My understanding is that they had a fairly good idea of where everything was going. Obviously not an episode to episode breakdown but a fairly good road map.
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Writer on LOST admits what fans long suspected: there was never a plan
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My understanding is that they had a fairly good idea of where everything was going. Obviously not an episode to episode breakdown but a fairly good road map.
FrontalMonk
Banned
B5 was the suggestion I was going to make. It may not have happened exactly as he originally envisioned (and it it's debatable that he actually had everything planned out as well as he said he did), but it's the closest you're going to get to a series that was plotted out from the beginning to have big payoff moments later in the series, like with Babylon 4 and Londo's death dream.
dave is ok
aztek is ok
Some things are always planned - in LOST's case they clearly knew stuff like Locke's father and Sawyer were connected from very early on but they had no idea what the Other's were even towards the end of Season 1 where they inexplicably had super powers.
enigmatic_alex44
Whenever a game uses "middleware," I expect mediocrity. Just see how poor TLOU looks.
Since I love Battlestar so much it's been recommended to me many times to watch Babylon 5. It just looks SO dated though, and some of the characters with those ridiculous hairdos... not sure I can deal with that
Season 5 finale is when I stopped watching Supernatural too. Isn't it on like Season 10 or 11 at this point? O_O Like I can't see how that show could have continued from there and stayed fresh. I did enjoy the brother dynamic, it was like male Buffy
Simply Sarah
Member
I think some number of people make a big deal about this sort of thing less because they themselves expect some super detailed grand plan and more out of spite towards what they see as annoying people running around yelling about how the writers have some super detailed grand plan and that it will all have a perfect payoff in the end.
I quit after season 3 I think. So I assume we never find out what the deal is with the polar bear and the giant foot statue? I can't even remember if we learned what the fog monster was.
There's a difference between making the story up as you go along and throwing out crazy bullshit with no intent of explanation or payoff.
There's a difference between making the story up as you go along and throwing out crazy bullshit with no intent of explanation or payoff.
dave is ok
aztek is ok
Well, it's my favorite. Little things may have changed, but the major beats were all planned well in advance. The seasons after that were a lot more loose with planning, they basically just tried to paint Walt into a corner over and over and then wrack their brains trying to get him out of him and they were good enough writers to pull it off
Bobby Roberts
Banned
Babylon 5 is always brought up as a show that "did it right" regarding the storytelling process, but again - people seem to be more concerned about HOW a show was made rather than whether the show is actually good.
I don't care HOW much of Babylon 5 was planned out if I think the story and the characters are bleh. And I think Babylon 5 is pretty fucking bleh.
I don't care HOW much of Babylon 5 was planned out if I think the story and the characters are bleh. And I think Babylon 5 is pretty fucking bleh.
njean777
Member
You learn all those things actually.
I like Supernatural, but they dialed it back. I see the show as follows:
Seasons 1-3: Where's dad and fallout
Seasons 4-6: Christian mythology
Season 7: Leviathans
Season 8: Gates of hell
Season 9: Angels
So: 1-3 is sort of an arc. 4-6 is sort of an arc. Then it's one theme per year. (and of course they fill out seasons with Monster of the Week episodes).
Pai Pai Master
Banned
LOST is one of the most overrated shows of all time.
The Elite
BOSS
Babylon 5 is such an unusual case. JMS wrote the majority of the episodes and was able to keep such strict creative control over the property. I imagine in a regular writers room you're not going to keep that level of control over the content of a series.
I'm talking about Season 1-5. Kripke's stuff. 6-10 is its own beast in multiple ways.
TemplaerDude
Member
.... I thought everyone knew this? I watches the first season and a half and it was pretty obvious they were making shit up. Were people actually in denial about this?
njean777
Member
It really isn't.
You learn what they are, but whether those explanations are satisfying or not is a different story.
Ol No Bones
Banned
They could have explained something at least.
Yeah I don't think his own show followed that advice and in fact did far worse with it overall.
Maninthemirror
Banned
the attraction to the show was never the story it was the character arcs, any true fan of the show will tell you this
No it's mainly said by people who can't be bothered to think of an actual criticism. Most people who enjoyed seem to accept it
Dead Man Typing
Member
Has there ever been a long running TV series where the writers didn't just make it up as they went along?
I feel some shows are written for the first Season with a series long arc planned out, but studios get involved, directors leave, actors become producers, writers change and eventually you're left with something that bares no resemblance to what the show started out as.
Dexter being the worst example. Ever.
I feel some shows are written for the first Season with a series long arc planned out, but studios get involved, directors leave, actors become producers, writers change and eventually you're left with something that bares no resemblance to what the show started out as.
Dexter being the worst example. Ever.
enigmatic_alex44
Whenever a game uses "middleware," I expect mediocrity. Just see how poor TLOU looks.
The Lost writers didn't have an end goal in mind. They could have AT LEAST locked that down, then work their way there and make all the bizarre mythology stuff like the smoke monster tie into the end better. Season 5 was quite good, the best season imo and at that point they could have still tied everything together logically.
BuggyDClown
Member
This is smokemonster trickery and hearsay. Never give in to his lies.
They did. I don't get the impression people have where they didn't address anything.
I think 6 is considered the worst. Most people consider 1 & 2 the best. I consider 3 & 4 the best, with 1 coming in 3rd.
As a true fan it's both. I just focus on what I loved about the series and am content with having things unanswered because many real life questions go unanswered. But I would like to know... ya know?
njean777
Member
Almost everything was answered though, it's whether you liked the answers or not that people argue about.
Bobby Roberts
Banned
You know what, I think you and I might be the only people in the thread who think Season 5 is the best season of LOST. I loved that it was the one season where they seriously embraced the fact they were a fucking 100% way-out-there sci-fi show, and they ran with that. They were always kinda/sorta hedging their bets against that, even as the show got progressively weirder and weirder.
I think embracing that nature for Season 5 caused the show to coalesce in a way only Season 1 really ever did.
enigmatic_alex44
Whenever a game uses "middleware," I expect mediocrity. Just see how poor TLOU looks.
I've never seen it but I've heard many good things about The Wire
The Elite
BOSS
Season 5 was my favourite outside of Season 1.
Ol No Bones
Banned
I honestly don't remember most of it I guess. I binge watched on Netflix a few years ago I think. I remember being horribly unsatisfied.
njean777
Member
You guys are not alone i really enjoyed season 5, the only season I was disappointed with is 6 becuase of how some of the characters are killed off,
WaffleTaco
Wants to outlaw technological innovation.
Yes, Game of Thrones for one. I am also guessing The Walking Dead, although that show has a bit more leeway. I also believe Pretty Little Liars is based on a book series as well as Gossip Girl.
That closing shot, dear god I layed on my bed for probably an hour or more just thinking.
brandonh83
Banned
Yes, I thought they were largely making it up as they went until after season 3 when the studio told them that there could be 6 seasons and from that point they settled on a game plan. I don't see how this is new information. With a TV series, especially one that you don't know how long it's going to run, it's pretty difficult to create all these pieces and keep it flowing without knowing how much time you have. I don't care when whatever was made up, I care about the execution-- which was wonky sometimes-- but for me, for the most part very enjoyable and memorable.
Gnome Scat
Member
They should have hyped up the last season and then cancel it so they don't have to worry about picking up the scraps. Then, they could have made a movie to finish it up completely unrelated to the TV show but still with an ending.
That's because they are adaptations. However, do the book writers have it figured out?
The Elite
BOSS
The GAF threads were filled with people who just showed up to watch the finale and then ask why there weren't any answers. It seems like everyone just assumed that everything you needed to know about the entire series was going to be packed into a two and a half hour finale. There was plenty of information and answer given over the course of the last two seasons.
Also, you're never going to have every mystery wrapped up.
lol, this too.
Well there's a pretty big difference between planning out entire show ahead of time and planning out a season ahead of time. In fact, I think most shows do the latter.
enigmatic_alex44
Whenever a game uses "middleware," I expect mediocrity. Just see how poor TLOU looks.
!!!
I've never met a fellow Season 5 lover before haha! Exactly, season 5 really became the sci-fi that I was always hoping for out of Lost, and I was so excited for season 6 after the 5 finale
brandonh83
Banned
Most important things were answered.
Okay, again, what's a plan? A few flags stakes down? A general idea of what the finale would be? Or something more concrete? The idea of what a "plan" can be is very fluid.
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