Fast and the furious 4 …

I try not to leave the house on Wednesday after work just in case I miss a new commercial. (j/k, j/k, j/k – but i’m sure there are people like this).

I think the reason why Lost doesn’t get lumped into that list like it deserves to is because it’s the only show that is “daring” to tell complex stories on NETWORK television. All of those shows you listed are cable or premium channels. People have a different expectation for HBO or Showtime shows, even FX has some kind reputation now with the Shield, Rescue Me and Nip/Tuck. There hasn’t really been a show like this on network television.

In terms of content Lost is a completely different animal than almost any other show. Lost has complicated characters who each have equally complicated personal stories. There is also a mysterious pacific Island which is itself a character of sorts that acts as a canvas for very strange things to occur. The Island has an equally mysterious past and is home to several different groups of mysterious people. So what kind of elements do we have here? The strong multi-faceted characters of the Wire and the Sopranos, the strange occurrences of X Files, the interconnectedness of plotlines and people stretching far and wide of the great mosaic of this show like a soap opera almost. So what kind of show is Lost trying to be? Is it trying to be Battlestar Galactica? Is it trying to be the X Files? Is it trying to be Twin Peaks? Is it trying to be the Sopranos to a certain extent?

The answer to all those questions is yes and no and I think that is PRECISELY why this show is criticized. When “the first” of something comes along sometimes people don’t know how to react to it. People want it to be something they’ve already seen, that way they can predict it and they can know which way it’s going. It’s a comfort thing more than anything else. Instead of understanding and allowing Lost to be this great marriage of a myriad of different influences (other television shows, books, movies, philosophical and religious ideas) some people want Lost to be something that already has a name. Is this show a drama? Is it a mystery? Is it commentary? Is it sci fi? Is it comedy? Is it tragedy? It’s all those things. It’s simply “Lost” and that’s what some people just will never be able to understand.

And that was much longer than I anticipated. Kudos to anyone who stuck with it.

die hard is right, yo!

“While Abrams may be all about the journey, most of us want our questions answered at the end.”

If you want a shoddy narrative and all your questions neatly wrapped up in a single (unsatisfying) package, then may I suggest you tune in to Heroes on Monday night. Me, I like to actually use my brain.

THE SOPRANOS
MAD MEN
THE SHIELD
DEADWOOD
SIX FEET UNDER
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA

One thing I could never STAND in most TV shows, was when I had been watching a particular show for several months or even years, and then all of a sudden, I’d be introduced to some aspect of one of the character’s lives that had NEVER been addressed before. A lifelong friend who we’ve never seen before comes along in one episode and is never seen again… A disease that is found, cured, and forgotten all in one hour. There are countless examples of this crappy story telling.

I LOVE serialized TV. And that is part of what makes LOST so great. We have to watch from the beginning, never miss an episode, and constantly think about what might happen in further episodes. Kinda like an old grandmother watching her soaps.

Most of these people who “Don’t get” whats happening on LOST, don’t care that much because, to them, its just another TV show that they’re gonna forget about in five minutes anyway. Their loss.

Let’s “The Office” and its fans out of this. That show is hilarious, brilliant and multi-layered. It is one of the smartest comedies in a generation. (And they make a few tips of the hat to Lost).

Lost is by far, one of the most complex, rich, developed television dramas ever allowed to complete its journey. And if you don’t get it, like the writer of this article, than it’s too bad for you. But better for those of us who do love the show: Because we get it.

It’s like why Ben can see Jacob. Because he gets it (like him/it or not).

But am the only one who on Wednesday thinks or says to himself:

“T.G.I. Wednesday, am I right? Gonna go home. Get my beer on. Get my Lost on.”

i guess he didn’t do one of those things.

I posted the article but it disappeared straightaway, so it seems they don’t like criticism.

this person doesn’t even seem to watch the show…..what does he/she watch it once a season, so they can write something negative? puh-leeze

I love LOST…it the complexity of all of the relationships and mysteries that keep me watching…I’m exhausted and fiending for another episode after it goes off…and this season it the best so far!

How could you not like LOST after that Sawyer and Jack exchange in “Namaste”?
That was classic!

Love your thinking style

I have people who say things like when I tell them I am a lost fan. There is no problem with expressing your opinion but when people say these things without watching the show or just because they are not attentive enough to understand it, it’s just sounds like mindless rants

Also, “three toed statue”? I suppose the author found Sesame street too hard to follow as well.

The closer you follow LOST, the more you enjoy it. That’s the bottom line.