June 07: Desmond Hume

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"I'll see ya in another life, brother..."

It was a little flicker of light. Nothing more than a light turning on, but it made the hair on the back of every audience member's neck stand on end. A beam of light illuminating the seemingly lifeless Hatch... and filling our heads wth all sorts of questions and theories. Who was down there? What were they doing? What the hell was going on? As Locke looked down the Hatch's ladder during the final scene of season 1, everyone thrashed and sobbed, wondering what awaited them in season 2. What could possibly be worth the wait?

Desmond Hume, of course!

Desmond is a brilliant character. The beauty is his spare use... although there would be an ample audience for a 'Desmond and his various slutty shirts' sitcom, he's isn't employed in every episode. He doesn't fill in space. When he does poke his pointy ol' nose into a scene, something exciting happens. When he actually has a centric episode... well, holy hell, freakin' television magic accours. A la Pavlov's dog, we have been trained to salivate when a storyline centres around Desmond (and not for the obvious, man-cleavage reasons. Well, not entirely.)

The Constant is an incredible episode, and one of my absolute favorites. Flashes Before Your Eyes, Catch 22, Live Together Die Alone... has there ever been a bad or boring Desmond episode?

Maybe it's the sense of mystery he brings; even as an established character, he still adds wonder with a time-travelling Dr. Who subplot and flashes of the future. Maybe it's his wandering spirit; he was a monk, a soldier, a sailor, a hatch operator.

Maybe its his intense, intense romance with Penny Widmore. Ohhh, maybe that's it.

Of all the pairings to grace Lost, some stick better than others. Some are cute, sweet, or annoying and pointless. Some seem thrown together for the hell of it. Desmond and Penny, though, are the ONE TRUE PAIRING. Seriously... the lengths they both go to to see each other, however briefly... Penny calling the Looking Glass, delighted to just know Desmond was alive... Desmond, touting around the photo of he and Penny everywhere, and trying so desperately to alter the past... and the phone call.

Seriously, the phone call. Who didn't gasp and whimper and tear up over that phone call? The hardest hearts among us quivered a bit in the lip when they both sobbed lovingly to each other. Although their eventual reunion was very satisfying, it's still the phone call that gets me. Every time.

Desmond has that air of confusion about him, even as he competently goes about the trials and tribulations of the Island. It's as though he's always searching for something (a shirt with all of its buttons? Er, sorry.) He's a true adventurer; although he might not seek out quests, they find him. His stories are compelling and always in motion; the fates won't let Desmond be a sit-around fellow (well, other than that bout of button-pushing.) What an interesting man, aye brother?

Also, the blue shirt. Oh, you know the one. Ahem.

Photoshop + tablet
> about 45 minutes