Customer Reviews

The Lost Chronicles : The Official Companion Book

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a bit obsessive in my acquisition of episode guides to various shows. I mean, I have a lot of them. I fear the day when I start picking up books for series that I don't even watch. Probably there's a "Facts Of Life" guide for me in my future. And that way lies madness.

This tome for the TV show "Lost" is definitely a high-end quality product. It's chock full of pictures, all in pleasing and glossy color. It's got a list of the main characters and a synopsis of each Season 1 episode (although I didn't care much for the technique of presenting these summaries as journal entries by an imaginary and apparently omniscient nameless survivor). There is a large section on the genesis of the show, an interview with creators J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof, and quite a lot of "day in the life" material about the behind-the-scenes production of two episodes, focusing mainly on the crew but with a bit of commentary from the cast. And of course, there's a bonus DVD which also deals with various production details (and which may be the same one from the S1 DVD set).

The guide is very slickly done and I mean that in a good way. Hardcore fans of the show should definitely pick this up.

The Lost Chronicles is the next best thing to being on the set of the Emmy winning television show that is a must have for all Lost fans. The book includes interview with the cast and crew, including creators J. J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof and an interview with Ian Somerhalder about being the first cast memeber to be killed off. There is also a detailed episode guide of the first season told in the format of an all-knowing unknown survivor and a detailed look at the production of an episode during a week. On the other hand, the DVD that accompanies the book falls flat. The behind the scenes selections are excerpts from those on the season one DVD set. However, the DVD does include three new deleted scenes of the four included and includes the season one set commercial. In addition, there is a short piece on the season one set that includes interview with Evangeline Lilly, Yunjin Kim, Daniel Dae Kim and, if I remember correctly, Matthew Fox on their feeling of the show coming out on DVD. Overall, the book is a must for any Lost fan while the DVD is for those mediocure fans of the show.

I am a HUGE fan of the show. Having bought Lost on DVD, I had to get this book. I just purchased this book today at Borders (despite the Christmas rush) and shortly began reading it. It gives incredibly helpful insight to Lost. It includes a history of Lost, interviews, and pretty much every interesting aspect of the show. The book also has very vivid and large full color photos on every page. The type is relatively small to encompass more text, which is also at a great level of depth. The book expands on many aspects of the series; everything you might find on Fan web-sites to the DVD's 'special features,' and more.

Very importantly, I like how this book is well-written. Often in books like these, the writing is not stylized and poor. I have been very impressed. Author Mark Cotta Vaz also has written other television show companion-type books, including "Alias: Declassified," and he does an exceptional job collaborating with Lost's executive producers to develop a very thorough book.

I haven't watched the included DVD yet, but I don't expect much from it. With the Season 1 DVDs, I already feel set. Had the book not included the DVD, I still would have bought the book.

This is not exactly a 'coffee-table book,' but I sure wouldn't mind leaving it on my coffee table on display. Its a good-looking book and is a great read - as well as a great potential conversation starter. I may buy more of "The Lost Chronicles", for my friends and family that are fans of the show. If you breathe Lost like I do, do not hesitate to purchase this book any longer.

"The Lost Chronicles" is a nice look inside the making of the hit TV show. The book tells how the pilot of the show was conceived and then filmed; has lots of pictures and interviews with the cast and crew; and a recap of every episode in the first season. There's also an in-depth report on the day by day filming of the episode "In Translation". Also included is a DVD with a behind the scenes look at how they prepared the plane used in the pilot episode; interviews with some of the cast; and some deleted scenes.

For the most part, this is a great companion guide to the TV Series "Lost". The behind the scenes details are fascinating including how they planned to initially kill off Jack and why the producers decided not to do so. The explanation of why they used certain plot devices was also interesting. The interviews with the actors and actresses were fun to read. Especially fascinating was the chapter the covered the filming of one episode - it's amazing how much work is done to film one episode.

Unfortunately, the weakest part of the book is the episode guide. It's written in diary form, but no one person on the island would be able to know what was going on in other character's minds. I was hoping for a more detailed recap with an explanation of both what happened in "real" time and what happened in the flashbacks. I was also hoping for a mention of the "Easter eggs" that happen in most episodes (i.e. Sawyer being taken into custody while Boone is at the police station looking for Shannon). These Easter eggs are an integral part of the show and I was disappointed that they weren't even mentioned in the book.

Other than the episode recaps, I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to Lost fans.

Outstanding! This book gives you extraordinary details into the mechanisms of the show. It is absolutely amazing that this show got started. This book will tide you over during the week until the next episode.

Well done ABC!

I bought this book for my son who didn't watch the series the first time around. He is now obsessively watching them on NetFlix. I only gave the book two stars because it only recaps the first 2 seasons. I was very disappointed when the book arrived. I looked closely at the description and it doesn't say anything about that fact.

If you are looking for a comprehensive book about Lost, then this is not the book you are looking for.

This book had lots of details and information in it about LOST. I think the book was designed mainly for Season 2 because some of the details were ones I already knew know that Season 2 is over and we're on Season 3. It had a neat DVD included with it in the back. I gave it as a gift to another die hard LOST fan and he really enjoyed it!

I really did like this book overall. What was in it interested me. But not all of the information is correct. For example they say that Charlie's brother's name is Ian, but it is actually Liam. I'm probably just being a little too nit-picky, but eh...what can you do? So yeah...4 stars from me!

The Lost Chronicles by Mark Cotta Vaz is the official companion book for the first season of Lost. Since we are coming up on Season Six of Lost in February, the show has obviously been a hit. It has spawned a cottage interest with books and numerous websites covering the various episodes, speculating about the mysterious happenings on the island, and giving people a chance to exchange theories about what they think is really going on.

This book covers the creation of the series and gives the reader an inside look at the production and the creative process involved. It also has a section covering the survivors' stories as well as summaries of each episode from the first season. A number of color illustrations are included plus a DVD that is basically intended to get you interested in buying the boxed set of DVDs for Season One.

I found the book to be extremely interesting as a primer for the show. It really doesn't shed any light on the mysteries of the island, but it will definitely give you an appreciation for the effort required to get the show on the air.

If you're a fan, you will love reading the "back story to the story": how the premise was created, who thought up the polar bear, how the actors were chosen and how the scenes were shot.