LOST has ended. And it was quite an ending
Okay, so at 3pm I finished watching the LOST final episode.
And at 4pm I got out of the numb emotional limbo I was put in by the episode.
So LOST has ended.
And I was satisfied and happy with the ending.
Emotional, dramatic, continuing with the trend of character study and frustration I've come to expect from LOST.
So with that let's get into things.
Last episode Jack took on the job of being the new Jacob to protect the shiny shiny well of light at the centre of the Island. I........ was not happy with this. Originally Jack was going to die in the first episode and now he was going to end up being the king of the Island and the ultimate hero??? Not cool and predictable to me. So I was really surprised and pleased when whilst Jack did end up saving the Island it was Hurley who was chosen to be the Island's final protector. This to me was brilliant. Hurley was the ideal person for the job. He has always cared about others and seen the good in them. He believed that Darth Sayid could come back from the darkside (which he did) and he's always had a smile and hug for everyone. And when people were worrying about French chicks and monsters and polar bears and whatnot he made everyone feel better by building a golf course. I really liked Hurley, probably one of my favourite characters if not my top favourite character. And also whilst Jack did stop the Island from sinking, it was Kate who killed Demon Locke by shooting him. Earning a "F*** YEAH KATE!" from me.
Also Hurley asked Ben to stay and help him run the Island. This was a great scene. Ben has been a complete bastard, he manipulated Sayid and turned him into an assassin and leading him down the path which included shooting Ben's younger self and ended with him dead, back from the dead and on the darkside, but Ben also cared about his daughter and was a broken sad little man, which is what led to him killing Jacob. That Hurley gave Ben a new chance and the job he always wanted: that of the right hand man to the Island's protector. It was really quite sweet and sad and the look on Ben's (Michael Emerson's) face was great.
And it turns out Lapidus survived. So woot there. Anyways him, Miles and Richard repair the Ajira plane on hydra Island and get away along with Sawyer, Kate and Claire. One hilarious bit was when Miles was repairing the hydraulics of the plane with duct tape. "Are you sure this will work?" asks a worried Richard, "I don't believe in a lot of things, but I believe in duct tape". That gave me a real giggle.
Also Richard appears to be no longer immortal, as Miles points out Richard's first grey hair. This is nice that after everything Richard has been through he can stop simply existing and start living.
In the sideways universe everyone started remembering their Island universe lives in a big plot orchestrated by Desmond and Hurley. The las to tremember is Jack (of course) who goes to this bizzare (and lovely) multifaith church where everyone is assembled and waiting for him. Including his dad. Turns out that the sideways universe is purgatory where everyone from the Island lives until they're all ready to remember the Island, which jack's dad says is the most important thing all of them ever did, and move on to Heaven. I don't really have a problem with this. It meant that we had all the big dramatic stuff with everythign that was happening on the Island and the happily ever afters in the sideways/purgatory universe. Someone on the SFX site pointed out how similar it was to Ashes to Ashes and I can see the similarity. However I love it purely because this means that Desmond is Gene Hunt. Well they do both like drinking.
Some great character moments were with John locke, the REAL John Locke, not Demon Locke. Jack perfromed the surgery that gave him back his legs and the moment he remembered everything from the Island was when he wiggled his toes in a shot exactly like the one from the first series from the crash site. Lovely framing there. Also after that there is something.....different in Locke's face. He's no longer the guy we've seen before in the sideways universe, the crippled teacher trying to make the best of his life in a wheelchair, he just WAS the John Locke of series 1, mysterious, hopeful, a man of faith. And all this was done with little looks and smiles and in his eyes. Terry O'Quinn, I salute you sir.
Also all the moments where people were remembering were great. When Sun and Jin see their baby on the monitor and remember everything they went through I was in buckets of tears. And then they both started speaking English (because they couldn't before in the sideways universe) it was like "WHAAAAA?". And Hurley and Sayid are hanging out in Hurley's car, during which Hurley tells Sayid that he believes Sayid is a good guy, Sayid saves a woman and her brother from some thugs. The woman is.....Shannon! and so they have their reunion and remember everything and kiss and I start crying again. This has put me 100% at ease with Sayid's death now. He sacrificed himself for everyone and earned his redemption and got to be with someone he loved in the end. And then Claire gave birth to Aaron at this concert where Charlie was performing and so of course they remember everything, and I start crying again! AND THEN Sawyer ran into Juliet and...........well exactly like the first three times. Personally I think it would have been hilarious if after Sawyer ran into Jack, who gave him directions, and said "thanks Doc" Sawyer remembered his Island life and we got a montage of every nickname Sawyer ever gave. Alas twas not so, but the Juliet thing was nice too.
Oh, and on the Island Jack and Kate kissed and said that they loved each other and........I didn't cry at all. People complained about the Sayid and Shannon relationship a lot. I like it. I think when I first watched it I thought it was sweet, but when she died I mostly felt bad for Sayid because Sayid is the friggin' boss. Now I really like it because they really needed each other and brought out the best in each other. They're no Sun and Jin, Claire and Charlie or Desmond and Penny, but I liked the realtionship and it was good for the characters. Anyway, I always saw more chemistry in those two, who people complain about, than in Jack, Kate and Sawyer whoes little love triangle was a big part of the show. Their relationship issues never held much intrest for me.
Incidently if I had to choose one couple to be my LOST OTP it would be either Desmond and Penny or Sun and Jin. This may change with my rewatch, but for now I'm going with one of them. Awww screw it right now I'll go with Sun and Jin.
And the last shots of LOST are a dying Jack collapsing in the bamboo forest he first woke up in with Vincent the dog laying next to him as the Ajira plane flies overhead. And then his eyes close and everything goes white. Predictable, but nice.
So this has been quite a journey. This entry is probably rambling, all over the place and barely readable. I hope I can do a more together piece later in the week, but these have been my frantic first reactions.
Times I cried:
When Sun and Jin remembered everything and saw their baby
When Shannon and Sayid remembered everything and were reunited
When Charlie and Claire remembered everything and were reunited
When Juliet and Sawyer remembered everything and were reunited
(are you seeing a pattern here?)
When Ben told Locke that he was sorry for killing him in the other universe
When Hurley was told he would have to take on the Island protector job
And just at various random times in the last half hour.
So about 7.
Best actors in the finale:
Terry O'Quinn- for reasons already mentioned
Michael Emerson- with a lesser actor Ben would have just been a bastard. But the fact that he's done everything he's done and I still had sympathy for him and was happy that he found a measure of peace (although he did not move on in the afterlife due to unfinished business) just shows how great Michael Emerson is. If he wasn't then Ben would have just been some random Other who was kept in the Hatch for a while.
Jorge Garcia- besides the "I love Hurley" factor his scenes with Jack and Ben were just so emotionally charged.
And a special mention to Matthew Fox. I didn't always like Jack, but he really sold the final chapter in his character's story. He was a man of science who became a man of faith and it was just so good to watch that happen
Favourite non crying scenes:
Hurley asking Ben to stay on the Island as his right hand guy. As I said before the look on Ben's face just breaks your heart and makes you smile at the same time. And once again just highlights why Hurley was the right man for the job of protecting the Island: he believesin the good of people.
That moment I mentioned with Locke wiggling his toe and remembering everything.
The Jack and Locke showdown. Now on LOST there's always been a thing of it raining when bad stuff happens. It rained when the pilot died in Pilot, it rained when Shannon was shot by Ana Lucia (who was in the sideways universe bringing people together scheme, but didn't move on because according to Desmond she wasn't ready) and so when there was a rumble of thunder my natural response was "oh crap" and then when it sounded louder "OH CRAP". The fight itself on a cliff in a rain was fairly epic, with Jack doing this slow motion jumping slow motion Street Fight power ninja punch. Okay, that was kinda funny, but the rest of the fight was epic.
And then there was the moment that made me go WTF. Jack in the funky multifaith church has found his father's coffin is empty BECAUSE HIS FATHER IS STANDING RIGHT BEHIND HIM!!!
Anyways, I have rambled far too long.
Thank you LOST for being one of the most entertaining and frustrating shows I've ever seen. I will rewatch you and remember the ride you gave me fondly.
Peace out brotha.