5 Things That Make a Great Lost Character

[D-Roc]

Lost has a rich plethora of characters, so much so that every Lost fan has their own fiercly held belief as to why their favourite character is 'great'. It is often something personal to them, sometimes they cannot explain why they love their chosen character so much, but they know that to them, this character is the very thing that makes Lost great.

So I've been doing some thinking into what exactly makes a truly 'great' Lost character, and I've managed to identify what I believe to be the 5 core factors. Do you agree, disagree? Have a look and see:






5 STEPS TO GREATNESS




1.History - To be considered great, the character simply has to have a history..a backstory which allows the viewer the opportunity to make sense of who they are and why they are the way that they are. This history can be ambiguous or fairly demystfied, but it's crucial that it contains interesting themes, events and actions - something that either inspires or triggers a reaction from the fans.

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2. Mystery - having a good backstory is one thing, but adding layers to a characters past and present incarnation takes them to a whole new level. If a character's actions, thoughts processes and reactions are not always linear or logical, then it can help make them interesting or worth talking about. It can trigger discussion and even arguments amongst fan groups as some keep faith with a characters choices, whilst others do not. Being mysterious is also important for any Lost character as it means that there is something more to them that is yetto completely reveal itself.

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3. Identity - Everyone strives to be unique, and we look for individuality in our characters, so much so that we often end up gravitating to the ones who are most like 'us'. This irony makes perfect sense however, as people are drawn to like-minded people - those who they can relate to or understand or empathise with. It is no different with Lost characters - list your favourites and see just how like you they really are.

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4. Aesthetics - It's not just Tom who likes to indulge, us Lost fans do it on the regular, and who can blame us, we need something light and shallow to help us through trying to get our heads around the bloody Constants of this story! It's ok though, since it's only light-hearted fun, no-one really loves Sawyer or Claire or Ben. Oooh those intense eyes...
So yeah, often some of our favourite characters include those who we think are not too shabby. Nikki, stand up girlfriend!!

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5. Redemption - Perhaps the most important aspect in the making or breaking of a truly great Lost character. Everyone seeks redemption at some point in their lives, whether they know it or not, redeeming oneself is something which everyone will try to do. It's human nature to want to make-up for past mistakes, it's human nature to fail miserably at this and to try again, and fail again, and then try again. You get the picture. So it's no wonder that our hearts go out to those characters who go on journies of redemption, only to either fail at the first or last hurdles, or end up dying for their efforts. Redemption is not simply a religious act, it's a human necessity..the only way for us to become better people is by learning and improving..or at least trying to. It's in our DNA, it's part of our evolution both as people and as a species. So we cheer on those who against all the odds try to jump those hurdles and we mourn those who fail, and we weep with tearful pride for those who succeed.

Redemption is at the heart of Lost, as it is at the heart of us all. It's no suprise that the true greats of Lost have all experienced, or gone on to redeem themselves at one point or another..even if it's only fleeting redemption:

Sayid, Sawyer, Locke, Ben, Ana-Lucia, Mr. Eko, Charlie, Jin, Juliet...my bet is that your true LOST great, is amongst one of these..