TV Page

February 10th 2008

Get Lost!

There is a comment that I see about Lost on message boards and forums time and time again, and it is this; "the thing I hate most about Lost is that it never answers any questions, and never resolves any plotlines". To which my most highly considered, and concise, reply is a single word; bollocks.

As this is, however. a proper article and all that, I should go ahead and back up that one word argument.

The thing that these whinging wankers are failing to understand is that each episode of Lost is like a chapter in a massive six-season long story. Within the structure of this there will be plotlines that are resolved quite quickly, there will be those that take a season or two to resolve, there will be new plots starting mid way, and there are those plots that run from the start all the way to the end.

Take The Hatch. From about mid-way through Season 1 there was great mystery about it, the main two questions being "will they ever get in to the thing?" and "what's in it?" Of course, the answer to the first question was always going to be "yes", and the world and his lobster correctly guessed that it would be the end of season cliffhanger that led to the thing being opened; about the only time they've done anything predictable for a finale... The second question was answered within the first three or four episodes of season 2, in a superb series of episodes which built on layers to the mystery; now we knew what was there, further questions were posed. "what would happen if that counter got down to zero; would the world really end?" That question and many others were answered by the end of the season. Not only that, the end of season 2 answered the question as to why the plane crashed, and by the end of season 3 we knew why the rescue ships hadn't found them.

Really, I could keep on going with questions that have been answered, but I do feel I've made the point. Yes there are plenty of questions that have not yet been answered - the nature of the smoke monster, Jacob, the islands healing properties, the four toed statue - etc, but remember; we're not at the end yet... answers will come. You answer all your key questions too soon and the show will get axed as what's lefft after that...?

Twin Peaks is a case in point; Lynch did not want to reveal who killed Laura Palmer until the very last episode they ever made (there is a contradiction here over the years; in some interviews he's stated that he never wanted to solve the murder) but the studio insisted that the murder be solved. So, in episode 15 (there is a convention in TP circles not to include the pilot in the episode numbering, but I do; to do otherwise is just plain silly. So ner.) we find out who killed her, and two episodes later the plotline is resolved fully when the killer is captured.... after this the show floundered for a few episodes, contriving reasons for Cooper to stay in town; after all the murder's solved, so Coop can move on to the next episode... the show did recover a few weeks later with the arrival of Wyndham Earle, but ratings had slid and the show got cancelled. It went out on a high, though as its finale is one of the greatest episodes of anything ever. But it should just have been an end of season episode, and there were many tales to tell.

If Lost were to do the same thing too soon, that would be the show's death knell. Luckily, it's been guaranteed six seasons (though with the writers' strike the shape of these seasons is looking uncertain 16/16/16 is likely to change to 8/24/16, or as the strike is on the verge of resolution maybe 14/17/17; in anycase, it's 48 episodes for season 4-6), which gives the show's creators the space to tell the tale at the pace they want, and also to know how long they have to tell it.

The moral of the story is this; let Lost reveal its secrets at its own pace and enjoy the journey. There is a time for everything to be wrapped up, and that is the last ever episode. That's where the story ends...

...which is in 46 episodes time at the time of writing. Two episodes in to Season 4, and the mysteries are ramping up again. Who are the Oceanic 6, the survivors who get off the island. We know three now, but who are the other 3? (If you don't want to know, do not look at lists of forthcoming flashes; you'll be able to figure it out...) And why do the boat people want Ben? These opening two episodes have moved along at a cracking old pace, and we already know more than I was really expecting to know at this point. The new characters are already starting to impress; you gotta love Miles' sarcasm. Lost is the best thing on the telly at the moment, and somehow keeps on getting better.

Ashes to Ashes, the Life on Mars sequel was a little odd. They couldn't play it the same way as the original as that would have been far too repetitive, so they've gone for a different angle; Alex knows that none of it is real and she has to follow the clues to enable her to come out of her coma. There were some neat touches; such as the initialism on the white board spelling out "dead". But other things rankled slightly; there was something about Gene that seemed odd... it's as if they're setting him up for something big. The shot approaching his office with him emerging hinted at something bigger, that he is more important to things here than he ought to be. It seems almost messianic... Maybe it will all fall in to place later, but it wouldn't surprise me if it turns out that there are other people surrounding Gene who are also in comas... Anyhow, at least Gene is as un-PC as he always was.