Article by: Clay Adamczyk / Matt Altieri
“a struggle between good and evil, faith and science, and the progress of humanity.”
For five seasons, Lost has been has an epic mind-trip of smoke-monsters, space-time continuums, and secret societies. For those who haven’t gone down the rabbit hole, Lost is about the survivors of a plane crash who end up on a mysterious island. At this point of the series, several characters, know as the “Oceanic Six,” have returned to the island to save those they left behind. However, in typical Lost fashion, season six (the final season), shows us that saving everyone is going to be pretty damn difficult.
The final season presents a greater problem than just leaving the island. It becomes a struggle between good and evil, faith and science, and the progress of humanity. With every question answered, a whole slue of new questions arise, and with every minor resolution to a plot, a new twist is presented. The premier of season six is just as perplexing. With 18 produced hours finished and the episode count still unresolved, the show is leaving everyone as lost as ever.
The season begins in an unlikely place: the cabin of Oceanic flight 815 to LAX. This time, however, the plane lands safely, and the viewer quickly realizes this is not flash back. Lost presents an alternate reality. Alongside this plot line, we have the same 815 survivors taking refuge in a mysterious temple. Not much is know about the temple’s dwellers other than they have ties to Jacob, the leader of the island. Jacob was killed by his nemesis via Ben in the finale of season five, which shocks those of the temple. This nemesis, like Jacob, appear to have different special abilities, due the island. Both have been on the island for multiple centuries, but while Jacob remains in human form and doesn’t age, his nemesis is only seen in the form of the deceased on the island, or a pillar of black smoke.
New faces arise in the cast, such as the mysterious temple-dwelling alchemist, Dogen, and his John Lennon-doppelgänger-translator. Familiar faces like Jack Shepard and Hugo Reyes grace the television, but we part with characters like Juliet Burke and we find out that John Locke is finally dead (for real.) As Frank Lapidus and Sun-Hwa Kwon sit dumbfounded beneath the shadow of the statue, James “Sawyer” Ford ventures off alone only to be followed by Kate Austin. Jin-Soo Kwon stumbles across Claire Littleton, welding a rifle and looking disheveled, very different from when we last saw her in season four. Needless to say, the plot thickens.
Lost has been an excellent show, using flashbacks and flashfowards to enlighten us on plot and character developments, but this “alternate reality” of the flight 815 that lands safely in LAX running alongside the action on the island leaves many viewers guessing. One would assume that the two plot-lines will intersect, but it will take true intellect to pull this one all together.
Beginning to tie up all the loose ends, viewers that have been waiting five and a half years are finding out all the answers to the questions they’ve had. Somehow after every turn, there is at least a glimmer of resolution. Hopefully before the series finale ends, this whole thing will finally make sense. Or it won’t. L O S T.
