Desmond is probably my favorite character in "Lost", and two of his episodes ("Flashes Before Your Eyes" and "Live Together, Die Alone") are, and most likely will remain, in my personal Top-5 of the entire series, so I had high hopes for this episode. Ultimately, just like it was the case for Locke with "The Substitute", or for Ben with "Dr. Linus", "Happily Ever After" is entertaining enough, without really matching the quality of Desmond's best centrics (it's arguable if it beats "Jughead"). In many ways, this plays like a remake of "Flashes", starting with some island action which leads to a moment where Desmond is exposed to huge amounts of electromagnetic energy, which then sends him (or, more accurately, his consciousness)....back in time in "Flashes", in the alternate timeline in "Happily Ever After". Then we spend most of the episode there, until an unexpected event brings him back to where he started. The difference? "Flashes" is a masterpiece, "Happily Ever After" is an interesting jumble."Flashes" is jumbled too (that's part of its appeal), but back in season 3 it was much easier to accept new mysteries and questions, knowing that we would have plenty of time ahead of us for them to be resolved. Now, in season 6 and with only seven episodes left, these teasing tactics ("Why can't I see the list?" - "Because you're not ready yet, Desmond") are more frustrating than anything (Widmore, Charlie, Eloise, Daniel, everyone knows "more than they're telling" here. But the series is ending soon: when are they going to tell us WHAT they know?). This episode does make the strongest connection between the two timelines so far, however the scene where Daniel Faraday....sorry, Daniel Widmore, explains, to a man he had never met before in that timeline, his theories about how "maybe we aren't supposed to be living these lives", ranks as one of the most heavy-handed scenes in the history of the show. The episode does have its strengths, though: all the important players of past Desmond episodes are back, the car-crash-into-the-sea sequence is extremely well-done, and in the end, Desmond still remains my favorite character. *** out of 4.
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