So, yeah...Desmond is awesome. And so are his episodes. Great dialogue, forwarding narrative and Jin telling scary stories in Korean really kept “Catch-22” on par with the high-quality episodes of the past few weeks. And of course, the (signature) mysterious last scene followed by *DUNNN*...LOST... is always fun.
But what did we learn from this episode? What new questions were raised? What the frick is going on with ol' Desmondo? Well, let's see what we can find out with a dissection of a few momentous events...
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"Catch-22" -Episode 317-
1) Desmond's vision/Catch-22 — I really enjoyed the inside view we got of Desmond's vision in this episode. Before, we only heard him speak of a series a flashes pertaining to upcoming events, but we actually got to experience it first hand this time. And there are some interesting things to note. For example, Charlie dies by an arrow to the throat in Desmond's vision...but he also appears holding the parachute in order to catch the chick that falls from the tree. Hmmm... So he dies but is still around to help the girl get out of the tree? Something's fishy... Is this vision a merging to two different outcomes based on Desmond's decisions? Or maybe a false implanted memory (à la Smokey)? The vision also has opened the whole time loop theory again, because the impetus for gathering the group together and going on a trek in this episode was Desmond's vision. But in his vision, what was the reason for taking a journey to that specific part of the Island? Certainly not to go camping... Desmond looked rather determined in his vision so maybe he knew he was going after something that fell from the sky? But how did he know something was going to fall from the sky? Um, his vision... A little loopage ladies and gentlemen?
2) “Sorry, Charlie”— I mean, we were speculating about Charlie’s death from the beginning of the season and after last night I don't think Des is gonna be too worried about saving Charlie anymore. He's fed up with having to worry about him all the time and it is obviously wearing him out. And with this new arrival Desmond's hope can be restored that Penny is still looking for him (more on that later). So maybe he'll last for a couple more episodes but by the end of the season it's…"Goodbye, Mr. Burton..." (Please tell me you've seen Big Trouble in Little China...)
3) Changing the future...Naomi and Penny — So did the fact that Desmond saved Charlie's life change anything...like who fell out of the helicopter? Desmond certainly was expecting to see Penny and I think he is going to blame himself for her not being there. Since he was convinced he needed to follow the vision exactly to get the outcome, I think he believes saving Charlie's life ruined this. BUT, I think it was Naomi coming to the Island all along. They found her pack before Charlie's life was threatened; it contained a Portuguese version of Heller's Catch 22 and the picture of Desmond and Pen so she would know how to identify him. (Remember the last scene in the season 2 finale where the two guys (who spoke Portuguese) detect the electromagnetic anomaly and call Pen?) I'm definitely with the group that thinks Penny sent Naomi to find Desmond. I also believe that help is not far behind, hence the satellite phone. Of course there has to be SOME sort of difficulty finding them because we still have a couple of seasons to go, right?
4) The Helicopter — For the longest time, many thought that the Island was in some distant, secluded area of the planet, but it is very possible that it is right under our noses. The fact that the Island was “hidden” means that it could be virtually anywhere and still not be found. Some believe the (apparent) helicopter in last night’s episode is proof of this. Of course, there are also those who believe that the helicopter sounds were actually Smokey… These people tend to believe that everything without explanation is Smokey…
5) A Plant? — Is it possible that Naomi was sent by someone on the Island to “test” Desmond? Sending plants seems to be a popular theme on the show (Goodwin, Ethan, Ben, Juliet) and I don’t think this is that crazy of a theory. But the whole helicopter crash seems to be an awful lot of work just to test Desmond. And how would they have gotten a copy of the picture of him and Pen? I guess there could be copies of that picture but I have this feeling that this messenger/scout is truly working for Pen.
6) A Coward — Despite Desmond’s past, I feel he has proven himself not to be a coward. Remember in “Flashes Before Your Eyes” when Desmond revealed that he was not trying to save Claire but Charlie instead? Is it possible that these visions were actually meant to help/save Desmond and not Charlie? He has done some of the most heroic acts on the show (from turning the failsafe key to saving Charlie’s life (on numerous occasions)) and maybe the Island is giving him these visions so he will not feel like a coward and realize he is worthy of Penny.
7) The Picture — When Desmond goes to return his habit after being “fired” by the head monk, we get a brief shot of a photo on the monk’s desk. You know they put that there for a reason, right? I didn’t see it when it aired but thanks to the dedicated crazies, someone posted a link to the screencap. Would you like to see? http://img115.imageshack.us/img115/4117/bscap0yu5.jpg Yep, that’s right, it’s the chick in the jewelry shop that was trying to get Desmond to NOT buy the ring. Remember? The one that taught him about the universe course-correcting itself? Good grief that looks like an awful Photoshopping job. And is it just me or does that monk not really look monkish in that picture? There must be significance to this. Could it be that someone was keeping tabs on Des all along and this was just another person to steer him in the direction of the Island? Hmmm, it’s certainly arguable. But we know that things like this picture do not show up without reason.
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I’m pretty sure I didn’t cover everything I originally intended but there are a few points to springboard the discussion. I would love to hear what you thought about this episode! Anyone have any ideas what the season 3 finale is going to feature?? I’m getting extremely excited about the next few episodes, but along with that comes the realization that it will be followed by months of waiting…I hope they leave us with a good cliffhanger so we will have much to discuss during the break.
Until next time…
Namaste.
SFO
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