LOST: Season Recaps

Season One

It’s easy to forget now, but LOST’s formative year was spent a) developing characters through flashbacks and b) watching them battle the elements of the Island. Much of the show’s drama came from their day to day battle to survive.

Rating: 8/10

Season Two

LOST’s second season surpassed the first in almost every way. Taut from start to finish, Season Two answered plenty of questions while asking even more. Season Two balanced suspense, intrigue, character development, and action more efficiently than any other.

Rating: 9/10

Season Three

This is where things started to fall apart. The writers strike clearly took a toll on this season. The tension ratcheted up the first two seasons fell off a bit while The Island grew cloudier but no more enthralling. Solid performances from Josh Holloway, Evangeline Lilly, Elizabeth Mitchell, Michael Emerson, and Dominic Monaghan helped keep the ship afloat.

Rating: 7/10

Season Four

Season Four was an unmitigated disaster. Short and bitter, Season Four completely lost sight of the values that made LOST successful in the first place. The fourth season eschewed mystery for weaponry, intrigue for violence. It’s best to pretend Season Four never happened.

Rating: 4/10

Season Five

The Season Four debacle was quickly washed away by a surprisingly engaging 16-episode run through time. The smartest thing done in Season Five was minimizing the roles of some tired characters (Jack, Ben Linus) while bringing the more compelling/better acted ones (Sawyer, Juliet) to the forefront.

Rating: 7/10

Season Six

In the end, Season Six will be remembered only for the finale. Which might be a shame, because Six has been the series’ most consistently exciting season. Where other seasons wasted our time with pointless subplots or insipid characters, Six has eliminated the fluff and cut straight to the bone. But it will all come down to what happens tonight.

Rating: N/A

LOST: The Ten Best Episodes

10. Through The Looking Glass (Season Three Ep 22, Season Finale)



Not Penny’s Boat.


9. The Incident (Season Five, Ep 16, Season Finale)



The prototypical LOST season finale: introduce a new layer of intrigue, answer a few questions, kill someone off, and add a new character to replace him/her.


8. Numbers (Season One, Ep 18)



4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42


7. The Other 48 Days (Season Two, Ep 7)



Would have had more impact if Michelle Rodriguez and Cynthia Watros weren’t booted off the show after their Hawaii DUIs.


6. Ab Aeterno (Season Six, Ep 9)



The Richard Alpert episode.


5. Orientation (Season Two, Ep 3)



We’re gonna need to watch that again.


4. Exodus, Part 2 (Season One, Ep 23, Season Finale)



Only the thing is, we're just gonna have to take the boy.

3. Pilot (Season One, Ep 1)



Guys, this isn’t just a bear…it’s a polar bear.


2. Live Together, Die Alone (Season Two, Ep 23, Season Finale)



The explosive climax to the show’s most riveting season.


1. Man of Science, Man of Faith (Season Two, Ep 1)



I’ll see you in another life, brother.

LOST: The Ten Hottest Actresses

10. Emilie de Ravin

9. Yunjin Kim


8. Zuleikha Robinson


7. Cynthia Watros


6. Kiele Sanchez


5. Julie Bowen



4. Evangeline Lilly



3. Elizabeth Mitchell



2. Maggie Grace


1. Sonya Walger

LOST: The Ten Most Monstrous Villains

10. Goodwin

9. Anthony Cooper


8. Mr. Paik


7. Mikhail



6.Tom


5.Ethan



4. Charles Widmore



3. Martin Keamy


2. Ben Linus


1. Man in Black

LOST: The Ten Best Actors

10. Terry O'Quinn

9. John Terry



8. Elizabeth Mitchell


7. Kevin Durand


6. Michael Emerson


5. Alan Dale


4. Jeremy Davies


3. Naveen Andrews


2. Michelle Rodriguez


1.Lance Reddick

LOST: The Ten Best Characters (SPOILER ALERT)

10. Danielle Rousseau

9. Mikhail Bakunin


8. Matthew Abaddon


7. Desmond Hume


6. John Locke


5. Richard Alpert


4. James "Sawyer" Ford


3. Charles Widmore


2. Jacob


1. Man in Black

LOST Week

I could blog about the best season in the history of Survivor, or a compelling good vs. evil matchup in the NBA Western Conference Finals. I could blog about my life, about poker or relationships, personal growth or lack thereof. Instead, I'm going to post about five blogs over the next week on LOST, which airs for the final time Sunday night. If you are not current on the show and plan to someday catch up, avoid this blog for the next week. Spoilers will abound.

I wrote about LOST's first season a couple years ago. Most of what I wrote then still rings true. I will be forever frustrated by what LOST could have been and wasn't, but that doesn't mean I haven't mightily enjoyed the ride. I still have five episodes to watch before Sunday's finale. Like wrapping up a great book, I am already saddened that I will soon have no more to look forward to.