The Show
It helps if you think of Lost as a story spiraling ever-outward, and son this premiere season in almost quaint by comparison to the wild twists and revelations of the past few months. It all begins with a plane crash, as about four-dozen couldn't-be-more-different passengers find themselves stranded on an island that seems to defy the known laws of science. From there, they struggle minute by minute to try and figure out what in Heaven's name is happening, and how they will ever be rescued.
Lost began utilizing the simple, brilliant trick of contrasting the present-day island life of one or two of the characters with their pre-crash existence, with profound, remarkably relevant surprises galore. From the start the show also did a hell of a job keeping the audience off-balance, with the frequent deaths of old characters and the addition of new ones. It all adds up to a virtual explosion of small-screen originality the likes of which we were simply unprepared for in 2004, part of what I consider a new "golden age" of television. ABC apparently takes it very seriously too, as they have included once again the SeasonPlay feature to automatically help us keep track as we plow through all 24 episodes across seven platters.
The Picture
The Sound
This is not just an action-packed series, it flashes its License to Wow just about every week thanks to the supernatural elements of the story, ratcheting the events well past the comfort zone. One of its recurring setpieces, "the smoke monster," is a bizarre creation of swirling images and carefully layered sounds that are deliberately familiar to characters and audience alike if we take the time to listen, which of course we can now do better than ever in the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix. Rain falls frequently with a believable trickle in the rears, and the boom, directionality and omnipresent detail are outstanding throughout the set.
The Extras
Bonuses are plentiful in this bulging set, although largely repurposed from the previously issued DVD, in standard definition. Multiple episodes pack commentaries with producers, directors, writers and stars, which are easy and enjoyable enough to access. Much of the rest is conglomerated into large headings containing disparate info, "Departure," "Takes from the Island," and "LOST Revealed." "LOST Revealed" totals an hour and 46 minutes in SD, covering everything from the evolution of the project to the screen tests, the physical production of the pilot movie to a look at Matthew Fox's photography book created on-set, as well as the live pre-air San Diego Comic-Con panel. Although now the stuff of legend, we are reminded of co-creator J.J. Abrams' all-important decision to make the island itself a major character, to take the show way beyond any castaway drama we'd ever seen before.
"Tales from the Island," 63 minutes in SD, explores filming on location, features a funny set visit by comedian Jimmy Kimmel, and a faux-pseudo "Behind the Music" for Charlie's (Dominic Monaghan) band within the show, Gear Shaft. Also here are "The LOST Flashbacks," three minutes of additional SD insights into the characters' lives, along with an overview of the flashback technique and their mythology as they pertain to the show in general (SD, seven-and-half minutes). Lastly are 15 standard-def deleted scenes from across the first season, 16-and-a-half minutes total, about four minutes of SD bloopers, and eleven minutes excerpted from a live, sold-out panel at the Museum of Television & Radio (SD).
Final Thoughts
With the final season on the horizon, the moment is right to travel back in time to when we were all Lost for the first time. It's every bit as good as I remember, and even a bit better on Blu-ray Disc.
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