Thursday 15:00

Such a clean time

Getting Lost Again

Actor Daniel Dae Kim went to my college (Class of 1990, unbelievable this guy is over 50). He was a nobody when I was there, so no one cared. He's still not exactly A-List, but Haverford doesn't have too many stars on its alumni list, so they put him on the cover of the alumni magazine. So I decided to watch Lost again. This is maybe my fourth time through?

Lost is on Hulu, but I think the previous times I watched, it was on Netflix. I've written before about how I don't mind Hulu ads in principle. On a show like Lost, it's honestly helpful. Lost is so damn compelling and fast-paced, it's a piece of cake with no ads and autoplay to watch three hours and have it all blur together. Even though I'll still watch a few episodes at a time on Hulu, the breaks allow my mind the time to file things appropriately in memory.

I still catch new things at times, which is nice. The guy who plays Miles was also in X-Men: The Last Stand. A few of these guys pop up in Law & Order pre-Lost, too. Season 5 is a lot more interesting when you know what's up with Locke the whole time. Of course, like I said, I've been through this before, but the first few times, you're still in the "what's next?" mindset the show so expertly promotes. Familiarity allows you to take a more complete view. I'm in the final season now, which I enjoy more than most, but the repeated viewings really help understand what's going on. People who came away confused probably don't give it the second chance it needs.

But beyond its mass appeal, Lost is a show for Very Smart People™. The spiritually they throw at you at the end can turn off some VSP but I can dig it. I mean, the main character's father, who is dead but keeps appearing to him, is named Christian Shepherd! What, exactly, did you think was coming? The writers say they had the last episode written at the same time as the first one. There's an interview you can probably find online that also explains exactly what the final season is about in the writers' own words. Perhaps it could have been better as a tightly planned 4-season series or something, but television usually doesn't work that way. You can't order four seasons in advance in case the first one fails, but you want to keep making more than just four if the show is successful. I'll take it. Lost was one of the early shows to really take off in online discussions, the little easter eggs, the numerology, early memes (Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaalt!!!!!). It still feels pretty fresh, 12 years old.