Television Was the ending to Lost really THAT bad? | Yes

Sylar

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Where have I said they were? :lol:

I have literally understood the ending, perhaps you can't read? Can you read?
:lol: this feels like 10 years ago when people who didn't like it were told they didn't understand it like it was some meaning that went over some people's head
 

VP89

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the gang, after getting off the island, come back to the island because they all crave something that is only on the island whether it's fate or happiness or someone left behind or tasty wild boar. The other half of the story, usually told through flashbacks, are actually sideways in the final season of alternative universes that turn out to be the afterlife and everyone meets up in a big church where they all leave the apparent purgatory to go up and meet G-Dogg. Back on the island they have to fight a smoke monster that's now possessed one of the gang and the electromagnetic powers of the island that were harnessed by a weird experimental company for...weird experiments involving polar bears and other stuff turns out to be due to this magic river of magic water stuff that's in a cave with a big plug hole that is protected by the monster and God or something. Also, someone left their dog on the island and that dude has been happily running about for a while eating grass or something I guess

Still better than S7 and 8 of GoT
Right I haven't seen this show but I'm certain the writer were high as a kite.
 

Lay

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Haven’t loved a show like Lost. I loved the characters, the fact it went bat shit crazy, the constant sideways, flashbacks, forwards. Explaining this show to my wife took me about 3 days.

The ending? It’s decent but not how I would have liked it to end
 

Eckers99

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The sense of mystery, and constant raising of questions, seemed pretty obviously inspired by Twin Peaks. Whereas Lynch was pretty much forced into revealing who killed Laura Palmer by the network (killing what made the show so great), Lindelof and Abrams seemed to swing decisively towards refusing gratification and failed in a totally different way.

Lost was the TV equivalent of having a wank while smashed on MDMA.
 

Wibble

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I gave up after season 5 because I realised the entire thing was bollocks.
It took you 5 seasons to realise? It was always just fun utter bollocks.

And to answer the OP - then end wasn't that bad or at least it is hard to come up with something else that sort of almost explains the whole thing.
 

Icemav

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This is what I'm kind of getting at, though. I have zero interest in watching GoT ever again thanks to that ending and yet here I am rewatching Lost.
GOT season 1-4 is arguably one of the greatest things that will ever be shown on TV. Then the show caught up with the books and it was a drawn out decline until the horror of a final season. But the end doesnt spoil the beginning at all, amazing stuff that should be enjoyed again and again. And they did complete the story albeit unsatifacorily.

Lost on the other hand was fascinatimg for 1 season until you realised it was really a bunch of nonsensical shit which they were going to rinse and repeat ad nauseum to keep the show running. Dreadful.
 

Mr Pigeon

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GOT season 1-4 is arguably one of the greatest things that will ever be shown on TV. Then the show caught up with the books and it was a drawn out decline until the horror of a final season. But the end doesnt spoil the beginning at all, amazing stuff that should be enjoyed again and again. And they did complete the story albeit unsatifacorily.

Lost on the other hand was fascinatimg for 1 season until you realised it was really a bunch of nonsensical shit which they were going to rinse and repeat ad nauseum to keep the show running. Dreadful.
You say that but Sawyer didn't start eating fish biscuits until Season 3.
 

OleBoiii

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While we're on the topic of endings: nothing beats Mr. Robot. It's so incredible well done. I still get amazed just thinking about it.

The two shows have very little in common apart from being very mysterious and ambiguous at times. Lost suffered from the fact that a very sizeable portion of the watchers wanted answers. This is also where Lost failed. Most of the mysteries ended up being irrelevant and by extension all fan theories. If I remember correctly, the purgatory theory was considered a meme, as it was considered the worst possible ending.

Mr. Robot on the other hand,
took a big turn but also explained pretty much everything in a way that no one felt cheated. It essentially offered "two" equally valid endings. It also left 2-3 mysteries that still are being discussed today.
 

Solius

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You say that but Sawyer didn't start eating fish biscuits until Season 3.
This was the first show I ever watched, aged about 15. Couldn't stand Sawyer and thought he was such a prick. Was firmly on Jack's side.

Watching it again as an adult was the complete reverse, Sawyer all the way.
 

esmufc07

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This was the first show I ever watched, aged about 15. Couldn't stand Sawyer and thought he was such a prick. Was firmly on Jack's side.

Watching it again as an adult was the complete reverse, Sawyer all the way.
I always found Jack very dull for a main character in a show.
 

Solius

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I always found Jack very dull for a main character in a show.
Wouldn't say he was dull. His stubbornness is the reason half the bad shit happened on the show, which in turn made it entertaining. He was just a massive twat.
 

Sanchez7

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Hated the ending but that episode where the Scottish guy is drifting from one reality to another while being on the boat is probably my favourite episode ever.

edit Desmond
 

SirAF

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Hated the ending but that episode where the Scottish guy is drifting from one reality to another while being on the boat is probably my favourite episode ever.

edit Desmond
"The Constant"

Definitely one of the top episodes.
 

b82REZ

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The ending felt a lot like having their cake and eating it too.

I think the plan was for the Island to be purgatory but when that was sussed in the first season and they denied it they backed themselves into a corner of trying to throw people off the scent.

They shouldn't have claimed that all mysteries would have a scientific explanation either. I was really into LOST theories at the time and some fan fictions I read had better endings than the shit show we got. I'm fairly certain they'd always maintained the smoke monster would be explained in a satisfactory, scientific way. Instead we got Cain and Abel story about how a man was killed by his brother, floated into a light and became a smoky apparition.

Character development was the shows strong point and while I hated some characters (Jack and Kate) and they butchered my boys arc (Syed) overall they did a good job of building up the characters over the 7 seasons.
 

Solius

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The ending felt a lot like having their cake and eating it too.

I think the plan was for the Island to be purgatory but when that was sussed in the first season and they denied it they backed themselves into a corner of trying to throw people off the scent.

They shouldn't have claimed that all mysteries would have a scientific explanation either. I was really into LOST theories at the time and some fan fictions I read had better endings than the shit show we got. I'm fairly certain they'd always maintained the smoke monster would be explained in a satisfactory, scientific way. Instead we got Cain and Abel story about how a man was killed by his brother, floated into a light and became a smoky apparition.

Character development was the shows strong point and while I hated some characters (Jack and Kate) and they butchered my boys arc (Syed) overall they did a good job of building up the characters over the 7 seasons.
I used to go on Lost forums and read all the theories and latest threads :lol: I can't remember what the main one was called now.
 

SirAF

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I used to go on Lost forums and read all the theories and latest threads :lol: I can't remember what the main one was called now.
The Fuselage? I remember Terry O'Quinn being a member there, he would answer questions now and then which was pretty cool.
 

b82REZ

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I used to go on Lost forums and read all the theories and latest threads :lol: I can't remember what the main one was called now.
DarkUfo is where I posted a lot.

I used to read the spoilers as well and I remember being incredibly pissed off when the sites owner decided not to post the final episode spoilers. I understand why he did it, he posted the transcript he received after the episode aired and it read like a terrible fan fiction written by a huge Kate fan. It still pisses me off that she killed Smoke Monster/MiB in such an anticlimactic way.

This show was the first time I remember factions among the fan base. I never understood it though because I didn't really like Kate or Jack, although I didn't mind Sawyer too much.
 

GazTheLegend

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Yes. Didn't explain the polar bears or weird techno cloud or coincidences throughout the show in a satisfactory manner. Abrams mystery boxes never do.
 

Solius

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This show was the first time I remember factions among the fan base. I never understood it though because I didn't really like Kate or Jack, although I didn't mind Sawyer too much.
Teenage me had a crush on her that has never really gone away :lol:
 

Solius

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I always preferred Claire, but Kate was fit as well. Juliette as well. And Penny. In fact there were a fair few hotties in that show.
Yep Claire too and eventually Juliet.

That girl from the 70s was hot as well. The one whose husband died.
 

b82REZ

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Yes. Didn't explain the polar bears or weird techno cloud or coincidences throughout the show in a satisfactory manner. Abrams mystery boxes never do.
That's fine, but it's the fact the showrunners claimed everything would have a satisfactory, scientific explanation that left a sour taste for many.

If they'd embraced the supernatural and spiritual aspects of the show and not tried to be a super sophisticated SciFi show I think many wouldn't have a big an issue with the ending.
 

b82REZ

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Yep Claire too and eventually Juliet.

That girl from the 70s was hot as well. The one whose husband died.
I always found the one from Hurley's mental institution days pretty attractive as well.

The best of all though, Mr Ecko :drool:
 

Solius

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That's fine, but it's the fact the showrunners claimed everything would have a satisfactory, scientific explanation that left a sour taste for many.

If they'd embraced the supernatural and spiritual aspects of the show and not tried to be a super sophisticated SciFi show I think many wouldn't have a big an issue with the ending.
The black smoke being nanobots would've been so much cooler. Similar to Prey by Michael Crichton.
 

b82REZ

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The black smoke being nanobots would've been so much cooler. Similar to Prey by Michael Crichton.
That was always my favourite idea.

I wish they'd gone the route of it being created by Dharma only for them to not be able to control it, hence the sonic fence, hatches etc. In the end it felt so cobbled together.
 

Solius

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That was always my favourite idea.

I wish they'd gone the route of it being created by Dharma only for them to not be able to control it, hence the sonic fence, hatches etc. In the end it felt so cobbled together.
What was weird is they promised scientific answers but then decided against this and went with 'man who has lived forever and can turn into smoke'.
 

Sanchez7

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I always found the one from Hurley's mental institution days pretty attractive as well.

The best of all though, Mr Ecko :drool:
Fantastic. Come to think of it, there were so many great characters in the show. John Locke was my favourite in the first few seasons - "dont tell me what i can't do"
 

SirAF

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Fantastic. Come to think of it, there were so many great characters in the show. John Locke was my favourite in the first few seasons - "dont tell me what i can't do"
Yeah, Locke was definitely the best character.
 

Solius

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There were loads of great characters but they all got a bit ruined in some way or survived way longer than they should have, like Ben for example. Absolutely fantastic in Season 2 with the almost trolley problem/prison dilemma but by S7 you're wondering what he's still doing there.

Sayid also basically dying and then coming back and then dying again was when I started to wane.
 

b82REZ

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There were loads of great characters but they all got a bit ruined in some way or survived way longer than they should have, like Ben for example. Absolutely fantastic in Season 2 with the almost trolley problem/prison dilemma but by S7 you're wondering what he's still doing there.

Sayid also basically dying and then coming back and then dying again was when I started to wane.
Ben was only meant to be a small role and then the actor knocked it out of the park and they decided to keep him around. At that point the beardy Other was clearly being positioned as their leader.
 

Solius

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Ben was only meant to be a small role and then the actor knocked it out of the park and they decided to keep him around. At that point the beardy Other was clearly being positioned as their leader.
Yeah, I just remember there being so many times when Ben dying would've concluded his arc nicely and he just never did and it got stale.
 

b82REZ

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Yeah, I just remember there being so many times when Ben dying would've concluded his arc nicely and he just never did and it got stale.
As the show became more popular they focused of the main group and when Ben became part of that core 5/6 characters he was never going be killed off. Ffs they kept Locked around despite showing him dead at the end of S3.

His arc should have revolved around avenging his daughters death and sacrificing himself. But lets be honest the writers had no idea where they were going and just kept him around incase they ever needed to do switcharoo and make him a baddie again.
 

Solius

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As the show became more popular they focused of the main group and when Ben became part of that core 5/6 characters he was never going be killed off. Ffs they kept Locked around despite showing him dead at the end of S3.

His arc should have revolved around avenging his daughters death and sacrificing himself. But lets be honest the writers had no idea where they were going and just kept him around incase they ever needed to do switcharoo and make him a baddie again.
Yeah this was basically where they fell down. Sayid came back from the dead, Locke came back from the dead. Mikhail died about 5 times.

If you do it too much it loses the effect.
 

Smores

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For me the difference is that in Lost the characters never stop being themselves just to service some plot device, and even if it gets a bit batshit crazy the writers seem to have a conviction with their storytelling that's missing from Game of "feck It, Just Make Her Go Crazy".
Girl who keeps burning people with a family history of also burning people , burns more people. Internet: Grr so out of character.

Anyway, i didn't hate the Lost ending it just wasn't very good and i woke up at 4am for it specifically. As a series it's great trash TV that gets caught between a focus on great episodes and narrative arcs.
 

b82REZ

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Yeah this was basically where they fell down. Sayid came back from the dead, Locke came back from the dead. Mikhail died about 5 times.

If you do it too much it loses the effect.
Mikhail :lol:. He was a meme before memes were memes.
 

Beachryan

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The show could have been great, but in the end the 'cool questions' posed by the show writers were just that. They had no answers. There's a huge list of enormous plot points introduced and then abandoned - for me it's just bad writing.

The ending might as well have been 'and then he woke up'. They hyped it up themselves, painted into a corner and then ran away imo.

Somewhat surprising given Lindelof has shown some real 'full arc' stuff since then. (Leftovers/Watchmen)