Lost 2.20: "Two for the Road"
Written by Christina Kim and Elizabeth Sarnoff
Directed by Paul Edwards
In which Ana Lucia is attacked by Henry in the hatch, prompting her to seek revenge, while Michael delivers some surprising new twists related to the Others…
Status Report
By the end of this episode, there were inevitably shouts of intense joy from the thousands of rabid Ana Lucia haters, who will no doubt assume that her apparent fate in the final scene was the result of Michelle Rodriguez’s off-screen issues. And to a certain extent, there’s evidence of such a possibility. However, there’s also plenty of evidence to suggest that this was in the cards from the very beginning of the season. In essence, this is Ana Lucia paying for her inability to seek a better way.
After all, if Ana had chosen to forgive rather than seek vengeance, if she hadn’t fallen into old habits and premeditated the murder of, in her own mind, a “prisoner of war”, the weapon used to kill her would not have been available. Her choices took her to Sydney, where she had a surreal relationship to Jack’s father and found plenty of reason to let go of her anger and seek redemption.
Ana’s experience on the island, as seen in “The Other 48 Days”, now has a very different context, as does her near-breakdown in “Collision”. Her struggle with the Others tore down her emerging redemption and forced her back into the unstable mentality that ultimately led to this episode. In the process, Ana becomes a relatively subtle example of a key first season concept: those who fail to seek redemption will find their lives in jeopardy.
Of course, things are a lot more complicated now, and the thematic strengths of the first season have been tattered by some of the revelations of the second season. Those who believe that the second season has been short on answers might consider that the playing field has dramatically changed since the vague and virgin territory of “Walkabout”. Metaphors and themes that could thrive within the confines of mystery are harder to sustain, now that the saturating presence of the Dharma Initiative and the Others has taken center stage.
That’s not to say that this is a bad thing. In terms of progress, this is essentially the direction that the season needed to take. The producers said from the very beginning that this season was all about what the hatch would reveal: about the island, about the Others, and about the survivors themselves. That promise continues to be fulfilled. Introducing Henry Gale, in retrospect, was the perfect choice, as it presented the survivors with a representative face for everything they fear and hate.
More to the point, Henry has become the representative for the Others for the audience as well. There’s no longer any doubt that Henry is manipulating the hell out of the JackLocke Tribe. In fact, he’s so good at delivering lies with complete sincerity that it’s impossible to know what to believe. This becomes an interesting point to consider when looking at Michael’s choices. How much of what he said can be believed?
Turning back to the apparent end of Ana’s arc, her choices dictate her fate. Sawyer’s refusal to provide Ana with a weapon wasn’t simply a way to stretch out the tension. It was designed to throw a roadblock in front of Ana’s anger. It forced her to make a clear decision to circumvent Sawyer’s decision not to give her a gun. So she metaphorically gave everything she had to the cause of vengeance, sleeping with Sawyer to distract him from her true goals.
Even so, she had other chances to step back and reconsider. She could have been honest about what happened with Henry earlier in the episode. She could have chosen not to stay alone with Henry. Henry may have been manipulating Ana, but he brought up a rather valid point: did she really know that Goodwin was going to kill her? Does she understand enough to justify taking a life for the sake of revenge?
Ana was brought short by the memory of how fall she had fallen in her own grief and self-loathing. But that moment of self-reflection wasn’t enough. Knowing that killing Henry was something she couldn’t do was the first step; allowing Michael to do so was essentially a sign that she hadn’t understood why. That was the final and fateful choice. She could have kept the gun, she didn’t, and she paid the price for her inability to rise above her weaknesses.
Looking back on Ana’s story (assuming it’s over), the writers managed to give her a consistent and tragic arc, resisting the urge to make her character more likeable, while maintaining her original purpose: driving the established characters into unexpected territory. Ana’s presence was about focusing Jack’s obsessive responsibility on a more warrior-based path. It was about challenging Sawyer’s self-confidence. It was about undermining Locke’s control over Jack and the leadership of the tribe. And it was about a self-destructive personality making things worse for everyone. Ana was not a character that a person could love, but she was a character that was necessary for change. She began the process that Henry has continued.
For those who enjoy the ironic side of life, Ana essentially died in the same manner as Shannon. Granted, Ana’s sexual activity with Sawyer was less about passion and more about trickery, but it was still followed by a shot to the torso brought about by the machinations of the Others. One might think that the look on her face when she died was an awareness of this irony!
That brings up the question of Michael’s motivations in this episode. Clearly his comments about the weakness of the Others’ camp must be taken with a massive grain of salt. The Others don’t know that Kate uncovered the stage makeup and fake clothing, so they couldn’t have known that Michael’s story would sound suspicious. Of course, Jack and the rest are so focused on their desire to deal with the Others that they don’t pick up on that quickly enough. The most obvious speculation would be that Michael was offered a chance to get Walt back, but only if he helped Henry escape.
Jack is now, more than ever, the military leader of the tribe. He knows that Sawyer (somewhat a merchant prince for the island) needs to be convinced that providing the means for attacking the Others is in the best interests of all involved. So how does he accomplish this? By turning to the self-appointed “religious” leader of the tribe, Locke, to get back up. This is the net effect of Ana’s influence on Jack, and it’s not a pretty sight.
Locke, on the other hand, has seen his status as tribal shaman tested again and again since the hatch was opened. His “temple” failed to produce the anticipated secrets and revelations, though the secret map certainly qualifies as a start. Jack’s firmer hand has fed into Locke’s feeling that he has been sidelined, and Henry has fanned those flames by suggesting that Locke really is as special as he thinks he is. But Eko is, very slowly but surely, emerging as a threat to Locke’s status. The church and its construction represents the growing influence of Eko on the tribe.
So the three strongest leadership personalities within the tribe (Jack, the warrior chieftain; Locke, the shaman; Sawyer, the merchant prince) have all been vying for control and dealing with threats to their positions of influence. At the same time, especially since her odd and unexplained involvement in the season premiere, Kate has been integral to nearly every such situation. So what is her role in the tribe? What archetype does Kate represent?
As perfectly constructed as Ana’s death was, Libby’s death seems rather premature. It’s entirely possible that the producers planned for her death as early as they conceived Ana’s, but it doesn’t ring true. While it does give Hurley’s character a basis for change and another reason to bond with Sayid (something hinted at strongly in this episode), it seems like her story ended before it could really begin. Or will her death ultimately reveal her suspected involvement in Dharma?
This episode is also the first to coincide with the calculated effort to expand the concepts underlying “Lost” into an international “meta-reality”, with websites manufactured to include subtle hints that deepen the contextual background of the events on the island. Note the airing of a commercial for the “Hanso Foundation” during the original broadcast, as well as hints of several brilliant men involved with Hanso in some unknown capacity: DeGroot, Valenzetti, etc.
In light of that, Henry’s one sincere moment may come during his comment on his likely fate. All indications are that some brilliant man with near-unlimited resources has been planning the events on the island for quite some time, and he doesn’t like it when things happen that cannot be managed or predicted. It’s clear that Henry believes the man behind the Others to be brilliant; it’s far less evident that his capture wasn’t intended for the purpose it has served.
It’s interesting that Ana’s final story, then, should show a link between Jack’s father and Sydney, something that is hard not to suspect. Jack apparently had another family in Australia, and it’s possible that Jack has a younger sister that he knows nothing about. This is especially interesting in relation to Ana’s pointed reminder that a little girl was among those taken by the Others from the tail section. Could Jack have sister among those “held” by the Others?
Unlike Shannon’s death, which was all too telegraphed and public, Ana’s death and Libby’s probable death were all kept relatively well-hidden. One might have predicted that it was likely to happen, but there was never a sense of certainty. Looking back on the season thus far, it makes sense for all of this to happen, and there’s little doubt that it will serve as an important link in the chain leading to the finale.
Final Analysis
Overall, this episode was not unlike a sneak attack on the audience, focusing on a relatively unpopular character before delivering some massive twists at the very end. In the process, the character in focus gains a clarified purpose, from a plot device perspective, and the advance planning of the writing staff is well demonstrated. Another very strong episode for the resurgent second season.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
(Season 2 Average: 7.3)
Directed by Paul Edwards
In which Ana Lucia is attacked by Henry in the hatch, prompting her to seek revenge, while Michael delivers some surprising new twists related to the Others…
Status Report
By the end of this episode, there were inevitably shouts of intense joy from the thousands of rabid Ana Lucia haters, who will no doubt assume that her apparent fate in the final scene was the result of Michelle Rodriguez’s off-screen issues. And to a certain extent, there’s evidence of such a possibility. However, there’s also plenty of evidence to suggest that this was in the cards from the very beginning of the season. In essence, this is Ana Lucia paying for her inability to seek a better way.
After all, if Ana had chosen to forgive rather than seek vengeance, if she hadn’t fallen into old habits and premeditated the murder of, in her own mind, a “prisoner of war”, the weapon used to kill her would not have been available. Her choices took her to Sydney, where she had a surreal relationship to Jack’s father and found plenty of reason to let go of her anger and seek redemption.
Ana’s experience on the island, as seen in “The Other 48 Days”, now has a very different context, as does her near-breakdown in “Collision”. Her struggle with the Others tore down her emerging redemption and forced her back into the unstable mentality that ultimately led to this episode. In the process, Ana becomes a relatively subtle example of a key first season concept: those who fail to seek redemption will find their lives in jeopardy.
Of course, things are a lot more complicated now, and the thematic strengths of the first season have been tattered by some of the revelations of the second season. Those who believe that the second season has been short on answers might consider that the playing field has dramatically changed since the vague and virgin territory of “Walkabout”. Metaphors and themes that could thrive within the confines of mystery are harder to sustain, now that the saturating presence of the Dharma Initiative and the Others has taken center stage.
That’s not to say that this is a bad thing. In terms of progress, this is essentially the direction that the season needed to take. The producers said from the very beginning that this season was all about what the hatch would reveal: about the island, about the Others, and about the survivors themselves. That promise continues to be fulfilled. Introducing Henry Gale, in retrospect, was the perfect choice, as it presented the survivors with a representative face for everything they fear and hate.
More to the point, Henry has become the representative for the Others for the audience as well. There’s no longer any doubt that Henry is manipulating the hell out of the JackLocke Tribe. In fact, he’s so good at delivering lies with complete sincerity that it’s impossible to know what to believe. This becomes an interesting point to consider when looking at Michael’s choices. How much of what he said can be believed?
Turning back to the apparent end of Ana’s arc, her choices dictate her fate. Sawyer’s refusal to provide Ana with a weapon wasn’t simply a way to stretch out the tension. It was designed to throw a roadblock in front of Ana’s anger. It forced her to make a clear decision to circumvent Sawyer’s decision not to give her a gun. So she metaphorically gave everything she had to the cause of vengeance, sleeping with Sawyer to distract him from her true goals.
Even so, she had other chances to step back and reconsider. She could have been honest about what happened with Henry earlier in the episode. She could have chosen not to stay alone with Henry. Henry may have been manipulating Ana, but he brought up a rather valid point: did she really know that Goodwin was going to kill her? Does she understand enough to justify taking a life for the sake of revenge?
Ana was brought short by the memory of how fall she had fallen in her own grief and self-loathing. But that moment of self-reflection wasn’t enough. Knowing that killing Henry was something she couldn’t do was the first step; allowing Michael to do so was essentially a sign that she hadn’t understood why. That was the final and fateful choice. She could have kept the gun, she didn’t, and she paid the price for her inability to rise above her weaknesses.
Looking back on Ana’s story (assuming it’s over), the writers managed to give her a consistent and tragic arc, resisting the urge to make her character more likeable, while maintaining her original purpose: driving the established characters into unexpected territory. Ana’s presence was about focusing Jack’s obsessive responsibility on a more warrior-based path. It was about challenging Sawyer’s self-confidence. It was about undermining Locke’s control over Jack and the leadership of the tribe. And it was about a self-destructive personality making things worse for everyone. Ana was not a character that a person could love, but she was a character that was necessary for change. She began the process that Henry has continued.
For those who enjoy the ironic side of life, Ana essentially died in the same manner as Shannon. Granted, Ana’s sexual activity with Sawyer was less about passion and more about trickery, but it was still followed by a shot to the torso brought about by the machinations of the Others. One might think that the look on her face when she died was an awareness of this irony!
That brings up the question of Michael’s motivations in this episode. Clearly his comments about the weakness of the Others’ camp must be taken with a massive grain of salt. The Others don’t know that Kate uncovered the stage makeup and fake clothing, so they couldn’t have known that Michael’s story would sound suspicious. Of course, Jack and the rest are so focused on their desire to deal with the Others that they don’t pick up on that quickly enough. The most obvious speculation would be that Michael was offered a chance to get Walt back, but only if he helped Henry escape.
Jack is now, more than ever, the military leader of the tribe. He knows that Sawyer (somewhat a merchant prince for the island) needs to be convinced that providing the means for attacking the Others is in the best interests of all involved. So how does he accomplish this? By turning to the self-appointed “religious” leader of the tribe, Locke, to get back up. This is the net effect of Ana’s influence on Jack, and it’s not a pretty sight.
Locke, on the other hand, has seen his status as tribal shaman tested again and again since the hatch was opened. His “temple” failed to produce the anticipated secrets and revelations, though the secret map certainly qualifies as a start. Jack’s firmer hand has fed into Locke’s feeling that he has been sidelined, and Henry has fanned those flames by suggesting that Locke really is as special as he thinks he is. But Eko is, very slowly but surely, emerging as a threat to Locke’s status. The church and its construction represents the growing influence of Eko on the tribe.
So the three strongest leadership personalities within the tribe (Jack, the warrior chieftain; Locke, the shaman; Sawyer, the merchant prince) have all been vying for control and dealing with threats to their positions of influence. At the same time, especially since her odd and unexplained involvement in the season premiere, Kate has been integral to nearly every such situation. So what is her role in the tribe? What archetype does Kate represent?
As perfectly constructed as Ana’s death was, Libby’s death seems rather premature. It’s entirely possible that the producers planned for her death as early as they conceived Ana’s, but it doesn’t ring true. While it does give Hurley’s character a basis for change and another reason to bond with Sayid (something hinted at strongly in this episode), it seems like her story ended before it could really begin. Or will her death ultimately reveal her suspected involvement in Dharma?
This episode is also the first to coincide with the calculated effort to expand the concepts underlying “Lost” into an international “meta-reality”, with websites manufactured to include subtle hints that deepen the contextual background of the events on the island. Note the airing of a commercial for the “Hanso Foundation” during the original broadcast, as well as hints of several brilliant men involved with Hanso in some unknown capacity: DeGroot, Valenzetti, etc.
In light of that, Henry’s one sincere moment may come during his comment on his likely fate. All indications are that some brilliant man with near-unlimited resources has been planning the events on the island for quite some time, and he doesn’t like it when things happen that cannot be managed or predicted. It’s clear that Henry believes the man behind the Others to be brilliant; it’s far less evident that his capture wasn’t intended for the purpose it has served.
It’s interesting that Ana’s final story, then, should show a link between Jack’s father and Sydney, something that is hard not to suspect. Jack apparently had another family in Australia, and it’s possible that Jack has a younger sister that he knows nothing about. This is especially interesting in relation to Ana’s pointed reminder that a little girl was among those taken by the Others from the tail section. Could Jack have sister among those “held” by the Others?
Unlike Shannon’s death, which was all too telegraphed and public, Ana’s death and Libby’s probable death were all kept relatively well-hidden. One might have predicted that it was likely to happen, but there was never a sense of certainty. Looking back on the season thus far, it makes sense for all of this to happen, and there’s little doubt that it will serve as an important link in the chain leading to the finale.
Final Analysis
Overall, this episode was not unlike a sneak attack on the audience, focusing on a relatively unpopular character before delivering some massive twists at the very end. In the process, the character in focus gains a clarified purpose, from a plot device perspective, and the advance planning of the writing staff is well demonstrated. Another very strong episode for the resurgent second season.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
(Season 2 Average: 7.3)
posted by John Keegan | 07:12
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