Lost: Season 5, Episode 2 "The Lie" Review

 "Why is there a dead Pakistani on my couch?"

-Carmen Reyes

The second episode of season 5 picks up with a flashback to just after the Oceanic 6, Desmond (Henry Ian Cusick), and Frank (Jeff Fahey) were rescued by Penny (Sonya Walger).  The group discusses the lie and if it's the best option.  Only Hurley (Jorge Garcia) does not want to go along with the plan and wants to tell the truth, but Jack (Matthew Fox) points out that everyone will think he is crazy if he tries to tell the truth alone.

In 2007, Hurley is still on the run with an unconscious Sayid (Naveen Andrews).  He is visited by a vision of Ana Lucia (Michelle Rodriguez), who calms Hurley down and tells him to get somewhere safe and get help for Sayid.  Hurley goes to his parents' house and his father, David (Cheech Marin), manages to get Sayid to Jack, who manages to revive him.  Hurley, consumed with guilt, confesses the truth of everything that happened to his mother.

Ben (Michael Emerson) leaves Locke's (Terry O'Quinn) body with a contact of his before visiting Hurley. He tries to convince Hurley to go back to the Island with him, but Hurley refuses and turns himself over to the police to escape Ben.  Ben visits Eloise Hawking (Fionnula Flanagan) at a church above a Dharma station.  Eloise tells him he has seventy hours to get everyone back to the Island.

Kate (Evangeline Lilly) visits Sun (Yunjin Kim) when she discovers Sun is in Los Angeles.  Kate tells her about the lawyers that are after her and she apologizes for not getting Jin (Daniel Dae Kim) in the helicopter.  Sun says she does not blame Kate.

On the Island, the remaining survivors find themselves in a dire situation with no supplies and no fire.  Charlotte (Rebecca Mader) is suffering from headaches and temporary memory loss.  The Others launch a flaming arrow attack that kills most of the background Oceanic 815 survivors and the rest flee into the jungle.  Sawyer (Josh Holloway) and Juliet (Elizabeth Mitchell) are captured, but are rescued by Locke.

What Works:

This is one of the funniest episodes of Lost and may actually be the funniest.  Jorge Garcia's comedic timing is fantastic, especially when he's poorly explaining the entire series of Lost to his mother.  We also get the single funniest moment in the entire show, when Hurley throws a Hot Pocket at Ben, as well as the funniest line in the entire show, which is at the top of this blog.

Even when Hurley is being funny, he also has some heart-wrenching moments.  His explanation to his mother is surrounded by guilt and heartbreak.  Hurley is such a wholesome character that it hurts to see him in so much pain.  We also see him feeling betrayed and angry in the opening flashback.  Garcia does a fantastic job throughout the episode.

It's fun to have Ana Lucia back for a quick scene with Hurley.  It's another really funny moment and I love watching Ana Lucia boss Hurley around.  She hasn't been on the show since season 2 and it's a welcome return.

We don't get a lot of time on the Island, and the show goes full Survivor for parts of it, which is a good way to win me over.  We also get the flaming arrow attack, which wipes out most of the remaining background survivors, as well as a fun action beat in the jungle, which reunites Sawyer, Juliet, and Locke.  It's not a lot, but what we do get is good.

Finally, the final scene of the episode brings Eloise Hawking back on the show, who we haven't seen since season 3.  This was a huge deal at the time and completely shocking.  Seeing her working with Ben is an excellent cliffhanger.

What Sucks:

The Kate and Sun storyline doesn't really do much for me.  It mostly feels like filler and doesn't add much to the episode, but that's all I've got.

Platinum Polar Bear:

The Platinum Polar Bear goes to the most competent character of the episode.  For "The Lie," I am giving this award to John Locke for saving Sawyer and Juliet and killing one of the Others.  This is Locke's 10th time winning this award, which maintains his position in 3rd place overall.

Verdict:

On this rewatch, I liked "The Lie" even more than I remembered.  It might just be the funniest episode of Lost.  If you have a better candidate, please let me know.  Even with all the comedy, it doesn't stop the episode from being emotional, thanks to a fantastic performance from Jorge Garcia.  Add in some solid action set pieces and a shocking cliffhanger and you have an episode that has absolutely got it going on.

 9/10: Great