1 April 2007 - Sky One, 10:00 pm
WRITERS: Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz DIRECTOR: Stephen Williams
CAST: Kiele Sanchez (Nikki), Rodrigo Santoro (Paulo), Maggie Grace (Shannon), Ian Somerhalder (Boone), Dominic Monaghan (Charlie), Terry O'Quinn (Locke), Yunjin Kim (Sun), Naveen Andrews (Sayid), Michael Emerson (Ben), Matthew Fox (Jack), Jorge Garcia (Hurley), Henry Ian Cusick (Desmond), Evangeline Lilly (Kate), Emilie de Ravin (Claire), Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliet), Jacob Witkin (Howard L. Zukerman), Billy Dee Williams (Mr LaShade) & William Mapother (Ethan Rom)
After Nikki collapses on the beach, flashbacks reveal what Nikki and Paulo have been up to on the island...Ever since they wandered into the show this season, Nikki and Paulo came under fire from fans. The writers certainly need new blood to keep things fresh and interesting, but audiences disliked the way these two beach bums were shoehorned into the scripts...
Exposé aims to sweeten the sour taste in many peoples' mouths with a flashback-heavy story that reveals the backstory to Nikki and Paulo and shows what they've been doing on the island since Flight 815 crashed. And it's a lot of fun. In fact, in terms of plotting, Exposé is one of the most satisfying and clever instalments of Lost ever.
There plenty to enjoy here. Nikki and Paulo become a lot more interesting, each given ruthless and secretive personalities that offer fresh perspective on them. Likewise, seeing past events from their point of view is interesting and revealing, particular watching them strike up a friendship with bug-collector Dr Artz (a cult character infamously blown-up by dynamite in season 1). Their discovery of the drug-smuggler's plane and Pearl Station weeks before anyone else is also quite an eye-opener!
The title comes from a cheesy TV series Nikki starred in for sugardaddy director Zukerman, before she kills him with the help of Paulo and steals the old man's diamonds. The duo's on-island activity is shown to have been one of secrecy and mistrust, providing adequate reasoning for why the characters were never seen during seasons 1 and 2.
A moment of breathtaking visual wizardry actually places Nikki amongst scenes of carnage from the Pilot episode. It's a stunning achievement and flawlessly achieved. If I didn't know better, I'd swear they'd filmed scenes with Kiele Sanchez three years ago! Other famous scenes from season 1 are (apparently) reshot, with Nikki and Paulo's now present. Quality work.
Kiele Sanchez (Nikki) and Rodrigo Santoro (Paulo) do a great job here, managing to make their characters' intrusive presence gain some sympathy in a lean 45-minutes. Sanchez is particularly good, mainly because Nikki's true nature is such a juxtaposition of the cute bimbo we'd been suspecting. A pole-dancing scene didn't hurt either!
Santoro isn't quite as fortunate with his character, as Paulo remains fairly boring throughout, but atleast the flashbacks give his past actions and slack attitude some context.
But the real stars of the show are writers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. Their script is tight and full of pace, with everything connecting brilliantly and culminating in a satisfyingly macabre moment. In many ways, this doesn't feel like an episode of Lost, with its unique flashbacks and moments of black comedy that reminded me of Darin Morgan's X-Files scripts.
The storyline is magnificently structured and full of treats; from the reenactments of classic scenes, to the return of actors Maggie Grace (Shannon) and Ian Somerhalder (Boone). The script even strengthens Lost's overall cohesion with a scene where Ben and Juliet make plans in the Pearl Station, unwittingly overheard by Paulo in the adjoining toilet (a moment that also "retcons" his loo break from The Cost Of Living to great effect).
Overall, Exposé is entertaining, revealing and changed my opinion of two underwritten characters. Their own "murder mystery" is a joy to watch unfold, expertly directed by Stephen Williams, and crammed with scenes and cameos to delight fans.
