Lost Finale: Did You Still Have Some Questions or Something?
OK, I get the message. A week has passed since the season-four finale of Lost, but I can see from my flooded inbox that you still have a few little questions about what went down.
Damn you, island show, and your never-ending questions!
Click in for a few Lost finale answers (warning: a smidge of it is spoilery), along with video featuring a fellow traveler from The Daily Show With Jon Stewart who totally gets us:
Funny, no? (Wyatt, I want your job!) Thanks to DocArzt.com for pointing it out. Now, on to your Q’s.
Mike in Hermosa Beach, Calif.: I have one question that I can’t seem to find an answer to. And it’s probably meant to be that we didn’t hear, but what the hell did Sawyer whisper to Kate before he jumped?
Survey says: I’ve checked with my sources, and also a rep for the show, and have been told that the writers are “saving that secret for later on.” According to one insider who works on the show, that line (what Sawyer said) wasn’t even in the script. I wouldn’t put too much stock into the gazillion daughter-in-Alabama (or possibly Albuquerque) “What Sawyer Said” videos currently playing on YouTube, some of which claim to have official and complete subtitles. Bottom line: Only Damon and Carlton know the whole truth, so I’m staying cautiously skeptical for the time being. If anyone sees them at Comic-Con next month (when they officially break their “radio silence”), tackle them and tickle them until they tell us if we can trust this YouTube business, OK?
Jen in Boston: I just noticed on the alternate endings to the Lost season finale on abc.com, the ones with Desmond or Sawyer in the coffin. What is that about?
That is about making sure people like me (evil, evil people) didn’t spill the beans on who was in the coffin before the finale aired. And about showing off how hot Sawyer and Desmond are when wearing suits (even if they are dead). Seriously, don’t give those endings a second thought, because there’s the external drama of managing the fandom and the foilers, and there’s the show itself. As Joss Whedon once said, “Trust the tale, not the teller.”
Anais in San Marino, Calif.: What did you think of the Jack’s statement at the press conference in the “extended edition” of part one of “No Place Like Home” that Boone, Libby and Charlie survived the initial crash of 815 but died later?
I thought it was great, because it opens the door for the Oceanic Six to meet with Boone, Libby or Charlie’s relatives, which in turns opens the door (IMHO) for parallel Boone, Libby and Charlie flashback scenes, hopefully from their time on the Island. And from a strictly production perspective, I think the fact that Ian Somerhalder, Cynthia Watros and Dominic Monaghan are still friends of the show, and have exhibited a willingness to do one-off guest returns, has a lot to do with them “surviving.”
Anyhoo, I think I’ve worked out the math on this cover story: Eight souls survived the crash. (Well, eight adults and fetal Aaron, who was supposedly being incubated inside Kate.) Subtract the three who died from the eight that survived, add one newborn Turniphead, and the total comes to…the Oceanic Six. Right? (I think it’s mathematically sound now, but you tell me. I majored in fuzzy stuff.)
By the way, if you haven’t seen the extended version of the press conference scene yet, it’s embedded above, and Jack starts talking about the other three survivors at the 0:45 mark.
Chris in Henderson, Nev.: If next season of Lost is about the Oceanic Six trying to get back, wouldn’t it be more than just Emilie de Ravin who would need a holding contract? What about Josh Holloway, Terry O’Quinn, etc.?
They don’t need holding contracts because we’re going to see them on the Island next season, sillypants. I have no idea how they’re going weave together the stories from back in the world with the stories from the Island, but Sawyer, Jin, Locke and company will be present and accounted for. I think a lot of season five will be a great ironic contrast between what the O6 think is happening on the Island, and what the Islanders think is happening in the world (all while the Widmore-Linus war rages around them).
Wallace in Nebraska: Kristin, if Emilie de Ravin (Claire) is not on Lost next year, where will she be?
Emilie de Ravin will be getting mani/pedis on Melrose and, I’m sure, booking other jobs (besides the ones we already told you about), while Claire, according to an inside source, “Is off with Christian.” Whatever that means! By the way, we may still see Claire next year. It’s just that EDR is not being used as a series regular, so we shouldn’t expect to see much of her.
Eli in New York City: Kristin, I was curious to hear what you personally are looking forward to in season five? I’m hoping for more Ben-Charles scenes!
All I want for Christmas is a big reunion of the escapees with the still-stuck survivors. I can taste the tears of Jin and Sun’s reunion now (she doesn’t even know he’s alive! the horror!), and they are sweet. The question, of course, is when it will happen.
So what are your thoughts? Can you stand a season of separation? Could you survive it if they filled it in with heretofore unseen Island flashbacks, dream sequences and ghostly visitations? Post your thoughts in the comments, because I can’t be the only one worried about this big split.
Jesse in Orlando: Hey Kristin, love your site. OK, quick question, but in the opening title sequence of my, well, our, favorite show, Lost, there is a part where the logo pixelates. I’m not sure if that makes sense, but it’s as if the “O” and some of the “S” aren’t fully rendered with whatever graphics program they were using. If you ever get a chance to ask Carlton or Damon, please do. It’s a very simple title sequence, and the fact that it has a glitch must mean something.
If I recall correctly, that cheap hack J.J. Abrams actually created the Lost title sequence on his home computer as a placeholder while they were working on the pilot, and lo and behold, it stuck! I know. That dude never does anything right.
—Additional reporting by Jennifer Godwin
Who's Been Duped on Smallville? Find Out
The Smallville season premiere is still weeks away, but my inbox has been overloaded with questions regarding L.L.—not Mr. Cool J (though we have scoop on him today) or Lindsay Lohan, mind you, but one Miss Lana Lang.
Yes, she might have been blown to smithereens in last May's season finale, but as my crack team announced in the spoiler chat on Monday, Kristin Kreuk has signed on for the upcoming season and Lana will definitely be back. So, inquiring fans want to know, how the bloody hell are the writers gonna pull off that?!
Well, Big, Fat Spoiler Alert! Let me be the first to tell you the inside storyline scoop: Lana's salvation involves cloning. Yep, you heard me right. Cloning! The Francinator and Buffy Bot had better step aside, because TV has a new Doublemint twin of freaky-deaky generation.
I'll tell you more in Monday's chat, but for now you gotta tell me in the Comments section below: Am I the only one giggling at the thought of Lana 2.0? I mean, this is Smallville, and I'm sure the writers will knock it out of the park, but I just can't shake the feeling Clana's genesis will somehow involve lonely Lex, a bottle of tequila and a little weird science.
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Truth About the Rumors Concerning the Sopranos Finale
If you've been anywhere on the Internet since Sunday night's series finale of The Sopranos, you're probably aware that the opaque ending has everyone talking. And some of those talkers are just plain full of it. I've been forwarded one particular analysis of the final scene a number of times, and since I was both fascinated and kinda confused, I asked a Home Box Officer to help solve the mystery…
Chances are, you may have received this same email in your inbox. But if not, I reproduce it here for your sleuthing pleasure:
So here is what I found out. The guy at the bar is also credited as Nikki Leotardo. The same actor played him in the first part of season 6 during a brief sit down concerning the future of Vito. That wasn't that long ago. Apparently, he is the nephew of Phil. Phil's brother Nikki Senior was killed in 1976 in a car accident. Absolutely Genius!!!! David Chase is truly rewarding the true fans who pay attention to detail.
So the point would have been that life continues and we may never know the end of the Sopranos. But if you pay attention to the history, you will find that all the answers lie in the characters in the restaurant. The trucker was the brother of the guy who was robbed by Christopher in Season 2. Remember the DVD players? The trucker had to identify the body. The boy scouts were in the train store and the brothas at the end were the ones who tried to kill Tony and only clipped him in the ear (was that season 2 or 3?). Absolutely incredible!!!! There were three people in the restaurant who had reason to kill Tony and then it just ends. This was Chase's way of proving that he will not escape his past.
Yeesh, right? We haven't read anything that convoluted and all-encompassing since we spent an afternoon cruising conspiracy-theory Websites.
Well, not so fast. It's all lies and misinformation, according to Tobe Becker, an official licensed-and-bonded rep for the show, who tells us:
I honestly think this e-mail is some sort of a prank because it has spread so far and wide and is absolutely not founded on any factual information. There is no character named Nikki Leotardo in the finale episode–that is a fact–I do not understand why the person who wrote that e-mail states otherwise. The other "facts" are also incorrect–the trucker, the boy scouts, the two African-Americans who came into the diner (we KNOW that is false, because when the attempt was made on Tony Soprano’s life, one of those guys was killed in the shootout) So you can dismiss the entire e-mail…
There you have it, folks. The first proof ever that there are factual inaccuracies on the Web and/or crazy people talking out of their butts. (Okay, maybe not the first proof, since I have been implicated in at least half of the first 2,323 factual inaccuracies on the Internet, but hey, I've never been convicted. At least according to Wikipedia.)
And now that you can put your minds to rest about Nikki Leotardo, you may carry on with your carryin' on! And remember, don't stop believin'…
Major NCIS shake up
Late last night, TV Guide’s Michael Ausiello put in print words that NCIS fans didn’t want to see: “NCIS Star Goes AWOL!” As soon as the news hit the Internet, my inbox was flooded with emails asking if I knew who was set to leave the show at the end of the season. I poked my spoilers sources but no answers yet.
NCIS fans will remember that around the same time last year, we heard that Mark Harmon wanted out because of creator Donald P. Bellisario. The latter accepted to reduce his involvement on the show so that Harmon would stay. So who is it this time? Could it be Harmon? Let’s analyze the situation and make our predictions.
In his announcement, Ausiello says that it’ll be a major cast member (aka a series regular) and that the person will exit the series in a dramatic fashion. He uses the word “actor” and not “actress” but any Ausiello reader knows that he loves to blur the lines; so the choice of word here could mean either male or female. The gossip columnist also adds that this departure will create repercussions that will be felt not only next season but possibly beyond.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs: If Gibbs leaves the show, it would indeed create major repercussions. Not only is he the lead character but he is the heart and soul of the series. When Harmon announced he wanted to quit last season, fans tried to imagine the series without him and it was not a pretty sight. I doubt it’s Gibbs because the series would suffer from it too much but we never really know for sure, eh? If it is Gibbs, that would mean that Tony would become the team leader. We pretty much know how that would go since Tony was put in charge when Gibbs resigned from NCIS. I don’t think this can be classified as “a departure that will create repercussions that will be felt for years” since we know what we would get. However, if Tony is not put in charge, it would create more ripples.
Anthony DiNozzo / Abby Sciuto / Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard / Timothy McGee / Ziva David: All of these characters are great for various reasons. Their departure would be tragic but I’m not sure it would create a major effect. We (the fans) all thought getting rid of Kate was a terrible decision, yet our mourning of her was over pretty quickly. The only way I see the departure of one of these characters create a major stir that would have ripple effects beyond last season is if it’s more tragic than Kate’s demise.
Jenny Shepard: Even if Jenny is not a major character, she still is a regular. I think her departure would create the most impact within the series, of course, depending how they deal with it. Imagine that Jenny dies in a tragic death. The team would want to find out who killed her and seek revenge (like they did for Kate). Since NCIS would be left without a director, they would try to promote from within first. Gibbs was acting director once, so why not him? Gibbs becomes director, Tony would become team leader, and someone else would be hired on the team. This musical chair game would have a major effect on the show since it would change the dynamics of the series. Then again, since Jenny is not that important to the show, maybe she’s not the one leaving…
Personally, I would prefer that either Ducky, Ziva or Jenny leaves because they would be the easiest to replace (Jimmy could take Ducky’s position; since Ziva replaced Kate, someone could replace Ziva; Jenny could be replaced by someone from outside or Gibbs). I care for all three and would prefer that no one leaves and that my favorite NCIS team stays intact.
As soon as I get more clues and/or the name of the person leaving the show, I’ll inform you either in a post or in Spoilers Anonymous.