The second season of Lost can probably be summarized in two simple words: The Hatch. After discovering “the hatch” during Season 1, and finally opening it in the season finale, fans everywhere hypothesized about what might possibly be inside that underground hatch, but nobody knew for sure until the season 2 premiere. From then on, the hatch, its purpose, what lies inside, and indeed why it came to be turned into focal points for most of the story arks in the second season. Not only that, many new characters came into the fold, and it’s not just the passengers from the group that we haven’t been introduced to yet. Some new dynamics are created as a result, and of course the island has a few more secrets that are not only going to trouble the characters, but pique the interest of fans even more. 

“They survived on Luck. They survived on Instinct. But on their side of the island, they will discover, they’re not the survivors they thought they were…”

The trick that the producers and writers used to make this season so interesting, was the tactic of a sort-of bait and switch on the viewers. While answers are presented to some of the important questions that fans had wondered about for some time, they threw out even more mysteries that aren’t answered, and a huge one that comes around near the season finale of the this installment. That is not to say that we don’t find out some pretty spectacular things while taking this journey though, including just how the plane happened to crash there, and what happened to another section of the plane when they went down. On a more personal level with the cast, the triangle between Kate, Jack, and Sawyer gets a little more heated as stress levels on the island start to grow to uncontrollable heights. 

The fun of the season, is that all of the characters that survived return for this season, and each have their own personal back-stories extended to allow viewers to learn just a little more about each of them. There are some real surprises in the mix, and we come to find that several of the characters actually interacted in the past, but haven’t completely come to realize it until just now. These stories that criss-cross in the past are not always evident to the people living them, but the audience gets to see what is happening in these little tid-bits with each episode. To some new viewers it could seem that there are far too many central characters, and in the same breath, too many to keep up with on a weekly basis. I find myself really liking shows that can turn on a dime, and instead of relying on 1 or 2 main people in order to help a story progress, the entire ensemble cast plays its part in creating and continuing to help unfold the drama. 

The second season of Lost came with a lot of expectations after its whirlwind first season, and thus it had a lot to live up to when it finally aired. As a result, there were bound to be some people upset with a few of the turns in the story, but really I found them all to be necessary to keep both the dramatic overtones and interesting storylines flowing from the first episode until season finale that really left the future of the entire island up in the air. Regardless of any personal expectations, the second seasons did nothing short of shock and astound both seasoned veterans and every-so-often viewers of the show. The 24 episodes (including the 2-part finale) equaled an exciting year of Lost, and the episodes alone are worth the purchase of this DVD set. But of course, with Lost, you get a ton of bonus material to both quench your thirst for information, as well as feed your curiosity about what might come next in the show. Even better than the first season, I felt that the second season of Lost really placed this show at the top of the heap in regards to dramatic shows, and set the stage for some big plot-lines to come to an end in Season 3.

Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD