I remember absolutely hating "Dave" when it was initially broadcast. I thought it was pointless, stupid, and almost insulting coming after something as good as "Lockdown" and so late in the season as well. Like "Tricia Tanaka is Dead", re-watching this episode (although it is not nearly as good as that season three episode by my estimation) has increased my appreciation of it a great deal. This script by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz is fun, light, and enjoyable, falling a bit flat only when it attempts to further examine Hurley's character, then it becomes a bit shallow and obvious. Hurley is terrific as comic relief, but it wouldn't be until season 4 that a Hurley-centric episode came around which pushed the character in new directions.
"Dave" centers, of course, on Dave, Hurley's imaginary friend who he is seeing on the island. The main sub-plot Hurley-wise is his sweet romance with Libby, which is hard to watch knowing what happens later in the series. The best scenes in the episode are arguably those with 'Henry Gale', following up on the events in "Lockdown" and the reveal that he was, after all, lying about his identity.
The rest of the episode takes on a light, breezy sort of feel (even the scenes with Dave in the flashback, which is why it feels odd when there's this big emotional moment we're supposed to be tremendously affected by), there's some great lines like Charlie's "I did see a polar bear on roller skates with a mango" when Hurley asks if he saw a guy in slippers with a coconut. The episode ends on the flashback showing Libby in the same mental hospital as Hurley, still one of the most frustrating outstanding mysteries, although not likely one of the most important ones. Great work by Jack Bender as director here, which is discussed at great length on the DVD commentary track with Jorge Garcia (Hurley), Cynthia Watros (Libby), and Jack Bender.
7.5/10
"Dave" centers, of course, on Dave, Hurley's imaginary friend who he is seeing on the island. The main sub-plot Hurley-wise is his sweet romance with Libby, which is hard to watch knowing what happens later in the series. The best scenes in the episode are arguably those with 'Henry Gale', following up on the events in "Lockdown" and the reveal that he was, after all, lying about his identity.
The rest of the episode takes on a light, breezy sort of feel (even the scenes with Dave in the flashback, which is why it feels odd when there's this big emotional moment we're supposed to be tremendously affected by), there's some great lines like Charlie's "I did see a polar bear on roller skates with a mango" when Hurley asks if he saw a guy in slippers with a coconut. The episode ends on the flashback showing Libby in the same mental hospital as Hurley, still one of the most frustrating outstanding mysteries, although not likely one of the most important ones. Great work by Jack Bender as director here, which is discussed at great length on the DVD commentary track with Jorge Garcia (Hurley), Cynthia Watros (Libby), and Jack Bender.
7.5/10