Losts biggest problem is its starting to give answers.

Last night, for the first time, I felt the air come out the show(bubble)

We see Dharma was pathetic, Jacob is a creepy gizzard, Ben is just a little wanabe nothing

To me, a lot of the mystery went away--and just in 1 episode--the show deflated

I can give some advise for anyone who feels like me or even feels the opposite(you want answers). Enjoy the individual episodes--- their acting, their themes..this is where Lost shines. The actual answers are rubbish compared to this element

Think about your favorite movies....was it the answers that made the movie great? Of course not. Its the mood the characters set.

I think TPTB were soooo right. More answers was not what this show needed. But they caved in and listened to complainers.The show needs great acting and great suspense.

Dharma was far more juicy to think about then to have it shown to us. Because they really looked like a joke.

I also now understand why they're only doing 16 episode seasons. You could feel the cheepness of this episode--an-- episode which deserved a much bigger cinematic feel. For the best show on TV, I dont believe they delivered...although their worst is better than other shows best

If you disagree, thats fine. It really is just perspective..there is no right answer.:) I also have no doubt they can inflate the premise again... which I think they will be smart enough to do in the finale.

felt a little deflated with Ben supposed to be like 20. sorry - just didn't look like a 20year old in that scene. total strecth.

felt a little deflated with Ben supposed to be like 20. sorry - just didn't look like a 20year old in that scene. total strecth.

would you rather they brought in a new actor to play 20 something Ben

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i did not feel the Air go out of the story last night.

We only saw a glimpse of the Dharma Initiative. So im not sure what you mean by pathetic.. please elaborate.
creepy old gizzard? (based on 11 frames and a shadowed figure?)
Wannabe nothin? (sounds like an oxymoron) What does he wannabe?

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Well, I also felt "deflated" quite a bit in Season 2 . . . Then they found a way to bring things right back up to speed in 3.

The show has its ups and downs. Its ups are tremendous. Its downs are ambiguous.

What I'm saying is, we don't know if we were really given many "answers" at all last night. We just think we were. Assuming that Smokey/Cerberus/Monster is behind all the visions and ghostly things, we simply saw more examples of said Monster in action.

I felt pretty "deflated" early on in Season 2 when it appeared, even for a few minutes, that this new "Ana Lucia" character was leading what we thought were the Others at the time.

I felt "deflated" when Locke went totally out of character in Charlie's episode (where he beats him).

They've always been able to bring it back up, and way up. So I'm gonna keep trusting 'em.

would you rather they brought in a new actor to play 20 something Ben

yes, that would have been great. I thought the Ben-as-child actor was great.

I can't say I share the same deflated feeling that the original Poster has experienced. I think little by little they have shown us that the Others are not omnipotent. DHARMA might have had brilliant scientists (who probably goofed up) who were poor military men. I don't know what to make of Jacob, but I think I like the sound of "creepy gizzard." In fact, gizzard makes me chuckle.

However, I like the fact that the OP said to enjoy the episodes one at a time--enjoy the acting, the themes, etc. I have a big interest in the Lost mythology, and the fact that we don't get a lot of answers has bothered me in the past. Mind you, when we get the semi-answers, I like them. But I found that concentrating on the entertainment value of each episode of lost has led to more enjoyment than focusing on how much information was given out in each episode. There's a lotta good acting and writing going on right now--let the mythology come when it comes. But if you don't like the mythology, well, take the OP's advice.

Jacob's a gizzard....hehe

I felt nothing deflate, yeah Dharms was a bunch of hippies that got easily defeated, but thats better than an "action" scene where the 2 duke it out, it was cold the way they gassed them, so unemotional, just a calculated plan. It made the others alot more sinister in my book, and we didn't get answers about them so theres still that mystery.
and why you say bens a creepy wannabe? we dont know at all his relationship with jacob yet. and just because he's got issues doesn't mean he's a wanna be, was norman bates stupid in your mind? alot of classic horror or suspense characters have been like they are starting to make ben.
and jacob a gizzard? we know just about nothing about him.
I watched the first 2 seasons on dvd, but i started watching it on tv during season 3 and at the beginning every week everyone was yelling "jumped the shark!" but they had no patience and now we see the bigger picture and its been tying together greatly!
looking at old messages it seems through the second season people were saying the same thing.
wait, have patience, dont base anything on one episode, especially with this show.
and wait to see who jacob is before you rip on him.
we haven't been let down yet and there are still plenty of mysteries. if they hadn't answered a few questions i bet you would be biitching that they keep tagging us along with no answers.
i feel bad for the writers since no matter what they do everyone will endlessly complain.

I watched the first 2 seasons on dvd, but i started watching it on tv during season 3 and at the beginning every week everyone was yelling "jumped the shark!" but they had no patience and now we see the bigger picture and its been tying together greatly!

Darn...I thought this might be the week where the tiresome and overused term, "jump the shark" wouldn't appear on the boards whatsoever. Now you've gone and done it, but to your credit you weren't actually trying to be one who annoints the the "jumps the shark" moment. I'll have to wait another week.

I must admit a couple of funny "shark" moments in the past though--I think i read them on the Lost Talk sub-forum. My memory is hazy--perhaps it was a poll in which people were asked to vote for which term would be synonymous with "Jump the Shark' Lost-style. Two of the ideas that had me laughing were something like, "That show really found the four-toed statue" and "That show really shook the bunny." Funny stuff.

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i did not feel the Air go out of the story last night.

We only saw a glimpse of the Dharma Initiative. So im not sure what you mean by pathetic.. please elaborate.
creepy old gizzard? (based on 11 frames and a shadowed figure?)
Wannabe nothin? (sounds like an oxymoron) What does he wannabe?

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note the edits. we do not tolerate rudeness, baiting or insulting posts towards our posters here. you may not agree with the methods that are used here in order to keep the board neat but there is no need to be rude about it. the mods here have been doing this for longer than you have been a member, so cut them so slack and learn the proper way to interact on our site. thank you.

I will be deflated (and hell who knows, energized) when this thing come to an end.

I fully expect for all mysteries to be answered in the last (of the show's episode) followed by a shocking, really shocking question that will only be answered in a pay-for-a-ticket movie. LOL

If i was the exec producer, or more to the point... money people, this is what i would do.

We would all carp and throw fits.... and buy tickets.
;)

Think about your favorite movies....was it the answers that made the movie great? Of course not. Its the mood the characters set.



I disagree because i know stories that have been told where the ANSWERS blew you away.
Being a longtime comicbook fan i know exactly what makes LONG suspenseful arc shrouded in mystery great, and the answers themselves can be just as exhilarating.

The downer comes AFTER you learn everything and you realize that its all over.



You are jumping to conclusions Sir, remember that this episode was yet another masterful stroke (perhaps the BEST yet) of the writers playing show and tell with us.

They SHOW us alot, but they TELL us nothing.

EVERY TIME they get closer to the mythology of the Island I think to myself that THIS IS IT, this time we are jumping through the looking-glass, there will be no going back, this will decide once and for all what the hell this is all about.
and every time im wrong, every time they manage to show us what we want to see, but then we realize it doesn't really tell us anything.
All since season 1.
Show us whats in the hatch, they did.
Show us who these southern island dwellers are, they did.
Show us who Dharma are, they did.
And in this episode:
Show us who Ben is, and show us Jacob... they did, and here we are, still knowing nothing.


I have to admit that when Ben started talking to that chair, my mind was blowing, i thought damn that explains everything about "the others", its just Ben, he is nuts thats how its been all along.
Of course I was wrong, there is much more going on here.



-Exodus

Re: ANYONE feel the AIR go out of the story last night? Derscribes well the Jacob balloon as shown.
However we did get to see a source for corpses useable for the likes of Henry Gale and Edward Mars

Think about whose perspective we saw Dharma from in the latest episode, a janitors basically. I think we have yet to see some the really cool stuff associated with Dharma such as the "incident" or some of the stations in action. All these guys did who we saw yesterday was do supply runs and clean up stuff.

Not me! The reveals in this episode have made me even more intrigued by Ben, Jacob, Dharma and the Others. I still feel like were just scratching the surface, too, but I'm glad some things are given substance now. Like at one point I thought Jacob was going to be some huge underground mainframe computer spitting out lists on hole punched data cards. I still don't know what he is but at least he's not a computer...I don't thing.

Also, it's worth noting this episode appears to be the highest rated one this season here, 69 percent gave it a 10. I didn't checke the ratings on all episodes but this was the highest number of 10's.

so answers = bad

no answers = bad



catch-22, anyone?

I became INFLATED with pride at being a Lost fan despite a rather lackluster beginning. Man, I love that there are WTF moments again on par with having first seen/heard Smokie in the pilot. The writers never have lost their touch, just missed timing here and there. Now with a definite schedule for an ending, I don't expect that it will EVER happen again. Man, what the heck am I going to do with my time once this show ends?!!

I watched the first 2 seasons on dvd, but i started watching it on tv during season 3 and at the beginning every week everyone was yelling "jumped the shark!" but they had no patience and now we see the bigger picture and its been tying together greatly!
looking at old messages it seems through the second season people were saying the same thing.



I came to Lost in a similar way. I started watching Season 1 on DVD when Season 2 kicked off. I caught up and watched Season 2 through various means. ;) I taped the last four episodes of Season 2 and was caught up about a week after it ended on TV. The whole time I was lurking on the 'lage. I couldn't believe how many negative posts I saw about Season 2. I thought it kicked ***. BUT I was watching it at a different pace.

Season 3 started, and I began wondering if I had misjudged the show. But it's been like a locomotive that lost its brakes since it came back from the hiatus. I look back on those first six episodes of this season and am grateful for the pacing. It was a good way to catch my breath after Season 2 and before we started this insane trip.

As for last night's episode. AWESOME! The acting was superb. Locke's beat down of Patchy was delightful. (Hey, I'm a chick who likes guy flicks. I was cheering. :biggrin:) I am sooooo eager to learn more about freak-show Ben. And the shooting of Locke ... I needed a hug after that.

To get to the point John Burger, no, I don't feel as if the air has come out of the story. On the other hand, I can see how you do. And I understand why other posters are outraged and threatening to quit watching. (But none of you will. You're all addicts, too. Say it. My name is ______ and I'm addicted to Lost. We're all junkies here. It's OK. Say it. You'll feel better. :bigrinan:)

Plus, John, you make a great point with this:

I can give some advise for anyone who feels like me or even feels the opposite(you want answers). Enjoy the individual episodes--- their acting, their themes..this is where Lost shines. The actual answers are rubbish compared to this element.Me, I like to watch it on the micro and macro levels. I :heart: flashbacks. I :heart: the acting. I :heart: answers, followed by more questions. I have lots of :heart: for the show. I'm willing to go on any crazy old ride on which the writers want to take me.

Of course, I am prepared to eat crow in the next two weeks, need be. ;)

Losts biggest problem is its starting to give answers.



Oh my god no, don't start this lol.

How can you even begin to say something like that.

I don't feel the air went out, I think this and last week's episodes have put a definite DARK turn on the show, which I like. I think the air would have went out if they didn't advance the story like that. Plus, they have a talent for introducing as many more questions as answers to satisfy, and they're going to have to keep being good at it for the next two years at least.

I think part of the purpose was to put a good guy spin on Dharma (who knows how quickly that might change). There had been some question on how closely related Dharma and the Others were. Biggest surpise to me wasn't that Ben was with Dharma, but that he's the only Dharma member now an Other, I expected a rogue group of Dharmas (Tom and Richard) to make up the Others.

And you know what, Fonzy jumped a bunch of cars or something in Al's parking lot too, don't forget about that! Aaaayyy!

I am in utter disagreement with the OP. TMBTC finally answered some questions that had been hanging since S1. Specifically Danielle's statements to Sayid that you can "hear" the others... you can't "see" them. Finally, some explanation of the "whispers." We also found out definitively that the "others" are not Dharma.

I'm also sure the OP would call "24" "pathetic" if all we got to see were the janitors at CTU.

Jacob may be a "creepy gizzard" but I'm betting he's the former Captain of the Black Rock (and Alpert was one of the crew). I find that prospect simply exciting.

My guess is that the OP is bothered by the idea that this show is finally revealing itself as SciFi/Fantasy. But let's face it, this show has been headed in this direction since the first audible appearance of Smoky. Maybe some fans have simply been in denial.

Anyhow, this is just a round-about way of saying that Lost, IMHO, is finally getting interesting again. (I mean who wanted another 5 episodes of "who's Kate gonna choose??!?)

Losts biggest problem is its starting to give answers.

Last night, for the first time, I felt the air come out the show(bubble)

We see Dharma was pathetic, Jacob is a creepy gizzard, Ben is just a little wanabe nothing

To me, a lot of the mystery went away--and just in 1 episode--the show deflated

I can give some advise for anyone who feels like me or even feels the opposite(you want answers). Enjoy the individual episodes--- their acting, their themes..this is where Lost shines. The actual answers are rubbish compared to this element

Think about your favorite movies....was it the answers that made the movie great? Of course not. Its the mood the characters set.

I think TPTB were soooo right. More answers was not what this show needed. But they caved in and listened to complainers.The show needs great acting and great suspense.

Dharma was far more juicy to think about then to have it shown to us. Because they really looked like a joke.

I also now understand why they're only doing 16 episode seasons. You could feel the cheepness of this episode--an-- episode which deserved a much bigger cinematic feel. For the best show on TV, I dont believe they delivered...although their worst is better than other shows best

If you disagree, thats fine. It really is just perspective..there is no right answer.:) I also have no doubt they can inflate the premise again... which I think they will be smart enough to do in the finale.

I did feel my interest in the show waver seriously. Upon viewing the episode a second time, it's now on a respirator. Two reasons. First of all, for me it's not that we got answers, it's the answers we got. First off the opening sequence was beyond dumb - all sense of reality sacrificed so they could feature that 32 miles to Portland sign - so I was turned off to start with and the episode needed to win me back. I was optimistic we'd finally learn something interesting about Dharma. Then, not one word about what Dharma was working on, what they learned about the island, what sucesses they might have had, who was funding it. Nada. We saw the Receiving area, a school room and a some vans, and then a lot of dead bodies. Goodbye Dharma. Very disappointing. What makes Ben tick? Another Daddy issue, and he's a psycho on a power trip. Okay. The Jacob thing was beyond lame for me, I just laughed out loud - at MYSELF for even watching this episode.. Psycho Ben shooting Locke... whoa. Didn't expect Locke to survive the season, personally, but I didn't expect him to go THAT way. If all of this had been compelling, I might be more invested.

Since the rest wasn't compelling, the second reason the air went out of the show for me is Jack. I realized that the reason I've been enjoying S3 so much is because Leader-Hero-Jack has been on the sidelines and the other characters have actually acted like people. As soon as Jack is back, they all look like idiots (not listening to the other side of the tape... duh) or cardboard cut-outs (no instant protest about Jack keeping the attack info to himself) all to service Jack's story. I hated The Jack Show in S2, now it's back. I'm in till the finale, but at this point I don't expect to be back in S4.

I don't feel like the air went out at all. All we really got out of this episode were some partial answers that raised even more questions. That is what is so cool about the show. Think about what we learned - (i) some information about Ben's background, (ii) a little more info about the Darhma Initiative in its heyday, (iii) that the "Others" were a separate group of "hostiles" who were on the island before the arrival of the DI, (iv) that Ben and the Others are vicious, cold-hearted killers who "purged" most if not all of the DI members, and (v) that Jacob is not just another person. And this was one of the most revealing episodes of the show, ever. There is still a lot we do not know. If you think we learned some real answers here you are just not asking the right questions ;)

By the way, I do think this show can be appreciated for the acting alone. It is some of the best I have seen on TV. The scenes between Locke and Ben, especially.

First off the opening sequence was beyond dumb - all sense of reality sacrificed so they could feature that 32 miles to Portland sign - so I was turned off to start with and the episode needed to win me back.

I thought that scene, although the actors weren't fantastic, was directed quite brilliantly in the sense of misdirection it led you down. I don't know why you didn't like it, maybe because you really wanted Ben to have been born on the island.

I was optimistic we'd finally learn something interesting about Dharma. Then, not one word about what Dharma was working on, what they learned about the island, what sucesses they might have had, who was funding it. Nada. We saw the Receiving area, a school room and a some vans, and then a lot of dead bodies. Goodbye Dharma. Very disappointing.

We saw this from a janitor and a janitor's son's perspective, you went into the episode optimistic we'd learn interesting things about Dharma, well what do you really expect from a Janitor. Did you want to see Ben and his dad sweeping the floors in the barracks? I don't know why you thought we were going to learn everything about Dharma, the previews didn't say so - they showed one sign of the Dharma initiative, the producers didn't say so, hell we didn't even know Ben was Dharma before. It just seems like you went into this episode with ridiculous expectations, and was let down.

Okay. The Jacob thing was beyond lame for me, I just laughed out loud - at MYSELF for even watching this episode.

Why...? You didn't even state a reason.

Didn't expect Locke to survive the season, personally, but I didn't expect him to go THAT way. If all of this had been compelling, I might be more invested.

Who said he was dead? Another assumption on your part.

I'm in till the finale, but at this point I don't expect to be back in S4.

Seems like the show really hasn't done anything wrong, it just seems like you have a problem with it. You put up with "The Jack Show" in season 2, and then came back to season 3, and said you were enjoying it, so surely you can put up with it again and come back and enjoy season 4.

I have not read every post on this tread, but I just wanted to chime in and say that I too had the exact feeling as the original poster. Very well put. I was so excited to sit down with my bowl of chips and a beer and watch this episode, and by 11:00 I was just sitting there saying WTF!!! After two-three great shows in a row we get this. If these are the answers that we wanted then stop giving me answers and keep me guessing, cause this sucks!!!

I truly hope this show was just a blip on the scope, and all will be well in the end.

RJ

at no time in this show have we been given answers to anything. we see them functioning on a daily basis today and we get flashbacks of events in their past. but we are still left with forming our own conclusions about almost everything on this show. i was so excited myself. we were finally going to find out all about the others. nope. we were going to find out who jacob is. nope. am i disapointed? nope i love mysteries. and this show continues to be the best i've ever seen.

I think the way TPTB handled Jacob was genious. I can't think of a better way they could have done it. What if Jacob had just turned out to be some old hermit, and he and Locke really did just sit down, have a beer, and discuss the Island's mysteries?? That would have been kind of lame IMO.

As far as Dharma being pathetic, I do see what you're saying. But, at the same time, we didn't really learn a whole lot about them in this ep. We already knew that they were a bunch of hippy-scientists doing research on the Island.... so although I agree about thier pathetic-ness, I don't understand how you could be surprised by it?..

To be fair I should say that I agree in principle with what you're saying; that the wait is always better than the actual reveal. That said, TPTB exceeded all of my expectations regarding Jacob, and I find that reveal to be particularly satisfying.

Oh - I just wanted to add something that might help explain my perspective on Jacob. On Heroes, the bad guy Mr Linderman turned out to be some generic delusional bad guy who's plotting to destroy New York City, which the writers didn't even really explain, they just kind of showed that he was evil and crazy. The Jacob reveal in Lost was IMO about a billion times better, and really a creative and unique way to deal with the villian.

note the edits. we do not tolerate rudeness, baiting or insulting posts towards our posters here. you may not agree with the methods that are used here in order to keep the board neat but there is no need to be rude about it. the mods here have been doing this for longer than you have been a member, so cut them so slack and learn the proper way to interact on our site. thank you.

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I loved the episode. Jacob's reveal was, to me, perfectly done in a truly LOST fashion. We were all expecting to meet some kind of all mighty executive and what do we find instead? An empty chair... and Ben talking like a crazy man to the thin air... Then when we were ALL convinced that Ben had completely lost it....

...HELP ME.....


Brilliant!

I think like somebody else already mentioned, this episode finally set Lost as a full Science Fiction show. This was probably the jump the shark moment long announced by TPTB. And it couldn't have been done in a better way. Of course, it created another huge mystery for the show: Who is Jacob and why is he invisible?
Invisible, this is the word that is probably upsetting lots of fans. I understand that. The funny thing is that we have been also dealing with a possible invisible island also for 3 years now. And Naomi seemed to have confirmed that as a fact. So the concept of invisibility is not totally new to the show.
So if people are still expecting down to earth answers, you are watching the wrong show. What was given to us in this episode is just the tip of the iceberg. So get ready for a whole lot of FULL science fiction based answers.

And for all those folks dissapointed at Dharma, well, we didnt actually see any of the research they were conducting. When Ben got to the island, Dharma had already been working there for quite a long time. But I'm really glad we finally see what the purge was all about. And don't worry I'm sure we are gonna witness Dharma in all its glory in someone else's flashback next season.

the direction the story took last night was .... deflating ... im very disappointed, and since i watch the episodes for answers and not the acting, im screwed ... hopefully they can save it
100%
all this genius talk is very unexpected and seems ridiculous.... they totally blew that scene, and bens character

felt a little deflated with Ben supposed to be like 20. sorry - just didn't look like a 20year old in that scene. total strecth.

He was supposed to be in his 30s, since he's in his 40s now, and the purge was 11 years ago.
100%
by 11:00 I was just sitting there saying WTF!!! After two-three great shows in a row we get this. If these are the answers that we wanted then stop giving me answers and keep me guessing, cause this sucks!!!

Wow, I guess there are a few Lost fans who like questions better than answers, but by the rating vote for this episode, I'm guessing that that's a tiny minority.

For the rest of us, TPTB have found the perfect technique. Instead of divulging all the really pressing mystery, and then trying to continue a show without the mystery that drives it ("Twin Peaks"), and instead of promising truth, but never giving any real answers, and just stringing the viewers on as long as possible, because they never came up with any underlying truth in the first place ("X-Files"), Lost has created a detailed mythology and underlying truth, and reveals that truth at an increasing rate, but they figured out that for every question you answer, another equally important question must be raised to sustain the drama. So, like what happens much in real life, they finally reveal the truth that the view has been searching for, and in doing so shed light on other other truths that must be out there too; thus ending one specific search, while continuing the process of the search. And in three years we will have another set of truths revealed, but then there will be no new questions to replace the old, because we will understand the whole scope of the story and the Island. And that will be a great ending.

feel the AIR go out of the story last night?

Absolutely NOT!

Deflated? No way ! Totally Inflated in my opionion. It was the most exciting hour of televison I have ever watched.

And actually, throughout the whole show I "thought" I was getting lots of answers, but in the end, I feel there were more questions brought up than questions answered. absolutely brilliant! I must have said "This is so cool" like a million times during the show --

I am so happy that they portrayed Dharma as a bunch of hippies... It is so cool and I feel it connected the show to a bit of reality and balanced the creepy side of it. I would have been disappointed if they showed Dharma as this omnipotent group of geniouses..

But as the saying goes, "You can please some of the people all the time and all of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time"

First off the opening sequence was beyond dumb - all sense of reality sacrificed so they could feature that 32 miles to Portland sign - so I was turned off to start with and the episode needed to win me back. I was optimistic we'd finally learn something interesting about Dharma. Then, not one word about what Dharma was working on, what they learned about the island, what sucesses they might have had, who was funding it. Nada. We saw the Receiving area, a school room and a some vans, and then a lot of dead bodies. Goodbye Dharma. Very disappointing.

I give up... I was present for the births of my four children, and I can't figure out for the life of my what was dumb, or lacking in any sense of reality in the opening scene.

If you have specific questions about Darma that you want answered in a specific order, maybe fiction isn't your thing. The thing about a story is that it's told in its own way, and the listener gains information as he goes along, but not necessarily the information that each specific listener is most currious about. I think we learned more about Darma in this episode than in any other. We got a great feel for the type of place it was, how people got there, what it was like to work there, that there were families living there, and a school, that the community lived in the barracks area, protected by the sonic fence from the natives, with a deactivation code that changed daily, with the science workers going out from the barracks to the various stations to do their work, that there were ongoing skirmishes between Darma and the natives for probably 20 years, and that the natives finally overcame them using their own technology with inside help from Ben, wiping out the entire barracks community. All this is huge, equally if not more important than if they had success in their experiments, or who was funding them. And we already know the types of experiments they were doing.

I agree that it would have been cool to learn about Dharma's research, their funding, what exactly the Islands mysterious properties are, etc.. That's not to say that I thought the flashbacks were lame, I enjoyed them immensely, but they would have been even better if we had gotten more answers.

What I don't understand is how people didn't like the Jacob reveal. Why?? How would you rather it have been done??

Yeah, I can't believe how truly hardcore LOST fans didn't like the Jacob reveal... It was done in a very LOSTISH way. LOST IN ALL ITS GLORY, people!

I felt like the episode showed us that there is much more to the island than we know. I think it raised a lot more questions that will unfold slowly. This is just the beginning!

I've said this before but it isn't worn out yet. ;)

This is probably one of the most speculated on TV shows in history. This speculation is part of the entertainment, part of its draw and charm. It's fun... a lot of fun to simply think about this show. This is what makes this show so special and this is what makes it a let down for some.

I think sometimes some of us can get really wrapped up in what we think will happen. What we think (on this board) can get pretty darned wild sometimes. Then after we get all worked up the show airs and it's not as good as the speculations for some. That's sad really.

This show won't last forever. Enjoy it while you can. What works for me is I never read spoilers and I take this speculation for what it is; a fun way to pass some time. This way when the show hits my screen on wed night i have no assumptions... just wide open eyes and i truly enjoy every second of the show.

Afterwards i may have certain critique, like it always bugged the devil out of me that they never talked to each other about important things that happen... but this does not ruin the show for me.

Of course some complaints are legitimate, if you didn't complain at least sometimes, you probably don't care. If you didn't care you wouldn't watch the show... therefore no reason to complain because you don't watch it. Ta Da :)

Deflated? How can you feel deflated? I am more anxious than ever for next weeks episode! Dharma was only briefly touched on, and then from the viewpoint of a work man. We didn't see the whole scope of what Dharma was doing or what brought them to the island. And we didn't really learn anything new about the Others, other than the fact that they were there before Dharma and they (at least Richard) don't age. Yes, answers are coming. Can these answers fulfill the expectations of everyone watching? Probably not. But in the end, no matter what the answers are, Lost is the best written and acted show on TV right now. I for one am enjoying the ride!

Rick

honestly, i felt that way about almost ALL of season 2. i really, really disliked a majority of the episodes, & where the show was going. but to me, this season has been interesting and exciting. the only way the show has "deflated" to me is having made the others/hostiles/ben really, really interesting, so much so that it was almost a bummer to me when we went back to the losties.

i'm upset this season is ending because i feel like the story is really going somewhere now, and i don't want them to lose pace again.