The Lost Series Finale

It is a few minutes after 1 A.M and Jack the vampire boy is wide awake and thinking about the LOST series finale. I watched every episode of that show from start to finish. I wouldn't identify myself as one of the hardcore fans who followed it with religious adoration, but I was a regular.

A regular who very much enjoyed the series and found many of the episodes to be outstanding. Not just outstanding but intriguing. They did what a good show is supposed to do, they drew me in and made me feel. They engaged my mind and made me ask questions about what was happening. In that respect I am sure that I was quite similar to millions of other fans.

So while I was sorry to see the show end I was pleased to have the opportunity to have those questions answered. As the the final episodes ticked away I grew more interested and more intrigued by what the finale would share with us.

And I prayed that it wouldn't fall into the same trap as The Sopranos Finale. Ok, it is an exaggeration to say that I prayed for something better, but I was hopeful that the writers would find a way to end it that left some of the magic intact.

Unfortunately it fell just short of the mark. It was great until the final ten minutes and then the writers succumbed to the easy way out. That ending was far too predictable and quite unsatisfying. To me it wasn't much different from a thousand episodes of Gilligan's Island.

Every week the castaways would discover a way to get off of the island and every week their escape/rescue would be foiled by Gilligan making some bumble headed mistake. I wanted more out of it. As a writer and a fan I wanted more, but I didn't get it.

Granted I recognize that it is not always easy to take a story and thread the needle the way this one needed to be threaded. My own fiction is riddled with inconsistencies, cliches and weak plot lines that could use polishing and development. One of my concerns with writing a book is that I don't fall into that cesspool of ridiculous writing.

But then again I am not paid a very healthy salary to work as a writer. I like to think that if I was I could do better. I like to think that I would have found a way not to take the easy way out. I like to think that I wouldn't have opted for the choice that they made.

Or so I think. I am sure that many others will consider the finale to be a masterpiece. They won't be bothered as I am or concerned because it didn't answer as many questions as I would have liked.

In any case I am appreciative of the time and effort that cast and crew put in. They did a good job of entertaining us and that is worth more than a little.