Theater of the mindless

Television will never have the capability to challenge people to use their brains the way books do or even the way some radio does (or did, I suppose, before everyone got all oversensitive -- not to mention the old radio serials). But television's big minds have been trying harder, and all that needs to be posed to the audience is one simple question:

What the heck is going on here?

Thank the people behind Lost for making this a common occurrence in the boob tube medium and for proving that a lot of people actually like to be challenged to participate or at least use their imaginations when it comes to entertainment (though, the love-it-or-hate-it crowd surrounding Lost also proves there are quite a few people who DON'T like to be challenged).

Anyway, what I'm saying is that this is a good thing. Star Wars fans proved a long, long time ago that one basic story can plant the seeds in the mind of a fan and spawn thousands of galaxies worth of stories and ideas -- some good, some bad, but all products of an imagination that's being used. That's why I like Lost, and it's also why I'm starting to dig John from Cincinnati.

John is a simpler story, told in same methodically slow form that it's creators used with Deadwood to great success.But there's mystery there that's starting things up in my head, not the least of which surround John himself and the flapping-dead parakeet that can heal people. And all that surrounds a family more dysfunctional than Ben's "others" ever could be.

What's John? An alien? An angel? Or just "slow?" Is Zippy the one with the healing powers? Or is it Shawn? What did John do to Kai? Why is a drug dealer (Dayton Callie is genius in his Calamity Jane-ish character) flying in from Hawaii to keep an eye on the family and why is he babysitting a high-profile, shallow pocketed customer? Why the heck was Mitch floating? What're Luke Perry and his adorable protege up to?

It's refreshing to find another show that makes people think. Cuz most of the time they just follow the story (if there even is a story and not a bunch of dimwits trying to be the best whatever) and hope it gets them somewhere.

I am a dentist, I am not Rambo.

That 50 million people aren't watching Lost every week will continue to baffle me on a personal level. I find myself dumbfounded by the show on a weekly basis, and when I'm roused from my Lost-watching haze, I look at my notebook (strategically placed on the coffee table so I can better come over to the computer and share my thoughts) and it's empty.

It's like putting your toddler in front of the TV.

Anyway -- STOP READING IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED YET! You don't want this one ruined for you, I swear.

Aptly, this series has always been about the past -- what else can you really consider when you're a band of plane crash survivors doomed never to leave a desert island? At that point your future is just a dream (or one of Desmond 's premonitions). Doom and gloom comes easy in this fictional world, huh? And what you see leading up to this there are nowhere near the doom and gloom that's to come. We're talking serious tragedy... and stuff.

But first, you have to cater to the "fans" who want to see something significant happen. What better way to do that then to char 7 or 8 obligatory Others beyond recognition? This episode may have had the highest body count yet, if you don't count Ben's little genocide. Sad to see Tom go, though. I kinda liked where his character was headed.

(Side note: I'm annoyed at Hurley for begging for recognition for his big save. I know he irks a lot of viewers, but I've always liked him.)

Anyway, for the first time we see into our characters' future (what was obviously a flash-forward from the very beginning, so don't act surprised), and it's pretty bleak. Though it seems to involve a rescue of at least four people from the island, and it (obviously) means more questions. The real question here is: Is this real, or is it just the manifestation of Jack's worry now that he's made the call that Ben and Locke seem so sure will spell doom (and gloom)?

Oh, yeah, Locke's alive. Surprise. Seriously, how could you kill the guy? What actually did surprise me was the return of Island-ghost Walt... who we last saw draw Shannon to her doom (good work, buddy!), though this time he's hit puberty. Locke and Ben don't seem to be wrong, either. Charlie, in his quest to meet his destiny, finds out that Naomi isn't exactly working for Penny.

It may have been the saddest moment in the show's history, but it was also a brilliant way to go out for Charlie. I really never liked the character, and now I have some respect for him.

Who Naomi and her friends are will have to wait. We'll also have to wait to find out who was in the casket (Locke, probably. Or Ben.), and what "the temple" is. Fewer new questions than I expected, for sure.

In all, it was pretty exciting and didn't leave us with a big gaping question like previous finales have. The story will just continue when next year rolls around. For that, I'm grateful.

You all everybody

Sounds like the name of a Homestar song, doesn't it? If you don't know what I'm talking about, I give you the Web's best answer to TV so far.

Anyway I'd suggest you stop reading now if you've not watched Lost yet. There're some SPOILERS BELOW THIS LINE. I'm NOT KIDDING. (Why do I go through such lengths? Because I know what it's like to read the news and have something ruined.)

I'm way off topic. Sorry. So...

This is Lost's MO: Use the last 10 or so episodes to build up to a big event (The Hatch, The Others), then leave us hanging a few times in there with about 10 unfinished plotlines (if I have to list them, you probably don't care anyway), THEN hand us the answers to about three of those, discount one or two and leave the rest for next season (where maybe half will be answered). It's genius, because they've got me hook, line and big, four-toed statue foot.

With a big two-hour finale next week, there should be no wonder there's a cliffhanger (don't kid yourself into thinking there won't be one next week either). You never want to sit and expect it, but you know it's coming. Especially with the over-pushed "Charlie's gonna die" storyline that they expect you to expect to come to an end this week. I wanted to believe it would, but you know that if the hobbit -- who was considered the fan-favorite character in the show's early going -- is going to die, it'll be in the finale, whether it's the honorable death he planned or not (I picture him surviving only to meet an unbelievably untimely death just moments later).

The important part is they offer you a bunch of proof that Charlie really is that noble chap who would sacrifice everything for Claire and Aaron (and cares enough to drop the f-bomb on Hurley and whack his buddy Dez upside the head). It's all a fitting sendoff for the character, and I don't think he'd be underserved by going out on that note. But he could still live, too. He's not dead yet, and if he can get out from in front of the guns of the two nice ladies he just met, he may even flip the switch and escape. At the least he'll flip the switch.

A few side notes:

-- Whatever happens, that won't be a rescue chopper that Desmond saw in his little flashes.
-- If Locke were actually dead, he wouldn't have been mentioned so faux casually.
-- It's just about too late for Jack to win me back as the leader and a partial badass. He's been in wuss mode for far too long.
-- Is it me or did Charlie's dad have an Irish accent... not one from anywhere near Manchester.
-- BERNARD AND ROSE! I've had a few conversations about where they've been in the past few weeks (two with myself right before and right after Sawyer name-dropped Bernard while handing Kate her "mix tape"). I'd like to think he'll live through this upcoming assault, but I'd be quicker to equate him to a red-shirted Star Trek extra.
-- I love when they expand to a new environment, because it just adds to the show's creepy oddness. The new station, Looking Glass, while appearing only briefly, opens up a whole new world (that may or may not disappear as quickly in the finale...).


Did I miss anything? Feel free to leave a comment or two (traffic should be going up as you'll now see my goofy mug on the TV page of the Press on most days). You can also chat with some of the more obsessed Lost fans at the Press's Lost message board.

End date set for Lost

From Hollywood Reporter:

The Emmy-winning adventure series will run for 48 more episodes over three seasons. Each season will consist of 16 episodes, which will air uninterrupted.

Lost executive producers/showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, who have been vocal about setting up an endgame for the show, have signed on to stay for the remainder of the series' run. Their separate new eight-figure deals with Lost producer ABC TV Studio include their services on the show as well as multiyear development pacts set to kick in when Lost bows out during the 2009-10 season.

"Due to the unique nature of Lost, we knew it would require an end date to keep the integrity and strength of the show consistent throughout and to give the audience the payoff they deserve," ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson said. "Having Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse signed on to complete the journey of this show was critical to me and the network. Damon and Carlton have tremendous talent, and we're thrilled that they'll be with the show throughout its run."

Lindelof and Cuse praised McPherson and ABC TV Studio president Mark Pedowitz for "their bold leadership and vision in making this groundbreaking decision."

Having the end point in sight is "incredibly liberating," Lindelof said. "Like we've been running a marathon and we actually know where the finish line is for the first time."

Lindelof and Cuse said they've had "a road map for the series with all the major mythological milestones and the ending in place" for a while. "What we didn't know was how long we had to play the story out," Cuse said. "By defining the endpoint we can now really map out the rest of the series in confidence."

There will be some puzzle play, too.

"We sort of view 'Lost' as a mosaic," Cuse said. "Now there are only 48 more tiles that go into that mosaic, and we're figuring out, along with all the other writers, exactly where they all go."

In January, Lindelof and Cuse said that they envisioned the endpoint for "Lost" around episode 100. The agreement with ABC will bring the total number of episodes to 120.

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Read the whole story here.

The whole thing actually excites me more, because unlike the wishy-washiness of Sopranos, we all know what's coming. It's focused, it's solid and there's no real pressure on the creators or the viewers anymore. Complain all you want, but I'd rather see it finish on its own terms (kind of) and not peter out like way too many shows do.

Victory or death.

SPOILER WARNING! IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED WEDNESDAY'S LOST YET (AND YOU PLAN TO) THEN YOU SHOULD REFRAIN FROM READING ANY FARTHER. I'M TOO GIDDY TO WORRY ABOUT BEING DEFT IN MY WRITING RIGHT NOW, BUT I THINK I'VE GABBED ON IN CAPS LONG ENOUGH FOR YOU TO HAVE CLICKED AWAY.

Right. Now that that's over with...

I sit here at 3:30 a.m. relaxing in my post-Lost glow. I don't really like to write about the show very often, and definitely not on a weekly basis. I honestly don't even discuss it that much. I don't like to have anyone else's view on the show taint my own -- or have their opinion taint my own (I'm a very impressionable youngster).

That being said, there are weeks when I just feel like the show has been so impressive that I have to talk a bit about it. Even on a superficial level, this was a stellar episode. Sawyer and Kate's relationship soured even more, and we got to see a little more of the James in Sawyer. Jorge Garcia got a chance to shine again and not just stand around calling everyone "dude." Charlie brooded some more before getting a chance to flash that silly hobbit grin. Locke got to deliver more than one line. Mysteries weren't solved, but they weren't piled on either.

Maybe I'm a sucker just because the castaways found their happy place this week (some of them at least) and pulled out their best Smashing Pumpkins impression. That doesn't happen too often. In fact, moments where the die-hard viewers get to just be happy for the passengers of Oceanic 815 are seriously few and far between. The last one I can think of off the top of my head at nearly 4 a.m. is the feast. I don't think it's a coincidence that was a Hurley episode, as was this week's.

Each and every one of the 50 or so passengers that we know of are tragic figures, and there were a few other tragic figures already settled on the island. But none, I don't believe, is more tragic to the everyday American than poor Hugo, who pulled off the luckiest possible feat , a lotto win, only to lose his grandad, his best friend, his girlfriend... now his chicken shack...

The show's fans for the most part identify with the big guy (all geeks know what it feels like to be down on your luck, with no answer or safe haven in sight). Hurley's the guy we all would buy a beer for -- he's the guy we root for in whatever little way we do. And when that van took off, he's the guy we cringed with and, as he put it, hoped with.

So it's natural he's the one who has these shining moments, as everyone else struggles, the unluckiest of them all scores these little wins that are, really, great triumphs. That's what you cling to when you're in a funk: those afternoon-long experiences that would mean very little to anyone else -- that you'll remember for the rest of your days.

And it makes sense seeing that pure happiness (in such a miserable situation) through Hurley's eyes. They're all happy in their own way on that beach, and you'd have to be to not have given up after all that time. But because of that, none of them will score the tiny personal triumphs that Hurley can.

Of course it can't last -- these surrogate friends of ours are doomed, like it or not. Charlie can stare death in the face, but when he's satisfied he's safe and he turns his back, he'll fall prey. And poor Hugo. Well, if anyone can make it home, it's him. But all the hope in the world can't beat a self-imposed curse. So, what happens if it's not self imposed? Even worse, what happens if it's real?

Concerning Hobbit

Spoiler alert: I'm gonna try to keep things as kosher as I can, but if you haven't watched the episode yet, better to come back and check out the blog later...

No Jack, no Sawyer, no Kate, no Others.

As promised, Lost went back to the beach Wednesday night. But the complaining's not going to stop, is it?

No. "Fans" of the show who were disappointed that many of their favorite characters were scarce in the first six eps of this season were offered only a glimpse of the Lost they were hoping to see. And to that I say good.

I'm serious. Granted the show spent most of its time off the island (in the past... ish), but the payoff at the end of the ep (with Charlie) covered all the fanboy, Lost-geek fix you could ever need. It also served to make BOTH Charlie and Desmond astronomically more interesting characters.

But what happens when Desmond kicks off?

Airport screening sucks

From Gannett News Service:

HONOLULU -- Film from ABC's hit show Lost was ruined when security employees at the Honolulu International Airport accidentally X-rayed the canisters despite warning labels asking them not to.

The show's crew had to reshoot the scenes because there were no copies.

"This is the first time anything like this has happened,'' said state Film Commissioner Donne Dawson, adding that steps have been taken to prevent a repeat of the incident.

The loss will not affect the broadcast schedule for the popular show, according to co-executive producer Jean Higgins. Higgins declined to say how much the gaffe cost ABC.

"That's proprietary information between us and the insurance company,'' she said. "We've already reshot. We are still on schedule.''

Lost reportedly spends $1.5 million to $2 million or more per episode with about 200 full- and part-time workers. Normally it takes about eight days to shoot an episode, so if one day's worth of film was destroyed, the cost could be close to $200,000.

The incidents occurred when the film canisters were mistakenly mixed with passenger luggage and then sent through an X-ray machine. The canisters were left unattended at X-ray machines along with other nonfilm cargo. The film apparently was then thrown in with piles of passenger luggage without regard for the warning labels indicating not to X-ray the sensitive contents within.

According to an informational Web site run by the film office, the mistake occurred following a new Transportation Security Administration cargo security directive that requires that all small cargo packages traveling on passenger planes be screened by air carriers via an explosive-detection system or explosive trace detection system.

Can't wait until the government tries telling big business that "freedom isn't free." All well and good when it's a few million air travelers, but don't mess with Disney.

TV content: nothing to worry about when you see overblown headlines on your Comcast home page or local paper.

Another day, another useless clip show...

Editor's note: Matt's still on his quest to watch every single episode of American Idol this season. Everyone has to have goals, we suppose.

As if it wasn't bad enough that American Idol had to pad it's schedule with a clip show last night, I had to watch it. Not that I really even got to it until about 2 p.m. this afternoon (thank you Tivo). I did watch Lost (and some other actually entertaining shows) upon arriving at home and was pleasantly surprised at an amazing return effort. I'm a giggling little schoolgirl when it comes to Lost, and I couldn't have been happier at a wonderfully action-packed episode. I was stoked to see guests from two of my favorite shows -- Always Sunny's Mac and Deadwood's Calamity Jane -- and even more excited that they dropped some fanboy bombs on us. I'll hold off on the spoilers until this weekend when I may have to get my geek on and watch the whole episode again.

Anyway, clip shows are the second lamest form of television (behind reality). I hate them so much I deleted even the Lost catch-up from the DVR without a second thought. There's no need to make the hardcore viewer sit through stuff like this -- or delete it from their DVR or bgrudgingly change the station -- especially if your motive is to attract new viewers to your waning shows or catch people up who missed a few episodes and may be hesitant to try to pick up the story mid-season. Either way, do it on the Web -- that's the perfect place because it offers an on-demand environment and doesn't make someone who loves the show angry that they're being cheated out of a new ep that week. USA has the right idea with their two-minute online recaps.

Now, I understand this was "extra" Idol content -- stuff we didn't see or stuff that was so good or bad that we, like, just HAVE to see it again. That's a more reasonable excuse, but I still call it editing-room leftovers. I paid more attention to the two-minute preview for the Shrek sequel than I did the entire episode of Idol. We're at a point in the life of our society's attention span that we need to get on with the show. Give me continually compelling TV every week without fail. If that means long hiatuses, so be it. Sopranos is doing just fine. Reruns and clip shows are not going to get you viewers -- they can see their reruns on DVD (through Netflix or their local overpriced electronics store) or the Web (legally and illegally); they can see their clips on YouTube.

You want season-filling specials? Give me side-stories, documentaries or something like that. Don't give me stuff I've seen and promise me 20 seconds of something I haven't seen because I'm not sitting through it. America is perfectly willing to give its attention to the networks on a nightly basis and they're insulting us 30 percent of the time.

Planning the end of "Lost"

So you don't freak out when you read a headline like that in the morning... here's the important part of the AP story:

PASADENA, Calif. -- Makers of the tropical island drama Lost say they're
talking with ABC executives about setting an end date for the series.
There's no sense the finale is coming anytime soon. But knowing they have a deadline will help writers of the convoluted drama lay out how they want the story to end, producers said Sunday in a meeting with TV critics here.
"Once we figure out when that will be, a lot of the questions will go away,'' said Carlton Cuse, an executive producer.

Obviously, no matter what they say, the best serial on TV will probably stick around long enough to make us all sorry for watching the last two seasons.