The season finale of Lost
The story opens when single mother Janet is in the park with her daughter, distracted by issues relating to her ex-husband her daughter goes missing. Panicked Janet looks for her before being kidnapped herself. She wakes up in a hotel, quickly she finds she is not the only one kidnapped. There is a stereotypical soldier, stereotypical party girl, the man who doesn’t want t talk about his past, the man who owns a car dealership, a woman with medical knowledge. Together they start exploring outside the hotel where they find themselves in a ghost town. Two of them decide to leave, but when reaching the end of the road they pass out. Panicked the remaining members hide until Chinese restaurant opens up, failing to get answers from the staff about why they have kidnapped they settle down to dinner. At the end of the meal they open fortune cookies which I assume will mean more later on in the series. After a tough day with no questions answered the group return to the hotel, because what else is there to do.
When I first heard about this series I thought it was going to be like the excellent low budget movie Cube
I think a lot of people still feel burnt by Lost, the set up of a big mystery and then the failure to deliver on that promise. Flash Forward which in many ways was gearing up to take over the sprawling interwoven sci-fi hole left by Lost was cancelled after the first series leaving people with a bizarre cliff-hanger and no answers. Persons Unknown may fall foul to audience apathy as the pilot fails to explain anything, instead just opening more mystery. The characters never really make any bold choice or learn from their experience, they all follow each other around like a pack of sheep as if individualism and character might get in the way of devices that lead the plot. When Lost first started individual character journey’s was what grabbed the audience the mystery came second. In Persons Unknown the mystery is right up front and is the only thing people talk about, I don’t care about these characters because the writers have given me nothing. Sure she has a child who will now be raised by a possibly abusive grandmother, but I have not seen anything of that child to care. It is a cheat, shorthand tricks for why should feel and urgency for the characters to escape.
Three episodes in and the series is already haemorrhaging viewers at such rate that the full 13 episodes may not broadcast, another reason why viewers may not keep tuning in, they have been down this path before investing in a show only to see it get cancelled.
Created / Written by: Christopher McQuarrie
Directed by: Michael Rymer
Starring: Alan Ruck, Jason Wiles, Daisy Betts, Chadwick Boseman, Kate Lang Johnson, Gerald Kyd, Tina Holmes, Sean O’Bryan, Lola Glaudini
Date premièred: 7th June 2010 (NBC)
UK Details: TBA
. Such a success was this multi generational look at one of life’s greatest challenges network TV rushed out to make a small screen version. Ed Begley Jr, David Arquette and Leonardo DiCaprio took on the roles of their big screen counterparts, unfortunately for Leo, the series followed the fate of other 80s and early 90s movies turned TV shows (
, 
, 
and Baby Talk (based on the film 
)) and lasted only on series.
star Peter Krause. Originally intended for a September airing it pushed back to the mid-season as actress Maura Tierney was diagnosed with breast cancer, as a result Mercy was brought up in its place. Tiernay went on to leave the series due to her treatment and Lauren Graham took her place.
this is an important show for NBC and although planned to air mid season it was rushed out to fill the gap caused by a delay in the production of Parenthood.
