Blog Number 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42

Television often gets a bad reputation for its low educational content and the huge amount of pointless programs, or as my mom says, if I watch too much my brain will "shrivel up and fall out of my ear." This skepticism that often bordered on contempt for all things related to TV wasn't broken in my mom until she started watching LOST. She soon anticipated Thursday nights as much as the rest of us, and even insisted on renting all of the first season so she could re-watch it between seasons. The reason for this transformation, I believe, is that Lost is not the expected trivial or superficial TV show.
In my opinion, what sets LOST apart is the way in which it challenges the viewer to keep up with it intellectually. Explanations are not dumbed down for the audience with a good deal of the plot is based in calculus, philosophy, geography,and explorations of spirituality, destiny and human nature.LOST also has remarkable literary merit, especially considering it is a 7 season long thriller. Because of the huge amount of symbols and allusions The viewers are engaged in solving the mysteries and making connections within the show. For example, the books that the characters read almost always have a direct correlation to what is happening or to what is to come. Throughout the show, literary allusions include To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, The Bible, The Lord of the Flies, The Moth, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, and the Odyssey to name just a few. Characters are even named after reputable historical figures like Locke, Rousseau, Christian Shepard (This seems like a joke, but this character actually does have some similarities with Jesus).
Apart from the educational and literary qualities of LOST that make it remarkable, the endearing characters and the numerous plot twists makes it, with out a doubt, the most exciting and attention grabbing show I have ever seen. It often is criticized for being too outlandish, with the most frequently quoted Polar Bears roaming the island and the unexplained smoke monster, but to me, it is these fantastical elements that make it so interesting. Although the massive amount of unanswered questions and unusual happenings do make it confusing at times, that LOST does not restrict itself to the things that are easily understood make it all the more intriguing.