Behind the Scenes at LLL

A lot of you may wonder where I get my ideas, observations, thoughts and premonitions about "Lost." As we head into the long winter hiatus, I thought I'd provide a look into my sources. For most readers of this blog, my function is not to add to the huge stack of lostology available on the internet; rather, I digest what's out there and bring it to you in bite-sized little bits. So where do I get my ideas? There are six major sources

1. The Show Itself
No TV show has ever invited its audience to pick it apart the way "Lost" has. In training us to scrutinize every piece of set decoration in the background, the casting of extras, the meaning of every line of dialog and the believability of what we see on screen, "Lost" makes us a more critical audience for TV in general. A lostophile does not tolerate leaps of logic or out-of-character actions without a good explanation.

Think about this: the "h" in "Dharma" stands for "heuristics." The Encarta online dictionary defines "heuristic" as "a helpful procedure for arriving at a solution but not necessarily a proof." That perfectly encapsulates the experience of watching the show -- we must question what we see, and our assumptions about everything on that fekakte island, lest we be taken even more by surprise than is necessary.

2. The Powers that Be
This phrase is what the online lostophile community has affectionately nicknamed the show runners, Damon Lindeloff (who co-wrote the pilot) and Carlton Cuse. Lacking the celebrity (for now) of co-creator JJ Abrams, these two are now the driving creative force behind the show. Moreover, they have made themselves in many ways more accessible than almost any other creative type in Hollywood. Their roughly weekly podcasts on ABC.com clue us in to what was important in the prior week's episode, what to watch for in coming installments, and, to the extent something appeared more ambiguous on camera than they intended (e.g. the suicide of Jae Lee), exactly what we saw. They also have developed a special relationship with certain columnists and reporters, including TV Guide's Ask Ausiello, and Entertainment Weekly's...

3. Jeff Jensen
The "Doc" of lostologists, I've cited to Jensen's columns frequently on the blog. He has a wealth of literary references at his ready disposal that provide an incredible insight into the creative forces that may or may not have influenced the powers that be. His theories, while occasionally "shark-jumping" in their unsupported assumptions, are usually quite thought provoking. And by publishing Cuse's weekly "ten-word tease" every Wednesday morning, not to mention his very active role in the recently completed "Lost Experience," Jensen is the foremost partially in-the-know expert around. He also links to...

4. ew.com's TV Watch
Every week, Entertainment Weekly's website posts recaps, much like mine, which are fantastically illuminating considering their brevity. I routinely steal at least one observation from the "Lost" TV watch.

5. ABC/ American Express's "Lost and Found"
A new feature on the official "Lost" website (lost.abc.com), this recap cuts the previous night's episode into a 3-4 minute highlight reel of relevant moments. The video is followed by a series of still frames that asks (but never answers) many questions you may not have thought to ask when the episode aired.

6. The Online Lost Community
Alas, but this blog is not all there is out there. Nor is it the most complete site online. Maybe it's the timing -- "Lost" hit the airwaves as broadband internet access became commonplace -- but the online following for this show is unmatched in TV history. Some sites are clearly better than others. A favorite that I reference often (and which is in my links list to the right) is thetailsection.com. It offers what few other sites do - legitimacy. This kicked in over the summer when thetailsection.com's "Lost Experience" recap was hacked by TLE character Rachel Blake, bringing these bloggers into the actual narrative of the "Lost" universe. Other sites are out there, too, some better than others.

So that's where "LLL" comes from. Of course, there's my own innate brilliance, but I didn't want to hog all the credit!

Coming soon...

A three-part tour of the Swan hatch blast door map, and the hints it provides.