In order to celebrate Lost‘s upcoming season six première I’m conducting a giveaway of several pieces of season six fan paraphernalia. I have two packets to giveaway that contain the following; a Lost Final Season pin, a Lost Final Season card, a Lost University card, and a Lost University pencil. (There’s a picture below.) I will give away both packets in a random drawing on the night of Lost’s première, Tuesday February 2nd.
All you have to do to enter is subscribe to this blog. (There’s a button on the left to sign up.) It’s fast and easy and you may win the prize. Once you’ve signed up for the blog reply to this post that you’ve subscribed and you’ll be entered. Remember, subscribe to the blog by February 2nd and you may win.
As many of you know, the last season of Lost starts on February 2, 2010. We Lostophiles have been waiting for over half a year for the next Lost episode and now the goal is in sight. A few weeks ago, ABC premiered several different Lost season six trailers, none of which contain any scenes from the new season but are interesting none the less. All of the trailers feature a montage of clips from Lost‘s first five seasons set to “Amazing Grace” sung by Willie Nelson. The most complete of the trailers appears to be the “Extended version,” which contains most of the scenes included in the other versions. The included clips are powerful and strongly remind the viewer why he/ she misses Lost. The music is what stands out though and what touches on several Lost themes, the most important being “redemption.”
Look at the lyrics to “Amazing Grace.” The word, “lost” is featured prominently and is coupled with the redemptive, “found.”
“Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.”
The English clergyman John Newton published “Amazing Grace” in 1779. He based the hymn on what he believed was the transformative power of God in his life. Before becoming a man of the cloth, Newton had worked on slave ships and made his money selling other human’s into bondage. Newton claimed that he experienced a spiritual awakening one night during a terrible storm at sea. Newton, who was afraid that his ship would sink, called out to God and experienced a moment of clarity that would eventually change his life. “Amazing Grace” is his song about redemption and people’s ability to change. In many ways this is what Lost is also about; each of the main characters is looking for change and redemption. Kate runs away from her problems, which means she never solves them. Jack has a need to fix things, even though it often causes him pain and hardship. Sayid is trapped in a cycle of aggression and abuse that he has repeatedly tried to stop but can’t. Each Lost character is on a journey to become a better version of him or herself and to find personal salvation. This even extends to the season five ending. If Faraday was right and then the atomic bomb will create a new history, in which all wrongs are righted. A nuclear redemption; a new Big Bang, if you will. This would move redemption from a personal matter to a cosmic one. The ultimate answer to the struggle between Locke and Jack, is redemption spiritual by nature or can it be achieved scientifically?
When speaking about John Newton and ”Amazing Grace” most people gloss over the fact that Newton wasn’t immediately changed when he called out to God. It took him many years to quit the slave trade and even longer to study and become a man of God. His redemption was a process, just like the characters of Lost. We’ve watched for five seasons as they’ve struggled to become better people. The redemption and the struggle are intrinsically linked and the process is full of pitfalls and setbacks (some literal and some figurative). Another reason that “Amazing Grace” is a wonderful choice for Lost‘s final season is that it’s a funeral hymn. The song focuses on redemption as the listener also focuses on the deceased’s life. In many way this is the beginning of Lost‘sfuneral. Will our favorites find the redemption they’ve been searching for? I don’t know but it’s probably the most fun I’ll ever have at a funeral.
