Lost - The Complete Fourth Season

Since crash landing on the island, all the survivors of Oceanic flight 815 have wanted is rescue. And now they think it has come. A boat and a helicopter are waiting not too far from shore. This is thrilling news to Jack (Matthew Fox). Locke (Terry O'Quinn), on the other hand, is convinced they all need to stay on the island. And so the survivors are split into two camps.

But when the "rescue party" arrives on the island, they don't seem to know who any of the survivors are and aren't that interested in rescuing them. Instead, newcomers Daniel (Jeremy Davies), Miles (Ken Leung), and Charlotte (Rebecca Mader) seem to have an agenda of their own. An agenda that involves Ben (Michael Emerson). And when Sayid (Naveen Andrews) and Desmond (Henry Ian Cusick) make it to the ship, they make a surprising discovery.

As if all this weren't enough, we have the character flashback and flash forwards. It's always obvious which one we are having. And they always provide the most tantalizing clues. In this case, the trips forward in time reveal that only six of the castaways make it off the island. Who are they? And what happens to the others?

Since the producers have now set an end date for the show, things are moving forward with precision. There are no weak episodes here. Several episodes answer long held mysteries, in fact. Of course, other episodes proceed to give us even more mysteries than we had before. And don't you dare expect anything less than a cliffhanger for the season ender.

I can't praise the excellent writing without mentioning the equally great acting. There is not one weak link on this show. And with an ensemble this large, that's saying something. I am drawn into the show every week and can't wait to spend more time with these wonderful characters.

Thanks to the writer's strike, there are only 13 episodes this season. But don't let that stop you from enjoying the drama and mystery of one of the most addicting shows on TV.

The Writer's Strike of 2007-2008 really impacted a lot of shows. "Lost," which was intended to have sixteen episodes this season, was shortened to fourteen (three of those episodes just being different parts of the season finale). I was going to start this review off in a bold way, saying that the shortness of the season actually helped "Lost" as opposed to hurt it, but I'm going to rephrase that. I don't know if it HELPED, because I want as much "Lost" as I can possibly get, but the shortness of this season definitely didn't HURT "Lost" as much as it did other shows. Let me explain.

The fourth season of "Lost" doesn't feel stunted. It feels like a long movie divided up into parts. While previous seasons did revolve around plots that were specific to that season (one being the initial intrigue of the island, two being the hatch, three being the Others), this season takes it to the next level, offering up the most standalone seasonal arc in "Lost" history. Each and every episode this season deals with the freighter and the question if the people on it have come to rescue the castaways or not. Every conflict and plotline this season stems from this. The castaways are split into two groups, with Jack and Locke as respective leaders, which elevates the rift between the two of them to violent new levels. The flash-forward that happened in the finale of Season Three is finally given context, linking up with the story of the freighter. The shortness of this season also makes that plot, dubbed the "Oceanic Six" storyline, a lot stronger, as it is able to detail who got off, how they got off, and also create the new plot thread of what is going on with those characters that got off the island.

With the finale of Season Three, "Lost" showed us that things were about to change in a big way. Including a flash-forward really shook up the nature of the show, and those who think they had "Lost" structurally figured out will be given a rude awakening this season. There are flash-backs, flash-forwards, flash-forwards alongside of flash-backs, and there might even be some time travel. The sheer brashness of the fact that the creative team of "Lost" is so interested in engaging viewers in an interactive experience that they're willing to tamper with the structure of the show so much is really refreshing. Overall, it's challenging to follow, but no more challenging than a really fun puzzle. The more impatient viewers will fault this season for being "too confusing," but I highly, highly disagree. Season Four of "Lost" is the most straight forward of all the seasons. You just have to pay attention. Because in "Lost," which continues to be the best show currently airing on television, everything matters.

9/10

I don't think even the Sleestack can save this mess of a show. The first few episodes showed so much promise - but the writers did nothing with this show. Its a confused pile of bad ideas. I tried watching some shows from this season - it was painful. Madison Ave. can put on something better between soap commercials.

First off "brilliant" The television show was so addicting that I was going through a withdrawl waiting for the next disc to come in the mail. It's like reading your favorite book that you cannot put down! I highly recommend this season for people who love twists, action, and a little romance.

I give Lost, season one 5 stars!

I have been a LOST fan since season 1 was aired in Malaysia.

Knowing that we are actually backdated here., the LOST DVD set is the only things i could rely on to watch the show's season in advance.

I couldn't wait for the pre-order online, so i just got myself the retail DVD set last month from a local store, which happens to be the AUS version of this DVD set.

Like any of the LOST fan., i was couldn't wait to know what will be happening in season 4.., i was hoping for some excitement, and it indeed didn't disappoint me at all..

The plot and stories totally blow my mind and it was all great and unexpected..!!!

Loves the bonus features and Easters eggs too.., it's worthy to support the show all that long after all!

One thing though, like some other reviewers here, i think it's kinda short for a season, there should be atleast 18 episodes for this season and the price should be cheaper than other LOST season DVD.

Other than that, it's still an awesome season for any LOST fan, and a must have for any LOST fan!