LOST – The TV Show

LOST – The TV show that has captivated us all!

I’ve stated before that the reason I love the TV show LOST so much is the deep characterization that the writers have managed to weave into an interesting (READ: keep- you-guessing) storyline. In this “gotta have it all and gotta have it now” society we live in, the LOST producers have basically given us what we want–3 plot lines to follow at once and with 15 main characters’ lives to keep up with. Yeah, it’s a lot to take in and yet we can’t seem to get enough of it! So you’re wondering…3 plot lines? Yep, 3. First there’s the characters’ lives on the island…their basic learning to survive while trying to get along with total strangers, not to mention the paranormal happenings they’ve experienced on the island itself (killer polar bears, murderous black smoke and of course, the OTHERS). Second there’s the interaction of the characters themselves…ie, the constant tug and pull of trust and mistrust, the rise of leadership as well as who-will-follow and who-will-question the leadership…all of this is going on while we THINK we know these characters’ personalities. But in truth, we know very little, hence the 3rd plot line which takes us back in time through each character’s life a bit at a time…and NOT necessarily in a “past to present” sequence, it would seem.

So, the producers have given us a LOT all at once…while leaving us with many questions like: What IS The Dharma Initiative? Why does the island seem to have a “life” of its own? Why have all the characters lives interconnected at some point in their past?

As the LOST writers have peeled back another layer about each character, we’ve learned more and more about each of the characters. What have we learned? In many cases where we thought a character was very black and white, we learn there is a lot of “gray” in their past, too.

This is why I think LOST is SO popular because it touches on many themes we’ve all experienced or subjects we’ve all discussed and agreed upon. Themes like: 1) No person is 100% good…everyone has something in their past they’ve done they aren’t proud of. 2) What about the whole “seven degrees of separation” theory. You know the theory that basically states: I’ll bet you can meet a stranger and after a few minutes of conversation realize that you have a connection to that person through someone you both mutually know. LOST touches on that theme, too, by showing how each of the character’s lives have crossed paths. 3) Another theme we’ve seen in real life time and time again; helping fellow man in times of crisis…the Oceanic plane crash drew on that theme. I could go on and on because the writers have done a great job of touching on so many themes we can all relate to, but suffice to say…they’ve done a great job of holding our interest.

MY THEORY:

So…finally…here’s my theory as to what is ultimately going on with the characters on the show LOST.

As we know, each of these characters have something in their past, some unresolved issue they need to deal with. My theory is that each of these people went to the institute for help to overcome their issues in life. And Dharma is the institute that is helping them with their problems. But at the same time Dharma is doing so by running their own experiment…ie, they have “connected” each of their patients together mentally.

Think of it like the Matrix where the characters’ consciousnesses are interconnected and what they are experiencing is all in their mind. What Dharma did is “create” the crash to bring them all together as well as the “island” as a backdrop. The patients’ are basically “healing themselves” by working together on the island. Hence the “therapy” is kind of a group therapy without the group’s knowledge. LOL! The OTHERS are really people who work at the Dharma institute and they are constantly introducing new obstacles to spur on another crisis and by doing so initiating interaction between the characters and in the end hopefully “healing” another person.

Here’s why I think this is what is going on. First off, remember the polar bear that was in Walt’s comic book? Then suddenly a polar bears show up on the island. And Kate’s black horse from her past…shows up on the island. Each of these things could be the characters “minds” manifesting familiar things onto the island. Then there’s the theatrical makeup Kate found which tells us that the Others aren’t who they are leading the survivors to believe they are. And most importantly, every time each of the characters seems to resolve his or her past issue, they die. Boone resolved his issue with his sister Shannon when he finally realized he didn’t have to always be there to help pick her up. When he did this…he died. Shannon resolved her past issue via the progression of her relationship with Savid. Then she died. Mr. Eko seems to have solved his issue, but I think his ultimate goal is to become a minister and every minister needs to build his flock…so he’ll be around a bit longer. Sawyer definitely has LOTS of issues to work through so that poor guy is stuck on that island for a while yet. LMAO! Obviously Kate, John and Jack haven’t resolved their past…heck, I don’t think we’ve even SEEN all their past yet to know what their true issue is. So I believe for the others on the island there are a lot more layers we haven’t seen yet, hence the reason they are still on the island.

I was discussing my theory with another LOST watcher and that person asked me about Jin and Sun, saying, “If your theory is true, why are Jin and Sun still on the island since it appears they have resolved their past problems?” My response: Well, she may be pregnant, right? What happens to the children on the island? The OTHERS take them. So, we either haven’t seen other bits of Sun and Jin’s past that still need to be resolved OR the OTHERS will eventually take Sun and Jin and they’ll be gone from the show, too. Claire seems to have resolved her issue with her baby. She realized she was meant to be his mom and she shouldn’t give him up for adoption. Does that mean she’s next to go?

Well, that’s my far-fetched theory. As an author of paranormals, I love the TV show LOST and how the paranormal happenings in an otherwise “normal” world can contort, contrive and, of course, captivate!

Bring on the next episode!