JJ Abrams seems to have a pattern of creating an intriguing television series, masterfully presented in a brilliant first season... and then letting it all fall downhill. The second season is still better-than-average, but some cracks appear in the facade. By the third season, it seems that the writers have all jumped ship, and the contradictions become so great that you begin to wonder if the new writers have even watched the first season. Yet you keep watching, waiting for the original promise of genius. Ratings sag, they eventually put an end date on the project, and you end up masochistically anticipating and wading through the rest of the muck to reach a final resolution. ...the answer to the great secret will be revealed in a brief two years!
So it was with "Alias", and so it seems to be with "Lost".
In "Alias", they replaced the excitement of story with on-again, off-again filial piety, and in "Lost" it's this wishy-washy love triangle, replete with a nauseating swelling soundtrack. bleagh. (New drinking game: take a shot every time one of the three changes his/her mind if s/he loves the other. You'll be able to forget how you're wasting another hour.) Same goes for the love/hate for Locke or Kevin Spacey - I mean Henry Gale, I mean "Ben". It's "can we trust Sloane? Even though he just tried to push his daughter off a building five minutes ago? Of course, he's repented!" all over again...
(Do they have any continuity of direction? I work with directors, and the good ones know the back-story on every last major and minor character. Every obscure detail and character trait, even those not referenced in any script. Ladies and gentlemen, consistency just left the building.)
...but then there's this fifth episode, which is not like the others. It's great! Why? Because they ripped off the plot from Star Trek. That's why.
If there's not some payout in the end to make up for the latent misogyny and extremist portrayals of "faith", I'll be very upset. But if "Alias" is any predictor, I expect that these will be some of many issues left unaddressed, originally introduced to boost ratings.
I rant and rave, but I guess it's not really worse than the average dreck on the telly. It's just such a waste of potential. So I'll rate it a 5.
And, of course, I'll end up watching it to the end.
Stupid Hope.
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