Thursday, March 1. 2007
LOST: "Tricia Tanaka is Dead" [SPOILERS]
Well, they threw us another curve ball with this one I think. Not quite the usual LOST fare, but still an enjoyable episode. One that stands on its own pretty well.
Granted no earth-shattering kabooms were delivered this time around, and really, no deep character insights were granted. OK, so we did learn a bit more about Hurley and his "hopeful" mindset, but will that really matter in the long run?
I think this should be a somewhat shorter post than usual. There weren't a lot of details that need repeating or revisiting. One question I have, though. Is this supposed to be before or after his stint in the funny farmHHHH mental hospital? It sounded like he was going to go to Australia straight away, but he threw out a couple of "I'm not crazy" lines that made me wonder.
[EDIT: Duh! Thanks to pDale for pointing out that he got the numbers in the institution, and none of this would have happened without that! What was I thinking!]
Granted no earth-shattering kabooms were delivered this time around, and really, no deep character insights were granted. OK, so we did learn a bit more about Hurley and his "hopeful" mindset, but will that really matter in the long run?
I think this should be a somewhat shorter post than usual. There weren't a lot of details that need repeating or revisiting. One question I have, though. Is this supposed to be before or after his stint in the funny farmHHHH mental hospital? It sounded like he was going to go to Australia straight away, but he threw out a couple of "I'm not crazy" lines that made me wonder.
[EDIT: Duh! Thanks to pDale for pointing out that he got the numbers in the institution, and none of this would have happened without that! What was I thinking!]
Welcome Home, Sawyer
We need to get this part out of the way first, because otherwise Sawyer's later involvement doesn't make any sense. This line sort of intermingles with the 'van' story.
Kate and Sawyer make their way back to the beach, with a little argument along the way. Kate still wants him to apologize and he thinks there's nothing to be sorry for. At which point she quits calling him "James" and goes back to "Sawyer."
One of the few "clues" they dropped this episode occurs here. Sawyer steps on a dart of some kind. Now, where the heck did this come from? It obviously wasn't one of the "knockout" darts the others used before, since he walked away from it. But why was it just lying around that close to the beach camp?
They get back to the beach and its hugs and kisses all around. Saw that coming. Apparently Desmond didn't by the surprised look he has.
Sawyer's stuff has been gone through, and he's plenty ticked. He accosts Charlie and Desmond, and they fess up to drinking his scotch, and name Hurley. Sawyer heads off into the jungle to find him.
Kate, however is busy trying to form a plan to get Jack. She takes off into the jungle to get help, to the dismay of Sayid and Locke. They track her down and eventually catch up to her at the net her and Jack were trapped in (I think.)
"If you wanted help why didn't you ask us?" "You're not motivated." Huh? They haphazardly mention something relating to Eko's stick, which I think had to do with the 'Look North' bit, when a bullet hits a nearby tree.
It's Rousseau, and she's the one Kate's been looking for. She tells her about Alex (and that's where the show ends.)
Make Your Own Luck
OK, lets look briefly at the flashback, which of course was all about Hurley, er I mean Hugo.
The show starts with a young Hugo standing in front of an up-on-blocks '71-ish Camaro. He thinks he's going to fix it, with a little help from his dad (played by the increasingly versatile Cheech Marin.) Pay attention to the song they're using for soundtrack here because you'll hear it again.
He gives Hugo the keys and tells him to start it, sure it'll start! If you believe good things will happen then they will, make your own luck! Of course the car doesn't start.
He jumps on his bike, (an AMAN? eh? play on NAMAste or A MAN? or is that an actual bike company?) He's going to Vegas to "work" (yeah sure!) and gives Hugo a candy bar. Hugo says his mom won't let him have it, and his dad says to live a little, its just a candy bar (of course its an Apollo, I think....)
He rides off and Hugo digs into the candy.
I Like Chicken!
So we flash forward in the flashback, to Hugo standing outside his new Mr. Cluck's chicken restaurant, being interviewed by a reporter, one Tricia Tanaka.
Giving about as great an interview as Corbin Dallas does for Ruby in The Fifth Element, he suddenly starts going on about his bad luck string. At which point Tricia cuts him off and heads into the store to shoot the B-roll.
There's a high-pitched sound, kind of like a jet. Hurley looks up just in time to see a large meteor obliterate his new store, and in the process kill Tanaka and her cameraman. Hence the title of the episode.
Later he walks in the front doors of his huge-o mansion. His mother is there, and they get into an argument about his 'curse.' He thinks he needs to go to Australia, to find out about the numbers. His mother says she can prove he's not cursed, at which point his dad conveniently re-appears after being absent since the Camaro incident.
Later still, the three of them are eating dinner, around a table with a solid gold Jesus statue at the center. ("That's one hell of a Jesus!") His mother called his dad back because she felt Hugo was "in trouble." Of course he's suspicious that his dad is only back because of his newfound wealth. There's more argument about the curse, and he throws out one of his "I'm not crazy" lines, and declares he's going to get rid of all of the money, because its cursed. He fires the cooks before they get killed by the curse, too.
His mother suggests that he show his dad what's in the garage. It's the Camaro, still up on stands, apparently still not running.
Still later, Hugo's dad wakes him up. He's got a plan to break the curse, and if it doesn't work he says Hugo can still go to Australia.
They go to visit a "psychic", who whips out the tarot cards and proceeds to tell in great detail about the numbers and the curse and the money....
...but Hugo sees right through it, and finally the psychic admits ($10G's later) that his dad put her up to it. He was only trying to help! But Hurley asks, "Help who?"
The last part of this we see Hugo packing for Australia. His dad tries to talk him out of it, that going isn't going to break the curse. "You need hope." "Make your own luck." He says to give it all away, well except to get the Camaro running again. "It's never too late for a fresh start."
But Hugo is going to go anyway. His dad says "I'll be here when you get back." (Which makes me wonder if we'll see him again at the end?)
We Can Totally Fix It!
The main part of the story begins with Hurley talking to someone, telling the "dock story." He says he's scared, he's been scared most of his time here anyway, except when he's with... yup, he's talking to Libby's grave.
He finds Charlie on the beach, shaving off his scrabbly-looking beard. They discuss Desmond's warning, and Hurley claims that "he might be right", that "death finds me."
Just then our long lost canine hero, Vincent comes out of the jungle, carrying a badly decayed bit of human arm. In the hand is a rabbit's foot keychain with a key. (Note: Looks like Vinny's been eating well for being without Dog Chow for how long?!)
Hurley chases him into the jungle, and he's lead to a tipped-over 1960-something blue and white VW bus.
"Awesome."
The arm belonged to Roger, a Dharma "workman." He's still behind the wheel of the van. Which makes me wonder exactly what happened to ol' Rog. Just turning it over wouldn't have killed him, would it? He looked to be pretty intact. Did he have a heart attack? Did something else kill him and knock the van over? Like an explosion or something. Hrmmmmm.
Anyway, Hurley runs back to the beach and tells the gang about his discovery. "We can totally fix it!" To which everybody asks "Why?" "Because it'll be fun. We need some fun." And he singles out Charlie, "especially you, dude!" Everyone else declines and fades away, except for Jin, who doesn't have a clue what he's just volunteered for.
He and Jin go back to the van and start poking around. There's beer! Dharma brand beer (and light beer!) There's also a lot of crumpled up paper which they make a point of noticing. Wonder what's written on them? They pull Roger out of the driver's seat, and in the process snap his head right off. "We'll get that later."
As they're trying to tip the van over, Sawyer shows up, wanting to know about his stuff. Hurley throws him a jubilant curve ball and gives him a great big bear hug. He learns about Jack and says "Jack's gonna be alright, we all are. Things are getting better." He thinks the van is "a sign" and that Sawyer's going to help them fix it. Why? "Because there's beer!" (Good enough for me!)
They flip the van over onto its wheels again. Sawyer finds a blueprint map, with plans for a road on it. He bugs out when he finds the head, "Sonofa!"
Hurley jumps behind the wheel to start it. "I have hope. This will work." He closes his eyes and turns the key.
Nothing. "Dammit."
Victory or Death!
So Sawyer is drinking the beer (God that would have to be nasty) while Hurley and Jin check out the engine, overgrown with vines. Sawyer's joking about "skeletor" and Hurley tells him to respect the dead. "That guy had a mother and stuff!"
Jin tells Hurley, "No. No fix!" And they argue about it. "Why's it so important?" "Because it gives us all some hope." Sawyer of course tells him that "there's no hope here."
Hurley then goes to pray while Sawyer and Jin drink the beer. Sawyer's been giving Jin some humorous English lessons. What's he praying for? Help. To which Sawyer says "I've got your help right here" and throws a beer can at him, which rolls down the hill behind them. You can see Hurley's "lightbulb" going off.
He goes back to get Charlie, who's moping on the beach. Hurley snaps him out of it with a speech and a smack. "If we don't die then we win! We could use a victory. Victory or death!"
(Another note: I like how they replaced the big 'VW' on the front of the bus with the DHARMA logo.)
They push the van to the edge of the hill, and against Sawyer and Jin's objections, Hurley and Charlie get in. "Victory or death! PUSH!"
As they bounce down the hill, wondering if they screwed up, Hurley closes his eyes and starts chanting "There is no curse, make my own luck." He pops the clutch and miracle-of-miracles the thing starts. The same song from the beginning of the episode starts coming from the 8-track deck. (anyone know the song? I didn't recognize it.)
They drive around in circles for a while, living it up. Everyone goes back to the beach happy, including Sawyer it would seem. Hurley stays with the van and keeps driving around in circles at the bottom of the hill.
Looks like a bit of fun did them some good after all.
Conclusions
OK, like I said no big revelations this time around, but a couple of questions did pop up.
Next Time
But the big deal was the preview for next week. Yes, folks, its "eyepatch dude" from the Pearl Hatch monitor! He's holed up in a blue (just like the van, hmmm) metal building somewhere on the island. Looks to be interesting, and it'll be nice to get back to Locke's merry band again.
Side note: I wonder if there's a connection between the blue van and the blue house? If nothing else, it'll be nice to see some color that isn't green or gray! Seems like everything in the hatches is either green, dirty-gold, or concrete.
Technorati Tags: LOST, tv, episodes, reviews, tricia tanaka is dead, hurley, hugo, van, roger, dharma, hope, sawyer, kate, jin
We need to get this part out of the way first, because otherwise Sawyer's later involvement doesn't make any sense. This line sort of intermingles with the 'van' story.
Kate and Sawyer make their way back to the beach, with a little argument along the way. Kate still wants him to apologize and he thinks there's nothing to be sorry for. At which point she quits calling him "James" and goes back to "Sawyer."
One of the few "clues" they dropped this episode occurs here. Sawyer steps on a dart of some kind. Now, where the heck did this come from? It obviously wasn't one of the "knockout" darts the others used before, since he walked away from it. But why was it just lying around that close to the beach camp?
They get back to the beach and its hugs and kisses all around. Saw that coming. Apparently Desmond didn't by the surprised look he has.
Sawyer's stuff has been gone through, and he's plenty ticked. He accosts Charlie and Desmond, and they fess up to drinking his scotch, and name Hurley. Sawyer heads off into the jungle to find him.
Kate, however is busy trying to form a plan to get Jack. She takes off into the jungle to get help, to the dismay of Sayid and Locke. They track her down and eventually catch up to her at the net her and Jack were trapped in (I think.)
"If you wanted help why didn't you ask us?" "You're not motivated." Huh? They haphazardly mention something relating to Eko's stick, which I think had to do with the 'Look North' bit, when a bullet hits a nearby tree.
It's Rousseau, and she's the one Kate's been looking for. She tells her about Alex (and that's where the show ends.)
Make Your Own Luck
OK, lets look briefly at the flashback, which of course was all about Hurley, er I mean Hugo.
The show starts with a young Hugo standing in front of an up-on-blocks '71-ish Camaro. He thinks he's going to fix it, with a little help from his dad (played by the increasingly versatile Cheech Marin.) Pay attention to the song they're using for soundtrack here because you'll hear it again.
He gives Hugo the keys and tells him to start it, sure it'll start! If you believe good things will happen then they will, make your own luck! Of course the car doesn't start.
He jumps on his bike, (an AMAN? eh? play on NAMAste or A MAN? or is that an actual bike company?) He's going to Vegas to "work" (yeah sure!) and gives Hugo a candy bar. Hugo says his mom won't let him have it, and his dad says to live a little, its just a candy bar (of course its an Apollo, I think....)
He rides off and Hugo digs into the candy.
I Like Chicken!
So we flash forward in the flashback, to Hugo standing outside his new Mr. Cluck's chicken restaurant, being interviewed by a reporter, one Tricia Tanaka.
Giving about as great an interview as Corbin Dallas does for Ruby in The Fifth Element, he suddenly starts going on about his bad luck string. At which point Tricia cuts him off and heads into the store to shoot the B-roll.
There's a high-pitched sound, kind of like a jet. Hurley looks up just in time to see a large meteor obliterate his new store, and in the process kill Tanaka and her cameraman. Hence the title of the episode.
Later he walks in the front doors of his huge-o mansion. His mother is there, and they get into an argument about his 'curse.' He thinks he needs to go to Australia, to find out about the numbers. His mother says she can prove he's not cursed, at which point his dad conveniently re-appears after being absent since the Camaro incident.
Later still, the three of them are eating dinner, around a table with a solid gold Jesus statue at the center. ("That's one hell of a Jesus!") His mother called his dad back because she felt Hugo was "in trouble." Of course he's suspicious that his dad is only back because of his newfound wealth. There's more argument about the curse, and he throws out one of his "I'm not crazy" lines, and declares he's going to get rid of all of the money, because its cursed. He fires the cooks before they get killed by the curse, too.
His mother suggests that he show his dad what's in the garage. It's the Camaro, still up on stands, apparently still not running.
Still later, Hugo's dad wakes him up. He's got a plan to break the curse, and if it doesn't work he says Hugo can still go to Australia.
They go to visit a "psychic", who whips out the tarot cards and proceeds to tell in great detail about the numbers and the curse and the money....
...but Hugo sees right through it, and finally the psychic admits ($10G's later) that his dad put her up to it. He was only trying to help! But Hurley asks, "Help who?"
The last part of this we see Hugo packing for Australia. His dad tries to talk him out of it, that going isn't going to break the curse. "You need hope." "Make your own luck." He says to give it all away, well except to get the Camaro running again. "It's never too late for a fresh start."
But Hugo is going to go anyway. His dad says "I'll be here when you get back." (Which makes me wonder if we'll see him again at the end?)
We Can Totally Fix It!
The main part of the story begins with Hurley talking to someone, telling the "dock story." He says he's scared, he's been scared most of his time here anyway, except when he's with... yup, he's talking to Libby's grave.
He finds Charlie on the beach, shaving off his scrabbly-looking beard. They discuss Desmond's warning, and Hurley claims that "he might be right", that "death finds me."
Just then our long lost canine hero, Vincent comes out of the jungle, carrying a badly decayed bit of human arm. In the hand is a rabbit's foot keychain with a key. (Note: Looks like Vinny's been eating well for being without Dog Chow for how long?!)
Hurley chases him into the jungle, and he's lead to a tipped-over 1960-something blue and white VW bus.
"Awesome."
The arm belonged to Roger, a Dharma "workman." He's still behind the wheel of the van. Which makes me wonder exactly what happened to ol' Rog. Just turning it over wouldn't have killed him, would it? He looked to be pretty intact. Did he have a heart attack? Did something else kill him and knock the van over? Like an explosion or something. Hrmmmmm.
Anyway, Hurley runs back to the beach and tells the gang about his discovery. "We can totally fix it!" To which everybody asks "Why?" "Because it'll be fun. We need some fun." And he singles out Charlie, "especially you, dude!" Everyone else declines and fades away, except for Jin, who doesn't have a clue what he's just volunteered for.
He and Jin go back to the van and start poking around. There's beer! Dharma brand beer (and light beer!) There's also a lot of crumpled up paper which they make a point of noticing. Wonder what's written on them? They pull Roger out of the driver's seat, and in the process snap his head right off. "We'll get that later."
As they're trying to tip the van over, Sawyer shows up, wanting to know about his stuff. Hurley throws him a jubilant curve ball and gives him a great big bear hug. He learns about Jack and says "Jack's gonna be alright, we all are. Things are getting better." He thinks the van is "a sign" and that Sawyer's going to help them fix it. Why? "Because there's beer!" (Good enough for me!)
They flip the van over onto its wheels again. Sawyer finds a blueprint map, with plans for a road on it. He bugs out when he finds the head, "Sonofa!"
Hurley jumps behind the wheel to start it. "I have hope. This will work." He closes his eyes and turns the key.
Nothing. "Dammit."
Victory or Death!
So Sawyer is drinking the beer (God that would have to be nasty) while Hurley and Jin check out the engine, overgrown with vines. Sawyer's joking about "skeletor" and Hurley tells him to respect the dead. "That guy had a mother and stuff!"
Jin tells Hurley, "No. No fix!" And they argue about it. "Why's it so important?" "Because it gives us all some hope." Sawyer of course tells him that "there's no hope here."
Hurley then goes to pray while Sawyer and Jin drink the beer. Sawyer's been giving Jin some humorous English lessons. What's he praying for? Help. To which Sawyer says "I've got your help right here" and throws a beer can at him, which rolls down the hill behind them. You can see Hurley's "lightbulb" going off.
He goes back to get Charlie, who's moping on the beach. Hurley snaps him out of it with a speech and a smack. "If we don't die then we win! We could use a victory. Victory or death!"
(Another note: I like how they replaced the big 'VW' on the front of the bus with the DHARMA logo.)
They push the van to the edge of the hill, and against Sawyer and Jin's objections, Hurley and Charlie get in. "Victory or death! PUSH!"
As they bounce down the hill, wondering if they screwed up, Hurley closes his eyes and starts chanting "There is no curse, make my own luck." He pops the clutch and miracle-of-miracles the thing starts. The same song from the beginning of the episode starts coming from the 8-track deck. (anyone know the song? I didn't recognize it.)
They drive around in circles for a while, living it up. Everyone goes back to the beach happy, including Sawyer it would seem. Hurley stays with the van and keeps driving around in circles at the bottom of the hill.
Looks like a bit of fun did them some good after all.
Conclusions
OK, like I said no big revelations this time around, but a couple of questions did pop up.
- Who was Roger, what was he doing, and what killed him?
- What was this map and planned road about? Does it go anywhere? Is it finished?
- What's on all that paper in the back of the van?
- What does beer that's been cooking in the jungle heat for years taste like?
- Where's the dart come from?
- Is Rousseau going to help Kate or not? Does she even believe her?
Next Time
But the big deal was the preview for next week. Yes, folks, its "eyepatch dude" from the Pearl Hatch monitor! He's holed up in a blue (just like the van, hmmm) metal building somewhere on the island. Looks to be interesting, and it'll be nice to get back to Locke's merry band again.
Side note: I wonder if there's a connection between the blue van and the blue house? If nothing else, it'll be nice to see some color that isn't green or gray! Seems like everything in the hatches is either green, dirty-gold, or concrete.
Technorati Tags: LOST, tv, episodes, reviews, tricia tanaka is dead, hurley, hugo, van, roger, dharma, hope, sawyer, kate, jin
Posted by PlanetLOST
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Defined tags for this entry: characters, charlie, episodes, flashbacks, hurley, jin, kate, reviews, sawyer
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The PlanetLOST Season Three Recaps
Now that the fun is over (for a while it seems!) Here's a quick reference to the season three recaps and analysis threads.... Man, some of these feel like soooo long ago!A Tale of Two CitiesThe Glass BallerinaFurther InstructionsEvery Man for Himsel
Now that the fun is over (for a while it seems!) Here's a quick reference to the season three recaps and analysis threads.... Man, some of these feel like soooo long ago!A Tale of Two CitiesThe Glass BallerinaFurther InstructionsEvery Man for Himsel
Weblog: Planet LOST
Tracked: May 30, 20:10
Tracked: May 30, 20:10
Surprisingly I don't think anybody asked how it got on the island, or even how it got where it was! Maybe the map Sawyer found was a clue. I didn't even ask it in my questions!
I guess I had it in my head that since they had built the hatches and had boats and stuff there already that it wouldn't be that much of a stretch to say they could bring a car.
You'd think it'd have been a jeep or off-road truck or something though (a VW Thing would've been cooler!)
Doh! You are absolutely right. How I missed that I don't know. (Should I turn in my card?) I'll edit that slightly
Do a google search of this song and there are some very interesting references to what it's about.
I am a 'new' lost fan, killed myself watching season one and two over the summer. I loved every minute of it and was so psyched this season to watch it with everybody else...but I must say, this season is not holding up at all. Maybe it was the drama of the allnighters I pulled catching up but I am just not into this sesason. I thought this last episode was almost boring. I guess I feel like I have enough character development from season one and two and they really need to move into the present a bit more. I want answers!!! I want more of the excitement that one and two offered and even the beginning of season three.
Anyway, thanks for this site. It is great to have this resource so that I can catch up on things I missed (sorry to say I fell asleep last night and missed the last 20 minutes). Keep up the good work on the awesome summaries...and just a question....does anyone think Michael and walt will be back? My sister thinks the Walt that went home with Michael was a 'clone' and that the real Walt is now with the "others". Any one else think that????