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Lost’s fourth season pretty much picked up right where season 3’s finale cliffhanger left off. Yes, there is a freighter anchored just off the island, but are they really there on a rescue mission? Furthermore, there is the dilemma that apparently the remains of Oceanic 815 have been found at the bottom of the ocean…who planted it there? And, whereas Jack’s flash-forward at the end of season 3 was a bold twist, flash-forwards are crucial in season 4, cluing us in on who left the island and who stayed behind.

Not only does this season see a major divide in the principle cast, Jack (Matthew Fox) leading those who want to be rescued, and Locke (Terry O’Quinn) leading those who believe the freighter is there to harm them, and go into hiding back at the Others’ barracks. A chopper from the freighter arrives on the island introducing new characters to the fold that include mentally unstable physicist Daniel Faraday (Jeremy Davies),  hot-headed paranormal medium Miles Straume (Ken Leung), mysterious archaeologist Charlotte Lewis (Rebecca Mader), and conspiracy-theorist pilot Frank Lapidus (Jeff Fahey).

As the season’s events unfold, it is slowly revealed that Jack, Kate (Evangeline Lilly), Sayid (Naveen Andrews), Hurley (Jorge Garcia), Sun (Yunjin Kim), and Claire’s son Aaron make it home, dubbed the Oceanic Six. But the flash-forwards reveal that getting off the island is not the end of the story, and ultimately the characters realize that they need to go back to the island to save everyone they left behind. More importantly, it is revealed that the Oceanic Six have been living a lie since returning home, and this is all to protect those still on the island.

Throughout the short season, details are revealed about the freighter, mostly revolving around the fact that it belongs to Charles Widmore (Alan Dale), a character who has generally been linked to Desmond (Henry Ian Cusick) in flashbacks, but apparently Widmore has some sort of history with the island, making him far more integral to the overall story. Furthermore, season 4 hones in on a rivalry between Widmore and Benjamin Linus (Michael Emerson). Widmore has sent the freighter not only to find (more…)

After Lost’s second season really heated things up and delivered one hell of cliffhanger finale, season 3 finally gave us a proper introduction to the Others, focused on answering some long awaited questions, and gave us more of those character driven episodes that made season 1 so great. Picking up where season 2 left off, Jack (Matthew Fox), Kate (Evangeline Lilly), and Sawyer (Josh Holloway) were now held captive at the Others camp, which is apparently a well-to-do neighborhood of barracks with running water, electricity, a book club, and a rec room. Basically, the Others’ leader Benjamin Linus (Michael Emerson), better known as Henry Gale from season 2, has a tumor in his spine and needs Jack to fix that, and uses Kate and Sawyer as leverage. Also introduced is Juliet (Elizabeth Mitchell), a sympathetic Other who bonds with Jack and also wants nothing more than to get off the island.

Meanwhile, back at the beach the rest of the survivors start living in a post-hatch world, since destroying it in season 2’s finale. Having turned the key that destroyed the hatch and releasing an electromagnetic energy, Desmond (Henry Ian Cusick) plays a pivotal role throughout the season having visions of the future. In particular, these visions have to do with Charlie (Dominic Monaghan) dying, and while he consistently manages to save Charlie’s life, they both are forced to face the fact that no matter what they do, Charlie will die. This storyline is crucial to themes that come later on in seasons 4 and 5 about fate and destiny.

It’s also important to note that Nikki (Kiele Sanchez) and Paulo (Rodrigo Santoro) were introduced and subsequently killed off by mid-season, and are considered one of the worst decisions the writers ever made. They were introduced as a means of acknowledging that there were at least 30 or so other survivors in the background, and sort of flesh out what those other survivors have been up to all this time, while also bringing new faces into the fold, but something about them just didn’t quite fit. Most blamed the backlash due to the treatment of their introduction to the show as being too sudden, but I think it was more so that they simply were not given enough to do and therefore their presence as part of the cast seemed pointless.

There were certainly some standout episodes. Early in the season, an Eko-centric (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje)episode focused on him confessing his sins, repenting for the things he had done, and essentially being judged by the smoke monster, something Ben would later do in season 5. Ultimately, he refuses (more…)

Whereas season 1 of Lost brought this wide range of characters together, season 2 not only thickens the plot and the mysteries of the island, but from a character standpoint, it isolates them. This season takes the characters and boils them down to their cores. In a way, it even tortures and pushes many of them to the edge, an edge we did not know existed back in season 1.

New characters are introduced when Michael (Harold Perrineau), Sawyer (Josh Holloway), and Jin (Daniel Dae Kim) wash ashore on the Tailies’ beach and trek across the island to reunite with the rest of the Oceanic 815 survivors. These new characters include Ana Lucia (Michelle Rodriguez), Libby (Cynthia Watros), and Mr. Eko (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). Unfortunately, these new introductions to the cast instigated the abrupt death of Shannon (Maggie Grace), when Ana Lucia mistakenly shoots her in the jungle. Bummer.

I can’t say I really liked Shannon, but in a lot of ways I felt she good have been really great had she stuck around. With so many characters having  long back stories, it would have been interesting to see a younger character on the show significantly grow and change in the context of the events, and the spoiled leggy blonde growing into a tougher and more useful character would have been a good opportunity for that.

Personal thoughts aside, Shannon’s death triggered a great deal of season 2 events. Ana Lucia spent much of the season as an outcast dealing with the blood on her hands.  And as for Sayid (Naveen Andrews), he grew into a darker (more…)

What better time to go back and re-watch Lost from the beginning than right before the final season? Supposedly, this will be where the road ends, tying up the questions we’ve been asking for six years. Needless to say, watching season 1 is refreshingly easy. The only questions we’re forced to grapple with are what the hell is that monster chasing the losties through the jungle and what could be in that damn hatch? Outside of that, it’s just a real kick getting know these characters and piecing together each of their sordid pasts.

What was great about season 1 is that it really focused on the importance of characters. Sure, many viewers stuck around for 5 years because they desperately just have to know the answers to their burning questions, but ultimately, fans stuck around because Lost has one hell of a cast of characters to follow. More than that, it’s great to see the dynamics between these characters, and season 1 is responsible for providing a strong introduction to who these characters are, where they’ve been, what they’ve been through, and the relationships they form with one another.

It’s in season 1 where Jack (Matthew Fox) and Sawyer (Josh Holloway) first form their rivalry [mostly revolving around Kate (Evangeline Lilly)] yet also become reluctant allies. Similarly, Jack and Locke (Terry O’Quinn) emerge as leaders with distinctly different opinions on their survival. As for the other characters, they all deal with their respective problems and pasts, while also dealing with their new circumstances of survival. Kate is a fugitive trying to hide her past, Charlie (Dominic Monaghan) is a has-been rock star trying to (more…)