REVIEW: Lost 6x09, Ab Aeterno

Thanks to theloveumake.com for all caps not stamped

So these week's offering of Losties comes in the form of Ab Aeterno, an hour dedicated almost solely to Richard Alpert, Jacob and Jacob's Nemesis/Esau/Smokey/MiB/et cetty rah (with an added shot of Ilana, not that that scene got us anywhere spectacular). From the second we heard who this episode focused on we knew that this was going to be a major episode, a major episode. Even for those of us NOT entirely obsessed with The Ageless Wonder With The Magical Arms (such people I do not understand), we knew that it was going to be important. Important. So did it deliver?

Yes and no.



We were treated to our first full flashback episode of the season, which proved the highly popular theory of Alpert's arrival to the Island on the Black Rock. Hell, we were even given the answer to what happened to the rest of the statue! What this episode was lacking was anything remotely shocking. We found out about the mortal life of the man who doesn't age! We found out how a ship could land in the middle of a jungle! We found out how a regular man can suddenly live forever! And yet none of this seemed at all remarkable.

In a sense I suppose that this could actually be quite the skill, taking the truly otherworldy themes and making them so very very ... worldly. And I will confess that it is only in retrospect that I started to frown upon this episode - whilst I was watching it, I was well and truly absorbed.



Now we know I'm always happy to see Alpert in any episode ever, but I really must praise Nestor Carbonell's acting in this episode. I was admittedly worried about how he'd handle a whole episode as opposed to just a couple of enigmatic scenes, and I'll admit that I didn't expect it to turn out so well. It did. And someone else who deserves a major shout-out is this gentleman:



I really and truly fell for Titus Welliver/Esau in this episode, which is both good and bad. On the good side, I really never realised how much I liked his acting. On the bad side ... Jacob's girl through and through. And the more enigmatic Esau becomes, the harder it is to convince myself that Jacob is the right one to side with after all.



I wasn't a fan of Jacob in this, I was quite taken aback by his sudden and rather overreacting aggression, and not liking Jacob makes me a sad reviewer :(

All in all I just spent most of this episode being startled by how similar 1800's!Richard and Lord of the Rings Aragorn look o.o


=


Y/Y??

THE LO-DOWN
Giggling!Alpert! +1,000
Prison Priest denying Richard his redemption...: -20
... and then taking away his Bible!: -100
"I see the Devil!!": +80
Alpert watching his wife die at home, and then watching his DEAD wife die again: -200
The shouts of "WHAT COLOUR IS HIS TOP?? IS HE WEARING SHOES??" when we first see Esau: +20
The shouts of "WHAT COLOUR IS HIS TOP?? IS HE WEARING SHOES??" when we first see Jacob: +30
Aggressive!Jacob: -800
"I am in Hell, I know that I am in Hell.": +20
Jacob running the Island's Job Centre!: +300!
Jacob's gift to Esau: +20
Esau giving Richard the necklace at the end: + AND -80. I don't like siding with him.
And the killer line, "Tell him his English is magnificent", because in that whole really touching scene, that line nearly broke me: +500

TOTAL: 820

All in all another tear-jerker of an episode with some unexpectedly brilliant acting, and more answers given than questions.

Be sure to drop some feedback, and don't forget to swing by next week for The Package!

- Break
Highlight of the Richard Alpert Party: an hour after the episode finished, my flatmate - a newly obsessive Lost fan - coming out with the words "So, which one is Richard Alpert?"