justnick's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So who watched Lost last night? (Spoilers and major nerdage ahead) BGM: "Think" - Aretha Franklin (Particularly apt lyrically this time, I think. Teehee) Hey internet: Just because I didn't like the finale of Lost doesn't mean I didn't get the finale of Lost. Get over yourselves, nerds. Just because you thought something was great doesn't mean that is the only correct interpretation of it. You are more than welcome to find satisfaction in the half-assed 'then the bad guy died and they all lived happily ever after in heaven' ending, but I was not. Call me crazy, but I wanted an ending that addressed all six seasons of the show, not just the first and last ones. And how exactly does a guy who still relies on quilting to make his clothes figure out that sticking a wheel in a wall and turning it will allow him to travel through space-time? Why did the fucking statue have four toes? Why bother giving Jack a son and having him go through the emotionally trying process of getting to know him if it turns out that he's just part of the freaking Matrix? Why do Sayid and Claire get forgiven but Michael doesn't? Why was Walt so special? How in the fuck was Shannon Sayid's true love as opposed to the entire central pivot of his character, Nadia? Now, I know what you're thinking. I'm nitpicking. I'm missing the point. The show was about characters, not mystery. But I firmly disagree. The show was completely about mystery, the characters were just what got you coming back for more. And to wrap up six seasons worth of mind-bending questions with a simple fairy-tale 'happily ever after' ending is a complete and utter cop-out, in my eyes. Now, don't get me wrong, I still found it emotionally satisfying that they all got together and hugged (you can't tell me that scene didn't feel like a ten year old wrote it), and it was nice to hear Jack tell off the Smoke Monster dude, but that's not enough. What made the show so great wasn't that it was emotionally or intellectually engaging. What made it great is that it was both. And the finale completely abandoned the intellectual half for some half-baked love is all you need message straight out the 'Non-Threatening Religious Dogma 101' handbook. It could have been so much more than that if it had tried to be a little mnore ambitious. If they had wrapped up the characters and the story in some satisfying way, it would have been one of the best two and a half hours of television ever. But instead, they decided to have the entire finale revolve around a cave (and don't get me started that the cave had a literal fucking cork in it) that they only introduced two episodes ago, and completely abandon wrapping up the character's fictions in favor of a sugary-sweet happy ending. It was like the whole point of the finale was to say that none of the rest of the time you spent trying to wrap your head around the island's mysteries had any point to it. It was all just a red herring. I'll sum up thusly: Lost was, at its best and at its worst, a show that strived to make you think andfeel. It worked so well because the cinematography and sound design were brilliant, the characters were endearing, and the mysteries were introduced and answered at the perfect pace. For six long seasons, the writers got us to come along by teasing us with just the right amount of answers. Every time you thought you had it figured out, they threw another question at you, and every time you thought there was no way any of this would ever come clear, they answered a question. The characters were what made you care, but the mysteries were the real meat of it. To pretend otherwise is silly. If all you wanted was compelling character drama, you would never have put up with the sheer amount of sci-fi they put you through. So by choosing to end it the way they did, they essentially just confirmed our fears: they were making it up as they went along. And you know what? That's fine, because it was still great TV. But it could have been even greater. They had us chasing a carrot for six seasons, and then ended the show before we finally got to eat the fucking thing. Excelsior. 1:25 p.m. - 2010-05-24 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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