Lost Series Finale: "The End"

[Joe Washington]

Way better than the ending of Battlestar Galactica. Nearly up with the ending of Six Feet Under.

As I came closer to the end of the episode, I was overcome with a peaceful sense of resolution. Like I was gradually letting go of these characters and their world which is the way a series finale should make you feel with it being the end.

The characters' realization moments in the sideways universe were among my favorite scenes of the series finale. Smokey's downfall was another.

And the way I see the ending with the reveal that the characters are dead is this: the Purtagory they ended up in was an unknowing creation of Jack's when he came in contact with the light. It became a place for the souls of those who he knew who died on the island and off the island. I don't think the plane Kate, Claire, Sawyer, and the others were on crashed. I think they made to the outside world and lived full lives before their deaths. The same goes for Ben and Hurley as they protected the island for what I think would be many years. Then when they died, they ended up in Jack's Purtagory and it was Desmond's purpose to bring them together to bring resolution to their remaining issues that goes back to the island. You know what? I'm fine with it. Better than fine. At peace with it.

This show might not be perfect but it sure knows how to deliver a good ending to a story that isn't bent on satisfying all the needs of the audience.

Goodbye, LOST! And God Bless!

 

[ThunderAeroI]

Wasn't expecting that ending. A total cop-out if you ask me- they were all dead all along?

Above average episode, but I still feel kind of cheated. Six years to tell us that they're dead anyway?

No, Jack died at the end of The End. Hurley and Ben died at some point in the future, hence his comment about being a good number 2.

Locke died when Ben killed him.

The others died when we see them die, or at sometime in the future.

 

[Agent Richard07]

Very reminiscent of BSG. And in my case, I don't mean that as a bad thing... not completely anyway.

The whole show has many BSG paralells and the finale is no different with the flashbacks.

 

[firehawk12]

I thought they didn't die on the island, which is why Hurley says Ben was a good #2.

That said, where were any of the Tailies? Anna Lucia "wasn't ready", but the same goes for Eko and Libby?

And of course, poor Michael is stuck on the island forever? Aroo?

 

[Danny99]

Excellent

I was satisfied with the conclusion. I was entertained for six years!

 

[Mr Light]

Yeah, they weren't always dead. Christian told Jack that they were in a non-linear time (he learned about time from a baseball game), that some of them died before him, and some died after him, but they were all joining together here at the same "time".

 

[roliver]

...a story that isn't bent on satisfying all the needs of the audience.

Mission accomplished if they weren't trying to satisfy the audience.

 

[Trippy]

Wasn't expecting that ending. A total cop-out if you ask me- they were all dead all along?

Above average episode, but I still feel kind of cheated. Six years to tell us that they're dead anyway?

They weren't all dead anyway. On island, Jack died, just as the Ajiira plane left.

In the alt/now we see was the afterlife, Christian said they were all there, some come after, some before Jack, but it was a place they made to be together in The End.

And I'm ok with that We just have to imagine what becomes of Claire, Kate, Sawyer, Miles, Frank and Richard, and afterwards, Ben and Hurley.

 

[Ryan8bit]

It was a good story, but I can't help but feel like it was ultimately pointless or served as a poor finale. The largest focus was the flash sideways, and the afterlife/sideways was never really the focus of the show. So season 6 all seemed like a completely different bookend than what the show implied. That's a total cop-out, and everyone should see that.

 

[startrekwatcher]

Wasn't expecting that ending. A total cop-out if you ask me- they were all dead all along?

Above average episode, but I still feel kind of cheated. Six years to tell us that they're dead anyway?

It was just that they were all dead in this flash-sideways for some reason. Very weird.

As Christian explains there is no such thing as time in this afterlife. While many people there had died before Jack there were those like Sawyer, Hurley and Kate who are still alive at the time of Jack's death but will one day in the future will die and from the perspective of the afterlife that time has occurred and here they are.

 

[Frontier]

All I've got to say is...

WTF?

So the sideways-flash was them all coping with their own deaths, ok, fine, dandy.

But then what the fuck was the whole point of the whole show about then? Everything on the island and the black smoke and the Jacob thing and... WTF?

 

[Trek4Ever]

The flash sideways was purgartory, not sure why all the griping about the spirituality since most of the show had religious concepts throughout its run.

 

[firehawk12]

Yeah, they weren't always dead. Christian told Jack that they were in a non-linear time (he learned about time from a baseball game), that some of them died before him, and some died after him, but they were all joining together here at the same "time".

The Sisko is non-linear!

 

[Mr Light]

Here's something I don't understand. Jacob had magical god-like powers and could teleport on and off the Island at will and healing powers and all that stuff, right? So why didn't Jack display a single special ability during his brief term as protector of the Island? Why didn't he heal his own wound? Because Ben clearly expects Hurley to have magical control of the Island, he says Hurley can make it so people can leave the Island if he wants. This was one of my major disappointments.

 

[startrekwatcher]

The great and mighty destiny of the Sisko... was to chuck a book into the fire. The great and mighty destiny of the Jack... was to stick a stone pillar in a whole. Inspiring stuff.

Consider it more meta-commentary--that mystical hole was us and the plug a gift from Darlton

 

[Mr Light]

"Consider it more meta-commentary--that mystical hole was us and the plug a gift from Darlton" I thought that's what people always accuse George Lucas of doing with the prequels

 

[roliver]

So why didn't Jack display a single special ability during his brief term as protector of the Island?

Season six was clear evidence that the writers weren't concerned with such continuity details. Make stuff up one season/episode, abandon it the next. Rinse, lather, repeat.

 

[RoJoHen]

Awesome finale!

And no, people, they weren't dead the whole time. Go back and rewatch.

 

[pookha]

Wasn't expecting that ending. A total cop-out if you ask me- they were all dead all along?

Above average episode, but I still feel kind of cheated. Six years to tell us that they're dead anyway?

No, Jack died at the end of The End. Hurley and Ben died at some point in the future, hence his comment about being a good number 2.

Locke died when Ben killed him.

The others died when we see them die, or at sometime in the future.

uh it came more of as they all died in the original plane crash.
and the whole thing had just been jack's imagination as he lay dying.

remember they always admitted jack was supposed to have died.

they just kept it a secert that indeed he did die.
it also answers why so much didnt make sense and things just got whackier as the seasons went on.
it was the ramblings of a dyings man imagination.

 

[Brolan]

It was great until the end. Half-way through I was sure they would end the series by having Jack wake up in the field just like he did in the pilot. When he was walking to the same place, with the same shoe hanging in the vegetation, I thought I had nailed it.

But I guess in the end, this ending was fitting. Lost was a show where they brought up so many more questions than answers. So why not have the ending raise more questions than it answered? You can imagine your own ending, and it can end they way you want it to.