in preparation for season 5, i thought i'd take a look at each of the four season-opening sequences:
season 1:
opening shot: jack's eye.
this first sequence of the pilot establishes several things about the vocabulary of "lost:" the closeups of eyes opening, mystery, and disorientation. jack wakes up in a bamboo forest, sees vincent, tries to piece things together, steps out onto a lovely beach... and then turns around HOLY SHIT there's a giant airplane wreck.
season 2:
opening shot: desmond's eye
we don't know who this person is, but it's carefully shot to make us think maybe it's jack, in flashback - but whoever it is, this is clearly a flashback because we're watching him put a classic oldie on the record player ('make your own kind of music'), seeing an old computer, a cool apartment, a kitchen.. we must be watching jack at some point befo... BOOM RUMBLE. wait. ok, what does that mean? ok, this guy clearly isn't jack.. no.. HOLY SHIT the camera pulls back back back and connects itself to the last shot of season 1, with jack and locke peering into the hatch.
season 3:
opening shot: juliet's eye
there have been a lot of episodes in season 1 and 2 that begin with opening eyes. in the commentary for 'ji yeon,' editor/director steven semel said that they've been moving away from it so as not to wear out the convention. it's interesting to note how differently jack's eye extreme close up has been shot from the other two: jack's shot has a wider depth of field, is entirely in focus, and shows his iris closing behind the reflection of the trees towering above him. a much more complicated shot than it appears to be.
juliet and desmond's eye-shots have very narrow depth of field, keeping only the plane of the iris in focus. desmond's eye reflects the "window" of the hatch, and juliet's eye shows a hint of a window. neither are as dynamic as jack's shot.
the season 3 opener is my favorite because of how it plays on conventions established in both previous openings. juliet, like desmond, puts another classic song on (downtown), only this time it's a cd instead of a record - and her identity is not hidden from us, she looks in the mirror and pulls herself together (a moment that is beautifully called back in her second flashback episode).
i gasped upon first viewing, because i thought she was penelope widmore - and season 3 was going to pick up exactly where season 2 left us. but no, instead we're going to watch this mystery woman make muffins, have a book club meeting and RUMBLE.. everyone runs outside and HOLY SHIT there's henry gale and ethan and goodwin and there's the plane, breaking apart in the sky. an amazing opening that took the structure of the season 2 opener and exploded it to a deeper level.
season 4:
opening shot: a pile of papayas
here the tease was compressed into this single shot, meant to make us think we were on the island. here's what i wrote about this shot when it first aired:
the shot holds for an uncomfortably long time. we hear seagulls, we see the ocean in the background. we are on the island. rather than give us an entire fakeout scene, as we've had in seasons 2 and 3, the fakeout is encapsulated in this one shot, as hurley's camaro bursts through the fruit. not only are we off island, that shot also describes in miniature, the overall philosophy of the season: "you think you know what this show is about? you think it's about being on an island? well let's just drive this here car through what you thought this show is about."not exactly a "HOLY SHIT" moment, though it was forgivable because we were given the ultimate "holy shit" during the final seconds of season 3.
and then we see someone drinking orange juice, an echo of the opening to season 2, when we saw desmond do the same. this time it turns out to be jack. and we're teased out and teased out as to who the driver of the car is.. sharp viewers will recognize the camaro from his flashback episode.. it's hurley. and it turns out to be hurley's episode. which is also a change. the season premiere flashback has previously only belonged to jack.
so, what will season 5 bring? an opening eye? a new character? orange juice? i am seriously hoping for a damn good HOLY SHIT moment.
A nit-pick, but I think a good one: something you left out of your description of the Season 2 opener that really makes it even better than the S3 opener is the transition from recognizable morning activities to BOOM. The episode starts not with the eye, but the sound of the beeping console, a source of confusion. Then while you see a host of normal items of domestic 70's life, alongside feel good music, there are some occasional items that are _not_ from the 70's. the garbage pail, the soap dispenser, the light switch. What about the washing machine? These all look like modern items. While that could have been a set design error, I doubt it. I think it's meant to be noticed, and another source of confusion, causing you to pay more attention. Then for about ten seconds, that same music is crossed with Desmond giving himself an injection, and now the music no longer feels good, it's frightening. In fact, every cut of that part of the scene is creepy, starting with the red lock box with a Dharma logo, but it moves too fast for you to analyze it. The music now reaches its second chorus and raised volume, and now the scene goes from creepy to panic-inducing. And it's the second chorus that's cut short by the explosion.
Not 'brilliant', but genuinely exceptional.
Also, here is a kick-ass S5 E1 opener: A replay of the S1E1 opener, Jack's eye, to the wreck. Everything looks familiar. Jack runs to the beach. Camera pans, it's someone else's POV. Camera turns to reveal that it's Charlotte.
rob, yes - you've clearly watched these more recently than i have.. i had forgotten about the beeps and the changes in tone that the s2 opening goes through.
one other thing i didn't mention is how each opening sets the stage for each season.
season 1: this is about a plane crash.
season 2: this is about the hatch.
season 3: this is about the others.
season 4: this is about the oceanic 6.
season 5: this is about ezra j. sharkington.
season 6: this is the zombie season. finally!