Last September, I found myself wandering through a maelstrom of television stardom at an Entertainment Weekly pre-Emmy party. My date was there to cover the event for TV Guide...the stars, the shows, the scene. I was there for cocktails, to gaze.
I remember meeting infinite rounds of young and/or seasoned actors. They were in attendance to pimp their new shows, their comebacks, their career aspirations. Since I claimed to not be in their “industry,” I quickly became a sounding board, one after the other. Over the course of the night, I must’ve had words with stars from 80% of last fall’s television lineup. Thinking back, the only conversation I mostly recall was one with Josh Radnor – the guy from How I Met Your Mother. It went something like…
Nice night. Good party.
Isn’t that the worst-
When our dates pull the intro and dip, leave us here. I don’t know you. You don't know me.
And now we’re stuck, soon talking about something we both know'll be complete bullshit.
Okay. But if you call it out like that doesn't it make this real? We’re both being totally real now.
Race you to the bottom of the drink.
Deal. Go.
…
Later in the night, my date introduced me to Carlton Cuse. He’s a large part of the multi functioning brain (Bad Robot) behind the show Lost. This encounter I haven’t forgotten. Let me tell you why…
See, this episode called, “Through The Looking Glass” had somewhat recently aired, the third season finale. He wrote the episode. And it was…for lack of a description more fitting – a moment in the art of story that absolutely turned me on my head. It was a revolution, a revelation.
I told him I didn’t remember being more moved by any form of entertainment in my entire life…across all mediums, in that moment. I shook his hand and applauded him right there. The jig was up. I think he saw it in my eyes, knew instantly that I yearned to have exactly what he had, to do exactly what he was doing. He didn’t mind. And so we began rapping…
He spoke of their recent announcement, marking an end-date for the show…six seasons. After “Through The Looking Glass,” three seasons remained. After tonight’s season four finale, "There's No Place Like Home," two remain. We spoke for a while, most of our banter insufficient to repeat here.
But as my date and I were leaving the party, I couldn’t stop thinking to myself…in the end, when it’s all said and done, Lost will go down as the finest television show ever created. That and whether I was in the mood for some fine hot sex.
I realize my claims are heavy. Two of the biggest words in the English language are best and ever. I think these guys are capable of it. I think there’s an office somewhere in the middle of J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot where these guys – these cream of creative minds got together and binged out the last three seasons of the show. I think they probably battled and struggled and fought for days before they hit a moment. I think someone said something that quieted the room…and they all sat back in their chairs and saw their show go to black, exercised, pleased.
Do what it takes to catch up. If there’s another one of these moments lurking in the next two years, someone’s got to be around to see it. Everything’s not for everyone, I know…but even if you felt only a fragment of what I felt…
And I’m mostly drug free!
…
If what I’m about to post is missing context, then either watch every episode up until this point or just watch the clip and weep silently, feel subtext.
Honestly, this changed my world…
