When Netflix tweeted out a series of numbers on July 1, I knew what it meant: Lost is now on Netflix. Because I’m psychic, I’d just busted out my DVDs of the series in anticipation of indoctrinating my kids into the Dharma Institute, but streaming the episodes on Netflix is much more convenient. Nothing brought me more joy than snuggling up with my mystery-loving kids and showing them the series pilot, which my son gave a “20/10: because of plot and a good monster and also it’s for grownups but you let us watch it.”
Yes, Lost might be a tad scary or violent for some kids, but my weirdos are all in, asking me when we’d find out why there are polar bears and what Kate did. I know the answers, of course. I not only watched Lost live on network TV back in the day (2004-10), but I’ve rewatched the whole series several times and used to screen the pilot in my English classes when I taught Lord of the Flies. So, as a Lost scholar, I now present my pro-tips for the binge of a lifetime. Here’s what you should know as you embark on Flight 815:
Have faith
One of the biggest criticisms about Lost is that they, ahem, lost their way three seasons in, with the writers seeming to not know where they were going, leading up to an ending that “didn’t make sense.” Michael Emerson (Ben—you’re in for fun with him) says that, while you’re entitled to your opinion, you are wrong if you think Lost doesn’t connect all the dots. You are going to need to pay close attention and, honestly, you may not like the answers you get, especially if you are a man of science…or a man of faith.
There’s a lot of wibbly-wobbly on the island and NO, for JACOB’S SAKE, they aren’t dead all along. I do have some jealousy for people who get to watch it now all at once for the first time. If you can trust me when I say it all makes sense in the end, you’re gonna have a good time. Distrusting the showrunners along the way caused me a great deal of anxiety and I’m happy that you can be spared this fear.
Enjoy the journey
Vulture ran an article with a list of the 20 episodes (out of 121) you can skip if you’re rewatching or binging. INCORRECT. Lost is a relic of the “pre Golden age” of television. The seasons are long and lots of bits of information come out little by little over six years with lots of meanderings. There is actual character development, the side stories matter in the end—but sometimes in only tangential ways—and the world is fully realized. Skipping, no matter what Vulture says, means you will miss out on tiny details that will, in fact, matter later. I’d say don’t even skip the “previously on Lost” before each episode. It gives you a hint into what you should be looking for in the episode to come. Lean into the lore.
Make it fun
Lost is a game. It rewards you for paying attention, and you can just as often figure it out before the characters as the show can fully surprise you by bringing something in out of left field. Let the puzzles puzzle you. Try to figure it out alone or with your friends, like we all did back in the day. Make a chart with a red string. Find new Easter eggs that we missed watching in standard definition on our pre-smart TVs.
When I watched it originally, my viewing companions and I made up a game. After the first scene but before the title card, whoever could yell (I mean yell) “I’M LOST” first, wins. That’s the game. My kids love the game. For bonus points, do it for each commercial break cut and at the end of the episode before the credits. Or make up your own game. Take a shot whenever Sawyer uses a new nickname. Make up elaborate backstories for the 30 random extras that live on the island but never get a storyline (except you, Nikki and Paulo). Or, if getting down to the granular is too taxing, just let the action-adventure-sci-fi hit wash over you and get what you get from it.
Listen to Michael F-ing Giacchino and other needle drops
Composer Michael Giacchino knows the way to my heart. Giacchino composed the soundtrack for Lost just before working on a run of Pixar films, including the Inside Out theme that makes me cry within two bars. Lost’s soundtrack is almost all instrumental (no top 40 stations on the island) and Giachhino mastered the recurring theme.
“Life and Death” will pull your heart strings and you’ll hear echoes of it again in the finale. The “mystery music,” as I call it, will make you anxious. The traveling music is cinematic, and each character has their own theme tune. Plus, I learned in my research, all the song titles are puns. “Thinking Clairely,” “Locke’d Out Again,” and “Shannonigans,” all played for the characters’ Claire, Locke, and Shannon’s big moments, respectively. When Lost uses a song with lyrics, it’s memorable. I can’t wait for “Make Your Own Kind of Music” by Cass Elliot and “Downtown” by Petula Clark to trend.
Remember that it was the early 2000s
You are going to have to have a little grace for the context in which all of Lost lives and all that came before it. Twas the early 2000s. There is a lot of the male gaze in Lost. In the pilot, you see Kate get down to her skivvies to bathe in the ocean and Shannon tanning in her bikini. The hair is weird and far too styled (looking at you, Shannon and Boone).
There are some plot lines that age poorly (Hurley’s food issues) and some jokes which don’t hit quite right (Sawyer’s nicknames range from sexist to full-blown racist). I won’t name names because of spoilers, but the only confirmed gay character from the original cast dies, as does a later-revealed character. The show came under fire for underutilizing its Black characters. Let these instances be moments when you can reflect on how far (or not) we’ve come when it comes to plots and character development.
You never know who’s gonna show up!
Kinda like on The Bear, there are loads of guest stars on Lost. While this may seem surprising because it’s the same group of people trapped on an island, don’t forget the flashbacks. Plus, the show does a nice job of “surprise” bringing back people presumed dead or rescued. And, in what I’m going to call a “reverse guest star,” there are guest stars who’ll you recognize for what they did after they left the land of the Lost. Rob McElhenny, Julie Bowen, and Evan Handler come to mind. Another game to play with Lost is “what else have I seen them in?”
It’s OK to hate it sometimes
You might get frustrated during your 91 hours of Lost. You might even hate certain plot points or characters. That’s OK. That’s what love is. You might hate that you cannot under any circumstances chill on your phone while watching Lost if you want to get anything meaningful out of it. Go watch one of those reality shows if you want fun, sexy island times. It’s hard to wait for answers on Lost, believe me, I know. I had to wait six years to find out about the polar bears (lil spoiler there, sorry). But, if you can stick with it, I promise Lost delivers not only a story like no other, but a moment in cultural time, when we cared about if there was a logo on a shark fin just as much as who Kate was gonna bang.
Storytelling at its finest is going to be polarizing and, when you let yourself fall down the rabbit hole, you may not like what you find on the other side. For me, though, once we reach “The End” of Lost, I am very thankful to have found it and love sharing the obsession with a new generation.
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