OK, you have been warned! Actually, I'm glad you've decided to come to this page, because the bottom-line is that we've got a LOOOOONG wait ahead of us, and it was nice to think about the show again and have even more reasons to look forward to its return. And nothing that was discussed was that big of a deal, or else I'd be more upset that I accidentally read it!
All of the below was revealed during a Q&A with fans at the Comic-Con event. Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse (the two executive producers who do the podcast) spoke, and each had a bell that they would ring if they thought the other was saying too much, in which case the offender would immediately shut up.
Casting:
1) You probably already read this because it was even mentioned on CNN.com (which is where I saw it, unwittingly), but Michael will be back in Season Four. However, since we have no idea in what capacity he'll be back, and since Walt appeared in the last episode, I can't say I was that surprised by this, nor did I consider it to be too much of a spoiler. We all know he's been floating around in circles with Walt for the past season, cursing about not being able to get rescued! I guess that means we will get to hear his trademarked "WAAAaaaallllllttttttttt!!!" again next year. Joy.
Harold Perrineau, who plays Michael, joined Damon and Carlton at the end of the panel. They CLAIM that Michael's disappearance from the show, as well as his return, was planned for all along and that Harold knew this. Which I'm not so sure I believe, but I guess it doesn't matter. They said that he will be a series regular again, but they wouldn't mention how he returns. They would only declare that the way in which he returns "is awesome."
2) Nestor Carbonell, who plays Richard the Ageless, will be coming back; however, due to schedule conflicts with something else he is filming, it is unclear how often he will actually appear on the show. This is exactly what happened with the character of Rose - L. Scott Caldwell was in a production on Broadway and could not be on the show that much in Season One. Though, granted, she hasn't been on the show that much after that, either.
Small plot points:- They confirmed that it was not John Locke who Hurley saw fall off of the building in Season One (duh, we knew that a long time ago!)
- They would not comment on whether Jack and Claire find out that they are half-siblings, which makes me think that they WILL
- They said that they would do a flashback on Rousseau next season, and that it would tie in with a major plotline
- We will see Libby again
The format of the show:- A few quick things to mention first... they are currently writing the premiere, and it is untitled as of right now. Jack Bender, who directed some of the best episodes of the series, will be directing the first two episodes. They plan to have 13 or 14 of the 16 episodes for Season Four already filmed by the time it returns to the air again in February.
- Now on to the only thing I read that I'm not sure I wanted to know or not.
Are you sure you want to know?? I haven't written anything else substantial after this last one, so turn back now if you don't want to read any more!
ARE YOU SURE?!?!?
OK, here you go:
It was asked if there will be more flash-forwards next year.
"The answer is yes," replied Carlton Cuse. "Let's talk a little more about this... The truth is the season will feature flashbacks and flash-forwards."
"The question is
how forward," interjected Damon Lindelof.
They then rehashed their decision to end season three with Jack's flash-forwards. They claimed that they had always wanted to do it, but couldn't until they knew that they had an end date for the series in sight. Now that they have come to an agreement with ABC to film three more years of 16 episodes each, they figured that it was an appropriate time to start the flash-forwards.
HOWEVER:
"What you saw with Kate and Jack [at the end of season three] is not the end of the show," said Cuse.
"There's this whole chapter of our story that takes place off the island," said Lindelof. "But we couldn't tell that story until we knew an end was coming. Come with us all the way to the end, and it won't be a waste of time."
So, there you have it. I was kind of looking forward to being surprised about whether next season would be back to its typical format (all flashbacks), or perhaps all flash-forwards, or something else. From what they said above, it seems to me like they will still focus on on-island events (which I would guess means that the rescue doesn't go smoothly?) and have a mixture of flashbacks and flash-forwards. Which I'm OK with. And I am happy to know that the whole show doesn't end with the Mad Doctor being drugged out, suicidal and ugly. I didn't really think it would, but... you never know.
And now I'm reverting back to being Anti-Spoiler until February!!! And you should, too!!!
- e
