Reception
When Richard made his first appearance, Erin Martell of AOL's TV Squad was disappointed Carbonell did not use the accent he used in Suddenly Susan. Entertainment Weekly's Jeff Jensen was pleased when Richard returned in "One of Us", saying " Slick Willy performance as Mittelos exec Richard Alpert is on par with his superb embodiment of the half-bat, half-lothario superhero known as Batmanuel in the gone-too-soon sitcom The Tick". He also "loved matter-of-fact way of telling Juliet he had spiked her orange juice with a massive amount of tranquilizer ... his silver-tongued temptation was so persuasive, I think any of us would have gulped down that ". Chris Carabott from IGN thought Richard featuring in Ben's flashback as a Hostile was "one of the more surprising revelations of Alpert doesn't seem to have aged a day in thirty-plus years".
Many reviewers were pleased when Richard returned in season four's "Cabin Fever" after being absent for ten episodes. Jay Glatfelter of The Huffington Post called him a "fan favorite" and speculated that although it is less plausible his appearance at Locke's birth is due to time travel, this seemed more believable than Richard not aging. This proved untrue, as Locke visited him 2 years prior, telling Richard of his (Locke's) birth in "Jughead." Carabott called it "The biggest and most welcome surprise" because "He's one of the most enigmatic characters on the series and his appearance in Locke's past is an exciting and shocking revelation." Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune said "I get absurdly excited every time Richard Alpert (the wonderfully spooky Nestor Carbonell) arrives on the scene. I just know he’s going to bust out some major-league Dharma Initiative goodness one of these days, and his mere presence boosted my enjoyment level of an already good episode." Cynthia Littleton from Variety said "Just the sight of Richard puts me on edge. Actor Nestor Carbonell is fantastic."
Read more about this topic: Richard Alpert (Lost)
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