Lost: The Final Season (Premieres Feb. 2)

It would have been interesting if they had the pilot(s) survive and act as defacto "leader" in the pilot, only to die halfway through the pilot.
Thought it was cool that they used Titus (Man in Black) Welliver as tha narrater in the pre-finale retrospective, Greg Grunberg was originally cast as the pilot, but had to back out.
I remember liking Jericho (CBS's attempt at Lost) for much of the same reason I liked Lost - seeing how people respond in a moment of truth - some freak, others rise to the occasion. And I'll admit it - Jericho was Lost for Dummies.

 

IIRC, the co-pilot did survive the crash and ended up becoming Smokey's first victim.

 

Jericho was awesome.

OK, most of it. The whole town vs. town crap bored the piss out of me.

 

Also, that *was* Grunny.

 

That was their idea, and the execs (in a rare bit of clarity) came back with, "It's cool for shock value to kill your hero in the pilot, but if you do that, the audience won't invest in anyone, for fear anyone can be taken away."

 

A couple of questions how did Locke (real Locke) get back to the mainland after the Oceanic 6 were rescued? Was it the donkey wheel?
I was hoping for more of Ilana's backstory, as well as the rest of Jacob's people on the mainland.
Would have liked to have known what really happened with Locke's dad/Sawyer's ultimate target.

 

Locke moved the donkey wheel, showed up in Tunisia (sp*?), had a broken leg from the fall down the well and Widmore's people fixed him up. He then went to try to recruit the rest of the O6 to come back to the island, they all said no, and he and Ben got a hotel room.

I just realized something. Who were the others, why were they there and why weren't any of them candidates?

 

Finally caught up. Watched six episodes in the last two days. Wished I could have been along for the ride with you all.



That said, the way some people, here and elsewhere, bought into this New Age, limousine liberal, Hollywood cop out of an ending, is stunning.

The ending was poetic -- as long as you're ok with poetry from the perspective of a pair of college sophomores. I don't feel like I wasted six years. It was a fun ride. I don't have to love the ending of a book to have enjoyed the journey.

I do feel like Lindelof and Cuse are completely full of shit though. I think they were a couple of science fiction nerds (or at least Lindelof was) who came up with an amazing concept and then didn't have a clue what the larger message should be, but they knew they had to speak to something big (despite having no idea how to go about it) so they ultimately decided to settle on the paper-thin construct of "It's all about the moments we share together and the connections we make in life." Everyone gets to go to heaven together! Hooray!

Seriously? Try harder, Mitch Albom.

You say the series is about character and not plot? I'm cool with that. In fact, I've always understood that. I don't so much care about answers. And I did enjoy many of the reunions in the finale. But the last few minutes, when you throw out a bunch of vague talk of "letting go" and "you created this place so you could be together!" and all religions becoming one, well, now you've wasted my time. Not because I think your ultimate message is lame -- debatable -- but because I've heard this nonsense countless times, and ultimately you're not saying anything new or interesting. And by being intentionally vague, you don't actually have to say anything interesting or daring or even original. That way you can simply say, "It's all right there" and pretend you're presenting something deeper than what you might pick up in the beginner's lecture at a SoCal yoga retreat.


I'm glad this show came along. I'm glad I watched it. I'm glad it gave life to serial storytelling and engaged smart people in television. It was full of many wonderful moments.

But to suggest this is, ultimately, even in the same league as The Sopranos or The Wire is just ridiculous. Those shows said just as much (and I'd argue more) about fate and free will and faith, and the dark tendencies of the human spirit, without resorting, in the end, to a cliche to try and assign a larger message to it.

I'm not sure I've been let down this much by an ending to something I enjoyed since the giant spider at the end of Stephen King's IT. And in a way, that's fitting. Because that book was ultimately about an incredible journey with an intentionally vague resolution. (Because King was either high, or didn't know how the hell to bring it home.) The monster dies, the world is saved, it's just not entirely clear why or how this happens. (And there is also vague references to light and dark and crossing over to the unexplained "elsewhere" and resurrections.) All that really matters is that we all loved one another! and the time we shared was important, and thus, that redeems us.

See ya in another life, brother. Hopefully with a better grasp of endings.

 

I think Boone, and Rose and Bernard were enlightened very quickly.

Rose's conversation with Jack on the plane about "letting go" was the most obvious. Bernard and Jack's awkward conversation in the dental office. I think Rose and Bernard wanted to help Jack remember but, as they said in their lives, "we don't get involved." (To Desmond after they got him out of the well).

And Boone was straightforward with Locke on the plane about sticking with him if it goes down, etc.

These make sense because 1) Boone was young and the most important part of his life was learning from John Locke. I'm not positive, but I believe they shook hands on the plane; 2) Rose was CPR'd by Jack in the wake of the crash; 3) Bernard and Jack shook hands in the dentist office before their conversation got underway.

 

OH, and how cool is this?

http://www.sl-lost.com/2010/05/26/lost-season-6-dvds-to-feature-lost-epilogue-with-hurley-ben/

A 12-14 minute epilogue of Island No. 1 Hurley and his No. 2 Ben. Seriously. But, apparently, only if you buy the series box set (Which I was going to do anyways).

 

I appreciate a response like this. It's informed, well-written and, most importantly, well thought out. I've read too much "ZOMFG THEY WERE DEAD?!?! HOW GAY!" and crap like that. So, thanks, DoubleDown.

 

NDub, I appreciate the enthusiasm you and others brought to these threads over the years. Great TV demands great debate. These threads were always that.

Ultimately I think this ending was too happy for me. Too quasi-mystical and not particulaly bold. But I get why it works for some people.