Disney / Buena Vista | 2009 | 731 mins. | Not rated
On February 2, 2010, the sixth and final season of Lost will begin. Executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse have said that they “always envisioned Lost as a show with a beginning, middle, and end,” and that by announcing when the show would end that viewers would “have the security of knowing that the story will play out as we’ve intended.” With the end near, the show seen to find its way again; season four was a bit rocky as the whole idea of answering one set of questions with another set of questions was beginning to make my head spin. Season five takes a decidedly different course. We begin to get some answers instead of questions, and it becomes clear that the series is moving to some sort of conclusion.
Season five is definitely the year of time travel. While there are definite risks with involving a shoe as plot heavy as Lost in such a device, the writers and producers handle it pretty well. While time travel plays a major role in the narrative, it rarely gets in the way of character development and advancement of the overall story.
At the end of season four, the Oceanic Six have been having a tough time trying to live a lie in the three years since their rescue. It soon becomes clear that that they’re going to have to return to the island in order to get events back in some kind of preordained order. While Jack (Matthew Fox) and Kate (Evangeline Lilly), have been at the forefront of much of the action throughout the series, this season finds them taking a bit of a back seat. It was the startling image of the dead body of John Locke (aka Jeremy Bentham (Terry O’ Quinn) in a casket, and Benjamin Linus (Michael Emerson) that has persuaded the Oceanic Six to return to the island to discover the fates of the others.
“The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham” is one of the strongest episodes of the season. Written by Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof, “Life and Death” deals with John Locke’s attempts to convince the Oceanic Six that it’s their duty to return to the island in order to save those left behind. It’s really a tragic end for Locke, because he was a man who wholeheartedly believed that the survivors of Flight 815 were tied together by a single destiny, but it’s only in death that he can make his fellow crash victims believe. Well written and well acted, O’Quinn shows why John Locke has been one of the most intriguing characters throughout the first five seasons of Lost.
Without giving away too much detail, Benjamin Linus goes through his own metamorphosis of sorts this season. Things change in a way that is very surprising for him, and has an effect on his relationship with Locke. Despite the shift in the relationship, the chemistry between O’Quinn and Emerson remains spot on; this only strengthens the story.
On the Island, are forced to deal with the fact that they are constantly going through time—basically from 1977 to 2007 and back again—the message is clear from the start; you can’t change events from the past.
Time travel is used to reveal some of the island’s back-story over the last 50 years. Sawyer and company pay a visit to the Others of the 1950s and are introduced to past leaders of the mysterious group. We also begin to get some long awaited answers to lingering questions; loose ends are tied up. Though some questions are answered, the intriguing season ending leaves no doubt that there’s plenty yet to be revealed in the sixth and final season.
The Complete Fifth Season offers a stunning 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer that’s as satisfying and technically proficient as the four full-season releases that have preceded it. The show’s palette is teeming with vibrant colors, inky blacks, and lifelike skintones. Contrast is bold and rewarding, dimensionality is outstanding, and shadow delineation is sharp and revealing. Fine textures pop, close-ups are breathtaking, edge definition is extremely crisp, and grain has been perfectly preserved. Noise spikes in low-lit scenes and minor softness is visible ina handful of shots, but each instance should be attributed to the series’ photography, not the studio’s encoding efforts. I didn’t notice any significant artifacting, ringing, crush, aliasing, or smearing.
Like its previously released seasons, Lost boasts an unequivocally immersive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track that makes the most of every eerie creak, and unsettling rattle The Complete Fifth Season has on tap. Dialogue is clear and distinct, only succumbing to the chaos of the Island when the series’ creators deem it so. Effects are crisp and prioritized. LFE output is proficient and aggressive, the rear speakers bristle with movement and ambient effects, and acoustics are incredibly convincing. Directionality is precise, pans are silky smooth, and dynamics are as bold and weighty as any Lost junkie could hope for. In short, this is reference quality stuff.
The special features are a bit lacking. Hopefully the forthcoming BD-Live content –an interactive “Lost University” that opens on December 8th—will make up for it.
• Audio Commentaries (Discs 1 & 3): The Complete Fifth Season has two commentary tracks. “Because You Left” includes an engaging, thoroughly entertaining chat between executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse in which the duo discuss the entire season. Spoilers abound (viewers are even greeted with a warning on the selection screen) but the pair cover the fifth season’s themes, plot developments, characters and more, all while cracking jokes, providing insight into the production, and revealing countless details about the series and its mysteries. For “He’s Our You,” executive producers/writers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz take a different approach, focusing solely on the episode in question.
• Lost Starter Kit (Disc 1, HD, 5 minutes): A rapidfire recap of the series thus far.
• Lost 100 (Disc 4, HD, 19 minutes): This fairly candid documentary finds the cast and crew reflecting on the success of Lost, describing the genesis of the show’s 100th episode, exploring Daniel Faraday’s character and his impact on the series, dissecting the production, and celebrating such a commendable broadcast milestone
• Lost University (Disc 5, HD): While this BD-Live feature isn’t accessible until December 8, 2009, it promises to allow users to enroll, take classes, and immerse themselves in an interactive collegiate experience that explores the stories and secrets of Lost.
• Mysteries of the Universe (Disc 5, SD, 26 minutes): This feature opens with a seemingly simple description. “The following is an episode of a short-lived television series from the 1980s. The topics explored may be of particular interest to fans of Lost.” However, in actuality, it’s an in-canon TV special that investigates the Dharma Initiative, a shady organization at the heart of several conspiracies and cover-ups.
• Making Up for Lost Time (Disc 5 HD, 14 minutes): Lindelof and Cuse are joined by key members of the cast and crew to discuss the fifth season, the various challenges they tackled from episode to episode, set design and special effects, and the time-travel elements the creators integrated into the series.
• An Epic Day with Richard Alpert (Disc 5, HD, 12 minutes): Cameras tag along with actor Nestor Carbonell as he prepares to shoot his last season five episode.
• Building 23 & Beyond (Disc 5, HD, 12 minutes): Actor Michael Emerson delivers a tour of the series’ Burbank, California production offices.
• Lost on Location (Disc 5, HD, 38 minutes): A somewhat lengthy behind-the-scenes look at the filming of seven episodes: “The Lie,” “The Little Prince,” “The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham,” “Namaste,” “He’s Our You,” “Whatever Happened, Happened,” and “The Incident.”
• Deleted Scenes (Disc 5, SD, 14 minutes): Eight deleted scenes.
• Bloopers (Disc 5, HD, 4 minutes):
• Season Play: An exclusive option that utilizes reminders and on-screen information to help viewers keep track of their progress through a season. Multiple users can also create and save separate profiles, or select “Watch with Friends” to indicate any number of them have viewed a particular episode.
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