All things LOST!

[Michelle]

As mentioned in the thread for the final season, I've decided to start a general thread to discuss all things related to LOST. There are many things which have left rather open in the show, and I'd love to get your thoughts on them. Do you have a favourite season, a favourite character? What did you like and dislike? Were you satisfied over all? Etc!

Edited May 25, 2010 by Michelle

[Michelle]

Ok, I'll kick off with some thoughts. For me, I'm generally satisfied with the whole show, and I loved the ending. Although I've enjoyed the mysteries etc, the real pull was the characters and their stories. I therefore liked seeing them working through their issues, and getting their happy endings.

 

I also thought it good the way the 'church' deliberately showed items from all sorts of religions, and the window had a selection of icons on it - it showed that the general themes weren't shown from the viewpoint of a particular religion or set of beliefs, and that everyone could take what they wanted from it.

 

As for my favourite characters, I though Charlie and Hurley were great, but I loved Desmond and Ben's characters.. Des was just adorable, and Ben was so complex.

 

I also thought that the final season showed how good many of the actors were, especially the ones playing Ben and Locke. Their characters in the two 'worlds' were so different, and they were able to depict them both so well during this season.

 

As for the mysteries, unanswered questions etc, I know they will start to come to me, so I'll be back to see if anyone has any ideas.

[Weave]

I hope you don't mind me invading

 

I watched the series 1 and 2 before it went off channel 4 and then I watched it on sky before sky stopped working with virgin media and by the time it came on, I was so far behind, I didn't watch it. (I am planning to borrow my sister's box~sets)

 

I have read what happened on the last episode online and despite missing so much, I did like the ending, I thought the characters I still recognised, got a great ending.

[Michelle]

No problem Paula! My mum was in the same situation, she had to stop watching when Virgin stopped showing it. If you enjoyed the first few seasons, and the characters in particular, I would say do watch the box sets. Just don't expect all the mysteries to be answered, the writers have said that they want discussion to continue.

[Kimmy619]

As I said in the other thread, I really liked the ending. I think that I will have missed some things so I am going to rewatch it this weekend.

 

One query I did have - Why was Walt built up to be really important, but then forgotten about later on through the seasons? This has probably already been answered somewhere, but I can't remember

 

I really liked Desmond and I like the way that Ben grew as a character. Hurley always provided light relief during tense moments and I really liked seeing Charlie in the last few episodes. The main character that I didn't like was Shannon, she really annoyed me! You would have thought that Sayid would have ended up with Nadia, not her!?

[Michelle]

One query I did have - Why was Walt built up to be really important, but then forgotten about later on through the seasons? This has probably already been answered somewhere, but I can't remember

 

Nope, this is one of the things which was never really explained. I think the practical problem was that the actor was growing too quickly, so it was hard to keep his storyline going. I think it's easy to accept that he was simply 'special', with some mild psychic ability, but it would have been good to have more explanation as to why the Others were so interested in him.

 

Although, thinking about it, maybe they wondered if he would be useful to them, or would maybe make a good future leader? In the end though, his main use was to get Michael to do their bidding!

 

The main character that I didn't like was Shannon, she really annoyed me! You would have thought that Sayid would have ended up with Nadia, not her!?

 

Again, lots of people have said this. It was made out that Nadia was really the love of his life. I think my explanation is that during his time after his death, Nadia was with his brother, and he seemed to feel that he was not good enough for her.. maybe he had to let her go, and that meant he could then be with Shannon? I dunno, that's just an idea.

[lexiepiper]

The ending is growing on me, I particularly loved the last 5 minutes though, when they all came together, I thought that was so lovely to see. Are we all agreed that the Island was real, and the sideways world was a sort of purgatory where they were all waiting for each other? As some people seem to think that everyone died when the plane crashed and that they whole thing was some sort of purgatory world, but I really don't think that's what it was.

 

As for my favourite characters, well I absolutely loved Jin and Sun - I loved the way they were always being pulled apart but still loving each other so much. I also loved Sawyer and Juliet, both as seperate charaters and as a couple, and one of my fave moments in the finale was when they both remembered. I also thought Desmond, Hurley and Charlie were all lovely characters. Characters I couldn't stand were Mr. Eko, Michael, Ana Lucia and Charlotte, for no reason other than I just didn't like them .

 

Some of my favourite scenes are ~

- When Juliet is being pulled down into the collapsed Dharma station, and Sawyer is trying to pull her out, then she falls and sets the bomb off.

- Sun/Jin and Charlie's deaths.

- When they were living in the 70's and became a part of the Dharma Initiative.

- The flashforward at the end of season 3, when Jack tells Kate they never should have left the Island and that they needed to go back.

- When Desmond is flicking around in time, and he rings Penny who is his constant.

- In the last ep when the doors of the church are opened and it's flooded with light, as the Losties 'pass on'.

- I love that it ended with Jack shutting his eye, as the series begins with Jack opening his eye, thought that was pretty cool.

 

There are probably loads more, but those are the ones I could think of right now

[Weave]

No problem Paula! My mum was in the same situation, she had to stop watching when Virgin stopped showing it. If you enjoyed the first few seasons, and the characters in particular, I would say do watch the box sets. Just don't expect all the mysteries to be answered, the writers have said that they want discussion to continue.

 

That's what I like to hear Michelle, I loved discussing it with my friend, who stopped watching it because of channel 4, I will no doubt be discussing it with you guys Hope that is okay x

[StephenKingman]

As a huge fan of the show since day one, i was very disappointed with that ending-nothing was explained about the island, the statue, what exactly the orb at the centre was, why Desmond was time travelling, who were the people living in the temple etc etc?

 

The only plotlines it resolved were how the remaining islanders got off the island, the rest was just irrelevant. And i still dont understand the flash sideways if anyone out there wants to explain it in english?

[Michelle]

Just some of my thoughts..

 

The island was an island, nothing more than that. The light was described as many things, including the 'heart of the island'. 'Mother' thought that it was a source of life which needed protecting. Maybe it was simply a strong source of electro-magnetism. I think that it's something which is open to interpretation and discussion, and I doubt there's one specific spelt out explanation would be possible.. or would have kept everyone happy.

 

The statue is just something which was built at some point during the island's history - if the show had gone on for more seasons, we may have seen more about it. I don't think we need an explanation to finish the show though.

 

As for time travelling, I wasn't at all keen on that when it started to develop. I settled into it, and managed to enjoy it, but I don't know you would start to explain it.

 

As for the flash sideways, it wasn't a sideways at all, that was just a term some people came up with. It was a place the the losties created to go to after they died. They were able to resolve some issues and find each other before 'moving on'. There's no name for where they were, or where they were moving on to - that all depends on your own faith or beliefs. And that was shown by the 'church' they finally met in, as there were symbols, pictures etc from many different faiths and beliefs.

 

I may well have enjoyed the ending more because I'd listened to the official podcasts, and I knew that the writers never intended to answer all the mysteries. I do think it's good in a way that certain things have been left open, as it gives all the various communities a way to carry on. Mind you, if the writers are clever, they'll publish a book in about a year, with all of their explanations in!

[lexiepiper]

I heard a rumour that the DVD release will have an extra 20 mins of footage, and maybe that will hold more answers if it's true.

[StephenKingman]

Yes, i appreciate that a lot of mysteries would be unsolved or left up to the viewers to watch again but the fact remains that most viewers will not have the patience to watch old episodes again in an attempt to catch some clues. And there are at least 5 mysteries that the makers copped out on answering which was sinful considering how much emphasis was placed on these themes throughout the show:

 

1. Why exactly was Walt kidnapped and what was the reason behind The Others kidnapping children specifically, this has never been explained satisfactorily.

 

2. The four-toed statue may have been written off as "just another trivial mystery" but for the fact that it was the Egyptian God of Fertility Tabek, and it carried two anks, the symbols of eternal life. Knowing all we do about the history of babies dying on the island and the gift that Jacob had of granting unending life to his servants like Alpert, it was sinful not to explore in detail the history behind this statue- who built it, why did Jacob live there and how did Alanahs' crew know about it, as referenced in the tapestry at the end of season 5 when they burned Jacobs' cabin, which brings me nicely onto.....

 

3. What was the deal with that cabin, who exactly said "Help me" back in season 3 in that chair that took the form of Christian, was it the smoke monster? And why was there ash surrounding the cabin, and also whay was there a huge mural of a dog inside the cabin (watch it again!).

 

4. How could Ben 'call' the monster, as evidenced when he let it loose on Keamleys men in season 4? The smoke monster has been doing is own thing for centuries and then we are expected to believe that Dharma and The Others devised a system to trap and control this being? Ridiculous! And what IS the monster? As mentioned, we saw how the Man in Black morphed into the monster but not what exactly it IS or how old it is. And why did the fake mother thank her 'son' for stabbing her to death? Could it be that the woman was possesed by this ancient spirit and could only be purified by being murdered by a third party? It would certainly explain how she had the strength to dipspatch her big muscular son with a mere push.....

 

5. So, is Vincent God then? Think about it, he showed up just as Jack awoke in the pilot episode, seemed to evaluate him, then ran away as if he had choosen to let Jack and the others live to go through this essential challenge for his character, popping up now and again to watch over them. Dog is God backwards and in episode 4 of series one, called Tabula Rosa, Locke calls Vincent with a dog whistle but stares intently at him in the final scene with a look of hatred. Even back then was it possible that Locke sensed that MIB wanted to use him to destroy God (Jacob) ? And Vincent was the last 'person' with Jack before he dies- was this God being by his side at the final transition to comfort him?

 

Dont get me wrong, it was a good ending in terms of resolving the characters fates but too many essential island mysteries were just left hanging mid air. 3 seasons would have done it, season 4 and 5 and all that flash forward/time travel nonsense was just padding on a show that was forced to air long beyond its original end point.

[lexiepiper]

My takes on your questions ~

 

1. I think Walt was kidnapped because he was a kid. As nobody can carry to term on the island, there are no children there, and so I think they took Walt so that they'd have someone to be their next generation. That's also why they tried to take Claire's baby, because they were so desperate to have children. I do wonder why no one was able to carry to term though.

 

2. I think that the statue was meant to be another part of the timeless feel of the island, making you feel like it's been there for many many centuries, and then so have the protectors of the island. Jacob lived there because the mother lived there, as have all the protectors before them (so I assumed). When Jacobs mother is giving birth, it's to the statue that the protector mother took her, so it's clear that must be where she lives, and when she dies, Jacob just continues living there alone. Alanah's crew knew about it because Jacob told her, he told her everything and from what I gather, he asked her to come to the island to protect him as he knew MiB was going to try and kill him, but she was too late.

 

3. I assumed it was the monster, as he's the only one who can take on the forms of the dead and become a non form as well. Not sure about the ash, maybe it was to make the Losties feel like it was a circle of protection type thing, and make them feel that it's a good thing inside that needs protecting? Or perhaps it was some sort of warning system to those inside, when someone walks over the line, they know someone is coming. I never noticed the dog thing, but maybe it's a nod to Vincent

 

4. I remember Ben saying in one of the last few episodes that 'he thought he controlled' the monster. But all along, I think the monster was controlling Ben, by letting him think he could call him etc. He did Ben's bidding for as long as it benefited him, and in the end he was the one to convince Ben to kill Jacob, so he kind of got what he wanted all along. I think it's up to interpretation what exactly the smoke monster is, but I gathered that he was meant to be some sort of demon or devil creature. The darkness to oppose Jacob's goodness. If Jacob was the protector, then that by theory makes MiB the destroyer, and that was why he had to be kept on the island. I don't think you're meant to know how old they were/how long they were there, as the whole island was meant to feel timeless, and this is just another showing of that. She thanked him because I think she was ready to die, and that's why she passed everything over to Jacob. She deliberately didn't speak to the MiB, even though she knew he was behind her, and we know from a previous ep that this is the only way you can kill the MiB, so perhaps the same thing for the mother too.

 

5. I don't think Vincent was God, after all he was on the plane that crashed, surely if he were God he would have already been there? I also think that they deliberately put Vincent in the scene with Jack dying, after all Jack laid down in the same place he woke up in on the pilot episode, it ended with him shutting his eye, and it all began with him opening it. Vincent was there in the beginning, so they put him there at the end, kind of a full circle type of thing.

[Michelle]

2. I think that the statue was meant to be another part of the timeless feel of the island, making you feel like it's been there for many many centuries, and then so have the protectors of the island. Jacob lived there because the mother lived there, as have all the protectors before them (so I assumed). When Jacobs mother is giving birth, it's to the statue that the protector mother took her, so it's clear that must be where she lives, and when she dies, Jacob just continues living there alone. Alanah's crew knew about it because Jacob told her, he told her everything and from what I gather, he asked her to come to the island to protect him as he knew MiB was going to try and kill him, but she was too late.

I'm going to disagree with you on this one - Jacob's 'mother' lived in the caves, because that's where the skeletons (of MiB and Mother) were found by the Losties. Obviously Jacob couldn't stay there, so I assumed he moved to the statue as it seemed a good place for a protector to live.

 

And what IS the monster? As mentioned, we saw how the Man in Black morphed into the monster but not what exactly it IS or how old it is. And why did the fake mother thank her 'son' for stabbing her to death? Could it be that the woman was possesed by this ancient spirit and could only be purified by being murdered by a third party? It would certainly explain how she had the strength to dipspatch her big muscular son with a mere push.....

 

Once we knew that flocke was smokie, it became quite clear to me that we wouldn't be told exactly what the smoke monster WAS. Again, it's a 'mystery', and I think if you start to look for a scientific type answer, it's pretty impossible.

 

I personally think that the smoke monster has been around for thousands of years, even before our twins arrived, but it was actually a protection, rather than anything evil. The fake mother must have turned into something to be able to kill everyone in the village, and collapse the well, all before MiB came round from being knocked out!

 

Ok, so us, that act of killing is 'evil', but we have to go by the idea of morality here.. if she lived on the island all her life, and was given the role of protector, she would do anything necessary to stop too many discovering the light - which is what she thought would happen if MiB and the villagers got off the island.

 

She thanked MiB because she had been there for a long time, and wanted to die. I'm assuming that she was like Richard, and was unable to kill herself, so she needed someone to do it for her.

 

Did MiB's bitterness and hatred then slowly turn the smoke monster more and more evil as the years went by? Let's face it, by the end, there was nothing left there to like!

 

Going back to your point though, I don't think there is a scientific explanation as to what he IS, you just have to go with it, and interpret it as you will.

 

Isn't it more interesting to discuss all these issues, rather than having them spelt out for us?!

[lexiepiper]

I'm going to disagree with you on this one - Jacob's 'mother' lived in the caves, because that's where the skeletons (of MiB and Mother) were found by the Losties. Obviously Jacob couldn't stay there, so I assumed he moved to the statue as it seemed a good place for a protector to live.

 

 

Oh yes, I completely forgot they were found in the caves, good point!

[StephenKingman]

Just have a few more thoughts and questions after yet another day pondering!

 

1. How did Jacob leave the island as we saw him do when he selected his next lot of candidates and then just go back to the island whenever he pleased?

 

2. What was the meaning of the pool in the temple that revived Sayid and what was the 'test' about that revealed good and evil in a person? The Temple had been referenced dozens of times from series 1 -5 so to just leave it without offering an explanation as to who built it and why, who were the leaders and why they feared the monster so much was just sinful. And on that point, am i the only one who thinks Sayid was totally redundant as a character since series 5? He isnt one of my fave characters but i just think he served no purpose at all after shooting a young Ben Linus and was merely limping along to the finale!

 

3. What exactly was the big deal with Smokey leaving the island? He just wanted to leave, nothing else and there is no reference to him wanting to destroy the world, that was just feared by Jacob etc?

 

4. How does a sonic fence stop a creature that can fell dozens of men in mere seconds, and who thought up this barrier?

 

5. The biggest mystery of all, and one which i was very very frustarted with over the course of the last series, was how the hell didnt the Losties spot buildings like The Lighthouse, the Well etc???? They had just spent months and months traversing practically every inch of the island and stumbled across hatches, abandoned planes, hidden caves, streams, radio towers, walked literally the length and breadth of the island and we the viewers are expected to believe that not once in all their travels did they come across these features. And of course how the HELL did they miss the golden stream when it was so close to their original beach camp back in series one near the bamboo forest, thats just a huge cop-out.

[Michelle]

Wow, you really are unhappy, aren't you!?

 

2. I have to admit that I didn't really like the Temple related stuff - it was too late in the series to introduce such a big new thing, and new characters. But, as with the statue, I don't feel the need to know exactly who built it or why.. it's just something else which has been there for a long time - and if they'd been allowed more seasons, maybe we'd have seen more.

 

1. & 3. My interpretation is that as the protector, Jacob made up his rules*. That would have allowed him to go off island if he felt the need, but could also prevent MiB. If he truly believed that letting MiB go would be that dangerous, then he would have made the rules so that he had to stay.

 

* This was first referenced by MiB himself, when they were playing their board game. He actually told Jacob that one day he could make his own game, and make up his own rules. This was later confirmed by Ben, who told Hurley he believed Hurley could run things differently, and make up his own rules.

 

4. Is that really important to understand? You need to be a man of faith!

 

5. I'm not entirely sure what I think about this, but I've listening to a podcast for a while where they discuss the fact that whatever is truly needed on the island can be found.. all the way from a pregnancy test, to a lighthouse. As for the wells, who's to say they hadn't seen those? They wouldn't have been important to them, so they wouldn't have been mentioned. Although, of course, during the time travelling, Locke went down a well, which led to the 'donkey wheel'.

 

As for the stream, the twins hadn't seen it until they were shown by Mother, and MiB states that he'd been looking, and couldn't find it. I assume that it's something you can't see unless you're 'allowed to'.

 

A lot of things do seem to come down to just accepting, making your own interpretations, thinking it out etc. Not everything can have a straight forward answer. As I say, a man of science or a man of faith?

[lexiepiper]

5. The biggest mystery of all, and one which i was very very frustarted with over the course of the last series, was how the hell didnt the Losties spot buildings like The Lighthouse, the Well etc???? They had just spent months and months traversing practically every inch of the island and stumbled across hatches, abandoned planes, hidden caves, streams, radio towers, walked literally the length and breadth of the island and we the viewers are expected to believe that not once in all their travels did they come across these features. And of course how the HELL did they miss the golden stream when it was so close to their original beach camp back in series one near the bamboo forest, thats just a huge cop-out.

 

They couldn't see it unless shown it by the protector. This was addressed in either the last or second to last ep. Jack asks that exact question when they meet with Jacob around the camp fire.

[lexiepiper]

I found this Lost Mysteries page on Lostpedia, looks very interesting and might answer some of your questions Stephen.

[Michelle]

How about favourite episodes? I loved The Constant, with Desmond - his story with Penny was so well done. The 2nd time I watched it, the whole episode made more sense, so it got even better.

 

I also enjoyed the season opening in season 2, showing Desmond living in the hatch, and also the opening of 3 (I think) when we saw the others living in houses, having a book club, then running outside to see the pane break apart!

 

I also admit to really liking the Nikki and Paulo episode- Beth loved that one too.

[Weave]

Hi Everyone

 

I am definitely borrowing my sister's box~sets, I keep forgetting to ask, so I have put a note on my mobile to remind me, I watched the ten greatest Lost scenes last night on Sky and blimey! I have missed SO much, I am looking forward to catching up.

 

I am also really pleased to see that Desmond remained after series 3 (I think) because he is my favourite character

[Michelle]

I am also really pleased to see that Desmond remained after series 3 (I think) because he is my favourite character

 

He's not in it all the time, but yes, it was great to see him so involved in the ending of it all.

[StephenKingman]

Although Lost still remains one of my favorite shows ever, i still feel a bit cheated by that ending- 6 years is a hell of a long time to watch a show and then to simply expect an audience to just accept that the island has mysteries that dont need to be explained is pushing it a bit- its too easy to just write off the many mysteries of the island just for a happy ending for the characters and also, half of season 6 is irrelevant because it didnt happen!

 

On the general discussion of Lost though i must say Ab Aterno, the episode which explains Richards backstory is up there with one of my faves, along with the opening of season 2.

[Kimmy619]

One of my favourite episodes was when Charlie died. It was really sad, but I was on the edge of my seat!

[pontalba]

I'm reading through these threads anyhow, even though we haven't seen Season 6 at all yet. Spoilers never have bothered us, so I'm enjoying reading all the comments.

We just finished watching seasons 1 - 5 on DVD last night.....for the second time. We got soooo much more out of it the second go round!

 

I loved The Constant as well, I don't cry easily at all, but it had me in tears. And when Charlie died, I just yelled at the screen.....'get out of there you idiot!'...he coulda. grrrrr. I know. But still.

 

In the last episode in Season 5, when Juliet went down the chute and Sawyer was trying to save her....wowee! I thought for sure Ben would stab fake-Locke instead of Jacob. I was a bit disappointed he didn't.

 

Favorite line? When Locke went over to Ben sitting on the beach looking out to sea and asked was it alright to ask Ben a question. Ben quickly replied............"I'm a Pisces..." ROTFALOL