Can we talk about LOST?
I know I run the risk of losing half of you right now. Out of all the television shows released in the first quarter of this century, LOST is the one that will instantly polarize a table conversation. One side thinks LOST was a well-crafted spectacle but with plot lines that derailed and crashed into a disappointing finale, proving the whole show was a colossal waste of time. The other side believes the show’s success at developing memorable characters and delivering plot twists alongside philosophical meanderings resulted in a truly one-of-a-kind series that, though not without its flaws, still holds up remarkably well.
Put me in the latter camp.
LOST is turning 20 this year (yes, 20—cue the “I’m old” memes!). I’ve seen the series three times—first when it was airing weekly on broadcast TV, then with my son when he hit his teenage years, and a third time when my son and I introduced the show to his sister the summer week we all got COVID and realized the first season of LOST would be the perfect way to spend our quarantine. (Funny story: Later in the fall, just after my daughter and I finished the show, I was in Manhattan teaching a seminary course. During a quick walk to CVS, I recognized Terry O’Quinn, who played John Locke, on the street and talked with him briefly.)
Having watched the show three times now, I’m convinced there’s no series quite like it. Nothing as ambitious. Nothing as audacious. Nothing that succeeds so well on so many levels at leaving you spellbound.
LOST Between Broadcast TV and Streaming
LOST marks the end of an era. It represents broadcast TV at its finest. Its quality is cinematic and epic, with a beautiful score from Michael Giacchino, yet it aired in the liminal period when streaming was just stirring. It was also the last real “appointment TV” show, with watch parties in the evening and water-cooler conversations the next morning.
LOST was at the forefront of finding new ways to engage viewers, enticing us with exclusive scenes made available only to people who purchased episodes on Apple, for example. Yet it began like any other drama that required roughly two dozen episodes a year—a staggering number compared to today’s standards. The two-hour pilot is masterful from start to finish and the first season is terrific, slowly unfolding the storyline and developing the characters through the use of flashbacks, all while introducing cryptic elements, giving answers to questions that lead to more questions. The solution to one mystery starts another.
Because LOST was still bound by traditional programming constraints, its writers and producers were working out the series in real time. Back then, there was no “dropping” of a full season all at once on a streamer, and so the creators could take into account fan theories and opinions proliferating in dozens of internet forums and chat rooms. Rabid LOST fans were stunned to see their viewpoints being folded into the show’s development. (Best example: when fans made clear their contempt for a couple of new characters, the writers shifted plans and booted them later in the same season, deliciously fulfilling the fans’ wishes.)
LOST was produced at a volatile time in the entertainment industry, straddling two eras. It combined movie-worthy production and casting with a locked-in weekly television schedule that created an inordinate demand for new episodes, while its developers were unusually responsive to the show’s fans who made their views known online.
LOST as Smart TV
LOST also stood out for how it placed demands on viewers. The scriptwriters didn’t talk down to us. They expected us to catch the show’s philosophical bent and wanted us to look up the famous thinkers some of the characters were named after—John Locke, Jeremy Bentham, Hume, Rousseau, and Faraday (and they even give a nod to C.S. Lewis—Charlotte Staples Lewis).
The show was infused with religious imagery, ancient myths, and a mix of scientific and political theories. It brought together elements of Athens, Jerusalem, and Silicon Valley, showing us where reason, faith, and technology converge, in storylines both inspiring and tragic. It created a microcosm of human society, a group of individuals united by tragedy yet divided in their opinions on battling the elements, resisting evil impulses, and discovering life’s purpose. It foreshadowed the cultural turn toward conspiracy theories, creating scenarios where any rational person would start wondering, What’s really going on?
Where LOST Got Lost
The later seasons of LOST struggled to match the character development of the show’s beginning. But even here, standards remained high. (The finale to one of the middle seasons—I won’t say which—ends with a twist so unexpected it’ll take your breath away as you suddenly realize the pivot point will affect the rest of the series.)
If it felt like the writers of LOST got lost in some of the loose ends, it was in part because of the television constructs at the time. It became harder and harder to sustain interest over 16 weeks every spring when the multiplicity of characters and strange mythology made it difficult for regular viewers to follow along. Even when there were brilliant moments in the latter seasons (“The Constant” is one of TV drama’s greatest episodes), it became nearly impossible to sustain the early success.
But that’s in part because LOST was ahead of its time. In the second half of the series, the writers and producers knew the future was streaming, with episodes available one right after the next, without a week’s wait in between. And they began writing that way. Slowness in plot development that initially felt interminable or the confusing twists and turns and new characters that made it hard to keep up when watching week after week—these challenges were rectified in the “bingeable” era. And now that LOST is streaming on Netflix again (hurrah!), some of the annoying features of watching the show on a broadcast schedule disappear.
What’s more, the initially frustrating finale isn’t as bad as people remember it, especially if you acknowledge that LOST at its best was all about great characters. The reason we loved the show in the first place wasn’t just the science fiction elements, the nod to important philosophers, the wrestling with deeper questions of life, or the mysterious aspects of the island’s deeper mythology; we loved LOST for the characters.
No, the writers weren’t able to bring the show to a compelling close that would satisfy everyone, but that’s in part because of how grand and ambitious the show was from the beginning. I’m glad they shot for the moon, even if they fumbled the descent and landing. Friends who were disappointed in the finale but have rewatched LOST now tell me those later seasons mostly absolve themselves of the initial criticism.
Will LOST Endure?
It remains to be seen whether LOST will have lasting cultural influence. In the streaming era, hardly anything counts as “must-see” beyond the niche of tailor-made audiences. It’s startling these days how even critically acclaimed shows after a year or two don’t get talked about anymore. The streaming era has given us some great entertainment, but everything seems more ephemeral. The shows are there for a season, then gone.
We’ve also lost the cultural phenomenon of “watch parties” or “event TV” because people now stream shows in isolation, on their own terms, rather than thinking of TV as a community-making experience that invites fans everywhere to share in a show’s wonders and mysteries.
I don’t know if LOST will continue to gain new fans in a new era, if its enthusiasts will push the show forward into the next generation and beyond. It might fade into little more than a cultural touchpoint that marked the transition between the era of broadcast TV and streaming. I hope not.
LOST drew us in with characters who wrestled with sin and redemption, wondering if there might be a divine plan and purpose in life. Their stories reflect society’s attempts to find meaning and love in a world caught between science and faith. The show tapped into the mysteries of the world around us and pointed, albeit imperfectly, toward the grand finale we all long for—a time when all wrongs will be righted, all injustices will cease, and we’ll finally understand purpose and pain.
I hope LOST finds a new audience. It’s TV at its best.
If you would like my future articles sent to your email, as well as a curated list of books, podcasts, and helpful links I find online, enter your address.