TV producers have spent decades trying to replicate the unique appeal of Lost as a series, and one new Hulu show comes as close as any to inheriting the classic sci-fi drama’s throne. Paradise is a beguiling mystery-box story about a group of characters trapped in an unknown location, struggling for survival, told in non-linear flashback form.
On the face of it, the show’s post-apocalyptic scenario is very different from Lost’s initial plane-crash premise, but the rudiments of its plot are remarkably similar to the landmark ABC series. What’s more, Paradise has one key advantage over Lost itself, which highlights the harsh reality that most TV shows of the 2000s faced.
Lost is made up of 121 episodes across just six seasons, each of which were expected to fill a full hour of television, accounting for commercial breaks. Meanwhile, Paradise has just been renewed for a third season after only 16 episodes. The difference in the quantity of content produced by the two series is stark.
Inevitably, quantity tends to have an adverse effect on quality. One reason why no other mystery TV show has become the next Lost is because its ability to deliver 20 episodes of consistent quality every year is almost without parallel among prestige series over the past two decades. By contrast, shows like Paradise can afford to make fewer, better episodes.
Paradise’s First 3 Seasons Combined Contain Fewer Episodes Than Lost Season 1
If Paradise continues at a rate of eight episodes per year into season 3, it will consist of 24 episodes across its first three seasons. On the other hand, Lost had 25 episodes in its first season alone.
In many ways, the ABC mystery-box survival thriller laid the blueprint for top streaming series, with its fluid approach to genre and storytelling, as well as its cutting-edge, big-budget production values, cinematic visual style, and large ensemble cast of main characters. At the same time, it was among the last prestige drama series to average 20 episodes a season.
Even the biggest Lost fan will admit that the demand placed on showrunners by network television for five months of weekly content had a negative impact on their favorite series. With so many episodes to script, the show’s writers invariably created more storylines that they knew what to do with, meaning various plot threads were left hanging.
Lost’s biggest problem was that it frequently collapsed under the weight of its own myriad mysteries, many of which could never be solved. Whereas Paradise has developed a singular overarching mystery at its own pace, supplemented by subplots which tie into its central premise, noughties network TV shows weren’t afforded the freedom to do so.
20+ Episode Seasons Were A Huge Disadvantage For 2000s Network Shows
The irony of the 20+ episode season prescribed by TV networks before the streaming age is that limited creativity by affording shows too much airtime to play with. Paradoxically, forcing screenwriters to come up with 20 hours of television per year restricted the scope for expansive storytelling, by reducing the turnaround time for narrative and script development.
What often resulted was TV seasons featuring a mishmash of episodes haphazardly cobbled together. Even among the best network series of the early prestige era, the average season featured several filler episodes of little to no consequence. There were still TV shows that made a great case for the 20-episode season, but they were typically sitcoms or situational, case-of-the-week dramas.
Lost tried to get around having too many filler episodes by introducing several fresh mysteries or supernatural elements each season, and by using non-linear narratives to mix up its storytelling approach. These experiments in form and content paved the way for streaming shows like Paradise. But they also reduced Lost’s effectiveness as an ingenious small-screen mystery thriller.
- Release Date
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January 26, 2025
- Network
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Hulu
- Showrunner
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Dan Fogelman
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Sterling K. Brown
Xavier Collins
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Julianne Nicholson
Samantha ‘Sinatra’ Redmond
