LOST "What Kate Does"

It's been awhile since I posted a blog. I don't like writing posts for TV shows a week after they aired and I have been relatively busy which isn't a great combination for whoever wants to read my thoughts on TV.

Last nights LOST was a mediocre episode, that I don't feel like commenting that much on. Evangeline Lilly is not a good actress and Kate episodes generally require a performance that Lilly isn't capable of giving. They also require the audience to empathize with Kate despite the fact that she still is a murderer* . Most of the characters in LOST have cliche redemption stories, but they are well executed and you feel happy when that character can correct their past mistakes. Despite being one of the leads the leads Kate hasn't changed at all. She is the same selfish, non-committal person and the audience is supposed to root for her. The title, "What Kate Does" acknowledges this, but I don't need a full episode to show me this is What Kate Does when I already have 5 seasons that do.

*Whose actions are less reprehensible then most murderers.

Before writing this post I read a lot of other peoples thoughts about this episode and it made me notice how many LOST fans are petulant children. There were problems with this episode, but a lack of answers wasn't one of them. It seems like people would rather have a textbook with all of the answers than a great television series and this attitude has been prevalent since season 2. Two of the consensus worst episodes of LOST are Expose and Tricia Takanawa is Dead. Both of these episodes are light on answers, but are entertaining hours of television that lets us see some nice moments between characters. They aren't my favorite episodes of the show, but they are episodes I enjoyed at the time and on the rewatch. In an era of DVRs LOST is one of the few shows that is appointment television, which has caused viewers to demand an unrealistically high standard every week. They want the answers right now so they can prove that they didn't waste 50 hours on TV's wild goose chase.

After seeing the reaction to this weeks episode one of my first thoughts was "Do these people learn?" Since the 2nd season most LOST seasons have had huge developments in the premiere followed by a letdown 2nd episode, yet everyone was completely blindsided this time. Cuse/Lindellof will wait until Episode 8 or 9 to do a Richard or Jacob or Esau flashback and everyone will instantly put that episode in the top 5 of all time. After watching this show for 5 years, waiting another week won't kill you, but treating the show like a crack addict who needs his next fix could.