Delayed for a few days

Sorry for the delay in posting.  I had to leave the country unexpectedly, and won't be back for a few days.  Until I return, here's a question for you all.

How would you rank Lost's five season finales, in terms of quality?  For me, the rankings would be as follows:

Season Three

Season Two & Season Four (tied)

Season One

Season Five

What would your list be?  And why?

Comments

[Alastair]

You see, along with the finale of season 3 of The West Wing I think that 'Live Together, Die Alone' is one of the best things I've ever seen on tv. So, here's my ranking in ascending order:

5/. Season 1
4/. Season 4
3/. Season 5
2/. Season 3
1/. Season 2

It's largely down to the strength of Desmond as a character that I put the season 2 finale at the top. The scene in which he's contemplating suicide and he hears Locke banging on the hatch door is magnificent; I felt so emotionally invested in his survival after he turns the failsafe key.

[Penny]

Season Three - through the looking glass
Season Five - The Incident
Season One - exodus
Season Two - Live together, Die Alone
Season Four - There's No Place Like Home

But if I had to rank the seasons overall, it would be something like -- 1, 4, 3, 5, 2

[Holly]

I was watching the political talk shows last night and heard someone say, "The Democratic Party has been forward-looking while the Republican party has favored looking back."

I couldn't help but think about the flash-backs and flash-forwards on Lost and wonder if the same point is being made there.

There's Desmond, a decidedly "blue" character, who could see flashes of the future.
There's Jack, a "red" kind of guy, whose most over-used line is "We have to go back......"
Are there more examples?

[Alastair]

Holly ... that's a great find! What's interesting is that some of the characters are 'stuck in the past' while others remain in the present but with no way of reaching back into the past to communicate with their friends. This suggests that the two parties are so widely different in their approach that they cannot even speak to one another, let alone try to work together.
Who is in the present? Sun, Lapidus, Ben, 'Locke' (although we know it is not really Locke, but AJ). I suppose Jacob and AJ are also, technically, in the present despite their influence reaching back beyond the 'past' that the other characters inhabit.
The most interesting character, if we consider this idea, is Richard Alpert. He is in the past and the present as characters are interacting with him in both times - he is even able to relay messages, so he is acting as a means of communication.

Just a thought. What if there are more people like Jacob and AJ? What if Alpert is also 'ageless' like them? We know that some people age on the island (Ben and Charles Widmore for example) but these are three who seem not to.

Anyhow, don't forget that not only does Jack keep saying that they have to go back, but they actualy 'go back' not only to the island but back in time. Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Juliet, Hurley, Jin and Sayid also go back.

[Holly]

Your comments about Alpert made me think of Ronald Regean....seemingly ageless while alive and still relaying his message even long after he's gone.

[Alastair]

Interesting, but I don't think Alpert is Reagan. Reagan only became influential in the 1980s, and Alpert has been around much longer than that.