TWENTY YEARS AGO, the pilot episode of ABC's beloved yet maligned LOST debuted and for-e-ver changed how TV TV'd. In honor of this singular, 121-episode piece of media, we're kicking things off at Lore of the Things by embarking on a 10-part miniseries about the 10 most controversial, infamous, and eternal aspects of LOST. Think: Jack's tattoos, 'purgatory,' the finale.

And where else could we possibly started besides...the polar bears of LOST. Truly, IYKYK.

Why are people still convinced LOST never explained the polar bears? What animal did show creator J.J. Abrams want in the pilot instead? And what do the polar bears represent about LOST's network-driven tension between being a science fiction show and/or a drama that just ~has science~? These are the questions, folks!

Spoiler warning: This episode contains minor spoilers for a show that aired the same year the Motorola Razor debuted. LOST newbies, you are 95% safe here.

Show references/notes:

• THE LOST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF JAVIER GRILLO-MARXUACH
• Emmy's Magazine: J.J. Abrams Unpacks Some of Lost’s Most Memorable Scenes
• TIME: Lost Endweek: Cuse and Lindelof Interview, Part One
  
  

Lore of the Things is produced, hosted, and blood/sweat/tear'd over by Rebecka Green. Find her on Instagram @rebecka_green and email [email protected] with compliments and complaints.

Opening and closing music is "Magical Journey" by Geoff Harvey, and podcast artwork is by Levi Åhlén, @oloflevi, featuring Terry O'Quinn's portrayal of John Locke in the pilot episode of LOST.