On television airwaves that have become saturated with the widespread success of reality TV, the primetime drama "Lost" has become a beacon of hope for the return of intelligent television. Proving why it deserves its recently won Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series, the show's writing, combined with its tremendous actors, make "Lost" a must-see. Completely demolishing the sophomore season jinx that affects many a new show, the survivors of Oceanic Flight #815 are back Wednesday nights at 8 p.m. on ABC.
Along with the success of another of last year's new series that viewers may have heard of once or twice ("Desperate Housewives"), "Lost" can be accredited with resuscitating life to the almost comatose network ABC. Mastermind behind the wickedly clever series "Felicity" and "Alias," J.J. Abrams took a gamble with "Lost," making use of an unprecedented $12 million budget for a television pilot. Even though the premise sounds similar to an extravagant "Gilligan's Island," anyone who has witnessed an episode realizes that there is much more than meets the eye.
With an opening title sequence reminiscent of "The Twilight Zone," the show has single-handedly brought back that air of classic intellect to television. Set on a mysterious island somewhere in the South Pacific, viewers are not interested in how or if they will be rescued. Rather, they are constantly kept guessing week to week how the 48 survivors are interconnected and what fate will eventually befall them. Even though the first season was twisted and riveting, viewers should essentially think of it as only an introduction. Everything that has happened so far is only scattered information. Now having a knowledgeable base, the audience can expect season two's shows to be more complex, but more satisfying in their revelations.
Any show with such an intricate plotline, though, always has the potential to run itself into the ground after the first year. For example, season one's finale spent more time presenting new mysteries than actually resolving any questions. However, season two quickly made up for that by opening the bizarre hatch. Although this revelation in turn opened a completely new assortment of problems, it demonstrates how "Lost" perfectly balances disclosing and concealing information.
The real key behind the show's success, though, is its ensemble cast. Having more than a dozen main characters, "Lost" uses character development to its fullest advantage. No one saw much of Matthew Fox after his six-year stint on "Party of Five" as Charlie Salinger. Now as the troubled-but-genuine leader of the castaways, Dr. Jack Shephard, Fox has become television's hottest leading man. Throw in a fugitive on the run from an unknown crime, a con man with a complex past, a has-been rock star kicking a heroin addiction, and several other complicated characters played by relatively new actors and you have the makings of a hit show. A mix of mess-ups trying to survive together is compelling enough in itself, but it is the interweaving of their back-stories that makes "Lost" exceptional.
Considering each castaway had only about two episodes last year with character-specific flashbacks, the actual story can only continue to become clearer, right? Well, not exactly. Abrams is no fool. New characters are a great way of keeping a show fresh, but they are never an easy task for a show to pull off effectively. However, Abrams brilliantly established a constant source of original and relevant characters in the host of faceless survivors. A shining example is how Michelle Rodriguez smoothly appeared as fellow passenger Ana-Lucia Cortez in the finale of season one. Combine that with the appearance of the "others" that reside on the island and "Lost" has given viewers a consistent reason to remain hooked.
Nevertheless, new additions are not the only things keeping viewers tuned in each week. The untimely demise of a beloved character is a constant threat. "Lost" has had a slew of marginal characters die already and a couple fake-out deaths, such as Charlie's nearly fatal hanging last season and Michael almost drowning already this year. However, the show did something rare when they actually killed off a main character (Boone) before the first season came to a close. The death factor lingers in the heads of viewers, leaving them pondering not if this will happen again, but more likely when.
Abrams is famous for his ability to plan his series multiple years in advance. How are all the survivors connected? Where did Hurley's numbers originate? How did the "others" arrive on the island? It is comforting to know that important questions such as these have finite answers that will slowly be revealed to the audience. Like a jigsaw puzzle in TV form, "Lost" has only begun to piece together.
