I hate the new TV Guide. It doesn't so much resemble a guidebook for viewing television programs as it does one of the $1.99 tabloids marketed as "Celebrity Living" or "InTouch" at my grocery store. Although Ellen deGeneres as a guest columnist is a stroke of genius.
So, of course, the October 17-23 issue dealt with 'Lost' and the creators answered some of the more intriguing questions.
Well, maybe answered isn't the right word.
1. Are the survivors just a bunch of lab rats? I don't think so, but Desmond might have been, based on the film "Orientation" that Jack and Locke watched on the 10/5/05 episode. The hatch might be part of a large-scale research facility known as the Dharma Initiative. 'Dharma' means cosmic order or law, including the natural or moral principles that apply to all beings and things. It is a concept of the Hindu and Buddhist religions.
2. What happens if the survivors don't punch in Hurley's cursed numbers into the computer every 108 minutes? We don't know. Shannon's vision of Walt in which he mumbled "Push the button. Don't push the button. Bad," seems to indicate that something ominous will happen.
3. When will Rose and Bernard be reunited? Hopefully by the 11/22 episode.
4. Exactly when did Jack meet Desmond? The creators have never explicitly stated when the plane crashed, but the assumption is that it happened in 2004 when the show premiered. None of the characters have ever referred to political elections or events in history that could pin the show down to any specific time period. And I say that if the whole show turns out to be the dream of either Jack or one of his patients, I'm hitting someone.
5. Why Shannon!!?!?!? Dear Lost writers, My name is Barbara LeMaster. You killed Shannon. Prepare to die.