TV Review: Lost – LaFleur
Posted by Adam Sweeney (adam@filmschoolrejects.com) on March 5, 2009
Lost, ABC, Airs Wednesdays 9/8 c
Episode: “LaFleur” (Season 5, Episode 8)
Synopsis: Sawyer (Josh Holloway) perpetuates a lie with some of the other island survivors in order to protect themselves from mistakes of the past.
Review: Was there anyone else that was reminded of the angry mall security guard in Kevin Smith’s Mallrats when they heard Sawyer make up the name LaFleur? Sawyer’s incredible knack for embellishing served him and some of the other islanders well in this episode as they had to find a way to stall in an attempt to wait for Locke (Terry O’Quinn) to return to the island. Of course, it doesn’t help that they were stuck in the 70’s. What we would have done to see Sawyer walk in with a huge afro to the Bee Gees’ “Stayin’ Alive.” In fact, we are now officially making that the Lost theme song. Who is more deserving of it than these islanders?
LaFleur handled the many time jumps in the episode perfectly in showing us just how Sawyer, Juliet and company ended up working for the Dharma Initiative. it’s a much more tricky narrative to attempt than one thinks. What’s more amazing is that only once was I thinking to myself, “Are we going to get to see what’s going on with Locke?” That was at the beginning of the episode and ended as soon as we saw the gang in Dharma threads. We’re happy with the episode because it tied up loose ends. In fact, kudos to the fifth season for getting some pep in the story’s step altogether.
This episode was all about Sawyer and Juliet (Elizabeth Mitchell), revealing a surprising but understandable relationship between the two. The best scene had to be right after Juliet successfully delivered a child, sharing the moment with Sawyer. The unspoken joy and relief shared between the two had us feeling a little warm inside. Moments like this are why we love this show. What more can you ask for from it? It’s poignant, exhilarating and throws in a smoke monster for good measure.
Sawyer had a little I Love Lucy moment at the end of the show when he saw Kate. I could just see Hurley (Jorge Garcia) walking up on a naked Juliet and looking over at Sawyer before bellowing, “Sawyer, you got a lot of explaining to do!” Okay, we will stop cross-referencing classic TV shows with this one.
How much has changed in the three years that the Oceanic 6 have been away? We are about to find out. We also look forward to finding out what the hell that big statue was near the beginning of the episode. Just how far back did Sawyer and the gang jump?
P.S. Can we get some love for the polar bear reference? We were just mentioning in a review a few episodes ago that we missed them. Then Bam! More polar bear discussion. It’s all coincidence but we like to pretend we have influence on the show.
* Last week we said that The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham was the sixth episode of this season. It is actually the seventh. We will wait outside for the firing squad.
Up Next Week: The loyalty between the islanders is tested as Sawyer has to decide whether to protect them or the life he has built with the Dharma Initiative over the past three years.
Read More: Lost Recaps
Did you watch LaFleur? What are your thoughts and theories about the show?
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