Welcome to the LOST retrospective, brought to you by the dynamic duo of Matt and Crit, who you know from the weekly articles reviewing and recapping each episode. LOST is arguably the greatest show of all time, and is definitely the one that will have the greatest impact from our generation of TV. With that in mind, we have decided to take a look back at each season of LOST, picking our favorite episodes and moments to share with you the reader. Each day of this week we will take a look at one season, each of us picking our five favorite episodes from the season. Will we pick the same episodes? Yes, most likely. But when it comes to LOST (and when it comes to Crit and Matt, really) there are bound to be purposeful coincidences.
So with the series now officially over, let’s take a look back at the show that has been so important since September of 2004. Follow us behind the cut for more, and let us know your thoughts about your favorite episodes/moments in the comments!
Episode 1: The Beginning of the End
Matt: Of course this is a big episode. Now we see some of our friends off the island and the big question is, how did they get off and what happened because of it? This is also the marking of the shorter seasons, which help the show a lot because now the creators say they have fully figured out the end and it’s clear the show becomes more focused from here on out. Intercut with the future and the past, the flash forwards end up being one of the cooler things that happen to the show.
Episode 2: Confirmed Dead
Crit: Oceanic 815 is on the bottom of the ocean floor. WHAT? We meet Faraday, Miles, Charlotte and Frank, and we see Naomi off the island for the first time. Ben has a man on their freighter.
Matt: Here we meet our new characters: Faraday, Miles, Charlotte and Frank. What is so great about this episode is that it shows that, even with brand new characters introduced every season, it’s very easy for us as the audience to become attached and for the show to prove why we should be invested in the first place. Especially Faraday. Aw yeah, Faraday!
Episode 5: The Constant
Crit: Probably the best episode of the series, certainly up there with the pilot. There’s no way to put into words just how powerful and great this episode really was.
Matt: I don’t think I really have to explain why this is a great episode. Any person who watches this show knows the importance of the episode, and knows why it matters. The most emotional moment of the entire series, except perhaps some moments in season 6. Desmond and Penny forever.
Episode 9: The Shape of Things to Come
Crit: The first episode back after a month long break. Faraday admits that they were never there to rescue anyone. Keamy murders Alex as Ben watches; Ben claims that he (Widmore) “changed the rules.” Ben appears in the Sahara Desert after turning the donkey wheel, and we find out how he recruited Sayid to kill for him. He visits Widmore’s apartment in London and vows to kill Penny since Keamy killed Alex.
Matt: Another Ben centric episode, the clever title alone shows you what we can expect. A lot of things are mentioned here, but LOST once again proves that no one is safe and nothing is sacred when Alex takes a bullet to the head while Ben watches. Widmore’s character becomes a fully fleshed out villain for the show, and we are once again shown the attempt to humanize the villain. It’s episode’s like this that really remind you why Michael Emerson deserves his Emmy.
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Episode 11: Cabin Fever
Crit: John Locke is born prematurely, and Richard Alpert is at the hospital. Richard visits John when he’s five, but John fails his test. As an adult, John meets Matthew Abaddon in rehab, who urges him to go on the walkabout and essentially pushes him to go to Australia.
Matt: This episode is an episode that, upon rewatching, brings a lot of things with John Locke’s arc to light. This is one of the great things about LOST – you can watch repeatedly, and the more you know the better the show gets. Such is the case for Cabin Fever, as we see Locke grow, not knowing just how important this is to the mythology of the show until the next season.
Episodes 12, 13 and 14: There’s No Place Like Home
Crit: We see the Oceanic Six return home. Jack finds out that Claire was his sister. The survivors vs. freighters showdown finally goes down. The helicopter leaves the island, but Sawyer jumps off and swims back. The freighter is destroyed. Ben turns the donkey wheel and moves the island. Penny’s rescue boat picks up the O6. John Locke is the one in the coffin that Jack had visited in the season 3 finale.
Matt: Again, a finale makes it to our list. I don’t think that there is any finale that doesn’t, to be quite honest. So much happens here to tug on our heart strings, and on top of that we get one of the biggest “What the-?” endings. While the ending of this episode puts some other elements from the season in perspective, it shows us just how many stakes there are in LOST and allows the craziest element to be born – the time travel season.
