It is hard to believe that this is the 1000th post on LOSTheory.
Started in the last season of LOST as a way to expand upon personal fan theories about the show, it continues to explore LOST themes and story lines with related science and cultural stories which used to be the basis of the strong LOST internet community discussions.
I never thought it would last this long.
Most of the fan blogs for the series merely faded away within a year or so. There are probably only a couple of hardcore LOST sites still in existence. The series has faded from the mass collective memory because it is not the type of show fit for syndication which would churn a new viewing audience to the LOST mythology.
The writers and cast members have dispersed throughout the entertainment media complex with less than stellar results. It is hard to remake a widely viewed cult series like LOST. It is hard to repeat success in any business, but it particularly hard in television. Something new and innovative is suddenly tired and boring in another run.
You never can tell what will happen in the future. There are still many fan comments stating that they miss the show. And never say never, because sometimes things come back from the dead like Twin Peaks or the X-Files. But LOST's ending makes a second curtain call more difficult and challenging to create a sequel. Even a spin-off would cause some head scratches because the interwoven story lines of the main characters seems to be set in stone.
Would a Ben spin-off of his conquest of the DHARMA group be compelling enough to last an entire season? Would a Locke spin-off of his depressing childhood of foster homes be so depressing that it turns off viewers? Would a Kate crime spree roller coaster road trip to avoid FBI capture be fun or disguised as a Fugitive rip-off?
No, LOST appears to set itself in television stone, for good or ill.
LOST took a foothold in many people's lives for six full years. That is longer than many people have personal relationships or friendships. It is not to say we cannot still learn from LOST, enjoy it, dissect it and rework it to find new twists or enlightenment. LOST gave us the rare opportunity to branch out, ask questions, seek our own answers, and to weave our own derivative stories. How much longer that will last is up to each individual.
Showing posts with label comments. Show all posts
Showing posts with label comments. Show all posts
Monday, July 13, 2015
Friday, March 21, 2014
THANKS
In the past few months, there has been an increase of traffic to the site, which now has gone past 12,000 unique site visits. There is still an interest for LOST related blogs and content after ten years.
Monday, February 18, 2013
REBOOT FINAL 4 THE END
It was a melancholy end to LOST.
Lost in the actual series ending was the huge community "sigh" that the reviews, debates, theories, and spirited discussions for the last six years had come to the end. The discussions were more about the on-line friendships and sparring partnerships than on the actual events depicted in the final episode.
THE END
The ending of LOST came down really into two camps: one which liked the final ending in the sideways church as a touching moment for the characters to reunite in a happy place; and one which disliked the ending since it was not based upon six years of monsters, time travel, crazy people, missions, science and a final battle to the death between an island guardian and Smoke Monster.
But even with the undeniable fact that the characters were all dead in the sideways world, the show remained open to vast interpretation.
The ending did not surprise me because I had been in the vocal minority that the characters were dead from the beginning. That said, there is plenty of room to criticize how the story was wrapped up the by the writers. At least the Big Premise was clearly stated in the end: they were all dead.
But many viewers did not like the idea of deceased characters running about in fantasy land for six seasons. Many base that view from TPTB comments from season one adamantly telling the world that the show was not about purgatory or hell. Well, in some respects, those viewers were conned or lied to by TPTB. Another part of the queasy reaction to the series conclusion is that the writers did have an opportunity to wrap a science-sci/fi explanation into the layered after life premise.
I strongly believe that the characters were dead before 815 crashed; so it appears that the crash was the symbolic transportation of lost souls into purgatory setting created by the flashbacks (part truth, part individuals' dreams, part nightmares and fears) constructed by the comic book world mindset of Hurley and the bookish nerdy historian Ben. The island was nothing more than an after life simulation. The answer to all the island questions is "it does not matter." Everything was a illusory prop to get the characters to find their redemption and bonds.
In a mind over matter setting, the island world seemed totally real but it was not; it was like a spiritual maze. Once you realized you were dead, and accept it, and some one else helping your along the journey to the next level, then your soul can be "awakened" in the sideways world (which in itself is another waiting room in the after life for passing the maze) to "move on." One cannot pass on without a strong, pure, emotional bonds and finding your "soul mate" to share eternity.
But many commentators did not buy the "soul mate" idea. Who was Boone's soul mate? And Locke? They were bachelors. They had no one in the church. Why?
And the concept that the sideways world had no past, present or future, just "now" seemed to be a convoluted statement so as NOT to explain the time lines, time skips or whether the passengers on Flight 815 ever "survived" the crash onto the island.
At least one person thought about the characters not present at the church. About MIB, does no one out there feel sorry for this guy? Wasn't he pretty much a victim? Okay, he developed a mean rage that would have seriously challenged Jack Nicholson in Anger Management. But before that, he just wanted off the island. And he was thwarted at every step by Crazy Mom. Killing her, which was somewhat understandable, is what led to Jacob's revenge for which this poor guy became, well, a monster. And, yes, he was a BAD monster, but do we have no sympathy at all for him?
Unanswered is why anyone had to die on the island, if Christian is to believed in the church that everyone there died "long before and long after" Jack died. We assumed that Jack died next to Vincent in the bamboo forest. We assumed Sayid died from the gunshot wounds, but turned into a zombie ghost from the temple. Many assumed the people survived the plane crash, too. We knew Locke died off island, but he was all better in the sideways world. For if the sideways world was the "real" one, then what was the island world? People no longer wanted to debate that topic or grapple with the implications of the sideways final reveal.
No, the fans who liked the ending decided that the characters were more important than the story lines. That the island life was a path of redemption and sacrifice to create and live on in the sideways after life. In some ways, that simple ending to a extremely layered, tangential and layered plot lines was the only way out of the writer's painted corner. Just like in the community blogs, when the show was over, the give-and-take on-line friendships were also over. It was like the high school graduation; everyone said their goodbyes to move on to the next stage of life.
What everyone thought and obsessed on for the first five and half seasons came to naught. In the after show commentary, people were not that upset that their personal questions remained unanswered, but the realization was at this point it did not matter. The finale put the final nail in the coffin for every character, literally and figuratively.
The ending was a mirror image of what we thought we saw and felt during the six year run.
What Happened, did not Happen.
Live Alone. Die Together.
And the final lesson learned: LOST's ending was like every Cub season since 1908.
Lost in the actual series ending was the huge community "sigh" that the reviews, debates, theories, and spirited discussions for the last six years had come to the end. The discussions were more about the on-line friendships and sparring partnerships than on the actual events depicted in the final episode.
THE END
The ending of LOST came down really into two camps: one which liked the final ending in the sideways church as a touching moment for the characters to reunite in a happy place; and one which disliked the ending since it was not based upon six years of monsters, time travel, crazy people, missions, science and a final battle to the death between an island guardian and Smoke Monster.
But even with the undeniable fact that the characters were all dead in the sideways world, the show remained open to vast interpretation.
The ending did not surprise me because I had been in the vocal minority that the characters were dead from the beginning. That said, there is plenty of room to criticize how the story was wrapped up the by the writers. At least the Big Premise was clearly stated in the end: they were all dead.
But many viewers did not like the idea of deceased characters running about in fantasy land for six seasons. Many base that view from TPTB comments from season one adamantly telling the world that the show was not about purgatory or hell. Well, in some respects, those viewers were conned or lied to by TPTB. Another part of the queasy reaction to the series conclusion is that the writers did have an opportunity to wrap a science-sci/fi explanation into the layered after life premise.
I strongly believe that the characters were dead before 815 crashed; so it appears that the crash was the symbolic transportation of lost souls into purgatory setting created by the flashbacks (part truth, part individuals' dreams, part nightmares and fears) constructed by the comic book world mindset of Hurley and the bookish nerdy historian Ben. The island was nothing more than an after life simulation. The answer to all the island questions is "it does not matter." Everything was a illusory prop to get the characters to find their redemption and bonds.
In a mind over matter setting, the island world seemed totally real but it was not; it was like a spiritual maze. Once you realized you were dead, and accept it, and some one else helping your along the journey to the next level, then your soul can be "awakened" in the sideways world (which in itself is another waiting room in the after life for passing the maze) to "move on." One cannot pass on without a strong, pure, emotional bonds and finding your "soul mate" to share eternity.
But many commentators did not buy the "soul mate" idea. Who was Boone's soul mate? And Locke? They were bachelors. They had no one in the church. Why?
And the concept that the sideways world had no past, present or future, just "now" seemed to be a convoluted statement so as NOT to explain the time lines, time skips or whether the passengers on Flight 815 ever "survived" the crash onto the island.
At least one person thought about the characters not present at the church. About MIB, does no one out there feel sorry for this guy? Wasn't he pretty much a victim? Okay, he developed a mean rage that would have seriously challenged Jack Nicholson in Anger Management. But before that, he just wanted off the island. And he was thwarted at every step by Crazy Mom. Killing her, which was somewhat understandable, is what led to Jacob's revenge for which this poor guy became, well, a monster. And, yes, he was a BAD monster, but do we have no sympathy at all for him?
Unanswered is why anyone had to die on the island, if Christian is to believed in the church that everyone there died "long before and long after" Jack died. We assumed that Jack died next to Vincent in the bamboo forest. We assumed Sayid died from the gunshot wounds, but turned into a zombie ghost from the temple. Many assumed the people survived the plane crash, too. We knew Locke died off island, but he was all better in the sideways world. For if the sideways world was the "real" one, then what was the island world? People no longer wanted to debate that topic or grapple with the implications of the sideways final reveal.
No, the fans who liked the ending decided that the characters were more important than the story lines. That the island life was a path of redemption and sacrifice to create and live on in the sideways after life. In some ways, that simple ending to a extremely layered, tangential and layered plot lines was the only way out of the writer's painted corner. Just like in the community blogs, when the show was over, the give-and-take on-line friendships were also over. It was like the high school graduation; everyone said their goodbyes to move on to the next stage of life.
What everyone thought and obsessed on for the first five and half seasons came to naught. In the after show commentary, people were not that upset that their personal questions remained unanswered, but the realization was at this point it did not matter. The finale put the final nail in the coffin for every character, literally and figuratively.
The ending was a mirror image of what we thought we saw and felt during the six year run.
What Happened, did not Happen.
Live Alone. Die Together.
And the final lesson learned: LOST's ending was like every Cub season since 1908.
REBOOT FINAL 4 PART THREE
What They Died For was the last episode before the finale. Viewers thought that the title referred to the final season theme of characters meeting their demise in vague quests to stop MIB from leaving the island; getting blown up by dynamite, mortar rockets, Smokey's wrath, etc. The survivors kept asking to make those deaths, those "sacrifices" to have some meaning. But we all thought the title meant recent episode fatalities and not the big picture.
As another recap of what the LOST community was saying after this second to last episode, I culled the comment boards I viewed back at the original airing to get a sense of what fans were thinking:
WHAT THEY DIED FOR
1. The Island's Protector
The pitch has been that the character driven series would wind up in heroic fashion, but I found no compassion or heroic qualities in the characters last night. The four around Jacob's camp fire reminded me of four kids in the principal's office, and Jack standing up to take the blame for something he does not know about. Who in their right mind would take an island guardian job, with the duty to kill a monster, without any instructions or plan?
If only the protector can find the light, why does it need a protector????????????Guesses included that fact that only the protector can find (and lead the chosen) to the actual light cave. But MIB found a "loophole" and started digging. He was able to find the source of the light underground. MIBs people, Dharma and others have tried to find the light in the exact same way. The failures to actually get to the light by so many is clearly a result of the protector's actions directly or indirectly.
With Jack now the new guardian didn't MIB just run out of options? I mean, he was trying to kill all of the candidates after spending centuries finding a loophole to kill Jacob specifically to keep them from becoming the next guardian. Isn't it completely back to the drawing board for MIB?
Jacob tells Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Hurley that they're all like him -- "all alone, all looking for something you couldn't find out there" -- loneliness has been a sneaky theme lurking about the entire series. Almost all of the major characters were dreadfully lonely in their pre-island lives, and they're brought to the island by a guy who's been alone for centuries. And as part of this "kidnapping" touch by Jacob, the 815 characters made new friends in their island adventures.
2. The Sideways Story Arc
I never liked the sideways story arc, but I think the writers will use it in this bold fashion: sideways Jack will intentionally screw up Locke's surgery, killing him on the table (just like his father did to a patient) which would then "kill" Flocke on the island world. I have no explanation how or why that would happen, but I think that is the purpose.
While Desmond is my favorite character, his actions in the alt timeline seem like they could be interpreted as a 'failsafe' for the writers, running around and tying up loose ends whatever they may be. Many viewers thought that the sideways story was feeling like the trap door for the show's creators to get out of answering the island mysteries in some alternative, less fulfilling fashion.
A few thought the sideways world was mirroring the island stories too closely. Anyone else notice how Desmond is 'touching' everyone like Jacob did?
A few observed that the sideways arc was getting much too much traction. The episode reviews were so-so I mean by Lost standards. Whether the episode supports the idea that the writers had this planned all along or whether they were making it up as they went was still are tense debate.
There were too many things What They Died For that felt a little contrived. Kate's name being crossed off because she was a mom struck me as backtracking on the writer's part rather than anything planned. The Ben and Rousseau match, while some found it touching, was cheesy to some.
Then in an off-tangent discussion, who was Jack's ex in the sideways world? The "candidates" for that were quite varied. Someone suggested Juliette. Did we not see sideways Juliette already? I thought we did but can't remember where or who she was connected with. Whoever it is it has to be someone of importance. Who else hasn't put in an appearance? Another remarked that Juliet is"too obvious," and she needs to have coffee. Others suggested Sarah, Cindy, Nikki or even Kate. I even threw out Penny as a weird option. But most of us thought it did not matter.
One poster commented "For some reason the sideways story had the feel of The Usual Suspects movie. The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."
3. Who Needs to Die?
Many fans posted that they thought that EVERYONE left on the island will killed in the finale, except Cindy, Emma and Zach, who replace CrazyMom, Jacob and MIB.
But the biggest question was left unanswered by Jacob's talk to the remaining candidates. WHAT DID THEY DIE FOR? was never answered. It goes back to the beginning episodes, where we are stumbling around like the plane crash survivors - - - "where are we," and in the sense after this episode continued to be what is the big premise of the show?
4. The Open Questions
Each individual fan has his or her own list of burning, unanswered questions or plot points which were once deemed important clues but now seem gnawing after thoughts in the big picture.
The whole name on the wall thing bothered some. Jacob answered Kate's question as if he was the occupant of the ocean side cave. Why would he need TWO places to write down candidates' names (the cave and the lighthouse)? It makes no sense. In response, a theory would be that "Jacob" does not really exist. Suppose, when Smokey was created, it immediately killed Jacob. That would leave Smokey totally "alone" on the island. He would have to re-create Jacob (ghost kids) in a schizophrenic way to have conversations, to interact with his lost humanity, to cope with its inherited memories and its loneliness. But that would not explain why people were brought to the island.
Many thought the "concert" was going to be the epicenter of the resolution of the story. Questions were asked about who are going to be present. Not sure how Jin and Sun will get there. Someone mentioned Charlie but isn't sideways Charlie dead? He didn't seem to have any interest in getting out of that car when he tried to kill himself and Des.
Some were bothered by the growing show reel of character death scenes. For example, Richard's end (if it was an end) may have seemed swift and out of left field, but I think it is telling in that he thought he was much more important than he actually was. He was saying how the monster just wanted Richard on his side. So much for that.
Ben did nothing "wrong" in this episode. His cooperation with Flocke seemed to be only a matter of survival. He didn't seem too convincing in his acceptance of Flocke's deal that he could have the island, and he killed Widmore at a very opportune moment, though Flocke claimed he had already heard what he wanted to know, but Widmore had not finished speaking!
Why would Widmore fear for his daughter's life should MIB leave The Island if he had already stated that the world would end if he ever got off? That's either 'end of series sloppiness' or Widmore knew he was dead either way and was giving MIB a false lead.
One speculation was that either Claire or Ben might kill Jack in the finale if MIB cannot "kill" the island guardian because of "the rules."
People questioned why now MIB wants to destroy The Island when at first he just wanted to leave it? What happened to just getting off of it? Did that plan change with Jack becoming the next guardian? Will he use Jack's friends against him? I think that's a likely scenario But Jack makes the rules now, why can't he just undo the 'mistake' Jacob made, declare MIB can go free, and remove his smokiness?
Jacob forgot to tell Jack to never go into the cave or what the cave is, other than it being the 'heart' of The Island. - Given everything The Island has done, maybe it's better to kill it at this point? I mean, what good has it ever really done? Kill it and disperse the light so no one person could ever harness it again and problem solved, no?
A large call for the where are Rose, Bernard and Vincent, who have not seen seen in ages on the island. The greater question hanging in mid-air is what characters will be important in the end resolution and why.
Some fans felt anger and angst about their unanswered keys to the story plots.
"If the writers don't close the loop on the whole "Walt is special" drama from the beginning of the show I am going to be pissed."
Also, once the Oceanic 6 got back to real life, why were Ben and Sayid killing all those people to protect the six? Who was trying to harm them and why? Does this have anything to do with the visit Jacob paid Widmore after the freighter explosion?
Who built that statue that Jacob was living in?
People still thought the Numbers answer needed to be addressed. They never fully explained, the Numbers (4 8 15 16 23 42), right? like how they where basically EVERYWHERE!! and even over that radio transmission and how they followed Hurley everywhere? "Where the hell did these numbers come from?"
Even if the numbers were candidate markers, why were some "living" candidates still alive but no longer candidates? Something not to many people are aware of but either BEN LINUS or his father Roger LINUS WERE CANDIDATES!!! If you look closely at Jacobs long list of candidates at the lighthouse LINUS is a name on that list and his number is 117! Other names on that list that we are familiar with are: 20 - Rousseau 32 - Rutherford (Boone or Shannon) 51 - Austen 58 - Burke (Juliet) 101 - Faraday 104 - Lewis (Charlotte ) 109 - Friendly 117 - Linus 124 - Dawson (Michael or Walt).
Then again, some viewers did not care about answers to tangential questions. Why is the supply drop a mystery? Kelvin Inman (and in theory Radzinski) were known to still be in the hatch after the purge. Dharma wasn't going to let them starve to death (especially since no one would be able to push the button if they did). Do we really need someone to come on screen and explain it?
Why/how Jacob took on corporeal form? Was it the ashes? Or, did he have that ability all along but chose to remain ethereal? And what are the island guardian's true powers?
In the sideways arc, the island is underwater. What is the significance of that screen shot?
Desmond tells Hurley Anna Lucia won't be participating in their island reunion because "she's not ready yet." Ready for what? Why are some characters ready and other characters not ready? And why does Desmond get to decide?
Who was Crazy Mom protecting the light from? Humans who wanted more light, right? This would be before a smoke monster existed.
But if Jacob created the smoke monster, then the light now needs to be protected against the smoke monster? So are humans no longer a threat to the light? If the smoke monster was never created by Jacob's childish tantrum, his job would be protect from humans only?
Can there be more than one smoke monster if more humans were to get into the light? Does any one of these smoke monsters getting back to the light end humanity? Or is it like, once a smoke monster is born, that's the only one you really gotta watch out for?
That being said...If the Losties kill Smokey, does that mean that everyone automatically shifts to the alternate timeline as their reality? Is there a way to ensure that no other humans will ever find the island in the future (sink it?) so that Jack's job as island protector is finished as quickly as it began and that he can live his wonderful alt life with his family? No Smokey...No island...No need to protect the island...Jack's energy can go to the alt timeline?
Wouldn't it be great if the show ends with Jacob alive and well in the alt timeline, which is now the real timeline; present when all the characters reunite?
5. How Things Would End
It was unanimous that no one knew how the show would end. Many just suspended their own personal likes, dislikes and opinions to let the story unfold on its own terms. Others decided that they once had hope things would be pulled together in a coherent and brilliant fashion by the writers. And more than a few housed doubts whether the ending will satisfy the diehard viewers. A few thought of horrible scenerios:
Example, instead of a plane crash, the sideways world is hit with an earthquake and the concert hall traps the characters:
Desmond = new Jacob
David = new Walt
ack = new Michael . . . "Daaaaaaaaviddd!!!"
Or, Jacks's bleeding neck cut/scratch was caused by Juliet's bullet from the outrigger shootout causing him to die in sideways world.
One fan posted that Eloise was helping Smokey. Smokey (as Christian) was the one who tells Locke to find Eloise Hawking because she'll know how to get back to the island. And she is the one who orchestrates the return of the Losties to the island which Smokey desperately wants so he can kill them all.
Another postulated the following:
My final "candidates" for the premise of the Island's mystery: 1) simulated reality 2) aliens 3) magic
The overall premise could actually be a combination of these points. Premise 1) would probably provide most degrees of freedom for the writers, since everything that happened on the Island could quite consistently be explained this way. Premise 2) would probably be some kind of alien space ship underneath the Island which uses an advanced energy source. In case the final answer is really just premise 3) without a more "scientific" explanation, I wish FMom and Jacob would at least have said "ABRACADABRA" at their wine/water scenes!
My final speculation for the ending regarding the time lines is that the Island timeline will cease to exist and the characters in the ALT-timeline become aware of their ALT life on the Island via sideways flashes. Maybe the existence of the ALT-timeline is Jack's way of "fixing" things in his role as Jacob's successor. I'm sure we will see a lot of reunions/couples and happy ends at the concert: - Juliet is probably Jack's ex wife and she will finally meet Sawyer at the concert (they are in love since they "remember"...) - Jack and Kate could also become a couple there . Charlie doesn't die in the ALT-timeline and he meets Claire - I also bet on Faraday and Charlotte; Bernard and Rose; and Desmond and Penny.
6. The Light at the End of the Tunnel
The overall mood in the Lost community was one of the sense of anticipation being palpable. With next week's finale, fans have never before been faced with possible disappointment with almost certainty that many mysteries will remain unanswered which some fans will dislike. Lost was an individual experience incorporated into a community discussion. Some viewers would watch the conclusion with no preconceptions, hopes or expectations. Others would watch the finale with the view of a mind-blowing finale that no one saw coming to explain everything.
There would be more sacrifices, it seems.
With so many unanswered questions, and Season 6 piling on big mysteries like the Jacob-MIB and the sideways story line, people were apprehensive about the finale. There were too many open story lines to be completed in one final episode (even an extended one). The conclusion was that each person's list of questions would be answered, theories would be resolved and the show ending in a meaningful, compelling finish were going to be sacrificed for a "show biz" type ending.
As another recap of what the LOST community was saying after this second to last episode, I culled the comment boards I viewed back at the original airing to get a sense of what fans were thinking:
WHAT THEY DIED FOR
1. The Island's Protector
The pitch has been that the character driven series would wind up in heroic fashion, but I found no compassion or heroic qualities in the characters last night. The four around Jacob's camp fire reminded me of four kids in the principal's office, and Jack standing up to take the blame for something he does not know about. Who in their right mind would take an island guardian job, with the duty to kill a monster, without any instructions or plan?
If only the protector can find the light, why does it need a protector????????????Guesses included that fact that only the protector can find (and lead the chosen) to the actual light cave. But MIB found a "loophole" and started digging. He was able to find the source of the light underground. MIBs people, Dharma and others have tried to find the light in the exact same way. The failures to actually get to the light by so many is clearly a result of the protector's actions directly or indirectly.
With Jack now the new guardian didn't MIB just run out of options? I mean, he was trying to kill all of the candidates after spending centuries finding a loophole to kill Jacob specifically to keep them from becoming the next guardian. Isn't it completely back to the drawing board for MIB?
Jacob tells Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Hurley that they're all like him -- "all alone, all looking for something you couldn't find out there" -- loneliness has been a sneaky theme lurking about the entire series. Almost all of the major characters were dreadfully lonely in their pre-island lives, and they're brought to the island by a guy who's been alone for centuries. And as part of this "kidnapping" touch by Jacob, the 815 characters made new friends in their island adventures.
2. The Sideways Story Arc
I never liked the sideways story arc, but I think the writers will use it in this bold fashion: sideways Jack will intentionally screw up Locke's surgery, killing him on the table (just like his father did to a patient) which would then "kill" Flocke on the island world. I have no explanation how or why that would happen, but I think that is the purpose.
While Desmond is my favorite character, his actions in the alt timeline seem like they could be interpreted as a 'failsafe' for the writers, running around and tying up loose ends whatever they may be. Many viewers thought that the sideways story was feeling like the trap door for the show's creators to get out of answering the island mysteries in some alternative, less fulfilling fashion.
A few thought the sideways world was mirroring the island stories too closely. Anyone else notice how Desmond is 'touching' everyone like Jacob did?
A few observed that the sideways arc was getting much too much traction. The episode reviews were so-so I mean by Lost standards. Whether the episode supports the idea that the writers had this planned all along or whether they were making it up as they went was still are tense debate.
There were too many things What They Died For that felt a little contrived. Kate's name being crossed off because she was a mom struck me as backtracking on the writer's part rather than anything planned. The Ben and Rousseau match, while some found it touching, was cheesy to some.
Then in an off-tangent discussion, who was Jack's ex in the sideways world? The "candidates" for that were quite varied. Someone suggested Juliette. Did we not see sideways Juliette already? I thought we did but can't remember where or who she was connected with. Whoever it is it has to be someone of importance. Who else hasn't put in an appearance? Another remarked that Juliet is"too obvious," and she needs to have coffee. Others suggested Sarah, Cindy, Nikki or even Kate. I even threw out Penny as a weird option. But most of us thought it did not matter.
One poster commented "For some reason the sideways story had the feel of The Usual Suspects movie. The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."
3. Who Needs to Die?
Many fans posted that they thought that EVERYONE left on the island will killed in the finale, except Cindy, Emma and Zach, who replace CrazyMom, Jacob and MIB.
But the biggest question was left unanswered by Jacob's talk to the remaining candidates. WHAT DID THEY DIE FOR? was never answered. It goes back to the beginning episodes, where we are stumbling around like the plane crash survivors - - - "where are we," and in the sense after this episode continued to be what is the big premise of the show?
4. The Open Questions
Each individual fan has his or her own list of burning, unanswered questions or plot points which were once deemed important clues but now seem gnawing after thoughts in the big picture.
The whole name on the wall thing bothered some. Jacob answered Kate's question as if he was the occupant of the ocean side cave. Why would he need TWO places to write down candidates' names (the cave and the lighthouse)? It makes no sense. In response, a theory would be that "Jacob" does not really exist. Suppose, when Smokey was created, it immediately killed Jacob. That would leave Smokey totally "alone" on the island. He would have to re-create Jacob (ghost kids) in a schizophrenic way to have conversations, to interact with his lost humanity, to cope with its inherited memories and its loneliness. But that would not explain why people were brought to the island.
Many thought the "concert" was going to be the epicenter of the resolution of the story. Questions were asked about who are going to be present. Not sure how Jin and Sun will get there. Someone mentioned Charlie but isn't sideways Charlie dead? He didn't seem to have any interest in getting out of that car when he tried to kill himself and Des.
Some were bothered by the growing show reel of character death scenes. For example, Richard's end (if it was an end) may have seemed swift and out of left field, but I think it is telling in that he thought he was much more important than he actually was. He was saying how the monster just wanted Richard on his side. So much for that.
Ben did nothing "wrong" in this episode. His cooperation with Flocke seemed to be only a matter of survival. He didn't seem too convincing in his acceptance of Flocke's deal that he could have the island, and he killed Widmore at a very opportune moment, though Flocke claimed he had already heard what he wanted to know, but Widmore had not finished speaking!
Why would Widmore fear for his daughter's life should MIB leave The Island if he had already stated that the world would end if he ever got off? That's either 'end of series sloppiness' or Widmore knew he was dead either way and was giving MIB a false lead.
One speculation was that either Claire or Ben might kill Jack in the finale if MIB cannot "kill" the island guardian because of "the rules."
People questioned why now MIB wants to destroy The Island when at first he just wanted to leave it? What happened to just getting off of it? Did that plan change with Jack becoming the next guardian? Will he use Jack's friends against him? I think that's a likely scenario But Jack makes the rules now, why can't he just undo the 'mistake' Jacob made, declare MIB can go free, and remove his smokiness?
Jacob forgot to tell Jack to never go into the cave or what the cave is, other than it being the 'heart' of The Island. - Given everything The Island has done, maybe it's better to kill it at this point? I mean, what good has it ever really done? Kill it and disperse the light so no one person could ever harness it again and problem solved, no?
A large call for the where are Rose, Bernard and Vincent, who have not seen seen in ages on the island. The greater question hanging in mid-air is what characters will be important in the end resolution and why.
Some fans felt anger and angst about their unanswered keys to the story plots.
"If the writers don't close the loop on the whole "Walt is special" drama from the beginning of the show I am going to be pissed."
Also, once the Oceanic 6 got back to real life, why were Ben and Sayid killing all those people to protect the six? Who was trying to harm them and why? Does this have anything to do with the visit Jacob paid Widmore after the freighter explosion?
Who built that statue that Jacob was living in?
People still thought the Numbers answer needed to be addressed. They never fully explained, the Numbers (4 8 15 16 23 42), right? like how they where basically EVERYWHERE!! and even over that radio transmission and how they followed Hurley everywhere? "Where the hell did these numbers come from?"
Even if the numbers were candidate markers, why were some "living" candidates still alive but no longer candidates? Something not to many people are aware of but either BEN LINUS or his father Roger LINUS WERE CANDIDATES!!! If you look closely at Jacobs long list of candidates at the lighthouse LINUS is a name on that list and his number is 117! Other names on that list that we are familiar with are: 20 - Rousseau 32 - Rutherford (Boone or Shannon) 51 - Austen 58 - Burke (Juliet) 101 - Faraday 104 - Lewis (Charlotte ) 109 - Friendly 117 - Linus 124 - Dawson (Michael or Walt).
Then again, some viewers did not care about answers to tangential questions. Why is the supply drop a mystery? Kelvin Inman (and in theory Radzinski) were known to still be in the hatch after the purge. Dharma wasn't going to let them starve to death (especially since no one would be able to push the button if they did). Do we really need someone to come on screen and explain it?
Why/how Jacob took on corporeal form? Was it the ashes? Or, did he have that ability all along but chose to remain ethereal? And what are the island guardian's true powers?
In the sideways arc, the island is underwater. What is the significance of that screen shot?
Desmond tells Hurley Anna Lucia won't be participating in their island reunion because "she's not ready yet." Ready for what? Why are some characters ready and other characters not ready? And why does Desmond get to decide?
Who was Crazy Mom protecting the light from? Humans who wanted more light, right? This would be before a smoke monster existed.
But if Jacob created the smoke monster, then the light now needs to be protected against the smoke monster? So are humans no longer a threat to the light? If the smoke monster was never created by Jacob's childish tantrum, his job would be protect from humans only?
Can there be more than one smoke monster if more humans were to get into the light? Does any one of these smoke monsters getting back to the light end humanity? Or is it like, once a smoke monster is born, that's the only one you really gotta watch out for?
That being said...If the Losties kill Smokey, does that mean that everyone automatically shifts to the alternate timeline as their reality? Is there a way to ensure that no other humans will ever find the island in the future (sink it?) so that Jack's job as island protector is finished as quickly as it began and that he can live his wonderful alt life with his family? No Smokey...No island...No need to protect the island...Jack's energy can go to the alt timeline?
Wouldn't it be great if the show ends with Jacob alive and well in the alt timeline, which is now the real timeline; present when all the characters reunite?
5. How Things Would End
It was unanimous that no one knew how the show would end. Many just suspended their own personal likes, dislikes and opinions to let the story unfold on its own terms. Others decided that they once had hope things would be pulled together in a coherent and brilliant fashion by the writers. And more than a few housed doubts whether the ending will satisfy the diehard viewers. A few thought of horrible scenerios:
Example, instead of a plane crash, the sideways world is hit with an earthquake and the concert hall traps the characters:
Desmond = new Jacob
David = new Walt
ack = new Michael . . . "Daaaaaaaaviddd!!!"
Or, Jacks's bleeding neck cut/scratch was caused by Juliet's bullet from the outrigger shootout causing him to die in sideways world.
One fan posted that Eloise was helping Smokey. Smokey (as Christian) was the one who tells Locke to find Eloise Hawking because she'll know how to get back to the island. And she is the one who orchestrates the return of the Losties to the island which Smokey desperately wants so he can kill them all.
Another postulated the following:
My final "candidates" for the premise of the Island's mystery: 1) simulated reality 2) aliens 3) magic
The overall premise could actually be a combination of these points. Premise 1) would probably provide most degrees of freedom for the writers, since everything that happened on the Island could quite consistently be explained this way. Premise 2) would probably be some kind of alien space ship underneath the Island which uses an advanced energy source. In case the final answer is really just premise 3) without a more "scientific" explanation, I wish FMom and Jacob would at least have said "ABRACADABRA" at their wine/water scenes!
My final speculation for the ending regarding the time lines is that the Island timeline will cease to exist and the characters in the ALT-timeline become aware of their ALT life on the Island via sideways flashes. Maybe the existence of the ALT-timeline is Jack's way of "fixing" things in his role as Jacob's successor. I'm sure we will see a lot of reunions/couples and happy ends at the concert: - Juliet is probably Jack's ex wife and she will finally meet Sawyer at the concert (they are in love since they "remember"...) - Jack and Kate could also become a couple there . Charlie doesn't die in the ALT-timeline and he meets Claire - I also bet on Faraday and Charlotte; Bernard and Rose; and Desmond and Penny.
6. The Light at the End of the Tunnel
The overall mood in the Lost community was one of the sense of anticipation being palpable. With next week's finale, fans have never before been faced with possible disappointment with almost certainty that many mysteries will remain unanswered which some fans will dislike. Lost was an individual experience incorporated into a community discussion. Some viewers would watch the conclusion with no preconceptions, hopes or expectations. Others would watch the finale with the view of a mind-blowing finale that no one saw coming to explain everything.
There would be more sacrifices, it seems.
With so many unanswered questions, and Season 6 piling on big mysteries like the Jacob-MIB and the sideways story line, people were apprehensive about the finale. There were too many open story lines to be completed in one final episode (even an extended one). The conclusion was that each person's list of questions would be answered, theories would be resolved and the show ending in a meaningful, compelling finish were going to be sacrificed for a "show biz" type ending.
Friday, February 15, 2013
REBOOT FINAL 4 PART TWO
There was an awful lot of fan commentary after Across the Sea aired in its original ABC run. Many people thought the back story of newer characters totally out of place in regard to the trials of the regular 815 cast. Again, the following commentary is based upon the LOST blogs I haunted:
ACROSS THE SEA
1. Island History: good or bad?
This was a split decision. Some viewers hated the idea of another side tangent introducing new character plot lines with only three episodes to go in the series. Jacob and his brother were not characters even introduced in the first two seasons. The concept of adding two major players with a full episode back story was confusing, frustrating and questioning the end game of the writers.
Some viewers thought Across the Sea and Ab Aeterno were good episodes because it finally answered some questions about the mysterious island's history. The events were the only clues to what the 2007 castaways would be up against in the finale.
2. Crazy Mom
She is portrayed as the guardian of the island. But one commentator had a different spin on her:
Jacob’s “mom” was a smoke monster. In a previous episode we were told the smoke monster can be killed with that dagger as long as you don’t let it speak first.
Every time their mother went up to the MIB, she always asked him if she could join him, i.e. when she met him on the beach and when she met him in the well, thereby preventing him from killing her.
When he did kill her, she didn’t say anything. She walked into the cave, and he stabbed her, with the same knife.
How else could she, on her own, have killed that entire tribe, as well as filling up the well?
She told Jacob and his brother that going into the light was worse than death. How would she have known that if she didn’t go in herself? She said “thank you” after Jacob’s brother killed her. He was releasing her from the curse. By Jacob throwing his brother into the light cave, it passed the smoke monster curse on to him. But in order for this theory to be validated, one would have to assume that all three were spirits - - - that the light cave transforms a spirit into an evil smoke monster.
There was a growing consensus that Crazy Mom may have been human at some point. But on the island, enlightenment changed her being into a semi-god status. She was probably tricked into becoming the guardian. She needed to trick someone to take her place, and children are easier to manipulate. Only when she could confer her powers onto another being (like Jacob), could her job be complete and she could pass on (to next life, rebirth, etc.) So being a guardian is not all it is cracked out to be. The parallel with Desmond and the button is the best way to look at this theme. You believe you are doing something important and good - but you grow weary and tired of your obligation, so you also want to pass it on to someone else, so you can achieve your personal peace.
3. There are no Rules.
There are no set Rules. The one in charge (the guardian) sets the rules. As MIB told young Jacob, he can make up the rules of the game when he is in charge. (Note: I think the game they played was not backgammon or senet, because Jacob was moving pieces in zig zag fashion.) The principle is simple: whoever is in power sets the rules.
But there were problems with the No Rules Rule. It was totally inconsistent from event to event. With the wine ceremony, Crazy Mom was casting (or unlocking) a magic spell so Jacob could "know" everything about the island and its properties. He was enlightened at that point, giving CrazyMom her opportunity to cease being guardian. But if CrazyMom passing the guardianship to Jacob was the only reason why MIB could kill her that leads to a problem later on. If this was standing operating procedure, then Jacob already passed on the island guardianship to another person before being killed by Ben. But that did not happen. Ghost Jacob will pass along the job to Jack. Some viewers believed that the wine itself is largely symbolic, and that it is not the chemical properties that lead to wisdom/guardianship.
4. Why bring people to the island?
This episode had no real religious tones. A few people thought the references to wine and ritual more symbolic than important. The symbol of wine and perhaps the conversations between God and Satan in the book of Job, and the possible comparison between the light at the end of the tunnel and the tree of knowledge of good and evil may all be symbols familiar to Judeo-Christian-Muslim religions, but many fans thought they are intended as such here. They have a religious significance but in the more abstract sense of mythology.
I thought CrazyMom was like a lighthouse keeper. Isolated, alone, but with a specific important job to do, one that apparently she was either chosen or manipulated into taking. She called the shipwreck survivors "people," like it was a derogatory term. MIB also called the people brought to the island in derogatory terms: people always "fight, destroy and corrupt." But Jacob remarked it all was "progress."
Which leads to the strange behavior of Jacob. If it is true that he continues to bring people to the island (like CrazyMom did to find her successor by shipwrecks), as a demi-god why did he need people to build temples or Dharma stations? Likewise, why would he need to leave the island to recruit in order to protect it? Besides, that would prove MIB was right: there was something "across the sea." But maybe bringing people to the island for centuries was all Jacob's cruel, new game with his brother, that "lowly people" are bad and their CrazyMom was right. However, "across the sea" could have used as a metaphor. It could mean across the galaxy, the plane of existence, the after life or dimensions.
One interesting discussion point was why Jacob or other demi-god on the island need people to build huge monuments or temples. Or why MIB/Smokey needs a dead body in order to take human form.
The island powers do not enable the guardian to create mass - he simply can influence people. Jacob seemingly can't just blink, and presto - we have a lighthouse. So proponents of "the Genie theory" that island guardians could create anything with a blink of an eye surrendered with this explanation. If Jacob, MIB or smoke monsters cannot create objects or things out of thin air (or in nature with fundamental elements), then that could mean that they themselves have no cohesive mass - - - that they are truly spirits seeking a material world.
I observed that commentators were looking for a time frame for this episode, I thought the only real clue was Claudia, her dress and appearance. I think she represents Claudia Quinta, a Roman leader of the Cult of the Great Mother, circa 205 BC. (There is a National Art Gallery painting of her). She was instrumental in bringing ashore Cybele, the Roman goddess of fertility, earth, caves and mountains to Rome from Greece. It is from 210 BC to 30 BC when the world had the three great civilizations still in place (Egyptian, Greek and Roman). That could explain where hieroglyphs, Greek symbols and Latin can converge on the island.
5. The creation of a smoke monster.
It was quite debatable whether Jacob's killing of his brother by throwing him into the light cave created the smoke monster, or the fact of throwing a body into the cave released a smoke monster. But it seems certain that MIB is a smoke monster. That the smoke monster needed Jacob's brother's body in order to take human form. But in taking that human form, the inconsistent science-fiction is how then did the new smoke monster retain all MIB's memories?
If the life force embodies life, death, and rebirth, then I do not see how mortal man could transform it into healing temple water (unless the death of MIB was the change allowing the guardian to control its properties.) I got the impression that CrazyMom and Jacob's powers were different than the light force. Many fans thought the light force might effect different people in different ways, and this might also depend on length of exposure. For Rose, just being on the island cured her cancer. For Locke - it allowed him to walk again. But for Ben, it caused him to have a spinal tumor. It may have been responsible for all the pregnant women not giving birth on the island. But then again, it allowed Claire to give birth to Aaron.
One main issue was that the EM life force was stable in the cave at the surface of the island. There was no reason to confine it in the Hatch, or have a "release " computer code. Also, if the light is a natural phenomenon, then anyone came in direct contact with the light, they should have also turned into Smoke Monsters (that means Ben and Locke turning the FDW or Desmond when the Hatch blew up).
In these older time frame episodes, we do hear a louder "clicking" sound and a deep animal moaning when Smokey appears - - - and the smoke itself is highly charged particles and electric flashes. It sounds like a mechanical creature. But as time passes, the Smoke Monster has less noises attached to it. Is this progress or better technology? And as such, is Smokey truly self aware?
6. The Jacob-MIB dynamic.
We have seen ghost Jacob in adult form speaking to Hurley, why would there be a need for a young ghost Jacob running around the jungle to bug Flocke? If so, did this confirm that Jacob can make multiple apparitions like MIB-Smokey?
One troublesome aspect of this episode was that it created more illogical patterns in the MIB character. If MIB's memories in Smokey may have led him manipulate people brought to the island into creating the FDW. If MIB-Smokey wanted to leave, it could take human form and turn the wheel as Flocke (who has been seen moving objects). But in a thousand years, Smokey never turned the wheel. Unless, turning the wheel destroys him or if he is flashed to the outside world, his non-human substance would cease to be.
But we have been told that Jacob was the one who has been bringing people to the island. Was it was not for MIB's sake? One explanation is that Jacob accepted the fact that he caused a cascade of events that led to both his CrazyMom's and brother's death. His world had ended. He was left with a substitute brother, the smoke monster. He was looking for a candidate so he could die (his punishment) and rejoin his real brother in death, but he had not found one person who would "accept" the position as guardian.
But is the real island conflict simply that MIB's ghost does not want Jacob to scheme his way off the island by death; he wants to continually punish Jacob for what he did to MIB by keeping Jacob on the island for eternity?
Viewers made symbolic assumptions that Jacob (white) as being good as the "guardian" of the light while MIB-Smokey (black) being bad, evil and a killing machine. But what if the opposite was true? What if the viewers have been conned into believing just Jacob's view of the island?
7. The fan angst.
A large part of the discussion board comments centered around where the story was heading; and the anxiety mounted that there was too much new information and not enough old conclusions to feel good about the final result. With two episodes to go, the series climax was upon us. But it did not seem like a the end of a thrilling rollercoaster ride.
Comments like:
" . . . the more I see the more that the ending looks forced."
"OK Lost staff. Go back and figure out how we can quickly tie up some loose ends and make it look like we really had a huge vision. When we didn't."
"(I) feel like we are getting all these tiny little "bones" thrown in at the end. All sizzle and no steak. Feeling cheated and a little duped at this point."
"I am holding on to hope that maybe, just maybe, I am being way too cynical and negative and that the show and Damon/Carlton will prove us wrong."
"For me the wheels are falling off the show's consistency, and the result feels cobbled-together."
"What was the point of showing us the Adam and Eve skeletons to eventually show us that they were the MIB and Mommy. What was the point of the revelation?"
One explanation for the viewer concern was that week's poster angst is that the Across the Sea episode seems totally out of place. But if you look back, the production values of cutting off scenes, jumbling the time sequences, flashes were all to create aura of mystery as much as the underlying story, had been a long simmering show critique. In standard story telling, there is a beginning middle and end. The story starts with action, character development, reaction, character choices, climax, then character change. It has always appeared that TPTB wanted to slice out pieces of those conventional story sections and show them out of order to keep viewers in the dark as long as possible.
However, one can tell the viewer what is going on in the background without telling the main characters; classic horror movies do that --- "don't open that door!" moments.
A few commentators really hated the episode. To some, the episode was so disappointing. It's not that we didn't get answers. It's that the answers were stupid.
The issue with this show is that they throw these mysteries at you, and you keep thinking "Wow, what in the world could explain what just happened??" And then you start to wonder if the writers are just making it up as they go along, and there's really nothing behind any of it. If this episode's answers represent what was behind it all, then yes, the writers were just making it up as they go along, and it was all just arbitrary. And finally, their explanation for what was behind it all is just lame.
For example, the Donkey Wheel. We wanted to know what it was, how it worked, why it worked, etc. The answer is: The MIB started building it because some ancient people had "interesting ideas" and because he somehow if he turned it he'd get off the island. How did he know that? Because he's special. That is basically a non-answer. "Because it's magic."
Then the cave. We've been told the island is special in some way, and that various people are trying to get something from it or protect that something. So what is that something? It's... some magical life/death/whatever that's inside every person. Sorry, that is not an answer. It doesn't tie anything together. It just pretends to give an answer to what is behind everything.
Then there's the characters' motivations. Why does Smokey want to get off the island? Because a woman killed his real mother and he wants to go back to where he came from. Really? That's the motivation behind the last two seasons? As I said at the top, that is definitely a concrete answer, but it's just a stupid one.
And that may be LOST's greatest success and its greatest weakness: fan expectations.
A few viewers hoped that there was a possibility that the next two episodes will tie things together better or give better answers that aren't so lame. But contrarians thought at this stage that view seems pretty naive.
Would the big questions really be answered? Simple examples were posted like the question was posed by Charlie in the pilot episode: "Where are we?" This poster did not want speculation and theories in the end, but wanted to to know what the island was! That seems like a reasonable request; when you get to the last page of a good mystery novel, you want to know. You expect to gain full knowledge to appreciate the entire work to confirm your entertainment investment in the novel.
Another poster made this comment "I think the disappointment ahead could be that if LOST is the story of the resolution of the Jacob-MIB conflict (which was hidden for five seasons), people will think that all the other story lines were filler."
That cast a dark shadow of pause within the community.
In trying to find deeper meaning in this episode, one could speculate MIB's memory of "clever" people with ideas about the life energy could be used to change the past. There are a few common things that both Jacob and MIB would jointly like to correct: a) MIB killing CrazyMom; b) Jacob killing his brother and turning him into Smokey; or c) CrazyMom killing Claudia. The search for time travel may have been the quest, "the progress" of the brothers to make amends with their own Past mistakes. Once they can achieve it, their misery ends.
It appeared that Jacob and MIB had no knowledge of time travel. Bringing people from the great civilizations was the means to their end, but human nature, personality conflicts and greed destroyed all hope for Jacob-MIB's getting their time machine. The problem with this theory is that the 815ers had no scientific skill sets to create time machines or improve on the technology. You would think Jacob would have targeted nuclear scientists, quantum physics professors, Steven Hawking.
The search for time travel may have been the quest, "the progress" of the brothers to make amends with their own Past mistakes. Once they can achieve it, their misery ends. That would answer a lot of questions. But it would not change the feeling that the 815 characters were merely a long filler arc to a three episode Jacob and MIB reunion.
Such angst turned into possible "bad endings" for the show.
How in the hell are they going to rap up the ENTIRE show up in 2.5 hours?! Many viewers could not see how it could be accomplished in a reasonable fashion. Many thought The Answer must be easy...simple. (A head slap moment - - - why didn't we think of that!)
But the "quick fix" endings did not stir confidence in the LOST community.
A. One simple trick ending would be to have the Dharma people in hospital beds in a mind experiment. BUT their body is not really there!!!!! It is too late in the series to throw the whole concept into reverse by saying it was all about mind control experiments (even though the series is riddled with such clues like Room 23, Santa Rosa, Eloise the rat maze). But if TPTB are so stubborn in the position that the series is all about character development, character "destruction" is a viable alternative.
B. Another ending was that the show runners lied to the viewers when they screamed loudly in the first season the island was not "purgatory." TPTB stated that the series was all about character development. Supporters of that view remarked that it could be about a figurative purgatory. The concept of purgatory is built in to the human experience. Life, death and rebirth. The characters trials and growth to redemption in a figurative or symbolic purgatory could be the answer, as any good character study always is.
However, a review of the show themes was contradictory.
White v. Black theme is open to several interpretations to the literal (Jacob and MIB) to the philosophical (good v. evil). It may or may not be the key to the finale. Redemption/resurrection was the long dismissed purgatory concept, which is still a viable solution if the big premise is about testing souls in the after life. The EM energy on the island could be a possible solution if properly explained. The smoke monster is playing a factor as the story winds down since it is the embodiment of MIB, the guardian's departed brother. The Numbers as mere markers for candidates names held no real significance except coincidence (which probably bummed out theorists the most). The concept of people being "brought" to the island is another unknown part of the solution or possible mere story line filler. unless we find out what the island is. Widmore, the Others , Dharma and the Tailies. With the exception of whatever role Widmore will play, the Others, Dharma and the Tailies were more filler story arcs. The Dharma story line appears to be immaterial to the end game. The Hatch seems immaterial except for the introduction of Desmond, whose final role is unknown. Blast Door Map appears irrelevant to the final solution.. Tawaret and Egyptology appear irrelevant unless the premise is about the after life.
Part of the collective angst is that many of the seemingly important elements of the show could be rendered immaterial or irrelevant, while new concepts out of left field play a more important role in concluding the show.
C. The idea that the main characters are NOT who we think they are; they are like kids playing make-believe roles of adults: Jack is not a doctor, Kate is not a criminal, Sawyer is not a con man.
Example, Jack. Both the marshal and Boone died in his care. He did not deliver Aaron. His surgery on Ben was filled with medical errors. We are shown Jack as a doctor, but it is a delusion by a person who wants us to look at him in a different way. If you want to find out-of-place episodes, look to the one where Jack goes to Thailand. What knowledgeable, successful doctor would go to Thailand, roll around with a crazy woman in dirty opium dens, and get a back alley tattoo "He walks among us, but is not one of us?" That episode made was a clue that Jack was not a doctor, but a rebellious drop out rich kid traveling the world seeking adventure at daddy's expense. Add "daddy issues" to the concept of transference (or even a world of make believe), you can have an individual with a neurosis that tries to change a person's past to succeed their parents, break parental controls, or escape from their own boring reality. The open question would be what is the actual setting for this childlike escapism.
8. Prediction
Several posters thought that we would still talking about all of this stuff 4-5 years later....
It will be interesting to see if the ending is so open-ended, that fans will continue to debate its ending for years, or if they will tie it up into a neat bow like so many from the "We want answers" camp are demanding. Seems to me the more that is left unanswered, the greater the lifespan this series will have...???
Sadly, there was no stable will be a cottage industry after LOST ended for fans to write about how they would have wrapped things up (to counterbalance any disappointment).
ACROSS THE SEA
1. Island History: good or bad?
This was a split decision. Some viewers hated the idea of another side tangent introducing new character plot lines with only three episodes to go in the series. Jacob and his brother were not characters even introduced in the first two seasons. The concept of adding two major players with a full episode back story was confusing, frustrating and questioning the end game of the writers.
Some viewers thought Across the Sea and Ab Aeterno were good episodes because it finally answered some questions about the mysterious island's history. The events were the only clues to what the 2007 castaways would be up against in the finale.
2. Crazy Mom
She is portrayed as the guardian of the island. But one commentator had a different spin on her:
Jacob’s “mom” was a smoke monster. In a previous episode we were told the smoke monster can be killed with that dagger as long as you don’t let it speak first.
Every time their mother went up to the MIB, she always asked him if she could join him, i.e. when she met him on the beach and when she met him in the well, thereby preventing him from killing her.
When he did kill her, she didn’t say anything. She walked into the cave, and he stabbed her, with the same knife.
How else could she, on her own, have killed that entire tribe, as well as filling up the well?
She told Jacob and his brother that going into the light was worse than death. How would she have known that if she didn’t go in herself? She said “thank you” after Jacob’s brother killed her. He was releasing her from the curse. By Jacob throwing his brother into the light cave, it passed the smoke monster curse on to him. But in order for this theory to be validated, one would have to assume that all three were spirits - - - that the light cave transforms a spirit into an evil smoke monster.
There was a growing consensus that Crazy Mom may have been human at some point. But on the island, enlightenment changed her being into a semi-god status. She was probably tricked into becoming the guardian. She needed to trick someone to take her place, and children are easier to manipulate. Only when she could confer her powers onto another being (like Jacob), could her job be complete and she could pass on (to next life, rebirth, etc.) So being a guardian is not all it is cracked out to be. The parallel with Desmond and the button is the best way to look at this theme. You believe you are doing something important and good - but you grow weary and tired of your obligation, so you also want to pass it on to someone else, so you can achieve your personal peace.
3. There are no Rules.
There are no set Rules. The one in charge (the guardian) sets the rules. As MIB told young Jacob, he can make up the rules of the game when he is in charge. (Note: I think the game they played was not backgammon or senet, because Jacob was moving pieces in zig zag fashion.) The principle is simple: whoever is in power sets the rules.
But there were problems with the No Rules Rule. It was totally inconsistent from event to event. With the wine ceremony, Crazy Mom was casting (or unlocking) a magic spell so Jacob could "know" everything about the island and its properties. He was enlightened at that point, giving CrazyMom her opportunity to cease being guardian. But if CrazyMom passing the guardianship to Jacob was the only reason why MIB could kill her that leads to a problem later on. If this was standing operating procedure, then Jacob already passed on the island guardianship to another person before being killed by Ben. But that did not happen. Ghost Jacob will pass along the job to Jack. Some viewers believed that the wine itself is largely symbolic, and that it is not the chemical properties that lead to wisdom/guardianship.
4. Why bring people to the island?
This episode had no real religious tones. A few people thought the references to wine and ritual more symbolic than important. The symbol of wine and perhaps the conversations between God and Satan in the book of Job, and the possible comparison between the light at the end of the tunnel and the tree of knowledge of good and evil may all be symbols familiar to Judeo-Christian-Muslim religions, but many fans thought they are intended as such here. They have a religious significance but in the more abstract sense of mythology.
I thought CrazyMom was like a lighthouse keeper. Isolated, alone, but with a specific important job to do, one that apparently she was either chosen or manipulated into taking. She called the shipwreck survivors "people," like it was a derogatory term. MIB also called the people brought to the island in derogatory terms: people always "fight, destroy and corrupt." But Jacob remarked it all was "progress."
Which leads to the strange behavior of Jacob. If it is true that he continues to bring people to the island (like CrazyMom did to find her successor by shipwrecks), as a demi-god why did he need people to build temples or Dharma stations? Likewise, why would he need to leave the island to recruit in order to protect it? Besides, that would prove MIB was right: there was something "across the sea." But maybe bringing people to the island for centuries was all Jacob's cruel, new game with his brother, that "lowly people" are bad and their CrazyMom was right. However, "across the sea" could have used as a metaphor. It could mean across the galaxy, the plane of existence, the after life or dimensions.
One interesting discussion point was why Jacob or other demi-god on the island need people to build huge monuments or temples. Or why MIB/Smokey needs a dead body in order to take human form.
The island powers do not enable the guardian to create mass - he simply can influence people. Jacob seemingly can't just blink, and presto - we have a lighthouse. So proponents of "the Genie theory" that island guardians could create anything with a blink of an eye surrendered with this explanation. If Jacob, MIB or smoke monsters cannot create objects or things out of thin air (or in nature with fundamental elements), then that could mean that they themselves have no cohesive mass - - - that they are truly spirits seeking a material world.
I observed that commentators were looking for a time frame for this episode, I thought the only real clue was Claudia, her dress and appearance. I think she represents Claudia Quinta, a Roman leader of the Cult of the Great Mother, circa 205 BC. (There is a National Art Gallery painting of her). She was instrumental in bringing ashore Cybele, the Roman goddess of fertility, earth, caves and mountains to Rome from Greece. It is from 210 BC to 30 BC when the world had the three great civilizations still in place (Egyptian, Greek and Roman). That could explain where hieroglyphs, Greek symbols and Latin can converge on the island.
5. The creation of a smoke monster.
It was quite debatable whether Jacob's killing of his brother by throwing him into the light cave created the smoke monster, or the fact of throwing a body into the cave released a smoke monster. But it seems certain that MIB is a smoke monster. That the smoke monster needed Jacob's brother's body in order to take human form. But in taking that human form, the inconsistent science-fiction is how then did the new smoke monster retain all MIB's memories?
If the life force embodies life, death, and rebirth, then I do not see how mortal man could transform it into healing temple water (unless the death of MIB was the change allowing the guardian to control its properties.) I got the impression that CrazyMom and Jacob's powers were different than the light force. Many fans thought the light force might effect different people in different ways, and this might also depend on length of exposure. For Rose, just being on the island cured her cancer. For Locke - it allowed him to walk again. But for Ben, it caused him to have a spinal tumor. It may have been responsible for all the pregnant women not giving birth on the island. But then again, it allowed Claire to give birth to Aaron.
One main issue was that the EM life force was stable in the cave at the surface of the island. There was no reason to confine it in the Hatch, or have a "release " computer code. Also, if the light is a natural phenomenon, then anyone came in direct contact with the light, they should have also turned into Smoke Monsters (that means Ben and Locke turning the FDW or Desmond when the Hatch blew up).
In these older time frame episodes, we do hear a louder "clicking" sound and a deep animal moaning when Smokey appears - - - and the smoke itself is highly charged particles and electric flashes. It sounds like a mechanical creature. But as time passes, the Smoke Monster has less noises attached to it. Is this progress or better technology? And as such, is Smokey truly self aware?
6. The Jacob-MIB dynamic.
We have seen ghost Jacob in adult form speaking to Hurley, why would there be a need for a young ghost Jacob running around the jungle to bug Flocke? If so, did this confirm that Jacob can make multiple apparitions like MIB-Smokey?
One troublesome aspect of this episode was that it created more illogical patterns in the MIB character. If MIB's memories in Smokey may have led him manipulate people brought to the island into creating the FDW. If MIB-Smokey wanted to leave, it could take human form and turn the wheel as Flocke (who has been seen moving objects). But in a thousand years, Smokey never turned the wheel. Unless, turning the wheel destroys him or if he is flashed to the outside world, his non-human substance would cease to be.
But we have been told that Jacob was the one who has been bringing people to the island. Was it was not for MIB's sake? One explanation is that Jacob accepted the fact that he caused a cascade of events that led to both his CrazyMom's and brother's death. His world had ended. He was left with a substitute brother, the smoke monster. He was looking for a candidate so he could die (his punishment) and rejoin his real brother in death, but he had not found one person who would "accept" the position as guardian.
But is the real island conflict simply that MIB's ghost does not want Jacob to scheme his way off the island by death; he wants to continually punish Jacob for what he did to MIB by keeping Jacob on the island for eternity?
Viewers made symbolic assumptions that Jacob (white) as being good as the "guardian" of the light while MIB-Smokey (black) being bad, evil and a killing machine. But what if the opposite was true? What if the viewers have been conned into believing just Jacob's view of the island?
7. The fan angst.
A large part of the discussion board comments centered around where the story was heading; and the anxiety mounted that there was too much new information and not enough old conclusions to feel good about the final result. With two episodes to go, the series climax was upon us. But it did not seem like a the end of a thrilling rollercoaster ride.
Comments like:
" . . . the more I see the more that the ending looks forced."
"OK Lost staff. Go back and figure out how we can quickly tie up some loose ends and make it look like we really had a huge vision. When we didn't."
"(I) feel like we are getting all these tiny little "bones" thrown in at the end. All sizzle and no steak. Feeling cheated and a little duped at this point."
"I am holding on to hope that maybe, just maybe, I am being way too cynical and negative and that the show and Damon/Carlton will prove us wrong."
"For me the wheels are falling off the show's consistency, and the result feels cobbled-together."
"What was the point of showing us the Adam and Eve skeletons to eventually show us that they were the MIB and Mommy. What was the point of the revelation?"
One explanation for the viewer concern was that week's poster angst is that the Across the Sea episode seems totally out of place. But if you look back, the production values of cutting off scenes, jumbling the time sequences, flashes were all to create aura of mystery as much as the underlying story, had been a long simmering show critique. In standard story telling, there is a beginning middle and end. The story starts with action, character development, reaction, character choices, climax, then character change. It has always appeared that TPTB wanted to slice out pieces of those conventional story sections and show them out of order to keep viewers in the dark as long as possible.
However, one can tell the viewer what is going on in the background without telling the main characters; classic horror movies do that --- "don't open that door!" moments.
A few commentators really hated the episode. To some, the episode was so disappointing. It's not that we didn't get answers. It's that the answers were stupid.
The issue with this show is that they throw these mysteries at you, and you keep thinking "Wow, what in the world could explain what just happened??" And then you start to wonder if the writers are just making it up as they go along, and there's really nothing behind any of it. If this episode's answers represent what was behind it all, then yes, the writers were just making it up as they go along, and it was all just arbitrary. And finally, their explanation for what was behind it all is just lame.
For example, the Donkey Wheel. We wanted to know what it was, how it worked, why it worked, etc. The answer is: The MIB started building it because some ancient people had "interesting ideas" and because he somehow if he turned it he'd get off the island. How did he know that? Because he's special. That is basically a non-answer. "Because it's magic."
Then the cave. We've been told the island is special in some way, and that various people are trying to get something from it or protect that something. So what is that something? It's... some magical life/death/whatever that's inside every person. Sorry, that is not an answer. It doesn't tie anything together. It just pretends to give an answer to what is behind everything.
Then there's the characters' motivations. Why does Smokey want to get off the island? Because a woman killed his real mother and he wants to go back to where he came from. Really? That's the motivation behind the last two seasons? As I said at the top, that is definitely a concrete answer, but it's just a stupid one.
And that may be LOST's greatest success and its greatest weakness: fan expectations.
A few viewers hoped that there was a possibility that the next two episodes will tie things together better or give better answers that aren't so lame. But contrarians thought at this stage that view seems pretty naive.
Would the big questions really be answered? Simple examples were posted like the question was posed by Charlie in the pilot episode: "Where are we?" This poster did not want speculation and theories in the end, but wanted to to know what the island was! That seems like a reasonable request; when you get to the last page of a good mystery novel, you want to know. You expect to gain full knowledge to appreciate the entire work to confirm your entertainment investment in the novel.
Another poster made this comment "I think the disappointment ahead could be that if LOST is the story of the resolution of the Jacob-MIB conflict (which was hidden for five seasons), people will think that all the other story lines were filler."
That cast a dark shadow of pause within the community.
In trying to find deeper meaning in this episode, one could speculate MIB's memory of "clever" people with ideas about the life energy could be used to change the past. There are a few common things that both Jacob and MIB would jointly like to correct: a) MIB killing CrazyMom; b) Jacob killing his brother and turning him into Smokey; or c) CrazyMom killing Claudia. The search for time travel may have been the quest, "the progress" of the brothers to make amends with their own Past mistakes. Once they can achieve it, their misery ends.
It appeared that Jacob and MIB had no knowledge of time travel. Bringing people from the great civilizations was the means to their end, but human nature, personality conflicts and greed destroyed all hope for Jacob-MIB's getting their time machine. The problem with this theory is that the 815ers had no scientific skill sets to create time machines or improve on the technology. You would think Jacob would have targeted nuclear scientists, quantum physics professors, Steven Hawking.
The search for time travel may have been the quest, "the progress" of the brothers to make amends with their own Past mistakes. Once they can achieve it, their misery ends. That would answer a lot of questions. But it would not change the feeling that the 815 characters were merely a long filler arc to a three episode Jacob and MIB reunion.
Such angst turned into possible "bad endings" for the show.
How in the hell are they going to rap up the ENTIRE show up in 2.5 hours?! Many viewers could not see how it could be accomplished in a reasonable fashion. Many thought The Answer must be easy...simple. (A head slap moment - - - why didn't we think of that!)
But the "quick fix" endings did not stir confidence in the LOST community.
A. One simple trick ending would be to have the Dharma people in hospital beds in a mind experiment. BUT their body is not really there!!!!! It is too late in the series to throw the whole concept into reverse by saying it was all about mind control experiments (even though the series is riddled with such clues like Room 23, Santa Rosa, Eloise the rat maze). But if TPTB are so stubborn in the position that the series is all about character development, character "destruction" is a viable alternative.
B. Another ending was that the show runners lied to the viewers when they screamed loudly in the first season the island was not "purgatory." TPTB stated that the series was all about character development. Supporters of that view remarked that it could be about a figurative purgatory. The concept of purgatory is built in to the human experience. Life, death and rebirth. The characters trials and growth to redemption in a figurative or symbolic purgatory could be the answer, as any good character study always is.
However, a review of the show themes was contradictory.
White v. Black theme is open to several interpretations to the literal (Jacob and MIB) to the philosophical (good v. evil). It may or may not be the key to the finale. Redemption/resurrection was the long dismissed purgatory concept, which is still a viable solution if the big premise is about testing souls in the after life. The EM energy on the island could be a possible solution if properly explained. The smoke monster is playing a factor as the story winds down since it is the embodiment of MIB, the guardian's departed brother. The Numbers as mere markers for candidates names held no real significance except coincidence (which probably bummed out theorists the most). The concept of people being "brought" to the island is another unknown part of the solution or possible mere story line filler. unless we find out what the island is. Widmore, the Others , Dharma and the Tailies. With the exception of whatever role Widmore will play, the Others, Dharma and the Tailies were more filler story arcs. The Dharma story line appears to be immaterial to the end game. The Hatch seems immaterial except for the introduction of Desmond, whose final role is unknown. Blast Door Map appears irrelevant to the final solution.. Tawaret and Egyptology appear irrelevant unless the premise is about the after life.
Part of the collective angst is that many of the seemingly important elements of the show could be rendered immaterial or irrelevant, while new concepts out of left field play a more important role in concluding the show.
C. The idea that the main characters are NOT who we think they are; they are like kids playing make-believe roles of adults: Jack is not a doctor, Kate is not a criminal, Sawyer is not a con man.
Example, Jack. Both the marshal and Boone died in his care. He did not deliver Aaron. His surgery on Ben was filled with medical errors. We are shown Jack as a doctor, but it is a delusion by a person who wants us to look at him in a different way. If you want to find out-of-place episodes, look to the one where Jack goes to Thailand. What knowledgeable, successful doctor would go to Thailand, roll around with a crazy woman in dirty opium dens, and get a back alley tattoo "He walks among us, but is not one of us?" That episode made was a clue that Jack was not a doctor, but a rebellious drop out rich kid traveling the world seeking adventure at daddy's expense. Add "daddy issues" to the concept of transference (or even a world of make believe), you can have an individual with a neurosis that tries to change a person's past to succeed their parents, break parental controls, or escape from their own boring reality. The open question would be what is the actual setting for this childlike escapism.
8. Prediction
Several posters thought that we would still talking about all of this stuff 4-5 years later....
It will be interesting to see if the ending is so open-ended, that fans will continue to debate its ending for years, or if they will tie it up into a neat bow like so many from the "We want answers" camp are demanding. Seems to me the more that is left unanswered, the greater the lifespan this series will have...???
Sadly, there was no stable will be a cottage industry after LOST ended for fans to write about how they would have wrapped things up (to counterbalance any disappointment).
Thursday, February 14, 2013
REBOOT: FINAL 4
Now that the reruns have concluded on cable, and the madness of March will soon be upon us, it is time to look back what fans thought were the key issues, comments or direction LOST was heading in the final four episodes. The commentary is based on views expressed right after the broadcast in the LOST community blogs that I haunted:
THE CANDIDATE
This should have been the launch pad for the neat tie up of the series. But instead, it led to some harsh comments on the show's direction.
1. The treatment of children and parenting was a hot button. When Sun was trapped in the submarine, she never used their daughter, Ji Yeon, as a reason for Jin to save himself. They never thought that Jin saving himself for the sake of their daughter was important. Many viewers saw this as a major character flaw. It was a stupid and illogical that newborn parents would not have any strong bond with their only child. There appeared to be a total lack of parental instincts, common sense and the value of human life as the series wound down.
2. The submarine aspects of the show drove fans up the sea wall. Granted, it was a television show, but one that TPTB claimed to have crafted super-intelligently, but could not hold water. People observed the obvious and significant issues with the scene:
A. The sub was located inside a harbor. It would take several minutes to leave the harbor to get into open water to dive.
B. Within a minute after diving, Jack finds a bomb below deck which meant that the submarine was not at any deep depth. Realistically, it should have still been on the surface in the harbor. The camera angle on the sub was level; this was not a "crash dive" but a normal one. Normal dive can be at most 50 feet per minute. Based on the sequence of events, the sub was probably less than 20 feet below the surface with more than 3 minutes left on the bomb clock (i.e. plenty of time to surface).
C. Submarines fixtures are all built in structures. A cabinet coming loose and trapping Sun was highly unrealistic. In addition, Sun being pinned by wall pipes meant that she had to wedge herself behind them before the explosion. Really? She did that?
D. Sayid taking the ticking bomb down the hallway, but not shutting the blast door was dumb, too. Submarines are built to be water proof segments. Besides, the bomb blast down the ship hall would not have dislodged the cabinets and pipes to trap Sun.
If they were trying to re-create the Looking Glass death scene, the set-up for Charlie's death was more believable than the Jin-Sun tragedy.
3. Many people observed the unbelievable inconsistency in the vague explanation and motivation of Flocke. First he said he needed all the 815ers to leave "with him." Then he needed to kill them all. Then he needed to kill all the candidates.
If Flocke needs all of the candidates to die in order for him to leave the Island, then why didn't he just let Widmore's mortar bombs kill the candidates? Zoe came over to the camp and threatened to bomb the camp if Flock didn't return Desmond? Why didn't Flocke just let her bomb the camp? He had all the candidates there except for Jin (and Jin might not even be a candidate - he had Sun which gave him a 50/50 chance of possibly having ALL the candidates in one place at the same time).
The missed opportunities for Flocke to kill off the candidates was unreal. With the sonic fences off, couldn't MIB as Smokey have easily killed Widmore and his entire group during the bear cage scene? When Zoe and Widmore's gang came to ask for Desmond back why they weren't all just "Smokied" right there. Certainly would have weakened Widmore's position and given MIB free reign to finish what he started.
4. The whole explosive nature of blowing up the plane to stop Flocke from leaving had one big story line hole: If Richard and Ben had stable Dharma C4 at the barracks, there was no reason for Ilana's crew go get the dangerous and unstable Black Rock dynamite. So no matter what any character said afterward, Ilana's death had no meaning or purpose. But it did follow a dark theme as the series was winding down: the shows turned into more of a human hunt than character development.
5. There were creeping major concerns about what we would find out about the island. Fused with that concern was the open question of what the sideways world meant, if anything, to the resolution of the island story. I disliked the sideways world then because I thought it is a last season crutch to be probably used as "an out" to not explain the mysteries that have piled up in the previous five seasons.
For the first five seasons, the island world could have been classified either as a) real, b) real people in a different realm, c) the after life, or d) something else (dreams, mind control).
By adding the sideways story arc, as its own contained and separate universe, the classification of the island world to the final story resolution multiplied the confusion. There is now at least 16 possible explanations of the saga (example, island world is (d) mind control in the sideways (a) real world; or island world is (c) after life test of redemption to pass on to (a)/(c) a "new life" in the sideways world.)
The idea of a "multi-universe" explanation was received with tepid remorse like old theories such as
815 flies through the electromagnetic burst which causes all sleeping passengers to have a collective dream/nightmare; and they "die" on the island by "waking up."
Many fans commented on another dilemma, the EM quandary. Typically in other television shows, a magical particle/energy substance had been used as a device to jump to alternate universes. If the island EM was used as a portal between universes, why was Widmore so keen on taking control of it? If Widmore is "amped" on getting this thing to work then he is in knowlege of an Alt uni. If that's the case, which one of the universes is he trying to "jump" to, or who is he wanting to "jump" where to do what? He was rich and powerful in both universes. Both universes were self contained and the characters functioning independently of the other universe.
A device such as an "EM field" is frequently used to keep things in, or keep things out.
So several people raised a big question: What is Widmore's ultimate purpose for the home-made Stargate looking thing that buzzes or chars people but leaves bunnies unharmed? And that is another critical flaw in the story: the EM properties are inconsistent from season to season.
6. There was a growing angst that the series might not end well. Commentators did not want the show to be about the after life, or something else like dreams or a mind control experiment. TPTB have been so adamant for so long about rejecting both options that they would lose all credibility to pull either of those rabbits out of the hat at the end of the series.
The mythology of the show had to be crystalized in order to attain full acceptance. But as the creative force behind the series, Darlton viewed the show as primarily about the characters and their arc of redemption. The idea of having the characters already dead, or in some sort of Bob Newhart-Bobby Ewing extended dream sequence destroys the reality of everything that has occurred over the first five seasons. Fans wanted to have confirmation that the events of the first five seasons were actual "real" events in the Lost universe. Any ending had to accomodate that premise and not dilute the viewer and character investment in what has already happened.
7. The beginning of the Big Why? questions.
Why is there an EM breach? (Is this the portal between the parallel universes that needs to be capped?)
Why are humans brought to the island if the EM science is beyond their knowledge and technological skills? (Are tasty human souls the real food for Smokey?)
Why would the guardians treat their island mission (holding back the breach) as a game?
Why did several characters say "the Island isn't done with you yet."
Why did/does the island move in time?
Why are there "rules" which some people know (or think they know) but we, as viewers, don't know?
Why is the vague explanation "whatever happened happened" so important in the island universe?
Why is Widmore so important to the island's survival?
8. There was a growing concern about the relationship between the island and sideways stories.
Most critical was question "why are the two worlds time shifted?"
The sideways world is set in 2004.
The island world is currently in 2007.
If a single universe, looping on itself:
How could sideways Desmond, Charlie or Faraday "pull" memories from the island future, if their present was already changed in past?
If parallel universes:
How could sideways Desmond, Charlie or Faraday "pull" memories from the island future, when there is no "overlap" in both worlds to act as a portal? (the island in sideways 2004 is underwater, so no of the 815ers are there to start any process of change).
Some commentators responded that what happened in one universe, did not happen in the other. It is relative. Only a person's consciousness would pass from time line to time line. However, the debate went on: that was a paradoxical point: there is no need for consciousness to move from one dimension to the other if the parallel universes are already self-contained, separate time lines. The island incident did not reboot a single time line/universe because apparently the island time line still exists in 2007. There is no evidence that the island incident created the sideways universe. A paradox is a statement or proposition that, despite sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self-contradictory.
Many fans thought he sideways universe was created long before "the incident," and long before Flight 815.The two time lines co-exist but the mystical forces that are unexplained on the island allow certain individuals that are on the island to transcend the other time-line on a consciousness level. Memories of an alternate life are uploaded with the help of a special catalyst. Some thought Desmond was that catalyst.
Others cited the example of the Steven King story, the Langoliers. In that story, ten sleeping passengers on an airplane awake to find that all their fellow passengers and crew missing. An off-duty pilot lands the plane at a deserted airport where nothing inhabits this dead world except for monsters who devour people who are lazy or waste time. The characters come to realize that they have gone through a time rip, and try to find a way back to their own time and world.
Viewers began to doubt which time line was "real" or most significant: the island or the sideways. Trying to logically deduce which time line was correct was hard. The flashbacks and sideways being part of the same time line because key character differences, like Desmond knowing Penny before the island events in the flashbacks. However, if the island events are the "fake" time line, that is probably the worst possible story line because many viewers had invested five years in it.
Many fans hated and loathed the idea of the sideways universe was being "projected" as a reward universe for those who made deals with MIB. That made little sense, since the show that started off with survival of a plane crash on an mysterious island searching for rescue as its main plot, is turning into one massive human hunt by MIB. It did not seem MIB/Smokey cared about anyone but itself.
So The Candidate episode did not quell many anxieties in the show's final direction.
THE CANDIDATE
This should have been the launch pad for the neat tie up of the series. But instead, it led to some harsh comments on the show's direction.
1. The treatment of children and parenting was a hot button. When Sun was trapped in the submarine, she never used their daughter, Ji Yeon, as a reason for Jin to save himself. They never thought that Jin saving himself for the sake of their daughter was important. Many viewers saw this as a major character flaw. It was a stupid and illogical that newborn parents would not have any strong bond with their only child. There appeared to be a total lack of parental instincts, common sense and the value of human life as the series wound down.
2. The submarine aspects of the show drove fans up the sea wall. Granted, it was a television show, but one that TPTB claimed to have crafted super-intelligently, but could not hold water. People observed the obvious and significant issues with the scene:
A. The sub was located inside a harbor. It would take several minutes to leave the harbor to get into open water to dive.
B. Within a minute after diving, Jack finds a bomb below deck which meant that the submarine was not at any deep depth. Realistically, it should have still been on the surface in the harbor. The camera angle on the sub was level; this was not a "crash dive" but a normal one. Normal dive can be at most 50 feet per minute. Based on the sequence of events, the sub was probably less than 20 feet below the surface with more than 3 minutes left on the bomb clock (i.e. plenty of time to surface).
C. Submarines fixtures are all built in structures. A cabinet coming loose and trapping Sun was highly unrealistic. In addition, Sun being pinned by wall pipes meant that she had to wedge herself behind them before the explosion. Really? She did that?
D. Sayid taking the ticking bomb down the hallway, but not shutting the blast door was dumb, too. Submarines are built to be water proof segments. Besides, the bomb blast down the ship hall would not have dislodged the cabinets and pipes to trap Sun.
If they were trying to re-create the Looking Glass death scene, the set-up for Charlie's death was more believable than the Jin-Sun tragedy.
3. Many people observed the unbelievable inconsistency in the vague explanation and motivation of Flocke. First he said he needed all the 815ers to leave "with him." Then he needed to kill them all. Then he needed to kill all the candidates.
If Flocke needs all of the candidates to die in order for him to leave the Island, then why didn't he just let Widmore's mortar bombs kill the candidates? Zoe came over to the camp and threatened to bomb the camp if Flock didn't return Desmond? Why didn't Flocke just let her bomb the camp? He had all the candidates there except for Jin (and Jin might not even be a candidate - he had Sun which gave him a 50/50 chance of possibly having ALL the candidates in one place at the same time).
The missed opportunities for Flocke to kill off the candidates was unreal. With the sonic fences off, couldn't MIB as Smokey have easily killed Widmore and his entire group during the bear cage scene? When Zoe and Widmore's gang came to ask for Desmond back why they weren't all just "Smokied" right there. Certainly would have weakened Widmore's position and given MIB free reign to finish what he started.
4. The whole explosive nature of blowing up the plane to stop Flocke from leaving had one big story line hole: If Richard and Ben had stable Dharma C4 at the barracks, there was no reason for Ilana's crew go get the dangerous and unstable Black Rock dynamite. So no matter what any character said afterward, Ilana's death had no meaning or purpose. But it did follow a dark theme as the series was winding down: the shows turned into more of a human hunt than character development.
5. There were creeping major concerns about what we would find out about the island. Fused with that concern was the open question of what the sideways world meant, if anything, to the resolution of the island story. I disliked the sideways world then because I thought it is a last season crutch to be probably used as "an out" to not explain the mysteries that have piled up in the previous five seasons.
For the first five seasons, the island world could have been classified either as a) real, b) real people in a different realm, c) the after life, or d) something else (dreams, mind control).
By adding the sideways story arc, as its own contained and separate universe, the classification of the island world to the final story resolution multiplied the confusion. There is now at least 16 possible explanations of the saga (example, island world is (d) mind control in the sideways (a) real world; or island world is (c) after life test of redemption to pass on to (a)/(c) a "new life" in the sideways world.)
The idea of a "multi-universe" explanation was received with tepid remorse like old theories such as
815 flies through the electromagnetic burst which causes all sleeping passengers to have a collective dream/nightmare; and they "die" on the island by "waking up."
Many fans commented on another dilemma, the EM quandary. Typically in other television shows, a magical particle/energy substance had been used as a device to jump to alternate universes. If the island EM was used as a portal between universes, why was Widmore so keen on taking control of it? If Widmore is "amped" on getting this thing to work then he is in knowlege of an Alt uni. If that's the case, which one of the universes is he trying to "jump" to, or who is he wanting to "jump" where to do what? He was rich and powerful in both universes. Both universes were self contained and the characters functioning independently of the other universe.
A device such as an "EM field" is frequently used to keep things in, or keep things out.
So several people raised a big question: What is Widmore's ultimate purpose for the home-made Stargate looking thing that buzzes or chars people but leaves bunnies unharmed? And that is another critical flaw in the story: the EM properties are inconsistent from season to season.
6. There was a growing angst that the series might not end well. Commentators did not want the show to be about the after life, or something else like dreams or a mind control experiment. TPTB have been so adamant for so long about rejecting both options that they would lose all credibility to pull either of those rabbits out of the hat at the end of the series.
The mythology of the show had to be crystalized in order to attain full acceptance. But as the creative force behind the series, Darlton viewed the show as primarily about the characters and their arc of redemption. The idea of having the characters already dead, or in some sort of Bob Newhart-Bobby Ewing extended dream sequence destroys the reality of everything that has occurred over the first five seasons. Fans wanted to have confirmation that the events of the first five seasons were actual "real" events in the Lost universe. Any ending had to accomodate that premise and not dilute the viewer and character investment in what has already happened.
7. The beginning of the Big Why? questions.
Why is there an EM breach? (Is this the portal between the parallel universes that needs to be capped?)
Why are humans brought to the island if the EM science is beyond their knowledge and technological skills? (Are tasty human souls the real food for Smokey?)
Why would the guardians treat their island mission (holding back the breach) as a game?
Why did several characters say "the Island isn't done with you yet."
Why did/does the island move in time?
Why are there "rules" which some people know (or think they know) but we, as viewers, don't know?
Why is the vague explanation "whatever happened happened" so important in the island universe?
Why is Widmore so important to the island's survival?
8. There was a growing concern about the relationship between the island and sideways stories.
Most critical was question "why are the two worlds time shifted?"
The sideways world is set in 2004.
The island world is currently in 2007.
If a single universe, looping on itself:
How could sideways Desmond, Charlie or Faraday "pull" memories from the island future, if their present was already changed in past?
If parallel universes:
How could sideways Desmond, Charlie or Faraday "pull" memories from the island future, when there is no "overlap" in both worlds to act as a portal? (the island in sideways 2004 is underwater, so no of the 815ers are there to start any process of change).
Some commentators responded that what happened in one universe, did not happen in the other. It is relative. Only a person's consciousness would pass from time line to time line. However, the debate went on: that was a paradoxical point: there is no need for consciousness to move from one dimension to the other if the parallel universes are already self-contained, separate time lines. The island incident did not reboot a single time line/universe because apparently the island time line still exists in 2007. There is no evidence that the island incident created the sideways universe. A paradox is a statement or proposition that, despite sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self-contradictory.
Many fans thought he sideways universe was created long before "the incident," and long before Flight 815.The two time lines co-exist but the mystical forces that are unexplained on the island allow certain individuals that are on the island to transcend the other time-line on a consciousness level. Memories of an alternate life are uploaded with the help of a special catalyst. Some thought Desmond was that catalyst.
Others cited the example of the Steven King story, the Langoliers. In that story, ten sleeping passengers on an airplane awake to find that all their fellow passengers and crew missing. An off-duty pilot lands the plane at a deserted airport where nothing inhabits this dead world except for monsters who devour people who are lazy or waste time. The characters come to realize that they have gone through a time rip, and try to find a way back to their own time and world.
Viewers began to doubt which time line was "real" or most significant: the island or the sideways. Trying to logically deduce which time line was correct was hard. The flashbacks and sideways being part of the same time line because key character differences, like Desmond knowing Penny before the island events in the flashbacks. However, if the island events are the "fake" time line, that is probably the worst possible story line because many viewers had invested five years in it.
Many fans hated and loathed the idea of the sideways universe was being "projected" as a reward universe for those who made deals with MIB. That made little sense, since the show that started off with survival of a plane crash on an mysterious island searching for rescue as its main plot, is turning into one massive human hunt by MIB. It did not seem MIB/Smokey cared about anyone but itself.
So The Candidate episode did not quell many anxieties in the show's final direction.
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