The island hosted a second significant plane crash, Flight 316.
Flight 316 was piloted by Frank Lapidus, who based upon his background and mental state after Flight 815 crashed, would not have resumed being a commercial pilot. He was one of the few people to escape the island after being rescued by Penny's boat.
Flight 316 was a Boeing 737 from LA to Guam. Eloise Hawking told the O6 that this flight was their only way to return to the island. The plane crash landed on the Hydra Island in 2007, but not before Jack, Kate, Hurley and Sayid were teleported by a white light to the Island in 1977. Now, the four that went to 1977 were all contacted by Locke off-island in his quest to get everyone to go back to the island. The other person on board who had contact with Locke off-island was Ben, who did not time flash to 1977 (possibly because his child self was on the island at that time). Ben wound up facing the ghost of Locke (MIB as Flocke) with the survivors of the Ajira flight.
Fourteen days after this crash, Frank miraculously pilots the damaged plane off the island. Kate, Claire, Alpert, Sawyer and Miles were on board. We do not know what happened to them after take off, or whether they actually made it to land.
The significance of the number, 316, was not lost on fans.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that
whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John
3:16, which some scholars call "the Bible in a nutshell."
The theme of eternal life is central to many unified theories of LOST.
Who was the son?
Who were the believers?
How were the 815ers granted eternal life?
None of the characters expressed any devotion to Christianity. Clearly, none of them practiced devout religious beliefs while on the island.
The fact that the Ajira plane went through some sort of island barrier is a key. This barrier had to have some intelligence as it separated four passengers from the rest of the people on board. However, three people previously on the island, Sun, Frank and Ben were not transported to 1977. No one knows why (except for the writer's attempt to jack up the drama of Sun still being cut off from Jin.) The rest of the Ajira passengers would find their own demise as red shirts.
Besides returning the O6 to the island, what was the purpose of the plane? It was the last means of escape for a few lucky people. It some ways it was a dream vindication for Frank (and his pilot skills). And a vessel for Flocke to round up the remaining candidates so he could blow them up (the submarine became the best means of accomplishing that task).
There is still no clear explanation of why there was a time duality on the island when Ajira passed through one spacial location. Unless the island itself was not real in the conventional planetary sense of being a Pacific island mass. A distortion in the time axis would also suggest a distortion in the spacial axis in the space time continuum. The island was in another dimension. How it intersects with the Earth is still unclear, but if it was a spiritual world (as the whispers claimed), then it is like an onion skin that surrounds the planet with limited jumps between the worlds of the living and the worlds of the dead.
So what did this flight represent? It was symbolic of the grief that the O6 had from leaving their fellow passengers behind on the island. It was the means to return. It was also a carrier of death, as the other passengers were killed on the Hydra island. It also was the means of escape, as it took off from the Hydra Island with several people on board. Was their fate merely delayed? Or did they actually cheat death?
Many may believe that Ajira 316 was just another prop to build tension and drama in the last desperate hours of the show. That may be its only purpose. But one would hope for more.
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
LEVELS OF DEATH
There is still a nagging question about the sideways purgatory stinger. First, it came out of left field and led many viewers to question the first season plane crash as being unsurvivable. Second, it clearly stated that all the characters were in fact dead, but some died long before and others long after Jack did. But Jack realized his death in the church before we saw him actually "die" on the island. Third, the story telling vehicle of flashbacks, flash forwards and leaps in time create an uncertainty of WHEN the characters "died."
If death is the ending, when did the characters actually die?
It is not as simple answer. For those who steadfastly believe that the characters survived the plane crash, then bear in mind in the scheme of LOST universe, the characters were "alive" in their own perception and interaction with people and objects in the sideways world. It was "real" to them, even though they did not realize it was not the Earth existence we know as life.
As such, there is no prohibition that this perception of a sideways "real" life could extend to the island world, or even to each character's flashback or background events. In other words, LOST may have been a show about death from the very beginning.
I speculated long ago that deep within the background stories of the main characters, there were chilling life and death moments which we were led to believe each character survived. But what if they did not?
No one knows what happens after death. Many cultures believe a human soul must travel through inter-dimensional portals to find paradise. Some religions believe a soul is judged in hell or the various levels of the underworld before it is cleansed or purged of its sins to be worthy for heaven.
The LOST universe could be a construction of various levels or stages of the after life. If during childhood, the main characters were killed by the accidents or traumatic events in their lives, then those child souls could have been given an opportunity to perceive or "live" a new life in a sideways world like existence. Those could be contained in the recent or adult flashbacks; illusions and dreams of children coming to "life." Once those souls ran their course in their first after life level, they were rounded up and boarded Flight 815 for the next level of spiritual attainment, the island. With themes like sacrifice, trust, redemption and judgment, the island is the ideal place for a religious component or a place where lost souls could get rid of regrets or selfish desires in order to move on to the next level of spiritual existence.
It is probably hard to imagine that the characters who boarded Flight 815 in Sydney were already dead. But it does make sense in reference to the season finale in the church. The characters died at different times in different places and they could not move on without finding each other. The whole series then did not have to follow Earth bound concepts of linear time, physics, time or any form of relativity because it was not of this planet.
Now, the show's creators and writers would dismiss this theory as nonsense because they continue to be adamant that the characters did not die in the plane crash. Again, it may be parsing words, but if they were already "dead" before the plane crash, then it would be true that they would not die in the conventional sense in the plane crash on the island.
For example, Locke's "miracle birth" aftermath was actually the beginning of his soul's first life in the after life. It would have been highly improbable that a premature baby injured in a car collision in rural America in the 1950s would have survived the trauma with limited medical technology. This theory is bolstered by the fact that an immortal, Richard Alpert, visited him in the hospital.
Jacob was then not recruiting human beings but lost souls who were given a second chance to live a normal (abet fantasy) life.
It would also explain why Michael, after he left the island, could not kill himself. Mr. Friendly told him that the island was not through with him; he had work to do. A supernatural place was affecting Michael's suicide attempts; therefore, off-island was also a realm of supernatural actions. They could be classified as one in the same. If the island was a place of death then so to would be the off-island.
And then there is the Aaron problem. How could he be "born" twice? He was "born" just as the series ended in the sideways purgatory where everyone present was already dead (but just not aware of it). Aaron was so born earlier on the island. How could that be when the island did not or could not allow births of babies (if the island is hell or the after life that makes sense: who can bring new human life in the after life that is made up solely of souls). So this gets the trace back to Claire and her auto accident which severely injured and ultimately killed her mother. It could have also killed herself and her baby, leading the moments after the accident her first stage in the after life. Since Aaron was never born, he was always a spirit in the show who would manifest himself when Claire needed him.
This levels of death theory tries to unify the various aspects of a disjointed story line under one single premise: death.
If death is the ending, when did the characters actually die?
It is not as simple answer. For those who steadfastly believe that the characters survived the plane crash, then bear in mind in the scheme of LOST universe, the characters were "alive" in their own perception and interaction with people and objects in the sideways world. It was "real" to them, even though they did not realize it was not the Earth existence we know as life.
As such, there is no prohibition that this perception of a sideways "real" life could extend to the island world, or even to each character's flashback or background events. In other words, LOST may have been a show about death from the very beginning.
No one knows what happens after death. Many cultures believe a human soul must travel through inter-dimensional portals to find paradise. Some religions believe a soul is judged in hell or the various levels of the underworld before it is cleansed or purged of its sins to be worthy for heaven.
The LOST universe could be a construction of various levels or stages of the after life. If during childhood, the main characters were killed by the accidents or traumatic events in their lives, then those child souls could have been given an opportunity to perceive or "live" a new life in a sideways world like existence. Those could be contained in the recent or adult flashbacks; illusions and dreams of children coming to "life." Once those souls ran their course in their first after life level, they were rounded up and boarded Flight 815 for the next level of spiritual attainment, the island. With themes like sacrifice, trust, redemption and judgment, the island is the ideal place for a religious component or a place where lost souls could get rid of regrets or selfish desires in order to move on to the next level of spiritual existence.
It is probably hard to imagine that the characters who boarded Flight 815 in Sydney were already dead. But it does make sense in reference to the season finale in the church. The characters died at different times in different places and they could not move on without finding each other. The whole series then did not have to follow Earth bound concepts of linear time, physics, time or any form of relativity because it was not of this planet.
Now, the show's creators and writers would dismiss this theory as nonsense because they continue to be adamant that the characters did not die in the plane crash. Again, it may be parsing words, but if they were already "dead" before the plane crash, then it would be true that they would not die in the conventional sense in the plane crash on the island.
For example, Locke's "miracle birth" aftermath was actually the beginning of his soul's first life in the after life. It would have been highly improbable that a premature baby injured in a car collision in rural America in the 1950s would have survived the trauma with limited medical technology. This theory is bolstered by the fact that an immortal, Richard Alpert, visited him in the hospital.
Jacob was then not recruiting human beings but lost souls who were given a second chance to live a normal (abet fantasy) life.
It would also explain why Michael, after he left the island, could not kill himself. Mr. Friendly told him that the island was not through with him; he had work to do. A supernatural place was affecting Michael's suicide attempts; therefore, off-island was also a realm of supernatural actions. They could be classified as one in the same. If the island was a place of death then so to would be the off-island.
And then there is the Aaron problem. How could he be "born" twice? He was "born" just as the series ended in the sideways purgatory where everyone present was already dead (but just not aware of it). Aaron was so born earlier on the island. How could that be when the island did not or could not allow births of babies (if the island is hell or the after life that makes sense: who can bring new human life in the after life that is made up solely of souls). So this gets the trace back to Claire and her auto accident which severely injured and ultimately killed her mother. It could have also killed herself and her baby, leading the moments after the accident her first stage in the after life. Since Aaron was never born, he was always a spirit in the show who would manifest himself when Claire needed him.
This levels of death theory tries to unify the various aspects of a disjointed story line under one single premise: death.
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
THE TOLL
A new clue opens this discussion of the big premise.
"We Sin Toll."
It is an anagram. TPTB loved to put anagram Easter eggs throughout the series.
We can all agree that Flight 815 was the biggest piece of the puzzle. It was of critical importance because those 324 people on board were either destined, kidnapped, trapped or caught by the island.
There were great pushes and pulls to get the main characters on that flight. Sun was supposed to leave Jin at the airport to flee her marriage, but relented at the end. Hurley rushed through the terminal and barely got on board. Sayid was not supposed to be on the flight at all, but he made a last minute change to stay a day to bury a friend that he had betrayed. It was more than just coincidence that the passenger manifest turned into cherry picking candidates for Jacob's lighthouse.
Jacob said that he had spied his candidates from the island. He knew about them. He had gone to see them. He touched them. He found each of them to have a common trait: a miserable life like his own. That is why he brought them to the island.
The question is whether Jacob manipulated each candidate or gave them the free will option to follow him. It would seem that Jacob had power over them and supernatural powers to get them to the island.
In Greek mythology, Charon or Kharon is the ferryman of Hades who carries the souls of the newly deceased across the rivers Styx and Acheron that divided the world of the living from the world of the dead. A coin to pay for passage was sometimes placed in or on the mouth of a dead person. Some authors say that those who could not pay the fee, or those whose bodies were left unburied, had to wander the shores for one hundred years (which may explain the island "whispers," trapped spirits who cannot move on.)
It is possible that Jacob was Charon, the ferryman who directed souls toward their after life journey.
Which brings us back to the new anagram.
There was always a question on where Jack was seated on the plane. There was confusion of whether it was Seat 23 A, 23 B or just before the crash, 23 C. In the plane scenes, there was no one seated next to Jack. However, during the eulogy at the memorial service for the dead passengers (Claire using the passenger manifest), Harold Wollstein was named as the person who was seated in 23 C.
We never saw Wollstein, in person or his body in the wreckage. However, the anagram for "Wollstein" is "We Sin Toll."
Was he, or better yet, Seat 23 C, the trigger for the ferry ride to the after life? In a plane load of sinners, was Jack marked to be the "toll" for everyone who "survived" the crash to begin their journey through the levels of the underworld to arrive in their sideways after life? In order for anyone associated with Jack to have a chance for a happy ending in heaven, Jack had to sacrifice himself on their behalf. Is that why Jack was last to awaken? Is that why Jack had no other life after MIB's defeat (like we presume Sawyer, Claire, Kate, Miles and Frank did after they left the island)?
If you believe in the big premise that the passengers died in the plane crash, but "lived" on in the underworld called the island, then Jack's "destiny" to become the island guardian and to save his friends souls would all be tied back to Jack being on Flight 815, and in the seat of from which "the devil" (as Jacob was called by MIB) extracted his toll.
"We Sin Toll."
It is an anagram. TPTB loved to put anagram Easter eggs throughout the series.
We can all agree that Flight 815 was the biggest piece of the puzzle. It was of critical importance because those 324 people on board were either destined, kidnapped, trapped or caught by the island.
There were great pushes and pulls to get the main characters on that flight. Sun was supposed to leave Jin at the airport to flee her marriage, but relented at the end. Hurley rushed through the terminal and barely got on board. Sayid was not supposed to be on the flight at all, but he made a last minute change to stay a day to bury a friend that he had betrayed. It was more than just coincidence that the passenger manifest turned into cherry picking candidates for Jacob's lighthouse.
Jacob said that he had spied his candidates from the island. He knew about them. He had gone to see them. He touched them. He found each of them to have a common trait: a miserable life like his own. That is why he brought them to the island.
The question is whether Jacob manipulated each candidate or gave them the free will option to follow him. It would seem that Jacob had power over them and supernatural powers to get them to the island.
In Greek mythology, Charon or Kharon is the ferryman of Hades who carries the souls of the newly deceased across the rivers Styx and Acheron that divided the world of the living from the world of the dead. A coin to pay for passage was sometimes placed in or on the mouth of a dead person. Some authors say that those who could not pay the fee, or those whose bodies were left unburied, had to wander the shores for one hundred years (which may explain the island "whispers," trapped spirits who cannot move on.)
It is possible that Jacob was Charon, the ferryman who directed souls toward their after life journey.
Which brings us back to the new anagram.
There was always a question on where Jack was seated on the plane. There was confusion of whether it was Seat 23 A, 23 B or just before the crash, 23 C. In the plane scenes, there was no one seated next to Jack. However, during the eulogy at the memorial service for the dead passengers (Claire using the passenger manifest), Harold Wollstein was named as the person who was seated in 23 C.
We never saw Wollstein, in person or his body in the wreckage. However, the anagram for "Wollstein" is "We Sin Toll."
Was he, or better yet, Seat 23 C, the trigger for the ferry ride to the after life? In a plane load of sinners, was Jack marked to be the "toll" for everyone who "survived" the crash to begin their journey through the levels of the underworld to arrive in their sideways after life? In order for anyone associated with Jack to have a chance for a happy ending in heaven, Jack had to sacrifice himself on their behalf. Is that why Jack was last to awaken? Is that why Jack had no other life after MIB's defeat (like we presume Sawyer, Claire, Kate, Miles and Frank did after they left the island)?
If you believe in the big premise that the passengers died in the plane crash, but "lived" on in the underworld called the island, then Jack's "destiny" to become the island guardian and to save his friends souls would all be tied back to Jack being on Flight 815, and in the seat of from which "the devil" (as Jacob was called by MIB) extracted his toll.
Monday, November 25, 2013
EXPECTATIONS
Expectations are a difficult thing to manage for a series showrunner. Fans may get ahead of the writer's curve. It also depends on the "set-up" of the series itself - - - the massive build up of story line, cliffhangers and hints at massive plot twists.
We were aware that there were great expectations for LOST's final season. There was even more expectations for the finale, which the producers wrangled more air time to finish their story. The finale pretty much split the fan base.
Last weekend, the television expectation game went into a global frenzy with the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special. For any television series to last six seasons is unique, but to last 50 years (with some interrupted periods) is improbable. The British series has survived the decades since the first airing by a clever concept of replacing the main character with new actors (an alien regeneration).
Science fiction has always been a niche market. But its fan base tends to be more loyal and rabid. The Doctor Who premise is actually quite simple. It is the story of a Time Lord, a man who can manipulate both time and space, to travel the universe to fight foes and observe historical events. The premise of this series was clear. It stated its story rules early on in the series. Fans accepted the notion that a blue box was bigger on the inside; that alien technology was more advanced than Earth's; and that one man with almost infinite knowledge can stop global invasions or disasters. Fans are not caught up in the how or why the Doctor can manipulate time, space, elements, or physical objects such as locks with a sonic screwdriver. Just as with Star Trek, the in-story concepts such as warp drive are taken as the explanation for impossible physics of the series, so the story can move forward with the characters not being bogged down with explaining the world around them.
The foundational elements of a science fiction show are critical to its viability and credibility. The canon on how the show's universe works is as important as the characters interacting inside that universe.
Which gets us back to two points on LOST.
First, as the series unfolded, it is hard to imagine that it could have kept going for decades with new incarnations as Star Trek or Doctor Who. We don't know what the LOST universe is; or what or where the island is located (Charlie's first insightful question from the pilot episode).
Second, the series could not be rebooted without answering all the unanswered and conflicting questions from the original series. This is something the creators have adamantly decided not to do.
Reviews of the Doctor Who special have been quite positive, as it seemed to pack various elements of fan service into existing story line canon. A few fans still question what the special's reveals means to the future of the show, but their expectations were met by the episode.
We were aware that there were great expectations for LOST's final season. There was even more expectations for the finale, which the producers wrangled more air time to finish their story. The finale pretty much split the fan base.
Last weekend, the television expectation game went into a global frenzy with the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special. For any television series to last six seasons is unique, but to last 50 years (with some interrupted periods) is improbable. The British series has survived the decades since the first airing by a clever concept of replacing the main character with new actors (an alien regeneration).
Science fiction has always been a niche market. But its fan base tends to be more loyal and rabid. The Doctor Who premise is actually quite simple. It is the story of a Time Lord, a man who can manipulate both time and space, to travel the universe to fight foes and observe historical events. The premise of this series was clear. It stated its story rules early on in the series. Fans accepted the notion that a blue box was bigger on the inside; that alien technology was more advanced than Earth's; and that one man with almost infinite knowledge can stop global invasions or disasters. Fans are not caught up in the how or why the Doctor can manipulate time, space, elements, or physical objects such as locks with a sonic screwdriver. Just as with Star Trek, the in-story concepts such as warp drive are taken as the explanation for impossible physics of the series, so the story can move forward with the characters not being bogged down with explaining the world around them.
The foundational elements of a science fiction show are critical to its viability and credibility. The canon on how the show's universe works is as important as the characters interacting inside that universe.
Which gets us back to two points on LOST.
First, as the series unfolded, it is hard to imagine that it could have kept going for decades with new incarnations as Star Trek or Doctor Who. We don't know what the LOST universe is; or what or where the island is located (Charlie's first insightful question from the pilot episode).
Second, the series could not be rebooted without answering all the unanswered and conflicting questions from the original series. This is something the creators have adamantly decided not to do.
Reviews of the Doctor Who special have been quite positive, as it seemed to pack various elements of fan service into existing story line canon. A few fans still question what the special's reveals means to the future of the show, but their expectations were met by the episode.
GREAT EXPECTATIONS
If you don't expect too much from me, you might not be let down.
The final season brought great expectations.
There was a coming war, people were time shifting, minds were time skipping, people had died, survivors had returned to save their friends, the smoke monster still terrorized the island inhabitants, and Ben was still a mad man.
Good times.
There was a large spectrum of expectations:
1. Some fans expected that the time travel would be explained.
2. Some fans expected that the island would be explained.
3. Some fans expected that there be an actual "war" on the island.
4. Some fans expected the Others and the survivors would have their final conflict.
5. Some fans expected a clear resolution between Widmore and Ben.
6. Some fans expected all the tangent story lines would be wrapped together in one neat package "wow" moment.
7. Some fans expected their favorite character(s) would get a happy ending.
8. Some fans expected that the smoke monster would be explained.
9. Some fans expected the temple, hieroglyphs, Dharma and the Others would be explained fully.
10. Some fans expected a monumental plot twist to climax the main characters journey to the end.
Fans received bits and pieces of those expectations. Season 6 did take on many strange and wild tangents such as the unclear sideways world stories and the deep background flash backs like with Richard Alpert.
But for those fans who wished just for a happy ending, they were the only ones truly rewarded by the final episode. The characters found a home, even though the script was not a home run.
Sunday, November 24, 2013
PERCEPTION
"Perception is reality."
It is a common phrase.
Perception is the the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses: the normal limits to human perception. It is the state of being or process of becoming aware of something in such a way, such as the perception of pain. It is a way of regarding, understanding, or interpreting something through a mental impressions It also means having intuitive understanding and insight.
In science, it is the neurophysiological processes, including memory, by which an organism becomes aware of and interprets external stimuli.
The word itself comes from Old Middle English for "seize, understand."
Reality is the world or the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them. It is a thing that is actually experienced or seen, esp. when this is grim or problematic. Reality is a thing that exists in fact, having previously only existed in one's mind such as the paperless office may yet become a reality. It can also mean the quality of being lifelike or resembling an original. It is also the state or quality of having existence or substance such as death has no reality to young people.
In Philosophy, reality is an existence that is absolute, self-sufficient, or objective, and not subject to human decisions or conventions.
So, how a person sees, hears, or becomes aware of the world around him is his reality.
This is the foundation for the LOST mythology. Viewers has to use their own perception of the images and events on the screen to filter through their own experience and understanding to interpret the show for personal meaning and insight. This is why it is difficult to change a LOST viewer's mind on how they reacted or felt about the show. In a show about light and dark, there were no black and white answers.
Whether the island was actually a Pacific Island, or vegetation atop of alien tortoise, or a space ship, or a time vortex, or another dimension, it cannot set in stone.
Whether the characters were actually who they said they were is also open to debate. Were the characters "real" lives in the sideways world, and they dreamed of island adventures, or was it the other way around? Was Sawyer always a police officer who dreamed of being the bad guy? Was Hurley always a lottery millionaire or was he just a chicken fry cook who dreamed of being a millionaire?
LOST writers did not set down a set of story principles as authority; incontrovertibly truths. As a result, we are left with any perception as reality.
It is a common phrase.
Perception is the the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses: the normal limits to human perception. It is the state of being or process of becoming aware of something in such a way, such as the perception of pain. It is a way of regarding, understanding, or interpreting something through a mental impressions It also means having intuitive understanding and insight.
In science, it is the neurophysiological processes, including memory, by which an organism becomes aware of and interprets external stimuli.
The word itself comes from Old Middle English for "seize, understand."
Reality is the world or the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them. It is a thing that is actually experienced or seen, esp. when this is grim or problematic. Reality is a thing that exists in fact, having previously only existed in one's mind such as the paperless office may yet become a reality. It can also mean the quality of being lifelike or resembling an original. It is also the state or quality of having existence or substance such as death has no reality to young people.
In Philosophy, reality is an existence that is absolute, self-sufficient, or objective, and not subject to human decisions or conventions.
So, how a person sees, hears, or becomes aware of the world around him is his reality.
This is the foundation for the LOST mythology. Viewers has to use their own perception of the images and events on the screen to filter through their own experience and understanding to interpret the show for personal meaning and insight. This is why it is difficult to change a LOST viewer's mind on how they reacted or felt about the show. In a show about light and dark, there were no black and white answers.
Whether the island was actually a Pacific Island, or vegetation atop of alien tortoise, or a space ship, or a time vortex, or another dimension, it cannot set in stone.
Whether the characters were actually who they said they were is also open to debate. Were the characters "real" lives in the sideways world, and they dreamed of island adventures, or was it the other way around? Was Sawyer always a police officer who dreamed of being the bad guy? Was Hurley always a lottery millionaire or was he just a chicken fry cook who dreamed of being a millionaire?
LOST writers did not set down a set of story principles as authority; incontrovertibly truths. As a result, we are left with any perception as reality.
Saturday, November 23, 2013
JOURNEY
Struggling
and suffering are the essence of a life worth living. If you're not
pushing yourself beyond the comfort zone, if you're not demanding more
from yourself - expanding and learning as you go - you're choosing a
numb existence. You're denying yourself an extraordinary trip.
— Dean Karnazes
Perhaps the series was merely a journey for otherwise dull, boring, lonely people. The common trait of the main characters was unhappiness. They were all in a rut; their futures looked bleak; and they have relationship issues.
If the island was a proving ground for a life worth living, then it was probably a successful intervention.
Putting a collection of diverse people into a savage, unknown, mysterious and dangerous island with no chance of rescue is going beyond the comfort zone of all the characters.
In order to survive, each character had to go beyond their routine. They had to demand more from their inner self - - - change or adapt to the new circumstances. They had to make decisions and not loiter on their past routines. They had to learn to live together, to trust each other, and to value the security that various levels of friendship would provide. It was the personal expansion of each character that was the most noticeable aspect of the show.
For example, Hurley was a shy, self-doubting individual who never wanted to take risks for fear of failure. He had mental issues and blamed himself for bad things happening to other people. He was most comfortable hiding away in a mental institution, away from the normal stresses and anxieties of daily life.
Jack was a brilliant spinal surgeon, but he led a tortured monk-like existence outside of work. His relationship with his father was an anchor around his neck. He could not handle relationships with women; his marriage fell apart due to his own illogical behavior.
Sawyer was a charming but devious con artist. His noble cause to find his parents killer turned him into the same person that he hated as a child. As a drifter, he kept no lasting personal relationships. He was a loner, and that caused him to be bitter - - - to lash out at others because the only person he could trust was himself.
Kate was also a loner. She was popular, a tom boy who learned early that she could manipulate men to do what she wanted them to do for her. But she was troubled; she did not understand the big picture. She had no direction or big dreams. She lashed out for her mother's attention, but she was shocked when her mother turned on her. Kate's survival mechanism was to run, escape and hide from her problems.
Sayid was brought up in a stable family, but the war changed him into a dark soldier. He was recruited and trained as a torturer, who turned on his childhood friends. He would become a loner by his own actions, fearful that he would revert to being a killer. As such, he had no close friends. He kept to himself because his instincts made him believe only in himself and to distrust others.
From each viewer's own observations of the characters, the amount of change in their personality is apparent. If the show was all about character development, then the main characters did have to cope with the insane circumstances thrown at them, to trust themselves and others, in order to fully experience life at its best and at its worst.
Perhaps the series was merely a journey for otherwise dull, boring, lonely people. The common trait of the main characters was unhappiness. They were all in a rut; their futures looked bleak; and they have relationship issues.
If the island was a proving ground for a life worth living, then it was probably a successful intervention.
Putting a collection of diverse people into a savage, unknown, mysterious and dangerous island with no chance of rescue is going beyond the comfort zone of all the characters.
In order to survive, each character had to go beyond their routine. They had to demand more from their inner self - - - change or adapt to the new circumstances. They had to make decisions and not loiter on their past routines. They had to learn to live together, to trust each other, and to value the security that various levels of friendship would provide. It was the personal expansion of each character that was the most noticeable aspect of the show.
For example, Hurley was a shy, self-doubting individual who never wanted to take risks for fear of failure. He had mental issues and blamed himself for bad things happening to other people. He was most comfortable hiding away in a mental institution, away from the normal stresses and anxieties of daily life.
Jack was a brilliant spinal surgeon, but he led a tortured monk-like existence outside of work. His relationship with his father was an anchor around his neck. He could not handle relationships with women; his marriage fell apart due to his own illogical behavior.
Sawyer was a charming but devious con artist. His noble cause to find his parents killer turned him into the same person that he hated as a child. As a drifter, he kept no lasting personal relationships. He was a loner, and that caused him to be bitter - - - to lash out at others because the only person he could trust was himself.
Kate was also a loner. She was popular, a tom boy who learned early that she could manipulate men to do what she wanted them to do for her. But she was troubled; she did not understand the big picture. She had no direction or big dreams. She lashed out for her mother's attention, but she was shocked when her mother turned on her. Kate's survival mechanism was to run, escape and hide from her problems.
Sayid was brought up in a stable family, but the war changed him into a dark soldier. He was recruited and trained as a torturer, who turned on his childhood friends. He would become a loner by his own actions, fearful that he would revert to being a killer. As such, he had no close friends. He kept to himself because his instincts made him believe only in himself and to distrust others.
From each viewer's own observations of the characters, the amount of change in their personality is apparent. If the show was all about character development, then the main characters did have to cope with the insane circumstances thrown at them, to trust themselves and others, in order to fully experience life at its best and at its worst.
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