LOST (TV SERIES) - DVD review

I WAS a big fan of "Lost".

There, I've said it. OK, it's not the end of the world and it is certainly not the end of my relationship with the show. But somewhere along the way, from the end of Season 1 to the middle of the second season, they lost me (pun wholly intended).

In the show's premiere season, "Lost" strongly came across as something really innovative and new, certainly not another run-of-the-mill crime procedural or family sitcom. I would even go as far as complimenting "Lost" for its inspired storytelling structure of using flashbacks and coincidences. However, for me, the show did not really inspire much confidence before its premiere. Many thought it was just another campy 60's sci-fi clone, albeit an updated, special effects-heavy version. Consider the show's basic premise: a disparate group of survivors whose plane crash-lands on a mysterious island that is inhabited by strange unseen creatures. That alone did not really seem like an idea that would marginally attract today's increasingly finicky TV viewers, let alone take off like it eventually did. Yes, the island has its fair share of confounding secrets that are just begging for some real answers. I'm sure everyone wants to know what that mysterious being in the jungle is or how one of the plane crash survivors, Locke (Terry O'Quinn) a paraplegic before the plane crash, could walk again. And who the heck are these people called the Others? But the much sought after answers to those questions alone are not the main reason why the show became as big ahit as it is now.

So what is the main driving force of the show then? Without a doubt, the show's success is in large part due to its strong cast of diverse characters. Every one of them has an interesting story and in that regard, "Lost" takes it to the next level by adding layer upon layer of imaginative circumstances and emotional nuances to its group of flawed characters. Every one of them comes with their own set of baggage and you could never tell if any of their actions and motivations is truly for the benefit of the rest of the castaways or just a selfish ploy to help themselves.

This gray area not only heightens the drama but also serves to keep the viewers on their toes. For example, designated bad boy Sawyer (Josh Holloway), as we've come to know, is a con artist who is always on the lookout for his next mark. But there is more to this Southern charmer than meets the eye. Sawyer, as it turns out, is not his real name (it's James Ford) but is actually the name of the conman who destroyed his family. It is ironic that he eventually took the name Sawyer and became who he despised most--someone who cheats people and in the process, destroys entire families. The same goes for Kate (Evangeline Lilly), whom we learned in the first season, is a fugitive on the run from the law. Her crime turned out to be blowing up her house with her father still in it. But her father is not all that innocent. He has been physically abusing Kate's mother for years and before killing him, Kate took out a big insurance policy on him, solely benefiting her mother. Even the good doctor, Jack (Matthew Fox) has a couple of skeletons in his closet, as we've seen with the troubles in his marriage and his rocky relationship with his now-deceased father.

This less than subtle approach to painting all the characters different shades of gray can be found all over "Lost". No character is beyond condemnation but salvation is almost always in sight, if they seek it. And that is precisely why I continue to tune in every week to the show. However, when coupled with the almost stagnant motion of the main plot, the good quickly devolves into the tedious. From the opening episode on, we have all been bombarded with various hints about this mysterious island's well-kept secrets. But as the season wore on, more and more questions pile up and the mystery gets deeper with no possible end in sight.

Then came the now-infamous hatch.

Yes, finally. We are sure to get some answers now! The revelation that there is an underground bunker deep in the jungle gave us fans hope that at least some burning questions might finally be answered. Imagine the infuriating disappointment when in the final episode of Season 1, the stubborn hatch door was opened and then.........nothing.

Pssssttt! Wait for Season 2!

OK, cliffhanger, I get it. TV shows do that all the time. I'm cool with that. So throughout the summer, the anticipation built. Speculation became rife throughout cyberspace as to what our castaways would find inside the hatch. Season 2 rolls along and we finally get to see what was inside the hatch. But instead of answering any of the important questions, we get, you guessed it, even more questions! The mystery deepens even further. In short, Season 2 brings us no closer to answering any of our burning questions than when the show first started.

Oh well......

In this second season, we now know most of the main characters much better and we are introduced to some new ones. It seems that there is another group of survivors from the plane who was in the tail section that broke apart from the main body and landed on the other side of the island. This ragtag group is comprised of the Nigerian drug lord turned Catholic priest, Mr. Eko (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), tough chick and former cop Ana Lucia (Michelle Rodriguez), clinical psychologist Libby (Cynthia Watros) and Bernard (Sam Anderson), Rose's (L. Scott Caldwell) husband. Unlike the main group of survivors, this group has been under constant attack by the Others, kidnapping members of the group when they least expect it. And this group too have been infiltrated by one of the Others, pretending to be one of the survivors. These two groups of survivors are finally united when Michael (Harold Perrineau), Sawyer and Jin (Daniel Dae Kim), who were last seen being attacked by the Others while sailing on their makeshift raft, find themselves washed up on the other side of the island.

The other new development in Season 2 is of course the underground bunker that the mysterious hatch leads into. Equipped with antiquated computer technology, it looks like a giant time capsule from the 70's. Inside, the survivors meet up with the bunker's nervous and rambling occupant, Desmond (Henry Ian Cusick), a former Scottish soldier and a sailor, whom Jack had met briefly some time before the plane crash (yes, this show is full of such coincidences). From the bits and pieces of information they could gather from a badly damaged film reel, it is revealed that the bunker is part of a research project called the DHARMA Initiative, funded by the Hanso Foundation. DHARMA is supposed to bring together scientists and thinkers from around the world to conduct experiments in various fields. Apart from the well-stocked living spaces, the bunker's central focus is an old computer terminal where the occupants must enter a set of specific numbers every 108 minutes. So the top question becomes, what if the numbers are not entered into the computer by the end of the countdown? Subtle hints are given as to what would happen but Locke, for one, is not willing to take that chance, convincing the rest to continue Desmond's work of inputting the numbers (after Desmond had ran off into the jungle). So is this all just a psychological experiment? Maybe or maybe not.

If not for all of its many open questions, "Lost" would have been the perfect sci-fi mystery thriller. The show seldom lets up on its intensity, as the survivors fight among themselves and against the Others. But as some questions get answered, even more crop up in its place, like the mythical Hydra. Two steps forward, one step back. If you are willing and able to endure the seemingly never-ending loop of questions upon questions, then "Lost" is the show for you. For people who are impatient, they should stay far away as "Lost" would definitely test your limits.

Season 2 of "Lost" is made up of 24 episodes and they are evenly distributed among the following 6 DVDs (4 episodes on each disc):

Disc 1: "Man of Science, Man of Faith", "Adrift", "Orientation", "Everybody Hates Hugo"
Disc 2: "....And Found", "Abandoned", "The Other 48 Days", "Collision"
Disc 3: "What Kate Did", "The 23rd Psalm", "The Hunting Party", "Fire + Water"
Disc 4: "The Long Con", "One Of Them", "Maternity Leave", "The Whole Truth"
Disc 5: "Lockdown", "Dave", "S.O.S.", "Two For The Road"
Disc 6: "?", "Three Minutes, "Live Together, Die Alone (Part 1)", "Live Together, Die Alone (Part 2)"

Video:
Presented in anamorphic widescreen measuring in at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, the 480p video superbly reproduces the colors of the lush Hawaiian landscape without skipping a beat. Skin tones look natural and there is hardly any grain visible. Overall, another great DVD video presentation from Buena Vista. Only one subtitle option is offered on this DVD set and it is English for the hearing impaired.

Audio:
All of the Buena Vista TV DVD sets that I have reviewed so far only include an English Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track. For whatever reason, this "Lost" set also offers an English Dolby Surround 2.0 track. Obviously, if your A/V receiver has the capability, you should definitely go with the discrete 5.1 option, as it so effectively sets a mood-inducing soundstage for the haunting music that complements the onscreen action perfectly. When the action kicks in, get ready for the sounds to come alive, not only from the front channels but also the surrounds as well.

Extras:
Starting off, a total of 5 audio commentaries are offered as an option for the following 5 episodes:

"Man of Science, Man of Faith" with commentary by executive producers Damon Lindelof, Carlton Cuse, Bryan Burk and Jack Bender.
"What Kate Did" with commentary by episode director Paul Edwards, director of photography Michael Bonvillain and co-star Evangeline Lilly
"The 23rd Psalm" with commentary by executive producers Damon Lindelof, Carlton Cuse and Bryan Burk
"The Whole Truth" with commentary by co-stars Yunjin Kim, Daniel Dae Kim and writers Elizabeth Sarnoff and Christina M. Kim
"Dave" with commentary by episode director Jack Bender and co-stars Jorge Garcia and Cynthia Watros

All the commentaries here are somewhat entertaining and informative with the most fun coming from the commentaries that included the stars of the show. The first one on the episode "Man of Science, man of Faith" is perhaps the most informative and probably an intriguing one for fans. Lindelof, Cuse, Burk and Bender are the principal creative driving forces behind the show and their commentary on the opening episode, especially on the idea behind the now-infamous hatch, is pretty interesting.

Apart from the commentaries, the rest of the special features can solely be found on Disc 7. The features here are divided into three sections, emphasized by a black and white DHARMA Initiative training video that talks about the three phases.

Phase 1: Observation
This section is made up of 3 features. They are:

"Fire + Water: Anatomy of an Episode"
"Fire + Water" is the 12th episode of Season 2 and this documentary helps to break down the different parts of the production process that goes into the filming of an episode of "Lost". It includes brief segments of the producers and writers hashing out the storyline, location scouting, costume design, make-up and location shooting in Hawaii.

"Lost: On Location"
This feature sheds some light on the challenges of shooting on location for various episodes, especially the ones on the water. It includes footages of the actual filming and also cast interviews. The episodes covered here include "Adrift", "Abandoned", "The 23rd Psalm", "Everybody Hates Hugo", "Collision", "The Whole Truth", "Dave", "S.O.S.", "Two For The Road" and "Live Together, Die Alone".

"The World According to Sawyer"
This feature is actually pretty funny and interesting at the same time. It includes interviews with the cast and plenty of snippets of the subtle hilarious phrases used by the character Sawyer, whose Southern redneck sensibilities and a motor mouth offers no respite for the rest of the characters on the island.

Phase 2: Conditioning
This next section offers the following 5 features.

"The Lost Flashbacks"
As many of you may know, "Lost" is not only about the strange happenings on a deserted island. It also prominently features the back-stories for each of the characters, which are somehow strangely connected to their current predicament. These flashbacks make up a large portion of the show. In this feature, you get to see 3 flashback stories that were removed from the final version of two episodes, "Abandoned" and "Lockdown". The 2 flashbacks in "Abandoned" are connected to Maggie Grace's character, Shannon, while the one in "Lockdown" concerns Locke's (Terry O'Quinn) relationship with his estranged father.

"Deleted Scenes"
A total of 14 deleted scenes (without audio commentary) are included here. These scenes can be played either individually or all at once. They are titled: "Seeing Walt", "A Little You Time", "Sawyer's Visitor", "Dinner Time", "Special Delivery", "Ana Lucia's Prisoner", "Libby and Claire", "Connected", "I Need To Know", "The Doctor's Solution", "What's Your Story?", "Weakness", "Are You All Right?" and "I Miss....".

"Lost Bloopers"
Here you can watch the sometimes-funny outtakes of the actors flubbing their lines and also some of the pranks they play on one another on the set.

"Channel 4 UK Promo – Directed by David Chapelle"
As the title suggests, this is a promotional trailer that was shown on England's Channel 4 TV station. It is really a very stylized take on the show as it features the castaways mournfully dancing around the wreckage of the crashed plane.

"Sneak Peeks"
This segment features trailers of up and coming releases from Buena Vista, including Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" and TV shows like "Desperate Housewives".

Phase 3: Conclusion
Finally, Phase 3 features the following 3 segments:

"Lost Connections"
This is an interactive feature that plays out somewhat like "6 degrees of separation". As many of you may know, all the characters on the show may be strangers to one another and may seem unrelated but from the many flashbacks we've already seen, their paths do cross at one point or another. This feature lets you connect one character to another by showing you a brief video of how they may have met before the plane crash. It may look confusing at first, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes a pretty neat feature to play around with.

"Mysteries, Theories and Conspiracies"
The core nature of "Lost" is its mysterious setting and the weird things that happen to the stranded castaways. Obviously, with such an intriguing premise, many competing theories and conspiracies about what people speculate to be the truth about the show's big final secret began to emerge in earnest two seasons in. Here, you can watch interviews with both the fans, the cast and also the show's insiders (no, they do not reveal anything, duh!) as they speculate about what they think would the show's ultimate gotcha moment.

"Secrets From the Hatch"
The big story for Season 2 was the mysterious underground hatch. This segment goes into how the physical structure of the hatch (like the geodesic dome) was conceived and built. As many of you may already realize, all the equipment in the hatch were based on 70's technology, which gives us an important clue of how old the hatch is.

Packaging:
"Lost" comes packaged in a 5-panel Digipak case, with 2 DVDs (on partially on top of the other) located on 1 panel and Disc 7 standing alone on the last panel. A thin booklet is included and it contains brief synopsis of all the episodes. The Digipak case is then encased in an attractive plastic cover that really enhances the look of the overall DVD package.

Film Value:
At the very least, "Lost" has morphed into a test of one's patience, and that is certainly not a good thing for a TV show. The glacial trickle of information concerning the island and its secrets is putting a damper on whatever form of entertainment I could muster from the show. Hopefully, the writers and producers can push the plot forward at a much faster pace before they ultimately lose the faith put on them by the show's rabid but increasingly impatient fanbase.

You know, maybe the show is itself a psychological experiment, much like what compels the crash survivors to input the numbers into the computer every 108 minutes. In our case, we are compelled to tune in every week in the hopes that we might get another piece of the puzzle.

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Oh, for the love of.........