Lost is probably one of the most controversial shows out there. Airing on ABC for six seasons from 2004 t0 2010, the series, at first glance, appeared to have a fairly simple concept; it followed the lives of plane crash survivors after they were stranded on a remote island. Except, this show is anything but simple, a fact that unravels quickly as the series goes on. Lost was famous for its complex storylines, signature cliffhangers at the end of every season, and the fact that honestly, not a lot of stuff that happens on the island actually makes much sense.
Throughout its six seasons, Lost took many unexpected twists and turns, keeping its viewers on the edge of their seats. As the show neared its final season, things just got weirder and weirder. By the time the series concluded, some fans were left heartbroken, some satisfied, and some utterly confused and bewildered. When Lost ended, it did not tie up all of the loose ends that had been left hanging for several seasons. In fact, the series ended leaving many of its storylines unresolved, which of course left its fans to question what it all meant. So let’s explore some of those unresolved storylines that never got a proper explanation or conclusion.
10. THE POLAR BEARS
The fact that random polar bears would sometimes be seen lumbering about the island, is certainly one of the most famous anomalies on Lost. The show did make an effort to explain how the polar bears originally ended up on the island, though; revealing that they were an experiment of the Dharma Initiative’s.
But the symbolism and all-in-all, the meaning of these polar bears still stands to be one of Lost’s forever unsolved mysteries. In fact, polar bear easter eggs, symbolism, and subtle references were constantly being made throughout the course of the series, without any real explanation.
9. KATE’S HORSE
In the episode, “What Kate Did”, it was revealed that Kate was frequently seeing a black horse appear in random places, and she had no idea why this was. This storyline is one of Lost’s strangest, as the idea of a horse appearing out of nowhere is absolutely bewildering.
The first few times Kate has encounters with this horse, she passes it off as a hallucination, as she can’t come up with any more sensical explanation as to why she’s seeing it everywhere - even on the island. But this theory proves to be wrong when Sawyer witnesses the black horse as well. After this one episode, Lost never really revisits this storylines, and the black horse is just another thing that remains a mystery.
8. THE POINT OF PAULO AND NIKKI
The Lost producers attempted to justify this very strange arc by the fact that many viewers often inquired about the lives of the other plane crash survivors that weren’t main characters. The producers’ answer to this was to create Nikki and Paulo, and write an entire episode dedicated to these characters’ backstories.
Creating two characters and giving them a storyline all because some fans were wondering about the other plane crash survivors, seems like a strange thing to do, so whether there was more to the whole Nikki and Paulo phenomena, remains unknown.
7. HURLEY’S BAD LUCK
Hurley’s streak of terrible luck begins after he wins the lottery, using Lost’s infamous numbers: 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42. Following this, Hurley’s grandfather promptly drops dead. His constant misfortune continues, and the mystery as to why was a fairly significant storyline on Lost.
The show did shed some light on Hurley’s bad luck. When he begins to suspect that the numbers he used to win the lottery are cursed, Hurley begins to do some investigating and discovers that a man named Sam Toomey was supposedly the first to use these numbers, and killed himself to escape his bad luck.
6. LIBBY
Libby, or Elizabeth, was a survivor who had ended up in the tail section of the plane when the crash occurred. Although Libby was a minor character, her arcs were some of the strangest on the show. She seemed to appear in just about every survivor’s life, prior to the plane crash.
Most notably, when the flashback that depicted Hurley’s life in the mental institution took place, Libby was there, even though she and Hugo had presumably never met before the plane crash. This character is certainly an anomaly, and many fans remain curious to this day about who she actually was.
5. JACK AND JULIET’S SON
David Shepherd was a character that only existed in Lost’s signature flash-sideways. He was the son of Jack and Juliet, and the reason for his existence is still something that remains unknown and unexplained to this very day.
The flash-sideways themselves were mysterious, and their meanings are still fairly shrouded in ambiguity. But the character of David Shepherd is one of the strangest things about the flash-sideways, as having Jack and Juliet marry, have a son, and divorce just seemed unnecessary.
4. MR. EKO
Eko Tunde was a sweet and good-natured character who appeared late in the second season of Lost. Much about him still remains a mystery, and many of the storylines that involved him are still unresolved. Mr. Eko was a well-known drug lord, and was the reason that a huge collection of Virgin Mary statues ended up on the island.
Lost delves into Mr. Eko’s backstory a little bit, it’s his demise that is so peculiar. Eko is killed by some monster on the island, and right before he dies, he whispers to Locke, “I saw the Devil”. Who or what this monster is, is never explained.
3. WALT
Walt was the youngest of the plane crash survivors, and a seemingly ordinary little boy. He was separated from his father, Michael, as a baby, and grew up living with his mother and stepfather. Walt’s mother died when he was ten, and Michael soon gained custody.
In season 1, it’s revealed that there is apparently something “special” about Walt. This is touched on in the episode, “Special”, which reveals a little about Walt and his presumable psychic powers. This could have been a good storyline, but the thing is, Lost eventually just abandoned it, and the whole “Walt is special” thing never went anywhere.
2. WHAT DID THE RULES MEAN
Rules are a recurrent, seemingly important theme throughout the entirety of Lost. There are Mother’s rules, Jacob’s rules, the Island’s rules, and all of these are so vague, that no one really knows what exactly the rules are.
Furthermore, the mystery of why the rules even existed in the first place is one that many fans would still like to know the answer to. Specifically, the rule that some characters cannot die or kill themselves. This is one of the Island’s rules, and it’s never explained - it just exists.
1. THE FOOT STATUE
This was one of the most famous - and even comedic - mysteries ever to appear on Lost. Early in the show, the characters see a giant four-toed foot statue just randomly standing on the island. The natural question is why is the big structure of rocks even there, and where did it come from - but this little tidbit of Lost never garnered any resolution.
The statue supposedly predates the Dharma Initiative and goes so far back in the Island’s history, that it was even there in the 1800s when Richard Alpert first arrived on the island. The statue is known as The Statue of Taweret, and is supposed to represent the “key to life.” But why it’s there and how it got there, is something we’ll probably never know.
