By Scott Meeker
smeeker@joplinglobe.com
What is “Lost”?
Is it ultimately a story of good vs. evil, science vs. faith, or something else entirely? What is the smoke monster? What’s with the island’s healing properties? Were the survivors of the crash of Oceanic Flight 815 pre-destined to be there?
When considering the mysteries that have been posed in the previous five seasons of the ABC series, the above are just scratching the surface.
Fans of “Lost” are anticipating finally getting some answers with the start of the final season, which will kick off with a three-hour event at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Debuting in 2004, the series became an instant hit with critics and viewers with its tale of plane crash survivors on the mysterious island. It has used flashbacks and flashforwards to flesh out the characters’ back stories and what happens to them after leaving the island, and introduced a time-travel element last season. All of that seemingly culminated with the detonation of a nuclear bomb in 1977 that could possibly reshape everyone’s future.
“(The show) continually surprises me,” said Edward Emanuel Jr., a Joplin resident who is a fan of the show. “A few seasons ago, I thought I knew how things were going to play out, but then it was turned and twisted in entirely different directions than I would have expected.”
Jennafer Johnson, of Webb City, said she has watched the previous five seasons on DVD, but will be watching the final season as it airs. She said the show’s inclusion of science-fiction elements last season threw her for a bit of a loop.
“I’m not much of a sci-fi person, so this whole thing is kind of unusual for me,” Johnson said. “But it’s cool how things start to piece together as the series goes on. And there are so many characters you have to follow to get those answers.”
‘Something special’
For an idea of how much of a worldwide phenomenon the show has become, one only needs to check out the Lostpedia Web site (www.lostpedia.wikia.com).
Kevin Croy, a programming consultant who lives in the San Francisco Bay area, launched the popular site in 2005. Lostpedia is a massive online encyclopedia of information about “Lost,” offering episode breakdowns, cultural references, in-depth biographies of the characters and theories about the island’s mysteries.
“I created the wiki because it was the perfect medium to keep track of the intricate details the writers were sharing with us,” Croy said in an e-mail to the Globe. “The site went from idea to live in literally 15 minutes!
“The site has snowballed since its inception … The site has received worldwide attention. It’s been covered by media and researched by Ph.D. students from all over the world.”
Croy said that he’s really enjoyed the character development that’s at the core of “Lost.” But when he started watching the show, he never anticipated it becoming such a phenomenon.
“However, once I started to see the sense of community that was forming around the show at Lostpedia, I knew it was something special,” he said.
Croy said that he’s seeing a significant uptick in online traffic as the start of the final season approaches.
“I think people are visiting Lostpedia to get back up to speed on the characters and themes of the show,” he said. “It starts next week and people are getting excited.”
‘So many questions’
Travis Chase, of Carl Junction, thinks the show will ultimately be about the interaction between two of its main characters — Jack Shephard (played by Matthew Fox), a surgeon who stepped up into a leadership position after the plane crash; and John Locke (Terry O’Quinn), a paraplegic who was healed by the island and who is in touch with its spiritual properties.
“I think it will come down to the man of faith vs. the man of science,” Chase said. “They’re polar opposites, but who has been right all along?”
Emanuel is expecting that someone involved in the show’s central love triangle — between Jack, Kate Austen (Evangeline Lilly) and Sawyer (Josh Holloway) — will not make it through the series finale.
“One of the three has to die in the end,” he said.
But Emanuel doesn’t anticipate that every single question that fans have will be answered in a tidy package.
“There’s so many questions out there, I don’t think they’re going to get to everything,” he said. “I think I’ll be OK if they leave some open at the end.”
Watch party
Want to get “Lost” with us? The Joplin Globe and Columbia Traders will hold a watch party for the start of the final season at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the downtown restaurant, 420 S. Main St. There will be a trivia contest, free drinks and a full menu offered.
