Wow...that was AWESOME.
I am really struggling to put all of my thoughts and emotions into words, so let's take a moment and just talk about the basics:
- Everything that happened on the Island for the past six years was real...I thought that was extremely important.
- As for all of the unsolved mysteries/questions...I am OK with every single one of them, and I actually sort of feel sorry for the people who couldn't enjoy this season because they still don't know who came up with the Numbers or why there was still a Dharma food drop in 2004.
It's a Mysterious Island...it's going to have mysteries. For every one we didn't get an answer to, I think we have enough information to make intelligent guesses, and (more important and exciting) to have intelligent debate and discussion for as long as it takes until we are all ready to "move on".
- Other on-Island stuff I loved:
Jack and Locke's fight on the cliff. Jack and Locke have always been at the heart of the conflict on the Island, and now you add the extra context of Jack the Protector vs. (Un)Locke the Malevolent Evil. It had a real "Clash of the Titans" feel to it, them fighting on the cliff while the storm howls around them and the Island is falling apart. Just epic television.
Miles's dedication to duct tape.
Everything Hurley said and did.
The closing scene, especially the fact that Vincent was there to comfort Jack and make sure he didn't die alone.
Honestly, there was nothing about the Island stuff that I didn't think was done perfectly...I can't think of anything that I would change about it.
- As for the Sideways Timeline...well, I loved that too, even if it did take a little more brain power than I had available as I was watching it in the early hours of this morning (long story).
First of all, every single scene that involved our characters gaining "awareness" was just wonderfully done...it got REALLY dusty in my living room a few times. Especially the Charlie/Claire/Kate/Aaron scene....hold on, I got something in my eye....
I've already had a couple of conversations with people who were confused about the "Sideways Endgame". I think the big mistake that people are making is trying to view the story through the prism of their own theology. I am a Christian...if I try to look at what we saw in this episode and make it fit into what the Bible says about the afterlife, Heaven and Hell, etc, then this will make no sense at all.
I'm still formulating my thoughts, but here is a rough sketch...
First thing: There is NO "time" related to the Sideways. All of the things we thought were "Timeline errors" weren't errors at all, because there IS no timeline in the Sideways.
I'm not looking at the Sideways as an "afterlife". It is Another life... as in "See ya in another life, brotha". The Sideways is a place that exists outside of our own time and space. The characters that we have seen in that Sideways timeline are not the physical beings...it is their innermost conscious, whether you call that their soul or whatever. This reality exists ALL the time...there is no beginning, there is no end...it is ALWAYS happening.
The connections that these people have made in "our" timeline were so strong that it caused their innermost selves to create this place for them all to get together, reconnect, and REMEMBER.
It's not "purgatory" or "Heaven", per se...trying to put those labels on it is what is going to confuse people, I think.
Here are the two aspects regarding the sideways that I am still mulling over:
1) How was it "decided" who gets to be in the church with them and who doesn't?
2) What was the deal with Jack and Juliet having a son? Who was that guy?
I think I know the answers to these questions...but I'm still thinking about it.
I will be back sometime with a full recap...hopefully it won't take me as long to do this one as it did last season's finale. My biggest issue right now is to train my brain to stop asking questions like "What's next?"; "Where are they going with this?", etc.
This was a brilliant finale to a brilliant series. We will never see anything like it again.
Namaste.
9 comments:
Great recap. I agree, I don't understand the folks who are hating the finale, and feel bad that they were too stuck up on wanting answers on everything to enjoy it. There have been MUCH worse finales to other shows. The finale was surreal to me, and very well done. The scenes with Sawyer/Juliet, Kate/Claire/Charlie, and Jack dying at the end were riveting. The show was an epic that will go down as one of the all time greats. Still can't believe it's over.
I'm thinking of the alternate world as less of a sideways world and more of a mirror that the characters viewed themselves through. The characters were dead and this is how they saw themselves and their lives. Sayid saw himself as a killer. Hurley saw himself as happy and lucky. Ben saw himself as a leader of lesser students but with no real power in the face of his boss. Sawyer saw himself as a good guy with past demons. Jack saw himself as a fixer, and his way of fixing his relationship with his father was to fix a relationship with his made up son. Once the characters were able to come to grips with their own image of themselves and the truth about their real lives they were able to move on. Just my own thoughts and musings on the subject.
"As for all of the unsolved mysteries/questions...I am OK with every single one of them"
Ditto times a thousand. In the end the unanswered questions of the island didn't mean as much to me as wrapping up the characters did. I'm far more invested in them than i ever was in the polar bears or Dharma food drops.
The show means different things to different people and revealed different things to different people. Faith was an integral part of the show to me. I loved how the writers weaved biblical & religious references within the theme & plotlines. So i looked at the finale through my lens of faith: There will always be unanswered questions, things we will never quite understand, but what matters most is love, relationships. And the ending gave that to me in spades.
I don't think there will ever be another show like it. I doubt there will ever be another show that i'll invest in like LOST. And as silly as it sounds, i'm really sad about that today. I wasn't ready for it to end. But ready or not, the writers & actors were simply fantastic. For a show of this magnitude & complexity the finale was far beyond what i imagined.
Namaste y'all.
First, thanks for doing these Scott. Have thoroughly appreciated your insights.
The finale may not have tied up every loose end, but rational fans realized that it wouldn't and truly didn't want it to.
The finale was about the characters. I'll miss them to, but I'm so glad the show has gone out at it's absolute apex.
Loved the finale and loved all of your recaps! Found you blog courtesy of a link from David Hale. I will definitely be back to see what you write about the Dawgs and anything else!
We're so sad it's over!
Definitely the most epic show I've ever seen, and to have Hurley in a UGA hoodie makes it so special.
I thought it was an amazing finale! I was fully prepared to be disappointed in the ending and left with too many unanswered questions. Luckily that didn't happen and the show ended on what I think was the best episode of the season and maybe even the series.
Great show and a great way to wrap it up.
Scott,
Thanks for the post. . your thoughts "mirrored" my thoughts almost exactly! I even had the same thought about not filtering it through my theology. . never make sense that way.
I also think Ben's "few things I have to take care of" were at the least making the connection with Alex and maybe even Danielle, both of whom were important figures on the island who "were basically good". I think that is how they made the decision of who can go to church. . the basically good people. Again, against my theology. :) I oversimplified, but didn't want to steal any thunder. . looking forward to the full recap! Thanks!
It is all about the Bahai faith. Look it up. Great recap and I agree. I was unhappy at first, but have changed my opinion today. As a Christian, I wanted something different. Either way, it was great television and I have enjoyed your Lost posts! Go Dawgs and long live Jack! PS what is up with the Bahai Heaven not letting any of the brothers in: Eko, Michael, Walt? just kidding!
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