Lost 3.14: "Expose"

Written by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz
Directed by Stephen Williams

In which the truth about Nikki and Paulo is revealed when they wind up dead under suspicious circumstances, uncovering secrets kept by other members of the tribe…

Status Report

Nikki and Paulo had the unfortunate pleasure of being new characters on a show where new characters are often reviled. While earlier appearances were less than inspiring, there was little justification for the amount of pure venom tossed their way. Fans were clamoring for their deaths before the writers had a chance to establish them as full characters. How can characters be hated when there’s no time to know them on any meaningful level?

One thing that Nikki and Paulo brought to the table, on some level, was a different perspective. There’s a set number of survivors getting the limelight, and it’s easy to overlook the fact that there are dozens of other survivors milling around in the background. It’s reasonable to assume that some of them would float in and out of the major events, and eventually, they will do something important or desire a larger stake in their collective future. As intrusive as that might feel to the viewer, especially those begging for things to be the way they were right after the pilot, it’s a very different story for the characters. For many of them, Nikki and Paulo were always there, always part of the big picture.

Of course, few of the background players were brought into the story with such fanfare, nor were they so damn pretty. Kiele Sanchez is simply gorgeous, and as seen in this episode, she’s capable of playing Nikki as something other than a vacuous cheerleader archetype. Similarly, Rodrigo Santoro is a handsome man, and has shown his range in several other productions. Everything about them suggested that they were taking on a huge role, and that didn’t help when it came to fan response.

The truth, of course, is that they were a red herring. They were meant to look like “red shirts”, easily sacrificed when things got dangerous in “The Cost of Living”. This made Eko’s death all the more shocking, but left the two new arrivals with a nebulous purpose. This episode effectively takes advantage of their view from the gallery while giving the audience exactly what they wanted.

The tone of this episode is informed by the teaser: Nikki is pretending to be an actress in a somewhat cheesy “Baywatch” meets “Silk Stalkings” Australian series, working with Paulo to steal millions in diamonds from a rich producer. Almost everything about this episode fits into the same general tone: any time that Nikki or Paulo remembers a previous experience, unless it’s actual footage from earlier episodes, the dialogue is somewhat ham-fisted and overly obvious. (A perfect example would be the conversation between Ben and Juliet, who have never been so open about anything.)

On occasion, however, that tone carries into the scenes set in the “present”, and it doesn’t quite mesh. Examples are the conversation between Hurley and Desmond and Charlie’s confession to Sun. It’s almost as if the writers intended the entire episode to have that overly-obvious feel to it, yet there’s enough distinction between the flashbacks and the “present day” to cause a bit of confusion.

Adding to the thin veneer of self-mockery was the long string of flashbacks for Nikki and Paulo, documenting the path that led to their unfortunate demise. While their story started out seriously enough, especially during the moments after the crash, each new installment added a touch of snark to the story. While the slow but steady breakdown of their trust was given its emotional due, there was a definite attempt at amusing connections to the overall mythology.

In fact, by the end of the episode, Nikki and Paulo felt like the “Lost” version of Vorenus and Pullo from “Rome”. They weren’t the “historical” characters, per se, but the ones that managed to be around when everything happened, ala Forrest Gump. It was often quite funny, sometimes a bit frustrating, yet ultimately rewarding. A number of plot points were placed into context when seen through their eyes.

The real hook of this episode, of course, was the manner of their death. It took a bit of willing suspension of disbelief to accept this plot element. After all, how could Nikki remember the precise effect of a single spider bite, yet fail to remember the warning about the potent pheromones that attract even more of the creatures? For that matter, it seems unrealistic that Nikki would only be bitten once, and that the spider bite wouldn’t show any outward symptoms beyond paralysis. Add to that the rush to bury the dead, and it all adds up badly for the wayward couple.

On the other hand, this is yet another example of an ongoing theme for the series. Nikki and Paulo failed to change their ways and coveted diamonds, worthless on the island, over each other. In terms of the island, this is a rejection of redemption, and death is almost always the result. (And if one listens closely, the sound of the “monster” is discernable in the moments before Nikki is bit by the spider.) Still, it’s hard not to feel horrible about how they died, especially when Nikki opens her eyes. It felt like the perfect comeuppance.

This episode also confirmed the existence of homosexual and/or bisexual characters in “Lost”, something more or less ignored up to this point. Shannon mocks Boone about his sexuality, which would seem to imply that he was bisexual (since they slept together not long before that scene). It’s not much in terms of diversity (since Boone is long since dead), but it’s something. (If the writers would stop killing off gorgeous women at a frantic pace, that might also be a positive development.)

In the end, this may not have been an astonishing episode filled with momentous events, but it did fill in a few gaps and placed a number of events in an interesting and fresh context. And while this feels like the definitive end for Nikki and Paulo, Locke’s line about secrets never staying buried on the island for long might give hope to their fans. Whatever the case, this was a fun and unusual episode, and that’s all that it tried to be.

Final Analysis

Overall, this episode took the usual format and twisted it into something very different. While the tone of the episode suggests that it requires very little attention, a number of minor questions are answered along the way. This isn’t even a transitional episode in the traditional sense, but as apparent stand-alone installments go, this is a solid effort.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 7/10

(Season Average: 7.5)