Lost Premier

I'm chomping on the bit for this one....

'Lost': Time For A Little Premiere-Day Heresy

by Linda Holmes

Tonight is the two-hour premiere of the fifth season of Lost, as you know if you ever watch ABC or have much of a collection of Facebook friends. (There are nearly 263,000 people signed up on Facebook as officially booked viewers of tonight's premiere.)

When I read one of the recent interviews with the show's creators, I was struck by this passage:

There's been a steady attrition over the years, because the show demands that you watch every episode. And Lord knows, I wish there was a way we could do the show where the casual viewer could come along, but once you start writing for those people, the long-term fans will (bleeping) kill you, as well they should. We always thought it would be a cult show, and that's the show we've been writing.

I don't mean to doubt a creator's view of his own story, but I'm here to tell you that you do not have to watch every episode, and you can be a casual viewer. I know, because I've been one, and I still very much enjoyed the two hours you're going to see tonight.

How is this possible? HOW? After the jump...

Here's the thing: I didn't get into Lost when it started. I got into it a while later, watched some episodes, and lost interest. And then I became interested in it again. And lost interest again, and came back again. They say you can't do it, but you can. It requires a little reading and cheating, but you can.

Don't get me wrong -- I'm absolutely confident that, because my knowledge is incomplete, I miss things. I miss nuances and I miss moments that resonate more deeply with other people because they've seen things I haven't. From time to time, it's confusing, to say the least. And no, I don't recommend jumping in with the Season 5 premiere with no background knowledge at all.

But the good news is that the premiere is terrific, whether you've watched every single episode or not. In truth, once the creators got a final end date for the series (which is next year, after the sixth season) and the story began to progress, the show became more linear in one sense, even as it became more logistically convoluted. Compare this to a show like The X-Files, which ultimately alienated a lot of people who gradually came to believe that there was no plan. There was no end game; no way that all the pieces logically fit together in the minds of the people making the show. When you don't know whether you're filling one more season or six more, that's what happens.

But with Lost, once they set the schedule, it became clearer that they had a story to complete by a date certain, and things began to happen. Yes, it's all very mystifying with the bending of time and space, but they are going somewhere with all of it, and that's perfectly evident as you watch. The path you're on as a viewer is foggy and sometimes seems to double back or abruptly change direction, but you can tell it's been laid down for miles in front of you and is not being improvised. What doesn't work with tricky sci-fi shows is the feeling you get that up ahead and just out of sight, there are two guys with shovels and cheap paving stones who are desperately trying to get the path laid down before you get there. Lost has really righted the ship in that regard.

The show also does a good job of feeling fair, even when some traditionally unfair storytelling devices are being used. There are certain tropes -- time travel, cloning, a dead guy coming out of the shower because his death was only a dream -- that present a grave risk of breaking faith with the audience. That's not because they're inherently flawed as much as it's because having the pieces of a puzzle fall into place is only satisfying if those pieces follow rules you already know or are learning. A story like this can't reveal the answers and the rules at the same time, or it seems self-serving.

Even though it contains shades of similar story devices, what Lost has learned to do so well is reveal the underlying mechanics of its universe in a way that makes the answers seem more, not less, interesting. Over four seasons, it's explained the basics -- here's who lives on the island; here's what's behind this closed door; here's why this seemingly incomprehensible thing happened -- without bleeding the life out of its own narrative.

It's easy to forget how this show started: plane crash, survivors marooned. Yes, there were hints of the mysterious, but it was nothing like this. A little counterintuitively, as more disquieting complexities have come to light, it's gotten easier to follow. The two-hour premiere, if you essentially understand the show up to this point, isn't all that confusing, which is more than I can say for some of the past pivotal episodes.

Perhaps the show is aimed only at its own cult; perhaps you're meant to need to watch every episode. But you don't; not really. At least not to enjoy this particular two-hour kickoff, which sucked me right in despite the gaping holes in my Lost background. I'm sure I'll go back someday and pick it all up on Netflix, but it makes an awfully satisfying drama in the meantime.

NPR.com

9:07 AM ET | 01-21-2009 | permalink

Inaugural Celebrations Begin!

This is truly an exciting time in our history. Obama Speaks at Start of Inaugural Celebrations
By Michael Bowman Washington 18 January 2009

President-elect Barack Obama and his wife Michelle at the Lincoln Memorial concert, 18 Jan 2009

Four days of celebrations and festivities surrounding the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama have begun in Washington with an open-air concert at the Lincoln Memorial.

Tens-of-thousands of people braved freezing temperatures to attend a star-studded gala featuring performances by music legends Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder and Bono, addresses by famous Hollywood personalities, and video presentations of previous inaugurations and key moments in American history.

President-elect Obama emerged from behind a bullet-proof glass shield to stand on the steps of the memorial housing the larger-than-life marble statue of Abraham Lincoln. It was President Lincoln who, in 1862, issued the Emancipation Proclamation to free slaves in the United States. On Tuesday, Mr. Obama will place his hand on Lincoln's Bible while taking the oath of office.

As he has done repeatedly in recent months, the president-elect spoke openly of the challenges facing the United States, noting that the nation is at war and its economy in crisis. But Mr. Obama suggested there is no cause for despair.

"I stand here today as hopeful as ever that the United States of America will endure, that it will prevail - that the dream of our founders will live on in our time," said Barack Obama. "What gives me that hope is what I see when I look out across this mall. It is you - Americans of every race and region and station - who came here because you believe in what this country can be and because you want to help us get there."

Vice president-elect Joe Biden also spoke, lauding the value of work and the dignity it brings. His wife, Jill Biden, and America's future first lady, Michele Obama, were also present.

Earlier in the day, Mr. Obama paid tribute to America's war dead with a visit to Arlington National Cemetery.

As many as two million Americans are expected be on hand to witness and take part in the coming inaugural events - from the swearing-in ceremony to a massive parade to inaugural balls across the city. Security is exceedingly tight and will only grow more so by Tuesday, when major bridges and roads leading to the central part of the city will be blocked to all but official vehicles.

But transportation delays and other inconveniences do not seem to be dampening the enthusiasm of visitors and residents in the nation's capital.

The historic nature of Mr. Obama's rise to the nation's highest elective office is not lost on African-American Melba Clarke of Mississippi, who experienced racial segregation in her youth.

"This is, indeed, the realization of a dream," said Melba Clarke. "And for someone who was just a young bride when the civil rights movement began, it is such an honor for me to have lived through it, and to see it materialize in the election of the first African-American president. I am very excited. My husband was a civil rights worker. He passed [died] in March, so I am here for him and for everybody who was on the frontlines during the civil rights movement in Mississippi."

Mr. Obama prepares to take office with some of the highest approval ratings on record for a president-elect, which he hopes to translate into quick action to revive the beleaguered U.S economy, chart a course toward energy independence, and other ambitious goals.

Voice of America