LogFAQs > #908213768

OliviaTremor posted...

LOST was the game changer? Not something like The Sopranos or The Wire or Six Feet Under or The Shield that actually have satisfying, critically lauded endings? Do you not remember all the media around The Sopranos finale?

Well, it would be unfair to say LOST was the only game changer I suppose. I think there was a big shift in what an audience will put up with at the time of LOST season 2-3, where the showrunners just decided to milk the show and audiences gave up on it, and the only way to save the show was to very publicly have an end game in sight. It's not what every show does now, but certainly many shows after LOST have been able to have a narrative endgame in sight almost the entire time.

Sopranos probably fits what I'm thinking a bit more because the ratings started going down the last 'few' seasons though I don't honestly know if they announced that season 6.5 would be the last one years in advance or not. I know Sopranos was a huge influence for pay channels because it did crazy good ratings while being critically acclaimed. I don't know if they had a series that did both before that. The Wire reminds me of Arrested Development because if you liked good TV, you had the best show. But no one watched stuff like that.

Sopranos was definitely very influential in milking its final season.

But I do think LOST was influential and also a sign of the times regarding the way audiences watch shows and how western producers make shows.
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Donny: Are they gonna hurt us, Walter?
Walter: No, Donny. These men are cowards.