There has been a vast outcry regarding my lack of Lost posts so I'm here to placate the masses (hi Tony!). Read on!
A lot of people in the blogosphere are super pissy right now about LOST (and a lot of people are with me – really content with how the finale season is playing out. But, you know, the naysayers are always the loudest). They want more answers faster and they want every answer to every mythological nugget that has been presented in the past 6 years, and they want the reveals to be utterly mind-blowing.
I feel a little sorry for these viewers because they just are not going to be satisfied. Like I said, I am very content with how this season is progressing. I feel like we’re on a solid path and that I’m going to be at peace with how this show ends. What keeps me focused and calm?: Realistic expectations. Here’s what I think is important when considering the answers to Lost:
The answers are going to be kind of vague:
A lot of the naysayers are going to be left unsatisfied because they don’t appreciate the answers they’re given. They want every element of every mystery explained, leaving no room for drawing our own viewer conclusions.
Take The Numbers: we’ve learned that each of the candidates for who will take over Jacob’s jobbie have been assigned a number. The numbers correspond to the degrees on the lighthouse dial that show the candidates’ off-Island homelands (I think). For me, this is good enough. Why these particular numbers and how did Jacob come up with them? Well, I’m curious as to how Jacob found the castaways and decided they warranted touching, but I don’t care why Hugo is #8 and not #23. For some aspects, you’re going to have to use your imagination. And thank goodness for that, because it’s those kinds of brain-teasers that keep the show alive after it’s concluded.
I earnestly believe that people who want more explained for them regarding the mythology of the show are going to have the opportunity to learn more in another medium. (See the game “The Lost Experience” illustrating how the numbers are linked to “The Valenzetti Equation” and The Dharama Initative.) There is also “Lost University” (a blue-ray educational experience) and the creators have deemed both of these other forums canon. And I totally think a post-Lost graphic novel explaining more aspects of the mythology (not the character stories) is a distinct possibility. But as for hashing out relevant physics theorems, Greek mythology, and Egyptian hieroglyphics decoding- it just isn’t going to happen on network television.
The answers are going to be accessible:
This may seem like a weird statement, considering we’re talking about a show involving time-travel, parallel universes, and smoke monsters. But what I mean is that whatever this show is about is going to be able to be explained over coffee. You’re not going to need a calculator or a master’s degree or to have to read a thousand and ten lostpedia entries in order to grasp it all.
One of my favorite lost bloggers, Entertainment Weekly’s “Doc” Jensen, has totally melted his brain coming up with the most cockamamie theories and I hope he’s having fun because it’s just totally coo-coo-clock rambling. He dedicated a 10-page column recently to a theory that the Smoke Monster / Man in Black is actually the embodiment of all the souls of the people who have died on the Island – with Juliet and Daniel Faraday’s minds primarily driving his ship. What?! I think it’s really obvious that the MIB is a person – a special person – but a person with human motivations. Look at the history of Richard Alpert: his narrative is full of mythology and fantasy, but it still is a narrative based on emotions, not science fiction. I know the answers to Lost aren’t going to be simple, or easy to explain to someone who never saw the show, but I honestly believe it’s going to be able to be boiled down to a one-pager. Does that make sense? Is it irony that I can’t clearly explain my theory that Lost will be able to be clearly explained?
The answers are going to be “schmoopy”:
In our house, schmoopy means gushy. Sentimental and fluffy, in a sense. Maybe a little corny. Think about all of the talk in “Harry Potter” about how Voldemort could be beaten because he never knew truelove. Or all of Battlestar Gallactica’s talk about God and the dangers of human decadence. It’s good stuff, but it’s also a little cornball. I’m expecting this when it comes to Lost’s conclusion. At some point I think there’s going to be a speech regarding the importance of love and acceptance, or salvation, or trusting fate – something like that. And I’m glad I’m prepared, because those types of speeches can be a little off-putting when you’re not in the right headspace.
This is a story about characters. It is not a story about an Island where lots of crazy scientific stuff is happening. I think with each introduction of another wacky element to the Island (electromagnetism, etc…) there were viewers who were more married to the mythology than to the characters, and they are going to have their hearts broken. These are the people who thought the smoke monster was nanobots. It’s not nanobots, nerds! It’s an angry dude!
Take a look at this paragraph from a previous post I wrote comparing Lost to Stephen King's "The Stand":
I would say the main thing I learned about Lost after reading this book is that Team Darlton share King's sentiment that mythology should only be the background for a story about character-development. "The Stand" ended with a solid understanding that the characters faced their faults and gained peace in their sense-of-self. They were presented with opportunities to receive redemption, and those that embraced them gained comfort. The conclusion did not address any of the questions that arose from the mythological experiences. Why were these people the survivors? Who exactly are Mother Abigail and Randall Flagg? We have a sense at the answers, but much much much is left to interpretation. I fear Lost will end in a similar fashion, but I also think the fan involvement with the show will shape it in such a way that more questions will be answered than would be if King was at the helm.
I like that past-Jenna. She’s smart.
So, bottom-line (too late I know) is that if you think Lost is going to end with a man in a white lab-coat conducting a two-hour long Power Point presentation explaining every last exhaustive detail – I truly hope you’re wrong. It’s going to end, it’s going to be about humanity – not science – and we’re going to be left to our own imaginations when it comes to connecting some of the dots. Thank goodness for that because I like using my brain, and it’s a way to keep the show alive after it’s all over.
We can just hope that they conclude the basic, essential story-elements and we’re not left completely on our own to imagine an ending – like The Sopranos. “Don’t stah- BLACK SCREEN.”
