Lost TV Series Review: First Time Watch
Last night, I finished my first watch of LOST – a very popular TV show when it came out in the mid to late 2000s. To put it simply, this show is about the survivors of a plane crash on an unknown island, and although they try to leave, the group discovers that the island has a lot of supernatural elements at play, and that their destinies are now forever changed…
Now I’m all for fate, destiny, and well written mysteries – and let me tell you, Lost so often exceeded my expectations that I could hardly believe it. No offense to shows these days, but not one of them has a sliver of storytelling craft like Lost. The creators literally planned what they wanted from the whole series before it even began, and to watch countless threads come together is quite the experience.
There are multiple moments in the show that made my jaw drop, and more than enough exciting twists that I just could not predict, but did not seem shocking for shock effect. Like I said, everything was planned, and planned well.
I also like that Lost is only six seasons – it’s around long enough to give you plenty of content and great stories, but it’s not overbearing or exhaustive. In fact, the first three seasons are twenty-three to twenty-four episodes, and then the last three fall beneath twenty (with season four having only fourteen due to a writer’s strike).
I was having such a great time with season three in particular (my favorite as of now) that when I saw season four only had fourteen episodes, I wasn’t very happy about that. But in true Lost fashion, the story that needed to be told there was still told well. Even in the larger seasons, there really are no “filler” episodes, as all serve to either move the story forward or develop characters through flashbacks.
And let me tell you, Lost loves it’s flashbacks, flash forwards, and flash sideways. There’s hardly an episode to be found that doesn’t use one of these elements constantly as a balance to the present day storyline, but it’s used well to build drama, tension and character.
The only critique I have for the show is how it handled its main romances and love triangles. Now it’s very clear that Lost has so much more going for it than its romances, but at the same time, I feel just little changes could have made the relationships for the main heartthrobs a bit better. Drama is fine and needs to exist, but there does come a time to wrap it up and let characters be happy with one another. I won’t get into all that here, as it deserves it’s own separate post – but aside from that, Lost is essentially the most perfect show I’ve watched on so many levels.
Honestly, there were a few times I felt like I had the view of God when I watched the characters lives intersect off the island before the crash, or when you see how all the mysteries tie together but still have their own great reveals and stories.
But oh… that finale. The finale of Lost is something of a masterpiece and in my view, the perfect end to the show. I honestly can’t think of a better one. And you know what? It made me cry! Even when it was over, I was stuck in the feels and weepy all night – that’s never happened with anything else I’ve watched before! If you’ve already seen the show, you can read part one of the finale review. If you haven’t, I think now is your time.
Get lost inside of Lost – I promise you’ll come out differently in one way or another, and it’s a thrilling ride. At the time of this writing, it’s free to watch on Freevee – an app created by Amazon – so download it on your phone or smart TV and get started!
Lastly, I am now embarking on my first rewatch of Lost, but this time, I am going to review each episode to see what my feelings are the second time around, or new things I might learn. But also, it just sounds like fun!
series star rating: 5/5
★★★★★