The simple beauty of Friday Night Lights

(Note there are mild spoilers if you haven't ever seen Friday Night Lights. I have tried to not spoil the last season though, in case UK viewers want to try and track it down.)

A few weeks ago, NBC aired the last episode of Friday Night Lights. That this happened in 2011 and not 2007, should pretty much be considered a TV miracle. After criminally low ratings for two seasons and the Writers Strike of late 2007/early 2008, typical (revenue-driven) wisdom would say it should have been cancelled. But, on the back of critical praise, a small but dedicated fan base, and the fact that in 2008 NBC was suffering from a true lack of quality TV, an innovative deal was struck to keep Friday Night Lights (or FNL to those in the know) on the air. Three 13 episode seasons would be shown first on Direct TV (a satellite provider) and then re-aired on NBC. Nothing like this had really been tried before, and the deal saved what has certainly been one of the best shows in recent memory, and one of the best family dramas ever.

FNL has a lot of strengths, including strong writing, staying away from melodrama (usually), and strong acting anchored by its leads Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler. These two play Tami and (Coach) Eric Taylor and their marriage has been the heart of the show. One of FNL's biggest assets is its ability to bring the drama of everyday life to the viewers in respectful way. Simply put: it does "simple" well.

The Taylor's marriage is one of the most realistic portrayals of marriage that has been seen, and shows how much storytelling you can get out of a happily married couple. When watching, you never feel that the show was making fun of small-town Texas life; those of us from fly-over country (of which I include the South) are used to being portrayed as simple-minded, blindly religious, and naive. In FNL, it was easy to see ourselves and our lives reflected back to us and for those not from small towns to understand why they aren't so bad. Okay, except that everyone was really pretty, but it is TV after all. Football* was important for the show, as a backdrop and as a vehicle for storytelling, but I hesitate to call it a 'football show.' I will always maintain that you don't have to enjoy football to enjoy this show; not all agree with me on this, but I will hold the line on this one.

Of course the show wasn't perfect. Shows never really are, and it is easy to get bogged down in that second season that most want to forget-though I am not actually one of them. Whilst I believe the Tyra/Landry storyline (where they murder someone who was attacking Tyra) was ill-conceived the actors themselves did brilliant work to try and pull it off. And they almost did, but we were all glad when it was resolved. East Dillon, the rough side of town that became the focus for seasons four and five, came out of nowhere. ( We did grow to love it though, I think.) Julie seemed to get a lot of her worth and storylines from boys and I wasn't crazy about her arc in the last season, although it did get her to where she needed to be by the end. The show also still had a mostly white cast, but at least its minority characters were not just someone's best friend, which in the land of Hollywood is pretty big.

The second season also suffered from the aforementioned writers' strike and they dropped at least one character completely and without explanation. The shorter seasons (which is still not the norm in the US) also meant there were times when a plot point wasn't really explored after being introduced, such as the one about a gay assistant coach, which would have been really interesting. Characters were underused and we sometimes got from A to B a little to quickly and easily. The writers had some problems writing for its female characters if they weren't attached to a male in some way. See Lyla's born-again storyline. Although, I would prefer they try and create well-rounded characters even if they fail at it.

So, two (small) paragraphs of missteps and lost opportunities. I could fill two pages of what they got right, starting with the awesome Tami and Eric. Of the generally respectful handling of Jason Street's injury (in my non-disabled opinion, backed up by reading up on it to be sure). He was depressed deeply, tried out denial and almost had life threatening surgery, then moved on to acceptance. He came to understand that he still had a full happy life to live. One that was different than planned, one without walking, but still good. (He even gets to have sex!) Or I could mention the Tim Riggins character growth of selfish screw-up to a man willing to make sacrifices for those he loves. How Lyla played a role in the process, even if they weren't destined to be together forever. Tyra going from a bit of a stock popular girl to a college student. Matt Saracen's puppy dog eyes, his grandmother's dementia, his and Julie's 'one true pairing.' Of Smash making it when he thought he lost it, and his relationship with his mother. The promise of a college education for Vince and the understandable draw of big time football. Of Landry's dry humour, that was always welcome, or Jess' unflappable drive to become a female football coach. The role race and class play in friendships and in Dillon Football, how it shows who the have's and have nots are (clue, it's not always connected to winning) and how a white middle class coach fits in East Dillon. Of a real abortion storyline, where the girl doesn't miscarry as a convenient way around it.

FNL did a good job with phasing out old characters as they graduated and moved on, and introduced new characters. As in real life, each year a class graduates, and even if they stay in town, they aren't really part of high school any more. And you miss them, but you find some Freshmen (or first years) that you like too. And when they brought them back, well, it made sense too, and it happened like it might in real life. The show incorporated a lot of local actors, made Buddy Garrity loveable, and well, made me cry on a regular basis.

And when the end came, the writers and creators, did one heckuva job. Those responsible for this finale knew this time it was the end for sure, and frankly they knocked it out of the park. Or scored a touchdown if we don't want to mix up our sporting metaphors. The finale ensured closure and surely gave us long-time viewers satisfaction. The last 20 minutes were pure TV joy, that provided a brilliant scene between Eric and Tami that encapsulates everything great about the show (here, 1:24 in if you don't mind spoilers), and which I watched through tears. Of course.

I will certainly miss this show. But unlike others that I miss it is the rare one that I feel almost fully satisfied with. It's not Arrested Development only getting a 13 episode order, or Veronica Mars not knowing for sure where it stood as it ended. And it's not Lost where the viewers feel a bit like suckers for buying into the mythology only to find out it really wasn't that complicated. It was in fact, practically perfect in every way, and why we can say good-bye knowing that clear eyes and full hearts really can't lose.


*Football, in the American sense for this posting

Summer Viewing

For many years, in America at least, summertime has provided us with some great television. Formerly a time for endless repeats on the network channels, cable and the relentless pursuit of another dollar, made networks realise there was money to be made when the temperature got above eighty. I first remember watching new summer tv in the early 90s with Beverly Hills, 90210. I don't remember much, expect Brandon wasn't strong enough to be a lifeguard in the ocean, so he became a pool boy instead. Or something like that. Summer is a great time to run shows with fewer episodes, and because there is still less programming than in the Fall, a lot of buzz can be had. For example, Mad Men made its debut after May sweeps, and we all know how that has turned out.

While I don't feel this summer is the strongest in recent memory, I have found a few shows worth mentioning:

Friday Night Lights (NBC)
The show is in its final season, about halfway through its run on NBC. I have a longer post about FNL once it finishes, but it is always a pleasure to watch.

Switched at Birth (ABC Family)
Okay, try not to make too much fun of me. The name of the show reveals the ridiculous premise of two girls (one, Bay, the daughter of a former baseball player, the other, Daphne, comes from a single mother home) who were, you guessed it, switched at birth. Oh, and Daphne is Deaf. Once you get beyond this concept (and the various contrivances that lead to both families living together) you get an interesting look at, among other things, class and race divisions, Deaf culture, and teenage identity. The show is not perfect, the most recent episode veered dangerously close to being too soapy and characters suddenly seemed to grow different personalities. There is also a tendency for hearing characters to act as though Deaf people are stupid (Do hearing people still really think this? If so, they are clearly the stupid ones.), and Daphne so far has been painted a little "too" perfect. Still, for what could have been too cheesy for words, the show tells these stories in pretty honest way (so far).

So You Think You Can Dance (Fox)
There is so much reality tv out there, it can be tempting to just dismiss the whole lot of it. But, if you are willing to try and separate the wheat from the chaff, you find shows like this gem. It is the same show as in the UK, where dancers from all various genres compete for a prize. The show has produced some really amazing dances (and I have it on good authority from an actual dancer that there is good technique often times as well) and showcases some of the most innovate choreography around. There are tons of You Tube videos of great dancing. Start here, but be warned, you are likely to be busy for the next three hours once you hit play.

Cardinals Baseball (Fox Sports Midwest)
Not since 2004 have I had the ability to watch St. Louis Cardinals baseball on a regular basis. I forgot how much I enjoy the sport, and how nice it is to have it on in the background when doing other things. Yes, there are lots of criticisms that baseball is too slow, but I like it. In a mid-summer twist, worthy of a sweeps month, the Cardinals have lost more games than they won in June, had to place the best player in baseball on the DL (disabled list), and have hit into more double plays than any other team by a long shot. Still, they are only a few games back from first place, and I think a late season comeback is, shall we say, in the Cards.

Hulu (online)
Having been out of the US for the better part of three years, there are a lot of shows that I missed. (I got to see some great ones in the UK of course, and am still figuring out how to stay up to date on those). Hulu is this nifty website where you can (legally) watch streaming video from several different channels. I've been able to fully catch up on Parks and Recreation (RIP, Li'l Sebastian), watch last summer's teen drama Huge, and access Arrested Development episodes without having to scratch up my DVDs. While I am a big Hulu fan, I do wish that more shows were available (especially from other countries), but overall a great way to watch a variety of tv.

Any suggestions for shows I should be watching this summer?

The Last Lost Word (for now)

It's been about two months since the Lost finale aired, two long months in between blogging. I'm not sure what you call that except maybe, bad blogging. Even though Lost has been over for awhile, I can't let it end without commenting one last time. It was such a big part of my tv life and I'm sad it's gone. Its noticeable absence from San Diego Comic Con was one of the first signs that it really is over.

So, what about that finale? As an episode of television it was great; as a series finale, one that resonates, redeems characters, and retains some mystery it was brilliant; as the final word, that last chance for fans to understand the mythology that is Lost, well, on that point, I gotta say, it sucked.

That is in fact my main issue with the finale, and to a greater extent the last season: it just didn't connect the dots very well. Darlton spent five years weaving mystery with character, making us care both about the who and the why of the show. This was done at a consistently good level, and sometimes a great one. "The Constant", many fans favourite episode (including me) is a fabulous example of both. So why then does the last season feel so disconnected from the other five? Why did we meet so many new characters (Drogen, Zoe, Lennon) to have them not really mean anything, whilst barely revisiting Eloise Hawking and Penny? I refrained from complaining about too much during the season, because I had faith the writers would tie it together. But I don't really think they did.

Darlton have said, rightly so, that Lost was their story and they must write it true to their vision. But, I think it's slightly disingenuous to spend five years building a mythology and having incredible attention to detail, to then say it's just about the characters. Still it's hard to not think they realise there were mis-steps when we learn that more 'answers' (such as on Walt, who save for one of Locke's flashes, was not mentioned in the finale) are coming on the DVD. And, I simply wish that those answers would have come through the show.

Anyway, I put that part first because while I needed to say it, I don't want that to be my last word. Because when I let go of that, what I see is a genuinely good episode that made me cry and made me proud to have been a fan since day 1. The emotional payoff for spending six seasons with these characters was amazing. The last 15 minutes to me were some of the best Lost has to offer. From Locke and Ben's final exchange, to Jack being the last holdout, they stayed true to the characters, whilst also showing their growth over the five season. Jack finding his Dad, and seeing all (well most all) our original crew back was great nostalgia. In fact, the best trick of Season Six was making me care about Jack, and by the time his eyes closed (in a perfect framing device), with Vincent at his side once again, I was genuinely moved.

The legacy of Lost will live on, both through websites like Lostpedia, but also as a standard for main stream sci-fi that can appeal to the masses (or at least more than most sci-fi shows). There won't ever be another show like Lost, but hopefully more shows will aspire to be like Lost--and that can only be a good thing for tv fans.

In the end...

Well tonight (or tomorrow morning for those of us across the pond) is it: the end of Lost. The end of polar bears and time travel (on the same island), and an end to a particular-type of WTF moments. For me personally, so much has changed in the 5.5 years since lost debuted in 2004, it is amazing to think that I went from De Soto, MO to Leavenworth, KS, to Kingston, Jamaica, and London, England. From Cingular, to Saint Mary, to Big Brothers Big Sisters, to UTech & Roehampton, Starbucks, and the National Union of Students. Wow. Lost has truly been my 'constant' for a whole lot of change and jumping around the world (and even and island or two). It's the one show that I never miss, that I have to see as soon as I can. I'm probably more than just a little unreasonably sad about it ending, but when a show has been with you for all that change, when it's helped me make new friends, and when I've spent some great evenings watching it with old ones, it's sad to see it go.

I have high hopes for the finale, that in the end it will be fantastic and fun and yes, I really hope we'll get some answers (they really need to mention Walt). I know they can't possibly answer everything I want, but if it's done well, that's okay. So, instead of focussing on what they better show me, I just want to briefly reflect on what they already have, in my favorite epsiodes.

1) Walkabout--I've mentioned in on the blog before, but the episode where we learn that John Locke was a wheelchair user before they crashed on the island, was the first big moment of Lost for me. It also showed us a powerful and confident Locke on the island, my first favorite character. It was this episode that the flashback device was really used well, and brought suspense.

2) Flashes Before Your Eyes--My current favourite character is Desmond, something that started in this episode. He gets drunk with Charlie and Hurley and tells them what happened when he turned the key and the hatch imploded. It was our first taste of time travel, we met Eloise Hawking for the first time, and we get a hint of the growing importance of Desmond.

3) Greatest Hits--I loved the Desmond and Charlie interactions, and how hard Desmond fought to save Charlie's life. When Charlie finally comes to the realisation that his time is over, he is given once last episode. This one uses the flashback device to show what Charlie considers his 'Greatest Hits.' They are: learning to swim, saving a woman's life (who happened to be Sayid's Nadia), hearing "She's all everybody' for the first time on the radio, getting, his brother giving him a family ring, and meeting Claire. It was a sweet and poignant good-bye, and although Charlie didn't die until the season finale a few episodes later (remember, Not Penny's Boat), it was the perfect ending to a loved character.

4) The Constant--This is my all time favourite episode, and if you have noticed a theme, you will now: this is the one where Desmond keeps switching consciousnesses between the present and the past. If he doesn't find someone to be his 'constant,' someone to anchor him to a reality, he will die. Well, he realises that Penny must be his constant, and the ending where he calls her (like he told her he would) is one of the sweetest endings endings to an episode ever.

So that's it. All that's left is to watch and enjoy and say good bye!

Treme: A closer look at Post-Katrina New Orleans

Treme, the new HBO series, takes a look at New Orleans shortly after Hurricane Katrina. The name of the series comes from the neighborhood of the same name which has been home to many musicians that helped make New Orleans so famous. Treme comes from David Simon and Eric Overmyer, who both worked on Homicide: Life on the Streets (one of my favorite shows ever) and The Wire. Both of those shows were critically acclaimed in their time and known for their diverse casts and strong writing. In the first five episodes, I'd say Treme fits right in.

Treme Trailer:

Treme is a slowly unfolding story giving the viewers increasingly deeper glimpses into a large number of characters lives, from (in no particular order) a down-on-his-luck trombone player and his ex-wife and bar owner, a Mardi Gras Indian leader and his son, a lawyer and her Tulane professor/writer husband, a chef, a musical transplant couple, to a hyperactive DJ/musician. It is a large cast, with some big names and Homicide/Wire alums (John Goodman, Khandi Alexander, Steve Zahn, Melissa Leo, Wendall Pierce, and Clarke Peters to name a few). For the most part Treme has done a great job of building each characters story and making you care about them.

A show set in New Orleans, especially after Katrina, will necessarily have to deal with race and class issues. Since the whole show is slowly paced, this has come in fits and starts. We certainly see different classes and different races portrayed in the show--frankly the show would feel false if this weren't the case. There have been hints of commentary about it, mainly through John Goodman's character (the Tulane professor) who posts rants on YouTube about the many failings of the Federal, State, and Local Governments before, during and after Katrina. The show doesn't shy away from showing and commenting on the many racist and classist decisions that were made, from not re-opening some projects that were never flooded, to the pure chaos of the prison system that housed (and still houses) a predominately black male population. As of now, there has been very little tension between the classes and colors in Treme, but I hope that as the show grows, that is shown. Not because I wish tension to be dramatised, but because that tension does exist, but is not generally shown on mainstream television. If the most recent episode is an indicator, I'm confident this will be explored.

Music is used throughout the series, and gives a great excuse to hire local musicians, such as Kermit Ruffins. Music is used to underscore one of the biggest themes in Treme, the idea of 'real' New Orleans. Steve Zahn's character, Davis, is the biggest proponent of this 'real' New Orleans. His hyperactive and often times obnoxious character hits you over the head with it, constantly talking about 'authentic' New Orleans. This is the one area where I think Treme could improve. The idea of what it means to be 'real' New Orleanian is an interesting one to explore--is it the Mardi Gras chief, the Tulane professor, the black trombone player, the white DJ, the bar owner, the chef, the lawyer, or the music playing couple? Is it all of them, or do anyone them actually capture 'real' New Orleans. I suspect the answer is yes and no. A scene early on sees the male member of the music couple berating some church volunteers for going to the French Quarter and coming into his city. In later episodes, we learn he himself is not from New Orleans, originally. This nuanced idea of authenticity is interesting, but Davis yelling at everyone he thinks doesn't cuts it, isn't. I'm hopeful that Davis can show some growth, and I'm optimistic after watching the fifth episode.

Treme is beautifully shot and anytime a television show leaves New York or L.A. its going to get a look-see from me. The fact that is has a strong cast with actual black actors in lead roles with real stories and true character development, just like its white characters, keeps me around. Case in point: Treme takes what could be a sterotypical black character, played by Wendell Pierce, the guy who has three baby mamas, and gives him depth. He not a caricature, but a character. It reminds me of Homicide in that it revels in concentrating on a small detail, or lingers on a scene longer than one would expect a show to do. Treme has already been picked up for a second season, which I think is well-deserved. I know I'll be sticking around, and I hope you decide to give the show, and New Orleans, a chance.

I'm still "Lost" and loving it

After the most recent Lost outing, the final season of the show about an island, is down to seven episodes. We are at the beginning of the very end my friends, and in about 6 weeks we'll have to say good-bye to one of the most interesting, spooky, suspenseful, and confusing shows ever.

As we push forward to the end, let's take a step back to see where we are. Instead of flashbacks or flashforwards, we are in some sort of 'sideways world' (as coined by Doc Jensen), a sort of altera-universe where Flight 815 didn't crash, but made it all the way to L.A. Our characters are still intrinsically linked in our sideways world--while each episode focuses on one character, there are several interactions between each other. I guess these people just belong together.

Back on the island, the final showdown is brewing between Jacob and the Man in Black, aka Smokey, aka Fake-Locke or FLocke. About half our characters of Team Jacob right now (Jack, Sun, Hurley, Lapidus, Miles, Ben) aided by Ilana and Richard Alpert, the other half Team FLocke (Sayid, Kate, Sawyer, Claire, Sayid, Jin) along with Cindy the flight attendant and those kids that were kidnapped from the Tailies way back when.

So far, in the altera-timeline have learned Richard's backstory (his true love died while he was accidentally killing a mean doctor in the 1800s, was a slave on the Black Rock that crashed on the island, freed by Smokey, and chose immortality since his first two options of being with his wife and saving his soul from hell were off the table); learned that Jack has a son in sideways world (but, conspicuously did NOT see the mother of said child); Kate helped Claire and Aaron when Claire went into early labour; Locke was with Helen, and accepted that some things he just can't do; Ben was a teacher who helped Alex; Sayid was NOT with Nadia ;Sawyer is a cop and Miles his is partner; Jin and Sun weren't married, but together; and Keamy works for Sun's Dad who was trying to kill both Jin and Sayid's brother. We've also seen Charlie, his brother, Daniel Farraday, Charlotte, Boone, Mikael so far.

On the island, Jin and Sun STILL aren't together, Claire wants to kill Kate (encouraged by FLocke), some of characters are 'candidates' to take over the protection of the island, Hurley still sees dead people, FLocke killed a bunch of people in the Temple, there have been many meta-conversations between characters about being in hell and some skeletons in a cave, and Charles Widmore is on Hydra Island (polar bear cage sex could be just around the corner) and Desmond finally made his reappearance.

Confused? Me too. I've just written four paragraphs of what is surely to be gibberish to anyone not watching Lost, and totally incomplete for those that do watch it. It is not often that this far into a show, there is still so much mystery and confusion. After all the point of the final season is to explain not confuse. This my friends, is what makes Lost the ultimate test of faith in television. Not to be too dramatic, but who amongst us isn't just a little afraid that there are too many questions and too little time? Those of us that were burned with Alias's Rimbaldi reveal (I'm still pissed that it was all about eternal life) know all too well how a bad ending can make you wince.

Yet, to me, the reason Lost is still working, the reason I'm not worrying, is more than simple trust in Darlton (which I do) is the characters. I relish the relationships of certain characters that occur in both worlds. Miles and Sawyer, Claire and Kate, Desmond and Charlie. I hope that Hurley gets his peace, that Jin/Sun, and Desmond/Penny, and Sawyer/Juliet (sorry it's all boy/girl couples--we need to take that up with Darlton) get their chance at happily ever after, that somehow Sayid gets redemption and Locke learns his worth. I don't really care about Jack and Kate, unless Kate and Claire end up both raising Aaron. I know all of this might not happen, but I hope some of it happens. That's why I watch, and I suspect why you do too.

I'm sure there will be at least one more post about Lost as it winds up, so until then Happy Watching.

Birth

I had a baby less than 8 weeks ago and I am offically too busy to keep up with this blog in addition to my other blog. I will try to squeeze in a thought here and there and I am keeping up with my tv viewing, but between feedings, diapers, naps and other baby "things", I am exhausted and BUSY.

Big Boy

Yesterday Connor turned 7 weeks old and has started to sleep for longer periods at night between feedings (4 to 4.5 hours!) and thus we are going to start the transition from the pack-n-play in our room to his big boy crib. Time is continuing to fly by and he is becoming such a little man. This morning we ran errands to Target and the grocery store and he was as content as can be in his car seat, looking around. His personality is blossoming everyday and he is starting to smile in reaction to my voice, not just from gas. :)

Everyday I continue to be in heaven, staying home with him and taking care of his daily needs. I am already dreading going back to work as I will miss the little daily moments that we currently share. We really don't have a set routine yet, but we are managing to make it day by day. He is still eating like a champ and progressing from one boob at each feeding to both. This tells me that his quantity is increasing and my body is changing once more to keep up with this added production. Luckily, I am still able to feed him and pump multiple times a day to have a nightly bottle ready for Tiff's feeding, as well as a daily freezer bag for future (daycare) use. I am still grateful for my amazing production and Connor seems to be thriving on the milk that I produce. Next Friday the 12th we have his next appointment and I can't wait to see his growth! I think he is at least 12 pounds, if not more.

Our little man is a joy to be around and he is growing up so quickly. I have always heard the cliche from mother's saying, "oh, they grow up so fast".... OR, "they don't stay babies for very long" and it does in fact seem to be true. He is growing so quickly that we have a rubber.maid already full of clothes he has outgrown. Where does time go?

Lost: The Final Season

Lost kicks off its sixth and final season tonight in the United States, and Friday in the United Kingdom, when I will be watching. And yes, it is going to be nearly impossible for me to wait that long, and I will have to stay far away from the internets in order to avoid being spoiled. Because, man, I don't want to be within 100 feet of a spoiler. I ready to enjoy watching the dominoes fall, and the connections made as I watch the answers to about a billion mysteries come. Or not come, as I suspect.

Lost has been a show that I've been a fan of since Day 1. Actually, I was a fan before it ever premiered. They had me at 'from the maker of Alias,' and they kept me through mystery and intrigue. Even in its weaker seasons, the mystery kept me coming for more. I do love the characters (well some of them) and I certainly care what happens to them, but there were times when we had to sit through episodes on characters I didn't really care about. (Hello, Shannon). And then of course, there were those characters I liked, who's departure from the show (for whatever on- or off-set reasons) disappointed and frustrated me. (I'm looking at you Mr Eko). But there was always the mystery and always the sci-fi, and generally good writing, so there you go. A hat tip to Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse for that. [Also, I'm such a big dork I knew those names without having to look them up. At all.]

Before we enjoy the last season, I thought I'd call attention to ten of of my favorite moments. Interestingly, Lost is not a show I've watched over and over like some others, so these moments are the ones that truly stand out. I remember the main points, but some of the finer ones may have been lost. (he he) (As an aside, I have some theories on why I haven't watched them multiple times, the main one being that, for me, it's the reveal that makes Lost, so once you've seen the reveal it's not as much fun. ) Anyway, without further fanfare here are my 10 favorite moments, in no particular order:

1) 'The Pilot': This episode did what all pilots should--introduced enough characters, gave us some intrigue, gave us some WTF moments (a monster? a polar bear) all with pretty good dialogue and writing.

2) The end of the Pilot part 2: The first truly bone chilling moment for me was when we hear the French distress signal playing over and over, and learn it's been that way for 16 years. We've come a long way from the moment, but it showed us definitely that this island and this show, was different.

3) 'Walkabout': The first John Locke episode (and John Locke is my favorite character, and yes he best get his redemption) and arguably one of the best episodes ever. Learning that Locke had been in a wheelchair until arriving on the island was a spectacular twist, and showed us Locke was special. It also gives some reason for his 'Man of Faith' attitude. And do we know how he caught that boar yet?

4) The character growth of Jin: I'm not sure if there were original plans for Sun and Michael to get together, but once the writers gave Jin more dimensions than just 'mean guy who treats his wife bad' it as easy to see why Sun stuck around. Showing the same story from each of their perspective in Season 1 helped show us why Jin was the way he was. And when he apologised to Sun for not being a good husband in Season 4, you really did believe he meant it. His was a journey worth watching.

5) Desmond: If Locke is my favorite character, Desmond is 1.5 on my list (brotha). We first see the Scottish lad in a Jack flashback in Season 2 when we have no idea how integral he will become. He says he'll see Jack in another life, and boy was he right. Two of my favorite episodes, 'Flashes Before Your Eyes' and 'The Constant', are Desmond episodes. They also happen to be bookends on the Penny/Desmond arc, taking us through their journey of love, separation, and reconciliation.

6)' The Other 48 Days': Or, where we meet the Tailies. We finally see what happened to the tail section of the plane, learn who was on the other end of Boone's radio, and figure out Rose's husband is a white guy. Of course we also meet Ana-Lucia and Mr Eko, lost some kids, and Cindy, the flight attendant. And certainly don't forget, this is where Shannon gets shot. Which made me mad only in that it made all the time spent with Boone and Shannon fairly pointless.

7) 'Greatest Hits': I had a love/hate relationship with Charlie. I loved him, then hated him in that period where all he did was whine, but then kind of loved him again in the end. The final Charlie-centred episode, where he recalls his five greatest moments, was a beautiful swan song. And even though he didn't actually die until the next episode, we all knew it was coming. Seeing his moments and his good-bye to Claire, was the perfect way for him to go out on top.

8) Locke sees Jacob: Another of the truly terrifying moments was in that cabin when Locke sees Jacob for the first time. Or was it Jacob? Well, I guess we don't know about that, but it added a new level to the mythology, and I loved it.

9) Time Travelling: I love sci-fi. Duh. And there's nothing more sci-fi than time travelling. So last season was particularly fun for me when they were bouncing around time. I don't always understand it (so, Locke gave Richard the watch, which Richard gave to young Locke, who then gave it back, or something like that, and anyway, where did the damn watch come from), but I always like it.

10) They mysteries come and gone: Who are the Others (and the other Others)? What's in the hatch? Who stole Walt? Who was on the Boone's radio? Why is there a polar bear on the island? Why do the Others steal children? Who are Paulo and Nikki? Those are just a few that have had their day in the sun. It's seems so funny now that we speculated for an entire summer about what was in the hatch, but at the time who knew it was Desmond? As we gear up for the last season of debate and mysteries it's fun to go back and think about all we already do know.

There are many more moments that could make that list (a big Honorable Mention to the end of Season 3 when we figure out Jack is in the future-that was a near perfect season finale), but I have to stop somewhere.

I'll be rep-visiting Lost often throughout this season, so for now, enjoy the 'LA X, Parts 1 & 2'!

The Next Lost?: Flash Forward

The latest show to catch my eye is the new American drama, from ABC (shown on FIVE in the UK) Flash Forward. The basics of the story are that everyone on the planet blacks out for 2 mintues and some odd seconds at the same time, and during this time most (not quite all, or so we have been led to believe at this point) people saw flashes of some future event roughly six months in the future. Everything is in chaos when they wake up, as you'd suspect and people are wondering what now? Why did this happen? Can those that saw great futures ensure they happen, and can those that had not so great futures stop them? Flash Forward has all the elements that generally catch my eye in a tv show: an intriguing and mysterious hook with a seemingly sci-fi twist, attractive actors, great cinematography, and decent writing. Plus, the very famous Jett Jackson, of course. The questions is: haven't I seen this all before?

Perhaps it is precisely because I love these kind of shows that it is getting harder to for me to feel like I am seeing something new. Don't get me wrong, I think the pilot was pretty strong and the acting pretty good. All those British actors (three by my count) pretty much nailed their American accents, and I'll take Joseph Fiennes (Ralph's younger brother) any day. But much of the pilot felt familiar. From the opening scene focusing on a man's face, to a seemingly random but endlessly repeated number (the amount of time people were under), to the use of flashes, I felt the show was trying a little to hard to be the next Lost. Add a hobbit in the mix, and it's practically the same show.

Obviously, I am exaggerating. In fact, I can't fault the show for using flashes as it is the underlying premise for the show, a premise that from the second I heard about it I knew I wanted to watch . And better it try and emulate Lost than something of a lesser quality, like According to Jim. Even with its familiarity, it was still a thoroughly enjoyable experience. One of the major critiques that I had was that the audience is supposed to buy that in six months, not only is the relationship of the two main characters going to fail, but that she is going to let another man move into the house. (I'm not using the character names yet as I haven't seen enough episodes to remember them. So to me they are: Shakespeare and Penny are going to separate, and Penny is going to let Steve move in. Don't worry, as the series moves on, that will change.) But, I'm willing to give the show time to explain that better.

I suspect one of the biggest questions surrounding the show will be its sustainability of the pilot and premise. How will they keep the story moving but not get is six months in the future too quickly? (Are they going to emulate Lost once more in making a whole season be just a few weeks?) Can they keep up the mystery and suspense ? Do the writers and producers have a plan? I've been burned so many times by tv shows, that at this point I'm just going to go with the flow. That didn't work so well for Alias. It's worked out so far with Lost, and since Flash Forward so desperately wants to be Lost, then I'll trust there is a direction, at least for now.

I don't want to be too harsh on Flash Forward, as I really did enjoy the pilot. I suspect that within a few episodes there will be more differences between Flash Forward and Lost than there are similarities. And, if the similarities are good writing, good acting, and a great mystery, all with a helping of sci-fi, then I know I will be a Flash Forward fan for the long haul.