Writing related thoughts on the Lost finale... (spoiler alert if you haven't seen it)

WOW!!!!!

I'm still stuttering with all that happened in that episode. Is Christian Shephard really alive? Or was that just Jack losing it. Does Kate end up with Sawyer? Whose funeral was that? Ben's?

OK, rather then rehash the whole thing here, which I could do for HOURS, I'm taking a writer related spin on it and I'd love to hear feedback.

Here are some things I noticed:

1) Charlie's death. When Charlie first died (or nearly died) in Season 1, I was beside myself with grief. I held my head, screamed NO at the tv... and this was all while reading spoilers and knowing he'd really make it. I momentarily forgot that and was caught up in his possible death and the tragedy of it. This time, I kind of went "oh, shoot, I hoped he'd make it." A much more measured response - so what happened?

My first thought is that in the beginning, the bond between all the survivors was the heart of Lost, and the audience was really invested in all of them making it off the island alive. As they've started killing them off, and introducing the Others, I think we've all detached a little bit. So, on the one hand they've acheived the "anything could happen" sort of thing, on the other hand, I think they've lost something also.

Secondly, I think the Charlie character hasn't been as strong lately. They've told a lot of his story, and he hasn't had the great lines he used to have. Hurley and Jin have been providing more comedic relief.

2) Flash forwards. Assuming this *really* was a flash forward and not some weird dream, it raises some issues - of course, there are all sorts of speculative things I could go into, about what happens to Jack, Kate, Christian, etc... but what I'm really interested in is what it does to the reader/viewer to know what happens in the future. Personally, I'm not sure I like it. (I mean, still a great episode). But as a viewer, I like to project what will happen to the characters. For instance, Luke and Lorelai get married, have those twins she dreamed about, and live happily ever after and Jess and Rory reunite. ;) If the show had ended with a flash forward ruining all that for me, I'd have been upset to have that taken away from me.

So, now I don't get to imagine what will happen to Jack - I know (or I think I know, if it's a reliable flash forward) what will happen to Jack - and it's not as fun as wondering. I'm sure the show will do great things with this, so I'm not complaining, but I think it's an interesting response and one I want to keep in mind when writing. I tend to feel the same way with "framed" narratives, where the story's already over, and being told in retrospect. It takes a certain something away. (Absalom, Absalom is a notable exception to this).

3) Wringing Kate's neck. Decide who you like already. You've got Sawyer, now he's a little abrupt, then Jack says he loves you and you seem all perplexed. Get over it, pick a man, and move on. There was enough going on in the episode that I didn't have time to get really upset with her, but this is the same phenomenon I felt with Lorelai and other shows that drag on a romantic relationship. I want to wring their necks and tell them to wake up and make a decision. I always knew really quickly who I liked and was quick to move on if it wasn't working, so this just unravels me in drama, and I think writers go to this too quickly to keep the "will they or won't they" suspense alive. My recomendation is to decide early on if they will or won't, then move onto another storyline. Elizabeth Peters did a great job of this. She gets people together reasonably quickly, then keeps giving them interesting storylines and I'm so grateful for that!

I don't write genre romance, but all the stories I write have romantic elements, so this is something I remind myself of often.

And that's my writerly analysis! Also, it's one of the best season finales I've ever seen. ;) Let me know what you think!