Alien vs Alien

My wife is out of town for the week. So that means that I'm bored. Instead of watching the shows stacking up on my DVR (all of which my wife wants to see), I am hitting up the Red Box and catching up on some movies that I have not been able to see yet. To make this even more fun, I will be blogging my reviews and thoughts about the films. Today's Final Installment: Super 8.

What is wrong with aliens today?  This is something that I noticed in some recent movies that has started to bother me.  When I was growing up, we had some really iconic aliens.  Think back.  There was the plethora of cool extraterrestrials in Star Wars and Star Trek.  You had THE alien in Alien and Aliens.  Then there was the predator in Predator.  I would even include E.T. as one of these guys.  They were recognizable and memorable.  If they were scary, they inspired fear.  But they also were just plain cool.  I remember when I saw Alien.  That thing was terrifying.  It looked horrible.  And it was a complete nightmare.  It had armored skin, even side of it was lethal, and it even had acidic blood - so if you did shoot it, it could kill you with its wound!  That is just vicious.  BUT, the alien was so ... stinking ... cool.  I felt the same way about the predator.  They were terrifying with their hunting helmets on.  And when they took them off, man, even worse.

I don't know filmmakers that came after those epic monsters were worried that they couldn't live up to the standard of awesomeness.  Maybe they were afraid that people accuse them of just making a cheap knock off.  Or it could be that they needed to follow the current mindset of "bigger, gaudier, blockbustier" when it came to their creations.  Whatever the reason, aliens in movies are just not doing it for me.

I noticed the trend back in Independence Day, actually.  I remember that they never showed the aliens in the previews.  My friends and I intentionally didn't read anything or watch anything that might show the invaders - just so they would be ready to be stunned at the big revealing scene.  Then they showed the things.  Whaaaa?  What the heck is that?  Their ships were cool, their attacks were awesome.  They were just stupid.  I mean, look at that thing.  As memorable as the movie is (and trust me, it has a huge following), the alien in it is just about the least memorable thing.  You don't see people with little figurines of that or hear anyone clamoring for more of the shovel headed freak.

This has continued with other movies.  I really have rarely been that impressed with the aliens.  It seems the reliance has been on their technology or their ships instead.  Many times we never even see the alien.  There is a menacing craft doing unspeakable damage.  But the thing piloting is is irrelevant.  Think about The Avengers this summer.  Now, I loved the movie.  Absolutely loved it.  But was anyone talking about the aliens in it?  Nope.  They were just cannon fodder.  They had nothing unique or awesome about them.  They actually were one of the weakest elements of the whole movie.

I watched Cowboys and Aliens the other day.  This is a movie that is based on the terror of these invaders.  Again, they never showed the aliens in the previews - just their ships flashing around and the mayhem they cause.  I was looking forward to see what they aliens looked like in their big reveal.  Again, I have kindly included a shot of these things.  What in the heck is that supposed to be?  Is that a fish?  A rock man?  They were ridiculous.  Their chest would also open up and these weird hands would come out.  It actually made no biological sense at all.  Was there a symbiotic relationship?  Were there two creatures inhabiting the same body?  What was the purpose of the second internal hands?  And do they have internal organs?  Plus there was no consistency in how to dispatch the aliens.  They seemed like they could take arrow or bullet hits, but if you hit their head (which seemed extra reinforced) they could die.  The whole thing was very bizarre.  I'm sure it didn't help the movie that the aliens - part of the title of the movie - were lame.

This all brings me to Super 8.  On the whole, this was a very good movie.  I loved it.  Well, I loved the first three-quarters of it.  Then it seemed to derail.  (Hmmmm.  Kind of sounds like another JJ Abrams project involving suspense and thrills.  cough LOST cough cough)  I thought the opening minute of the movie demonstrated Abrams' absolute brilliance at story telling.  The opening scene has the haunting score, penned by the always incredible Michael Giacchino.  There is a factory with a sign showing how many hundreds of days it has had without an accident.  A worker climbs a ladder and starts taking the numbers down, replacing them with just a 1.  Then it cuts to a boy sitting on a swing in the snow.  In just a moment, we already know this boy lost his parent.  Brilliant.  I loved it.

Abrams has a knack for opening a story - it is one of his hallmarks.  Consider the opening scene of Star Trek.  It was absolute mayhem.  And it was incredible.  I remember watching it with my friend, Greg, and he leaned over to me when the scene ended and the title screen came up.  "JJ Abrams is a freaking genius."  I agreed.  The pilot of Lost was as good as any television episode ever.  The same could be say about the pilot of Heroes, the pilot of Alcatraz, the opening of Mission Impossible III.  Abrams grabs your attention on a consistent basis.  The challenge is carrying that all the way through.

Super 8 started off great.  I was very interested in the story.  It was a great tale.  The train wreck that really catapulted the movie was intense and incredible.  I really liked the kids that were the center of the movie.  It was a very good movie and it was very enjoyable.  But...

Throughout the film, there is this monster hiding.  It escaped from the train and it now lurking in the city.  We see glimpses of things happening.  The monster is obviously formidable.  It can crush a car.  Somehow it affects the electricity in its area.  People scream a lot when it shows up.  It is supposedly terrifying.  They are building to the moment when we finally see it.  I am actually excited and nervous to see the thing.  I'm sure that Abrams and executive producer Steven Spielberg will come up with something worthy of the hype.

Ummmmm.  What exactly is that?  It has six legs, I think.  The first time we saw it on the kids' video it looked like a spider.  I thought maybe it was a giant spider.  A giant spider is what they are going with?  After Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, we are supposed to be freaked out by a giant spider?!?  Then I realized it wasn't a spider. It had that weird face too.  What is that?  It looks like a dozen other creatures we have seen.  Actually, his face reminds me of Megatron from Transformers.

There are tweaks and such, but I wasn't that impressed.  It was ugly.  And then we are supposed to actually have some sympathy for it.  It just wants to go home!  Of course, it has killed dozens of people already and caused tons of damage.  One character has already said that it has no remorse or pity for anything.  And we are supposed to be like, "Poor spider looking transformer thing.  It misses its home."  Sorry.  Not working for me.

The other problem is that the scenes where we actually see the alien up close are so dark that I could barely make out details.  There is no big scene where the thing emerges so we can see it in its full glory.  It is always in shadows or silhouettes.  That's really annoying.  So we either have to deal with scenes too dark to actually be scared of the non-spider or we have to deal with Abrams love affair with lens flares.  [Side Note - there is an entire online community devoted to ripping Abrams for his love of lens flare effects.  For those of you who don't know, lens flares are this trick where light hits the camera just right and you get a little starburst of light in a scene.  Awww.  However, they also can be added through any video or picture editing software.  I know how to do them in Photoshop.  They are actually one of the first "tricks" people learn.  Star Trek was infested with them.  Light bounced off all the chrome everywhere and there were flares galore.  I actually laughed at one scene in Super 8.  It was a gas station at night (of course).  I counted six lens flares in one shot.  In a gas station.  At night.  But I quibble.]

I know that this whole alien thing may seem like a small thing to focus on in a rather enjoyable movie - especially for a guy who gave Cowboys and Aliens a VERY generous evaluation.  But, I think it should be an understandable rule in Hollywood.  If you are going to make a movie or show that focuses on the presence of a terrifying alien, then the alien needs to live up to the hype.  If not, then the movie kind of crumbles.  I mean, that is the crux of the conflict, right?  Was the alien in Super 8 scary?  Well, sure, if I was a kid standing there in a cave and that sucker came up to me, I would soil myself.  Heck, if I was the sheriff and that thing came jumping out of the dark at me, I would soil myself.  But I'm not. I'm a grizzled moviegoer who is used to aliens from decades of invasion movies.  I need to see something memorable.   I don't even know what I was hoping for.  I just know that wasn't it, especially with the big names that were associated with the film.

In addition, to have the movie end the way it did just seemed weird.  It almost felt like I had wrongly identified the main story arc.  The whole time we are sitting there worried about how to defeat this alien.  At the same time, we are supposed to be suspicious of the military guys, knowing they are up to no good.  The alien is actually going out of its way to hunt people.  He isn't just offing the clowns who cross his path.  He is out and causing trouble.  He takes out sympathetic characters, too.  So there is no reason to feel bad for this guy.  I am wondering the whole time how the kids and their parents are going  to fight off the military AND defeat the spider thing.  Then we get a twist that this guy just wants to go home.  And then he goes home.  Aaaaaand scene.  What?  That doesn't make any sense.  Everyone just stares up as his cobbled together ship takes off.  Now, mind you, only a couple people know that he just wants to go home.  But what's left of the town is just going to stare up approvingly at the killer leaving, as their buildings are burning all around them.  Nonsense.

In short, the movie was three-quarters very good and one-quarter confusing as heck.  The alien was disappointing on many levels.  And the ending was bizarre.  But there were some very cool elements and moments.  Which brings me to the end of my week of movie reviews.  I hope all two of you enjoyed it.  Actually, it is funny to see friends of mine out of nowhere putting status updates like "I finally am watching Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" or "Let's see if Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol is any good."  I would like to think I made a difference.  Whether or not that difference was worth making is a different story.

Life Lessons From Lost

I recently explored my newfound respect for and understanding of the television series Lost.  For those of you who chose not to read that sterling piece of blogger awesomeness, I brought out the point that we just now are understanding what the Lost castaways are TRULY on the island for.  The central conflict has finally been revealed.  All of the battles to this point were merely to get the castaways to this final point.  They had to wade through layers of difficulties before they could fully understand their role.  They had to develop the skills, grow as people, remove distractions.  And now, with the finale upon us, they are at the place where they can do what they need to do - at least the ones left can.

Something hit me right after I wrote that post.  That is a lot like life - especially our walk as a Christian.  We get caught up in all nature of imbroglios, but they are not really what we should be expending all of our energy on.  It isn't really the point.  In fact, all too often, we get so focused on the minor skirmishes that we forget all about the main battle.

For example, I have been working very hard to change up my approach to food and health since January.  To date, I've lost 67 pounds, 12 inches off my waist, several shirt sizes.  I have jettisoned the foods that had me in an unhealthy grip.  I am basically a different person.  All of that is great.  BUT, I realized the other day that I have made THAT my main focus for the last four months.  It has been all about the weight loss and food efforts.  As a result, I have found myself losing control over my emotions, my temper, my thoughts.  I have been reading less.  I have been praying less.  I have been less attentive to my relationships with my kids and my wife.  The house is more tense and more stressful.  Why, exactly, would that be when things are finally going so well in an area of my life that I have always been defeated?  You would think that I would be getting better as a person now that I was free of those shackles.  That is what happened when I had to break previous addictions and habits.

The difference this time is that the food battle takes constant vigilance.  When I was working to get past my out-of-control interest in movies, all I really had to do was NOT go to the movies.  But with food, there is a constant stream of checkpoints.  "Can I have this food?  What can I have instead?  I'm hungry, what can I eat?  There is nothing here, what can I cobble together?  We are eating out - where can we go?"  Those thought begin to dominate.  And while I have been very successful in this phase of my life, I have started to hear my family say things like "you are mad all the time."

So, now I am making more of an effort to work on my relationship with Heather.  We are starting a study on communication within marriage - something that seems to be a major tripping up point for me.  Summer is about to start (cringe).  So I have to come up with things for me and the kids to do - so we don't replicate last summer's house imprisonment and subsequent depression.  There are all of these different little skirmishes that I am trying to get a handle on.  I don't want to keep dropping the ball in some areas while doing well in other.

However, like the castaways, I am still missing the point - even when doing all of that.  On the show, they were off fighting The Others, trying to undo time shifting changes, warring with the mercenaries on the freighter.  And they kept trying to get back home.  Those were all necessary battles and worthy investments of time.  But none of those were there true purpose for being on the Island.  That's me.  I am battling a bunch of things: my weight, my food choices, financial status, my thought life, my attitude, my temper, the way I speak to my wife and kids.  Those are all necessary and worthy efforts.  But they still aren't the main thing I should be addressing.

The fact of the matter is that the center of everything should be my relationship with Christ.  I should be focused the most on that.  Actually, it will help how I handle everything else.  But, being completely honest, my relationship with Christ is at one of the worst points it has been in a looooong time.  We finally got plugged into a church - which is helping.  But I am not teaching any more - in school or in church - which means I am not needing to prepare anything for that.  I'm not reading the Bible on my own very much.  I'm not reading other Christian books right now - even though I have some on my shelf.  It seems so hard to deal with all of that too, in addition to the other things.  But, if I don't, I'll keep struggling with the other things.

I had hoped that this time in Tallahassee would help me to grow spiritually - kind of a two year retreat.  And there are some great things that have happened in my personal growth.  I have never had the kind of victory I have now with food, diet, and health.  I have gotten closer to my kids.  I have had to learn discipline and patience.  But I also have felt myself lowering my goals for my life.  So much of my life is getting through the day - keeping the kids under control, making meals, doing chores - and then getting a chance to chill out at night.  I used to want to become the man that my wife respected the most in the world.  (Copyright, Jeff Williams, FBC TT, 1999)  Now I rarely think about that.  I wanted to be a great example for my kids of how a man should live.  Now I just don't want them to hate me when they grow up.  It is like Sawyer on Lost desperately wanting to leave for so long, and then switching his goal to having a nice dinner with Juliet.

It is not easy.  It drive me nuts when I read all these Twitter posts and Facebook status updates of people with these trite and simplistic platitudes about the Christian life.  You read them and it looks like you just pop up out of bed and whisper some secret mantra to yourself and then go on your merry way, never to mess up again.  I have never found that to be true.  I have been saved for 32 years, and it never has been as easy as tossing out a fortune cookie message.  It has been a constant war.  I don't know if that is just me.  Maybe it is.  Maybe I'm just too in love with the world and my desires.  From what I have noticed, I doubt that is the case, though.  It is a constant battle.  Just like a house constantly needs cleans and organized, a life needs constant upkeep.

I have already starting asking the kids what they want to do this summer.  I want to give them a project - something to aim towards.  At the end of the summer, I want them to be able to hold up the completed project and realize they actually did something worthwhile over the last ten weeks.  For Josiah, he and I are going to work on developing his own original superhero and comic book.  (He's very excited.)  I'm still coming up with one for Natalie - but it will either be to have her make dinner for all us one night, or to create a summer scrapbook. (She loves to take pictures and to do arts and crafts.)  Gabe gets to learn to sleep in his own bed.  (He doesn't know this yet.)  I think that my project is going to be to get my life onto the right track.  That is going to include walking, doing exercises, losing weight, doing a study with Heather, reading the Bible more.  But all of that is just part of the main goal to get back on track with God.  That's what I'm on the Island for.

Finally Not Lost

[I don't want to irritate anyone by spilling the beans, so there are spoilers in these here woods.  If you haven't watched last night's episode, or if you plan on watching all six seasons prior to Sunday night, don't read this.]

The final season of Lost is almost done.  On Sunday, we will be treated to a glut of Lost that rivals the Super Bowl: a two hour retrospective, a two and a half hour finale, and then a one hour Jimmy Kimmel about Lost.  If you have no interest in the show - just avoid ABC on Sunday.  (And avoid the Food Network tonight.  I am very excited about the Dinner Impossible tonight from the set of Lost.  I love seeing the cast when they aren't in character, like on the Ace of Cakes from over there last year.)

I have been a fan of Lost since the first season, sixth episode ("House of the Rising Sun").  That was when I stopped listening to my friend Toney telling me all the awesome stuff that was happening and started to watch it myself.  I never missed another one - and we have all the seasons on DVD.  I bought season one and went back and watched the whole thing to make sure I had seen all the episodes.  I have read Doc Jensen's excellent and challenging work in recapping the shows over at ew.com since the very beginning.  Yes, I have had my falling outs with them.  When Michael inexplicably shot Ana Lucia and Libby in Season Two, I just about quit watching the show.  It had become too violent for me.  But, somehow, it lured me back by the next week.  Like most Lost fans, I hated the Paolo and Nikki storyline and was happy they got whacked.  And, while I didn't have as many issues with the time travelling lines as some people, I started to get frustrated late last season.  And that carried over into season six.

I have gone on record on this blog, in my Facebook posts, in conversations with people that I now am watching Lost out of obligation instead of excitement.  I've invested too much into the show to not see how it ends.  Heather still enjoyed the show, but I was more excited about Glee and Castle and the USA stable (Psych, White Collar, Royal Pains).  I grew weary of the convoluted plots, the introduction of new mysteries and characters so late in the game.  And I just got worn out from always trying to read into everything.

But something changed last week during the episode "Across the Sea."  Many people got very mad at the episode, feeling it just brought more mystery than answers.  But, to me, it clicked everything into place.  That continued this past week with "Why They Died."  I feel that I finally get it - finally know what the show is all about.  I also finally completely grasp the genius that went into the show.  And I can't wait to Sunday.

To understand Lost, you need to play video games.  Think about when you are playing one of the Mario games.  You land into this place and go off:  fighting all these enemies, figuring out puzzles, putting your life at risk.  You battle koopa troopas and goombas and guys riding on clouds.  And then at the end of the level, you battle what you think is the bad guy.  Only that turns out to be one of the lieutenants.  And all you really did was gain access to another set of battles - followed by another lieutenant.  Eventually, after busting through all these pretenders, you are finally left with a battle with the main bad guy.  This is the person behind it all.  He's the one who built all the intricate and overly difficult traps.  He's the one who kidnapped the princess or stole the magic beans or whatever.  When you beat him, you finally have won - unless it is one of those really mean games and they surprise you with yet another person who was actually the one behind it all.

Lost is something like this.  What's the point?  We finally have found out that the island contains this special light - the source of goodness and all that awesomeness.  And that light needs protected.  The true battle is good vs. evil - defense of this light vs. its destruction.  It is more than Others vs Castaways.  It is more than Castaways vs. Smokey.  It is even more than Jacob vs. Man in Black.  It is protecting the light.  All of those other things were like layers (or levels) that had been wrapped around that defense.  The closest level is the one of Jacob against the Man in Black.  This has been going on for apparently centuries.  But they are just the latest in a long line of protectors and destroyers (kind of like the long line of button pushers in the hatch).  The drama of Jacob vs Smokey drew our castaways into the fray.  Jacob was looking for a replacement, knowing that he couldn't stay alive forever.  So he recruited and interjected himself into their lives.

Once they arrived, they faced the dangers - but it wasn't immediately being drawn into the true battle for the light source.  Sure, that battle was there.  Smokey (Man in Black) made an appearance in the very first episode and his influence was felt throughout the whole series - Jack's father, for one example.  These castaways were not ready for the true battle.  They were selfish and broken and weak.  The gauntlet they would have to face would change them.  At first, it was largely due to the rough terrain.  Then it was Rousseau shooting at them - and her warning about the "sickness."  There were The Others.  The Hatch.  The Dharma Initiative.  All of that looked like it was the main reason for everything.  We spent hours trying to figure out the etchings in the Hatch, trying to glean info on what was going on.  We watching the Orientation Film dozens of times, reading into every word.  It looked like the mysterious Dharma Initiative was the main thing.

Then the focus switched to Ben Linus and the Others.  We had the super-annoying Tailies diversion.  It seemed like a whole season was spent learning about a group of people who all got whacked in short order.  (I am thoroughly convinced that Season Two was merely because the show runners had to come up with stuff to keep the show going until they were able to get into the final battle.  ABC's decision to let them have an end date saved the series.  Otherwise, we all would have had to put up with seasons and seasons of those kind of diversions.)  And all along the way, there were these crazy and mysterious things happening.  We wanted answers.  What's the deal with the polar bears?  What is up with the numbers, the whispers, the skeletons?  Soon, the Dharma Initiative was tossed aside and many fans went with it - angry that so much time was spent on some goofy group of hippy scientists.  Every time they popped back up (like in Season Five's trip to the 1970 era Dharma world), we would hope this would bring answers.  But, like Will Smith found out in I, Robot, it was about asking the right questions.

The castaways were working their way through all of the battles to get to the final true battle.  All of those other conflicts - the Others, Dharma, Widmore, Freighter Folks, Flash Forward, Flash Sideways - they were actually caused by people trying to get to that Source.  The Dharma group was there trying to tap into the amazing properties of the Island that was generated by the Source.  So there was a whole series of mysteries involved in each group that came into the battle.  And each one of those would divert us from the main battle.  Once the castaways broke through a set of conflicts, the show just jettisoned them - and left tons of questions unanswered in the process.

This is what drove people, myself included, nutso.  "How dare they suck me in to how Hurley and Libby were at the same institution and then just kill her?"  But, we were getting distracted by the side issues.  Frankly, it was like getting really far into a video game and then wondering what the Goombas' motivation for doing something was.  When you are about to fight Bowser in the final showdown, should you still be getting thrown off by why some Koopas can fly and only some can throw hammers?

If you think back on the series, it was all constructed for this moment.  Everything was about getting to this point.  But there was a maze to get to this point.  We can look back and see Jacob's hands all over the place.  His emissary Richard popped up all over.  Jacob had led the castaways there.  And his desire to protect the Source had led to many of the conflicts.  The Man in Black was present throughout.  He was trying to kill the candidates.  He was wrecking havoc.  He was trying to find a way to kill Jacob.  And then he was trying to find a way off the Island.  The creators of the show had this battle raging behind the scenes from the very beginning.

It was a classic Hero's Journey from literature.  Just like Odysseus had to traverse multiple battles on his way home, the castaways also had to fight their way to the one true answer.  Their questions many times when unanswered.  "What do the numbers mean?  Where is Cindy the Stewardess?  Why do The Others kidnap kids?"  They would get distracted or get involved in another skirmish.  They would suffer the effects of another group's attempts to gain control of the Island.  Bad guys and good guys would flip like Othello pieces when they realized what was really at stake.  More questions.  "What is the importance of Miles and Hurley being able to talk to the dead?  Did Sayid turn Ben bad?  What's the deal with Dogan?  Why did Kate get her name crossed of?"  And then finally, around the fire in last night's episode, Kate asked the right question.  She asked Jacob what all the people had died for.  And Jacob exhaled with a look of relief and satisfaction on his face.  He didn't come up with a snarky response.  It wasn't another red herring.  It was as if he was relieved he finally had the opportunity to enlighten them.  "If you sit down around the fire, I'll tell you why."

And then he laid it all out right there.  There is a Source.  If it isn't protected, things will get bad.  If Man in Black doesn't get killed, things will get bad.  There is a war.  YOU have to finish it.  And then Jack took the job of protector (was there a doubt?).  They finally had the answers.  They didn't then respond with, "OH YEAH?!?  Well, then tell me how that black horse showed up in season one!"  They came to grips with the reality of the situation and readied themselves for what promises to be a thrilling final battle.  Smokey did his part, removing some of the extra baggage (Zoe, Widmore).  [For the record, I don't think Richard is dead.  I know that was a big throw, but wasn't he immortal?  And if Smokey could have killed him, he already would have.]  What we have left is the final combatants.  Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley on one side.  FakeLocke on the other.  Ben on his own side.  Desmond as a weapon to be manipulated.  And, unfortunately for him I fear, Miles is there as another piece of cannon fodder.

I'm not sure of the way the Sideways World plays into all of this.  I am sure it plays a part into how to get rid of Locke.  But it is just another piece in the overall battle of protecting the Source.  (I also think it was created through yet another attempt to manipulate that Source.)  I kind of feel like the Castaways.  As a viewer, I have been through a lot.  I have had my heart broken, my trust shaken, my pulse quickened.  And now, I am finally understanding and ready for the final showdown.  I cannot wait for Sunday's show.  All of my questions may not end up being answered.  But I have a feeling that at the end, I won't care if they aren't.  It really has been a brilliant show.

Of course, if the show ends with it all being a dream of some guy in Vermont or the castaways end up in a jail cell or if it just ends with a black screen, I reserve the right to reject everything I just said.

Lost?

I have hesitated to write this post for fear that I would soon be eating my words, or unleash the vitriol of the most rabid fan base West of Skywalker Ranch.  But I finally have come to the place where I can hold in my opinions no longer.  (Maybe my bashing of what many people consider a justified Best Picture has empowered me.  Of course, I wonder how many of those people actually SAW said movie.)  The fact is that I am really having a hard time keeping my enthusiasm for Lost.  I know, it is hard to admit, but admission is the first step to recovery.

There was a time when I thought Lost was the best show on television.  It was touching and shocking and thrilling and mysterious.  And it was dang good.  It was also fun to dig around after the episode to discover hidden clues as to what actually happened.  I loved reading Doc Jensen's articles on EW.com that attempted to recap and cast theories on what was happening.  I would visit fan sites and review high-res pictures of confusing shots like the inside of the Hatch and the Orientation Film.  It was fun.

In the second season, the show seemed to lose its way a bit with the introduction (and ultimate obliteration) of the tail section.  In fact, I went so far as to say that Lost had ceded its title of "Best Show on TV" to Heroes - then in its super first season.  But, as Heroes lost its mojo in unforgivably tanking the season finale (never to regain it), Lost righted its ship.  There were moments where it was hard for me to stomach the violence in Lost, or the casual approach to the lives of characters.  I also began to be troubled by the way that Lost's producers would build up a big mystery, only to cast it aside in favor of a new reveal.

This last issue has actually become a very troubling habit.  The Lost seascape is littered with discarded stories that once seemed very important, but then just got flung away like a used vomit bag (The Numbers, Dharma, Desmond).  The fans put a great deal of time discussing things and trying to tie things together, only to see all their work nullified as a new season lurched forward.  Characters were just randomly and cruelly killed off before their lines were fully filled out (Rousseau, Mr. Happy, Eko, Libby).  And now, this last year, we have been promised answers!  Reveal!  Explanations!  Only, the answers are now about questions that we never even asked.  Or they are about storylines that just were brought up last season.  The whole Jacob/Man in Black battle wasn't even brought up until the Season Finale of Season Five.  Is it really the best time to be introducing a new mystery - in the second to last chapter?  

What has happened is that I have actually begun dreading Tuesday nights.  Watching Lost stresses me out so badly.  "So quit watching it, you dimwit!"  I have invested too much time watching and analyzing to quit now.  I keep hoping that by May, I will actually figure out all of what happened in the show.  So I plod on through.  It is a weird feeling - I feel like I HAVE to watch the show, just to get a sense of completion.  It is too far into the game to bail.

There still are some great performances on Lost.  The shows are still very good.  I thought "The Substitute" a couple of weeks ago was a great episode.  Terry O'Quinn (Locke) and Michael Emerson (Ben) are just amazing actors - their stories always pull me in.  And surprisingly, Josh Holloway's Sawyer has gone from my least favorite character to my favorite (now that they got rid of Elizabeth Mitchell's Juliet).  I think from time to time I see the flashes of brilliance that once was the hallmark of Lost.  And I'm sure tonight's Ben-centric episode will be great.  But, I feel like the producers are so intent on keeping the mystery alive and building towards this huge revelation, that they actually have sacrificed some of what made the show so good.  At the beginning, it was about how would these seemingly random people survive on a bizarre island after a tragedy.  It was about the characters.  Now, though, it is about the mystery, the Island.  The characters are not trying to survive or escape.  They already got away and a bunch of them came back!  The Island is the main character.

The problem is, I wouldn't have watched a show about an Island.  Or its guardians or secrets.  I was drawn in by the people.  They were such powerful individuals with incredible stories.  It would be like Star Trek making a show where they focused on the ship.  "It's the touching tale of The Enterprise and its nacelles."  Uh, no.  It has actually gotten to the point where I don't even care what happens to the characters on Lost any more.  I should have been devastated by the turn Sayid took last week.  But, when the show ended, I just kind of was numb by all the violence.  I didn't even care.  I just wanted the show to end.  That is a BAD sign.  I really just want the show to end so I don't feel like I have to watch it any more.

Mysteries are good.  Shows need things to string along through their seasons for continuity and history.  I love seeing things referenced from seasons past in shows like How I Met Your Mother or Big Bang Theory.  It cracks me up.  And I appreciate mystery in a show.  But there has to be an ending point.  There has to be some payoff for the time invested.  The producers of the show have actually said that they don't plan on answering all of our questions.  What?  They weren't OUR questions.  They were THEIR questions that they led us to ask.  And now they aren't going to answer them?  I don't appreciate that.

I have gotten to the point where I look forward to Tuesday nights again.  But it isn't because of Lost.  It is because of USA's White Collar.  And I like Monday because of ABC's Castle.  And Wednesday for USA's Psych.  All three of those shows have mysteries and history and things to figure out over time.  But they also all have great characters, who are still the main focus of the show.  Castle hasn't made it where the mystery is the point of the show.  The mystery is laid out so that Castle, Beckett, and the cops figure it out.  The same with Psych.  White Collar has some "big story" mysteries that float through - but not at the expense of the tremendous interplay between the characters.  (USA's Royal Pains is another show in that vein.)  To most "critics," those four shows pale in comparison to the deepness and richness of Lost.  They aren't on par with the intricate construction of Lost.  At this point, though, I am quite content with the cozy stories presented by those shows - rather than the ornate, confusing, and empty mausoleum that is The Island.

Live Together; Die Alone

The wife and I were watching the Golden Globes the other night. (Don't you hate it when people use the phrase "the wife." It seems so calloused and insensitive. Like she's just an object in the house. "I was sitting The Couch with The Wife and The Dog watching The Television and eating The Dinner." I'm going to start over.)

My wife - my beloved gift from God and object of my affection - and I were watching the Golden Globes the other night. Well, we were fast forwarding through them and catching snippets. We didn't do to well when it came to rooting for our favorites. Neil Patrick Harris and Michael Emerson got robbed by John Lithgow. Arrogant genius James Cameron won twice. Meryl Streep won - I just get tired of her winning everything. Lost got shut out. (How does this show not even get nominated?!?) But there was one bright moment before we ditched the show. Glee won best comedy show. I'm sure there were people all over the country who were up in arms that 30 Rock didn't win . . . AGAIN. But we were thrilled.

But what I like most about the show is the realism. I know some people (like my brother in law Mike) will laugh at that - saying that no musical show or movie can ever be realistic since it is a musical. I am, however, talking about the story lines. It shows teens, teachers, and parents alike trying to make it in the world. The teen stories are very close to what I have seen in working with students: overly concerned about sex and relationships, social standing issues, dreams to "escape" their hometown. And the show itself is pretty uplifting in its messages and atmosphere - even thought I certainly don't agree with all the statements and positions offered up.Glee has quickly become one of our favorite shows. We have been watching the first set of episodes again, since new ones won't show up until March. And we have both CDs from the cast. For those of you who don't know, Glee is a show about a glee club in a high school in Ohio. As you would expect, the glee club is not the hippest spot on campus. It is mocked and kicked around by both the nationally ranked cheerleading squad and the abysmal football team. Things begin to change when the star quarterback joins glee club, eventually causing several cheerleaders and football players to follow suit. The music is fun. The acting and performing are top notch (unlike ABC Family's lame teen shows like Secret Life of an American Teenager).

One of the biggest story arcs is the quest to belong - to have a place where you can be yourself and to have friends who will love you no matter what. It drives just about every episode. The first group to sign up for glee club were, as you might expect, like the Island of Misfit Toys. They wanted somewhere that they could feel special - somewhere that their disabilities and weight and sexuality wouldn't doom them to a life of getting tossed in dumpsters, locked in port a pottys, and doused with slushees. And as the season went on, these kids provided this safe place to each other - for the most part.

Does this struggle ever really end? In Glee, we even see the adults searching for acceptance and love and a place to belong. Everyone in the show totes some level of insecurity or scarring - just like in real life. And, just like in real life, the people who seem the most confident and put together are often the most messed up. In one very well shot scene, one teen girl puts her own agenda first and shuns those students who had helped her. In her moment of greatest success, a teacher tells her, "Congratulations. You have gotten everything you ever wanted. Enjoy." And we are left looking at the girl as she has a devastated look on her face, more miserable than she ever had been.

It is amazing what a social creature mankind is. We hear people say they want to be loners. "I am a rock. I am an island." But I have not really met too many people that wear that too well. We all want people to love and accept us. We need that. Why has Facebook exploded so rapidly? People love being able to connect and interact. They love being a part of something. Companies that are succeeded are ones that foster this mindset. I worked for Apple for nine months last year. I honestly think that Apple's most brilliant innovation was not the iPhone or the iPod. It was creating a sense of community. Look at how people describe Apple and the people who love the company. The call it the Mac Cult. There is a definite culture fostered by Apple for its customers. For those people, it becomes something they are proud of being a member of. Think that is crazy? Look around at how many Apple logos you see on cars. Do you see Microsoft stickers around? People are proud of their Apple gear and their affiliation with the company. (The fact that Apple actually is just that much better is beside the point.) And you know? That same exact mentality is generated for employees of the company. It is one of the most attractive things about working there. You belong. You are special. You are accepted just the way you are. Trust me, it is an amazing place to work. It isn't perfect - name a place that is. But it certainly works very hard to make its workers and customers feel special.

We all desire that kind of camaraderie. People need it. We need to know that someone will miss us, that someone wants us to be around. It is essential for us to survive and thrive. Eventually, it has to be more than swapping status updates and wall posts. We want to be able to truly open our hearts and know that someone else will still see all the crazy spill out and not run screaming. Finding a true friend, a true place to belong is a lifelong quest. Stockpiling Facebook friends won't cut it. There are many times that I would gladly trade the 600+ "friends" on my Facebook account for one person to go to a movie with or have a good chat with at Bagelheads.

The title of this post comes from Lost - another of our favorite shows. On the surface, it is about survivors of a bizarre plane crash on a very special island. You can dive into the many different stands of mythology and philosophy and the like. But even the creators have said that the heart of the show is relationships. They are all broken people who are struggling to fix themselves and find how to interact with those around them. It doesn't matter who they are and when they got there, each character has to learn how to relate to the people and world around them. They aren't just faces getting eaten by a smoke monster, like so many sci-fi offerings. They feel like real people with real struggles. It doesn't matter if you are trying to open hidden hatches, fight off tropical polar bears, or survive tenth grade - we can't do it alone. At least not very well. We need to have others to help us on our way. And if you find people that you can harmonize a kicking choral version of "Bust Your Windows," even better.

Greatest Night of Television

Before I start talking about one of the greatest nights of television in recent history, let me make a few corrections and additions to my running diary of American Idol from Tuesday.

- The winning song WAS written by Christian recording artist Scott Krippayne. Weird. First, don't you think professional singers should have been eliminated from that contest? Second, isn't it ironic that Christian music is considered so lacking in quality by the music industry, yet it was good enough for the AI song finale? Third, does this actually highlight how cheesy the AI final is by the fact that the final song was a cheesy one written by a Contemporary Christian artist?

- Chris Daughtry has only sold 2.5 million albums. My bad.

- When I said JoJo and JoJo Junior Miss, that was referring to Katharine McPhee.

- I didn't actually watch the show live. i watched it on DVR and guessed on the times. HAHAHAHAHA. I'm a dork


Okay - last night, we had the results show of American Idol and the season finale of Lost. I wanted to give some comments on each - because I know both of you are dying to know what I thought.

AMERICAN IDOL
- I alternately loved and hated the show.
- I loved the Gladys Knight number with the girls. Wow!
- I loved the opening duo with Blake and Jordin.
- I loved Blake's beatbox battle with Doug E Fresh.
- I loved any time someone named Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood was on stage
- I hated the stupid Golden Idol awards.
- I hated the performances by Tony Bennett, Green Day, Gwen Stefani, and Bette Midler.
- I hated Sanjaya's solo. Why him and not Lakisha?
- I hated any time someone named Taylor Hicks was on stage.
- Jordin deserved to win and will probably be a huge star.
- I thought Clive Davis was funny. He took shots at Kelly Clarkson and her refusal to use the assigned songwriters on this album (actually he took about ten shots at her). He took shots at Taylor and McPhee. But he at the same time had to praise Clarkson, Daughtry, and Carrie - while patting his own back. And how old is this guy? 95? 102?
- I think the American Idol tour will be very good this year.
- The Beattles tribute was good. It would have been awesome if it had ended with Sir Paul McCartney coming out at the end to sing.
- For all of you AI haters, just take a look at who participated in the night and who was in the audience to realize that this show is HUGE in the entertainment world.
- I thought it was awesome that Melinda and BeBe and CeCe got to sing together.
- Where was Fantasia?
- Where was Clay?
- Overall score: 9/10

LOST
- I said on this blog a few months back that Heroes had surpassed Lost. After watching the two finales, I must say i was very wrong. Tim Kring - creator of Heroes - go watch the Lost show and talk to your buddies over there for some lessons on how to close a season out. Heroes did such a great job all year and then had the weakest finale. Lost, which had stumbled a bit in the Fall, made it all pay off with a very strong Spring, and then a Finale that blew your mind.
- Death count: 14 or 15 (depends on if one guy will stay dead)
- I cannot believe that I have to wait NINE MONTHS to see another episode of Lost.
- Every single person brought their "A Game" last night. My heart was pounding five minutes into the show.
- I found myself this morning in the shower just standing there thinking about what the heck just happened on Lost. Now THAT'S a good show.
- SPOILER ALERT: If you haven't watched it, don't read the rest of this post.
- I will miss Charlie. But it was amazing how they made that happen.
- Hurley is awesome. Even after everyone minimized him the whole last few episodes, he comes through tonight.
- I think our survivors just opened a monstrous can of worms. I can't even begin to guess what they are going to deal with now.
- I had no clue at all that the Flashback with Jack was actually a Flashforward until it happened. And the questions that came up after that? Good night.
- I think that Jack's dad someone got resurrected on the island and is still alive, Kate married Sawyer, and Locke is the one who died. Or none of that. Who knows.

A Big Steaming Scoop of TV

I have been so busy that I haven't even been able to try to post lately. There have been several different things I wanted to post about, though. All of them have to do with TV, so I am just going to condense them into one huge delicious serving of TV prattle.

GRAMMYS
I wanted to do a live blog for the Grammys. But I completely forgot that it was even on the air until it had started. We went to a small group for our new church (oh yeah, we found a church - woo hoo - check it out here) and when we got back the show had already started. From what I read, I didn't miss much. I hate the Dixie Chicks, so I wouldn't have enjoyed the huge party everyone threw for them. I've lost a lot of interest in the Grammys. Most of the awards are given away before the show itself - and the whole things just feel bloated and out of date. Speaking of out of date....

OSCARS
I do plan on doing my second annual Running Oscar Blog this year. I still have not posted my much-anticipated scathing Oscar Nominee Reaction yet. That WILL happen, and you WILL be stunned - perhaps even moved to action. Speaking of action....

LOST
The other day, I was talking about the show Heroes. I made the statement, "It is better than Lost." At that point, Lost had not returned from its lenthy hiatus. I think both of them are great shows, but Heroes does something that Lost had forgotten how to do - provide answers. Every week, Heroes leaves us with mysteries and head-scratchers that contribute to the long-term existence of the series. But there is also a lot of payoff each week. It is kind of like a comic book (funny, that). Each issue has a lot of payoff and action, but also leaves bigger unanswered questions. Lost had gotten to the point where there was very little payoff each week - just more mysteries.

Until last week. I guess Lost heard all those comparisons and decided to punch the doubters in the mouth. The last two episodes have been as good as anything in Season One. I had honestly forgotten just how good Lost used to be - before it started to buckle under the weight of its own hype. When Lost is at its best, it is the best show on television - the best acting, best writing, best spookiness. Last week's episode was amazing - and it featured the most brilliant additions to the cast (Elizabeth Mitchell, Michael Emerson, MC Gainey). This week, Lost was back to the old-school Season One mind twisters. The ending of the episode leaves you reeling, trying to figure out what just happened. And it wasn't one of those "let's throw some twisty junk in here at the end so we can hype the last five minutes." The whole show was twisty and turny and crazy - and it built on each other until the last five minutes ties it all together into a monstrous "What the heck?" moment. And it featured the other great addition to the cast (Henry Ian Cusick). So I take back my comment. Speaking of taking back comments....

TIM HARDAWAY
So, it finally happened. Ever since that Ameche guy came out as the first gay former basketball player who never mattered when he played, even when he played for Orlando, the media has been waiting for someone to trip up. They have been trotting past, present, and future players past the microphone, hoping SOMEONE would say something inflamatory. I was listening to the Dan Patrick Show on ESPN radio the other day and he had Rip Hamilton from the Pistons on. Patrick based was baiting Hamilton into making a comment. Rip said he would be okay to play with a gay player, as long as the player played well and contributed. Dan kept pushing, saying, "Come on, it wouldn't bother you? Not even a little bit?" It was ridiculous.

So, Dan LeBatard (fills in for Tony Kornheiser on PTI all the time) has a radio show down in Miami, and he drags retired Tim Hardaway in front of the mic. Hardaway was always outspoken while a player, so he was a good pick. And BAM, he goes and makes all these comments about how he hates gays and doesn't think they should be allowed in the NBA or America. LeBatard acts all horrified and says, "That's awfully homophobic and discriminatory." Hardaway keeps going. Now it is huge news. The NBA has banned Hardaway from any All-Star Game activities. Commissioner David Stern has disavowed the comments. I'm sure this will even come up when Hardaway's Hall of Fame candidacy comes up. "He was a great player, but he hates gay people."

And then Hardaway apologized, just like Isaiah Washington before him. And I'm sure that Hardaway will now meet with major gay groups and go to therapy also. That's what I don't get. Hardaway obviously feels this way - why is he now acting like he doesn't? No one believes that he was misquoted or anything. They all know that he is just trying to repair his image. The other thing is, do you honestly think he is the only one who feels this way? Get real. Out of all those athletes, the only homophobic one is a retired guy? No, he was the only one stupid enough to be honest about it. I've been around athletes before, and they are the most homophobic people out there (well second to church people). And you want me to believe that all of these sportswriters who are acting so offended by the comments are all above reproach in THEIR opinions? Sure, some of them I believe are not like Hardaway. But I bet there is a huge chunk that feel exactly the same way. I think about our local sports stations, and I severely doubt that the guys on there are perfectly accepting of gays - but they will trash Hardaway to no end over those comments. The more that media influences sports, the more that players have to be just as worried about their public image as their skills. It won't be long until we hear the pre-draft assessments of players go like this, "He's got tremendous upside. He's long and has a huge wingspan. He can shoot from the perimeter and has great court vision. He also is quite composed in interviews and looks good on a poster. He cut his cornrows to be more appealing to White America. And he has never said anything stupid on tape. High first round media potential." Speaking of potential...

AMERICAN IDOL
I could make an argument that American Idol is the best show on television. I may even do that at some point. There is no denying that it is wildly popular. I think part of the trick is that it is always changing gears and shifting. The first part is the audition - which is almost like a variety show with tons of comedy. They it shifts to Hollywood for the first round of cuts and the Round of 24. This is dramatic, like a reality show - with some audience participation. The last part is the Round of 12 with the Finalists. This is the week-by-week eviction like Survivor. Plus the show is fun and you get to hear music. And it is insanely clean. There is no cursing or sex. The worst that pops up is if one of the contestants wear an immodest outfit - but they are off the screen in a few minutes, so no big deal.

This year is is going to be more exciting that ever. There is not one person who jumps out in front like Ruben or Clay or Kelly did. But there are a lot of engaging people. There also is a ton of diversity this year - more than ever. Two of the front runners are overweight singers with incredible personalities. Seven of the 24 are African-American, one is Asian, one is half Filipino/half Portugese, two are Hispanic, one is Indian. Half of the group is from a minority group - which is cool because they all bring different takes on the music. The Indian guy sounds like Stevie Wonder. One of the contestants' dad played in the NFL, another's dad was a popular musician in the 50s. I can't wait for the real competition and singing that starts this week. Good stuff.

I'll be back with more soon - hopefully I'll get the Oscar stuff posted. We have State Student Conference this weekend and a conference in Tennessee next week. Defender is speaking at both, so I am trying desperately to get everything finished. See you all soon.