I’m sure you’ve mentioned this somewhere else, but I think since Lost withheld it’s “style” until the very end it felt manipulative to many people. What I mean is that most shows, upon viewing the first episode, tell you exactly what type of show it is and (pretty much) where it’s going. It only takes one episode of “Law & Order” to figure out the bad guy gets caught at the end and confesses (or something in that fashion). You only need to watch “24″ once or twice to understand that Jack Bauer is going to shoot some people and rescue some other people, while negotiating with some devious character on a cell phone. Then he’ll diffuse the bomb from going off with the secret code as he exposes the infiltrator within the company and the American can flag can once again wave proudly. And it only takes one or two episodes of “House” to realize that Dr. House is going to correctly diagnose the ridiculously complex illness, while also splattering the audience with his bizarre and eccentric humor making him the lovable asshole that you just have to respect.

But Lost withheld that sort of information. The format, or “genre” if you will, was a bit ambiguous. Is this a Drama? Is it Action/Adventure? Is it just pure Science-Fiction? Obviously a bit of all three but what is the exact ratio? How much should we pay attention to these scientific mysteries and how much should we be focusing on the character resolutions? What really matters here? Or are we watching some abstract, “artsy”, melodrama in terms of the island and the events on it being just a fantasy world created by their subconscious’ because they’re all in some sort of group hypnosis therapy session? (I threw that in because it was one theory I was so sick of hearing from “newbies” as they started the show after me and would repeatedly claim, “Eureka!! I’ve figured it out!”) But seriously, just what’s going on here? How do I label this show so I can understand it’s message?

So with all that mystery and intrigue the fans grew a little “arrogant” because so much theorizing, I think, tends to start to become conducive to demanding it be verified. In other words, it wasn’t enough to just have fun theorizing and talking about the show while enjoying what the writers had in store for next week. It wasn’t enough to just enjoy using your imagination to ponder the possibilities and come up with your own ridiculous theories, but remember that it’s their story and they’re telling it in a certain way for a certain reason. No, you wanted to be right. That became the focus, “Am I right about what I think is the answer?” And this is NOT the focus of the show. It never was.

The fact that the first 80 episodes (three seasons) were mainly sitting around talking about their issues and then some mythology would be introduced that would only serve to give them something to do…. then they go back to just sitting around talking and bonding, well that alone should inform you how to look at the mythology or the science in terms of it’s relevance. All they ever did was show an off-island pre-crash problem being dealt with by the behavior on-island post crash.

They weren’t a team of scientists that landed and immediately broke out the gadgets and started running tests. The story wasn’t told from the perspective of The Dharma Initiative and their arrival, or Rousseau’s team and theirs. Had one of them been the framing device, then yes I can see them possibly going deeper into the science or the mysteries because that was the primary focus of those groups.

The first few episodes as they met and then each characters first centric told you pretty much everything you needed to know to understand that person’s arc that was going to be resolved in the duration of the series. Again, no scientists in the core group. No gadgets on the beach (other than the transceiver radio). No title card describing a mission to explore a strange report of a scientific island with unique properties, or an objective of the clandestine group of agents sent in to understand the bizarre data from a secret facility in Los Angeles that found an electromagnetic anomaly in the south pacific.

I went into season 6 with just as many complex (pseudo-)scientific theories that I hoped/expected to be addressed or revealed as explanations. Then the reveal in the end hit me across the face and I remember sitting there for about 15 minutes going, “What the fuck?” I asked myself if I really liked what I just saw…. and I realized, “Yes. Actually… I did.” Why? Because finally I realized that what I had been watching wasn’t a story that was meant to be “solved” in terms of science fictional answers or verification of my theory or “a theory.” It was a metaphor for life and the process of overcoming fears and personal setbacks by offering and accepting help from others around you. Simple, cliche, cheesy, poetic…

So that was the “reveal” to the mystery (for me anyways). My imagination was sparked for 6 years and even though I thoroughly enjoyed the ending and felt that it fit perfectly with the show’s theme and message, I still enjoy theorizing, discussing and writing fan-fiction for the science as well as tie-ins for characters backstories that we didn’t see. So Lost is still fun (for me at least) because I’m having just as much theorizing now, as I did a year ago during the season 5-6 break. But that’s just me and how I choose to enjoy what I experienced. I can see how some people don’t find that solution satisfactory.

Anyways…. I could rant and rant, but the bottom line is I think you have to either learn how to enjoy the show for what it was, or learn how to hate it for what it was. No more answers will be given via any more episodes. So you can go back through the series and see that there were indeed things foreshadowing the season 6 reveals (like in “?” with Charlotte Malkin delivering the message to Mr Eko from Yemi, that she was “in between places” and “even though he’s pretending, his brother thinks he’s a good man and will see him soon” …. or in “Further Instructions” where Locke sits inside of Eko’s church and has a sweat lodge vision eerily similar to the flash-sideways visions, complete with some characters in different roles, and in which Boone tells him, “You have to bring the family back together” ….. or in “Dave” in which Hurley questions whether the reality around him is real or not and it takes the reassurance and encouragement of a loved one to console him…. or the dozens of other hints and clues and use them as pieces that make the show a cohesive story.

Or you can spend time wishing they would’ve answered a few more mysteries so you could have the excuse to like it. I’m not implying they absolutely knew every line of dialogue and had written or envisioned every single scene of the ending back in season 2. But I’m confident that the series works as one cohesive tale, with plenty of relevant foreshadowing, while also providing enough mythology to provoke imagination and discussion for the fans to satisfy themselves with.

These people were spared from death as strangers on a plane with personal issues. So yes, it makes sense that they would spend time after they died reliving how they overcame those issues, and using those memories of what they did with that second chance at life, to draw strength/encouragement/support from. Then, they once again come together as a group to move on.

As for why the churches and religious folks aren’t out praying to stop the oil spill, actually, they are! Mostly from their churches or places of worship. Many light workers are using positive imagery and intention to help as well. Read here for more: http://grandmothersspeak.com/messages/20100527.php

I believe they created this extra myth to satisfy both main types of Lost fans–those who wanted the island to be real, and those who didn’t. However, in trying to please both, they didn’t really hit a home run with either side. Still, the other reason two resolutions may have been needed, was to explain the dual-realities of our world–the illusionary world we live in and the real, heaven-like realm that corresponds to everything that happens in the other world. By mixing up the two, the writers made a direct relation between these two worlds. Which world creates the events first for the other to follow? It’s irrelevant because whatever happens on one will happen on the other.

As for the story being created as it went along, this is how most organic, pure storytelling happens. The problem is not that they came up with new ideas for each season, the problem was that they did not have an overall plan to explain all the mysteries they were creating. For me, this is where the show was flawed. But as I’ve said, there seems to even be a message here. The message that life is not about getting all the answers. Personally, I think there could’ve been a more satisfying way of getting this point across, but I do think in sum, “Lost” was a powerful, intriguing show with an equally powerful and intriguing ending that at the very least, resolved the character issues and explained many of the mysteries about the island.

While I wish I could jump into the universe where the show ended more like the ending described in “The Myth of Lost,” I also feel that their ending provides meaning that “The Myth of Lost” ending did not–meaning that perhaps is going to be more relevant to our current dimension moving forward.

I have accepted both interpretations of the finale and many more. However, for those who only believe the island was part of the afterlife, I would not presume this to mean that they also believe their experiences there didn’t matter. It mattered a lot, because their experiences there were real to them.

I do not believe that the world we live in really exists. I believe it is all an illusion or even a simulation. However, I also believe it matters a great deal because it all seems real to us, and helping us to have the experiences our souls desire. The point is, just because something isn’t real, doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter. At the most basic, any TV show or movie or novel isn’t real, but its story and messages mean a great deal to a lot of people. “Lost” is one such example.

And yes, everyone IS important. In fact, I wrote an entire article about just this topic for “the Variable” episode which you may enjoy: http://thelaymansanswerstoeverything.com/2009/04/30/lost-in-myth-the-variable—choosing-to-sacrifice-for-the-sake-of-the-island/

At the heart of most spiritual practices is the idea that if we heal ourselves, we’ll heal the world. The concept was echoed in “Heroes” “save the cheerleader, save the world,” the idea being that the simple, ordinary person (us) can make a difference.

Glad I helped you to experience some clarity with “Lost.” As I replied to Esteban above, take what resonates and disregard the rest.

Namaste

One thing I forgot to mention in this article was that on the island, Jack said to Desmond, “I’m already dead.” Hmmm…

Having recently lost my mom, yes, I would agree that the ending of being reunited with loved ones at death is a comforting notion. At the very least, I like to think that I will be reincarnated with those I care about from this life in the next one.

Glad you’re digging the book! Take the parts that work for you and disregard the rest. For those parts you’re on the fence about, see how perhaps with a few tweaks to your accepted beliefs that might make sense. If they still don’t, disregard those parts too. There is no right or wrong, only what resonates and what does not.

The simulation resolution was just a way to make the life-as-illusion allegory relatable to our world. The show used this same root-myth in their story, but only made it apparent in the flash-sideways scenario. The island was a different kind of illusion, one that seems illusionary, but is the true reality. It is the realm from where our story is created, to be played out on the illusionary game board. This realm can be thought of as heaven, or the afterlife. “Lost” kind of switched the metaphors around, and perhaps this was to make the point that “as above, so below”–each is interchangeable and a reflection of the other–hence all the mirrors.

Namaste

“Turns out however, that ABC themselves inserted the images “to soften the transition from the moving ending of the show to the 11 p.m. news” and that “they were not part of the Lost story at all” but just a nostalgic look back at where the show began. (LA Times)”

This information actually doesn’t change my opinion at all. Was it an accident that ABC decided to include these shots and fans interpreted them in a way not intended by the creators? If anything, it serves to strengthen my entire argument about the show–that it’s creators were channeling information that is bigger than themselves. Perhaps they weren’t completely true to the story they were meant to convey, so the universe interfered by adding in new information for audiences to digest. There are no accidents.

For the record, the “island-as-purgatory” theory is not how I interpreted the show. But I do see it as a valid explanation no less true than the island being real. I provide reasons for this in the article above.

For starters, I believe everyone has a destiny–no matter how rich or poor. The destiny is unique to the individual. If someone is homeless or living in poverty, it may be their challenge to find shelter and help others do the same. We are all given life-challenges that are appropriate for our given situation. This is not unique to me or any other “First World” citizens. When I use stories of my own destiny, it’s to help people recognize their own path, and perhaps learn from my mistakes and observations, just as I like to do from the stories of others–including character archetypes in movies and television.

Lost is a myth, and like all myths it borrows from earlier myths. All myths do this, creating updated versions of older stories to make them relevant to our current experience. When I wrote that “‘Lost’ has shown us this,” I did not mean to imply that it originated it, just that it has indicated it within its story. Perhaps you see people as ordinary and insignificant, but I do not. I believe we are all important and have a role to play in this world. For the writers of “Lost” it was channeling this very important story from our collective unconscious, the our collective conscious, where we can recognize it more clearly and use its wisdom to help us in life.

As you yourself state, I have no reason to apologize for the ending of the show. If anything, I should be one of the people criticizing it since my book came up with a different resolution that, in my opinion, is better at resolving the mysteries of the myth. In fact, I have been critical in this article and elsewhere about the resolution twist only solving an aspect of the show from its final season. To me, this divided the story in two–an island myth, and afterlife myth. Still, perhaps there is a message in that. Many, many viewers liked the ending, and it made most of us think. Even though it’s not as apparent in the story as I would’ve liked, the answers are there within the mythology. You just have to search for it and discuss it to find it.

The point of the writers being “gracious” for leaving many of the answers up to us is because they respect us enough to be able to come up with solutions that apply to our individual lives. They also were humble enough to realize that their answers were perhaps not good enough to satisfy their intelligent and demanding audience. There was also a bit of tongue-in-cheek in there, recognizing the frustration that many fans had, myself included, with the way the creators built up the mysteries they didn’t plan to answer. There’s a part of me that’s disappointed too, JR, but much like the lesson of “Lost,” I am learning to let go.

Most people in this world who live alone have gotten to that stage through decisions they have made in their life. None of us is born alone, and since I believe we are all connected, i do not believe that any of us are ever really alone. Even many people who live alone, are able to connect thanks to the Internet, TV, or shared stories in books and magazines. And many others who are alone in the wilderness feel a connection to the world that you might not realize. Perhaps its time you took your own walkabout to see the world through different eyes.

Do you really believe that only original information constitutes teaching? Everything taught in a school came from some place! Even the information in the Bible was culled together from ancient Egyptian and Greek myths. And the fact that “Lost” contains wisdom that exists elsewhere only seems to reinforce the idea that there must be some truth to it, if it’s been passed down for so long and among so many different cultures. I have never once insinuated that “Lost” is originating this wisdom. It has existed for eternity. “Lost” was just original in how it put it all together for us today.

The answers you are looking for from the show exist within it’s episodes. Some can be figured out from piecing together the story, i.e., the pregnancy issues occurred due to the Incident when the energy of “life, death, and rebirth” leaked out from the Source, and some from its deeper mythology, i.e., the Losties were all connected because we are all connected and get reincarnated with one another to help us live together and reach our destiny.

While I have mixed feelings about the “Lost” finale, I do not feel it failed to the extent of X-files. Had it tried to piece everything together in a coherent story, however, it probably would’ve. The only fulfilling resolution for the show was a twist, and for whatever reason, the creators decided not to give it to us. Perhaps it was supposed to be purgatory, or even a simulation, but hearing some of the reactions to those endings, they changed their minds to give us something that was more up to interpretation.

I’m sorry you feel that “Lost” was a waste. I think your deep disappointment in the ending however proves otherwise. Perhaps you are partly angry just because it’s over and there’s nothing else out there right now that can reach you the way this show did. I also get that you feel betrayed by the ending, but then why not just create your own ending–one that works for you? That’s what I did. When I get bummed about the ending, I just think about the one in “The Myth of Lost” and how it totally works for me in explaining the show’s mysteries and connects them to our world. Perhaps in an alternate dimension, that’s how the show did end, or your way is how it ended. Think of a satisfying resolution for you, and focus on it. Perhaps your sideways flash will be a world where your ending was the reality.

Namaste.

I love Lost and have been a fan since day 1. I own seasons 1-4 on DVD, which I plan to re-watch at some point. But I don’t plan to purchase seasons 5-6, because I think that somewhere early in season 5 the show jumped the shark. It was somewhere around that time that they introduced the Man in Black, put more emphasis on Jacob, and then ultimately introduced the Sideways World. I did enjoy the resolution at the very end at the church, and the sentiment that we are a “collective soul” or collection of souls and will be with those most important to us in the end in eternity. I just didn’t like how the writers got there.

For me, Lost simply went in too many directions. There were already plenty of mysteries afloat (Dharma, Eloise, Desmond and his “uniqueness”, the Ben/Widmore rivalry, the friggin island itself, etc.) before they introduced the history of Jacob and Smokey, their mother, the Temple people, the whole time-travel thing and the Sideways world. The writers should have concentrated on the known mysteries than introducing new ones in the last couple of seasons. I heard a really discouraging comment by Alan Sepinwall on his podcast this week that he was told by a former Lost writer that late in season 3, they hadn’t even thought of the time travel twist yet. This tells me that Damon and Co. were simply being indulgent with their writers, and allowing them to try anything at the expense of the show. The “let’s throw spaghetti on the wall and see what sticks!” method. And thus, the show ultimately suffered for it.

I am sad that the show is finally over, but even more discouraged for what Lost MIGHT have been if the show had better vision and direction.

I do want to say that I am one of those who believe that the island was real – what happened there really happened, and it really did have a connection to the rest of the world. It is too easy in the contemporary west to assume our lives don’t matter, that we are random accidents amidst a universe that is itself a random accident and what we learn and accomplish is for our own growth alone.

I do think what we do here matters – the choices we make matter. Not just to ourselves and our families and communities, but to the larger world. We can tilt the world towards the good, or – by our choices and through our actions – we can tilt the world towards evil. We will all make mistakes, get “lost,” and hurt others, but it does make a difference to the world. That’s my understanding from the little bit I have learned of Kabbalah – that in healing myself, I help to heal my community and even heal the world a little. That’s tikkun, yes?

And Jacob, you make important points and present a point of view that is both needed and necessary. It sounds to me like you long for a world that’s filled with justice. Perhaps helping Westerners to understand how our lives of relative luxury are built on the poverty most of the rest of the world is what you are called to do. Perhaps your destiny is to alleviate that suffering: as Hurley said, nobody can tell you why you are here. I am sorry you were so disappointed with the finale . . . Darlton left an awful riding on those 2.5 hours and if they could not (or would not) reconcile faith with science, then I can see why their choice of “faith is better” would really make you angry. But the science-fiction is there – and maybe you can tell the story in a better, more cohesive and satisfying way.

For me, that myth and faith aspects were what made the whole experience worth it. But once they decided to come down on one side rather than the other, it was inevitable that some would love, while others would feel that Lost had been betrayed.

Thanks again, Marc. I’ve learned a lot in the last 5 months.

I think most would agree that the worst version of “what happens when you die”, would be to experience it alone.

Live together, Die together! Brilliant notion indeed.

My “as viewed” interpretation, was that they all died in the plane crash and Christian’s comments suggested that Jack’s experiences where real, despite not being tangible (imo). However, their experiences did have an impact on their progression through the afterlife.

Thanks Marc

According to the L.A. Times, those closing images were added by ABC executives, not “Lost” executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, and they were not meant to imply that no one survived the original voyage of Oceanic Flight 815. They were not meant to imply anything, actually; they were meant to serve as a transition to local newscasts.

“The images shown during the end credits of the ‘Lost’ finale, which included shots of Oceanic 815 on a deserted beach, were not part of the final story but were a visual aid to allow the viewer to decompress before heading into the news,” an ABC rep told the L.A. Times.

“In other words, while you can carve your own path to your destiny, you cannot create a new destiny for yourself. The universe will course correct whenever you begin to stray. This also is in line with my own beliefs.”

This is the typical arrogant attitude of the human as center of all things. Really, Marc, you think the whole freakin Universe cares about your own personal, white-bread “destiny” ?! You and most others here represent the privileged, well educated First World populace which thinks everything is about them. What about the rest of humanity without access to everything we take for granted ?! You think they have the luxury of destinies, friends, lovers, not to mention the propensity to kill anyone when it suits their purposes ?! No, Marc, this is a “white-society” idealized fantasy that’s pathetic in its shallowness and transparency. (note: “white society” is not to be read as a racial reference, rather as meaning uniform, bland, and representing the First World societies and interests.)

“But as Lost has shown us, an afterlife world, while completely imaginary, might seem very real to its occupants while a mythical island that seems to be an illusion, might in fact be the true reality.”

You speak again of LOST as being a hallowed reference, when it’s just a set of guys like you and me writing a story. And LOST hasn’t shown us this! This is Philosophy 101 which THEY borrowed as a foundation for their story.

“no ending Lost could have delivered would have fulfilled such a complex storyline, rich mythology, and high viewer expectations … I’m not apologizing for the writers’ reliance on building up mysteries they never intended to answer.”

BS, Marc! They had THREE freakin seasons to craft an excellent ending! Other scifi series have done better with less, the Stargate finales come to mind. You’re making excuses once again for them for some unknown reason. And though you deny being an “apologist” for them, your writing speaks differently.

“Lost’s creators have graciously left the task of understanding it up to you. After all, fans have come up with far more fascinating answers to mysteries than most of what Lost provided this season.”

There you go punting again! Now they’re “gracious” for not completing what they started!! Marc, do you even read what you write ?! Then you go on to basically state that fan-fiction is better than the authentic series. That may be right but for entirely the wrong reasons.

“Like Christian said, nobody does it alone. We live together and we die together too.”

Again, more of the “normal white society” schtick. There are MANY people in this world without friends, without family, who actually live alone and die alone often in circumstances we find disgusting. So don’t try to make LOST out to be representing a general metaphor for humanity because it simply is not. It’s very idealized with preference towards First World societal constructs.

“Lost taught us that we’re all connected… We’ve learned that no one is all good or all bad, and when you let yourself get to know people, you begin to understand why they act like they do. Through scientific, spiritual, mythological and religious themes on the show, we’ve learned that there are many ways of getting to the same truth.”

These are good insights, yet I take issue with your phrasing that LOST teaches, again, the show is NOT an authoritative source, it references ideas already out there, it’s a TV show, not a online college course, it doesn’t teach.

Your analysis, like many others, forgives D&L for betraying the mysteries that kept us interested across six seasons. We did not come back year after year for love and relationship stories, that stuff is available on Lifetime and other network dramas. LOST was unique for its scifi-based mysteries and D&L totally sold us out for hugs and kisses and what was basically a cast wrap party in that cliche church scene. And bloggers like you don’t help the cause by apologizing for them and rationalizing their ending. It was a full betrayal of our interests and I will forever revile them for that. I sincerely hope they fade away like The X-Files’ Chris Carter after his shameful finale and failed films.

And to be clear, I and those like me, didn’t want every mystery answered and the such. We just wanted the series to be true to what made it great in the first place. Instead, they morphed it into a saccharin, emotionally manipulative love story ala Titantic and that’s where alot of our intense disappointment comes from. But in the end, it’s just a show, I’ve deleted all its episodes from my DVR, and will move on to next Great Series and just hope its creators stay true to its basic premise. Namaste dude.

I agree that the creators most likely didn’t intend for the island to be interpreted as purgatory, but they purposely left a lot vague so we could take our own meaning from it. Christian could’ve easily said that the “island” was real,” but he didn’t. He said “everything that’s ever happened to you was real.” Well, isn’t talking to the ghost of his dead father something that’s happened to him? So, is that real too?

As far as Christian saying that “some of you died before, and some long after” Juliet could’ve died before and Penny could’ve died long after, and everyone who escaped purgatory could’ve too. Perhaps there was a way out and Kate and crew found it. The flash forwards could’ve also been an imaginary realm like the flash-sideways, or perhaps an escape from the purgatory dimension. It’s about cheating death.

Again, I don’t think this is the intention, but I do find it interesting that it fits and that ABC happened to add in those scenes at the end, almost as though we should take some additional meaning than what the creators intended.

Thanks for allowing me to clarify!

Namaste

While I agree there are some parts of the finale that can make it look like the Island was also some sort of purgatory, I think the most important part of what Christian said was that ‘some of the died BEFORE you and some LONG AFTER’. Do we have to assume then that he was talking about dying in Purgatory #1 instead of dying in real life? That doesn’t really make much sense. Also, Kate and Sawyer were apparently able to leave Purgatory #1… so would this mean that they didn’t really leave? Something happened to the plane?
Also, what about their lives as the Oceanic 6? Was that also part of Purgatory #1?

Even thought the idea of multiple purgatories isn’t really that impossible, I think they’ve put enough hints in the finale for us not to interpret it that way.