The Most Powerful Man in the World (and His Identical Twin Brother)
The episode, fashioned as a successor to the second season's "International Assassin," sees Kevin voluntarily return to the realm of the undead to avert a supposed apocalyptic event on the seventh anniversary of the Sudden Departure.
"The Most Powerful Man in the World (and His Identical Twin Brother)" was widely acclaimed by critics, who praised the episode's surreal design, absurdist humor, visuals, and Justin Theroux's performance.
Dean takes Kevin to a nearby bungalow and informs him that his mission is to assassinate the President of the United States, who is planning an unauthorized nuclear strike within two hours.
He suddenly finds himself dressed in a fully white suit, preparing to give a speech in front of a crowd of Guilty Remnant members gathered outside the Melbourne capitol.
As part of the speech, Kevin calls on Liam Playford - one of Grace's children who is seated in the front row alongside his siblings - to read an essay about why he no longer needs his parents.
On the way, Kevin's chief of staff informs him over the phone that Ukrainian separatists are preparing to release a nuclear warhead, and that the United States has two hours to launch a preemptive attack.
Kevin suddenly vomits a spew of water and experiences a series of distorted memories before reawakening at the Playford ranch, where a violent rainstorm is flooding the property.
"The Most Powerful Man in the World (and His Identical Twin Brother)" was approached as a spiritual sequel to the second season's "International Assassin" and featured the same creative team of Lindelof, Cuse and Zobel as writers and director respectively.
Cuse and Lindelof set out to craft a premise for the episode that was built more prominently around Kevin's assassin identity, and took influence from popular spy films such as the James Bond and Jason Bourne series.
[1] The writers also piggybacked off of an ethical question posed to Nora in the episode "G'Day Melbourne" by scientists seeking to replicate the Departure, who asked her whether she would kill an infant so its twin could cure cancer.
The writing team had decided early in production for the third season that the series finale would take place in the aftermath of an anticipated cataclysm that ultimately does not transpire, which Lindelof characterized as a violation of "Chekhov's apocalypse."
[4] Ann Dowd and Liv Tyler reprise their roles as Patti Levin and Meg Abbott respectively, appearing as members of Kevin's presidential administration in his afterlife scenario following the deaths of their real-world counterparts in previous episodes.
[5] "The Most Powerful Man in the World (and His Identical Twin Brother)" received widespread acclaim from critics, who praised its expansion of the "International Assassin" concept, as well as its humor, emotional depth, and Theroux's performance.
Fowler praised the episode's humor, visuals (especially during the final scenes of Kevin's trip to the afterlife), and attention to detail, and remarked on the series' ability to "shred our souls with some of the strangest, most left-field symbolism.
Sepinwall called the episode "at once surreal, hilarious, and devastating," praising both its "overflowing" deadpan humor and its layered exploration of Kevin's "profound and inescapable" suicidal depression.
[10] Noel Murray of The New York Times characterized the episode as a "wild, tongue-in-cheek political thriller," praising its powerful delivery of Kevin's personal revelation that he wants to repair his relationship with Nora.
Caroline Framke, who co-authored the same review, also praised the opening scene for the "effortless" and "electric" chemistry between Theroux and Carrie Coon, and noted that the series' brand of humor allows its characters to be "authentically funny" rather than merely resorting to jokes.
