I HAD TO GO BACK!!! I HAD TO GO BACK....KATE

[u/stewpert5]

I believe it's my fault. I know that.

Having watched Lost episode by episode as it aired from the pilot to the last episode it was, in the end, all my fault.

I spent hours between episodes on forums discussing theories and perhaps spending far to long wondering pointless things regarding the show.

Even as my friends started to jump ship from the show I still believed.

And I think that's why I hated the finale when it aired. I'd built up all these ideas (some my own - some others I'd read online) and I don't think any ending would have satisfied me.

I felt I'd wasted my time. As the years went by I didn't trust another show.

Eventually Breaking Bad gained my trust - and in my view ended perfect.

......a few months ago I decided to rematch Lost. Mainly spurred on by this forum. I wanted to rewatch scenes that I enjoyed, and revisit the characters I'd fallen in love with.

And then I got to season 6.

And.....for most part I enjoyed.

I got to the ending....and...I felt....bet...er....about it.

I think more than anything I enjoyed the ride, as opposed to the destination.

I had no issues with understanding the ending. I think....I think I...I just don't think ANY ending or outcome would have satisfied me.

....what was the point of this post? Oh yeah!

I wanted to say thank you to you all.

The enthusiasm on this sub made me go '....im gonna give it another go.'

And?

I feel at peace now.

So. Thanks.

Stu

[u/FamiliarSting]

Completely agree. Loved the ride, and the ending isn’t that confusing at all if you watch it in a modern binge format.

[u/Verystrange129]

Agree that the journey of Lost was better than the destination and that’s ok. Obviously lots of other people loved it anyway. They answered nearly everything but the mysteries were so compelling that not knowing was usually more exciting than eventually discovering the answers. Glad you enjoyed your rewatch!

[u/VersionOne4220]

So I just finished Lost last night. And I really liked the ending! I agree the binge format helps. I still had to sit and absorb for a minute. I found it satisfying in the sense that they were at peace now considering for a majority of the show they were in duress. I choose to believe they lived the life that was perfect for them now in the afterlife and that they all needed each other to get to this point.

[u/D-Rock42992]

I watched it when it aired, week to week, year after year for each season until the end as well. I don’t remember hating the ending, and there were parts of the end I liked. But I definitely felt that the explanations for the mystery’s of the island were less compelling than I had hoped they would be.

I binge watched the entire thing a year later and really appreciated the ending much more. It’s not the best ending to a series I’ve ever seen, but it is most certainly not the worst, not even close. I think it a perfectly satisfactory to the journey the characters went through.

[u/Simple_Wishbone_540]

I feel that the writers were much better at building mystery and suspense than delivering a satisfying conclusion. For me the last season is still the weakest of all of them, but there are still episodes/ moments that are really good. I enjoyed Miles meeting his father and thought that was a really cool idea to explore.

[u/NewRetroMage]

Anyone can obviously dislike the show/the ending. The only issue I have with most of the people I meet that have dislike it is that they always say "they were dead all along, they died in the crash, nothing realy happened".

A lot of people have an insane difficulty understanding that it applies only to the flash sideways, not the whole show. That really ticks me off, because those people are hating on something that doesn't exist. The Lost where "they were all dead since the crash" doesn't exist.

Other than that, the other reasons I see people dislike it for is that "they didn't explain everything, info-dump style" and "I was expecting it all to have a scientific explanation, not to veer into supernatural/fantasy territory". Those reasons I respect, but I also don't get why they bother people so much. The story is so good, each character's journey is so well crafted, and the mystery is so good. Plus most mysteries were explained, just not in one big explanation scene. It's a unique and pretty good way to go about it.

Honestly, I loved it then and I love it now. Fantastic show with a great ending.

Anyway, glad you had a better experience on your second watch, OP! (Sorry, I just had to ramble about it first.)

[u/stewpert5 → u/NewRetroMage]

Absolutely.

And I did understand it - and I do think....think....I liked how it wrapped up on the island. I just don't think I was a fan of the off island stuff.

My issue was just expectation in my head. I'm not saying I had a better ending in my head - I really didn't. I think, as I watched each episode live, nothing would have satisfied my experience or expectations.

[u/NewRetroMage → u/stewpert5]

That I get. I've heard some arguments on how some shows, because of how ambitious they are, make it really hard for any expectation to be met in the end. And it doesn't help that this show goes for six seasons. I understand why this can make people be overwhelmed with their own ideas on what's to come.

Interestingly, I remember a couple of interviews (I believe with Lindelof and Cuse), where they say people were theorizing about things that were not supposed to be mysteries to begin with! Like the inscriptions in the wheel built by MiB or the glyphs on The Swan (iirc). Like, aesthetical elements which were there to enrich that world but not to be actual mysteries to be revealed later. So people really let their minds build all kinds of theories and expectations, about minor elements that weren't the point.

I don't know if you went this far, but you reminded me of this.

Have you watched the show "Dark"? I often call it "mini-Lost". It's a short show with way fewer mysteries, but it reminds me of Lost a lot, due to it's many characters with complex issues, grand mythology and well crafted mysteries, plus some degree of non-linear storytelling. It's another show I love but I often see people dislike it because the ending didn't meet their expectations. It's another example of a show that fits this "too ambitious to be satisfying" idea.

[u/IndividualPlan3453]

I think the reason we all continue to rewatch LOST is that we never want it to end. We love the characters. We are invested in them. We want them to be happy.

[u/Rtozier2011]

I'm not a huge fan of the flash sideways metaphor but I liked the ending overall. Especially given how much it can be compared to the show Ashes to Ashes which finished the same week. And The Good Place.

My main memory of the time was being afraid that the plane wreckage footage over the end credits was a means of implying that Ajira 316 crashed again. Never in a million years did I think people would somehow use it to conclude that 815 had not had survivors. Perhaps that's because I never dropped the show.

[u/HungryCub90]

The irony of it all is, they clearly chose the afterlife/flashsideways to occupy the dual narrative that each season has (S1-3 Flashbacks, S4 Flashforwards, S5 70’s/00’s) but if you remove the flashsideways, the actual story being told isn’t that disappointing, it was just the stupid gimmick of did they change history oh no wait they’re deeeead was just a bit like meh.