It Starts

(Our first over-analysis of the Second Season!)

So I received the following Email today:

Dear Frequent Flyer -

Greeting from the writers' room of Lost! Even though production has only just begun on the sandy shores of O'ahu (as well as the lush jungles of O'ahu, and the mysterious soundstages of O'ahu), the writers' room has been working overtime for several months to turn the overarching visions of the show's creators into episodic teleplays.

The writers' room is one of the main hubs of creative activity on Lost. To anyone on the outside it probably looks like an ordinary conference room, albeit one festooned with white boards and memorabilia.

One wall, for example is decorated with head shots of the cast. Another features the "Lost Survivors Count" where we keep a running track of the characters who have died on the series. Others are decorated with maps and posters of islands and beaches to keep us in the tropical mood (not a lot of white sand and clear water in sunny downtown Burbank -- but then again, not a lot of invisible monsters either).

But the nexus of the writers' room are the four massive white boards that span the length of the space. On these boards, we plot out not only the broad strokes of the entire year, but also the individual episodes, down to acts, scenes and beats, in an exhaustive process designed to bring the best out of every idea.

Several scripts have already been completed and are in the pre-production process, with many more in the pipeline. To give you a taste, here is an exclusive glance at the titles and writers of our first three episodes:

Episode One:"Man of Science, Man of Faith" written by Damon Lindelof

Episode Two:"Adrift" written by Steven Maeda & Leonard Dick

Episode Three:"Orientation" written by Javier Grillo-Marxuach & Craig Wright

- and this is only the beginning!

Thanks for getting Lost with us!




Okay, so that's pretty much fluff - except for the fact that they give us episode titles! Time for the first "Brian's Deeper Meaning Guesses" of the Season!

Episode One - "Man of Science, Man of Faith" is obviously referring to Jack and Locke. Jack being the man of science (doctor), Locke being the man of faith (treating the island religiously, the hatch, etc.). What's interesting is the way that the title puts both together. If it was a Locke-centric episode, wouldn't it just be called "Man of Faith"? Likewise, a Jack episode could be called "Man of Science". What does this mean?

Here's my thought - this episode will deal with a conflict between Jack and Locke, and with their fundamental understanding of what the island is all about. I think whatever they find in the hatch will make Locke even crazier about his faith in the island, but Jack will try to explain with a logical scientific response - causing a rift between the two.

Could this be the fight that will split the Survivors into the Jack Camp and Locke Camp as I predicted long ago? Remember what Jack said in the Season Finale: "We're going to have a Locke problem."

As for the flashback, since both characters are named in the title - how about this? Flashbacks of both Jack and Locke, done in a way to show the parallelism in their past lives? Show similarities and differences in how they lived, and how each brought them to where they are today.

This should be a very "Hatch-centric" episode, especially per Damon's comments in the post two down.

September 21!


Episode Two - "Adrift" looks to shift the focus back to the Rafters and their fate. Obviously, Michael, Jin, and Sawyer are all adrift at sea, probably clutching to debris of their boat. The flashback could be to any of the three, but I'll throw my money on Michael.

Why? You gotta look deeper! "Adrift" now also refers to Michael in this world, having just lost his son, Walt, to The Others. He's adrift in life, missing his son! Look for flashbacks of Michael and Walt, and how their relationship got so bad.

A big puzzle for me is how they're going to get Mike, Jin, and Sawyer back to the island (which they have to do). I don't buy that any of them are going to die, and we've been told that the hunt for Walt will be a main part of the first half of the season. Since the only people who know that Walt is msising are the Rafters, they have to get back to the main camp.

The problem is that they were something like ten miles out to sea when they were ambushed. There's no way they're swimming back clutching floating logs, especially with Sawyer having wounds from being shot. I guess something supernaturally fantastic, like the whale in Castaway could help them get back, but that would seem like a big cop-out. I don't know about this one yet...


Episode Three - "Orientation" is my bet for "the episode where we meet the people from the tail of the plane." How about for a wacky bet for this being an Ana-Lucia Cortez (Michell Rodriguez for you "Blue Crush" fans out there) flashback episode? The term "Orientation" refers to the tail people (will there be more than just Ana? What about Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who is also joining the cast? Is he a tail person too? I don't think so - Delta Houser Currin has a much more intriguing theory on this guy - more on him as the season approaches...) getting accustomed to the new group of people, meeting each other, getting a tour of the camp, etc.

What experiences will the Tailers have that the Survivors didn't? Is the monster harassing and eating them too? Have they met CFL (my bet is yes!)? Have they encountered The Others (my bet is no.)?

It will be very, very interesting to get the Tailers in the mix, because they should have a whole new set of experiences that will open up the Island even more.

One last thought - what if Ana is the ONLY Tailer? What if she has somehow survived on her own for the past two months? Would she be as crazy as CFL? Will they have to "orient" her back to "society" due to the psychological scars she would likely have? Just a thought...


Exciting! More posts as the info rolls in! Post your thoughts and comments by clicking the "Comments" link below!


(Oh, and if you're wondering what Michelle Rodriguez looks like, here's a picture from her brief appearance in "Exodus" last season..



And here's our new boy Adewale...



Scary!)