My Visit to the Island

My family and I took a trip to Oahu back during the summer of 2008, and while we were there, we decided to find some of the places where Lost is filmed. I used the Lost Virtual Tour website to find where all of these places were located. Here are some of the pictures from that visit.
This is where Sun and Jin met in Korea. We found this site in Honolulu, on the Ala Wai Promenade.

This is the place where Sun and Jin were married. This is a temple on the windward side of Oahu called the Byodo-In Temple.

We drove by a building which on the show was the Hoffs Drawlar funeral home in the Season 3 Finale in Honolulu, as well as the barber shop that Jack parked in front of. The funeral home building wasn't as pretty as the barber shop.

We also drove by Mr. Cluck's Chicken Shack owned by Hurley, which is actually a Popeye's Chicken and Biscuits in Honolulu.

There are many other places that we got to see, showing the diversity that Oahu offers - giving Lost a perfect location to shoot scenes for anywhere in the world. On Oahu, we visited the Island beach, Nigeria, Tunisia, California, Sydney Australia, Sydney airport, the island cliffs, one of the island's Dharma stations, the jungle, and South Korea.
Not only is this a fun activity for Lost fans to do, but it also gives people a chance to experience many different parts of the beautiful island of Oahu.

Pictures from Ellen Halladay, Bree Halladay, Lost Virtual Tour, and Lost-Media.

The Five Types of Lost Fans

Inside this folk group, there are subsets of this group, particularly relating to the level of dedication fans have for the show, or their motives or intentions of watching the show to the end. There are many different elements to the show, including the fact that it is an action show with mystery and science fiction added into it. It is also a character driven show, so of course there is also romance. "Because Lost attacks drama from so many of these angles, it has attracted very different audiences" (Surette). Because of these different angles, Lost fans have been separated into five general subsets (these were created by a writer at TV.com). While their dedication to the show is different, they still each have an impact on the fan community.
These are the different subsets:
1. The Catching-up-on-DVD set Fans. These people are not usually a part of the online community that engulfs the folk group Lost has created. They are in their own special corner in this larger group, because they are still trying to get to the point where they can understand what everyone else is talking about. Because of their ignorance of the current events happening in the group, they are somewhat seen as the pariahs.
2. The Angry Lost fans. These fans were mostly dedicated to the show in seasons one and two, but after so much confusion, and the level of commitment Lost requires, they usually give up. These fans are the ones that usually complain that nothing ever gets answered on the show, but on the rare occasion that something gets answered, too many more questions arise. There seems to be just too much mystery, and not enough resolution.
3. The Eternally Confused and Faithful Fans. This group really seems to appreciate the show for being quality television entertainment. "These are fans who simply take the show for what it is... Loyal to the program and filled with faith that everything will come around eventually, they don't mind that the show's questions are answered with more questions" (Surette). While they don't follow the online community as much, this group gives great benefits to the community as a whole, especially through personal contact with others, because they can express their appreciation for the show's unique elements with other fans. They are very accepting of how the show plays out.
4. Skaters and Jaters. These people are more prevalent on the online community, and they like to talk about the romantic pairings of different characters on the show. The terms Skater and Jater come from forums, where fans made up mash up names of the characters they want to see together (Sawyer and Kate, Jack and Kate). It doesn't matter so much how the whole plot concludes, it just matters who will end up with who.
5. The Super Hardcore Fans. This is the most interesting group of fans. They follow the podcasts, forums, and the Lost ARGs (Alternate Reality Games) that occur during the breaks between seasons. This is the epitome of the Lost fan folk group, and they are the ones that really try to bring everyone together as Lost fans and enjoy the show on a deep level.
All of the fans that have contributed to build up the sites dedicated to Lost help the rest of this folk group to share with others their discoveries, theories, and thoughts. The fans who add their thoughts and impressions to the online community have created an amazing community that is admirably supportive and interactive" (Surette). Even those that just search around without posting ideas and information contribute by sharing their knowledge with their own friends.

At a recent event online, two Lost fans, Jay and Jack, who have their own podcast dedicated to the show, held a live 30 hour Lost podcast in order to raise money for a charity called Autism Speaks. There were many different guests on the show over the thirty hours on March 20 and 21, 2010, including many different Lost podcasters, Jorge Garcia (Hurley), and Damon Lindelof (Executive Producer). From the hundreds of people that tuned in during this live podcast, they raised over $30,000 for Autism Speaks. It was a great success, and it is amazing to see that from the fans of Jay and Jack, and Lost, they were able to make that much money.

This community has become a very beneficial, rewarding group to be a part of. The subject matter that combines all of us together - the aspects of the show that make it great - has given us a place to commune with others and discuss the symbolism, or the theories of how the show will conclude. It has been a group that can easily invite others in, no matter what kind of fan they are. While there are different levels that appear throughout the group, such as the fans that just watch the show and contribute nothing else, or the fans that know everything there is to know about the show and talk in the jargon created around this community, the show keeps everyone at the same level and any kind of fan can communicate easily with another, because the group has so many diverse aspects to it. Fans have been able to find ways to bring everyone together and contribute their time, money, and concern to causes. Not only that, but this fan community has brought many new people together as friends.

The Phenomena of Lost and its Fans

Every Tuesday evening, people all around the country avert their attention solely to the television and watch as Lost's newest episode airs. Lost is a show that follows the lives of survivors of a plane crash on a mysterious island, where they have to deal with many problems such as others already inhabiting the island, crazy people, polar bears, and a mysterious black smoke monster. But Lost isn't just a television show. "[I]t has become an epic story filled with mystery that has garnered twenty-three million participants" (Seay xx).
Because of its phenomenal and epic status, there also comes with that a great cult following of fans. Through this brilliant television show, people have been brought together in many ways to show appreciation for Lost, through television, internet fan sites, and forums, podcasts, music, and much more. On the internet, and especially in everyday life, fans of the show make personal connections with one another. Because of this appreciation for Lost, these people have "regular contact and shared experience" making them a folk group (Sims 38). The communication that we as the Lost fans folk group have with people around us, and through online discussions, has an impact on our real life situations.
Lost has a very large fan basis all around the world. These fans come together in small groups of friends in real life and discuss the show's mysteries, mythology, and characters and watch the show together every Tuesday night. Also, these fans are easily drawn to the internet to share their thoughts and appreciation for Lost, and there are even large meetings and parties where Lost fans come together as friends whereas in reality these people are total strangers to one another. But the distinct interests that these people share with one another can bring them together as a closely knit group. An example of a large convention-like meeting is the "Sunset on the Beach" which was the official season premiere party for seasons 1, 2, 3, and 6 in Honolulu, Hawaii, where fans and even the actors and producers of the show come to celebrate the return of Lost. Another example is the San Diego Comicon which occurs every summer, where fans can ask the producers questions about the show.

So how did Lost get to this point, where people fly across the country to attend events such as the "Sunset on the Beach" or Comic-con? The intrigue of the show rests on many different aspects of the show. Some of the main aspects that makes the show intriguing is its amazing character development throughout all six seasons, and it's unending mysterious nature. Its mysteries have been pressing hard on the minds of Lost fans for the past six years, and in its last season, fans are finally getting answers to questions they've had since the first season such as "What is the smoke monster?" and "What do the numbers mean?" The questions drive us as fans and keep us on the edge of our seats, wanting to figure out the rest. Also "[w]hat makes the series unique is not merely the distinctive flashbacks and flash-forwards through time, the infinite twists and turns of the narratives, the endless symbolism, clever and often subtle references to philosophy and theology, spellbinding storylines, and captivating mysteries" (Seay xxi), along with its amazing scenery and musical score. It is because of all these elements of the show put together that it has attracted so many people worldwide. Lost fans "may be the most committed and diverse fan base in television history" (xxi).