Final LOST Analysis

Before we get back to discussing the Adventures of Team Danger, I've got way too much to say about the finale of LOST.

 (oh look - here's a photo of my three favorite male pieces of eye candy, and Juliet for the men ;) )

I give the finale an A+. It wasn't what I expected, and yet, it was exactly what I expected. My predictions were off a bit - I was too focused on the idea of a happily ever after that I didn't pay enough attention to the meaning of the words, "Happily... Ever...After."

Because I did get my happily ever after with LOST. It was just a bit more "Ever After" than I had thought.

Based on the Facebook posts I've been seeing today and yesterday and the comments at Entertainment Weekly, several people are unhappy with the ending. I suspect that these are the folks who weren't dedicated LOST fans, or were those who were only watching it for its science fiction ties. If you were expecting every unsolved mystery to be solved, then this was not the finale - or the show - for you. I also suspect these were the fans who might have strayed a bit, who maybe gave up during season 2 or 3 and came back in season 4 or 5.

I truly believe this episode was a love letter to the true Lost fans - those who have watched our beloved and hated characters grow over these six years, and those who can truly appreciate the sheer brilliance of the small things... like the Apollo candy bars in the vending machine ... that Fake Locke fell to his death and landed in the same position as Locke after his paralyzing push from up high .... that Locke regained the use of his legs only after Fake Locke died and loss the use of his legs ... the mirror scenes of Hurley and Sayid in the car pulling up to a hotel room leading to someone being shot, like we saw in Season 4 ... the fact that at the concert, Desmond, Kate and Claire were sitting at Table 23. And I'm only getting started.  Hearing Sawyer pass Jack in the hospital and call him, a stranger, "Doc," and later, Juliet, "Blondie."

The opening ten minutes were incredible, starting with the pans of the aircraft and then the remains being shipped, and then the introductions to all the key characters, juxtaposing their Island life with their Sideways/Purgatory life. And the final scene, with the eye closing and Vincent, bringing the entire show full circle over six years from its opening scene, was beyond brilliant. Vincent, coming up to comfort Jack as he lay dying, to make sure that on the Island, if 'we all live together' then you won't die alone. Six years ago, the show began with Jack's eye opening in the jungle, Vincent near him, and the one clean white tennis shoe hanging high in the tree. TO have our very last scene be the mirror opposite, of Jack's eye closing one last time, Vincent nearby, and the white shoe, now dirty and worn over the course of several years, still hanging nearby, was absolute poetry in my book.

I was sobbing throughout the show, every time a connection was made by our Losties. Sawyer and Juliet's reunion was just as beautiful as I had hoped it would be - I was about 99% positive it would be the "let's meet for coffee - we can go dutch" lines she uttered while dying during the first episode this season. And while the anticipation for their reconnection was sweet, the end result was even sweeter. Especially his "I got you", mimicking his promises to her as he was holding on to her arm as she was being pulled into the well. Aww...

I cried again when Sayid and Shannon reconnected. A surprise, since I thought he was destined for Nadia. But it made sense. He had too much baggage with Nadia - in either universe - to truly be himself and be happy. He and Shannon had had a lovely fresh start back on the Island.

I also loved the fact that it was Sun and Jin's ultrasound - their child - that re-awakened them. I'd been a bit annoyed there was no mention of Ji Yeon when they died - this helped make up for it. But I'd been wondering why they weren't more aware of their past together - they were some of our few Losties who should have had memories reawakened earlier on. But to explain it away as related to their child... brilliance. Its nice to see the fact that it wasn't just romantic love that could reawaken someone.

And how amazing was the scene with Kate, Claire and Charlie? The fact that it was their joint love for Aaron that caused Kate, Claire and Charlie to awaken was triply sweet. It wasn't necessarily their love for each other - well, maybe it was for Charlie - but in Kate and Claire's situation, it was the birth of Aaron. For much of the show, the big push was on the Jack-Kate-Sawyer triangle. I absolutely love the fact that it wasn't her relationship with either man that ended up being her defining moment - it was Aaron. And even Charlie, one of the most annoying characters on the show in my opinion, had a truly amazing couple of scenes here. When he first saw Claire during the concert, and just stared at her... you could feel the chemistry between the actors in my living room. The birth of Aaron was probably one of my top scenes of the night.

As for the ending ... after all the repeated forays into Christianity, coupled with the Star Wars references and the fact that everyone was so happy in our parallel universe, I was expecting most everyone to live happily ever after. Like I said, it was a bit more "Ever After" of a happy ending than I had anticipated, but in retrospect, its completely fitting. I loved the fact that Jack/Christ died so that everyone could take their place in heaven, and that his father, a Christian Shephard, guided him to that place.

There are lots of things to debate - like when exactly they all died - but in the end, like Christian said, it doesn't really matter. Some died before, some later. We all die sometime. And for those that were gathered inside the church, their time on the Island -or in Penny's case, their time with the folks on the Island - was the most defining times of their lives, and its with them that they all create their heaven.

So what if they didn't answer some questions like Walt or the numbers? As Christian said, we all die sometime. What's important is that, at the end, we are with the people who mattered the most to us during our life. And we can have our happily EVER AFTER with them at the end, in a multi-religion friendly church (with, admittedly heavy Christian influences). "Nobody does it alone... you needed them, and they needed you," Christian told Jack.

Should the producers have answered some of those questions? Well, yes, but not last night. We easily could have done without the horrific Kate-Claire themed episode earlier this season, and revisited Michael and Walt's story somehow. But given the two episodes this season we did see that gave us much needed Island back story (Richard's Ab Aeterno and Jacob's Across the Sea), frankly, I'm glad we didn't get more answered Sunday night. While illuminating, those were two of the most boring episodes we've seen yet, (behind all Kate-themed episodes) and the two I'm least likely to re watch in the future out of the entire series.

The DVD that comes out in August will supposedly answer some of our questions. Not sure which ones, or how they will do it. Hopefully in the form of deleted scenes. I feel certain there has to be at least ONE good Desmond-Penny deleted scene from Sunday that didn't make the cut for some reason, otherwise, well, I'm just going to assume that Damon and Carleton thought their last scene in Happily Ever After was so terrific that they couldn't top it, so why try. (Cynic Annalynn will point out that the Des-Penny scenes in The Constant in Season 4 were even better, though, so it can be done).

Personally, I would almost prefer they not answer them. I like the fact that we have unanswered questions that I can think about and debate with others. Sort of like our generation's Lord of the Rings, which left many, many questions hanging. I'm not saying I wouldn't go out and buy the LOST Silmarillion if Damon and Carleton were kind enough like Tolkein to write/produce one, but... its more fun this way.

I've often watched this show with a question as to whether my father would hate it or love it. Beau and I have discussed it many times - he would love the romance and sci-fi nature, but get frustrated. Would the frustration have overcome his enjoyment? Most of the time, I've thought yes. But after the finale, I knew he would have forgiven the show for any sins it committed along the way to get us to that fabulous ending. And fabulous it was.

Anyone else excited about the idea of The Hurley-Ben years spin-off?