Today is The Day

Hello my dear friends -

We have finally arrived at January 31. It's only been TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY-THREE DAYS since the Season Three finale... but hey, who's counting?

Actually, you know what? I think I'm just going to Tivo the show for the next eight weeks and wait a little bit longer before I start watching it again. Because, really, it seems like only yesterday when we first saw The Mad Doctor sporting his glorious hillbilly beard and screaming and man-crying, "We HAVE to go back, Kate!!!! WE HAVE TO GO BACK!"

OK, who am I kidding... I will be holding my breath, teetering on the edge of my recliner tonight, waiting for the show to begin. It is bittersweet, because a little over an hour later, 1/8th of the season will be over.

Or will it? Rumors are circulating wildly, my dear friends, that the strike is nearing an end. It may still be too late for the Lost crew to pull off the remaining 8 episodes that had previously been scheduled for this season, but if the strike ended soon (meaning, REALLY soon) they could definitely write and film at least a few more installments for us. That's the latest word on the strike... keep your fingers crossed.

But for now, we have to assume we will only see 8 episodes in 2008, so we need to cherish every moment we have with the Lostaways. I'm sounding like Madonna: "Cherish! Cherish!" Or perhaps it's more like Kool and the Gang, "Let's cherish every moment... we have been given, for time is passing by." Cherish the love! Cherish the life! Cherish the love... ENOUGH.

This is what happens when I get overly excited about something...I go insane. Be thankful that you are not my husband or my dog, who have to put up with me during these mental crack-ups.

Back to Lost... so did you re-watch the finale last night?

If not, here was BY FAR the best part of it (assuming you had already seen the finale):

I was LOVING that promo. They need to make one of those for every major character--brilliant.

They also had one for my man Locke, too. But, ummm.... it kind of made me mad.



Are they saying HE is CRAZY? Or are they saying that anyone who loves him (uh, me) is crazy? I take offense!!!!

(Sorry if the videos above have already been pulled down by the time you look at this post... The Man is watching--always.)

Regarding the rest of the "enhanced" replay of the Season Three finale... um, I think we're really seeing the effects of the strike now. They totally had some intern make those captions at the bottom of the screen!?! Either that, or they went and got some barista from the closest coffee shop and were like, "Hey, do you watch Lost? Will you type up some stuff about the finale? We'll make you famous--promise!"

It was awful. When the Lostaways were walking to the radio tower, the caption would say: "The gang is now headed to the radio tower." WHAT?!?! Are you SERIOUS?!?! It was just like a running commentary of what was happening on-screen and it was totally stupid. Tell me something I don't know, for the love of God. I was mad.

The worst was that here in Chicago, there was a huge winter storm, so across the TOP of the screen there was an extremely large weather advisory scrolling to the left, on top of the stuff that kept popping up at the bottom of the screen. I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown. There's a reason why I only read CNN.com rather than watch CNN, and it's because of all that damn scrolling--I can't take it.

Anyway, it's over with and I survived. The only other complaint I had was that they really were stretching when they said that Charlie's mission to turn off the jamming equipment was a nod to Return of the Jedi. What? I just so happened to be watching the show with a huge Star Wars fan (shout-out to LR), and I'm no slouch on that stuff, either. We paused the show and debated how Charlie's mission could be compared to ROTJ for about 10 minutes. My brother is also a big fan of the SW series and agreed that it was a weak connection. All we could come up with was that Charlie's mission to turn off the jamming equipment was like how they needed to shut down the force field around the Death Star in ROTJ. Or that Luke kept talking about "his destiny," like Charlie did. Like I said, they were stretching. Now, if an Ewok popped out of the closet in the Looking Glass station, THEN maybe I could see the comparison. I think the intern writing the captions was just trying to seem cool. He or she probably wasn't even born yet when ROTJ came out. Don't mess with Star Wars fans, little intern! We will destroy you!

Alright, I'm done complaining. Now on to something that really got me worked up yesterday. How 'bout that CRAAAA-ZY "Missing Pieces" video that I attempted to post? They took it down, but I found it again... it's the latest "Missing Pieces" 2-minute video entitled "So It Begins."




So now we know how our beloved series REALLY kicked off... in case you forgot, the very first episode of Lost began with Jack opening his eyes in the jungle (what we saw near the end of the above video). Now we know what happened in the minute before that... spooky.

When I first watched this, I was shouting, "Holy Bejeezus! HOLY BEJEEZUS! Zombie Dad is REAL!!!" My dog lifted his head up from his bed and shot me an annoyed look and then went back to sleep. A few seconds later, I calmed down. No, it's just the monster parading as Zombie Dad, I thought.

But after pondering this subject for the past day, I am now not so sure that it was simply Smokey that Vincent saw. In fact, I think there are three possibilities as to what was up with Zombie Dad:

1) It really was Christian Shephard.

How could that be? Well, think about this: Vincent had never laid eyes on Christian Shephard previously. I was under the impression that Smokey could only disguise itself as someone its victims had actually seen before, and that it could only do so after it took a "mindscan" of those victims. Remember that Mr. Eko got a mindscan from Smokey and then started seeing his brother reappear. But... Jack never encountered Smokey up-close and had seen his dad sneaking around on the island from the beginning. And then you have Benry's ominous words to The Mad Doctor in Season Three's finale: "Every living person on this Island will be killed." Everyone always thought it was strange that he inserted the word "living"... and maybe that's because Benry knew there were some undead running amok on the Island!

So... work with me here: Let's say that if you ARRIVE on the Island dead, like Christian Shephard did, the Island's powers might bring you back to life. Just like it can turn sterile men into baby-making machines (enter Jin) and eradicate cancer (enter Rose) and make paralyzed men walk again (enter Locke). But if you came to the Island alive and were killed during your stay, you remain dead (sorry Boone, Dr. Artz, Shannon, Ana-Lucia, Libby, Mr. Eko, Nikki, Paulo, Charlie... you get the picture). Similarly, if the Island doesn't like you while you're on it, it can choose to inflict disease upon you (enter Benry).

Now, regarding Zombie Dad... What if he was dead on arrival, brought back to life once he hit the Island, but is kind of a shadow of his former self, which is why he doesn't just attempt to come live with the Lostaways after inevitably freaking them out with his presence. In the video, he says, "He has work to do," which leads me to believe he's now kind of an Island Zombie, under its powers or something, and knows that Jack has a major role to play. So, if you believe this theory, then Christian Shephard IS either completely alive or at least kind-of-alive (or to quote The Princess Bride, "Mostly dead is slightly alive!"). And if you remember, in Jack's future-flash, he talked as if his father were still alive on two different occasions. Maybe Zombie Dad is going to show up again in Season Four and bust back to the real world with The Mad Doctor? That would be INSANE. I hope it happens! Then Will Smith would come on the show and be like, "I AM LEGEND!!!!" and have to kill him.

2) Or Zombie Dad could just be Smokey.

If you believe this, then you must believe that Smokey can somehow take the form of dead people on the Island (which would get around Vincent never seeing Christian before and therefore not needing a mindscan). Or maybe Smokey can mindscan people from afar? The bottom line is, if you're still watching the show, then you have accepted that there is a smoke monster. So you might as well just also accept that it can do whatever it wants. Who are we to know what Smokey can and cannot do? We are but mere mortals.

Also, remember that Walt told Locke in the skeleton pit that he had "work to do," which were the exact same words Zombie Dad said in the video above. This supports the theory that both Walt and Zombie Dad were just Smokey appearances. That would be much less cool.

3) Or, Christian Shephard could be Jacob.

We saw a flash of Jacob as an old dude in the chair in the Creepy Cabin. Maybe Jacob can possess bodies--both dead and alive? Maybe Jacob was possessing both Christian and Walt and that's why they used the same words?

I'm out of practice. My head already feels like it's going to explode and this was just a two-minute clip! I better have the EMS on high alert nearby tonight.

So to sum up, as it stands right now, we have three options for Zombie Dad. He is either: 1) really a zombie, 2) Smokey, or 3) Jacob. At least we know we'll find out by 2010!

Finally, for those of you planning to watch the premiere of the new series Eli Stone that will air immediately after Lost, be sure to watch for a special announcement from Oceanic Airlines at some point. I am sure that I will still be in shock that I just saw a new hour of Lost, so I'll find out what the Oceanic thing was all about on the message boards Friday.

See you back here in 5 or 6 days for my first post of the season... I've been stretching my wrists and fingers and shoulders all week to prepare.

ENJOY TONIGHT,
- e


LOST: Locke's Badass Journey by =Buuya on deviantART

One More Thing for Tivo/DVR-Users

The HORROR!

I just checked my TV downstairs and it was NOT going to record the premiere?!?! The first hour recap show was set to tape, but the premiere itself, "The Beginning of the End," was NOT (they are two separate entries in Tivo... not one two-hour show). D'OH! So you all better check your To Do lists on your machines. My upstairs Tivo had it right. It makes no sense.

- e

HO-LY CRAP!

UPDATE 1:04 PM CST: Yep, "The Walt Disney Company" has already removed the video from YouTube (Disney owns ABC). Damn you, Mickey!!!! Sorry, guys. I have a feeling that it will be posted on ABC's Missing Pieces homepage soon, though. I'll let you know tomorrow and will still post my analysis of the video tomorrow.

Hello my dear friends -

Surprise! Shout-out to Ernie for alerting me to the latest "Missing Piece" video which is not yet on ABC--it is significant enough to warrant its own post today. I found it on YouTube but it may be taken down soon... I never know how strict ABC is with that sort of thing. Anyway, check it out... I don't consider it a spoiler as ABC has posted all the others and will eventually post this one.

This one is called "So It Begins." You'll figure out the huge meaning of this shortly...

DAH!!!!!!!


I will write my thoughts on this video in my Premiere Day post tomorrow morning...

- e

Are you ready? ARE YOU READY?!?!?! Ten Things to Do to Prepare for the Lost Premiere

Hello my dear friends -

It has finally hit me.

Lost is back. LOST IS BACK!!!!

Its return is only 3.25 days away as I write this... Good God, I need to prepare. And it is my duty to prepare you all as well.

So here's what you must do before the premiere this Thursday at 8 PM EST (for those of us in the U.S.):

1) Re-watch the Season Three finale. ABC is playing this two-hour episode again on Wednesday night at 9 PM EST (so as to not overlap with American Idol). However, in the bottom third of the screen there will supposedly be random information about the episode, the cast members and the production of the show--kind of like Pop-Up Video back in the day on VH1. I just watched the finale again two weekends ago with Miss M, who commented afterward, "I wouldn't have remembered 90% of that." It's been eight months, people! Refresh your memories! I will indeed watch it a fourth time this Wednesday because I'm so curious about this "enhanced version," as ABC is calling it. If you don't want to watch it with all that crap at the bottom or can't catch the finale airing on Wednesday, you can also see it online here on ABC.com (they have several HD streaming episodes online for free right now, by the way).

2) Re-read my original Season Three finale write-up, and my Things I Noticed Upon Second Viewing post. Remember the nerds who blew up the newspaper clipping that The Mad Doctor was reading in the finale? Yeah, I didn't think you did. There are things in my posts that were impossible to catch by simply watching the show on TV like a normal person, so make sure that you have fully reengaged yourself before the premiere.

3) Get yourself hyped up by watching the trailer for "The Beginning of the End" (S4Ep1's title). Yeah, there are minor spoilers, but it's worth it.

I'm seriously tearing up... oh, Locke--I will come with you! I will stay on the Island! (Oh, right. I'm not on the Island. I'm sitting here in my condo under ten layers of clothing, in a place that's much colder and more boring than the Island. Details.)

4) Watch the Orchid Station video that was shown at the Comic-Con convention this past summer. It's not a spoiler--in fact, I think it contains some pretty critical clues as to what in the heck is happening on the Island:



5) Now read the analysis of that video.


I think that's all a completely sane fan of the show would need to do to prepare for the premiere. However, if you are like me and need to take your fandom to the next level, here are a few more things for you:

6) Read this article in USA Today... click on the pictures at the top of the page to refresh your memory about where each character stands. There are no spoilers in that feature; I have clicked through all of the profiles. The article that is slightly lower on that same page does have one minor spoiler near the end, so if you really don't want to know anything, don't read it. It was something I already knew.

7) Check out some, if not all, of the "Missing Pieces" videos on ABC.com. These are never-before-seen short clips that, in some cases, add depth to the story line. Three of them stood out to me: 1) "King of the Castle" is especially interesting, and confirms my belief that it could be Benry in the casket in "Through the Looking Glass" (S3 finale). 2) "Room 23" reveals that the Others did indeed have Waaaaaaalt in the techno-rave-Clockwork-Orange room, and that he has freaky powers. 3) "The Envelope" makes me really wonder what is in, uh, the envelope.

8) Try to play the Find815.com game. Or, cheat, and read what it took everyone playing the game a really long time to figure out (that's the route I chose). Damn, that game is intense!

9) Check out the crazy map of all locations related to Lost. The guy that did that (apparently his name is "Dudu") is my freaking hero.

10) Be extra nerdy and write in the Lost font!

(Shout-out to FC for providing me with the map and font links)


And finally, let me remind you all once again to be vigilant about staying away from most articles and web sites that cover the show. There are spoilers everywhere, and I unfortunately already learned some things that I would've rather had be a surprise. I was even reading about the freaking video game and there was a slight spoiler in that article?!? So, you can never be too careful. We've only got eight episodes to enjoy, and as you know, I learned the hard way in Season Two that it really sucks when you know what's going to happen beforehand.

Remember that the first hour of the premiere is a recap of all three seasons, and that the premiere also lasts a few minutes longer than 10 PM EST, so set your Tivos/VCRs accordingly.

Now, on to the most important thing--when can you expect my first write-up of Season Four? Hmmm, that's a good question. Now that I'm a full-time writer, you might think that I could get my humongous posts done a bit earlier than I did in years past. However, all the free time in the world wouldn't change the fact that some of the things I depend on for my posts (transcripts, analysis of screencaps, message board posts) don't hit the web immediately... and it still takes me 12-14 hours to do one write-up... and I still need to do things like eat, sleep, walk my dog and go to the gym and whatnot. So I can't make any promises except to vow that, as in the past, my write-ups will always definitely be done the morning before a new episode airs... meaning Wednesday mornings for the next seven or eight weeks (not sure what I'll do about the last episode before the effects of the strike kick in). However, if you want to know exactly when I post, you can pull in my RSS feed or sign up for emailed posts in the column to the right, and that way you will be notified when a new message goes up.

With that, I'll leave you for now. I'll probably write a mini-message on Thursday morning... but otherwise, I'll see you back here after the premiere...

It feels good to be "officially" back! As the ad says below, the wait is over.

- e

On The Flip Side

Notice anything strange about the new promo picture for Season Four?


As blog reader Lula caught at the end of the promo spots running on ABC, there is indeed a city skyline reflecting up from the water. This obviously ties in to the theme of the Season Three finale, "Through the Looking Glass," where we saw what had happened to a few of the Lostaways on "the other side" of their time on the Island--meaning, we saw a glimpse into their futures. All I have to say is, "Damn, girl! Good eyes, Lula!" The skyline was not obvious in the TV spots!

A few other important things to note as we head into the final two weeks before the premiere...

- The premiere is NOT, I repeat not, two hours, despite what ABC's Promo Monkeys are claiming. There is a one-hour recap of all three seasons that will run from 8-9 EST, and then the premiere itself is from 9-10:02. So of the eight new hours they filmed before the writers' strike began, we will just see one on January 31st. You really didn't think they wouldn't stretch out those eight hours as long as they could, did you? Two words: advertising dollars.
- Did you notice above how the premiere goes until 10:02 EST? Those of you recording the show, take heed.
- I mentioned this a while back, but in case you forgot, the premiere is entitled, "The Beginning of the End." So ominous! (On top of being part of Benry's speech to the Mad Doctor in the Season Three finale: "Making that call is the beginning of the end.")
- I accidentally read the second episode's title, which is a little bit of a spoiler. So I thought I would reiterate that there are a ton of information leaks out there, and if you want to remain in the dark, don't go trolling on any show-related message boards.
- Don't remember what in the hell happened in the last episode, oh so many months ago? Re-read my original Season Three finale write-up, and my Things I Noticed Upon Second Viewing post.
- Finally, for those of you needing a J.J. Abrams (creator of Lost) fix before January 31st, may I remind you that his new movie, Cloverfield, comes out this weekend, and has earned rave reviews. I will be seeing it Friday night and then posting a review over on According to e this Saturday. There are apparently a few different tongue-in-cheek Lost references in it, so keep your eyes and ears open if you go see it. But fear not, J.J. swears that no Lost references in Cloverfield are any "clues" for obsessed fans. The question is, can we believe him?

Even though I am anti-spoiler, I couldn't help but take a look at a 1.5-minute clip that seg brought to my attention over on my boy DarkUFO's site. I think that it is safe viewing for all, but if you want the entire premiere to remain unspoiled, then obviously do not press play below.

After seeing it, all I can say is, "Them's fightin' words, Jack!"

Grrrrr.

I'm not anticipating that there's too much more I can/will post on before the premiere arrives, but definitely check back once again before January 31st (or sign up for the RSS feed or emails to the right), because I'm sure that as it finally truly sinks in to me that LOST IS STARTING AGAIN, I will work myself up into a tizzy and will have a few comments before the premiere.

In the meantime, I will be doing some hand and finger exercises to get myself back into shape for writing my long-ass posts...

- e

Oh, Happy Day!

I don't even care that the new Entertainment Weekly cover features the Mad Doctor rather than Locke, I was just happy to see Lost back in the spotlight when I got my mail a few minutes ago!



I haven't read the article yet, but if you want to (there WILL be spoilers... do you really want to ruin anything for yourself after this long wait?), it is here.

Also, I have learned that the first hour of the two-hour premiere on the 31st is just a recap of everything, so it will not cut into our "new" eight hours of episodes that have already been filmed.

I'm going to try to lay low with new news until the premiere because I honestly don't want to know any more than I already know about Season Four. It is so close now--I can taste it! Or perhaps that's just the ranch dressing I had during lunch in Hurley's honor...

- e

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Happy New Year!

It's been a long, hard wait, my dear friends... but we've finally reached the month of Lost's return. The ABC Promo Monkeys are cranking the hype-o-meter up to eleven and have released a few new commercials, as well as this incredible eight minute, fifteen second recap of all three seasons. If you didn't catch the 815 reference in the previous sentence, you need to get yourself back into Lost Mode ASAP! Remember "the numbers"? Remember the Island? Remember Smokey? I know, I know, it has been a long time... but luckily this video will help bring everything back. And it's funny, to boot.





Lost wouldn't be Lost without giving its fans something new to obsess over now that the premiere is just four weeks away, so the latest twist from the marketing geniuses behind the show is a web site packed with clues about what exactly went wrong on that fateful flight from Sydney to LA. First there was Fly Oceanic Air, which introduced a character named "Sam" whose girlfriend was a stewardess on Flight 815. The Oceanic site lead to another site entitled Find 815, which is essentially an Alternate Reality Game (ARG) in which you can search Sam's apartment and watch a series of videos that reveal progressively more information about what happened to our beloved Lostaways. Or... you could just let other nerds do the work. Even a Lost-crazed freak like me with no job doesn't have time to figure out this extremely detailed online game, so I'm cheating! If I hear of anything important that is revealed via Find 815, I will let you know. For those of you who do attempt to play the game or look at the site I linked to above that posts clues for us lazy peeps, beware that both may contain spoilers about the upcoming season. And shout-outs to my brother and Zoë who made sure I knew about the ARG!

In the meantime, be sure your calendars are marked for the TWO-HOUR (yay!) Season Premiere of Lost on January 31st at 8 EST/7 CST. I am praying that the second hour of the premiere doesn't count as one of the eight episodes they already had filmed before the writers' strike...

- e