Defending the Lost Finale on Its 20th Anniversary

Defending the Lost Finale on Its 20th Anniversary

Step aside, critics.

I’m not claiming that the Lost finale is the greatest of all time—it’s not The Shield, Newhart, or Six Feet Under. However, it certainly doesn’t deserve the intense backlash it received when the final episode aired on May 23, 2010. As we commemorate the 20th anniversary of Lost‘s debut on September 22, 2004, it’s worth revisiting the much-debated finale, aptly titled “The End,” and exploring why so many viewers felt disappointed despite its powerful themes, callbacks to significant moments, and emotional reunions.

Perhaps audiences were let down because they had already predicted the major reveal: that the passengers of Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 were in a purgatory-like afterlife in the season 6 Sideways world. We may have set ourselves up for disappointment by anticipating a shocking twist instead of appreciating the journey the creators, Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, had crafted. They stayed true to their vision rather than offering an outlandish explanation that nobody could have guessed. The finale even playfully acknowledges the fans’ theories when The Man in Black, posing as Locke, quips to Jack, “You’re sort of the obvious choice, don’t you think?”

Maybe we were also distracted by some of the show’s more peculiar choices. The “Heart of the Island” set resembled an amusement park queue, and yes, the fate of the island hinged on a giant cork—strange, to say the least. As for Claire’s season 6 wig, let’s just leave that alone.

But in the spirit of Lost, let’s put aside the nitpicking and celebrate the countless unforgettable moments in the 104-minute finale that any true fan should appreciate. The emotional reunions, where characters reconnect and “remember” their past, deliver nostalgic punches that resonate deeply.

If you don’t feel a lump in your throat watching Jin and Sun’s heartbreaking story unfold in mere seconds, culminating in their recognition of a forgotten life, then you’re made of tougher stuff than I am. And if you don’t lose your heart watching Sawyer and Juliet passionately reunite over a broken vending machine with “Kiss me, James,” then you must not love candy bars—or love itself.

Hurley’s reluctant acceptance as the island’s keeper is a delightful twist, while Benjamin Linus’s journey toward redemption—albeit imperfect—is a fitting conclusion for the show’s most complex character. Miles’ memorable line about duct tape reminds us why he’s an underrated fan favorite.

Then there’s that iconic ending. Many shows reference their pilot episodes in their finales (Seinfeld, anyone?), but few do it as beautifully as Lost. Watching Jack Shephard collapse in the bamboo grove, only for Vincent the dog to find him in the same spot where they first met, is poetic. The closing shot of Jack’s eye shutting is a brilliant mirror to the series’ premiere, which opened with his eye opening.

Ultimately, Lost was a show about relationships—Claire and Charlie, Desmond and Penny, Jin and Sun, Shannon and Sayid, Hurley and Libby, and the intricate dynamics between Kate, Jack, Sawyer, and Juliet, not to mention Rose and Bernard. The finale put these relationships front and center, delivering an experience that was both eye-opening and emotionally resonant.

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