After five seasons of polar bears, smoke monsters, exploding hatches, naked Scotsmen, Wizard of Oz references, time travelling islands and a writers strike, we finally come to the end of the Lost journey. But, was it worth the trip? After wading through all of that cryptic chaos and headache inducing hi-jinks, does Lost Season 6 deliver upon its long, drawn-out promise? The answer of course, is no.
Starting out with no real direction and, at least initially, a premature cancellation seeming more than likely, the show creators and writers were always going to have their work cut out for them when bringing one of the most intriguing yet frustrating sci-fi shows of all time to a close. With so many questions raised during the first few seasons, it would have been virtually impossible for co-creators, David Lindelof and Jeffrey Leiber, to tie up every loose end and please every Lost fan. To be fair, the creators give it a go during Season 6, though whether its down to practical reasons or the fact that certain matters previously touched upon simply didnt make sense, many of the questions posed by the show are simply ignored and left unanswered.
While we dont want to go to go into too much plot detail and spoil the ride, the main focus for this final season is the newly introduced flash-sideways. Picking up where Season 5 left off, Lost Season 6 focuses on our band of castaways in the aftermath of the big explosion, which in turn has kick-started some sort of alternative reality. So, while we are treated to the regular Lost flashbacks, which delve into the islands history and secrets, we now have flash-sideways where Jack, Sawyer, Kate and co are living very different lives in a parallel universe. While this is a brave structural move for the final furlong and the parallel universe provides some of the final seasons most magical moments (hardcore fans will inevitably shed a tear) this, the shows last big puzzle, detracts from the bigger picture.
Through some brilliant flashback episodes (one particularly excellent instalment explains Richards origins), we are slowly drip-fed the answers to some of the shows bigger questions (who Jacob is, what the island is and why Jack and co. are there in the first place), but with the parallel universe dominating so much screen time, it feels like some of the important questions are casually and offhandedly dished out. Though there are plenty of nods to earlier episodes and a few cameos from some old faces, it still doesnt quite feel like weve come full circle with the Lost journey, and were not left with the contented feeling that everything has fallen into place. Sure, its a nice twist to the last season, but what about everything that came before?
Certainly, theres enough mythology, philosophy and fascinating theology throughout the six seasons of Lost to keep fans busy for years to come, and Season 6 alone is well worth further scrutiny for those keen to decipher the final torrent of Losts teasers. However, while we can appreciate a little mystery being left to Lost, for a show so distinctly characterised and driven by teasers and mystery, and with that carrot dangled in front of our noses for so many years, any amount of audience interpretation was always going to feel like a cop-out. Indeed, while Lindelof and Leiber have done a respectable job of pulling the show back from the point of cryptic catastrophe, Losts (inevitably) disappointing final instalments prevents this confounding slice of sci-fi from being the true modern classic it was so close to being.
The Blu-ray package sees the show going out in style, with excellent sound and picture quality, and like previous HD instalments of Lost, some of the daytime, island-set shenanigans look sublime in hi-def, while the soundtrack presents an atmospheric and lively accompaniment.
The extras are just okay, with the stand out appendage of course being the much talked about mini-episode, New Man In Charge, which presents a coda of sorts to season 6, and attempts to provide a few additional revelations.
Overall Verdict: An inevitable disappointing finale to a near classic, but at least it goes out in style on Blu-ray.
Special Features:
New Man In Charge Mini-Episode
Blooper Reel
Deleted Scenes
Lost On Location Featurette
Audio Commentaries
Lost in 8:15 Featurette
Crafting A Final Season Featurette
See You In Another Life Featurette
A Heros Journey Featurette
Reviewer: Lee Griffiths