August 23, 2010. It has been three months since “The End” of LOST. Tomorrow the sixth and final season of LOST comes out on DVD, as well as “The Complete Collection.” So I thought now would be as good as any to write my review of “The End.”
For 5 years, 8 months and 1 day (September 22, 2004 – May 23, 2010) I have been obsessed with LOST. It is a science fiction show with many mysteries. And so, with the end near, I am hoping that LOST will have a satisfying ending with some answers. But no, I was wrong.
Because in the end it was not about the plane crash. It was not about the island. It was not about the smoke monster. It was not about the hatch. It was not about the DHARMA Initiative. It was not about the others. It was not about the freighter. It was not about the science team or the mercenaries. It was not about the rescue and return. It was not about the time travel. It was not about Jacob and the Man in Black. In the end, it was the stinkin’, “The Five People You Meet In Heaven.”
For those who have never read the book or seen the movie, it is a story about an old man who is killed and goes to “heaven” where he meets five people who he had a great impact on their life. And basically that is what happens at the end of LOST.
Jack dies and goes to this “heaven” as a church and reunites with his dad, Locke, Kate, Desmond and Penny, Sawyer and Juliet, Hurley and Libby, Charlie and Claire, Sun and Jin, Rose and Bernard, Sayid and Shannon, and Boone. And together, they go into the light which is Nirvana or enlightenment or whatever. And that’s it.
And the end of their time on the island? Desmond goes into the magical electromagnetic light, uncorks the island, turns off the light, the island earthquakes, Smoke-Locke fatally stabs Jack, Kate shoots a now mortal Smoke-Locke in the back, he is thrown over a cliff and dies anticlimactically (not even a final wisp of smoke coming out of the gunshot wound), Jack goes down the cave, saves Desmond, turns the magical electromagnetic light back on (which has healing power and yet for some reason does not heal Jack), Jack is spit out, he walks to the bamboo forest where he woke up all those years ago, he sees the duct taped plane fly over head and he dies. The End. (And BTW, Hurley is now in charge of the island and the evil Benjamin Linus is his second in command. (Actually I am looking forward to “New Man In Charge.”))
And that is how LOST ends. This show of science fiction and mystery ended with this multi-religious feel good phooey. It took me a couple months to realize it, but the end of LOST was very disappointing.
And yet, I can’t wait to own all six seasons on DVD.
(Photo updated July 4, 20204)
