TV Shows that Left a Mark

So, I'm making another semi-come back to the form. Been away because of the usual uni, life etc. But in that time, I re-watched the first season of Lost, something I had viewed originally way back in year 9 (9th grade for all the yanks lol) and it got me thinking, Lost is as good and breath taking today as it was some 10 years ago. It really is a show that changed the way we viewed television, especially someone of my generation who probably hadn't been exposed to shows like The Sopranos or The Wire. This was certainly mine and my friends first exposure to American TV beyond Disney and Power Rangers.

So this first post in this new thread is all about Lost, I want to hear why you liked it and if you didn't, why not? How did it affect your view of TV, how did it compare to other shows at the time, was it the event TV that people make it out to be? Has it stood the test of time?


For me, Lost marked a very particular point in time. I was 13/14, heading into the middle year or secondary (high) school life. I was no longer the kid who would watch Power Rangers or Recess etc etc, it seemed I was outgrowing TV. Yeah movies shown on a Saturday night was still cool and no matter how many times I watched T2: Judgement Day, I never got bored but TV in general was no longer "cool". Well British TV anyway.

I had heard people mention The Sopranos and it's comparisons to The Godfather, which I still hadn't seen although all my friends said they had. I knew The Godfather was cool so I thought The Sopranos was supposed to be cool to but it wasn't ever on my house and I had no idea what channel even showed it. I had to make do with soaps, re-runs of Only Fools and Horses and maybe the odd episode of The Office UK. British TV, looking back through the lens of time, was stagnant and had been for many years, which is why viewing Lost for the first time was such a revelation.

It aired first during the summer of 2005 and it took me and ally my friends by storm. It was big, it was loud, there was action, drama, hot Kate and everything in between. It was also smart and for the growing psyche of an adolescent, it was the perfect introduction to the greater philosophies of life, death, destiny, war, peace, love...I know it sounds pretentious now but back then it all made so much sense. There was nothing like it on British TV and honestly, I'm not sure if there ever will be.

Lost did however, leave behind a dark legacy, a legacy of American imports which further stunted the already dwarfed growth of home grown British TV. There was Heroes, Prison break and many others, each claiming to be the next Lost, each promising blockbuster ratings for TV networks. Yet Lost out fought and out sold and out did all the pretenders, even the uneven finale couldn't spoil the success of 6 terrific seasons. But with all shows, they have to be able to stand the test of time.

Having re-watched the first season, it seems to have withstood a decade of clones and Game of Thrones. There are too few shows on TV right now, American, British or otherwise, which bridge the gap between childish and adult, Lost did that. It was a show you could gather the family to watch. You just can't do that with 'Thrones or Boardwalk Empire. Lost is still as great today as it was back in the hey day of my teenage years, although certain aspects of the story are better appreciated now than it could ever have been by my more naive mind in 2005. I've grown up and so has Lost.

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"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn"

"I need your clothes, your boots and your motorcycle"

I watched the first season but became bored with it when it strayed from the original premise...I liked the idea of a dramatic re-imagining of Gilligan's Island, but when it was implied that the crash was not an accident and that the crash might have been targeted at certain passengers, I just began to lose interest...the show became too complex to sustain interest for me.

One of my favourite shows. I was wrapped up in all the theories. It was fun.

Stopped watching after 9 episodes, I think. I figured it wouldn't go anywhere and the writers had no idea where they were going.

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5-time MoFo Award winner.

I was a con show: the writers were conning everybody into thinking it would have a great finale and I didn't result into anything. But it was a great ride up to the end, really great ride. In fact I think it would be better if it didn't end, just stopping at a random episode in the 6th season never revealing the mystery.

Me too. I really loved that show.

They didn't, but I liked that. It made it feel like it could go anywhere at anytime because you knew the writers were taking the ride with you.

It was a messy show. Everything wasn't wrapped up nice and neatly and I didn't like some of the ways they went, but I didn't care. It was still great storytelling because you were so into it and everyone else was too, that it was an interactive story of sorts. The viewers had no control over what happened, but many of us spent a lot of time theorizing, predicting and coming to our own conclusions about what things meant that the story was ours as well.

The first three seasons were the best as far as I'm concerned. I loved the characters as much as I loved the craziness and the story, so future seasons became a little too much plot and not enough character development for me, but I was still happy to watch every single second of it.

I've never understood the fanfic/interaction of this stuff either. I know that was quite a big part of the programme, esecially after the first couple of seasons. "Interactive" is usually a good sign that I'm not going to like a show/movie.

Those are the exact reasons I enjoyed the show, I just don't think an accident would have been as enjoyable

I agree on the last part lol the writers were as lost as everyone else

That's the thing, the show was a huge con, almost every ep ended on a cliff hanger to keep people coming back and every now and then there would be fire fights, fist fights, explosions and so on...it was all about the ride, the journey rather than the ending or the destination. That's what kept me hooked and created so many imitations, everyone wanted a slice of the big money Lost pie but so few could emulate it because their heart wasn't in the right place, the characters would be dull whereas in Lost you cared about so many of them at once.

So, my second little write up is here, hope you like it guys and girls!

Lost

When it came out I thought it'd be just another overrated show, but then 1-2 years after it finished I decided to give it a try.

I watched all the seasons in 2-3 weeks.

Of course it was long ended and I saw spoilters about the ending in many websites so it didn't really make me furious, nor discontent or dissapointed. I liked the show, it was good, there was action, drama and humour and that's what it took for me to like it. Even though at times it made 0 sense. It was like the directors went crazy from time to time and said screw logic and went out of the way.

In resumen, I did like it, but it didn't really make any difference to how I judge or like other shows, it didn't really touch me.

Edit: you updated it when I was writting this ^ so I couldn't see it. Apologies.

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no worries.

you make some interesting points and i totally agree about the "screw logic" part lol but I was writing in regards to how Lost changed TV when it was originally released, it was a revelation at the time, if you watched it 2 years or so after it finished, you would have noticed so many similar shows already on tv, probably diluting the experience.

Lost and The Office are two of my very favourite shows. I only watched The Office for the first time this or last year, and it is probably the funniest thing I have ever watched, and that includes any TV show or film. Ricky Gervais is just brilliant, the humour, sometimes very subtle is genius, and he gives a fantastic physical performance. So many great moments.

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky. Born 1821. Died 1881. Just interested in him being exiled in Siberia for four years.

Oh that seen, no matter how many times I see it, is bloody hilarious. And it's just so layered, the bit with Gareth writing stuff down, Gervais constantly looking at the others...just cracks me up.

"If it's a Basil Fawlty type of character then maybe I should play him"