I've always simmered this dichotomy down to the context of the viewer. I think if say you are a fan that was drawn into what was ostensibly elusive about the show (i.e. smoke monster), then yes, I can see why the show might have been received as a giant 'FUCK YOU' to their viewers. I guess i was one of those viewers that was drawn into character as opposed to the island, and I think most sci-fi and/or fantasy does that very well (placing otherwise normal people in a grand backdrop that seemingly doesn't exist elsewhere to produce some sort of narrative that reflects the ingenuity of the human spirit blah blah blah pretentious media studies major blah). With that being said (thank you, Larry David), I'm not entirely sure that it is a fair statement to implicitly say that most of the development of the show was about perpetually being dishonest with the teases, questions and mysteries they were presenting. I think, for the most part, TPTB tried to provide some sort of answer, or even just a hint or a context, to provide some sort of direction for the audience to either completely understand it or deduce enough information to figure it out for themselves (the latter, being what I think most people found attractive about the show in the first place). Aside from the Ajira boat, I think most diehard Lost fans can reasonably answer most of the core mysteries. I do understand, however, that the mainstream viewer didn't exactly keep in touch with J. Wood, Totally Lost with Jeff Jensen or any other really intelligent and dedicated geeks to break things down for us, so I can see why a mention of the Casimir Effect isn't something that all of us may lose our shit over.
Lastly, I did think that some of the finale came off as mawkish, but my nipples can't help but get hard enough to cut glass everytime I hear 'There's No Place Like Home'. There was something about that show that meant a lot for me, and because of that, I admit that i'm heavily bias.
Post-script: If anything, can we all agree that 'Through The Looking Glass' was one of the best finales for any show and that 'The Constant' stands out as one of the best hour long programs ever? Please? Cease fire?
Not to be "that guy" (you know, the adamant LOST fanatic who will defend the show and a majority of the decisions and supposed plot holes to his dying breath--there's one in every family, seek them out), but I never quite understood the fervent distaste with writers "making it up as they go along" because, well...that's intrinsically how narratives are written...right? Am i taking crazy pills? Moreover, I think Darlton had enough foresight to see that people were getting antsy with where the show was going, or the nature of how it was written. Which is why i think they threw in the Dickens' references in 'Live Together, Die Alone' and 'A Tale of Two Cities' (duh) to implicitly say, "Hey assholes. Dickens made up his shit as he went along in journal publications. Lay off, jerks". To which we replied, "Pft. A Tale of Two Cities? Minor Dickens. Give me some Flannery O'Conner".
Question: So now I'm a bigot because I believe in the Bible teaches?
Answer: Yes, kind of. If you are only concentrating on Leviticus (old mosaic by the way) and what he said in one line on that massive phonebook-esque fantasy text. Then, yes, you are kind of a bigot.
I tried looking for a GIF of the "big gulps, huh?" scene in Dumb and Dumber, but then got too sleepy and lazy. I am also eating a delicious burrito.
So let's pretend I posted it up here and everyone upvote me for the intention.
Thanks everyone!
I believe there is a battle scene in the next book that is narratively impossible not to film. There are also flashbacks that I would imagine they will show in the coming seasons. Russel Crowe and Chris Hemsworth for young Robert and young Ned, respectively!
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