I've been finding myself with a lack of things to do lately, and I feel it's time I start writing reviews for LOST episodes to keep myself busy. So, I'm proposing a sort of "challenge" for myself--review every single LOST episode before the season starts. I know, it'll be tough, especially since I like to put a lot of thought into things I write, but I think I can do it. Bear in mind, if you read these, you shouldn't view them as models for my review/recaps that I'll be doing during the season, these past episodes are long gone now and I won't include much, if any, speculation or easter eggs. I'm expecting them to each be a 500-1000 word review while my blog posts for season 4 episodes will be upwards of 1500 words and include a lot more than just a "review." I think you'll enjoy them. Anyway, it's how I feel, so don't rag on me for giving every episode a 10/10 once you see my reviews. Here's a little thing I wrote the other day:
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While it may not be everyone's cup of tea, LOST is, without a doubt, the most consistently engaging, most entertaining, and most important television show, nay, piece of art to ever grace the small screen. Forget what the show's about for a second, forget the mysteries, forget the characters, and look at what this show has done for you. Think of the people you've met and the knowledge and ideas you've gained and encountered because of the show. Some of you may not feel this way, but I'm sure a decent percentage of you can list at least five ways LOST has changed you, made you a better, more interesting, more diverse person. For me, I've learned and experienced more through and because of this show than anything else in my life, more than school, more than you know. That is no exaggeration and I stand firm in my statement. It is this show that sparked my interest in everything that defines me and not a day goes by that I'm not thankful for these things.
Thinking back to my life before LOST, I seem, to me at least, like a completely different person. All the things I've been through, all the people I've met and the things I've learned because of this show are more important to me than anything else in my life and my interests are completely different than they were when I first started watching. I'm more mature, more self aware and more worldly now than I was three years ago all thanks to LOST, and the best it brings out in me when I discuss it. The literary references and influences in the show are the sole reason I have such a voracious appetite for reading and in the three years since I first watched LOST's magnificent pilot, I've read more and initiated more extra-curricular learning than in fifteen years before. And every single book, article, and editorial I've read, every wonderful word, is because of LOST. The knowledge I posses about philosophy, physics, literature, history, religious studies, medicine, psychology, leadership, and social awareness, things I held very little interest in before the show, are all because of the way the brilliant writers implement and make you interested in their vast and endless influences. Without them, LOST would be nothing, and they, the writers, are respectful of the importance they hold.
On a more personal level, the shared love of the show has brought me closer to my parents and has been the common ground for countless new friendships I have made with people from all walks of life. And even after all that, after three wonderful seasons, the show continues to amaze and entertain me. While I'm not here to negate various complaints with the show, I strongly believe they are unfounded in the bigger picture. I've seen a lot of television shows on both network and cable and while other shows have executed specific aspects and motifs excellently, there isn't a doubt in my mind that LOST is the only show out there to successfully encompass all the elements of great drama and mystery without being brain-numbingly irrelevant. LOST makes you think, makes you analyze the show and its meaning in various ways before you can fully understand the concepts trying to be delivered and it is this that makes the show so great, so fresh and exciting. Even more, the dialogue and story writing is on par, if not better, with the established "greats" and the acting, cinematography, score, directing, and depth of the show come together brilliantly each and every week. You may have your trivial nitpicks, we all do, and I'm all for logical and reasonable debate over good and bad, but when judging television, think not of the story alone, think of what the show has done for you.
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