional reaction.
The opening scene (Desmond in the Phillipines) is very well-directed and features quality set design.
There's really no such thing as a bad Desmond-centric, though this is probably my least favorite of that elite set. In its defense, there's a lot of prep work required by the writers to sell the mindbending complexity of Season 5. It's a bridge the audience must feel comfortable crossing and Jughead is the keystone of that bridge.
Some of the plot points are hugely significant, particularly the hydrogen bomb and Locke's interaction with Richard. The revelation that "Jones" was young Charles Widmore sets up an intriguing arc for the rest of the series.
I'm a sucker for the Desmond/Penny relationship so there was some emotional investment in seeing the birth of Charlie (and, well, the fact that they named him Charlie). Even though I like both Faraday and Charlotte as characters, I had absolutely no emotional reaction to Faraday professing his love for her. It's really unfortunate that Charlotte was such a casualty of the writers' strike.
The Locke/Richard scene was the jolt of intrigue and atmosphere Jughead desperately needed. Without it I would've described the episode as comparatively bland, with lots of people being held at gunpoint — something that was starting to wear a bit thin by Season 5.
