Well, three Anime series and a movie based on one of said series. Here be SPOILERS GALORE! (But no fanart. None. I am not going to draw Jack as a wolf or Locke with an automail arm. No. Just, no.) We all know this is a series that's not going to end with the old "main character looks into an empty room with a sad smile and closes the door" option. I will make two real predictions here: 1) A lot of fans are going to be really, really upset. May want to give them a break that Monday morning. 2) This series finale will inspire essays. Long, long essays. Now, the three best complete Anime series I've seen (thank you, Netflix) had exactly those kinds of endings, so let's try to use them to predict how "Lost" will end. Important terminology note before we begin: Borrowing from "Futurama", the "still stuck on Craphole Island" continuity will be known as Universe A, while the "815 landed safely" continuity will be Universe 1. "Wolf's Rain": Similar in (very) broad strokes to Watership Down, this series ended it's televised run by wrapping up a major conflict, but it didn't conclude the story. This was "fixed" with four episodes that went straight to video, essentially a four-part series finale.The "W.R."-ish Last Episode of "Lost": Every conflict in Universe A is resolved -- but not before everybody dies violently. Jack is the only character left alive, and even then he lies bleeding to death in the bamboo grove. As he slowly passes on (and a ridiculously sad song gradually builds), he gets to watch Craphole Island return to it's pre-crash, pre-Dharma, pre-Jacob and Not-Locke state. But before the credits role, we get a brief look at Universe 1. All the Universe 1 versions of the Candidates, no matter where they are, suddenly sense something. And then Jack starts running... Notes: Change a few of the details and I think this is the most likely ending of all. We are in for a bittersweet as hell ending. "Fullmetal Alchemist": Great series. Probably my overall favorite out of this bunch. Note that we're going with the series ending, and will be ignoring the "Conqueror of Shamballa" movie. Most people do anyway. (Seriously, Fritz Lang is somehow involved. WTF?).The "F.M.A"-ish Last Episode of "Lost": Sawyer is able to destroy NotLocke after that creepy kid (the one who looks like a possibly older Aaron) shows him NotLocke's weakness. Meanwhile, Jack is killed and somehow "wakes up" as Universe 1 Jack. Desmond is conveniently there to explain what's up. In the end, all the Losties in Universe A mentally merge with their Universe 1 counterparts -- and, as Desmond comments, none of them remember a thing about their Craphole Island experiences. And Jack? He's stuck in Universe A, and starts on the search for a way to cross over...Notes: This may be the best integration of the two Universes. And I'd be surprised if Jack gets off the Island. "Neon Genesis Evangelion": For the two or three of you who have never heard of this series, it is essentially to the original English-language dub of "Power Rangers" what "Lost" is to "Gilligan's Island".The "N.G.E."-ish Last Episode of "Lost": Forget the various mysteries of the Island, anything about Universe 1, who or what Jacob and NotLocke are, which characters end up on what side, or anything like that. None of that gets resolved. Instead, Jack gets to talk through his daddy issues with some other people. The end. Notes: You KNOW we're going to hear something about Jack's father one more time for the road. Why not base the whole finale on that and really get it overwith? The main case against this ending: Carlton and Damon probably enjoy breathing. "End of Evangelion": After the uproar over "N.G.E."'s... underwhelming series finale, the producers got together again and made this movie. (It was originally how they had intended to end the series, but time and money were uncooperative.) This new ending was.... ye gods, it was somethin'...The "E.o.E."-ish Last Episode of "Lost": The main conflicts of the show are, thankfully, resolved... and then some angelic beings in the form of Sayid come and hug everyone in both Universes, causing them all to dissolve into Slusho. In the end, Universe A Jack finds himself on a desolate shoreline somewhere doing... something inappropriate... to Universe 1 Locke. Locke compares this situation to getting his period. Notes: Yeah...
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Sketch of the day!
Arrrrrrgh. I was just curious. :(
This will be a Blogger exclusive, as I don't want to stain either online portfolio with this. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Sadbeard McJackwolf:
And since I am the kind of person who thinks that any horrible art thing worth doing is worth doing all the way (and Jackwolf needed some friends), here is The Worst Thing Ever:
This is essentially an amalgamation of all the worst kinds of fanart I've ever seen.
Disclaimer: No, I do not for a second regret joining Deviant Art; I've met lots of cool people there and made some great new contacts. But every so often you run into something like this and...
The thing about DA is this: Think about all the art you did in junior high that you loved at the time, then went back to look at it and said, quote, 😠. OK? Now consider: back when you and I (presuming we're around the same age, dear reader) were just starting out as artists, our embarrassing-in-hindsight artwork was safely hidden in our Sketchbooks, journals, math notebooks, and so on, where nobody else could see them. These kids have their old shames on display for the whole wide web to see. Dang.
So, anyway, "Lost"!
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I am afraid my brain has turned into mush lately. Therefore, I completely forgot to post this lovely Mother's Day song:
I've recently involved myself in a project that is so far helping me fulfill two New Year's resolutions (how I hate those): Fill a Sketchbook page every day and get in on this ACEO thing. That project is "Phylomon". Essentially, this is an open-source free-for-all good-for-your-children trading-card game I can sum up in one phrase: "Pokemon" with real species. The website better explains the basis behind the concept. My one little caveat is this: I put the "kids these days don't know biodiversity from a hole in the ground" blame on standardized testing; "Pokemon" is largely innocent here (seriously, where else can you befriend parasitic fungi and Monkey Cups?) The tests put so much emphasis on arithmetic (that is, math problems with one right answer) and reading comprehension (ie, you can tell me that Jack fell down the hill first but keep your opinions about the story to yourself because we can't grade those with the system we use). Science falls by the wayside under this system. I could go on and on about this but you really only need to know that the MCAS is the reason why I am not working in a classroom right now.
Aaaaanyway, the Phylomon project is constantly looking for submissions and I've been having a great deal of fun with it so far. I'm also periodically selling the ACEOs on Ebay, so check my seller page. ---- Feederwatch Friday! How's this for biodiversity? Red-tailed Hawk 2 (Coooooool!) Rock Pigeon 4 Mourning Dove 2 Downy Woodpecker 1 Blue Jay 1 Black-capped Chickadee 3 White-breasted Nuthatch 2 American Robin 1 European Starling 1 Northern Cardinal 1 House Finch 1 House Sparrow 20 ---- And this has absolutely nothing to do with anything but it's too fun not to share.
Originally posted in LaGremlin Land on 11/16/06. Note that this does not take the "Lost" episodes since that date into account. It also does not acknowledge the "Golden Compass" film. (But then again, who does?)
In Which A Fan of Both Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy and Damon Lindelof/Carlton Cuse/J.J. Abrams' "Lost" Sets out to Prove That the Two Series are Basically The Same Thing
"This is a kid's book series? I can't imagine what kind of pale, boring, morose kids must dig this." - Devin Faraci of CHUD.com
Well, gee, ME for one. >:( Also, if -for all it's sex and violence- the His Dark Materials series is a kid's book, then so is every other book where the protagonists *start out as* children. So I guess you can go read Lolita, kiddies. What an idjit. (I'm sorry, I read that article shortly before I wanted to post this feature and I just had to rant.) Anyway, thanks to the title, there's not much left to explain here, I hope. Needless to say, this contains SPOILERS GALORE for both His Dark Materials and "Lost". Both series are wonderful and if you have not watched/read either of them, do so now. Then come back and read this. As far as I know I'm the only one out there who sees these connections, which is weird cause I know that there are crazy "Lost" fans who want to sniff out every single possible cross-reference ever. I came up with a lot of these after rereading His Dark Materials (I started as soon as it was clear that the film adaptation was out of development limbo; I anticipate it with dread but that's irrelevant for now), and I finished the trilogy on a Wednesday. "Lost" night. And so, my fellow experimental theologians, similarities between His Dark Materials and "Lost":
Well, first, let's get the obvious stuff out of the way: His Dark Materials: Polar Bears? Lost: Polar Bears.
His Dark Materials: Science and faith? Lost: Science and faith.
His Dark Materials: Brings together a disparate group of characters who find themselves in a strange conflict involving forces way beyond human understanding? Lost: Brings together a disparate group of characters who find themselves in a strange conflict involving forces way beyond human understanding. We think.
Now, here's where things get interesting: His Dark Materials: The main antagonists in the first book are the "Gobblers". They are a mysterious group of high-ranking people with shady intentions. The Gobblers are, by all evidence, in allegiance with a larger and far shadier organization. We do not learn much about them in the early chapters -- but we do know that they are obsessed with children… Lost: The main antagonists in the second season are the "Others". They are a mysterious group of islanders with shady intentions. The Others are, by strong implication, in allegiance with a larger, far shadier organization. We don't know much about them by the end of Season Two -- but we do know that they are obsessed with children…
His Dark Materials: Very near the beginning of the first book, it is revealed that the Gobblers have kidnapped countless children. Lyra, the heroine of the trilogy, is stunned to learn that this includes her best friend, Roger. Lost: By the end of the first season and the beginning of the second, it is revealed that the Others have kidnapped Rousseau's daughter Alex, Claire (who was pregnant with Aaron at the time), the children from the tail end, and Michael's son Walt.
His Dark Materials: The Gobblers operate from a remote location (near the Arctic Circle) which nonetheless has state-of-the-art facilities. Lost: The Others operate from a remote location (Craphole Island) which nonetheless has state-of-the-art facilities.
His Dark Materials: Here's the kicker. When she meets one of the kidnapped children who has managed to escape, and when she is captured by the Gobblers shortly thereafter, Lyra learns firsthand the horrifying truth of what the Gobblers are up to. Basically, the Gobblers make the children take tests before performing bizarre and cruel experiments on them. It's implied that the point of some of these experiments is to harness a potential power that the children have… Lost: Here's the kicker. When Michael sets out to rescue Walt, and is captured by the Others, he *sort of* learns firsthand what they're up to when he is allowed to talk with Walt. Walt is able to tell his father that the Others make him "take tests" before Ms. Clue tells him to shut up. Furthermore, in the episode "Maternity Leave", it's very clear that the Others are performing some kind of bizarre experiments on Aaron before he is even born. A popular theory, backed up by some of the questions that Ms. Clue asks of Michael, has it that the Others are looking for the potential powers that "special" children have…
It really is the same story! His Dark Materials: At one point, some of the characters must travel through a place that is very like Purgatory. Lost: A commonly held, though long-dismissed, theory has it that Craphole Island is Purgatory.
His Dark Materials: A certain World in the Multiverse is inhabited by beings called Phantoms. Phantoms are very interested in adults' souls -- by all evidence they eat adult souls. Lost: Craphole Island is home to a "monster" that looks like a great, dark phantom. "Smoky" seems to be very interested in the contents of peoples' heads -- as evidenced by it’s encounters with Mr. Eko and B'enry, it can basically "read" your soul.
His Dark Materials: In an incredibly sad scene, Lyra encounters Tony, a lost boy who she first takes to be a ghost. Lost: In an incredibly creepy scene, Shannon sees the lost Walt as a sort of ghost.
His Dark Materials: Creepy Guy In A Boat - "HE (Pantalaimon) can't come." Lost: Creepy Guy In A Boat - "We're gonna hafta take the boy (Walt)."
His Dark Materials: Climaxes with an epic, apocalyptic battle involving about a zillion characters which sets about several major shakeups in the foundations of the Multiverse. Lost: Err, well, we still don't know what really happened during the season finale...
Related Links and Sources: The Wikipedia entries for "Lost", and His Dark Materials are as good enough places as any to start. "Lost" Fansites: The "Lost" Encyclopedia, Television Without Pity His Dark Materials Fansites: HisDarkMaterials.org, The Bridge to the Stars And more recently, This Article that popped up on the Entertainment Weekly website a little while ago and covers several of the more recent seasons. And which also recommends His Dark Materials to "Lost" followers. (As well as the "Matrix" trilogy, which I have just watched again recently and which plays quite differently in a "Lost" world. And I might talk much more about all this later... when I have something much better than a laptop keyboard to tpewith -- err, type with.)
