LOST

I am going to join what I am assuming most people think is an annoying fan base and sermonize about the wonders of the show LOST and how it has changed the face of television.  In September of 2006, J.J. Abrams brought a complex concept for a television show to the general public.  The idea was about a group of people who crash landed on a deserted island and must figure out a way to survive.  Wait, what?  Didn't we already see this on Gilligan's Island?  Well, if you think that all LOST consists of is Gilligan minus the comedy, you are completely wrong.  When the show first started, it followed a basic survival show formula but quickly spiraled into a complex story that kept fans guessing until the very end.  6 years later, fans across the world are still trying to figure out all of the intricacies the writers laid before them.

The epic journey followed the survivors of the Oceanic flight 815 after their plane is torn apart mid-air and they land on an unidentified island in the Pacific Ocean.  While there are 72 total survivors, the show focuses on 14 individuals with varying pasts and complications that make for an interesting chemistry of the group.  Among them are a doctor (Jack), a fugitive (Kate), a con man (Sawyer), a paraplegic who can suddenly walk (Locke), a father and son (Michael and Walt), a Korean husband and wife who "can't speak English" (Jin and Sun), a former Iraqi Republican Guard officer (Sayid), a brother and sister (Boone and Shannon), an 8 month pregnant woman (Claire), a washed up rock star bass player (Charlie), and a billionaire with bad luck (Hurley).  Throughout each of the first few seasons, we are slowly introduced to these characters' lives through flashbacks of their former lives.  We slowly discover that each character is somehow flawed and alone in the world.  This all plays a part of how the events unfold across 6 amazingly memorable seasons.  Eventually, there are complex storylines that involve a strange monster, "Others" on the island, a crazy French woman, electro-magnetic power, the Dharma Initiative, time travel, philosophy, and faith.  If I chose to write more in to the details of LOST, I would have a blog that would take hours to read.  That's not the purpose of this blog, so I will save you all and go on to how this has effected my life.

From the very first episode, I was addicted.  I had never experienced a television show that made me want to care about seemingly random people and their plight.  Every week I was left with so many mysteries and cliffhanger endings that I couldn't not watch the following week.  LOST challenged my perception of what I thought a television show should be.  Before LOST, I mostly watched sitcoms, cartoons (still do), and a lot of movies.  LOST played like an epic movie that just wouldn't end.  I found myself lost (ha, ha) inside the mysteries and spend hours upon days (total, not at a time) theorizing what was going to happen next.  I was never right...ever.

I can honestly say that I can understand Trekkies.  When you fall in love with a show, you become a dedicated follower that will defend its honor to the very end, even if there are some less than perfect episodes, and LOST had them.  LOST was not a perfect show.  It didn't even really answer the major questions of the entire show in the finale.  However, to true fans, it doesn't really matter.  It wouldn't be LOST if it didn't end with more questions.  However, I was happy with where it ended.  I wish I could see more, but to do more would probably take another 6 years to explain.

I know a lot of people out there will never give LOST a chance, just like most people will never give classic cult shows like Star Trek a chance.  All I can hope is to show one other person in this world the wonder that was LOST and get them hooked.

If you would like to see an extended, fan made trailer of the first 3 seasons, click the title of this entry.

Farewell, LOST.  Namaste.

Dio - "Holy Diver"

This is in memory of Ronnie James Dio, one of the masters of Metal, who passed away on Sunday from his battle with stomach cancer.  While I know the impact that Dio has had on the world of Metal, I have to say that I honestly never gave his music a chance when I first got into Metal.  As a new metalhead in my college years, I thought metal had to be brutal, fast, and screaming.  The "old" stuff like Dio, Metallica, and Iron Maiden never appealed to me until my tastes matured and I wanted to learn more about the history and gain a greater appreciation of Metal.  I am very glad that I found the "old" stuff and embraced it as the foundations of the music I love.

*WARNING: SHORT HISTORY LESSON*
Ronnie James Dio (or has he was born, Ronald James Padavona) started his musical career as most young people do, in the classic musical training.  He played French Horn and Trumpet and even recorded some music with rockabilly bands back in the '50's.  He had a few bands, well the same band with multiple name changes, adopted the monkier Dio from mafia member Johnny Dio, joined a band that toured with Deep Purple, and later joined Rainbow with Ritchie Blackmore (from Deep Purple).

Dio has an amazing career already before Black Sabbath came knocking on his door to replace Ozzy Osborne in 1979.  Many metal heads started listening to Metal around that time and only really know Black Sabbath as led by Dio, claiming Dio as the better of the two.  That debate will last forever.  My opinion, they are two separate bands and you really should not compare them.  They just kept the name.

It was during his first time with Black Sabbath when Dio "invented" the universal Metal symbol, the Devil Horns. As most metal heads know, it was a sign to give/protect from the evil eye that his Italian grandmother used a lot. The symbol stuck and is now an immortal symbol for all things Metal.

1982 came around and Dio decided to go solo.  He made a number of classic Metal albums with many well known songs like Holy Diver, Rainbow in the Dark, Dream Evil, and The Man Who Would Be King.  Dio did a short reunion with Black Sabbath in 1992, but returned to his solo project later.  His last project was the band Heaven and Hell, a reunion of Dio era Sabbath.  The band took the name Heaven and Hell to differentiate them from the Ozzy led Sabbath.  The name is from the titular track from Dio's first Sabbath album, Heaven and Hell.
*END OF HISTORY LESSON*

Now for the song post.  "Holy Diver" is a title track from his first album (click the title link to hear the song on You Tube).  It is a great representation of everything Dio stood for in Metal.  His songs spoke of the eternal battle of Good and Evil, and occasionally of the mystical/mythical realm.  For all those wanting to get into Metal, I would highly recommend the "Holy Diver" album as a great place to start.

The Metal community is suffering its first significant loss in its 40 year history.  We who are die hard metal heads will hold Dio is the highest regard as one of the founding fathers of a very misunderstood and under appreciated form of art.

R.I.P. Dio, we will miss you.  (6/10/42 - 5/16/10)