Yes, I watched the LOST season finale on Sunday night, and yes, I cried. A lot. Most of the time, I am the robot, but something about emotionally investing SIX years of your life in a TV show really gets the "Danish waterworks" flowing, as my grandma would say.
But for me, it wasn't just about the show ending itself, but about the many memories I have of watching the show over the years. Most, if not all of those memories involve the wonderful people I watched it with. Here are ten of my most memorable LOST-watching moments: (warning: spoilers--please read at your own risk!)
1) The pilot. We lived in Orem. Mila was four and Ethan was one and a half. I watched it by myself and I remember sitting there on my couch in my living room thinking that I had never seen anything as awesome as this on TV and I just loved everything about it. The premise alone dazzled me. If you know me , you know that I have an almost unhealthy obsession with post-apocalyptic settings where large masses of people are wiped out and then the survivors have to learn how to continue a normal society together (Stephen King's "The Stand," anyone?) Well, this fit right into that category for me and so I was in love from minute one. Lisa and I began talking about it and asked each other, "What role would I play on the island?" Certainly not hunter, maybe gatherer. Nurturer? Entertainer? Annoying person who asked incessant questions about peoples' pasts? We talked about that a lot over the years. About how people never asked each other enough questions and what we wouldn't give for just one day on the island to be a super Nosy Nora.
2) Arzt exploding. At some point early on, I began to to go to the Clarks to watch LOST. At that time, we'd watch Alias and then LOST (or vice versa), and at that time, Lisa, Brett, Chris, sometimes Eric, and myself would watch together. Chris would sometimes sing words to the creepy jungle music, like, "Keep running, go faster, they'll kill you!" It was great. Then, this one time, Arzt picked up unstable dynamite and exploded and we all laughed and then rewound it and watched again and again. It was awesome.
3) Season one finale. I'm almost positive that Brett, Lisa, and I watched in shock and horror as Mr. Friendly calmly demanded, "Now give me the boy." And we all went, "Holy crap! It wasn't Aaron, it was Walt!" It was an awesome episode to end an awesome season.
4) The first time we saw inside the hatch. Season 2, episode 1. Not sure who was there, but I know it was at least Lisa and I. We were like, "What? What is this 70's music and furniture? Who is that dude?" Then there was the long camera pan up the hatch and we gasped. This was also in 2005, during the Dark Ages when I lived in Highland and had to drive 30 minutes to get to the Clarks. That period lasted a whole two years.
5) The creepy cabin. During one season, maybe 3, Ben goes to visit Jacob in this creepy cabin and I almost wet my pants, I was so freaked out. Lisa gave me a blanket to hide under and I think Jenny hid under it with me. I couldn't stop thinking about how scared I was for weeks.
6) The first episode with a flash forward. I believe it was the season finale of Season 3 and I remember thinking, "These people just changed TV forever." It was mind-blowing, and we never saw it coming.
7) The golden age of LOST watching. I moved back to Provo in June 2007, a mere two minutes from the Clarks. Our LOST nights increased, and it was good.
8) Kate and Aaron. There was an episode in season 5 in which Kate had to say good-bye to three-year old sleeping Aaron. I watched it by myself, and I was so glad I did, because I started bawling. Like loud, ugly, uncontrollable sobbing. I might just have to skip that episode next time I watch the series.
9) LOST lunches. During season 6, Lisa, Kacy and I have frequently met to discuss all things LOST. We developed a lot of predictions, some of which came true, and ate a lot of cheeseburgers. It has definitely been a highlight of 2010 and the final season of LOST. Last Thursday, the three of us went to LOST Live at the theater to watch the producers talk about the show. We laughed and clapped (and I took notes) and felt a real kinship with the other ten people in the theater. Hey, if loving LOST makes me a first-class nerd, then seriously, NERDS 4 EVA!
10) The series finale. Lisa came over to our house. I made Dharma "beer" and Dharma chocolate bars. We watched and cried and witnessed the end of an era. I might even be crying a little as I write this. I loved the finale. I loved how happy it made me feel, and how I was happy for all of my LOST "friends" on the show. I also felt happy for all of my real friends and how much I love them. I truly believe that the friends that I have made in the last ten years are life-long friends and that is perhaps the only thought that will sustain me during my move to New York in August. And yes, I am a big sentimental sap, but I'm owning it.
So, a summary: I love LOST. I love my friends. I love cheeseburgers.
What are your favorite LOST-watching memories?
