[butter_stick]

I dislike the idea that not answering questions is something the show should be proud of, or a bold artistic choice. They simply either ran out of time or didn't know what the answers were. Something like Walt's appearances in early S2, or Jack seeing Christian offisland after a smoke alarm went off, aren't spiritual, or adding to mystery. They just stick out like sore thumbs.

I agree with him the finale was excellent, either way. But saying critical people "only wanted answers" is a cop out.

[Erigu]

Matthew Fox on Jimmy Kimmel trolling the haters tonight. "All the feedback I've gotten was amazing. There was an enormous amount of pressure on the sixth season and I feel the way that it ended was beautiful and I feel most of the audience feel that way. There was a certain segment of the audience were just about, I need to know what the answers are, and, you know, like life, some of those answers you cant answer some of those questions. I think it ended very beautifully and it was very spiritual."

Suuuuure, Matthew Fox. Why would you expect answers to stuff like what was up with those Walt apparitions, with the cabin, etc? Obviously, there was no way the show could ever address those, as they're just like the great mysteries of life itself!
...
So let's deal with the afterlife instead, because that, on the other hand...

[Full Recovery]

Are there any videos of the lost collection hidden disc out there anywhere?

[neoism]

Matthew Fox on Jimmy Kimmel trolling the haters tonight. "All the feedback I've gotten was amazing. There was an enormous amount of pressure on the sixth season and I feel the way that it ended was beautiful and I feel most of the audience feel that way. There was a certain segment of the audience were just about, I need to know what the answers are, and, you know, like life, some of those answers you cant answer some of those questions. I think it ended very beautifully and it was very spiritual."

Matthew Fox>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[VistraNorrez]

I dislike the idea that not answering questions is something the show should be proud of, or a bold artistic choice. They simply either ran out of time or didn't know what the answers were. Something like Walt's appearances in early S2, or Jack seeing Christian offisland after a smoke alarm went off, aren't spiritual, or adding to mystery. They just stick out like sore thumbs. I agree with him the finale was excellent, either way. But saying critical people "only wanted answers" is a cop out.

Your putting words in his mouth. He didn't say it was a bold artistic choice, he just compared it to life, which I think is valid. And spirituality deals a large part in mystery. Yes even the afterlife as presented in the show held tons of mystery, Erigu.

And he didn't say critical people only wanted answers, he said a certain segment of the audience only wanted answers, which is true. And it's natural that those people would be upset.

It's fine not to like the show and to have problems with it because it didn't do what one wanted it to do. But that doesn't mean it had to do any of those things. It just means that the writers aimed for something different.

And another thing, it's super easy to give answers. Anybody can make up a reason why something happened. There is nothing impressive about an answer, what's impressive is how that answer is presented. I don't think the people that wanted answers were really upset about the lack of them, they just didn't like what Lost became. Which is a perfectly fine opinion. This is mostly why the epilogue is very disposable.

At this point the show has ended, the story is done being told and you can assess the series in its entirety. It doesn't matter anymore what it started out as only what it became, especially considering it changed directions so much and dipped into nearly every genre. It would be like judging a book on it's first draft and being upset that the final draft is different. But at the same time, if you enjoyed the majority of the show I don't think the disagreeable resolution erases those good times.

[brandonh83]

So let's deal with the afterlife instead, because that, on the other hand...

Because that, on the other hand, is the core object that tied absolutely everything about the entire storyline together. Of course you won't agree or like that because you just don't, and everytime someone, be it a writer or actor or someone on here says something positive or gives their interpretation or opinions about the show you're right on the trigger to counter it despite its validity. Not to say that your thoughts are invalid, everyone can speak for themselves, so let them. You could even try to maybe listen to what other people think about the show and take more things into consideration.

The way I saw it, the show was called Lost. Lost in the manner that they're lost on a mysterious island, but considering that a great portion of the story focused on the characters, where they come from, what interests them, what makes them tick, and what they personally need as individuals in order to be happy and content, the title "Lost" also refers to the literal fact that the characters have no direction in their lives. Sawyer is a con man. Kate committed second degree murder. Jack can never seem to get a hold on his life despite being a successful spinal surgeon, mainly because he has father issues and obsessions that keep him from whatever he's trying to get to. And we all know everyone else's story.

The point I'm making is that season 6 showed us first-hand what the characters truly need in order to be content and to move on. Ji Yeon's birth was the catalyst that got Jin to remember, for example, but I think it goes beyond simply "remembering" the events on the island. Jack and his father reconciled. Claire gave birth to Aaron off the island which is something she wanted and needed, and so on. So in addition to the afterlife reality showing us where the character journeys lead to, they also develop the characters even further than they already were; we saw that Jack had a son in the afterlife, and in the Jack-centric episodes it was about him trying to be the father to him that Christian was not, and he was successful-- this was a prominent development for Jack, a struggle that he was finally able to overcome.

When everyone talks about how the show was about the characters and not the answers, that's 100% correct and on the ball. The "answers" in hindsight pertain to things on the island that exist primarily for the characters to act off of. They're details. And the fact that so many people are up in arms about getting answers proves first and foremost that these details are in fact very interesting. I find it funny that people can talk badly about the story yet getting these answers and details is incredibly super-important to them. That always amused me. For me, though, I learned virtually everything I wanted to know. I wanted to know about the numbers. I got it. I wanted to know about Jacob. Got it. I wanted to know why the island was special. Perhaps I didn't get the full story on it, but in the long run, I didn't want it. I learned that the island protects a mysterious light that may or may not be related to the afterlife. I learned that there are protectors of this light who bring people to the island, potential candidates to carry on the role. That, in effect, told me why the plane crashed in the first place; the physical reason is because Desmond didn't put in the numbers but not the "bigger" reason-- much like how that storm made the Black Rock crash on the island.

In the first season, a lingering thought I always had was that there had to be something more to Claire being pregnant when they crashed-- why have a pregnant character but not make that important? Well, they did. Kate helping Claire with the childbirth on the island would later play to fact that a lot of things that the characters would experience on the island would have been experienced in some form had they not crashed. Aaron's birth, in the long run, ended up being the catalyst for three different characters in the afterlife: Kate, Claire, and Charlie. The writers talk about this in the behind the scenes stuff. Their paths were always going to intertwine, which also ties into season 5's time-traveling laws: whatever happened, happened. Whatever was going to happen will still happen no matter what. I thought that was great because even beyond it being just cool time travel stuff, it still managed to tie in with the overall theme of the show: destiny. So, there's another resolution given to me, personally, in a huge way that I never thought I would get.

The show told me everything I was itching to know. It gave me additional information as it went along, but every grating question I had was cleared up. More importantly, it answered things that I didn't even realize were really "questions" to begin with-- how do you take a story with as many great characters as the ones in Lost, and give them the sendoff they deserved? Ingeniously, they did so in a way that was organic to the integrity of the events on the island, and did it in a very beautiful and emotional way that gave us everything we needed to know, and we left the story knowing the fates of everyone and how they were able to be reunited together beyond death. That's what Matthew Fox means when he said that it was about the characters and that it was beautifully done. So whether you like it or not, that's what the show was about and I give them major props for sticking to the core theme of the entire story since day one: destiny.

[DarkWish]

*snip*

Well said, I totally agree. I've always said that the so-called "answers" were just ways to add to the story about the characters. It was always about the characters.

In fact, I think that's why my dad got through five seasons of the show. He hates supernatural stuff, he gets confused by some of the stuff on the show, etc... so he's not there for any of the mythology or answers. He's there for the characters and to see what their fate is. I'm interested in seeing his thoughts on the final season when he watches it.

[Drealmcc0y]

Incredible post brandon

[brandonh83]

In fact, I think that's why my dad got through five seasons of the show. He hates supernatural stuff, he gets confused by some of the stuff on the show, etc... so he's not there for any of the mythology or answers. He's there for the characters and to see what their fate is. I'm interested in seeing his thoughts on the final season when he watches it.

I just think the writers were smart by incorporating the mysteries into the character stories-- and whatever mysteries weren't entirely related to the characters are the ones that the writers chose not to elaborate on any further. What happens is, when you deviate from a central story, it feels like exactly that, a deviation. When Michael told Hurley about the whispers, it felt forced. Why? Because it was the writers pulling us over to the sidelines for a quick Q&A session, instead of answering it within the natural course of the story. People didn't like that scene, and I was one of them. In fact, after seeing the series finale, that would have been a very easy conclusion to arrive at anyway and it makes for a fantastic demonstration to the point I'm making. I'm not saying that Harold Perrinneau's acting had to be bad, or the dialogue forced, but just the essence of the scene by itself was incredibly stilted and had no natural place to thrive within the story being told.

Thankfully, this is only one of my extremely limited number of problems with the last season. I like experiencing a story and putting everything together based on what I know by the end of the story, based on what details emerge from the natural flow as opposed to being flat out told what something means. It's cheap and unfair to a thinking audience. I felt season 6 largely abides by this and that's why it worked for me. Just by knowing a few new things can I look back and go "oh my god!" at something, which has been happening a lot since the story reached its conclusion.

[Erigu]

He didn't say it was a bold artistic choice, he just compared it to life, which I think is valid.

And not something you could do with any story, obviously...

even the afterlife as presented in the show held tons of mystery, Erigu.

More like "contradictions" (just like the non-limbo parts of the show, really). The afterlife did have Convenient Christian to spell everything out in the end.

he didn't say critical people only wanted answers, he said a certain segment of the audience only wanted answers

Well, maybe critical people were the ones who realized the character arcs sucked anyway?

It's fine not to like the show and to have problems with it because it didn't do what one wanted it to do. But that doesn't mean it had to do any of those things.

Yeah, screw basic storytelling! Let's introduce a whole bunch of mysteries and unceremoniously drop them!

And another thing, it's super easy to give answers.

'Guess it's super easy to write a good mystery, then!
Oh, wait. No, it's not.

It doesn't matter anymore what [the show] started out as only what it became

It's neat how you can justify pretty much any cop-out, with that sentence.

It would be like judging a book on it's first draft and being upset that the final draft is different.

No, it wouldn't. We're not talking about different drafts, here.

at the same time, if you enjoyed the majority of the show I don't think the disagreeable resolution erases those good times.

I enjoyed the whole show. As an unintentional comedy.

Because that, on the other hand, is the core object that tied absolutely everything about the entire storyline together.

No, it was just a shitty cop-out when they realized they had no idea how / couldn't be bothered to explain the parallel timeline.

the title "Lost" also refers to the literal fact that the characters have no direction in their lives.

You could have said that back in season 1 already...

The point I'm making is that season 6 showed us first-hand what the characters truly need in order to be content and to move on.

Yeah, Ben had to get punched in the face to remember. A good old hit-and-run helped Locke quite a bit, too. As for Kate, she apparently needed a good look at Claire's vagina.

in addition to the afterlife reality showing us where the character journeys lead to, they also develop the characters even further than they already were

See Sayid, Sawyer, Jin, Sun... Oh, whoops, maybe that doesn't quite work after all!

we saw that Jack had a son in the afterlife, and in the Jack-centric episodes it was about him trying to be the father to him that Christian was not, and he was successful-- this was a prominent development for Jack, a struggle that he was finally able to overcome.

Until he completely forgot about the kid, that is. Because he didn't exist in the first place. "Hey, guys, I just overcame a great struggle of mine in a video game!"

When everyone talks about how the show was about the characters and not the answers, that's 100% correct and on the ball.

Maybe next time, they should try not setting the story on a magical island with abandoned scientific stations and supernatural beings, not building their cliffhangers on a whole bunch of mysteries, not come up with so many ARGs and other bonus videos related to those mysteries...
Or, y'know... Try to have the show be about both. *gasp*

I wanted to know about the numbers. I got it.

No, you didn't.

I wanted to know about Jacob. Got it.

Hardly. He's the guy who took that other woman's vague job and even vaguer powers.
He wanted to keep his brother trapped on the island and for someone else to replace him... but waited until the end of the show to get to that. Considering "the end of the show" means "one season after his own death", one could say we weren't dealing with a particularly efficient millennia-old overpowered dude.

I wanted to know why the island was special. Perhaps I didn't get the full story on it, but in the long run, I didn't want it. I learned that the island protects a mysterious light that may or may not be related to the afterlife.

So there's that thing you wanted to know but not really, and that other thing you may or may not know. Okay.

I learned that there are protectors of this light who bring people to the island, potential candidates to carry on the role. That, in effect, told me why the plane crashed in the first place

'Doesn't quite explain why Jacob couldn't simply choose one guy/gal and be done with it. Or let them choose before bringing a whole bunch of people to the island. Maybe the guy just really, really likes collateral damage.

In the first season, a lingering thought I always had was that there had to be something more to Claire being pregnant when they crashed-- why have a pregnant character but not make that important? Well, they did. Kate helping Claire with the childbirth on the island would later play to fact that a lot of things that the characters would experience on the island would have been experienced in some form had they not crashed.

Are you arguing that Claire would have been pregnant anyway, even if the plane had not crashed (no shit?)? And that's why they put a pregnant character there in the first place? Gee, what a great justification!
Not that the flash-sideways really were a "what if they had not crashed" scenario anyway... Or would you say that, had they not crashed, Jack would have found himself with a teenage boy? And Sawyer would have suddenly been a cop instead of a con-man?

Aaron's birth, in the long run, ended up being the catalyst for three different characters in the afterlife: Kate, Claire, and Charlie. The writers talk about this in the behind the scenes stuff. Their paths were always going to intertwine

Of course, that's BS, as the only reason Kate and Charlie were there for limbo-Aaron's limbo-birth was Desmond, a.k.a. the writers' tool.

which also ties into season 5's time-traveling laws: whatever happened, happened. Whatever was going to happen will still happen no matter what.

It looks like you don't understand what "whatever happens, happens" really means anymore than the writers do... It's not "important stuff has to happen no matter what, but the details... well, who cares about the details, right?"

I thought that was great because even beyond it being just cool time travel stuff, it still managed to tie in with the overall theme of the show: destiny.

I would have said "plot contrivances", but maybe I'm paying too much attention.

it answered things that I didn't even realize were really "questions" to begin with-- how do you take a story with as many great characters as the ones in Lost, and give them the sendoff they deserved?

Does not compute. Great characters? In Lost? The sendoff they deserved?
So Locke, the guy who killed a woman he had never met in cold blood just because a ghost told him to (for some reason), deserved that last episode?

Ingeniously, they did so in a way that was organic to the integrity of the events on the island, and did it in a very beautiful and emotional way that gave us everything we needed to know, and we left the story knowing the fates of everyone and how they were able to be reunited together beyond death.

You could end any show with that limbo thing (and in many cases, it would work just as poorly as it did there). It wasn't "organic" or "ingenious" in any way.
Emotional? Yeah, as in "cheap emotional manipulation". Bring dead characters back (well, the popular/available ones, anyway) and write tearful reunions. Gee, how "ingenious".

whether you like it or not, that's what the show was about

It's not that I don't like it: it's simply not true. Revisionist BS. The show obviously was about a magical island as well.
Read the first reviews of the show from back then and tell me the audience was hooked on the characters specifically. Tell me that's how the show got six seasons.

[neoism]

..........................................................

[brandonh83]

At least I gave him something to do.

[Erigu]

And you won't reply because you have a life, huh?

[threenote]

At least I gave him something to do.

I love you

[artist]

Just rewatched the finale, man I dont see how this can be topped. :(

[butter_stick]

Just rewatched the finale, man I dont see how this can be topped. :(

*7 paragraphs breaking your post down in to 14 sections that can be nitpicked for 3 lines each*

[brandonh83]

And you won't reply because you have a life, huh?

I don't know what I would say to your points. I don't agree with them, in fact I think we're on two totally different pages, so it would be a waste of our time. I just wanted to elaborate on why I agree with them when they talk about the characters and the significance of the flash-sideways because I found that pretty much everything about the story beginning with the first season, in some way be it direct or indirect relates to it.

That, and I was playing Metroid.

[HenryGale]

This thread is just like the afterlife. Haters gunna hate, and not everyone can seem to wake up to the truth.

We created this tread so that we can be together. The time we spent together over the last 6 seasons was the most important part of it all, and so that's why we are here. Everything that happened happened, and it was all real. So we are here to remember, and to let go.

People asked when the show was over where we were going, and we weren't leaving. we were just.. moving on.

It looks like some of us still have work to do; While I'm ready to finally let go it's time I pass through that glorious light. I'll see you all in another life.

Namaste.

[IMG]http://i54.************/x6ewsw.jpg[/IMG]

[Erigu]

I don't know what I would say to your points. I don't agree with them, in fact I think we're on two totally different pages, so it would be a waste of our time.

Not even regarding, say, that thing with Aaron's limbo-birth? You still think that scene did a great job at demonstrating that those character's paths were supposed ("destined") to cross no matter what, plane crash or not... despite the fact Desmond was the one who brought them together because there was a plane crash in the first place?

[brandonh83]

Holy shit. That's a good point-- Desmond was destined to bring them to the island, and then he brings them together in the afterlife as well!

Shit Erigu *pats shoulder* see, you can do this too, you're a natural!

[Erigu]

Desmond was destined to bring them to the island, and then he brings them together in the afterlife as well!

Silly plot contrivances in both cases, too.
But obviously, I was referring to that:

Kate helping Claire with the childbirth on the island would later play to fact that a lot of things that the characters would experience on the island would have been experienced in some form had they not crashed.

[brandonh83]

It was one example of many. But whatever, I was just trying to lighten the mood.

[thekad]

This Erigu kid is creepy...

[Erigu]

It was one example of many.

And as I believe I made clear above, I disagree about the others as well. It's just that I thought I had a better chance of getting a reply by focusing on just one example.
"It was one example of many" it is, then.

whatever, I was just trying to lighten the mood.

OK? Not that there would be any need for that, as far as I'm concerned...

[threenote]

Hey Erigu, do you have Asperger Syndrome? Your posting style and persistence leads me to believe that you are a sufferer of this condition.

I'm not trying to be facetious, I just think we should understand where you're coming from and all.

[Erigu]

Hey Erigu, do you have Asperger Syndrome? Your posting style and persistence leads me to believe that you are a sufferer of this condition.

?

[Fuu]

Condescending tone aside I actually enjoy the back and forth most of the time but what amuses me the most is how invested you are in this little crusade.

?

Damn. :lol

[brandonh83]

Some pretty awesome writeups:

http://darkufo.blogspot.com/2010/09/...rson.html#more
http://darkufo.blogspot.com/2010/08/...-vozzek69.html

Yeah, Ben had to get punched in the face to remember. A good old hit-and-run helped Locke quite a bit, too. As for Kate, she apparently needed a good look at Claire's vagina.

I wanted to point this one out because I found it to be one of the more off-target points that you attempted to make.

The Ben thing was a more playful take on it all, you know, a bit of humor related to the fact that Ben has been punched so many times its unbelievable. It was a sort of in-joke on the writer's parts, but it does hold weight considering Desmond beat the hell out of him in season 5, so it was still an extremely similar circumstance. I'd probably remember a hefty Cusick beating myself. Kate re-experienced Aaron being born which is what got her to remember, and Claire's actual childbirth with Kate by her side is what got her to remember. Locke's hit and run was awesome because at first it was so surprising to see Desmond actually do something like that, but again, you're wrong there as well because it wasn't the hit and run that got Locke to remember, but rather Jack fixing his spinal column and Locke being able to move his toes/legs which made him recall the moment on the beach where he realized he could walk again. They even parallel this with similar cinematography.

And, Erigu, even beyond all of this clarification, I wasn't even talking about what got the characters to remember in the first place. What I was talking about was what the characters need to overcome, for themselves specifically in order to be content and move on. As I detailed, for Jack, it was David and being the father to him that Christian was not. That's why, early in the season, we see Jack struggling to bond with David, but eventually Jack was able to reconcile with him. This was one of the steps Jack needed to take in order to be truly happy. In the first season, Claire expressed her fears and worries of giving birth to and raising Aaron on a deserted island, that it wasn't the proper environment to raise a child. Thus, in the alt. reality, Claire gives birth to Aaron off the island. Perhaps it still wasn't in a location as ideal as say, a hospital, but maybe it was just Claire's destiny to birth Aaron in a less than ideal situation.

The purpose of the flashbacks was to show us what kind of issues and troubles the characters were having before they got on Oceanic 815, and how they brought their pre-island issues along with them, to the island, where these issues constantly reappear for them to deal with. And, similarly, one purpose of the flash-sideways was to show us that even in a different reality, these characters must overcome similar things in order to be content. I thought it was rather great, but to each his own.

[Blader5489]

So, Monday was a pretty horrible day for me. I had to say goodbye to my girlfriend, who has left the country for a year; my mysterious stomach pains (which alternate between hunger and nausea at any given moment) intensified to an insane degree; and I found out that my favorite teacher from high school, who had been like a mentor to me, had died. Needless to say, I was very physically and emotionally drained that day.

As depressed as I was, I just started aimlessly wandering through the city, but between the heat and my own condition, just walking was becoming very difficult for me.

As I started slowly heading back to my place, one hand clutching my agonizing stomach, the other grappling onto parking meters and other poles for support, I swear, I could hear Giacc's Moving On piece playing in my head.

Heading down the last block to my place, I look to my left, up into the sky, and I shit you not, I see a plane taking off, clear as day.

I don't know what the universe was trying to tell me that day, but I just had to laugh to myself at how ridiculous that all was.



tl;dr - I think I almost died on Monday :lol

[brandonh83]

Sorry to hear that, but it still sounds pretty epic.

[GameGamer]

So, Monday was a pretty horrible day for me. I had to say goodbye to my girlfriend, who has left the country for a year; my mysterious stomach pains (which alternate between hunger and nausea at any given moment) intensified to an insane degree; and I found out that my favorite teacher from high school, who had been like a mentor to me, had died. Needless to say, I was very physically and emotionally drained that day. As depressed as I was, I just started aimlessly wandering through the city, but between the heat and my own condition, just walking was becoming very difficult for me. As I started slowly heading back to my place, one hand clutching my agonizing stomach, the other grappling onto parking meters and other poles for support, I swear, I could hear Giacc's Moving On piece playing in my head. Heading down the last block to my place, I look to my left, up into the sky, and I shit you not, I see a plane taking off, clear as day. I don't know what the universe was trying to tell me that day, but I just had to laugh to myself at how ridiculous that all was. tl;dr - I think I almost died on Monday :lol

You've been to a doctor about your condition?

[gdt]

So, Monday was a pretty horrible day for me. I had to say goodbye to my girlfriend, who has left the country for a year; my mysterious stomach pains (which alternate between hunger and nausea at any given moment) intensified to an insane degree; and I found out that my favorite teacher from high school, who had been like a mentor to me, had died. Needless to say, I was very physically and emotionally drained that day. As depressed as I was, I just started aimlessly wandering through the city, but between the heat and my own condition, just walking was becoming very difficult for me. As I started slowly heading back to my place, one hand clutching my agonizing stomach, the other grappling onto parking meters and other poles for support, I swear, I could hear Giacc's Moving On piece playing in my head. Heading down the last block to my place, I look to my left, up into the sky, and I shit you not, I see a plane taking off, clear as day. I don't know what the universe was trying to tell me that day, but I just had to laugh to myself at how ridiculous that all was. tl;dr - I think I almost died on Monday :lol

:lol

Stay the fuck away from friendly dogs!

[Drealmcc0y]

So what have you guys done with your divine new box sets?

[SpeedingUptoStop]

So what have you guys done with your divine new box sets?

Threw'em in the trash.

Fuck this show.

I haven't bought one yet.

[dave is ok]

This thread is the most unintentionally hilarious thread on GAF

[gdt]

This thread is the most unintentionally hilarious thread on GAF

...ok...?

[WillyFive]

This thread is the most unintentionally hilarious thread on GAF

Why?

[threenote]

?

I can still view your posts if I want to, moran.

[thekad]

You've been to a doctor about your condition?

He is a doctor.

Why?

He's angry that Lost is better than his favorite show. It's sort of funny, actually.

[threenote]

Why?

he's a troll.

[Blader5489]

He is a doctor.

:lol

[shagg_187]

He is a doctor.

L O S T

[Erigu]

Locke's hit and run was awesome because at first it was so surprising to see Desmond actually do something like that

... Really?
I guess Lost is that special (and hopefully rare) kind of show where it's "awesome" to see one of the protagonists run over a man in a wheel chair because of sheer shock value.

I wasn't even talking about what got the characters to remember in the first place. What I was talking about was what the characters need to overcome, for themselves specifically in order to be content and move on.

Locke accepting surgery and feeling his toe? That's what he needed to "overcome" to move on to not-Christian-we-swear-but-oh-well-OK-probably-a-bit-Christian-after-all-heaven?
The whole "I'm guilty over what happened to my father" thing was something the afterlife brought about.

As I detailed, for Jack, it was David and being the father to him that Christian was not. That's why, early in the season, we see Jack struggling to bond with David, but eventually Jack was able to reconcile with him. This was one of the steps Jack needed to take in order to be truly happy.

Why? Being a good father never was an issue for Jack before that afterlife as... well, he had no kids!
The afterlife manufactured an issue for him, had him resolve it (like for Locke and his guilt, right above), and then discard the whole thing as the kid was just some NPC so "who cares? let's follow the girl in the smoking dress, now!".

one purpose of the flash-sideways was to show us that even in a different reality, these characters must overcome similar things in order to be content.

Jack wasn't exactly having troubles with a son... With his father, sure, but that's hardly the same thing. Had the afterlife been about that, you'd have a point, but...
There was also Jack's tendency to always try and fix things. Did that ever change over the course of the show? The guy died in order to fix the island, and even in the afterlife, he was investigating Locke's accident against the guy's wishes. Character growth? Where?
Sooo... who overcame what pre-mortem issue, in the end?
Ben managed not to be his conniving self... but mostly because he couldn't figure a way out, apparently (when, really, it would have been as simple as "so I changed my mind: if you don't send that letter of recommendation and resign, I ruin your reputation"... what was the guy going to do? "you know what? I think screwing that one random student over is totally worth it!"?")...
Something else?

[brandonh83]

god, this shit isn't even fucking worth it anymore. I got like one line in and literally heard my brain cells screaming for help. I'm done, I admit defeat. you win. I just don't even feel like I'm arguing with someone who is anywhere close to being on the same page as I am therefore I render this debate absolutely pointless. that is, more pointless than it already was.

[Aristion]

Erigu, why are you so mad?

[SLYspyda]

Are some of you guys familiar with the Soundtrack?

Can you please name some of the tracks that were on during some of the best emotional parts of the show? It's usually the slower ones that I like, like in a scene of someone dying, or reuniting with loved ones, or some sort of great revelation or miracle or discovery, so forth. It's usually the ones that they play near the end of a great episode that really gets me going.

The only fast one I think I like is when a group of people are going off into the Island on a long trek to find something.

Thanks

[Blader5489]

Are some of you guys familiar with the Soundtrack? Can you please name some of the tracks that were on during some of the best emotional parts of the show? It's usually the slower ones that I like, like in a scene of someone dying, or reuniting with loved ones, or some sort of great revelation or miracle or discovery, so forth. It's usually the ones that they play near the end of a great episode that really gets me going. The only fast one I think I like is when a group of people are going off into the Island on a long trek to find something. Thanks

Life and Death
There's No Place Like Home
Hollywood and Vines


Probably the 3 big ones you're looking for.

[gdt]

Parting Words
Oceanic 815
Moving On (the final piece of the show)

[MMaRsu]

Locke accepting surgery and feeling his toe? That's what he needed to "overcome" to move on to not-Christian-we-swear-but-oh-well-OK-probably-a-bit-Christian-after-all-heaven? The whole "I'm guilty over what happened to my father" thing was something the afterlife brought about.

I think it was more about Locke accepting help from anyone else but himself or some higher power he dreamed up .

[brandonh83]

I think it was more about Locke accepting help from anyone else but himself or some higher power he dreamed up .

Pretty much this. Major role-reversal between Jack and Locke.

Locke feeling his toes move is what gets him to remember. He, like the other characters in the flash-sideways, must first overcome an issue before being awoken to move on. Locke moving his toes isn't the issue he has to overcome, just the catalyst to get him to remember.