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Lost (2004 TV series)

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This article is about the drama series. For the reality show, see Lost (reality TV series).
Lost
File:Lost-season2.jpg
Promotional photograph
Created byJeffrey Lieber
Damon Lindelof
J.J. Abrams
StarringSee Cast and characters below
Country of originUSA
No. of episodes44 (April 19, 2006)
Production
Running time42–45 minutes
Original release
NetworkABC
ReleaseSeptember 22, 2004 –
present

Lost is an American drama-adventure television series concerning the survivors of a plane crash on a mysterious tropical island. It was created by Jeffrey Lieber, J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof, is produced by Bad Robot Productions and Touchstone Television, and airs on the ABC network in the US and Channel 4 in the UK. The music is composed by Michael Giacchino.

Background

Lost's development began in January 2004, when then-head of ABC Lloyd Braun ordered an initial script, based on an idea he claimed to have had for quite a while. Unhappy with the result and a subsequent re-write, Braun contacted J. J. Abrams, creator of cult-favorite Alias, to write a new pilot script. Initially hesitant, Abrams warmed to it, and eventually collaborated with Damon Lindelof to create the series' unique style and characters. [1] The development of the show was constrained by tight deadlines, as it had been commissioned late in the 2004 season's development cycle. Despite the short schedule, the creative team remained flexible enough that they did not hesitate to modify or create characters to fit actors they wished to cast. [2]

Lost's pilot episode was the most expensive in television history, having cost $10 million. [3] The show became one of the biggest critical and commercial successes of the 2004 television season and, along with fellow new series Desperate Housewives, helped to reverse the flagging fortunes of ABC. [4]

Capping its successful first season, Lost won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series and Abrams was awarded an Emmy in September 2005 for his work as director of the pilot. In January 2006 it won the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Drama.

~~ Episode and series structure ~~ Each episode begins with a cold open, preceded by a recap of events that have a bearing on the upcoming narrative, At a dramatic juncture, the screen cuts to black and the show's title graphic is depicted slightly out-of-focus, gliding towards the viewer, accompanied by an ominous, threatening sound. The opening credits are then shown over the scenes that quickly follows. As usual for TV shows, the script is made around commercial breaks, and will usually incorporate a small cliff-hanger just before each. While there is an overall continuing story arc, events on the island are very funny e.g when Sawyer said "Bitch", often with parallel storylines, by flashbacks that expand the history of particular characters. Some episodes end with a suspenseful twist, revealed just seconds before a smash cut to black. Others, which include a plot resolution, finish with a reflective closing scene that precedes a simple fade to black.

Cast and characters

Main article: Characters of Lost

Template:Spoiler

Season synopses

For a list of episodes by season, see List of Lost episodes.

Season one: 2004–2005

Main article: Episodes of Lost (season 1)

Season one began airing in the United States on September 22, 2004 and featured 25 episodes. A plane crash strands the surviving passengers of Oceanic Flight 815 on a seemingly deserted tropical island, forcing the group of strangers to work together to stay alive. However, their survival is threatened by several mysteries, including the contents of a hatch buried in the ground, an unknown creature that roams the jungle, and the motives of the inhabitants known as the "Others."

Season two: 2005–2006

Main article: Episodes of Lost (season 2)

Season two began airing September 21, 2005. The story continues 44 days after the crash. Several new characters appear, including the tail-section survivors Ana-Lucia Cortez, Bernard, Libby, and Mr. Eko. Also introduced are Desmond, a man calling himself Henry Gale, and other inhabitants of the island. The existence of the DHARMA Initiative and its benefactor, the Hanso Foundation, is established: they may be responsible for the strange occurrences on the island. The truth about the "Others" begins to unfold.

Thematic motifs

There are several recurring thematic motifs on Lost, which generally have no direct impact on the story itself. While such repeated elements and references are unnecessary to the enjoyment of the series, for some fans, they expand its literary and philosophical subtext.

Black and white

The colors black and white, which traditionally reflect opposition or dualism, appear frequently throughout the series, often brought together in reference to characters whose natures are presented as ambiguous or contradictory. This dichotomy is laid out in the "Pilot" with Locke's description of backgammon to Walt: while holding up a black and white piece, Locke says, "Two players, two sides — one is light, one is dark." In the opening sequence of "Raised by Another," Locke appears as an ominous image in Claire's nightmare about her unborn child, with one eyeball black and the other white, playing with corresponding, similarly colored cards.

Other appearances of the colors likewise connect characters in apparent opposition to themselves, or each other. In "Deus Ex Machina," Sawyer, one of the more ethically questionable characters, develops headaches due to farsightedness, diagnosed by Jack and cured by Sayid, with the creation of a custom pair of glasses from the frames of two different sets: one side white, the other black. In the closing scene of "Collision," Jack and Ana Lucia, ostensibly the leaders of their respective factions, stand facing each other, with Jack wearing a white shirt and Ana Lucia wearing a black shirt. In "The Long Con," when Sawyer is telling the group that he has the guns, Jack and Locke — who were just arguing with each other — are wearing opposing black and white shirts.

At other points, the colors are featured in sometimes unexpected or unexplained ways. In "House of the Rising Sun," Jack finds a pouch on a pair of mummified corpses, nicknamed "Adam and Eve" by Locke, containing one white stone and one black stone, which he then hides from Locke.

Eyes

References to eyes appear frequently in Lost. A close-up image of an eye opens many episodes, in most cases of the character whose flashbacks would be featured. In "White Rabbit", Locke hints at his experience in confronting the island's mysterious "security system" saying, "I've looked into the eye of this island. And what I saw was beautiful." Later, in "Raised by Another," Claire has a nightmare in which Locke appears with opaque eyes, one white and the other black. The tail-section survivors also discover a glass eye in the DHARMA Initiative's abandoned storage locker, and in the episode "Lockdown," when the map of the underground bunkers is revealed by blacklight, it is briefly shown reflected in Locke's eye.

Familial dysfunction

Most of the major characters have dysfunctional parents, particularly fathers, who are either absent, reluctant, or destructive. Most notably, Locke is the victim of a betrayal in "Deus Ex Machina" by both his natural parents. Jack's broken relationship with his alcoholic surgeon father, Christian, is the impetus for him to travel to Australia, at the behest of his mother. Sawyer's mother has an extra-marital affair with a con-man; after finding out, his father kills her and then commits suicide. Kate murders the abusive man she had believed to be her step-father after discovering he is actually her biological father. She is forced into a life on the run after her mother reveals her crime to the police. While the troubling parental relationships of these four individuals have been the most explored, nearly all the protagonists have had serious difficulties with their families. In many cases, the ways in which the survivors dealt with these relationships led to their being on the island.

Literature

Episodes often mention or incorporate literary works, a point of interest to fans who try to connect them to Lost's mythology. [5] While certain books are read by characters, others are referenced in dialogue, and some have just been glimpsed.

Sawyer is frequently shown reading, initially the books he finds in the plane wreckage, a habit which eventually leads to his hyperopia. In "White Rabbit" he spends time with Watership Down, an account of a group of rabbits trying to find a new warren. In the later episode "Numbers," Sawyer starts A Wrinkle in Time, a children's fantasy novel about a group of adolescents who rescue a lost father, which contains Christian undertones about a universal battle between darkness and light. [6] In "The Whole Truth," Sawyer is reading Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret, a teen novel about menstruation, when Sun asks him for a pregnancy test. He calls the book "predictable."

Biblical stories and psalms have been pointedly used by Mr. Eko, such as the story of King Josiah (from 2 Kings, chapters 22 and 23), which he related to Locke in "What Kate Did," and the recitation of the 23rd Psalm in the following episode.

The Third Policeman is seen when Desmond is packing before fleeing the underground bunker in "Orientation." Craig Wright, who co-wrote the episode, told the Chicago Tribune that, "Whoever goes out and buys the book will have a lot more ammunition in their back pocket as they theorize about the show. They will have a lot more to speculate about — and, no small thing, they will have read a really great book." [7]

In "One of Them," a man who claims to be "Henry Gale" is captured and imprisoned by the survivors. Series writer Damon Lindelof has said that the character's name alludes to Dorothy's uncle from The Wizard of Oz. [8]

Locke gives a copy of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov to Gale during his captivity in "Maternity Leave." Gale asks if he could have a Stephen King novel instead. Shortly afterwards, Locke relates to Jack that Ernest Hemingway felt that he lived in Dostoyevsky's shadow, a situation which Gale takes to refer to the relationship between his two main captors.

The dialogue between characters occasionally refers to literature, sometimes in off-the-cuff remarks, to add context to the plot. In "White Rabbit," John Locke converses with Jack, who believes he may be going crazy chasing someone who is "not there." Locke refers to this as "the white rabbit" from Alice in Wonderland and makes his first declaration of the special nature of the Island, "Is your White Rabbit a hallucination? Probably. But what if everything that happened here happened for a reason?"

Other books that have been briefly glimpsed on screen or alluded to in conversation include: Heart of Darkness, Lord of the Flies, The Turn of the Screw, Walker Percy's Lancelot, and An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.

Philosophy

By admission of the show's writing staff, some characters on Lost reference famous philosophers through their names and connection to each other. [9] The two clearest examples, John Locke and Danielle Rousseau, are both named after social contract philosophers who dealt with the relationship between nature and civilization.

The character Locke shares his name with English philosopher John Locke. The latter believed that in a natural state, all men had equal rights to punish transgressors; to ensure fair judgment for all, governments were formed to better administer the laws. His concept contended that humans are born with a "blank slate" — a tabula rasa (also the title of the Season 1's third episode) — without any innate knowledge or experience, and their identity is therefore a product of their decisions and choices in life. Danielle Rousseau shares her surname with Franco-Swiss philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who argued that man is born weak and ignorant, but virtuous nonetheless. He maintained that man becomes wicked only after society is developed. His theory of the Noble Savage hypothesised that a child raised in the wilderness, independent of human society and culture, would be an objectively superior person with regards to a universal set of ethics. Rousseau stated that "man is born free, but everywhere, he is in chains," and coined the phrase "all men are created equal."

Locke's father on the series, Anthony Cooper, shares a name with a real world counterpart, Lord Anthony Ashley-Cooper, who was the philosopher John Locke's political mentor and patron. The character Locke's protegé, Boone Carlyle, shares his name with Thomas Carlyle, a nineteenth-century essayist who spoke of the organization, structure and leadership of society. In his book Heroes and Hero Worship, he proclaimed that by necessity, heroic leaders were inevitably flawed.

The show also references Eastern philosophies. The DHARMA Initiative, uses an acronym which refers to Dharma, the "way of higher truths" in sects of Hinduism, Buddhism and Daoism. The symbol used by the Initiative is called a bagua, a wheel of balance often used in feng shui.

Mythology

As a "genre" show, Lost includes a number of mysterious elements which have been ascribed to science fiction or supernatural phenomenon. The creators of the series refer to these as part of the mythology of the series.[10]

The monster

First Appearance: "Pilot: Part 1"

The monster was the first piece of mythology introduced and, according to the producers, one of the most vital to the history of the island. It first appears when, on the night after the crash, the survivors hear a load roar coming from the jungle and witness trees being torn down in the distance. The next morning, Jack, Kate, and Charlie go into the jungle to find the transceiver and see the power of the monster first-hand when it rips the pilot from the cockpit and leaves his mangled body in the trees. In "Walkabout", Locke has a direct encounter, but, unlike the pilot, he is spared. In a conversation with Jack, he says of this event, "I looked into the eye of the island. And what I saw was beautiful." The monster has had very few appearances since then, sporadically emerging in the jungle every so often and disrupting the treks of the survivors, who have so far managed to escape it alive. In "The 23rd Psalm", Eko has a confrontation similar to Locke's. The monster is revealed to be a large mass of black smoke, with images from Eko's past flashing throughout it.

Animals

First Appearance: "Pilot: Part 2"

There have been a number of occurrences where the survivors encounter animals that either shouldn't be there or have special attributes. In "Pilot", Sawyer shoots a polar bear, which cannot normally survive in this sort of environment. In "Outlaws", Sawyer has several run-ins with a boar that he believes is purposely harassing him. In "Adrift", Michael and Sawyer encounter a shark that, unbeknownst to them, has the DHARMA logo on its tail. In "What Kate Did", Kate sees a horse, which is unusual not only because such creatures are not native to tropical islands, but because Kate thinks she has seen that particular animal before: on the day she escaped custody.

The Others

Main article: Others (Lost)

First Appearance: "Solitary"

"The Others" is the term that the survivors use to describe the mysterious inhabitants of the island with which they have been at odds. They have kidnapped Rousseau's daughter (Alex), twelve tail-section survivors, and Walt. In addition, they captured Claire when she was pregnant and planned to dissect her baby, but she escaped with the help of Alex and returned to the survivors.

Crossovers

First Appearance: "Outlaws"

Prior to their arrival on the island, both major and minor characters had occasions to interact, frequently unknowingly. These are revealed through characters' flashbacks, often only obvious to viewers, sometimes significantly affecting their lives. The first major occurence of this happens in the episode "Outlaws" when, in an Australian bar, Sawyer shares drinks with Jack's father, who reveals his inability to tell his son how proud he is of him. Sawyer later realizes the connection between the two men, and shares it with Jack. Also, Jack's future wife, Sarah, is involved in a head-on collision with Shannon's father, causing his death. However, the characters are oblivious to most instances, as exemplified by Hurley's manager at the chicken restaurant, Randy, becoming Locke's superior at a box company, Sayid sharing a military transport with Kate's father or Boone watching Sawyer be put into a jail cell. Others are more fleeting, with characters appearing on televisions or being glimpsed in the background. Damon Lindelof has stated that these are not "Easter eggs," but rather a larger part of the mythology of the series.[11]

The DHARMA Initiative

First Appearance: "Orientation"

Main article: The DHARMA Initiative

The existence of the DHARMA Initiative is established by the film that Jack and Locke find in the Swan Station. The DHARMA Initiative, founded in 1970 by University of Michigan doctoral candidates Gerald and Karen DeGroot and financed through the mysterious Hanso Foundation, apparently consisted of a group of "scientists and free thinkers" from around the world who were brought together at a "large-scale communal research compound" on the island to conduct research in various disciplines, including meteorology, psychology, parapsychology, zoology, and electromagnetism. American psychologist and Walden Two author B.F. Skinner is cited as an influence on the DeGroots' work. The DHARMA Initiative has placed stations around the island. Three stations have been visited in the series; two more are mentioned in the fluorescent map found on a blast door in Swan Station, but have not been visited by the survivors yet.

Discredited theories

Lost's mythology is as complex as that of other shows of a similar nature, such as The X-Files or Twin Peaks. This intricacy, and the unresolved questions it spawns, have led to rampant speculation and theorizing among fans, mainly concerning the nature of the island, the origins of the "security system" and the Others, the meaning of the numbers and the reasons for both the crash and the survival of some passengers. Several of the more common fan theories have been discussed and dismissed by the producers, including:

  • The survivors are dead and/or in Purgatory — dismissed by J. J. Abrams [12]
  • The survivors are in a time warp — dismissed by Damon Lindelof [13]
  • Spaceships or aliens influence the events on the island — dismissed by Damon Lindelof [13]
  • Everything seen is a fictional reality taking place in one or more of the survivors' minds — dismissed by Damon Lindelof [14]
  • The island is a reality TV show and the castaways unwitting housemates — dismissed by Carlton Cuse [15]
  • The cloud of black smoke is a nanobot cloud similar to the one featured in Michael Crichton's novel Prey — dismissed by Damon Lindelof [16] [17]

Awards

Note: Awards won are not listed under nominations.

Wins

Emmys:

  • Outstanding Television Series: Drama (2005)
  • Outstanding Director of a Television Series: Drama — "Pilot" Part 1 & 2: J.J. Abrams (2005)
  • Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series — April Webster, Mandy Sherman, Alyssa Weisberg, Veronica Collins (2005)
  • Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series — Mary Jo Markey (2005)
  • Outstanding Music Composition for a Series — Michael Giacchino (2005)
  • Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series — "Pilot": Kevin Blank, Mitch Suskin, et al (2005)

Golden Globes:

  • Best Television Series: Drama (2006)

Screen Actors Guild:

  • Ensemble in a Drama Series (2006)

Producers Guild:

  • Best Television Series: Drama (2006)

Writers Guild of America:

  • Outstanding Achievement in Writing: Dramatic Series (2006)

Nominations

Emmys:

  • Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series: Drama — Naveen Andrews (2005)
  • Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series: Drama — Terry O'Quinn (2005)
  • Outstanding Writing for a Television Series: Drama — "Pilot" Part 1 & 2: J.J. Abrams, Damon Lindelof, Jeffrey Lieber (2005)
  • Outstanding Writing for a Television Series: Drama — "Walkabout": David Fury (2005)

Golden Globes:

  • Best Television Series: Drama (2005)
  • Best Actor in a Television Series: Drama — Matthew Fox (2006)
  • Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series: Drama — Naveen Andrews (2006)

Lost in other media

In addition to the television series, the characters and setting of Lost have appeared in the following official tie-ins:

  • A diary by a survivor was incorporated into the official ABC web site for the show.
  • The interactive back-stories of several characters are included in Lost Untold, a section of Channel 4's Lost website.
  • As of March of 2006, three tie-in novels have been published:
    • Endangered Species by Cathy Hapka; released November 1, 2005. (ISBN 0786890908)
    • Secret Identity by Cathy Hapka; released January 1, 2006 (ISBN 0786890916).
    • Signs of Life by Frank Thompson; released March 1, 2006 (ISBN 0786890924).
  • In early 2006, Verizon Wireless will distribute the Lost Video Diaries to its subscribers via its V-Cast system. Each video diary will run several minutes and cover events not seen in the television episodes.
  • Hyperion Books will publish a metafictional book entitled Bad Twin, (ISBN 1401302769), written by a "Gary Troup", who was a passenger on Oceanic Flight 815.

Distribution

Lost has been at the forefront of new televison distribution methods.

Lost was one of the first television series to be distributed through Apple's iTunes Music Store service for playback on an iPod. Since October of 2005, new episodes, without advertising, have been available for download the day after they air on ABC.

Disney has also announced that it will distribute Lost in streaming format for free (with advertising) on ABC's website as part of a two-month experiment to test future distribution strategies. The trial, expected to last from May to June 2006, has caused a stir amongst network affiliates who fear being cut out of advertising revenue.[18]

Soundtrack

Main article: List of songs featured on Lost

Michael Giacchino composed, orchestrated and produced the Lost soundtrack. Although pop culture songs have been used sparingly, most music is original and orchestral, incorporating several recurring themes for events and characters. According to the Lost podcast from January 9, 2006, some of the methods used to achieve the sound envisioned by the composer are highly inventive, including striking actual suspended pieces of the fuselage from the plane.[19] The score is performed by the Hollywood Studio Symphony Orchestra.

On March 21, 2006, the original television soundtrack to Lost was released by the record label Varese Sarabande. It includes full-length versions of the themes heard on the show.

  1. ^ Craig, Olga. "The man who discovered 'Lost' - and found himself out of a job" The Daily Telegraph, 14 August, 2005.
  2. ^ Abrams, J. J and Lloyd Braun, Lost Season 1 DVD (extras), Buena Vista Home Entertainment, 6 September, 2005.
  3. ^ "'Lost' strikes a chord worldwide." Reuters (London), 13 January, 2006.
  4. ^ Bianco, Robert. "A good season, with reason" USA Today, 26 April, 2005.
  5. ^ Oldenburg, Ann. "Is 'Lost' a literal enigma?" USA Today, 4 October 2005.
  6. ^ Kurshan, Ilana. "Wrinkle in Time Study Guide, Chapter 4, 'The Black Thing'," SparkNotes.com, 16 March 2006.
  7. ^ Reardon, Patrick T. "Lost book mention may be good for small press." IndyStar.com (reprint of Chicago Tribune article), 29 September, 2005.
  8. ^ Lindelof, Damon and Carlton Cuse. "Official LOST Podcast." ABC.Go.com, 1 March, 2006.
  9. ^ Franklin, Garth. "Paul Dini Gives 'Lost' Spoilers", Dark Horizon Web site, 9 November 2005.
  10. ^ Benson, Jim. The 'Lost' Generation: Networks Go Eerie, Broadcasting & Cable, May 16, 2005.
  11. ^ The Official Lost Podcast'.' 2 February 2006. 14:24.
  12. ^ Fienberg, Daniel. "'Lost' Team Discusses Upcoming Death and Mysteries" Zap2It.com 14 March 2005.
  13. ^ a b "Lost Answers are Out There" SciFiWire, 24 January 2005.
  14. ^ "Damon Lindeloff E-Mail interview" LostTV-Forum.com, 21 August 2005.
  15. ^ Idato, Michael. "Asking for trouble" Sydney Morning Herald 22 August 2005.
  16. ^ Wharton, David Michael. Comicon 2005 news. Cinescape.com17 July 2005
  17. ^ Grillo-Marxuach, Javier. "Burning Questions", TheFuselage.com, 22 July 2005.
  18. ^ "Disney to make TV shows available free on Web" Reuters 10 April 2006.
  19. ^ Official Lost Podcast "Official Lost Podcast" 9 January 2006.

See also

Wikiquote has quotations related to Lost.
Official tie-in sites
Production related sites
Network sites
For network sites in countries other than the US, please refer to Airdates of Lost.
  • ABC: Lost (US): also official Lost Season 2 website
Other sites


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