I wrote this over a span of hours the morning after the finale and it ended up a bit long. You MUST have seen the big "Lost" series finale before reading this (that's your spoiler alert).
Personally, I thought the end of "Lost" was incredible. I was so emotionally drawn in and didn't realize how I had become so attached to some of these characters. I have never been so teary during a show and so ultimately happy at the end (Two moments in particular got to me: Charlie and Claire finally together was the moment I really started to lose it, and when Jack walked in to the roomful of people at the end I was physically shaking). From what I've seen/read there are many people who just "didn't get it" and I do not claim to be better than they are. I feel that I've always felt some sense of understanding and enlightenment in my life. Having sometimes recognized the chance encounters and momentary directional signs in my life that lead to the grander picture, I know that things happen for a reason.
You don't have to be religious to have enjoyed the finale of "Lost" but since I AM, that's the perspective from which I personally see it. Understanding the broader scope of life and recognizing that it's THE PEOPLE in your life who are truly most important and it's the daily minutiae of life that connects you to those people.
The island itself could have had a more proper send-off the way the characters did, but it did not sink and we know that it keeps going on (as it always has) presently under the watch of Hurley and Ben. When the two of them ceded power to someone else and when they died is a mystery, but not one the show was going to answer. The show conclusively defined itself as "Jack's Journey" since it has always held him as a central focus and book-ended itself with his earthly arrival (plane crash) and spiritual departure (death) in the same location.
For anyone still unclear, the "sideways storyline" of season six occurred ages after Jack's death (and after absolutely everyone had died, whether young like Boone, or possibly after centuries like Hurley and Ben may have lived). They had a "perfect life" constructed and knew they would all find themselves brought together before ascencion to 'whatever's next', Heaven or otherwise. Sayid and Kate still had troubles, to be sure, but these are troubles that they lived with so much in life that they continued to be plagued by them in the afterlife until they could find their inner peace and enlightenement. Sayid was always torturing himself more than anyone else and despite his love for Nadia (that he could never have) it was only with Shannon that he was calmed. Kate ran from her past and ran from everything until she found what she needed (in the end it was always Jack). I liked how the "sideways storyline" resolved itself and don't think that the purgatory resolution is a cop-out to the rest of the show at all.
Yes, there are some mysteries that the show has left unresolved that will continue to frustrate.
Why could women not give birth on the island? Well, from what we were shown, some could. Jacob and the Man in Black were birthed and seemingly so were babies for generations to come... until the Dharma Initiative. Ethan was apparently one of the last born on the island, but in 1977 when the Jughead bomb was detonated there was residual radiation and electromagnetic energy that affected women who became pregnant and ended up dying before successful birth could occur. Sun became pregnant ON the island and would have died before she came to term with Ji-yeon. It was never specifically stated, but it seems that the bomb detonation was THE event ("the incident") that caused this to happen. Claire arrived over 8 months pregnant and gave birth to Aaron without having the same poisonous effects happen. This is also why she was kidnapped by Ethan and given shots, to protect her and the baby (Charlie, Jack and the rest did not understand and, appropriately, reacted strongly to protect her, so Ethan unfortunately became too dark and violent in how he handled the situation, which resulted in his death).
There WAS an Egyptian fertility statue of Tawaret that existed on the island (and was detroyed by the Black Rock crash, leaving just a four-toed foot), but we never saw who built the statue or the temple. We know there were centuries of people who came and lived on the island (even preceding the arrival of Jacob and the Man in Black) so it was sometime over all those years that Egyptians arrived and constructed these things. Dharma stations and videos were found before we, the viewers, learned who actually constructed those stations and village homes (we just didn't get to see Egyptians living and working the way we saw Dharma folk in the 70's). I'm fine with filling in gaps like these based on the answers provided within the show and hope you are too ('cuz there ain't no more).
Walt WAS special, yes, and the island enhanced his powers. He had a telekinetic ability to attract animals to him (as when he read the comic book on the beach and then the polar bear was drawn towards him). He was able to make astral projections that would warn Shannon of danger (though he appeared wet and whispering backwards). He somehow got into the computer to communicate with his father Michael in the hatch. Were any of these things resolved/answered in the story? No. Is it irritating? Well yes, definitely, when you rewatch these episodes and realize that these things don't really get explained. What does it mean in the overall scheme of things? We are all connected and there are some with more power than others (like a scholar, preacher or doctor having more influence over an individual; though sometimes it could be the uneducated man, or child, who has a true answer). Apparently, Walt's story was concluded when John Locke chose not to recruit him for the journey back to the island ("The Life and Times of Jeremy Bentham", season five), though I really wanted him to turn up in the finale.
Hurley and Miles both had the ability to communicate with the dead, but the origin of their abilities wasn't explained because it wasn't necessary. Why are they this way? They just are. I'm fine with that!
Why does the island do what it does? It just does. It was created that way and made to be special. Jacob explained to Richard that it was "a cork" and in the finale we see that it has a LITERAL CORK. I was fine with that too and it's all the explanation necessary to me, while others will say it's not enough. Their constant "why?" will pervade into perpetuity and not be satisfied. Our simple human brains cannot possibly imagine all the wonder that God has constructed in the universe, yet it is our "why" curiosity that continues to make us grow as humans and intellectuals.
By the end, Christian Shephard was aptly named (and there was a scene early in the finale where Kate laughed to Desmond about the absurdity of the name), but how much on the island was really the Man in Black posing as Christian and how much was THE ISLAND ITSELF using Christian's image? I say that the Man in Black was Christian everytime that he was seen on the island by Jack and Locke (whether walking through the jungle chased by Jack in season one's "White Rabbit" or in the cabin telling Locke to move the island in season four's "Cabin Fever").
I DO NOT think it's the Man in Black on the freighter with Michael and the bomb in the season four finale ("You can go now, Michael."). I believe it is the island itself in this instance. The Man in Black was never shown to be able to "teleport" or "project" the way it happened in this scene.
Jack found his father in the hospital lobby in season four after a SMOKE ALARM went off, but I believe that was the island calling out to him, not the Man in Black (Smoke Monster).
Kate had a dream in season four of Claire in Aaron's room. She told Kate "don't bring him back, don't you dare bring him back"! This was also the island, in my opinion.
Walt appeared to Locke at the end of season three while standing above him lying in the pit of Dharma skeletons. I think this was not Walt, but the island as well. If it was Walt, then his powers were truly underdeveloped in explaination and he was far more powerful than had been let on (he did scare the Others after all, rewatch the episode "Three Minutes" near the end of season two for confirmation).
The polar bears were brought to the island by Dharma for experiments. Having a polar bear on a tropical island is a strange mystery that the writers put in the pilot episode to confound us, but they were eventually explained thoroughly. They were kept in the cages on the Hydra Island station for the zoological research. As seen in the season four finale, the well under the Orchid station containing the donkey wheel had become frigid like an Arctic climate. At some point a polar bear was used down there to turn the wheel and move the island, thereby being ejected from the island at the Tunisian desert exit point (just like Ben and Locke). Since it couldn't survive the desert climate, a dead polar bear skeleton was found with a Dharma collar in Tunisia by Charlotte in her flashback sequence during the season four episode "Confirmed Dead". At some point, once Dharma was all dead, the polar bears were out of the cages and on the main island (one was killed by Sawyer in the pilot episode, another chased Walt up a tree in season one's "Special", and that bear was killed after attacking Mr. Eko and dragging him to a cave in the beginning of season three). Polar bears explained!
The season two finale featured a bird flying over and seemingly screeching Hurley's name (this is referred to as "the Hurley bird") but this has never been revisited or touched upon. Another instance that can be chalked up to the unanswered island mysteries. HOWEVER, if you believe as I do, that animals on the island could sometimes be special then this explanation holds. The boar inside The Black Rock made Richard drop the nail he was using to free himself, thereby making him reliant on the Man in Black for freedom (another boar on the island raided Sawyer's tent in season one and helped him gain perspective). Also, go back to season three's "Expose" with Nikki and Paulo (which I still consider a great episode!) and listen to the sound when the spider bites her. It's the Smoke Monster sound! This was never resolved further since the characters were literally buried with their own mysteries.
Certain instances of Vincent on the island became important as he lead the islanders to various discoveries (he found the skeleton arm holding the keys to the Dharma van and found the doctor from the freighter washed dead on the shore). The dog always gave a vibe like it was on to something and could never verbalize the way a human would. If/when you rewatch, pay attention to the dog. For a time, I thought it might be revealed that Vincent died in the crash and he was always the Smoke Monster spying on the castaways! Of course, this theory turned out wrong, but was fun to wonder about. Still, Vincent was a regular character that was needed by all his owners (Michael, Walt, Shannon, Rose and Bernard) and after all, he was the first one Jack encountered on the island at the beginning of the pilot episode and ended up being the last to be with him when he died in the finale (Jack did not die alone). Like Hurley, he never harmed anyone and was always there when needed to do what was right. Good boy!
Vincent was not in the church at the end though, too bad. Poor Michael was destined to be a "lost soul" trapped on the island as a whispering ghost and could not move on. Frank Lapidus, who had a big hand in helping Jack and the islanders (the Ajira plane and freighter helicopter, hello!) was also not in the church, but not every single person holds the same importance (and overall, Lapidus was always a supporting member, glad he re-emerged from the submarine to fly the plane though; Jeff Fahey rules!).
You can read plenty of "Lost" business online if you want/need more. If my write-up here is all you read, then thanks for bearing with me and getting through it! "Lost" is a show with a deeper meaning and more substance than most programs and deserves the conversation. As much as I like things like "Glee", it just comes off so fluffy in comparison and doesn't hold a candle to how much I revere "Lost" (though that is its purpose and I am glad for the place it holds in my life; the way I can appreciate "The Three Stooges" and CITIZEN KANE in the same breath). Another show I love, "24" has ended this week and there are few other shows I follow with the same devotion and investment. I know what "Lost" has meant to me over the years and the way I felt during the grand finale. Having rewatched the majority of the series just before season six began, I know the episodes are easily rewatchable as high entertainment so I encourage you to not disown the show if you did not immediately like last night's conclusion (or this whole season). I hope I've been able to help with some nagging threads that the creators did not tie up in the finale and I hope you have a great time in your next devotion. "See you in anotha life, brotha!"
P.S.
My friend Jaime was murdered in Texas last week after working a late night shift and being nice to the wrong people. A man and woman asked for a ride, but instead the two shot him six times and stole the car. Jaime was like a real-life Hurley, a big guy who was always seemingly happy and doing nice for others. He didn't get to see the end of "Lost", one of his favorite shows, so I guess he reached the end of his story (in "Lost" speak, the island was through with him). I will always remember the kindness that he showed others and the way his passion was shared. It wasn't about the show between he and I, it was about our personal relationship. The memory and message survives and the relationship lives on in my heart.
Personally, I thought the end of "Lost" was incredible. I was so emotionally drawn in and didn't realize how I had become so attached to some of these characters. I have never been so teary during a show and so ultimately happy at the end (Two moments in particular got to me: Charlie and Claire finally together was the moment I really started to lose it, and when Jack walked in to the roomful of people at the end I was physically shaking). From what I've seen/read there are many people who just "didn't get it" and I do not claim to be better than they are. I feel that I've always felt some sense of understanding and enlightenment in my life. Having sometimes recognized the chance encounters and momentary directional signs in my life that lead to the grander picture, I know that things happen for a reason.
You don't have to be religious to have enjoyed the finale of "Lost" but since I AM, that's the perspective from which I personally see it. Understanding the broader scope of life and recognizing that it's THE PEOPLE in your life who are truly most important and it's the daily minutiae of life that connects you to those people.
The island itself could have had a more proper send-off the way the characters did, but it did not sink and we know that it keeps going on (as it always has) presently under the watch of Hurley and Ben. When the two of them ceded power to someone else and when they died is a mystery, but not one the show was going to answer. The show conclusively defined itself as "Jack's Journey" since it has always held him as a central focus and book-ended itself with his earthly arrival (plane crash) and spiritual departure (death) in the same location.
For anyone still unclear, the "sideways storyline" of season six occurred ages after Jack's death (and after absolutely everyone had died, whether young like Boone, or possibly after centuries like Hurley and Ben may have lived). They had a "perfect life" constructed and knew they would all find themselves brought together before ascencion to 'whatever's next', Heaven or otherwise. Sayid and Kate still had troubles, to be sure, but these are troubles that they lived with so much in life that they continued to be plagued by them in the afterlife until they could find their inner peace and enlightenement. Sayid was always torturing himself more than anyone else and despite his love for Nadia (that he could never have) it was only with Shannon that he was calmed. Kate ran from her past and ran from everything until she found what she needed (in the end it was always Jack). I liked how the "sideways storyline" resolved itself and don't think that the purgatory resolution is a cop-out to the rest of the show at all.
Yes, there are some mysteries that the show has left unresolved that will continue to frustrate.
Why could women not give birth on the island? Well, from what we were shown, some could. Jacob and the Man in Black were birthed and seemingly so were babies for generations to come... until the Dharma Initiative. Ethan was apparently one of the last born on the island, but in 1977 when the Jughead bomb was detonated there was residual radiation and electromagnetic energy that affected women who became pregnant and ended up dying before successful birth could occur. Sun became pregnant ON the island and would have died before she came to term with Ji-yeon. It was never specifically stated, but it seems that the bomb detonation was THE event ("the incident") that caused this to happen. Claire arrived over 8 months pregnant and gave birth to Aaron without having the same poisonous effects happen. This is also why she was kidnapped by Ethan and given shots, to protect her and the baby (Charlie, Jack and the rest did not understand and, appropriately, reacted strongly to protect her, so Ethan unfortunately became too dark and violent in how he handled the situation, which resulted in his death).
There WAS an Egyptian fertility statue of Tawaret that existed on the island (and was detroyed by the Black Rock crash, leaving just a four-toed foot), but we never saw who built the statue or the temple. We know there were centuries of people who came and lived on the island (even preceding the arrival of Jacob and the Man in Black) so it was sometime over all those years that Egyptians arrived and constructed these things. Dharma stations and videos were found before we, the viewers, learned who actually constructed those stations and village homes (we just didn't get to see Egyptians living and working the way we saw Dharma folk in the 70's). I'm fine with filling in gaps like these based on the answers provided within the show and hope you are too ('cuz there ain't no more).
Walt WAS special, yes, and the island enhanced his powers. He had a telekinetic ability to attract animals to him (as when he read the comic book on the beach and then the polar bear was drawn towards him). He was able to make astral projections that would warn Shannon of danger (though he appeared wet and whispering backwards). He somehow got into the computer to communicate with his father Michael in the hatch. Were any of these things resolved/answered in the story? No. Is it irritating? Well yes, definitely, when you rewatch these episodes and realize that these things don't really get explained. What does it mean in the overall scheme of things? We are all connected and there are some with more power than others (like a scholar, preacher or doctor having more influence over an individual; though sometimes it could be the uneducated man, or child, who has a true answer). Apparently, Walt's story was concluded when John Locke chose not to recruit him for the journey back to the island ("The Life and Times of Jeremy Bentham", season five), though I really wanted him to turn up in the finale.
Hurley and Miles both had the ability to communicate with the dead, but the origin of their abilities wasn't explained because it wasn't necessary. Why are they this way? They just are. I'm fine with that!
Why does the island do what it does? It just does. It was created that way and made to be special. Jacob explained to Richard that it was "a cork" and in the finale we see that it has a LITERAL CORK. I was fine with that too and it's all the explanation necessary to me, while others will say it's not enough. Their constant "why?" will pervade into perpetuity and not be satisfied. Our simple human brains cannot possibly imagine all the wonder that God has constructed in the universe, yet it is our "why" curiosity that continues to make us grow as humans and intellectuals.
By the end, Christian Shephard was aptly named (and there was a scene early in the finale where Kate laughed to Desmond about the absurdity of the name), but how much on the island was really the Man in Black posing as Christian and how much was THE ISLAND ITSELF using Christian's image? I say that the Man in Black was Christian everytime that he was seen on the island by Jack and Locke (whether walking through the jungle chased by Jack in season one's "White Rabbit" or in the cabin telling Locke to move the island in season four's "Cabin Fever").
I DO NOT think it's the Man in Black on the freighter with Michael and the bomb in the season four finale ("You can go now, Michael."). I believe it is the island itself in this instance. The Man in Black was never shown to be able to "teleport" or "project" the way it happened in this scene.
Jack found his father in the hospital lobby in season four after a SMOKE ALARM went off, but I believe that was the island calling out to him, not the Man in Black (Smoke Monster).
Kate had a dream in season four of Claire in Aaron's room. She told Kate "don't bring him back, don't you dare bring him back"! This was also the island, in my opinion.
Walt appeared to Locke at the end of season three while standing above him lying in the pit of Dharma skeletons. I think this was not Walt, but the island as well. If it was Walt, then his powers were truly underdeveloped in explaination and he was far more powerful than had been let on (he did scare the Others after all, rewatch the episode "Three Minutes" near the end of season two for confirmation).
The polar bears were brought to the island by Dharma for experiments. Having a polar bear on a tropical island is a strange mystery that the writers put in the pilot episode to confound us, but they were eventually explained thoroughly. They were kept in the cages on the Hydra Island station for the zoological research. As seen in the season four finale, the well under the Orchid station containing the donkey wheel had become frigid like an Arctic climate. At some point a polar bear was used down there to turn the wheel and move the island, thereby being ejected from the island at the Tunisian desert exit point (just like Ben and Locke). Since it couldn't survive the desert climate, a dead polar bear skeleton was found with a Dharma collar in Tunisia by Charlotte in her flashback sequence during the season four episode "Confirmed Dead". At some point, once Dharma was all dead, the polar bears were out of the cages and on the main island (one was killed by Sawyer in the pilot episode, another chased Walt up a tree in season one's "Special", and that bear was killed after attacking Mr. Eko and dragging him to a cave in the beginning of season three). Polar bears explained!
The season two finale featured a bird flying over and seemingly screeching Hurley's name (this is referred to as "the Hurley bird") but this has never been revisited or touched upon. Another instance that can be chalked up to the unanswered island mysteries. HOWEVER, if you believe as I do, that animals on the island could sometimes be special then this explanation holds. The boar inside The Black Rock made Richard drop the nail he was using to free himself, thereby making him reliant on the Man in Black for freedom (another boar on the island raided Sawyer's tent in season one and helped him gain perspective). Also, go back to season three's "Expose" with Nikki and Paulo (which I still consider a great episode!) and listen to the sound when the spider bites her. It's the Smoke Monster sound! This was never resolved further since the characters were literally buried with their own mysteries.
Certain instances of Vincent on the island became important as he lead the islanders to various discoveries (he found the skeleton arm holding the keys to the Dharma van and found the doctor from the freighter washed dead on the shore). The dog always gave a vibe like it was on to something and could never verbalize the way a human would. If/when you rewatch, pay attention to the dog. For a time, I thought it might be revealed that Vincent died in the crash and he was always the Smoke Monster spying on the castaways! Of course, this theory turned out wrong, but was fun to wonder about. Still, Vincent was a regular character that was needed by all his owners (Michael, Walt, Shannon, Rose and Bernard) and after all, he was the first one Jack encountered on the island at the beginning of the pilot episode and ended up being the last to be with him when he died in the finale (Jack did not die alone). Like Hurley, he never harmed anyone and was always there when needed to do what was right. Good boy!
Vincent was not in the church at the end though, too bad. Poor Michael was destined to be a "lost soul" trapped on the island as a whispering ghost and could not move on. Frank Lapidus, who had a big hand in helping Jack and the islanders (the Ajira plane and freighter helicopter, hello!) was also not in the church, but not every single person holds the same importance (and overall, Lapidus was always a supporting member, glad he re-emerged from the submarine to fly the plane though; Jeff Fahey rules!).
You can read plenty of "Lost" business online if you want/need more. If my write-up here is all you read, then thanks for bearing with me and getting through it! "Lost" is a show with a deeper meaning and more substance than most programs and deserves the conversation. As much as I like things like "Glee", it just comes off so fluffy in comparison and doesn't hold a candle to how much I revere "Lost" (though that is its purpose and I am glad for the place it holds in my life; the way I can appreciate "The Three Stooges" and CITIZEN KANE in the same breath). Another show I love, "24" has ended this week and there are few other shows I follow with the same devotion and investment. I know what "Lost" has meant to me over the years and the way I felt during the grand finale. Having rewatched the majority of the series just before season six began, I know the episodes are easily rewatchable as high entertainment so I encourage you to not disown the show if you did not immediately like last night's conclusion (or this whole season). I hope I've been able to help with some nagging threads that the creators did not tie up in the finale and I hope you have a great time in your next devotion. "See you in anotha life, brotha!"
P.S.
My friend Jaime was murdered in Texas last week after working a late night shift and being nice to the wrong people. A man and woman asked for a ride, but instead the two shot him six times and stole the car. Jaime was like a real-life Hurley, a big guy who was always seemingly happy and doing nice for others. He didn't get to see the end of "Lost", one of his favorite shows, so I guess he reached the end of his story (in "Lost" speak, the island was through with him). I will always remember the kindness that he showed others and the way his passion was shared. It wasn't about the show between he and I, it was about our personal relationship. The memory and message survives and the relationship lives on in my heart.
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