Everybody has daddy issues in this show. And Kate isn't excluded. This episode brings those issues to the forefront and we get to feel a little bit of sympathy for Kate in this episode. And even though I am not a big fan of hers or Season 2, I did enjoy this episode - for a Kate-centric episode anyway.
First of all, the love triangle can go to hell. If I want to see some girl unable to choose what guy she wants to be with I will watch Days of Our Lives. I'm just not into it. But something clicked for me as to why Kate NEEDS these two men. Her mother always had Sam, a good upstanding guy - reminds me a lot of Jack. And she always had Wayne, the trashy guy she couldn't seem to let go of - reminds me a lot of Sawyer. That is quite the daddy issue. But it's manifesting itself on the island to help her let go of it. So I guess I understand the triangle. But I still hate it.
Off island Kate was tolerable. I thought what she did to Wayne was a little drastic and over the top. But I don't think she was being entirely selfish for once. I really think that she was trying to take care of her mother. She wouldn't have taken out the insurance policy if she was totally selfish. She would have just killed him. I do think that she killed him for selfish reasons though.
On island Kate was even more selfish than ever! She doesn't go to Shannon's funeral, she flees the Hatch with the button alarm blaring and Sawyer on the ground, she kisses Jack, the dialog she has with Sayid was all about her... I really think that her issue is more being a selfish person than it is running. Running is just part of her being selfish. She is getting away from what she did that was so selfish. And then it just leads to more selfishness.
Since we don't see Kate anymore after she leaves the island, we don't get to see if she makes peace with her selfishness before she dies. But I think that we get to see it in the flash-sideways with her episode "What Kate Does." And what she does is not run. And not act selfish. She goes back for Claire and then takes her to the hospital, things like that. Pre-island Kate would have never, she would have just kept on running. So I think that it was cool that they used the flash-sideways to show us her progression.
I think Kate progresses well in this episode. I think her admitting why she killed Wayne to Sawyer was a big step. Yeah, everything she said was selfish, but she said it. And she felt really sorry too.
I think we were meant to not like Kate until we had her back story. This is definitely the case with me. I loved her before, Season 1 made me dislike her. She doesn't entirely have all my love now but I get her now. And I bet she has it all back before the re-watch is over.
They also threw a ton of island mystery stuff at us too with Locke and Eko and the Orientation film, as well as Michael and the IM'ing. And I admit that when I first watched this episode I was quite involved with that mystery, but this time I was really focused on Kate. I feel like this show has done a complete 180 on me... just another reason why I love it so much!
