Friday, April 18. 2008
The Shape of Things to Come
Next week's episode is entitled, The Shape of Things to Come. This is, of course a direct reference to H.G. Wells' novel of the same name. In it, he gives us a "history of the future," where mankind destroys itself through endless wars, taking us back into the stone age. Luckily, we manage to rebuild, and eventually find ourselves launching a mission of space exploration. Unfortunately, those same seeds of mistrust lead to yet another conflict, as the population storms the launch site in protest....
So what does this have to do with LOST? Other than just another scifi reference, I would say it's an allusion to LOST's own "history of the future," as is playing out in the various flash-forwards.
Further, I guess you might even draw a parallel between the two "factions" which have established themselves on the island. The islanders are tearing themselves apart, and we all know that it can't end well. Fortunately, Wells gives us all a bit of redemption and reconciliation towards the end, and maybe that's what we can expect?
Also, you've got the Valenzetti equation, which is (I believe, I didn't get too much into the whole alternate reality thing) supposed to deal with the likelihood of humanity killing itself off. With the island as a microcosm of the world, and even without, are we to believe that there can't be a solution to the equation? That we're all doomed to eventually destroy ourselves?
Hard to say without seeing it, and I'll be honest, I've not read any plot synopses of the show yet, so I'm just shooting blind here. But we know that they don't throw out titles like that without some kind of relevancy, at least in some respect.
Or maybe they're just baiting guys like me into trying to draw parallels that aren't there
who knows?
On a side note, the 1936 screen adaptation of "Things to Come" is really a trip. The whole 1930's "Flash Gordon" aesthetic is at the same time a laugh-a-minute riot, and is all strangely beautiful and ingenius. Wells' prediction of the 1940 London Blitz is also quite astounding, as is the forward-thinking to get us into the stars. Even if its via a giant "space gun."
So what does this have to do with LOST? Other than just another scifi reference, I would say it's an allusion to LOST's own "history of the future," as is playing out in the various flash-forwards.
Further, I guess you might even draw a parallel between the two "factions" which have established themselves on the island. The islanders are tearing themselves apart, and we all know that it can't end well. Fortunately, Wells gives us all a bit of redemption and reconciliation towards the end, and maybe that's what we can expect?
Also, you've got the Valenzetti equation, which is (I believe, I didn't get too much into the whole alternate reality thing) supposed to deal with the likelihood of humanity killing itself off. With the island as a microcosm of the world, and even without, are we to believe that there can't be a solution to the equation? That we're all doomed to eventually destroy ourselves?
Hard to say without seeing it, and I'll be honest, I've not read any plot synopses of the show yet, so I'm just shooting blind here. But we know that they don't throw out titles like that without some kind of relevancy, at least in some respect.
Or maybe they're just baiting guys like me into trying to draw parallels that aren't there
who knows?On a side note, the 1936 screen adaptation of "Things to Come" is really a trip. The whole 1930's "Flash Gordon" aesthetic is at the same time a laugh-a-minute riot, and is all strangely beautiful and ingenius. Wells' prediction of the 1940 London Blitz is also quite astounding, as is the forward-thinking to get us into the stars. Even if its via a giant "space gun."
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