For our book review, I read “Everything Bad Is Good For You” by Steven Johnson. In his book, Johnson argued that video games, television, film, and the internet aren’t as mindless as people used to think. One example he gives to support his argument that television plots are becoming increasingly more complex is the TV show, LOST. Since this is one of my favorite shows, I wanted to expand on this.
LOST, for those who don’t know, features the survivors of a plane crash, Oceanic 815 to be exact, on a seemingly deserted island somewhere unknown and unnamed in the Pacific. The cognitive workout that Johnson claims certain television programs give us consists of following intense and overlapping plotlines as well as following many detailed characters at the same time. In LOST, there are up to 10 main characters in any given point in a season due to survivors being killed off and others being found. There are also many overlapping plot lines like Johnson discusses. Not only are the survivors trying to get rescued, they also must try to survive on this mysterious island with polar bears, ‘the monster,’ and ‘the others.’ As some answers are revealed (I won’t tell you, go watch the show at abc.com) many more questions arise as the plot twists and turns.
I have seen many websites and forums where people discuss their LOST theories. Before I came to college, it was a weekly event for my entire family to get together and watch LOST, and afterwards discuss what crazy new thing was revealed. If you’re lost watching LOST, I recommend that you start at the beginning by watching it online, otherwise you probably won’t understand anything.
Johnson, Steven. New York: Riverhead Books, 2006. Print.
“LOST: About the Show.” ABC. Web. 8 Nov. 2009. <http://abc.go.com/shows/lost/about-the-show>.
I agree with Erika’s post. She uses her evidence from experience and also supports it with facts. I watched LOST for the first season and tried to start watching the second season half way through and got really lost because the plot, like Johnson argued in his book, is so intricate that if you miss one episode you’re lost, like the show.
I believe this is true with other current shows. Heroes is one that has become very intricate because i already thought they saved the cheerleader but there is still chaos about. If you miss an episode of these new types of shows, you’re bound to be out of sync with the story.
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