Getting LOST

By: Jason Davis
Date: Monday, April 10, 2006

I think we'll start this week by exploiting the audience. That's what TV's all about isn't it? So, why not engage in a little audience exploitation in a TV column? It'll be painless, I promise. All you have to do is think back to a season finale that left you aching for the next year's premiere. E-mail a short list of finales along with explanations of why you thought they were great pieces of television to wastelandjason@hotmail.com and I'll integrate a few of them into next week's column onyou guessed itseason finales.

Now, having forced you to mine your memories, I will concede that a number of you made very good points two weeks ago about Captain Picard's reaction to the Borg in a certain film I won't mention. It had never really occurred to me that the Borg encountered in "I, Borg" and "Descent" were really not "proper" Borg per se. So, technically, it was Jean-Luc's first time to face the Collective since his assimilation and his hostility was perfectly warranted. I still think he behaved like a raving nut a couple of times and feel that these performances were a little outside Picard's character, but I admit logical defeat on the aforementioned matter.

In other news, some of you might have read that David E. Kelley is adapting the British series LIFE ON MARS for ABC. My first instinct was to scream and bang my head on the desk. This is a reflex reaction honed by numerous failures to adapt trans-Atlantic fare over the past fifteen years. Upon second thought, I decided that Kelley (whose work I've always admired) might actually be an excellent candidate for the job. Assuming the casting goes well, I can actually foresee the series being a pretty decent hit. I suspect they'll put it in ALIAS' slot as it would make a logical companion series to LOST. While we're on the subject, the British original has been purchased by BBC America for airing later in the year. Though I'm the first person to recommend viewing shows on DVD, you'll definitely want to check out the TV airings as the 1973 soundtrack featuring the Who, Pink Floyd, and Bowie (from whose song the show takes its name) will undoubtedly cause a problem when the show hits DVD.

Now that all that stuff's out of the way, I think I'll talk about LOST. It seems a safe move given the title of this week's column. Due to a rather tedious schedule of late, I've not had a chance to review the more recent episodes of the series as often as I'd like. Since it seems like everyone in America watches the show (Stephen King mentioned it a few weeks ago in Entertainment Weekly and even the medium's most vociferous critic Harlan Ellison posted a glowing assessment of the series on his website), why not analyze its success and see if we can figure out what makes it tick.


Clearly, there's something to be said for shows centering on disparate individuals trapped without hope of rescue on an island. If you can find me someone who doesn't know the theme song to GILLIGAN'S ISLAND, I'll be very impressed. Sure, the two shows have as much in common as 1966's BATMAN and 2005's BATMAN BEGINS (probably less, actually), but there is a certain appeal to the "stranded on an island" sub-genre that goes all the way back to Robinson Crusoe. I think we can definitely put "setting" up on the big wipe board. Of course, we now have a much better idea of that setting courtesy of the black lights in the hatch. Entertainment Weekly reprinted the map from the blast door in the April 7th (#871) issue and a great many intriguing morsels of information were revealed.

That's another one! The morsels. There's nothing viewers like more than tiny bits of information dispensed without warning and impossible to decipher without the context in which to consider them. There was a psychiatrist, whose name escapes me (feel free to supply it Psych 101 students), who noted that irregular stimuli was far more useful in conditioning a subject that predictably scheduled stimulation. If we knew when these moments of island revelation were coming up, there'd be far less impetus to hang around for episodes centering on characters we're less inclined toward. Sure, folks like us typically watch any show we're interested in with religious ferocity, but network research indicates that viewers only catch something like one out of every four hours of a show (this, by the way, is why they hate serial narratives like LOST or BATTLESTAR GALACTICA). LOST, like 24 doesn't really allow you to miss much.

Speaking of unexpected stimuli, I'm tossing the analysis to you guys for the week. Fill the posting board with theories of why LOST has been such a phenomenal success and we'll continue our chat next week postponing our discussion of season finales for a fortnight in favor of dissecting present-day pop culture before delving into the past. Have a good week and do something nice for someone you know.

MONDAY, APRIL 10

24 (8 PM PST, Fox) "Day 5: 11:00PM 12:00AM" Even the loglines to this series make no sense if you're not up-to-date.

PRISON BREAK (9 PM PST, Fox) "J-Cat" I've yet to catch this series. What do you guys think about it?

TUESDAY, APRIL 11

SCRUBS (9 PM PST, NBC) "My New Suit" JD's brother pays a visit while Dr. Cox deals with a malpractice case.

THE UNIT (9 PM PST, CBS) "Security" The Unit must infiltrate the Iranian Embassy to avert a Russian-Iranian arms deal involving nuclear materials.

VERONICA MARS (9 PM PST, UPN) "I am God" Veronica dreams about victims of a bus crash.

TEACHERS (9:30 PM PST, NBC) "Schoolympics" I had high hopes for this series with a SCRUBS writer and COUPLING's Sarah Alexander onboard, but the pilot really didn't impress me.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 12

LOST (9 PM PST, ABC) "S.O.S." This Rose-Bernard centered episode is the first to flashback to folks who are not part of the regular cast. FARSCAPE fans take note: Wayne Pygram guest stars.

VERONICA MARS (9 PM PST, UPN) "I am God" (R) For those who haven't adjusted to the new schedule, UPN re-runs yesterday's episode.

SOUTH PARK (10 PM PST, Comedy Central) "Cartoon Wars Part 2" Wouldn't you know it? I miss last week's episode and it's the first part of a two-parter.

THURSDAY, APRIL 13

SMALLVILLE (8 PM PST, WB) "Fragile" Actor Tom Welling directs this week's episode.

SUPERNATURAL (9 PM PST, WB) "Provenance" A portrait brings bad fortune to all who procure it.

FRIDAY, APRIL 14

GHOST WHISPERER (8 PM PST, CBS) "Undead Comic" (R) LOST's Katey Sagal guest stars in this tale of a suicidal comic who can't make it to the other side.

STARGATE: SG-1 (8 PM PST, Sci Fi Channel) "Collateral Damage" (R) Colonel Mitchell is accused of murder on Asgard. That's odd, when the X-Men went there, Cyclops and Rogue were actually able to control their powers and had a lovely time... I guess that Asgardian hospitality isn't what it used to be.

DOCTOR WHO (9 PM PST, Sci Fi Channel) "Dalek" In the hidden museum of the man who owns the Internet, the Doctor discovers a foe he thought long extinct. I bet you can't guess what it is...

NUM3ERS (10 PM PST, CBS) "In Plain Sight" (R) Fun with Meth.

STARGATE ATLANTIS (10 PM PST, Sci Fi Channel) "Grace Under Pressure" (R) McKay and Carter on a sinking Puddle Jumperhilarity ensues.

SATURDAY, APRIL 15

INVASION (12 PM PST, ABC) ABC airs a 10 episode marathon starting with the pilot and following with the nine most recently aired installments. It would seem an ideal time to catch up if you fell behind.

SUNDAY, APRIL 16

THE WEST WING (8 PM PST, NBC) "Requiem" Characters past and present assemble to pay their respects to Leo McGary. Art imitates life...sadly.

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (9 PM PST, ABC) "Don't Look at Me" Carole Burnett guest stars as Bree's mother. As Sam Beckett would say, "Oh, boy."

THE SOPRANOS (9 PM PST, HBO) "Live Free or Die" Tony goes out of the country for help on dealing with a problem while Vito's little secret comes out.

BIG LOVE (10 PM PST, HBO) "Roberta's Funeral" Bill attends the funeral of his father's first wife. If you're a polygamist, what do you call your father's other wives? Like time travel, I fear bigamy wreaks havoc with the proper use of language.

HUFF (10 PM PST, Showtime) "Sweet Release" This show is so addictive that my father actually coughed up the cash for Showtime to watch season two. A greater endorsement has yet to be devised by mankind.