For a show that prided itself on characters and cleverness, I found season 6 to be a gut-wrenching disappointment. I felt like the characterization problem that started in S5 was only overcome in any respect in the last season because resolutions were handed out, tailor-made for the characters to cry from joy and make us happy for them. And sure, I think a whole lot of those characters were deserving of some joy after all they went through, but having that desire met doesn't necessarily make for a good show. Especially not when "it's all about the characters!" translates to "we're wrapping this up in a way that leaves all the characters happy but doesn't draw anything from or have any bearing on the intricacies of the show you've watched up until this point."
I didn't need all the questions answered. Or the members of the triangle-turned-quadrangle of doom I found more palatable together to actually end up together. Or the ending I would've written to the show.
What I did need was for it to actually be about the characters and not just tear-jerking reunions where anyone important seemed too-neatly paired off. What I needed was for the finale to be as clever and thought-provoking or even twisty as the first five seasons led me to believe it had to be.
I will say I don't really think it boiled down to who Kate chose in the end. While I do think it seemed very much like they tacked more importance to the Sawyer/Juliet relationship during the last season than they'd intended for it to have originally (I resent how questionable not mentioning an engagement ring and not pulling out all the stops when Juliet started doubting their relationship in The Incident made Sawyer's characterization) and I did take issue with the soulmates-required vibe the finale gave off and I do think saving Kate's first real "I love you" for the finale was a bad idea (I guess meant to string romance fans along?), I can't say I felt like I was waiting for her to make a choice, that a decision was being made, that anything hinged on her "I love you" to anyone.
And even though I thought Kate spent too much of the last two seasons at odds or purposefully separated from Jack to make me think she was pining over him the whole time, I didn't find it hard to believe she'd tell him she loved or even that she did love him. Until the soulmate-filled finale, what the show had shown time and time again -- even throughout season six -- was that Kate had a great affection for both Jack and Sawyer and that it was returned. It's obvious that the writers wanted Kate and Jack to be the ones together in the show's end, though, and having them get off the island together, separated from Sawyer, and get a romantic history under their belt was how they did it. Personally, I would've liked that more if they'd let Kate do what seemed like the natural option for her and not go home in an effort to avoid going on trial once she made it off the island. I never blamed her for wanting to get off the island -- why the hell would she want to stay? -- but I never understood why she initially went back with the rest of the O6 once she was off. But this is a tangent.
I felt bad that I couldn't be happier with Jin and Sun remembered everything, considering how I always wanted them to reconcile and grow together and be happy. I hated that I barely cared about Sayid, whom I've adored, in the finale and hardly blinked when he died.
Heh, this is so long, but I've spent so much time trying to work out why I found this so disappointing while so many are willing to accept it. I could write pages about it. As an episode judged on its own merit (the acting, the conflicts, the action, the gorgeous moments like Jack lying down in the jungle with Vincent nearby), the finale was good. It was certainly the best of the season. But as a finale for Lost, I think it's terrible. I greatly enjoyed the first four seasons of the show. Even my disappointment with season five didn't mean I thought it was without promise. But I feel like the finale in specific and much of season six put all the potential the show had in cement shoes and then dropped it right into the ocean.
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I didn't need all the questions answered. Or the members of the triangle-turned-quadrangle of doom I found more palatable together to actually end up together. Or the ending I would've written to the show.
What I did need was for it to actually be about the characters and not just tear-jerking reunions where anyone important seemed too-neatly paired off. What I needed was for the finale to be as clever and thought-provoking or even twisty as the first five seasons led me to believe it had to be.
I will say I don't really think it boiled down to who Kate chose in the end. While I do think it seemed very much like they tacked more importance to the Sawyer/Juliet relationship during the last season than they'd intended for it to have originally (I resent how questionable not mentioning an engagement ring and not pulling out all the stops when Juliet started doubting their relationship in The Incident made Sawyer's characterization) and I did take issue with the soulmates-required vibe the finale gave off and I do think saving Kate's first real "I love you" for the finale was a bad idea (I guess meant to string romance fans along?), I can't say I felt like I was waiting for her to make a choice, that a decision was being made, that anything hinged on her "I love you" to anyone.
And even though I thought Kate spent too much of the last two seasons at odds or purposefully separated from Jack to make me think she was pining over him the whole time, I didn't find it hard to believe she'd tell him she loved or even that she did love him. Until the soulmate-filled finale, what the show had shown time and time again -- even throughout season six -- was that Kate had a great affection for both Jack and Sawyer and that it was returned. It's obvious that the writers wanted Kate and Jack to be the ones together in the show's end, though, and having them get off the island together, separated from Sawyer, and get a romantic history under their belt was how they did it. Personally, I would've liked that more if they'd let Kate do what seemed like the natural option for her and not go home in an effort to avoid going on trial once she made it off the island. I never blamed her for wanting to get off the island -- why the hell would she want to stay? -- but I never understood why she initially went back with the rest of the O6 once she was off. But this is a tangent.
I felt bad that I couldn't be happier with Jin and Sun remembered everything, considering how I always wanted them to reconcile and grow together and be happy. I hated that I barely cared about Sayid, whom I've adored, in the finale and hardly blinked when he died.
Heh, this is so long, but I've spent so much time trying to work out why I found this so disappointing while so many are willing to accept it. I could write pages about it. As an episode judged on its own merit (the acting, the conflicts, the action, the gorgeous moments like Jack lying down in the jungle with Vincent nearby), the finale was good. It was certainly the best of the season. But as a finale for Lost, I think it's terrible. I greatly enjoyed the first four seasons of the show. Even my disappointment with season five didn't mean I thought it was without promise. But I feel like the finale in specific and much of season six put all the potential the show had in cement shoes and then dropped it right into the ocean.