THE STRIKE IS OVER, HERE IS THE SKINNY…
By Seth GrunlodeÂ
2/13/2008
HALLELUJAH, PRAISE JACOB… THE STRIKE IS OVER!
This morning the cobwebs are being dusted off the couches in the Lost writers’ room and work is beginning immediately on the unfinished episodes of season 4 of Lost. Before the ink was even dry on the WGA’s new contract, Carlton Cuse was meeting with executives at ABC to determine what they would be able to accomplish.
The plan is still tentative but in addition to the 8 episodes that were completed before the strike began, another 5 episodes will be completed before the end of season 4. This is 3 short of what was originally planned. Those 3 episodes will be bundled into seasons 5 and 6. After this season, there will be a total of 35 episodes over the course of the final 2 seasons. Even though the 3 episodes will air on later seasons, the season 4 story arc will remain unchanged. The end of season 4 is simply going to be revised to fit into 5 episodes instead of the 8 originally intended. The production schedule will not allow for these 5 additional episodes to air directly following the original 8 so there will be a 4 week hiatus between Episodes 4.8 and 4.9.
There are a few other issues that will arise as a result of the strike. On the writing front, squeezing the story into 5 episodes means that we will get fewer flashbacks and flash-forwards. The decisions of what will be cut and what will remain are being made as I write this so who knows what impact it will have. The second issue is the cast. The primary cast has been on standby to resume filming for quite some time and are ready to go. However, anyone who is listed as a guest star (about half of the folks on the island) may not be available. Some could be working on other projects, and with the strike over and studios in fast forward mode to get new pilots made some may choose not to return -for potential starring roles in a new series. Carlton Cuse has said that while these are issues they have to contend with, he is still confident they will be able to get it all sorted out.
Regardless of the hiccups that the show will undoubtably face due to the strike, I think we can all rejoice in the fact that we will not be completely left in the dark. Oh, we’ll still be in the dark with a story that will confuse us horribly with mysteries… but I would rather be in the dark that way than have no Lost at all.