Several weeks in advance of Comic-Con 2009, the annual mega-event where (among other things) Lost masterminds Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse end their self-imposed radio silence post-season finale, the powerhouse duo participated in a Q&A for fans in London over the weekend at the Curzon Cinema. A blogger named McLeron attended the event and has provided a complete transcript of all that was revealed.

There’s a lot to digest in the transcript, but here are the comments this blogger believes to be the most telling, along with my thoughts:

• Damon Lindelof: “You are married to your destiny, you can try to avoid it, but it will catch up to you.” I’m thinking this is going to be hugely important in Season 6. Perhaps the hydrogen bomb’s detonation caused some changes to the timeline, but ultimately will not be able to alter the destinies of the main characters.
• Lindelof shut down any possibilities for spin-offs, comic books, or any other continuations of the show once Season 6 ends, saying, “We feel that if we hold anything back for the final season of the show, it will be bad. People have come along this far, and they need a conclusion.” Bravo, Mr. L. A very wise man, you are.
• Lindelof reveals that celebrated comic book writer Brian K. Vaughan, who’s been on the Lost writing staff since Season 3, has “left for greener pastures.” Say what?! I hadn’t heard that. Did we know this already? Somebody help me out here, I’m seriously bummed over this.
• Filming on Season 6 begins Monday, August 24th.
• Regarding where the show’s major characters find themselves, at the beginning of Season 6, Lindelof would only cryptically say, “…everybody gets back together in one form or another, and we feel that Season 6 is a lot like Season 1 with its [feeling of] community.” Sounds like the whole gang is getting back together!

Lost: Messages from the Island is a gorgeous, full-color, 176-page coffee table book from Titan Books, the same folks that publish The Official Lost Magazine. The short description is that the book compiles the best feature articles from the magazine’s coverage of the first two seasons of the show.

But that hardly does it justice. Messages from the Island is a behind-the-scenes, “making of” junkie’s dream come true. The book has interviews with every member of the entire original cast — and several newcomers that joined in Season 2 — and many of the show’s production crew as well, all of whom talk about the origins of the show and reveal little-known secrets about how it first came together. As such, it makes a perfect companion to any Lost fan’s DVD or Blu-ray collection, since it bears the “official” Lost seal, so to speak.

I particularly enjoyed the separate interviews with Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, who both detail their origins with the show, what a typical day is like for them, and their overall philosophies for how they make the show work. But my favorite parts of the book are the conceptual designs, floor plans, never-before-seen images, and storyboards that show just how much thought, planning, and details go into creating everything on Lost. One feature shows off pictures of the Swan station set, and the attention to detail inside that pivotal location is fascinating. Another shows off side-by-side comparisons of a high-tension moment that has storyboards on one side and stills from the final episode on the other. It’s probably the closest thing we’ll ever get to a true, fully illustrated production diary from the show.

The only caveat I can find is that all of the book’s content is drawn from magazine articles written about Seasons 1 and 2. (Presumably materials from the other four seasons’ worth of magazines is being saved for additional volumes.) Needless to say, all of the book’s content feels quite dated. On the other hand, it is pretty nifty to effectively have a “time capsule” look back at the show’s earliest days, when the cast and crew were excited and full of optimism about Lost’s popularity, yet had no idea where the story was going.

A must-have for all true Losties.

Image: Copyright 2009 ©Titan Books.

It’s the rumor that won’t die. Could that be because it’s true?

E! Online was tipped off on Tuesday by “a reliable spy” that actor Dominic Monaghan and Lost mastermind Damon Lindelof “had breakfast together this morning at a Fairfax district eatery in Los Angeles.” Suspicions running on overdrive, E! speculates that either the two of them were just having a friendly get-together, or maybe… they were discussing plans to return Charlie Pace to Lost in its upcoming final season.

What do you think? A load of wishful thinking? Or a genuine possibility?

IGN.com is reporting that the highly anticipated Lost panel at Comic-Con International 2009 has been set for Saturday, July 25th, at 11:AM in Hall H.

For those not in-the-know, the Lost panel at Comic-Con is the traditional time when executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse emerge from their self-imposed end-of-season media blackout, and speak publically for the very first time about the upcoming season. Since the upcoming season in question is Lost’s last one ever, saying that this year’s CCI Lost panel is going to be a big deal would be the understatement of the decade. Darlton always bring some surprises for CCI attendees, usually in the form of special videos, ARG-related stuff, and surprise guests. (Two years ago, Harold Perrineau appeared to promote his return for Season 4; last year, Matthew Fox showed up unexpectedly halfway through the panel.)

The fact that it’s taking place once again in Hall H is huge. Last year, Lost and Heroes became the first two TV shows to ever get to use the cavernous Hall H at Comic-Con, which holds up to 6,500 people, and the back-to-back panels for the two shows garnered standing-room-only crowds. Heroes won’t be holding a panel this year, but Lost’s crew has promised to bring “something special” to CCI.

If you’re planning to attend Comic-Con 2009 and hope to get into the Lost panel… As someone who’s been to Comic-Con the last four years in a row, take my advice and get there insanely early. Camping out the night before might even be worth considering. I’m not joking! Here’s a video shot by a friend of mine that shows just how ridiculously long the line was last year for those of us waiting to get in for the Heroes and Lost panels:

Image: Comic-Con logo Copyright 2009 ©Comic-Con International.

Bravo’s Top Chef Masters is airing an episode tomorrow night entitled “The Lost Supper” that features Lost masterminds Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse as guest judges. According to the show, Lindelof & Cuse are big Top Chef fans, so this week’s challenge for the show’s four remaining chef competitors is to create a meal “using ingredients such as fish, wild boar, fresh fruits and canned goods chosen by The Dharma Initiative, among other island specialties.”

Check out this early peek (and sadly no, there’s no Lindelof/Cuse in this clip):

Death Ray Magazine has a brand new interview with Lost masterminds Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse in which they discuss the coming final season of the show. Much of what’s said in the interview is reiterations of bits we’ve heard before (”negotiating the end date of the show was the smartest thing we ever did,” etc.), but the duo offer a few hints as to what will be addressed, thematically, in the show’s final season.

Carlton Cuse: “…we will answer the questions that we feel are important and central to the show, as well as basically trying to tell redemption stories.”

Death Ray: Is the end of the show about the characters discovering what the purpose of life is?
Carlton Cuse: “It certainly is about them discovering what the purpose of their lives is. Ultimately it doesn’t matter if you were a doctor, a musician, or a torturer, now here on the island is the opportunity to erase the sins of your past… What exactly is [their] destiny?… That’s what the last season of the show will explore.”

Add this to something Lindelof said earlier in the interview: “…this idea of a hero’s journey. Traditionally that journey is a protagonist going on an adventure… They have this call to fulfill their destiny. Well, we’re doing that 14 times, for each and every character.” Sounds to me like Season 6 is going to be a year heavy on redemption and solidifying the show’s main characters as the mythological archetypes we always knew they were.

Even though it’s been said many times before, it’s once again been affirmed by Lost executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse: actress Emilie de Ravin, who stars as Claire Littleton, is returning to Lost for its sixth and final season as a full-time cast member.

Speaking to EW’s Michael Ausiello, Cuse commented, “Damon and I are very excited to bring Claire back to the show, and even more excited for people to experience just how she will return.”

So what do you think? How will Claire return? Will the rest of the cast bump into her while she’s still a ghost hanging out in the jungle with Daddy dearest? Did Juliet change history in the Season 5 finale and prevent Claire from ever ending up on the island? Will she wake up next to Bob Newhart?

Theories: bring it!

Do you Tweet? Twitter (as if you’ve never heard of it) is one of the hottest social networks on the Net, where anyone can sign up to post frequent updates on what they’re currently up to. You can even get updates on your mobile phone, if you like. (Find me under @robinparrish.)

Twitter has a lot to offer fans of Lost. Several actors and people involved with the show are Twitter users, and you can sign up to follow their updates. In addition, there’s a huge fan community of Lost fans on Twitter who post news, information, opinions, and much more. Here’s a handy dandy guide to some of the best and most useful Lost Tweeters out there.

Cast
Unfortunately, none of the current stars are Twitter users, but there are several former cast members and guest stars you can follow:

• @dominicmonaghan - starred as Charlie Pace in Seasons 1-3
• @nathanfillion - guest starred as Kate’s short-lived husband, Kevin Callis; now stars on Castle
• @greggrunberg - appeared as Captain Seth Norris in the pilot; currently stars on Heroes
• @cheechmarin - unconfirmed; plays Hurley’s father, David Reyes

Crew

• @jj_abrams - it’s really him, but he rarely Tweets at all
• @therealdamon (Damon Lindelof) - unconfirmed, but appears legit; rarely Tweets

Fans

• @the_island - home base to a very clever circle of Tweeters that post fictional thoughts as if they were all of the characters we know and love on Lost; from there, you’ll find @jack_shephard_, @benlinus, @smokemonster, and many more
• @lostpedia - essential Tweeting for all Lost fans; often posts news and info before anyone else
• @lost_on_abc - another good one for unique news; could be an ABC official account, but unconfirmed
• @darkufo - updates from the most popular Lost fansite on the Net
• @theodi - one of the most comprehensive Lost news sites on the Net
• & more… find dozens of others here and here

If you know of any other good Twitter accounts for Lost fans, be sure and post them in the Comments!

The 50-minute video below features Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof talking about the show and fielding questions, in a small, intimate venue (Meltdown Comics in Hollywood) for the web series Comics on Comics. Why should you care? Because the nature of this very small venue gives Lindelof license to talk more candidly than any major media interview.

What’s the real reason the show won’t be revisiting Libby’s unresolved storyline? Lindelof tells all, about all sorts of things he doesn’t usually discuss, including the complete story of the cursed numbers. There’s talk about the alternate reality games, the unexplained mysteries of the island, and the upcoming final season.

Note that the video includes language that’s very NSFW.

Thanks to Jake Palmer at Comics on Comics for sending this my way!

I told you earlier this week about a possible new Alternate Reality Game called Who Is Simeon Hobbes? There was no evidence that it was legitimate, but it was done just smart and enigmatic enough to give the appearance of being real.

ABC has since confirmed that Simeon Hobbes is not a new Lost ARG, and there is as yet no indication that there will even be an ARG pre-Season 6. Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse have, however, promised something special and cool at Comic-Con International in late July, which they said in the final Season 5 Official Lost Podcast will be their last Comic-Con appearance ever for Lost.