Lost: Discussion Thread

[dm.]

I watched the entire first season and then pretty much forgot about this, but it keeps coming back to me that I need to watch this. I watched a few scenes of the second season and for some reason didn't exactly like it, so I guess that's why I never came back.

I plan to watch it again from the beginning in the upcoming months.

[YRBB]

Yep, that's my plan, too. Start from beginning all the way to the very end.

I really enjoyed Season 2 up until around episode 14... were it seemed to me like it suddenly turned to crap. Then I picked up again from the beginning of Season 3.

But, yeah, I do need to rewatch.

[Sylph]

You both need to stop trying, I guess, it might not be your type of show.

[dm.]

What other show would be similar to this one?

I personally loved the first season. I never watched it again because I stopped watching any TV station that airs in our country and after I got the chance to download TOO MANY shows, I never got around to watching this, but I have it prepared for watching. These type of shows always interested me, and when the time comes I'll get to it (I'm still finishing up a couple of shows that ended airing years ago).

[Sylph]

Really no other show resembles it. It draws upon a ton of influences (literary, filmic, mythological, pop-cultural...), but doesn't closely match them.

[dm.]

All I've got to say is that J.J. Abrams has an amazing track record with shows.

[Sylph]

Well, the genesis of this show was complicated. Which the and in Jeffrey Lieber and J. J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof should tell you. It wasn't all him. Abrams and Lindelof did write the series bible and detailed all the major plot and mythological points, but Abrams hasn't been closely involved in several seasons. His last direct involvement was co-writing the season three opener, A Tale of Two Cities.

Now, by many reports, he only watches it as a fan, is strongly interested in how it's going to end and refused to direct the finale, since he thinks Bender earned the right to do so.

Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse (who was brought in as an experienced showrunner to help Lindelof run things such as casting, budget and all the other non-writing stuff) served as EPs and showrunners from season 1 onwards. There are conflicting reports about Abrams' involvement in that some say that it was Cuse who helped Lindelof map out more than the initial 12 episodes (they thought the show would be cancelled after the twelfth aired, so they didn't bother inventing anything). In reality, all three (L, C and A) contributed to the whole arc of the show. The Hatch was Abrams, for example.

Cuse really makes it a point to say that Abrams' involvement was minimal in later seasons.

[dm.]

Aaahh, I never knew that.

Anyway, I'll give this show a try. I'm in for a great ride through season one and then onto more complicated stuff, I guess.

[Sylph]

This show is hated by armies of people. And called the most awful of names.

But I've never understood it. The first time you see a polar bear and hear the mysterious whisperings, you need to know what this show is about. It's been called too convoluted, too complex, labyrinthine, made-up-as-they-go-along (true in some parts very much)... But precisely therein lies the beauty of it. It so huge, it gets all caught up in itself, looses it at times, but I just get it. It provides what I seek.

And that is more than enough for me.

[Juliajms]

My thought is they may have created a temporal paradox or maybe an alternate timeline, but we need more info to know for sure.

The issue I'm having is understanding why anyone thought this was a good idea. Kate is facing jail, Rose is facing death, Sawyer is facing going back to being a bitter con, Jin and Sun are going back to an unhappy life without their baby. Exactly who is better off without the plane crash? Well, I suppose, Hurly, Boone and everyone else who died in the original timeline. Maybe. I might even question that. Charlie found love, arguably became a father, kicked drugs and died a hero. Now he's a suicidal druggie on his way to jail for a good long time. Shannon found finally found someone who believed in her and loved her on the island, now she's chosen to stay in a bad relationship. I guess that's probably better than being dead though, so I'll concede that one.

[YRBB]

It was more like, I didn't have time to watch many of my shows anymore.

[dm.]

Yeah, same thing to me.

That's exactly why I can't wait to watch it either. The misunderstood complex mystery shows.

[Sylph]

This MTV recap explains it (spoiler alert, for those who didn't see the premiere):

http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2010/02/03/lost-episodes-601-602-recap-la-x/

There are countless other recaps...

And for those who didn't see it, Lindelof & Cuse appearance on Kimmel is on YT, of course. Cuse spoils it badly for the audience. Fun moment.

[Sylph]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/04/arts/television/04arts-LOSTFINDSVIE_BRF.html?ref=television

[EricMontreal22]

Agreed, I think a large part of the hatred is simply that it became such a cultural phenomenon that certain people--who would simply never like a show like this--tried to watch it, hated it, and felt upset or misled LOL. Fair enough. ( I do remember gloating a bit when on one forum a bunch of Heroes fans praised season 1 of Heroes like this--"Unlike Lost, this is a show that gives us ANSWERS to all its questions, bla bla" Of course pretty much by season 2 they were regretting their words)